-------- Original-Nachricht -------- Betreff: [isworld] eJOV - Alternative formats of scholarly publications and TOC Datum: Sat, 28 Jun 2008 11:02:44 +0200 Von: Stefan Klein klein@wi.uni-muenster.de Antwort an: Stefan Klein klein@wi.uni-muenster.de An: AISWORLD Information Systems World Network isworld@lyris.isworld.org

eJOV - The Electronic Journal for Virtual Organizations and Networks (www.ejov.org) Editorial: Alternative formats of scholarly publications

Academia worldwide is moving in the direction of viewing journal papers as the most accepted and highly rated genre of academic work. This trend has been strongly supported by the "publish-or-perish" reward systems for individual researchers, which prioritizes the publication outlet - assessed in form of journal rankings - over the substance and contribution of a publication. While the research paper has clear benefits in terms of focus, brevity and comparability, it is obvious that the research paper format - within the constraints of 5.000 - 10.000 words (with notable exceptions) - is too restrictive for several types of research outputs. While paper based journals have to limit the space that they can offer for individual publications, eJOV as an online journal is not bound by the same space restrictions. Therefore we decided to recognize alternative formats of scholarly work for publication. With the introduction of the additional genre "eJOV Reports", we are committed to maintaining the quality criteria for submissions, i.e. that they will be subject to the same double blind review process as journal papers. eJOV Reports are meant to facilitate the publication of research and its discussion of conceptual foundations, methodological considerations, methods (including full questionnaires), primary data, or rich case descriptions. We would like to remind authors that reviewers' - and eventually the readers' - time is precious and therefore publishable reports need to make as efficient use of space as other publications. Authors therefore are asked to provide a brief rationale as to why they have chosen the report format. eJOV Reports particularly aims at facilitating rich case descriptions and their analysis, as well as providing insights into the research process, with the development and use of research instruments, detailed results, elaborate discussion and conclusions. With this format, eJOV aims to support the research process by facilitating the exchange of deeper theoretical, methodological or epistemological reflections. We invite submissions of research reports and other alternative formats of scholarly work that fit the scope of eJOV.

Bernhard Katzy, Stefan Klein (Editors-in-chief)

The first eJOV report and contribution to eJOV's 10th volume "Assessment of the Development Trajectory for Real-Time Communication" by Frank Frössler, UCD, and Stefan Klein, University of Münster, presents a Delphi study. Next to a detailed analysis, the report covers the questionnaire which was used for the Delphi study, to enable the readers to better judge on the results and stimulate discussion on the Delphi method.

Abstract This research report presents the results of a Delphi study on Real-time Communication (RTC), a recently emerging genre of communication and collaboration technology. So far, only a few empirically informed attempts have been made to conceptualize the technology and predict future trends in the young and dynamic RTC market. Therefore, a Delphi study with sixteen experts from academia, industry, and technology providers was conducted to discuss the positioning of RTC, market trends, implementation/ design issues, and the implications of RTC use on the organizational and individual level. The results indicate that RTC, interpreted as complementary to existing ICT, is expected make inroad into people's ICT landscape. The trend will go from simple stand-alone application towards add-ons to existing products, such as groupware or business packages. Moreover, in contrast to the often overly-optimistic business media, experts agree that RTC represent complex information systems whose outcome in organizations are difficult to predict. Instead, experts point out that the complex and highly situated character of RTC use needs to be taken into account. While this comprehensive report may identify potential starting points for future research, practitioners could benefit from it by being sensitized for the advantages, limitations and dangers associated with RTC use.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prof. Dr. Stefan Klein Editor-in-Chief The Electronic Journal for Virtual Organizations and Networks www.eJOV.org mailto: stefan.klein@ejov.org

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