The qualitative difference in information systems research and practice
Proceedings of the IFIP TC8 WG 8.2 international conference on Information systems and qualitative research
Empirical research in information systems: the practice of relevance
MIS Quarterly - Special issue on intensive research in information systems
Empirical research in information systems: on the relevance of practice in thinking of IS research
MIS Quarterly - Special issue on intensive research in information systems
MIS Quarterly - Special issue on intensive research in information systems
ICIS '97 Proceedings of the eighteenth international conference on Information systems
Signs of Work: Semiosis and Information Processing in Organisations
Signs of Work: Semiosis and Information Processing in Organisations
Knowing in Practice: Enacting a Collective Capability in Distributed Organizing
Organization Science
Generalizing Generalizability in Information Systems Research
Information Systems Research
Informational Influence in Organizations: An Integrated Approach to Knowledge Adoption
Information Systems Research
Borderline issues: social and material aspects of design
Human-Computer Interaction
The nature of theory in information systems
MIS Quarterly
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In this paper, we propose a partial solution to the problem of the relevance of information systems research by adjusting doctoral programs to the specific needs and talents of doctoral students that have significant prior professional life experience. The purpose of this paper is first to recognize that the "professionally qualified doctoral student" (PQDS) has a different type of knowledge that may give her/him some advantages over other students, including greater symbolic capital. We examine the epistemic evidence for the claim that part of their practical experience constitutes a specific type of "applicative" knowledge that should be considered as different from but of equal value to theory, which has been the mainstay of academic education. Three independent lines of academic research contribute such evidence: the communities of practice literature, philosophical perspectives on applicative knowledge, and cognitive sciences. We argue that PQDSs may benefit from doctoral programs with specific features designed to leverage their practical knowledge. In turn, they may be able to "boundary span" and publish research results in forms that are appreciated by their professional communities. Finally we discuss some practical institutional issues that could be addressed if we are to sustain this profile of researchers.