An Historical Method for MIS Research: Steps and Assumptions1

Richard O. Mason; James L. McKenney; Duncan G. Copeland

doi:10.2307/249499

An Historical Method for MIS Research: Steps and Assumptions1

Richard O. Mason¹; James L. McKenney²; Duncan G. Copeland³

¹ Southern Methodist University, Edwin L. Cox School of Business, Dallas, TX 75275, U.S.A. · ² Harvard Business School, Soldiers Field, Boston, MA 02163, U.S.A. · ³ Copeland & Company, Potomac, MD 20854, U.S.A.

MIS Quarterly 1997

Historical research offers perspectives on phenomena that are unavailable by any other methodological means. They reflect the cultural circumstances and ideological assumptions that underlie phenomena and the role played by key decision makers together with long-term economic, social, and political forces in creating them. Each of these benefits is accompanied by limitations such as, in most cases, a lack of mathematical tractability. The careful application of historical methods can overcome some of these limitations. A seven-step methodology is proposed: begin with focusing questions, specify the domain, gather evidence, critique the evidence, determine patterns, tell the story, and write the transcript.

DOI: 10.2307/249499
Volume: 21 (3)
Pages: 307-320
Language: en
Export: BibTeX
Sources: crossref