Keywords
Design Based Research
transdisciplinary research
process orientation
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Copyright (c) 2026 Angela Graf, Anna Kiemer
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
Digital transformation is one of the most profound societal changes of our time. As a complex, multidimensional process encompassing technological, organizational, and social change, it generates far-reaching uncertainties and frictions. Considering this, research must not only develop appropriate methodological approaches to capture and understand these interrelated dynamics. It is also increasingly expected to offer reflexive and responsible orientation throughout the transformation process, offering guidance and contributing to solutions for pressing societal challenges.
We reflect on the role of science in and for digital transformation and discuss transdisciplinary, design-oriented research approaches as a promising avenue for connecting scientific knowledge production with societal responsibility and the generation of practice-relevant insights. Such approaches allow research to move beyond retrospective analysis but rather enable accompanying and actively shaping transformation processes in situ. Against this backdrop, mixed-methods designs are discussed as a potential methodological bridge, highlighting both their promises and limitations. The paper positions mixed methods approaches within the methodological toolkit of digital transformation research and explores how they may contribute to integrating diverse epistemic interests, both in inter- and transdisciplinary contexts as well as across the boundaries of science and practice.
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