ABSTRACT
This chapter shows that systems development methodologies may contain incompatible assumptions about the role of users and information systems (IS) personnel during systems development. It suggests that the prescriptions, when put into action during systems development, make the relationship between users and IS personnel problematic. The chapter argues that the contradictions we surface in the methodology reflect contradictions and ideologies in the context within which systems development occurs. In the information systems (IS) literature, the relationship between users and IS personnel is typically seen as central to the success of systems development projects. Deconstruction is often described as a tool for "de-constructing" or taking things apart, whether they are philosophical arguments, literary texts, historical narratives, conventions, canons, or value systems of any kind. The chapter examines passages that exhibit significant confusion about whether and how responsibility can be distributed between analysts and users as long as they are jointly accountable for jointly-developed products.
