A method for taxonomy development and its application in information systems

Abstract

A fundamental problem in many disciplines is the classification of objects in a domain of interest into a taxonomy. Developing a taxonomy, however, is a complex process that has not been adequately addressed in the information systems (IS) literature. The purpose of this paper is to present a method for taxonomy development that can be used in IS. First, this paper demonstrates through a comprehensive literature survey that taxonomy development in IS has largely been ad hoc. Then the paper defines the problem of taxonomy development. Next, the paper presents a method for taxonomy development that is based on taxonomy development literature in other disciplines and shows that the method has certain desirable qualities. Finally, the paper demonstrates the efficacy of the method by developing a taxonomy in a domain in IS.

Data Collaboratives as a New Frontier of Cross-Sector Partnerships in the Age of Open Data: Taxonomy Development

“…To develop a taxonomy of data collaborative forms we used the Taxonomy Development Method formulated by Nickerson, et al [8]. According to these authors, this is the first comprehensive effort to formalize the process of taxonomy development in Information Systems as a method.…”

“…The purpose of this research is to develop a taxonomy which distinguishes among different forms of data collaboratives. A taxonomy (also sometimes referred to as a typology or classification) is a system for grouping objects of interest in a domain based on common characteristics [8]. We expect the taxonomy to be useful to three user groups: researchers, policy-makers, and companies potentially interested to (learn how to) share data.…”

The Use of Mobile Technology in Professional Planning and Local Government Practice

“…Research conducted by Nickerson et al (2009) provides a detailed description for developing a new taxonomy of mobile applications, and demonstrates "how a mobile app taxonomy can be used to analyze current and future applications" (p. 2). In their report, they propose that a useful taxonomy has the following desirable attributes:…”

“…(Nickerson et al, 2009). These "additional conceptualizations" were established as subcategories, which help to further define the specific role the applications play in planning activities.…”

“…Static and dynamic are related to the locational dimension of the applications: some applications provide customized information or functionality based on the user's location, whereas other applications do not depend on where the user is located. (Nickerson et al, 2009). For our purposes we have labeled "location-based" applications as "dynamic," and nonlocation based applications as "static," since they do not use the user's location to modify the user interaction.…”