Design of Goal-Oriented Artifacts from Morphological Taxonomies: Progression from Descriptive to Prescriptive Design Knowledge

Morphological Taxonomies are a widely popular tool in Information Systems to systematically deconstruct an artifact into designable dimensions and characteristics. Subsequently, these taxonomies have engraved in them knowledge about the design of artifacts, i.e., descriptive design knowledge. Most studies producing morphological taxonomies refrain from giving prescriptive advice about the design, i.e., the specific morphological configuration of an artifact, but rather stay descriptive. The paper proposes a framework for knowledge and artifact transformation originating in morphological taxonomies and ending in design principles. We develop a framework that assists researchers and practitioners by showing clear paths on transforming descriptive design knowledge engraved in taxonomies to prescriptive knowledge as design principles.