ELSEVIER Journal of Strategic Information Systems 6 (1998) 361-363

Strategic Information systems

B o o k R e v i e w

Information Systems: An Emerging Discipline? John Mingers and Frank Stoweli (Eds.). McGraw-Hill, Maidenhead, 387 pages, ISBN 0077092953.

This is a text which gazes at the navel of information systems. It is an edited book of 13 chapters 'from leading members of the European IS community' (p. xix) (i.e. 14 based in the UK, one in the Netherlands and one in New Zealand). Its principal aim is to raise and address fundamental (this word appears a lot throughout the text) questions arising from the debate about IS emerging as a discipline. It might have been subtitled 'Us by Ourselves' as it is essentially IS's early autobiography - - written by 'major figures in IS' (p. xvii) and about 'the state we're in'. The theme running through the book is whether IS can be seen to be a discipline, and why.

Chapter 1 by Stowell and Mingers introduces the debate. It invokes Bob Dylan to show that we are in need of some collective thought as to where we are going. The background is that, although there are IS courses, chairs, departments, journals and societies, IS does not have its own Research Assessment panel, nor the status that some other subjects seem to have. IS is seen to 'emerge' from computer science and the authors suggest 'that the fundamental difference between CS and IS is that com- puter science is centred upon the functionalist paradigm and IS needs to consider alternative concepts' (p. 5). Indeed, 'IS is actually the most recent stage in the devel- opment of that uniquely human characteristic, language and communication' (p. 6); so it is IS which separates us from other species. The authors feel that, so far, IS is fulfilling a necessary but limited role and the chapter suggests that a wider, more significant role might be on offer. Klein gets his name spelled wrongly throughout unfortunately.

Part One consists of four chapters on the philosophical issues of IS as a discipline. Probert in Chapter 2 argues that as there are 'real, genuine' (p. 21) problems then IS should exist. IS is problem driven - - ultimately the problems are those of 'manage- ment within organisations' (p. 22). However, some might argue that the real emerging problems are those of managing between organisations as this requires a different agenda to be addressed, but this issue is not touched on. Probert identifies three fallacies for IS not being a discipline. The essentialist fallacy is that a discipline should have a core theory of some sort, but as many other 'established' disciplines do not, then IS can hardly be expected to; 'so in IS not only is the search for a core of method or procedure likely to be futile, the demand for one is also' (p. 26). The reductionist fallacy argues that IS is really a branch, or component, of something else. But again, as lots of other disciplines can be reduced by this, it would be unfair to stop IS being a

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discipline just for this reason. The final fallacy, the epiphenomenalistic, is that disciplines reflect and interact with an ontologically static and unchanging world. But this is not so, emergence and the creation of new ontological categories by aca- demic disciplines takes care of that. What IS needs is techniques for analysing the actual relationships between the subjects conducting the analysis and the objects in the study. This interesting and thought-provoking chapter ends by dismissing SSM advocates' 'facile tendency to treat IS as, by the large, subjective constructs' (p. 48). This raises a point which has wider applicability to the whole text. It would have been interesting to get a rebuttal of such a view and, if we really want to know how IS is viewed, then perhaps get views from people outside IS - - the computer scientists, psychologists, sociologists, etc. (or even practitioners) who have not 'converted' to IS.

Chapter 3 by Spaul suggests that disciplines have a sense of their own worth and that this is both necessary and permanent. He argues the need for nomadic intellec- tuals and cautions against exclusion and prescription. In Chapter 4 Jones highlights the confusion over the three meanings of discipline - as a branch of learning, as order and as chastisement. He suggests three disciplines, subscripted 1-3, where the first is normative, emphasising the existence of established rules, the second is descrip- tive and concerns what is included, while the third is a mechanism of control. IS is found not to meet the requirements for the first, it probably does for the second - - but does not deserve it and it might be better to see IS as a field or area of study. 'Just because IS is not a 'discipline', it doesn't mean that those involved in the field are not 'disciplined' (p. 109). In Chapter 5, Avison reflects on teaching research and practice in IS.

Part 2 looks at research issues. By and large this section is very interesting and useful but it is not clear exactly what its purpose is and how it fits with the rest of the book.

Chapter 6 contains Gallier's reflections on IS research, while Stowell, West and Stansfield investigate action research in Chapter 7. This contains a useful set of practical lessons. In essence, they argue that researchers should conduct a risk analysis of a potential research project to highlight and plan for potential pitfalls. Chapter 8 introduces critical systems thinking and discusses what it has to offer to IS research. Jackson feels IS can benefit from critical systems thinking and gives a nice, extended example. Chapter 9 is an excellent review of interpretive research. Myers succinctly takes us through issues of interpretive research in IS, arguing that it offers rigor and insight into real world situations. Stamper offers organisational semiotics as a research tool in Chapter 10. Again, as an introduction to the topic, this is very useful.

Part 3 is about practice and education. Chapter 11 looks out of place as it is not about IS research nor IS as a discipline but is a piece of IS research looking at the success of strategic information systems. Given what precedes it and the tone of the book, this chapter sits very uneasily with the rest. Indeed, the editors introduce it as 'a contribution to IS research' (p. 285); it is, but why it is here is something of a mystery. The ending of this paper states that 'it is concluded that the research framework is able to explain the fundamental reasons for the degree of success with strategic information systems' (p. 317). This is a substantial claim and a particularly strong

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one given the nature of this text. In the second chapter in this part, Work reflects on IS curricula and states that he doesn' t want an official one - - but then who does? He argues for a reversion to liberal education.

How does one round off such a text? A number of alternatives spring to mind, a review by the editors, perhaps a concluding chapter by a well-known (possibly Scandinavian) academic, or a real contrast. Here we have an 'alternative' view by Angell. Those familiar with Angell's views [workers leaving for cyberspace collapse- hotspots dogs-eating-dogs (or perhaps dogs not using dogs' IS in the way they are intended?) age of rage, etc.] will be reassured that things are going to get a lot worse. Readings who stumble onto this anew will be fascinated, challenged and probably disturbed, but certainly not bored. This chapter is interesting and, agree or not, we need someone to say this sort of thing. The chapter concludes by asking 'do you have the vision to win?'.

This is a text that we need. It is a good drawing together of a number of strands on which IS needs to reflect before it marches on. Whether this is the 'truly exciting time for IS' that the foreword suggests remains to be seen, but certainly we stand not so much at a crossroads, more at a spaghetti junction, in IS and need to be clearer about what we are or want to be. Who is this book for? Well, the foreword suggests that it is 'a marvellous source material for undergraduate and postgraduate student (sic) studying IS' (p. xvii). One hopes that we can attract more than just the one. More seriously, while the text has many valuable chapters it is very difficult to see how it would fit into an undergraduate course in IS. However, it should be required reading for postgraduates and anyone researching in IS. The editors are to be congratulated on producing this work, it is to be recommended.

Philip Powell Information Systems Research Unit

Warwick Business School University of Warwick, UK