The effects of the presence of water on the rhodium-catalyzed carbonylation of isopropylallylamine were studied as a function of the following parameters: reaction temperature; water content; presence of phosphines; solvent polarity and presence of bulky ions. It turned out that the reaction is strongly dependent on the temperature and that water seems to behave both as a source of hydrogen and as a ligand in the active species. The phosphine ligands showed no effect since in the presence of water they were all converted to their corresponding oxides. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.153416711924