The complexity of establishing causality in a digital environment: an eye to the future

Information Systems (IS) researchers and practitioners have to deal with the concept of causality. IS researchers explicitly model and test causal relationships, like Information Technology (IT) investments lead to economic outcomes. IS practitioners implicitly assume that their initiatives (investment, training, strategic initiatives) cause the desirable outcomes they seek. While causality has always been a tricky concept to assess, in the digital world of today, it becomes even more challenging. Below, we describe the changes in “embeddedness” and “agency” due to digitalization that convolute establishment of causality in studying relationships between IT and the social enterprise. We also offer projections into the future based on these changes and some implications for researchers.