Developing a Shared Taxonomy of Workaround Behaviors for the Information Systems Field

This study offers a workaround taxonomy that is developed based on the input of Information Systems (IS) researchers and practitioners. We adopted a taxonomy development method from cognitive anthropology that includes: a card sorting exercise, consensus analysis using the Cultural Consensus Model (CCM), and residual analysis using Monte Carlo simulations. We identified the taxonomy structure via cluster analysis and interpreted the structural meaning via analysis of participants' explanations. Our primary contribution is a workaround taxonomy that is grounded on the shared consensus among participants. Our secondary contribution is to introduce and test the applicability of a systematic taxonomy development approach to the IS field. The taxonomy highlights the similarities of workaround behaviors within groups, and the similarities and differences between groups that are either on the same hierarchical level or adjacent levels. Researchers may use this taxonomy as a foundation for further theorization, practitioners as part of their diagnostic toolkit.