Recommendation regarding publication in the informatics/information systems discipline in Sweden

Research is a fundamental responsibility of faculty at all levels. Faculty members demonstrate their scholarly contributions through peer-reviewed books, articles, chapters, design artefacts, and other outputs. Supporting high-quality publication in the discipline is a shared responsibility of all Swedish informatics/information systems departments. Therefore, there is a need for guidelines that can facilitate suitable publication strategies. However, it is infeasible to establish detailed instructions for publication across diverse academic units, and perceptions of what is at the core and the periphery are in flux.

SISA distinguishes two complementary aspects of publishing. These two aspects capture our ambition to promote (a) high-quality publications that also (b) help build our identity and thus facilitate disciplinary congruence. Therefore, it is in the interest of SISA to support high-quality research that displays and helps build a strong sense of disciplinary belonging.

Regarding (a), there are differing opinions about what constitutes a quality outlet, and many different rankings exist. Furthermore, as the discipline has grown in importance, many journals traditionally seen as outside its core have become targets for our faculty. It is essential to embrace such diversity, which can help increase impact on other fields. Several Nordic universities have adopted the Norwegian Register for Scientific Journals, Series and Publishers (the NSD List). Accordingly, SISA recommends publication channels with a Scientific Level of 2 in the NSD List (the highest level). Clarivate’s JCR Journal Impact Factor can serve as a complementary proxy for outlet quality.

Regarding (b), SISA acknowledges the importance of the AIS Senior Scholars’ List of Premier Journals. The journals currently on the list are, in alphabetical order: Decision Support Systems, European Journal of Information Systems, Information & Management, Information and Organization, Information Systems Journal, Information Systems Research, Journal of the AIS, Journal of Information Technology, Journal of MIS, Journal of Strategic Information Systems, and MIS Quarterly.

In addition, AIS’s Special Interest Groups (SIGs) have recommended journals essential to scholarship within the SIG’s specific area of interest. The resulting journals (one list per SIG) provide an additional source of high-quality outlets that help build disciplinary congruence. See https://aisnet.org/https://aisnet.org/page/SeniorScholarListofPremierJournals for the complete set of SIG recommended journals.

With this backdrop, SISA recommends its members to encourage publication in:

1. Journals in the AIS Senior Scholars’ List of Premier Journals.
2. Journals recommended by the AIS Special Interest Groups included at Level 2 in the NSD List with a JCR Impact Factor of at least 1.0.

This recommendation is for the benefit and guidance of our current faculty, junior colleagues (PhD students and postdocs), and prospective job applicants for positions at all levels. In addition, it can help guide expert evaluators, current faculty, junior colleagues, and future job applicants toward publishing patterns in concert with national and international standards. It also provides a point of reference for publication outside of the discipline, which can be valuable and motivated in some cases. Defining an abstract and universal measurement standard across departments and universities is neither desirable nor possible. Each case must be examined in detail by delineating particular strengths and acknowledging limitations or weaknesses.