The Future is Now: Calling for a Focus on Temporal Issues in Information Systems Research

Venkatesh, V., Sykes, T.A., Aljafari, R., and Poole, M.S. 'The Future is Now: Calling for a Focus on Temporal Issues in Information Systems Research,' Industrial Management & Data Systems (121:1), 2021, 30-47. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-08-2020-0506

29 Pages Posted: 28 Jan 2022

See all articles by Viswanath Venkatesh

Viswanath Venkatesh

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University - Pamplin College of Business

Tracy Sykes

University of Arkansas

Ruba Aljafari

University of Pittsburgh - Katz Graduate School of Business

Marshall Scott Poole

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Date Written: November 8, 2021

Abstract

Purpose: As information systems (IS) phenomena continue to emerge and evolve in our ever-changing economic and social contexts, researchers need to increase their focus on time in order to enrich our theories. We present broad suggestions for IS researchers about how they can direct some of their research efforts to consider, conceptualize and incorporate time into research endeavors, and how they might be mindful about considering and specifying time-related scope conditions of their research efforts.

Methodology/Approach: We synthesize empirical studies and discuss three distinct yet related frameworks of time and the benefits they can provide. We choose two research streams that reflect dynamic IS and social contexts—namely, enterprise systems and social networks—to illustrate how time and frameworks of time can be leveraged in our theory development and research design.

Findings: We demonstrate that limited research in IS has incorporated a rich conceptualization and/or discussion of time. We build on this gap to present recommendations that researchers can adopt to enrich their view of time.
Originality/Value: Given the dynamic nature of IS phenomena and the increased availability of longitudinal data, our suggestions urge and guide IS researchers about ways in which they can incorporate time into their theory and study designs.

Suggested Citation

Venkatesh, Viswanath and Sykes, Tracy Ann and Aljafari, Ruba and Scott Poole, Marshall, The Future is Now: Calling for a Focus on Temporal Issues in Information Systems Research (November 8, 2021). Venkatesh, V., Sykes, T.A., Aljafari, R., and Poole, M.S. 'The Future is Now: Calling for a Focus on Temporal Issues in Information Systems Research,' Industrial Management & Data Systems (121:1), 2021, 30-47. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-08-2020-0506, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3958479

Viswanath Venkatesh (Contact Author)

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University - Pamplin College of Business ( email )

VA
United States

HOME PAGE: http://vvenkatesh.com

Tracy Ann Sykes

University of Arkansas ( email )

United States

Ruba Aljafari

University of Pittsburgh - Katz Graduate School of Business ( email )

Pittsburgh, PA 15260
United States

Marshall Scott Poole

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - College of Liberal Arts and Sciences ( email )

Champaign, IL 61820
United States

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