Research in Management Information Systems, 1980-1984: Points of Work and Reference

This article examines the progress of MIS as a scholarly field of study since 1980. In this examination, MIS is identified as emerging from a supporting base of three foundational fields: computer science, management science, and organization science. Hypotheses related to this emergence are tested by an analysis of data on 271 MIS articles published during the period 1980-84 in six academic journals and one conference proceedings. Each article is described by its work point (the field of study represented by the publication in which the article appears) and its reference point (as represented by the distribution of the article’s publication citations). Results of the analysis support the proposition that MIS is emerging as a distinct field of study, with its own cumulative tradition.