Move along please - there is nothing new here!

• This paper considers how researchers can best establish a forward trajectory in their work, individually and collectively. The suggestion is sometimes made in academic circles that it is inappropriate to present work that revisits an area previously discussed within the field. While we accept that any published paper should make an original contribution to what is collectively known about a particular area of inquiry, we nevertheless believe that it is both necessary and desirable to revisit and discuss again topics of significance. Only through reflection upon our own past work and that of others can we build productive learning spirals. Only in this way can we establish and extend a reflexive relationship to future practice. Whilst research needs to maintain an agenda of innovative inquiry, we should also remind ourselves of a need to ‘stand upon the shoulders of giants’ - good research should include reflection upon the accumulated wisdom of our predecessors. In pursuit of inquiry, we should also be open-minded and therefore prepared to revisit ideas and issues previously discarded or forgotten, in the light of fresh evidence or contexts. We believe, therefore, that research methodology should explicitly incorporate opportunities for such reflection. We draw upon examples from our own field of Information Systems research to illustrate these views.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap -- Systemvetenskap, informationssystem och informatik med samhällsvetenskaplig inriktning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Media and Communications -- Information Systems, Social aspects (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

reflection

problem-solving

orders of learning

critically informed research

Publikations- och innehållstyp

kon (ämneskategori)

ref (ämneskategori)