A busca da identidade do campo de Sistema de Informação no Brasil

Abstract

The absence of sufficiently shared elements capable of delimiting the field of Information Systems (IS) may generate tensions that affect the education of its members, the boundaries of the field, and its processes of recognition and legitimation. In order to contribute to understanding the constitutive and characterizing elements of the IS field, this study aimed to analyze the identity of the IS field in Brazil. Based on the understanding that social identity is constructed through relationships established between individuals and groups, the study adopted as a strategy the analysis of field members’ perceptions of their trajectory, constitutive elements, and individual and collective characteristics, seeking to understand how these perceptions contribute to the construction of the social identity of IS in the Brazilian context. The research was developed in two independent and complementary stages. The first sought to understand the historical process through which the IS field was introduced in Brazil, considering the subcategories of process, institutions, roles, and international influences. The results of this stage highlighted the participation of different actors and institutions in the constitution of the field, particularly pioneer professors, academic and professional institutions, research groups, scientific events, and international relationships, which contributed to the introduction and institutionalization of IS in Brazil. The findings also revealed the influence of the doctoral education of pioneer scholars on the adoption and development of IS research lines in graduate programs in Business Administration, contributing to the interdisciplinary configuration that characterizes the field. The institutional consolidation of the field became more pronounced from the 1990s onward, accompanied by the expansion of researcher training, the creation and strengthening of research groups, the organization of scientific events, and the growth of academic production. The second stage focused on characterizing the individual and collective identity of the IS field in Brazil, considering members’ professional trajectories, their recognition of the field, the profile of IS professionals, educational processes, representative research topics, scientific events, perceptions of graduate programs, and the conceptual delineation of IS. The results revealed an institutionally structured field, yet marked by heterogeneity and tensions related to the delimitation of its collective identity. Members recognize the importance of Information Systems to organizations and the articulation among technology, people, and organizations, while also identifying weaknesses in professional education, a gap between theory and practice, recognition difficulties, and differences between predominantly technical education and academic production characterized by a more social and organizational orientation. The findings therefore suggest that interdisciplinarity constitutes both a strength and a source of tension for the delimitation and legitimation of the field. As a contribution, the study proposes the development of a collective research agenda and the expansion of spaces for discussion among field members, fostering reflection on its trajectory, constitutive elements, professional education, and relationship with practice, thereby strengthening shared references and the legitimation of IS in Brazil.