Explaining Broadband Adoption in Rural Australia: Modes of Reflexivity and the Morphogenetic Approach

2013 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 125

Authors: Dobson, Philip; Jackson, Paul; Gengatharen, Denise

Abstract: Universal fast broadband is currently being implemented by the Australian govern ... Expand

Abstract: Universal fast broadband is currently being implemented by the Australian government. It is the largest single project in Australia's history. Represented as a nation-building exercise by the government and many public and private promoters, it is vilified by others as a massive waste of taxpayers' money. Ultimately the target of successful universal availability will require that metropolitan installations subsidize rural adoption. The take-up of these facilities, particularly in regional and remote areas, constitutes a complex, multi-factorial scenario in which political, personal, and organizational decisions are shaped by physical, cultural, economic, and ideological elements. Critical realism is proposed here as an aid for examining the complex reality of rural adoption for communities and small businesses in the regions. This article highlights the importance of considering individual reflexivity in explaining the adoption decision and potential adoption barriers. Collapse

Topics: technology adoption web application geographic information system social media social network

Methods: qualitative interview focus group case study cross sectional research theory development

Theories: technology acceptance model

ICTs and poverty reduction: a social capital and knowledge perspective

2008 | Journal of Information Technology | Citations: 21

Authors: Urquhart, Cathy; Liyanage, Shantha; Kah, Muhammadou M. O.

Abstract: The efficacy of information and communication technology (ICT) projects and init ... Expand

Abstract: The efficacy of information and communication technology (ICT) projects and initiatives in developing countries, and how they may assist poverty reduction or otherwise improve the quality of life for communities in those countries, is still a topic of debate. Knowledge empowers people, while information technology integrates such knowledge for purposeful action and reaction. This paper describes a framework, based on social capital and knowledge management theories, which aims to further that debate in the field of information systems. The framework is primarily a sensitising device, designed to assist thinking about how social capital and knowledge theories facilitate ICT interventions for poverty reduction. The framework has four stages, the process of ICT development, the ICT intervention, the evaluation of the impact of the ICT intervention and the process of poverty reduction, which is the final and most contested stage of an ICT intervention. Each stage of the framework is discussed, using illustrations from various development projects. Finally, the paper draws some conclusions about the contribution of social capital and knowledge management theories to the issue of ICT intervention and evaluation in developing countries. Collapse

Topics: social capital human resource management knowledge management internet technology information system use

Methods: qualitative interview case study field study theoretical contribution design methodology

Theories: knowledge management theory social capital theory

The Realm of Sociality: Notes on the Design of Social Software

2007 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 1

Authors: Bouman, Wim

Abstract: In this article we seek to understand and clarify the contribution of the multif ... Expand

Abstract: In this article we seek to understand and clarify the contribution of the multifaceted concept of sociality towards the design of social software systems. Our premise is that it is not software as such that is social, but the free choice of people to engage in social activities. Paraphrasing Wenger (1998): sociality cannot be designed; it can only be designed for. We adopt a soft systems approach to cope with the loosely defined concepts of social software. The paper’s main contribution to the field consists of the theoretical work on the sociality based conceptual model, identifying if and to what degree software systems can trigger social behavior, and the design framework that stretches beyond the more traditional functionality-based approaches and focuses on the realms of sociality. We consider this orientation toward sociality, not functionality, a valuable contribution to the field of study. Collapse

Topics: social media Friendster LinkedIn soft systems methodology systems design

Methods: conceptual modelling design framework design methodology design principle case study

Theories: social sciences theory

A Dialectical Basis for Software Development Tool Building

2000 | Americas Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 1

Authors: Wernick, P; Christianson, B; Loomes, M J; Shearer, D W

Abstract: We identify typical problems in the interactions of people with current software ... Expand

Abstract: We identify typical problems in the interactions of people with current software-based systems. In particular we observe the need to expend significant on-going effort to adapt these systems to reflect changes in the world about them, the need for people to adapt their working practices to fit in with these systems, and the inflexibility of these systems when faced with unusual circumstances or the need for change. We believe that these problems follow, at least in part, from these systems being developed and evolved using mechanisms each based on one Inquiry System only. This basis leads to assumptions being embedded in the mechanisms’ analysis outputs, and in system designs and implementations. We suggest that the problems noted may be mitigated by the use of a dialectical approach to Inquiry System selection for software development, based on the work of Hegel, which places in opposition different models of a situation based on different Inquiry Systems. We claim that such a mechanism has the potential to make explicit some of the assumptions which would otherwise be embedded implicitly in the delivered system without being questioned. We outline a research programme intended to test this hypothesis, and suggest other research directions. Collapse

Topics: systems development system development method systems design soft systems methodology information system use

Methods: experiment design methodology statistical hypothesis test

Stakeholder identification in inter-organizational systems: gaining insights for drug use management systems

1997 | European Journal of Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Pouloudi, A.; Whitley, E. A.

Abstract: Inter-organizational systems operate in an area where there are many interested ... Expand

Abstract: Inter-organizational systems operate in an area where there are many interested parties. If the views of these interested parties are not explored and taken into consideration before and during the development of an inter-organizational system, it is likely that the implementation of this system will be disappointing. This paper describes one approach to exploring these views through the use of stakeholder analysis. More specifically, it describes how to identify the stakeholders, a process that has been overlooked in the stakeholder analysis and inter-organizational systems literature, and examines the perceptions of a number of stakeholders in the drug use management field in the UK. Collapse

Topics: interorganizational system information system use electronic data interchange information management price management

Methods: qualitative interview personal interview design methodology

Theories: soft systems theory organizational theory

‘Soft’ systems thinking and information systems: a framework for client-led design

1994 | Information Systems Journal | Citations: 0

Authors: Stowell, F. A.; West, D.

Abstract: Abstract. Since the mid-1980s there has been a growing interest in the applicati ... Expand

Abstract: Abstract. Since the mid-1980s there has been a growing interest in the application of soft systems methodology (SSM) to the information systems design process. This interest has resulted from attempts to overcome the recognized deficiencies of conventional computer systems analysis methods and techniques. A particular problem which has received attention over the past 5 years is the epistemological and operational differences between the investigative process of the pre-design stage and the technological specification. We suggest that this argument is somewhat unproductive and advocate a necessary rethinking about the nature of information systems and the use of technology to support their activities. A re-evaluation of the way that we set about designing computer-based information systems suggests that many of the problems of conventional systems analysis methods may be alleviated by an approach that allows the ‘client’, or ‘user’, to have a greater control over the identification, specification and development of their information system(s). The authors' belief in this course of action has led to the development of client-led design as an underpinning philosophy for user participation in the design of computer-based information systems. Client-led design draws upon and develops concepts and tools from ‘interpretive’, or ‘soft’, systems thinking and, in particular, can be seen as providing a framework for the type of subjective inquiry that Checkland & Scholes (1990) referred to as ‘ideal-type’ mode 2 SSM. This paper is related to the papers published in the Journal of Information Systems (Vol. 3, No. 3), which was a special edition to illustrate the influence of ‘soft’ systems thinking upon information systems design and development. Collapse

Topics: systems design computer system soft systems methodology information system use systems analysis

Methods: design methodology participative method