The only duty we owe to history is to rewrite it: reflections on Bob Galliers’ article ‘A discipline for a stage?’

Abstract

In an opinion paper in the preceding issue of the European Journal of Information Systems, history is used to illustrate some differences in the research plot and performance of the Information Systems field. In this response, history is rewritten to show that the differences are natural, even to be welcomed, and that an understanding of their origins is sufficient for peace to break out and for harmony to be the natural state.

Keywords:

• journal publishing
• research method, performance measurement
• information systems impact

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ray J Paul

About the author

Ray J. Paul is an Emeritus Professor in the Department of Information Systems and Computing at Brunel University, and Visiting Professor in the Department of Information Systems at the London School of Economics (LSE). He regularly spends time at both the institutions Ray taught Operational Research and Information Systems at LSE for 21 years, then joined Brunel for 12 years before retiring early on the grounds of permanent ill-health – with he has Parkinson's Disease. Ray has over 400 refereed publications and three books. He is an editor of the European Journal of Information Systems, which he co-founded in 1990. He is one of the editors of the Journal of Computing and Information Technology. He has successfully supervised 56 Ph.D.s to date.