COURSE WORK SPRING 2012 KEY ISSUES IN INFORMATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT CRN 28176 Email Address: ki@basden.demon.co.uk ** Please note: In some countries 'assignment' refers to unmarked material, but here 'assignment' refers to work that is marked and contributes to your degree mark. This work is marked as as though it is an exam. ** 1. INTRODUCTION: THE TWO ASSIGNMENTS The module 'Key Issues in Information Systems Development' has no examination. Instead, the assessment involves two written assignments. Assignment 1 is meant to be undertaken in a group with others. Assignment 1 reports on group aspectual analysis of a topic in ISD. Assignment 2 is to be undertaken invididually. Assignment 2 discusses what you have learned in the module. Each assignment contributes 50% of the final mark. 1.1 Deadlines » Submit Assignment 1 (Group) by Tuesday 3rd April 2012 by paper to School Postgraduate Office and by email above. (If you are not around in the week that includes Tuesday 3rd April, you must submit it by Friday 30th March.) » Submit Assignment 2 (Individual) by Monday 30th April 2012 by paper to School Postgraduate Office and by email above. 1.2 The Difference About Masters Assignments Please see Appendix 1 for an analogy that one student found useful. Important: Masters assignments are not like an undergraduate exam. In an undergraduate exam you might get marks for writing down correctly what was in the lectures, because an undergraduate exam is partly a test of memory and retention. But an assignment at masters level is a test of your ability to think for yourself. So in Masters assignments, especially in this module, you are expected to write down the results of your own thinking, NOT the content of the lectures. You will gain marks for original thinking that is of good quality. You will NOT gain marks for material that I find elsewhere unless that material is enclosed in "double quotation marks" and the source of the material is given as a reference. (See below for how to reference.) 2. ASSIGNMENT 1: GROUP ASPECTUAL ANALYSIS This assignment contributes 50% of the marks the student will receive for the module. The deliverable from this assignment is a report resulting from undertaking an aspectual analysis. The educational aim of this assignment is to give the student practical experience of aspectual analysis to reveal key issues in ISD, and of team working, and to learn something of the specific topic studied. 2.1 Object of Assignment 1 The object of the assignment is to use Dooyeweerd's aspects and the idea of four human activities in ISD to understand Open Source Software Development (OSSD) and what makes it successful or not. OSSD is an approach to creating software that is usually free, rather than sold. So, for example, there is an ethical (self-giving) aspect, since developers are working and then giving their software away. But: is this self-giving aspect in Orchestrating the Whole Project, Anticipating Use, Creating the IS, or Knowledge Acquisition? That is for you to discuss and decide. 2.2 The Groups There will be two groups of 4 people each. The groups may select, or might be allocated, to a pair of books from the above list. First come, first served. The reasons for working together are: to share the work among yourselves, to help one another understand Dooyeweerd's aspects and the processes of aspectual analysis, to help each other understand the topic being analysed, and to stimulate experience of aspectual analysis by discussion. If problems occur in the groups, please contact the module supervisor so that resolutions can be found. 2.3 The Research What each member of the team is expected to do is to read literature on OSSD and find short passages that express an aspect of each of the four ISD activities. Each team member should aim to find at least two passage for each aspect from analytic to pistic (nine aspects), and decide which ISD activity of OSSD each passage refers to. The will give 18 passages per member. The members of the team should them merge their passages, by ISD activity and aspect, to present them as a report, with discussion. (Note: "aim to find" means that you might not be able to find two for each aspect, in which case you should find more in other aspects.) 4 members of team each with 18 passages, makes 72 passages total. This will provide a good overall picture of what is important in OSSD. See below for required format. Then the group together should discuss what they find and write a discussion section and conclusion together. 2.4 Sections The following is the sections I expect to find in the Group Assignment Report. Section 1. Group Details List of members of group, what each member has done in the research. Section 2. Aspects of Open Source Software Development. ** This is the longest section, and it should have four subsections: ** 2.1 Entries from Team Member 1 2.2 Entries from Team Member 2 2.3 Entries from Team Member 3 2.4 Entries from Team Member 4 In each section, entries should be sorted into aspect order (analytic, formative, lingual, social, economic, juridical, ethical, pistic). Each entry should consist of the following: » The passage itself, exact wording in "double quotes"; » The reference from which the passage came, including author, date and page number; the reference should then be cited in full in a References section at the end; » which ISD activity, and explain why it is of this ISD activity; » which aspect is the main one in which what is said in the passage about OSSD is meaningful; » why it is of that aspect; » other aspects that are important in the passages, and why; » the initials or name of the team member who supplied this entry. Section 3. Discussion Here summarise what you have found. To do this, count up the number of passages per aspect in each ISD activity, and express these figures in a five column table (column 1 is aspect, columns 2 to 5 are the four ISD activities). Example row: Aspect Whole Proj Ant. Use Create IS Kg Acq ... Social 6 2 4 0 Then discuss what you find, for example any aspects that have more entries than others, aspects that have zero entries, etc. Discuss why these might be so. This section with its table and discussion should be written by discussion. References. Here give the list of references you cite. Separate Sheets. Individual Reflection. Individual Reflections. Each team member should write two things on a separate sheet: (a) explain what they did, and (b) discuss aspects of working together as a team, giving positive and negative as you wish. 2.5 Deliverable for Group Assignment The group should deliver to the MSc office, by the deadline, one copy of the Report for Group Assignment. This should be printed double-sided. Do NOT waste paper by creating a contents page. Also an electronic version should be emailed to the email address given at the start of this document. There is no word length limit for this assignment, because it depends on what is found, with more expected from larger groups. Please submit, by the Deadline: » A printed copy of Group Assignment Report. This is the copy I will mark. » Each student to submit their Individual Reflections sheet. I will mark this. » An electronic copy of both the Group Assignment Report and the Individual Reflections by email to the address given at the start. I will store these away. The printed copy should be type written in 12 point font [minimum] on A4 paper, and all sheets should be stapled at the top left-hand corner of the document. Please use *double-sided printing*, because I want both you and the University to be environmentally responsible (not wasting paper or the energy that goes into making it). The reason for this is because responsibility is a fundamental Key Issue in ISD and students are expected to learn it not just in their minds but also in their activity. Extra marks are awarded for double-sided printing. The electronic copy should be either in plain text format (pasted into the email) or in .doc (Word 2003) format or in HTML format. It MUST NOT be in .pdf format, because I cannot handle them easily; if it is in these formats then you will lose a couple of marks. 2.6 Roles of Members All group members must be involved in all the following activities. » Get to understand and internalize Dooyeweerd's aspects, and to learn how to undertake aspectual analysis. » Help other group members in understanding Dooyeweerd's aspects and aspectual analysis. » By reading literature, come to understand OSSD: why it exists, what it proposes, and the methods and techniques it stipulates. » Select 18 passages from this literature, which express important aspects of OSSD. » Using aspectual analysis on each passage, write an entry for each passage (see format below). » Discuss each others' entries, and suggest improvements. Resolve disagreements about aspects, either by convincing each other or agreeing to differ (in which case the entry should show the two or more views). » Ensure that each member has a different set of passages. » Pool the entries of all members to form Section 2 (see below). » Discuss the prevalence of various aspects and collaborate in creating Section 3 (discussion with table) and the references. » Undertake aspectual analysis of your experience of team working and write Individual Reflection (see below). 2.7 Hints for Carrying Out the Research # It is the responsibility of the group as a whole to ensure that all members have good contributions, and so good work will reflect on all members and bad work will reflect on all members. So you should help each other. # You should discuss aspects of passages together. This # Aspectual analysis. Keep referring to "http://www.dooy.info/aspects.html", especially the table at the bottom of the page. As you read, make notes (mental and on paper/screen) of which aspects the authors are speaking about, and of which ISD activities. When you read about a strength or weakness, make notes about in which aspect(s) the strength is 'good' or the weakness is 'evil' (see the 'Good' column of the aspects.html table). Often more than one aspect is involved. # Discuss what you find with your team colleagues. You can also discuss the meaning of aspects with any colleague on the module. # Use your imagination. 2.8 Marking Criteria for Group Assignment A mark will be given for the whole team, on criteria below. Then the marks of individual members might be differentiated according to the quality and accuracy of their aspects, the amount of work each has put in, their individual reflections and their attitude. Those who print double-sided will gain a mark; those who print single sided will lose a mark. This is to indicate that what is taught on this module is not just theory, hut is supposed to be put into practice and to add to responsibility in our ISD and elsewhere. Being environmentally responsible in lots of small ways (such as printing double-sided) is one important aspect of ISD project overall (think: which one?). Criteria that will be taken into account in marking Group Assignment include (but are not restricted to): » understanding of the aspects, and to what extent the aspects are well- covered » demonstration of understanding of OSSD » relevance and quality of discussion of aspects of the passages » ability to critically evaluate OSSD using aspects, » quality of discussion in section 3 » evidence of good group work, such as helping each other. In the Group Assignment, evidence of thinking for yourselves is found in the quality of discussion of aspects of OSSD. It is also found in what you write in your Individual Reflection. The rules for obtaining Distinction, Pass, Fail, etc. are not strictly defined, and will depend on judgment. It is very difficult to define what is required, but, the following guidelines may be useful to both student and marker, but they must be read with common sense: » A Distinction may be obtained if the group demonstrates excellent understanding of the notion of aspects and the kernel meanings and norms of all aspects, shows very good discussion of why each aspect is assigned, especially in discussing ambiguities, demonstrates good ability to apply this understanding in a natural (intuitive) way to the topic of the assignment in a diverse manner, demonstrates excellent working together. Of course, any identification of ISD activities must be correct. The good student will also have a very good discussion and aspectual analysis in their Individual Reflection sheet. » A Pass might occur if the student demonstrates industry and reasonable understanding of aspects and aspectual analysis of ISD activities referred to in a reasonable selection of strengths and weaknesses. This will be demonstrated by reasonable understanding of aspects and ISD activities. » A Fail might occur if the student demonstrates a lack of industry in understanding the aspects and in how to apply them, poor understanding of the methodology and the activities of ISD: this may be demonstrated by too few features are identified, if there is consistent wrong assignment of a majority of aspectual kernels without convincing explanation of why they have been thus assigned, if the discussion of aspects of each feature is too cursory, if the ISD activities are consistently wrong. 3. ASSIGNMENT 2: INDIVIDUAL ESSAY This assignment contributes 50% of the marks the student will receive for the module. In this assignment you must write an essay of around 2,500 words, that is a critical reflection on your learning experiences resulting from the Key Issues module. TITLE: My Learning Experience of the Module 'Key Issues in Information Systems Development'. This work is to be undertaken by yourself, individually. You must NOT work with others on this assignment (though you are allowed to discuss each others' assignments and offer advice to each other). The essay should cover at least the following four themes: 1. your background and what you originally hoped to gain from the Key Issues module 2. what you learned during the module that you found important or interesting 3. why you found it important, interesting, valuable or useful 4. how you intend to apply what you have learned in future. To execute this essay, the following resources should be employed: » The modules handouts » The notes you made during the lectures module, and what you remember from the lectures » The 'Client Centred' book » The notes you made while undertaking Assignment 1 » The discussions you had during Assignment 1 » Papers and books read during the module - you are expected to seek other material related to your especial interests. 3.1 Deliverable for Individual Assignment This assignment must be all your own work, and must not be shared with others. You must not copy the work of anyone else: no part of the assignment may be a copy from any document, whether amended or not, except that it is a short quotation in quotation marks and a reference is given to where it came from. You should deliver to the Masters office on or before the deadline, a paper copy printed double-sided. Also you should email an electronic version to the email address given at the start. What gains marks is your own original thinking and your good understanding of what you have learned, and NOT material copied from the lecture notes or others. I suggest you write the Individual Assignment with the following sections, for which a guideline is given for how words are appropriate. Section 1. My Background and Expecations Here, briefly summarise your background and what you expected from the Key Issues module. About 200 words. Section 2. What Important Things I Have Learned from the Module. Here you should describe briefly what you learned, if anything, from each part of the module: » the CCA book » the lectures and lecture notes and other handouts » the research undertaken by the group » aspectual analysis » anything else you believe you learned during this module. With each thing learned, explain briefly for what reasons and in what ways it is an important thing to learn for those working in ISD. To discuss this, you should read other books and papers on ISD and give references to these. This is one of the parts that usually gains better marks. DO NOT JUST GIVE THE DETAIL OF WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED BUT SUMMARISE IT AND DISCUSS IN WHAT WAYS YOU THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO ISD AND GIVE REASONS. EXPLAIN THINGS IN YOUR OWN WORDS AND IN YOUR OWN WAY. Marks are given for the quality and amount of work you do. So » Do not copy text from another assignment (e.g. a group member or a previous student). You will get zero marks for this. » Do not reproduce material from another assignment (copying but changing words). Again, you will get very few marks for this. » Do not merely reproduce what is in the Client Centred book or lecture notes, or papers you read. You will get few marks for this. This is because none of those provide evidence that you have really learned it. It is evidence that you have learned things well that gives marks. To give evidence that you have learned things well, you should seek to understand them well and explain them in your own way. So you should ensure that you really understand topics like aspects, the four activities of ISD, client centred, etc. well enough to be able to explain what you have learned in your own way. You can include text from other sources (such Client Centred book or lecture notes of papers) but when you do, you must enclose it in "double quotes" and give the reference. About 800 - 1200 words. Section 3. The Value of What I Learned Here you should discuss in what ways you found what you learned particularly valuable - useful, important, interesting or fascinating. Discuss *why* you found them valuable. If you want to get good marks here, this should not be a mere list of things, but the reason why you found each thing valuable should be discussed. In this discussion, you are advised to make reference to (a) your own personal experience (b) papers and other articles that you have read, discussing how each relates to the value of the things you learned. Note: You can also discuss some of the things that were NOT valuable, but if you do so, you MUST discuss why this was so, preferably with reference to papers you have read. About 400 - 800 words. Section 4. How I Intend to Apply What I Learned in Future Discuss how you intend to apply some of the things you learned. You could apply it to your previous experience or learning in ISD. Or to your future intentions in ISD or professional life. Or to your personal life. Or anything else you wish. Discuss in what ways you intend to change the ways you do things. BE SPECIFIC about what you intend to apply. If you do not intend to change the ways you do things, nor to apply anything from the module, then discuss why not. About 300-600 words. Section 5. Conclusion Anything else you wish to say, about the module or about either of the assignments. Section 6. References Make a list of any references that you have used in your Individual Report. For each reference you should provide the following information: » Names of authors. » Date of article. » Title of article. » Source. (For a book, this is the name of the publisher. For a journal article, this is the name of the journal, with volume number and page numbers. For a chapter in a book, this is the name of the book, and the names of the authors and the publisher. For a web page, give URL and date it was accessed.) See Appendix on Referencing. The report should be around 2,500 words including references, no less than 2000, no more than 3000. Please submit, by the Deadline: » A printed copy of Individual Assignment Report » An electronic copy of Report by email to the address given at the start. The printed copy should be type written in 12 point font [minimum] on A4 paper, *printed double-sided* and all sheets should be stapled at the top left-hand corner of the document. The electronic copy should be either in plain text format (pasted into the email) or in .doc format or in HTML format. It MUST NOT be in .pdf or .docx (Word 2007) formats, because I cannot handle them easily; if it is in these formats then you will lose a couple of marks. 3.2 Marking Criteria for Individual Assignment Report Those who print double-sided will gain a couple of extra marks. This is to indicate that what is taught on this module is not just theory, hut is supposed to be put into practice and to add to responsibility in our ISD and elsewhere. Being environmentally responsible in lots of small ways (such as printing double-sided) is one important aspect of ISD project overall (think: which one?). Criteria that will be taken into account in marking the Individual Assignment include (but are not restricted to): List 1: » Learning from all parts of module » Understands the parts well » Number and quality of learnings List 2: » That the student has internalised what they have learned » That the student has made meaningful links that I did not make » Excitement or appreciation » Significance of learning: widening, deepening, undergirding (i.e. more than learning mere facts, rules or theories) » Openness to new approaches » Their learning is meaningful to them (a) "I used to think xxx but now I realise yyy" (b) "I was surprised that zzz was the case" » Understands its place in the world (a) wider reading (b) application in life, e.g. work life, (c) intend to adopt it » Self-awareness, self-reflection, self-critique The second list is more important than the first. So a mere statement of what you learned is not impressive. In Appendix 1 you can find some advice I sent to a student, on what is required at Masters level. It will help you see what is needed for good marks, and why this is. In the Individual Assignment, evidence of thinking for yourselves is found in your discussion of what you have learned, in what you write that shows you found it valuable or interesting, and in what you write about how you intend to apply what you have learned. If you write down the wording in the lecture notes and CCM book, you are likely to lose marks rather than gain them; instead, you should think about what was in the lecture notes and CCM book and re-express those thoughts in your own words. The rules for obtaining Distinction, Pass, Fail are not strictly defined, and will depend on judgment. It is very difficult to define what is required, but, the following guidelines may be useful to both student and marker, but they must be read with common sense: » A Distinction may be obtained if the student demonstrates excellent learning of selected topics of the module coupled with genuine appreciation of what has been learned, and gives a sense that they understand how all the topics work together as important in ISD. It is not necessary to show learning of all topics of the module, but they will usually include excellent understanding of aspectual analysis and of the nature and norms of ISD activities and how they relate to each other. Appreciation is demonstrated by showing excitement and showing good thought of how the student will apply what has been learned in the future. There will usually be creative thinking that goes beyond and extends intelligently what was taught on the module. Appropriate reference to other literature can also be taken as evidence of understanding and appreciation, especially in linking module topics to wider knowledge of ISD and other things. » A Pass can be obtained as long as the student demonstrates they have actually learned a reasonable amount of material of the module to the extent of understanding it and being able to apply it, and valuing at least some of what was learned. » A Fail might be obtained if the student shows little interest in the module's content and that little work has been done. Evidence for this is that a lot of what was learned is text that could have been drawn directly from the Client Centred book, the lecture notes (copied with a few rewordings), or other sources (such as Internet documents) without discussion, and without evidence of understanding what was written, and without evidence that the student valued what was taught. 4. CONCLUSION These two assignments are designed not just to assess your learning during the module, but to give you actual practice at aspectual analysis and understanding a topic in ISD in detail, and to stimulate your reflection on what you have learned and to get you thinking about how you might apply it. They are designed to ensure that, as far as you wish to, you can take away with you when you leave the course, something that will be of value to you in the future. I wish you every success as you undertake these assignments. Andrew Basden. Professor of Human Factors & Philosophy in Information Systems. APPENDIX 1 - ADVICE ON WRITING MASTERS ASSIGNMENT Writing a Masters assignment is like weaving cloth with a good pattern. Think of a master weaver at work: 1 He designs a good pattern, 2 selects threads of just the right colour and material, 3 which he has obtained from someone else, with either money or thanks, and for which he is willing to give credit, 4 He understands well how the different kinds of thread behave in cloth and in the weaving process, 5 and then he weaves them with skill so that the resulting cloth is as good as possible 6 but he is able to tell (with his expert eye) what is very good and what is flawed (like twists, knots and foreign bodies in the threads, and where he has woven the thread less well than he might wish) and why they are good or flawed and what should be done to prevent or overcome the flaws. This is what one would expect of a master weaver of good cloth. Writing an assignment of masters quality is like weaving good, well- patterned cloth. The assignment must demonstrate: 1 that the majority is a product of your own thinking, not that of somebody else's 2 that where you use pieces of other people's thinking you do so intelligently and appropriately, selecting what is relevant and leaving out what is not relevant 3 that where you use somebody else's thinking you reference them explicitly, to give due credit to them 4 that you have fully understood the you are writing about 5 that you have been able to manipulate and use what you have understood 6 that you can view what you have written about critically, knowing what is really good and what is poor, rather than just accepting things as they are. If you want, you can find direct similarities between the two cases: 1 It is all your own design overall. You need to show what *you* learned and in what ways *you* found it valuable and will use it. 2 The threads you use are the material you learned on the module and what you have read in books and papers, and you have selected them well. For example, in the case of 'What I Learned', the threads would be pieces from CCM, KBS, aspects, ISD, aspectual analysis in group, and anything else you read e.g. about programming. 3 Stealing threads is like passing off text or ideas from others as though they were your own. You must give due credit. For example, each piece you refer to, you say where it came from. 4 The threads you use, which are pieces of other people's thinking and what you learned on the module; you understand how well they will work in the assignment you are 'weaving'. So, for example, instead of writing down all the detail of the seven stages of CCM, you just name the stages and, in your own words, give one sentence about why each stage is important. 5 The way you use pieces of other people's thinking to make your argument and support your thought is expert and appropriate. This is the reason I asked students to tell 'How I intend to apply what I learned'. 6 The section 'In What Ways I Found Valuable' gives scope for discussing this kind of thing. Things or real interest or value are like the really good bits of weaving. Things like twists, knots or foreign bodies in threads are like logical inconsistencies or inappropriateness in pieces from others are, and things like flaws in weaving are things like places where you do not fully understand the coursework is; it is 'ok' to say "I did not understand xxx because of ...". All of these get marks in a Masters assignment. You get marks for: 1 Overall structure of your thought and the logical flow and feel of your argument 2 Intelligent selection of material to support that thought and argument 3 Good referencing and givig due to people 4 Showing you understand the material that you are writing about; this is shown when you put it in your own words, when you apply it correctly to examples from your own experience that were not made on the course, or express links between issues that were not made in the course, 5 Intelligent discussion of how the ideas you learned can be applied, and especially how you intend to apply them, and referring them to what you wrote about your background. 6 Making appropriate critical comments on the pieces from the course or other work. Or explaining *why* you found things valuable or interesting. APPENDIX 2 - HOW TO REFERENCE Referencing means that you make very clear the source of every piece of content that you obtain from a source other than yourself (this includes the lecture notes and the Client Centred book). There are at least two reasons for referencing: » The source of ideas that you use deserves to get the credit for those ideas. To take credit for good ideas that someone else has given you is unjust. To do so for purposes of getting extra marks that you do not deserve is cheating, and is called plagiarism. » The reader might find what you write interesting, and wish to explore some of the ideas further. The reference you give tells the reader where to search the ideas. With these reasons in mind, there are two parts to referencing: » The Citations in your text, which indicating where each idea in your text that is from somewhere else comes from; this is usually done by giving the name of the author(s) of the ideas plus the date they were written and possibly the page number, within your text. It tells the reader the source of the idea. Examples: » "A Kleinian approach concerns itself not just with the structure of data or communications, but with its meaning and underlying world- view [Truex, Baskerville & Klein, 1999]." - reference tacked on to idea in brackets » "The reason Truex, Baskerville & Klein [1999] stress self-reference seems to be a concern to overcome conservatism and unwarranted caution in face of external pressures." - authors of reference used as part of text of sentence » The Reference List, which is an organised list containing references for of all your citations. Each reference comprises all the details needed to let the reader locate the idea you have cited. The reference contains: names of authors, date, title of article, and details of where the article may be found. See below. Example: » TRUEX DP, BASKERVILLE R & KLEIN HK (1999) Growing Systems in Emergent Organizations. Communications of the ACM, 42, 117-123. Referencing is essential to a dissertation, and to an assignment for a Masters module, because it shows that you have done good work in finding out other people's ideas that are relevant to yours. Now in more detail ... Types of Literature Appropriate To Each Part There are at least the following types of literature which are appropriate to different parts of dissertation. Books: - Academic monograph books, such as 'The Tacit Dimension' by M. Polanyi; these are books whose purpose is to introduce and discuss new ideas. Usually good for LR. - Textbooks: these are academic, but are intended to teach existing ideas rather than introduce and discuss new ideas. Most course texts are of this kind. - Reference books (encyclopaedias, dictionaries, etc.) - Factual stories or narrative books: For example, a book that tells what happened in the London Ambulance System IS disaster. These are good as literature source. - Company reports. - Government documents. Articles: - Academic journal papers, such as Int. J. Human-Computer Studies (in library); these are articles intended to introduce and discuss new ideas. Usually good for LR. - Professional journals; these provide serious, reflective material which is news, comment and opinion. Usually good for Introduction. - Magazines: these contain lighter articles. Usually good only as Literature Sources for primary research. - Newspapers: Internet Sources: - Web pages, sites: these can be used in Introduction and as Literature Sources, but should hardly ever be used in LR. - Emails: these can be used as sources for primary research. Other Media: - Radio, TV, Video clips (transcripts of). Citing in Text There are various ways to cite in text, and you can use any you wish as long as you are consistent. But I suggest cite by Author(s) plus Date. Here is an example: "There is a bewildering diversity of philosophies from which to choose and different ones are appealed to from within different I.S. disciplines. For example, in artificial intelligence, appeals have been made to the rationalist Leibniz (Brachman and Levesque, 1985) and the neo-positivist Brentano (Newell, 1982), in human factors appeals have been made to the existentialist Heidegger (Winograd and Flores, 1986), and recently the information systems community has appealed to the critical theorist Habermas (Lyytinen and Klein, 1985). Klein and Myers (1999) have examined I.S. research by reference to hermeneutic philosophy and phenomenology. While such diversity can be fruitful, our problem is that ISD, as the bridge between technology and its use, must concern itself with four major areas - usage and impact, process of development, the shape that technologies assume, and perspectives held on information systems in general (Basden, 2001). If the philosophies appealed to do not cohere, then ISD is hindered, for example, when positivistically inspired technologies are found inappropriate in the human context of use. Burrell and Morgan (1979) have argued for incommensurability between paradigms in research - the very research that generates the technologies, methodologies, theories and models that we use in I.S. While others (e.g. Lee, 1991; Willmott, 1993) have argued that this may be overcome in the practical research arena, incommensurability remains a problem (Falconer and Mackay, 1999)." Notice: - Always use surnames. - Sometimes names are part of the sentence, as in "Klein and Myers (1999) have examined I.S. research ..." Here I am using the authors as people. The reference is made by the date in brackets immediately after the name. - Sometimes names are not part of the sentence, as in "... has appealed to the critical theorist Habermas (Lyytinen and Klein, 1985)" The authors are not being used as people, so the reference in brackets must have author(s), then comma, then date. - Single author e.g. "(Basden, 2001)" - Multiple authors for one paper: link by commas with 'and' before final one, e.g. "(Lyytinen and Klein, 1985)" - Multiple references in single brackets: separate the references by semicolon, e.g. "(Lee, 1991; Willmott, 1993)" In e.g. company reports, government documents and web pages it might not be known who the author is. In that case, use the name of the organisation as author. e.g. "(DEFRA, 2006)" Reference Lists Reference lists occur at the end of the document. They list every reference you have made in the document, and no more. So every reference in the list should be cited at least once in the document, and every citation in the document must be included as a reference in this list. Books: Give the following in order: Author(s), Date, Title of book, Country and city of publisher, Publisher. e.g. Landauer, T. K. (1996). The trouble with computers: Usefulness, usability and productivity. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press/Bradford Books. Winograd, T., & Flores, F. (1986). Understanding computers and cognition: A new foundation for design. Reading, MA: Addison- Wesley. Dumas, J. S., & Redish, J. C. (1999). A practical guide to usability testing (2nd ed). Exeter, England: Intellect. Theses: As book, but publisher is a University. e.g. Kane, S. C. (2006). Multi-aspectual interview technique. PhD Thesis, University of Salford, U.K. Papers in journals, Magazine articles, etc.: Give the following, in order: Author(s), Date, Title of Paper, Name of Journal, Volume number, Part number (usually in brackets, if available), Page Numbers. e.g. Winograd, T. (2006). Designing a new foundation for design. Communications of the ACM, 49(5), 71-73. Basden, A., Brown, A. J., Tetlow, S. D. A., & Hibberd, P. R. (1996). Design of a user interface for a knowledge refinement tool. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 45, 157-183. Chapters in Edited Books (which contain collections of chapters by different authors): Give the following in order: Author(s) of Chapter, Date of book, Title of Chapter, Page numbers, "in", Editor(s) of Book, "(ed.)", Country and city of publisher, Publisher. e.g. Mitev, N. N. (2001). The social construction of IS failure: symmetry, the sociology of translation and politics. pp.17-34 in A. Adam, D. Howcroft, H. Richardson, & B. Robinson (Eds.), Re-)defining critical research in information systems. Salford, England: University of Salford. Papers in Conference Proceedings: As Chapter in book, but with name of ocnference: e.g. Castell, A. C., Basden, A., Erdos, G., Barrows, P., & Brandon, P. S. (1992). Knowledge based systems in use: A case study. In British Computer Society Specialist Group for Knowledge Based Systems, Proceedings from Expert Systems 92 (Applications Stream). Swindon, England: British Computer Society. Jones, G. O., & Basden, A. (2004). Using Dooyeweerd's philosophy to guide the process of stakeholder engagement in ISD. pp. 1-19 in M. J. de Vries, B. Bergvall-KÃ¥reborn, & S. Strijbos (Eds.), Interdisciplinarity and the integration of knowledge: Proceedings of the 10th annual working conference of CPTS, 19-24 April 2004 . Amersfoort, Netherlands: Centre for Philosophy, Technology and Social Systems. Web pages: Give the following, in order: Author(s) of web page, Date written, Title of web page, Full URL, Date Accessed. National Cancer Institute. (2005). Evidence-based guidelines on web design and usability issues. Retrieved October 19, 2005, from http://usability.gov/guidelines/ Copyright (c) Andrew Basden. 17 February 2009, 12 March 2009, 22 July 2009, 12 October 2009, 26 October 2009, 30 October 2009, 18 November 2009, 18 February 2010, 14 October 2010, 25 February 2011, 6 March 2012.