Research Methodology: Design Science

Design Science consist of 7 guidelines:

1- Addresses design as an artifact: must produce a viable artifact in the form of a construct, a model, a method, or an instantiation.
2- Describes problem relevance: where the objective of the research is to develop technology-based solutions to important and relevant business problems.
3- Describes the importance of using strict evaluation methods for the design: The utility, quality, and efficacy of a design artifact must be rigorously demonstrated via well-executed evaluation methods.
4- Addresses the importance of the work being considered as a contribution to the academic world: IS research effort should be considered a contribution to the field.
5-  Focuses on research strictness: research relies upon the application of strict methods in both the construction and evaluation of the design artifact.
6- Design as a search process: the search for an effective artifact requires utilizing available means to reach desired ends while satisfying laws in the problem environment.
7-  addresses the importance that the work be published: in both the academic community and in the practitioner’s community.

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Source:
DESIGN SCIENCE IN INFORMATION SYSTEMS RESEARCH.
Alan R. Hevner, Sudha Ram, Salvatore T. March, Jinsoo Park.
2004.