The academic field of information systems in Europe

This paper reviews the institutional and cognitive profile of the information systems (IS) field in Europe, using the results of a survey of IS academics in 18 European countries. The emerging picture suggests that the study of IS in European academia is dispersed in small units with various names, which are hosted in various disciplines across the science/social science spectrum. Our survey confirms the widespread view that the IS field is concerned with the study of a wide range of themes, from developing technologies per se, to assessing the social impact of new information and communication technologies. Moreover, a variety of research perspectives and approaches is found to be pursued, drawing from both the positivist and interpretative epistemological traditions. Reflecting upon the survey findings, we argue that while the institutional dispersion is a weakness that requires remedying action, the cognitive diversity should not be considered as a characteristic of immaturity. In Europe, the diversity of themes and research perspectives probably manifests more fundamental differences of the socioeconomic context which gives rise to, and sustains, different types of IS research in different countries.