Course Catalogue

Content
This course introduces the methodology of Design Science Research (DSR) at the PhD level. It is designed for doctoral students in Business Innovation.

While DSR is widely applied in information systems (IS) research and a large amount of DSR methodology has been developed in the IS field, the paradigm is also applied, either implicitly or explicitly, in other Business Innovation disciplines.

Through independent literature study, lecturer input, and feedback, students will prepare, present, and discuss a group design research project of their own choice.

The project should be situated within the dissertation projects of the participating students, allowing the course to provide direct benefits for their doctoral research.

Students are encouraged to develop their literature studies and design projects into publications and/or prototypes. Several projects from previous courses have led directly to peer-reviewed publications and prototype presentations.

Learning objectives
· Students can describe the paradigmatic differences between behavioural, descriptive, and design science research.
· Students can explain the most important methodological reference literature on design science research.
· Students can apply a design science research approach and justify their methodological choices for addressing a research problem in a design-oriented way.

Prerequisites
None.

Structure and learning design

Module 1: Start of term
· Independent literature studies
· Kick-off of design projects
· Group work phase

Module 2: Mid-term
· Two walkthrough sessions with the lecturers
· Finalisation of the design projects

Module 3: End of term
· Presentation and discussion of the group projects

The interactive components of the course are organised in three blocked sessions.

Lecture dates
· Tuesday, 17 February 2026, 15:00–18:00
· Tuesday, 28 April 2026, 14:00–16:30
· Friday, 22 May 2026, 14:00–16:30

Literature
A list of recommended readings will be made available for Module 1.

An introduction to the DSR methodology is available in the following papers:

· Hevner, A. R., March, S. T., Park, J., & Ram, S. (2004). Design science in information systems research. MIS Quarterly, 75–105.
· Peffers, K., Tuunanen, T., Rothenberger, M. A., & Chatterjee, S. (2007). A design science research methodology for information systems research. Journal of Management Information Systems, 24(3), 45–77.

Students are strongly encouraged to study this literature to understand what DSR entails, how it differs from other research paradigms, and whether it could provide value for their dissertation projects.

Additional information
For additional information, please contact Leon Müller at [email protected]