Extending Prior Research with Design Science Research: Two Patterns for DSRIS Project Generation

Constructivist research - learning through building - is the core of a large stream of design science research in IS. Architecture has always explored through this paradigm: more recently, engineering-related disciplines, education and medicine have adopted it as well. Constructivist methods are chosen in all cases because many systems problems are 'wicked': difficult, multi-faceted and frequently exhibiting aspects that emerge only during attempted solution of the problem. Constructivist methods excel at the investigation of incompletely understood problems where the variables of study are inextricably confounded or theory is sparse. In this paper we present two patterns by which the power of constructivist methods can be directed at extending and generating practice-focused results from prior research for the benefit of the Information Systems discipline. The first pattern generates DSRIS projects based on theoretical findings: the second pattern generates DSRIS projects to clarify and extend poorly understood facets of large real-world artifacts/systems.