This special issue may be of interest. In this context, “information systems” means the use of computers for business administration. (I believe it evolved historically as the “M” was gradually dropped from MIS beginning in the 1970s). The intention behind the special issue seems good, particularly its attention to historiographic issues, and there are some respectable names behind it. I did notice that not one of the twelve people named as senior or associate editors is what you might call a card carrying historian of computing.

Getting some work from our community into the issue might be a good way of bridging that divide. One topic I’ve been thinking of lately is the challenge of trying to study the history of a field from within and possible models for the happy interaction of insider and outsider history. (This is, of course, a perennial topic of conversation at IEEE Annals board meetings).

Tom

From: sighfis-l-bounces@asis.org [mailto:sighfis-l-bounces@asis.org] On Behalf Of Kathryn La Barre
Sent: Thursday, April 28, 2011 12:55 PM
To: sighfis-l@asis.org
Subject: [Sighfis-l] CFP: Journal of Information Technology Special Issue: Why History Matters

Call for Papers for a Special Issue of
Journal of Information Technology

Information Systems: Why History Matters

Senior Editors:
Antony Bryant
Alistair Black
Frank Land
Jaana Porra

Any discipline or field of professional practice has a history. A proper understanding of the discipline needs to be based on a widespread awareness of that history. The field of information systems (IS) is no different in this regard. As the IS field matures, it needs to evolve a historical perspective on its own subject matter.

Although there has been some significant work within IS studies that relies upon and uses historical data, there is little by way of information historiography to guide further work and future research. This is ironic given that information systems themselves are now the fons et origo of contemporary (richly demonstrated by the recent WIKILEAKS affair) and future archives. In addition, there is significant reliance upon case studies, and other forms of historical narrative, in IS research and general IS literature. So it is essential that those working within IS studies understand the role and nature of archives and other historical sources, both in terms of a resource for research into information history, and as a topic for discussion amongst archivists, historians, and other information and information system researchers and professionals: Also developing an awareness of the processes underlying the development of archives as social artefacts.

The interest in producing IS history encompasses many disciplines and varying perspectives on IS. The IS discipline itself is closely related to other disciplines or research domains, such as information studies, information science, library history, organizational studies, business studies, software engineering (including requirements engineering), HCI, AI, CAD/CAM, criminology, social studies, behavioural sciences, economics and communication studies – although all too often these links are ignored or simply forgotten. In so doing, the IS community is missing an opportunity to engage with, and learn from, others with differing perspectives on topics of common interest. Furthermore, this engenders an uneasy feeling that many current IS issues and concerns might be at least partially resolved with a better knowledge and understanding of ‘information history’ in its broadest sense.

The purpose of this special issue is to provide a broad based platform for an IS historical discourse. Thus, we welcome contributions from all fields that are concerned with the IS subject matter. While many aspects and areas of IS studies rely on historical data, evidence and archives, the common goal is to produce a body of IS history. In this spirit, we invite contributions on a variety of topics related to IS history. Such topics may touch upon fundamental philosophical questions such as: What is IS history? At a more practical level, they may include areas such as:

• the development of information history as a multidisciplinary research effort

• an analysis of historical approaches and methods and what these can provide for the IS researcher

• the existence of primary sources for IS history, and associated problems of access and methodology

• the nature of the archive

• good examples of the use of historiographic approaches to IS studies

• previously unpublished histories

• the study of the evolution of the IS disciplines

• how the boundaries of the discipline were set and defined

• the study of the evolution of IS organization, practice and management, including such practices as outsourcing

• the study of the evolution of the IS profession

• the study of the evolution of the role of information systems and professionals in organizations

• the study of the evolution of IS design methodologies

• the study of evolution of IS applications

• exploring the management of change

• the importance of understanding the pre-history of IS as currently defined, including continuities or contrasts with earlier pre-computer phases, technologies and systems

• the study of IS innovation and diffusion including: stages of growth models; the study of IS success and failure; use and policies around public and private archives

• information archives in the age of Freedom of Information legislation, PR and spin

• the use of history as an instrument for understanding the present and planning the future; and the consequent dangers of ‘presentism’

• the inevitability of the ‘double hermeneutic’ in unravelling the historical record

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Frank Bannister, Trinity College, Dublin

Rudy Hirschheim, Distinguished Professor of Information Systems at the EJ Ourso College of Business Administration at Louisiana State University, USA

Nathalie Mitev, Department of Information Systems, LSE, UK

Neil Pollock, Reader in e-business, University of Edinburgh, UK

Neil Ramiller Professor of Management, School of Business Administration, Portland State University

Boyd Rayward, Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois, USA

Burt Swanson, Professor and Area Chair for Information Systems at the UCLA Anderson School, USA

Toni Weller, Visiting Research Fellow in History, Department of Historical and Social Studies, De Montfort University, UK

DEADLINES & SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Information about JIT, including formatting requirements, can be found at http://www.palgrave-journals.com/jit/index.html

Questions about the special issue can be directed to Tony Bryant [a.bryant@leedsmet.ac.uk]

Papers should be submitted to JIT [JITedoffice@lse.ac.uk] with the title of the Special Issue in the Subject Line.

Timetable:
December 31 2011 Articles submitted
July 31 2012 Reviews returned to authors
October 31 2012 Revised version of articles due

December 31 2012 Final papers selected
June 2013 Publication of Special Issue

--
Kathryn La Barre
Assistant Professor
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign