Abduction in Information Systems Graduate Essays in South Africa

Many Information Systems (IS) studies use abductive approaches without realizing it. Problem solving in IS is drawn into question if a study’s reasoning strategy is not clear or if the reasoning strategy that underpins data collection and analysis is inappropriate. The paper seeks to clarify and differentiate between reasoning strategies. Abduction uses a theoretical premise to produce the most plausible explanation. Induction uses a theoretical premise to produce a set of plausible conclusions. Retroduction integrates elements of abduction and induction. Deduction formulates a hypothesis and tests it against the theoretical premise to reach a specific conclusion. This paper reviews the use of reasoning strategies in five South African graduate research theses. The results suggest that many IS graduate theses confuse reasoning approaches, which affect problem-solving effectiveness. The paper contributes to the IS field by reflecting on the inappropriate use of reasoning strategies.