Decolonising critical information systems research: A subaltern approach

Theories used in the Information Systems (IS) field come in large majority from authors based in Western countries, a bias that holds for critical theories as well. Such a bias is made more problematic by the mandate of critical theory, which is meant exactly to illuminate the oppressive conditions of the status quo. Against this backdrop, this paper explores the subalternity theory approach – developed by the Subaltern Studies collective from the early 1980s – as an indigenous theory that, proposing a socially and geographically connotated narration of ‘history from below’, can play a major role in the effort to decolonise critical IS research. By positioning subaltern theory in the IS field, the paper offers an alternative to the Western hegemony of critical theories, exploring the potential of such an alternative to voice systematically silenced and marginalised perspectives.     

Pluralist action research: a review of the information systems literature*

Action research (AR) has for many years been promoted and practised as one way to conduct field studies within the information systems (IS) discipline. Based on a review of articles published in leading journals, we explore how IS researchers practise AR. Our review suggests that AR lends itself strongly towards pluralist approaches which facilitate the production of both theoretical and practical knowledge. First, on the level of each study we analyse how research and problem‐solving activities are mixed, in three ways: the research dominant, the problem‐solving dominant and the interactive approaches. Second, in the context of the wider research programme in which the study is situated, we analyse how AR is mixed with other research methods, in two ways: the dominant and the sequential approaches. We argue that these pluralist practices of mixing types of research activities and types of research methods provide IS action researchers with a rich portfolio of approaches to knowledge production. This portfolio helps them address the risks involved in AR to ensure their efforts contribute to the literature as well as to practical problem‐solving.     

Extending the two‐stage information systems continuance model: incorporating UTAUT predictors and the role of context

This study presents two extensions to the two‐stage expectation‐confirmation theory of information systems (IS) continuance. First, we expand the belief set from perceived usefulness in the original IS continuance model to include three additional predictors identified in the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, namely effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating conditions. Second, we ground the IS continuance model in the context of transactional systems that involve transmission of personal and sensitive information and include trust as a key contextual belief in the model. To test the expanded IS continuance model, we conducted a longitudinal field study of 3159 Hong Kong citizens across two electronic government (e‐government) technologies that enable citizens' access to government services. In general, the results support the expanded model that provides a rich understanding of the changes in the pre‐usage beliefs and attitudes through the emergent constructs of disconfirmation and satisfaction, ultimately influencing IS continuance intention. Finally, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the expanded model.     

Query representation and management in a multiparadigmatic visual query environment

We propose a framework for database querying providing the user with several interaction paradigms based on different (i.e., form-based, diagrammatic, iconic, and hybrid) visual representations of the database. A unified model, namely the Graph Model, is used as the common underlying model, in terms of which databases expressed in the most common data models can be easily converted. Graph Model databases can be queried by means of the multiparadigmatic interface. The semantics of the query operations is formally defined in terms of the Graphical Primitives. Such a formal approach enables the query manager to maintain the same query consistently in any representation. In the proposed multiparadigmatic environment, the user can switch from one interaction paradigm to another during query formulation, so that the most suitable query representation can be found.     

Dialectical hermeneutics: a theoretical framework for the implementation of information systems

Abstract. Despite the proliferation of information technology, the implementation of information systems remains problematic. Many systems fail to live up to expectations and some end up as disasters. Research on implementation has been conducted for the past two decades, but no theoretical framework for IS implementation has been widely accepted. This paper proposes dialectical hermeneutics as a theoretical framework for IS implementation research. Dialectical hermeneutics, as an integrative theoretical framework, combines both interpretive and critical elements, and addresses those social and organizational issues which are critical to the successful implementation of information systems. The case study research method was used to examine the implementation of systems in three organizations.     

Multicultural Crisis Communication: Towards a Social Constructionist Perspective

Crisis communication is a field dominated by case studies and is lacking of systematic knowledge and theoretical framework analysis. Functionalist and objectivist perspectives have dominated the field even though there are exceptions. This may be one reason why multicultural approaches to crisis communication, increasingly relevant in contemporary society, are very few and undeveloped. The aim in the article is to give a critical analysis of research that has been done on crisis communication as well as intercultural public relations and develop a different theoretical framework. We propose the use of ethnicity, focusing collective cultural identity as dynamic, relational and situational in crisis theory and practice. Ethnic differences seem to escalate during crises. Media use and access are also discussed. A Swedish survey shows, among other things, that people with a foreign background read mainstream newspapers more seldom than average Swedes, but that the access to Internet and mobile phones is very high. Based on a social constructionist epistemology, the article ends with four proposals for future research and practice in multicultural crisis communication: (1) audience‐orientation – focusing sense‐making, (2) a proactive and interactive approach – focusing dialogue, (3) a community‐focused approach – focusing a long‐range pre‐crisis perspective and, (4) an ethnicity‐approach towards intercultural communication.     

Disruptive information system innovation: the case of internet computing

Abstract. Information system (IS) innovation can be defined as a novel organizational application of digital computer and information communication technologies (ICT). This paper discusses how modalities of applying ICT technologies in their form and scope exhibit radical breaks, which are introduced herein as ‘disruptive IS innovations’. This notion of disruptive IS innovation is developed by drawing upon and extending Swanson's (1994) theory of IS innovation as well as the concept of radical innovation. Disruptive innovations strongly influence the future trajectory of the adoption and use of ICT in organizational contexts and make the trajectory deviate from its expected course. In doing so, these disruptive innovations distinctly define what an IS is and how it is deployed in order to address current and future organizational and managerial prerogatives. Such changes are triggered breakthroughs in the capability of ICT that lead to the revision and expansion of associated cognitive models (frames) of computing. Disruptive IS innovations are those that lead to changes in the application of ICT that are both pervasive and radical. The pervasive nature implies that innovative activity spans all innovation subsets of the quad‐core model of IS innovation introduced herein. Innovation types include: IS use and development processes; application architecture and capability; and base technologies. Radical in nature, disruptive is innovations depart in significant ways from existing alternatives and lead to deviation from expected use and diffusion trajectory. This paper demonstrates the importance of a concept of disruptive IS innovation by investigating how changes triggered by internet computing (Lyytinen et al., 1998) meet the conditions of a disruptive IS innovation defined herein. The analysis also affirms both the pervasive and radical nature of internet computing and explains how internet computing has fundamentally transformed the application portfolio, development practices and IS services over time. The analysis demonstrates that, with the concept of disruptive IS innovation, we can fruitfully analyse ‘long’ waves of ICT evolution – an issue that has largely been overlooked in the IS community. On a theoretical plane, the paper advocates the view that we need to look beyond linear, unidirectional, and atomistic concepts of the diffusion of IS innovations where innovative activity takes places in a linear fashion by oscillating between small technological innovations and small organizational innovations. In contrast, IS innovation can exhibit fundamental discontinuity; we need to theoretically grasp such disruptive moments. The recent influx of innovation, spurred by internet‐based technology, offers one such moment.     

Information system artefact or information system application: that is the question

Lee et al. ( 2015 ) suggest the concept of information system (IS) artefact as an alternative to information technology (IT) artefact, defining the former as a system of an IT artefact, an information artefact and a social artefact. This paper assesses this suggestion, contrasting it with the concepts of IT artefact and IS application as introduced in the prior IS literature. After this conceptual analysis, the paper discusses the relationships between an IS artefact and design and between an IS artefact and design science. The analysis concludes that an IS artefact is problematic as a unit of design because of the great differences in the designability of its constituent parts. Instead, the paper maintains that an IS application is more appropriate as a unit of design, but an IS artefact may be fruitful as an analytical concept to be used in behavioural science research on the interplay of IT artefact, information artefact and social artefact, or – especially if including IS application design – in action research‐oriented design science research. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd     

An investigation of enablers and inhibitors of crowdfunding adoption: Empirical evidence from startups in China

In recent years, crowdfunding has emerged as a new fundraising technique for startup ventures. Crowdfunding allows small businesses and startups to seek funding from a large number of private investors, the so‐called “crowdfunders.” Crowdfunding is beneficial for startup ventures by offering a variety of financial and nonfinancial benefits such as helping to solve funding difficulties, providing value‐added involvement, facilitating access to further funding, and providing publicity. In contrast, diffusion processes of new business innovations have become increasingly complicatedly and multifaceted in recent years. Potential users today are exposed to a wide range of influences that include word‐of‐mouth communications, network externalities, and social signals. Despite the advantages associated with crowdfunding, the crowdfunding industry faces slow rates of diffusion in the Chinese market because crowdfunding ventures often fail to translate into adoption behavior. This study investigates the enablers and inhibitors of crowdfunding adoption intention from the perspective of startups by employing the two‐factor theory, status quo bias theory, and innovation diffusion theory. These theories allow crowdfunding researchers and platform managers to test the relative influence of both reasons for (enablers) and reasons against (inhibitors) crowdfunding adoption in a single framework. In conclusion, considering the phenomenon of startups in China, the results of this study will fill the paucity of empirical research in the innovation resistance area, shedding light on the motivation of entrepreneurs to avoid crowdfunding as a financing course as well as providing crowdfunding managers and policymakers with strategic recommendations.     

Informing strategic IS change: Towards a ‘meta-learning’ framework

This paper combines theoretical models on organisational and Information Systems (ISs) change with the experiential theorising of practitioners from a case study site. Contemporary strands of IS and organisational change literature were reviewed, grouping common themes into planning, leadership, learning and culture approaches. This theoretical basis was extended through a case analysis of an IS organisation in the banking industry which had undergone wide ranging and successful strategic change. Twenty in-depth interviews were conducted with senior experienced change practitioners from across the organisation. Three propositions on IS and organisational change theory were developed from the finding for this research. Firstly, IS change is a subset of organisational change which is frequently noted and argued through existing academic or ‘espoused’ change theories. Secondly, whether successful or unsuccessful, strategic change is in itself a rich learning experience which may be leveraged through experience, intuition and self-reflexion. Thirdly, managers develop their own ‘theories in use’ of change based on experiential learning and apply them in a highly context specific ‘informed’ way. The main contribution of the research is a ‘meta-learning’ framework for informing IS strategic change which suggests valuable theoretical insights, a practitioner implementation process and proposals for further research directions and limitations.     

Coping with information technology challenges to identity: A theoretical framework

Drawing on ideas from identity control theory and coping theory and on a diverse range of social psychology literature, we propose an integrative theoretical framework that unpacks and traces the processes by which information technology comes to affect users’ identity. We define four types of strategies (acting on the situation, adjusting the self, cathartic practices and distancing) through which people cope with technological challenges to the self. We suggest that these strategies may lead to four individual-level outcomes, namely reinforced identity, redefined identity, ambivalent identity and anti-identity. The model is provided with a preliminary support through reference to real life situations, carefully selected from extant empirical IS enquiries.     

Constructing a web information system development methodology

Abstract. This paper reports on the extension of the Multiview framework to web‐based information systems. The aims are firstly to investigate the appropriateness of Multiview – a pre‐Internet analysis and design methodology – to web‐based information systems and, secondly, to reflect on the nature and role of methodology, as distinct from method, in the information systems (IS) development process. A 2‐year e‐commerce development project in a small to medium enterprise is the setting for learning through action research. To distinguish the project from consultancy, a framework of ideas – Multiview – is declared and tested in the research process. The differences and similarities of pre‐Internet and Internet‐based projects are analysed and reported on. At a higher order of learning the project provided an opportunity to reflect on how methodologies are constructed in practice.     

A review and analysis of deterrence theory in the IS security literature: making sense of the disparate findings

Deterrence theory is one of the most widely applied theories in information systems (IS) security research, particularly within behavioral IS security studies. Based on the rational choice view of human behavior, the theory predicts that illicit behavior can be controlled by the threat of sanctions that are certain, severe, and swift. IS scholars have used deterrence theory to predict user behaviors that are either supportive or disruptive of IS security, and other IS security-related outcome variables. A review of this literature suggests an uneven and often contradictory picture regarding the influence of sanctions and deterrence theory in general in the IS security context. In this paper, we set out to make sense of the discrepant findings in the IS deterrence literature by drawing upon the more mature body of deterrence literature that spans multiple disciplines. In doing so, we speculate that a set of contingency variables and methodological and theoretical issues can shed light on the inconsistent findings and inform future research in this area. The review and analysis presented in this paper facilitates a deeper understanding of deterrence theory in the IS security domain, which can assist in cumulative theory-building efforts and advance security management strategies rooted in deterrence principles.     

Game‐Based Simulation for Cross‐Cultural Decision Making Training

Increasing globalization has had a major impact on manufacturing and service industries as well as on coalition operations conducted by the military. What is common to both the commercial and military sectors is the recent surge in interest in cross‐cultural decision making (CCDM) training. Existing CCDM training approaches tend to employ either some form of multi‐agent simulation or some variant of classical game theory. Despite their manifest benefits, these approaches have specific limitations that need to be overcome to create an effective cross‐cultural training system. Multi‐agent simulations typically lack theoretical underpinnings while classical game theory‐based approaches take a limited view of strategic decision making. Specifically, by adopting a Western view of rationality, game‐theoretic approaches fail to accommodate considerations such as fairness, altruism and reciprocity. Empirical research in strategic economic games has shown that humans respond to more than merely monetary incentives. In particular, research has shown that cultural norms play a central role in human decision making behavior, especially in non‐Western cultures. This paper presents an innovative approach to game‐based simulation that combines findings from behavioral game theory with classical game theory and multi‐agent simulation to exploit the strengths of each approach while making learning enjoyable, memorable, and fun. An illustrative game‐based simulation for CCDM training is also presented. The simulation framework is equally applicable to teaching other soft skills as well as skills that are too hazardous or too expensive to teach in the realworld through live exercises. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Characteristics of IT artifacts: a systems thinking‐based framework for delineating and theorizing IT artifacts

The information technology artifact (ITA) has been suggested as the core of information systems (IS) research, and the research community has been encouraged to deeply engage with the ITA. Various studies highlight, however, that the ITA continues to receive only limited attention and thus, little foundation exists for IS researchers to delineate and theorize about the ITAs studied. In this paper, we develop a framework that can be utilized as a language for articulating and theorizing the ITA in IS research. Our framework builds on the multi‐faceted theoretical paradigm of systems thinking from which we derive several concepts and appropriate them to the context at hand, resulting in a seven‐dimensional framework of characteristics for ITAs. In a literature survey of research on enterprise systems and enterprise resource planning systems in top IS journals, we show how ITA characteristics are currently included to present details of the relevant ITA instance and identify theoretical relationships between ITA characteristics and outcomes. We conclude the study by demonstrating the use of the ITA framework for delineating and theorizing the ITA in IS research.     

Virtual environments and autism: a developmental psychopathological approach

Individuals with autism spectrum disorders supposedly have an affinity with information and communication technology (ICT), making it an ideally suited media for this population. Virtual environments (VEs) – both two‐dimensional and immersive – represent a particular kind of ICT that might be of special benefit. Specifically, this paper discusses the importance of psychological theory for VE designed for this population. I describe the contribution that different theories of autism (e.g., theory of mind, executive function, weak central coherence theory) have made and can make, as well as the potential of other non‐autism‐specific theories (e.g., embodied cognition). These technologies not only illuminate our understanding of autism, but they can also be used to develop new technologies for people without autism. So, as well as being an area of specialism, I argue that VE research in autism has extended – and will go onto – the boundaries of human–computer interaction more generally. This is because autism provides a unique window into human social communication and learning. Further, this field offers a chance for better inclusivity for individuals with autism within a digital society.