Intellectual Diversity in IS Research: Discipline-Based Conceptualization and an Illustration from Information Systems Research

This paper advances the understanding of the information systems (IS) discipline by developing a multidimensional conceptualization of the discipline’s intellectual diversity. It also provides an empirical analysis of the intellectual diversity exhibited by the full set of articles published in Information Systems Research ( ISR ) over the last 10 years. We categorize IS intellectual diversity into four intellectual dimensions of IS research—namely, domain-topic, level of phenomenon, type of contribution, and method—and highlight differences along these dimensions. We develop a framework for evaluating the ebb and flow of the topics, methods, and contributions of IS scholarship over time. Regarding ISR specifically, our study offers a glimpse of the IS intellectual diversity found in the research topics, methods, and contributions of papers published during 2012–2021. Our analysis shows a preponderance of econometric and modeling studies. It also shows that there is a substantial variety of topics, research questions, and methods. Based on these conceptual and empirical insights, we identify implications for intellectual diversity and inclusion in the broader IS discipline.