[3] Design science is a valid research methodology to develop solutions for practical engineering problems.
[8] The main goal of DSR is to develop knowledge that professionals of the discipline in question can use to design solutions for their field problems.
[6] Hevner states that the main purpose of DSR is achieving knowledge and understanding of a problem domain by building and application of a designed artifact.
This build-and-evaluate loop is typically iterated a number of times before the final design artifact is generated.
Both the construction and evaluation of the artifact must be done rigorously, and the results of the research presented effectively both to technology-oriented and management-oriented audiences.
Yet few researchers have examined the extent to which practitioners can meaningfully utilize theoretical knowledge produced by DSR in solving concrete real-world problems.
There is a potential gulf between theoretical propositions and concrete issues faced in practice—a challenge known as design theory indeterminacy.
This knowledge ranges from the design logic, construction methods and tool to assumptions about the context in which the artifact is intended to function (Gregor, 2002).
DSR artifacts can broadly include: models, methods, constructs, instantiations and design theories (March & Smith, 1995; Gregor 2002; March & Storey, 2008, Gregor and Hevner 2013), social innovations, new or previously unknown properties of technical/social/informational resources (March, Storey, 2008), new explanatory theories, new design and developments models and implementation processes or methods (Ellis & Levy 2010).
[12] There are limited references to examples of DSR, but Adams has completed two PhD research topics using Peffers et al.'s DSRP (both associated with digital forensics but from different perspectives): 2013: The Advanced Data Acquisition Model (ADAM): A process model for digital forensic practice [18] 2024: The Advanced Framework for Evaluating Remote Agents (AFERA): A Framework for Digital Forensic Practitioners [19]