Stories and Histories: Case Study Research (and Beyond) in Information Systems Failures

Abstract

Information systems development failures are prevalent in many domains and countries. The aim of this chapter is to explore some of the issues related to the study of such phenomena. Failure situations are not set-up in advance as the subject of studies. Analysing causes and relationships retrospectively depends on the ability to obtain rich and subjective contextual information that can be utilised for shedding a light on the circumstances that precipitate failures. This chapter makes the case for the use of case history and ante-narrative methods for understanding such rich and complex scenarios.