The Philosopher's Corner: The Value of Feyerabend's Anarchic Thinking for Information Systems Research

Abstract

Further consideration of Feyerabend’s ideas has potential value for information systems research. He continues in a long and commendable tradition of the scientist as a subversive and rebel – a tradition including Galileo, Franklin, Darwin, and Einstein – and a tradition that emphasizes science as a creative human activity. Treiblmaier advances three propositions regarding Feyerabend’s ideas and their potential for IS research. The first, if taken to mean that in Feyerabend’s spirit of anarchy there should be ongoing questioning of our epistemological foundations, is worth supporting for a number of reasons, including the apparent hegemony of hypothetico-deductive type perspectives. The second, if meaning that in Feyerabend’s spirit a variety of research approaches should be supported, is accepted in many traditional views of science. The third proposition is benign if “anything goes” as a principle means more openness and tolerance of differing and new viewpoints. However, there are issues if this stance includes strong relativism. Information systems research generates knowledge that can be applied to practical problems. We should be able to retain Feyerabend’s questioning spirit, yet develop actionable knowledge that has sufficient credibility to be useful in the world.