Integrating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into Systems Analysis and Design Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63158/journalisi.v7i4.1277Keywords:
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Systems Analysis and DesignAbstract
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) represent the involvement of different groups supported equally and fairly while their differences are acknowledged and recognized. Many organizations, including higher education institutions, have adopted the notion of DEI by introducing the phenomenon through their institutional strategies. However, there is limited evidence of the inclusion of DEI content in information systems (IS) education. The paper aimed to develop a framework to integrate DEI in Information Systems Analysis and Design education and projects. A survey to investigate how organizations actively include DEI content in the different stages of the System Development Lifecycle (SDLC) methodology was administered. Results identified that 23-40% of organizations represented address DEI at some stage of the SDLC. Practical implications for instructors include well-informed and prepared students as well as improved System Analysis & Design (SA & D) curriculum. The practical implications for information systems (IS) practitioners are resulting system designs that are culturally sensitive, end user perspective driven, and accessible for all users. Bridging IS education with industry practice through a framework for DEI in the system design space brings new insights into system design, better preparing students to face DEI content in their careers across all industries. Significantly raising awareness that problem solving and IS solutions should meet the needs of society with different backgrounds and cultures.
Downloads
References
P.P. Aji, and L. Liyanti, " On-Screen Inclusivity: Analyzing the Concepts of Family in Three German Advertisements," Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, vol. 593, pp. 206–212, 2021.
L.M. Amugongo, A. Kriebitz, Boch, A. and Lütge, C, "Operationalising AI ethics through the agile software development lifecycle: a case study of AI-enabled mobile health applications," AI and Ethics, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 227-244, 2025, doi: 10.1007/s43681-023-00331-3.
S. Aleem, and F. Ahmed, "Practicing equity diversity inclusion (edi) in software development teams: a systematic literature survey." IEEE Access, vol. 11, pp. 98977-98987. 2023, doi: 10.1109/ACCESS.2023.3312681.
K. Albusays, P. Bjorn, L. Dabbish, D. Ford, E. Murphy-Hill, A. Serebrenik, and M.A Storey, "The diversity crisis in software development," IEEE Software, vol. 38, no.2, pp. 19–25, 2021, doi: 10.1109/MS.2020.3045817.
T.S. Alemao, "A Critical Discourse Analysis of Online DEI Curriculum in One Corporation, " 2022.
M.D. Alhassan, and I.O. Adam, "The effects of digital inclusion and ICT access on the quality of life: A global perspective," Technology in Society, vol. 64, p. 101511 2021, doi: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2020.101511.
C.Uehlinger, and S. Kammhuber, "Managing Cultural Diversity in Switzerland," In Handbook of Diversity Competence: European Perspectives (pp. 123-138). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland, 2025, doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-69308-3.
A. Tongkaew and C. Lomberg, “Conceptualising an Inclusive Mindset: A Scoping Review and Framework for Engineering Education,” in 52nd SEFI Annual Conference 2024, pp. 250–265, 2025.
S. Bourdeau, H. Barki, and R. Legoux, "Investigating the Role of Tenure Diversity in Information System Project Teams: A Multilevel Analysis," Communications of the Association for Information Systems, vol. 49, no. 1, pp. 816 – 838, 2021, doi: 10.17705/1CAIS.04942.
L. Braeunig, "The Value of 5/25 Roundtables in a Workplace: Toward a Tool for Workplace Renewal," Journal of the International Society for the Systems Sciences, vol. 65, no. 1, 2021.
S. Burgstahler, "Universal Design in Education: Principles and Applications. Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology,” DO IT, 2009.
C.C. Cain, "A Shifting Research Agenda: Historically Black Colleges and Universities Must Prepare Students for Careers in Computing, Informatics, and Engineering," Journal of Information Systems Education, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 41–50, 2022.
M. Fitriawati, and R.H. Lestari, "Information Systems Design for Early Childhood Education Services," Jurnal Teknologi Informasi Dan Pendidikan, vol. 13 no. 2 pp. 33–36, 2020, doi: 10.24036/tip.v13i2.336.
B. Friedman, P.H. Kahn Jr, and A. Borning, "Value Sensitive Design and Information Systems," In the Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics, pp. 69–101, 2008, doi: 10.1007/978-94-007-7844-3_4.
P.C. Gita and S. Krishnakumar, "The ripple effect of organisational inclusiveness on perception of ethical climate-an empirical investigation," International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics, vol. 18 no. 1, pp. 84-103, 2024.
S. Gupta, and Y. Chen, "Information Systems Education Supporting Inclusive Learning Using Chatbots? A Chatbot- Led Interview Study," Journal of Information Systems Education, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 98-108, 2022.
A. Harding, and A. Squires, " Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion," in SEBoK Editorial Board. The Guide to the Systems Engineering Body of Knowledge (SEBoK), v. 2.11, Hutchison (Editor in Chief). Hoboken, NJ, 2024.
E. Heylen, M. Ovaere, S. Proost, G. Deconinck, and D.Van Hertem, " Fairness and inequality in power system reliability: Summarizing indices," Electric Power Systems Research, vol. 168, pp. 313–323. 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.epsr.2018.11.011.
P.Y.P. Hong, "Health Psychological Self-Sufficiency (Health-PSS): A Bottom-Up Human-Social Development Approach to Health Equity," Social Development Issues, vol. 43 no. 3, 2022, doi: https://doi.org/10.3998/sdi.2811.
W.Hussain, M.Shahin, R. Hoda,J. Whittle, H. Perera, A. Nurwidyantoro, R.A. Shams, and G.Oliver, " How Can Human Values be Addressed in Agile Methods? A Case Study on SAFe. IEEE.Transactions on Software Engineering, vol. 48 no. 12, pp. 5158–5175, 2022, doi: 10.1109/TSE.2022.3140230.
H.M. Khalid, "Embracing diversity in user needs for affective design," Applied Ergonomics, vol. 37, pp. 409–418, 2006, doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2006.04.005.
M. Lang, M. Freeman, G. Kiely, and A.B, Woszczynski, "Special Issue Editorial Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in IS Education," Journal of Information Systems Education, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 1–6, 2022.
Z. H. Lewis, K, Hansen, M. Narasaki-Jara, L. Killick, M. Kwon, L. Chase, and S. Lemez, "Embedding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into a Kinesiology Curriculum: A Detailed Report of a Curriculum Redesign," Social Sciences, vol. 11, no. 7, pp 271-281. 2022, doi: 10.3390/socsci11070271.
T.P. Liang, C.C. Liu, T. Lin, and B. Lin, "Effect of team diversity on software project performance," Industrial Management and Data Systems, vol. 107, no. 5, pp. 636–653, 2007, doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/02635570710750408.
N. Manders-Huits, What Values in Design? The Challenge of Incorporating Moral Values into Design," Science and Engineering Ethics, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 271–287. 2011, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-010-9198-2.
B. Marshall, P. Cardon, A. Poddar, and R. Fontenot, "Does sample size matter in qualitative research? A review of qualitative interviews in is research," Journal of Computer Information Systems, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 11–22, 2013, doi: 10.1080/08874417.2013.11645667.
A. McCleary-Gaddy, "Be explicit: Defining the difference between the Office of Diversity & Inclusion and the Office of Diversity & Equity," Medical Teacher, vol. 41, no. 12, pp. 1443–1444. 2019, doi: 10.1080/0142159X.2019.1597261.
J. McDowell, and Y.K. Kwong, "Managing Accessibility in Software Systems," In Pacific Northwest Software Quality Conference, October 11-13, Virtually, 2021. pp.1-10
N.B. Ruparelia, "Software development lifecycle models," ACM SIGSOFT Software Engineering Notes, vol. 35, no. 3, pp. 8-13, 2010, doi: 10.1145/1764810.1764814.
D.P. Tegarden, B. Samuel, R. Lukyanenko, A. Dennis, and B.H. Wixom, Systems Analysis and Design, with eepub Access: An Object-Oriented Approach with Uml. 7th Ed, John Wiley & Sons, 2025.
K. Siau, C. Woo, V. C. Storey, R.H. Chiang, C.E. Chua, and J.W, Beard, "Information Systems Analysis and Design: Past Revolutions, Present Challenges, and Future Research Directions," Communications of the Association for Information Systems, vol. 50, pp. 835- 856, 2022, doi: 10.17705/ 1CAIS.05037.
K. van Zanten, "Perceived Deep-Level Team Diversity and its Relation with Perceived Team Creativity: The Roles of Perceived Team Knowledge Sharing and Perceived Integration of Differences," Masters, Thesis, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands, 2022.
S. J. Valacich, and F.G. Joel, Modern Systems Analysis and Design, 9th Ed, United Kingdom. Pearson, 2021.
D. Wijeratne, D. Dennehy, S. Quinlivan, L.A, Buckley, C., Keighron and S. Flynn, "Learning Without Limits: Identifying the Barriers and Enablers to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion in IS Education," Journal of Information Systems Education," vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 61–74, 2022.
N. McDonald, A. Akinsiku, J. Hunter-Cevera, M. Sanchez, K. Kephart, M. Berczynski, and H.M. Mentis, Responsible computing: A longitudinal study of a peer-led ethics learning framework," ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE)," vol. 22, no. 4, pp.1-21, 2022.
W. Hussain, M. Shahin, R. Hoda, J. Whittle, H. Perera, A. Nurwidyantoro, R.A. Shams, and G, "How can human values be addressed in agile methods? A case study on SAFe," IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, vol. 48, no. 12, pp. 5158-5175, 2022.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Authors Declaration
- The Authors certify that they have read, understood, and agreed to the Journal of Information Systems and Informatics (JournalISI) submission guidelines, policies, and submission declaration. The submission has been prepared using the provided template.
- The Authors certify that all authors have approved the publication of this manuscript and that there is no conflict of interest.
- The Authors confirm that the manuscript is their original work, has not received prior publication, is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, and has not been previously published.
- The Authors confirm that all authors listed on the title page have contributed significantly to the work, have read the manuscript, attest to the validity and legitimacy of the data and its interpretation, and agree to its submission.
- The Authors confirm that the manuscript is not copied from or plagiarized from any other published work.
- The Authors declare that the manuscript will not be submitted for publication in any other journal or magazine until a decision is made by the journal editors.
- If the manuscript is finally accepted for publication, the Authors confirm that they will either proceed with publication immediately or withdraw the manuscript in accordance with the journal’s withdrawal policies.
- The Authors agree that, upon publication of the manuscript in this journal, they transfer copyright or assign exclusive rights to the publisher, including commercial rights














