Feedback in Information Systems Research: Seven Feedback Domains

Feedback is essential for learning and progress. However, the concept of feedback is used for a multitude of purposes in an overwhelming diversity of fields such as performance management, education, and information retrieval. Given a fragmented landscape and lack of coherence, it remains unclear how the concept of feedback is used in the existing body of information systems (IS) research. This problem is addressed by conducting a systematic literature review that queries the AISeL database and the Senior Scholar Basket of journals. In total, 144 articles were analyzed to explore different domains in which the concept of feedback is adopted within IS research. The results highlight seven feedback domains: (1) product and service feedback, (2) machine performance feedback, (3) human performance feedback, (4) community contribution feedback, (5) educational feedback, (6) everyday life activity feedback, and (7) system (use) feedback. By providing an overview of seven domains and by discussing the roles which feedback plays in these domains, complexity is reduced. Further, this article provides a foundation for scholars to assess their feedback domain and inspires scholars to transfer knowledge in between these domains.