A Review of Epistemology and Subject Areas in MIS Research

The purpose of this paper is to classify the most cited papers in Management Information Systems (MIS) by theoretical perspective and subject area. The determination of the underlying theoretical perspective of these papers facilitates and verifies the dominance of positivist perspectives. Our analysis indicates that 74% of the most cited articles are positivist and 26% are interpretivist. The presence of a significant percentage of interpretive work suggests that differing theoretical perspectives are being considered relevant to solving the problems identified in the current research streams. Our results also indicated User Satisfaction and Instrument Development and Group Support Systems as the most cited articles subject areas, 16% and 14% respectively. The significance of these subject areas promotes and supports that systems is the foundation of MIS