Although it is accepted that to make a contribution, Information Systems (IS) research must be novel and provide utility, these characteristics are insufficient to account for the cogency or persuasion that research makes a contribution. Novelty and utility are not self-evident and authors need to articulate an argument that their paper makes a contribution in relation to the discourse to which it seeks to contribute. We use the Habermasian ideal of argumentation to explicate the rhetorical, dialectic, logical and socio-institutional dimensions of cogent argument. We use two examples of published research to illustrate how these elements can be extended to frame research as a contribution in relation to the wider disciplinary matrix. We outline next steps of the research and the utility of the framework for researchers, reviewers and editors.
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