Cited by 919Artificial Intelligence ApplicationsInformation Systems Theories and ImplementationInformation Technology Governance and Strategy

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 204 of the 211 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 1 of the 53 sources its claims cite were checked for support.

Artificial intelligence in information systems research: A systematic literature review and research agenda

Open access
Collins, Christopher, Dennehy, Denis, Conboy, Kieran, Mikalef, Patrick·2021·International Journal of Information Management

Abstract

AI has received increased attention from the information systems (IS) research community in recent years. There is, however, a growing concern that research on AI could experience a lack of cumulative building of knowledge, which has overshadowed IS research previously. This study addresses this concern, by conducting a systematic literature review of AI research in IS between 2005 and 2020. The search strategy resulted in 1877 studies, of which 98 were identified as primary studies and a synthesise of key themes that are pertinent to this study is presented. In doing so, this study makes important contributions, namely (i) an identification of the current reported business value and contributions of AI, (ii) research and practical implications on the use of AI and (iii) opportunities for future AI research in the form of a research agenda.

Overview

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

This systematic literature review analyzes 98 primary studies on AI in information systems research published between 2005 and 2020, drawn from 1,877 retrieved records. It finds fragmented AI definitions, a recent publication surge, dominance of machine learning and process automation, and gaps in tools/models and cumulative knowledge.

Key findings

  • Of the 98 primary studies, 54 gave no clear AI definition; among the 44 that did, 7 cited no source, and as many as 28 definitions were used. Russel & Norvig was the most frequently cited source, though editions varied; LeCun et al. (2015) and Rai et al. (2019) each appeared twice.
  • Publication and methods: 11 studies appeared between 2005 and 2015, while over half were published in 2019 and 2020. ICIS published 41 studies, ECIS 24, and IJIM 14. Of the 98 studies, 44 used quantitative methods, 31 qualitative, 13 were literature reviews, and 8 used mixed methods; data collection included 22 data mining, 21 experiments, 20 interviews, and 22 literary analysis.
  • Contributions were largely “lessons learned” (39 studies; Fig. 5 reports 40), followed by methods (26), advice/implication (15), guidelines (6), tools (5), and models (6). Machine learning was the most common AI type (69 studies; Table 12 lists n=68), then expert systems (11), NLP (6), machine vision (5), robotics (3), and other (14).
  • Reported business value was process automation (47 studies), cognitive insight (32), and cognitive engagement (17). The research agenda calls for clearer AI definitions, more research on societal/personal impacts, more work on non-ML AI types, and greater cumulative knowledge building.

Methods

  • The review followed Okoli’s (2015) eight-step systematic literature review guide. Searches covered AIS eLibrary, Scopus, and ISI Web of Science, targeting nine IS journals and the top two IS conferences (ICIS and ECIS), using terms including AI, artificial intelligence, machine learning, neural networks, cognitive, automation, robot, and augment.
  • Screening began with 1,877 retrieved studies; two authors independently removed duplicates, non-English studies, non-IS studies, and non-peer-reviewed publications. Inclusion/exclusion criteria were applied, yielding 98 primary studies. Analysis synthesized definitions of AI, publication year, publication channel, research methods and data collection, contribution types, AI types, and business value.

Limitations

  • The paper states publication bias as a limitation because it focused on a select number of IS journals, excluding other IS conferences and non-IS outlets. It also reports addressing construct, external, internal, and conclusion validity through a structured protocol, external reviewers, an audit trail, and multiple authors, while noting conclusion bias cannot be eliminated.
  • The text makes evident that 54 of 98 studies did not define AI and 7 defined it without citation, limiting comparability and cumulative knowledge. It also states that contribution types can be context-specific, especially methods, which may slow cumulative knowledge building.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2021.102383

Cites

204 of 204 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

79 Own result · 46 Not checked yet · 30 No basis given · 29 Own interpretation · 11 Own method · 1 Supported

Verify all 52 references — free account

Show all 81 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 37
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 89
  • The quote only partly states this claim. 1
115 of 115
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    The nine selected IS journals focus on the socio-technological aspects of AI, which is the scope of this SLR.

    “These databases were used to retrieve studies from relevant IS journals, which were chosen as we belief these nine journals focus on the social-technological aspects of AI, which is the scope of this SLR.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    There is a growing concern that research on AI could experience a lack of cumulative building of knowledge, which has overshadowed IS research previously.

    “There is, however, a growing concern that research on AI could experience a lack of cumulative building of knowledge, which has overshadowed IS research previously.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AIS eLibrary is unique among the selected databases in being able to provide studies from the leading IS conferences.

    “AIS eLibrary was used as of the databases used it was unique in being able to provide studies from the leading IS conferences.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI is a broad and relatively nebulous field in IS.

    “As AI is still a broad and relatively nebulous field in IS, performing experiments can provide rich data on AI usage in a variety of complex, contextual environments.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI encompasses a broad array of uses and designs.

    “This is compounded upon by AI encompassing such a broad array of uses and designs.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI research tends to swing between its 'winters' and 'summers'.

    “It's already been noted that AI research tends to swing between its "winters" and "summers", and it seems clear that we have headed into one of its summer periods in recent years.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI applications cover a breadth of different techniques, technologies, and set a different set of requirements on data, infrastructure and leveraging them in the organisational setting.

    “Since AI applications cover a breadth of different techniques, technologies, and set a different set of requirements on data, infrastructure and leveraging them in the organisational setting it is important that future research accurately frames the definition of AI that is used.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The subject and definition of human intelligence is still heavily debated even now.

    “But the subject and definition of human intelligence is something that is still heavily debated even now.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI has potential in all its forms.

    “There is potential for AI in all its forms.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    AI encompasses a broad array of ideas and practices, ranging from the specifics of the technology used to how it is defined.

    “However, AI does tend to encompass a broad array of ideas and practises, ranging from the specifics of the technology used to even how it is defined.”
10 of 10

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Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

8 of 8

Citations

Cites

Show all 211 references

Research works printed but not linked: 27

  1. Berente, N., Gu, B., Recker, J., & Santhanam, R. (2019). Managing AI. MIS Quarterly.
  2. Brachman, 2006, AA)AI—more than the sum of its parts, 2005 AAAI Presidential Address, 27, 19
  3. Buettner, R., Frick, J., & Rieg, T. (2019). High performance detection of epilepsy in seizure-free EEG recordings: A novel machine-learning approach using very specific epilectic EEG sub-bands. ICIS 2019 Proceedings.
  4. Dennehy, 2020, Ireland post-pandemic: Utilizing AI to kick-start economic recovery, Cutter Business Technology Journal, 33, 22
  5. Jarrahi, 2018, Artificial intelligence and the future of work: Human-AI symbiosis in organizational decision making, Business Horizons, 64, 577, 10.1016/j.bushor.2018.03.007 · DOI · Paper page
  6. Langley, P. (2011). Artificial Intelligence. AISB Quarterly.
  7. Li, Y. (2017). Deep Reinforcement Learning: An Overview. arXiv preprint arXiv.
  8. Merkert, J., Mueller, M., & Hubl, M. (2015). A survery of the application of machine learning in decisiion support syystems. ECIS 2015 Proceedings.
  9. Petersen, 2015, Guidelines for conducting systematic mapping studies in software engineering: an update, Information Software Technology, 64, 1, 10.1016/j.infsof.2015.03.007 · DOI · Paper page
  10. Rai, 2019, Next-generation digital platforms: Towards human-AI hybrids, MIS Quarterly, 43, 3
  11. Schwartz, 2019, Green AI, Commun. ACM, 63, 54
  12. Wilson, J., & Daugherty, P. R. (2018, July-August). Collaborative Intelligence: Humans and AI Are Joining Forces. Harvard Business Review.
  13. Meyer, 2014, A machine learning approach to improving dynamic decision making, Information Systems Research, 25, 239, 10.1287/isre.2014.0513 · DOI
  14. Mettler, 2017, Service robots in hospitals: New perspectives on niche evolution and technology affordances, European Journal of Information Systems, 26, 451, 10.1057/s41303-017-0046-1 · DOI · Paper page
  15. Nissen, 2006, Incorporating software agents into supply chains: Experimental investigation with a procurement task, MIS Quarterly: Management Information Systems, 30, 145, 10.2307/25148721 · DOI
  16. Yin, 2019, Regulating cryptocurrencies: A supervised machine learning approach to de-anonymizing the bitcoin blockchain, Journal of Management Information Systems, 36, 37, 10.1080/07421222.2018.1550550 · DOI
  17. P20. Chatterjee, S., Saeedfar, P., Tofangchi, S. & Kolbe, L. (2018). Intelligent road maintenance: a machine learning approach for surface defect detection. Research Papers. ECIS 2018 Proceedings.
  18. P25. Hofmann, P., Oesterle, S., Rust, P. & Urbach, N. (2019). Machine learning approaches along the radiology value chain – rethinking value propositions. ECIS 2019 Proceedings.
  19. P44. Rzepka, C. & Berger, B. (2018). User Interaction with AI-enabled Systems: A Systematic Review of IS Research. ICIS 2018 Proceedings.
  20. Abubakar, 2019, Applying artificial intelligence technique to predict knowledge hiding behavior, International Journal of Information Management, 49, 45, 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2019.02.006 · DOI · Paper page
  21. Dwivedi, 2019, Artificial Intelligence (AI): Multidisciplinary perspectives on emerging challenges, opportunities, and agenda for research, practice and policy, International Journal of Information Management
  22. Nishant, 2020, Artificial intelligence for sustainability: Challenges, opportunities, and a research agenda, International Journal of Information Management, 53, 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102104 · DOI · Paper page
  23. Sipior, 2020, Considerations for development and use of AI in response to COVID-19, International Journal of Information Management, 55, 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102170 · DOI
  24. Sinha, 2020, Robotics at workplace: An integrated Twitter analytics – SEM based approach for behavioral intention to accept, International Journal of Information Management, 55, 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102210 · DOI
  25. Borges, 2020, The strategic use of artificial intelligence in the digital era: Systematic literature review and future research directions, International Journal of Information Management
  26. Coombs, 2020, Will COVID-19 be the tipping point for the Intelligent Automation of work? A review of the debate and implications for research, International Journal of Information Management, 55, 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102182 · DOI · Paper page
  27. P83. Karger, E. (2020). Combining Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence – Literature Review and State of the Art. ICIS 2020 Research Papers.

Cited by

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Metadata

Authors
Collins, C., Dennehy, D., Conboy, K., & Mikalef, P.
Affiliations
  • Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway (IE)
  • Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NO)
Corresponding author
Collins, Christopher
Venue
International Journal of Information Management
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2021-10
Volume
60
Pages
102383
ISSN
0268-4012 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3178738300
Cited by
783
References
211
Citations by year
2026: 127 · 2025: 232 · 2024: 193 · 2023: 133 · 2022: 79 · 2021: 18
FWCI
7.58
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • International Journal of Information Management (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • NORA - Norwegian Open Research Archives (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
National University of Ireland, Galway
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Artificial Intelligence › Artificial Intelligence Applications
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Management Information Systems › Information Systems Theories and Implementation
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Management Information Systems › Information Technology Governance and Strategy
Keywords
artificial intelligence, information systems research, research agenda, business value of AI, research trends

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