Purpose:
The purpose of this assignment is to critique the research methodology of a research thesis or journal article or conference paper in order to develop awareness of best practice research in your discipline.
Task:
Your critique of the research strategy must answer the following questions. You must
support your answers with evidence from the thesis/article/paper and relevant literature.
Problem: What is the research problem addressed by the paper?
Theories: What theory/theories have been used in the research project?
How have theory/theories been used e.g. theory testing, development?
Methodology: Has the researcher clearly explained and justified the chosen
Methodology? What research methods has the researcher adopted to conduct the research project?
Do you think that the researcher has developed a rigorous research design ? If so, discuss why. If not, discuss why not.
Do you think that the research is relevant to other researchers and/or
practitioners e.g. IS/SE professionals? How so?
Contribution: What is the contribution of the study to knowledge (e.g. to theory or
practice)?
Quality: Has research quality been discussed? Explain.
Is quality of the study/IT artifact assessed? Explain.
Ethics: Are any ethical issues raised in the research strategy? What are they?
How are they resolved?