MY PAPERS

Organizations have not fully realized the benefits of interorganizational relationships (IORs) due to the lack of cross-enterprise process integration capabilities. Recently,interorganizational business process standards (IBPS) enabled by information technology (IT) have been suggested as a solution to help organizations overcome this problem. Drawing on three theoretical perspectives, i.e., the relational view of the firm, institutional theory, and organizational inertia theory, we propose three mechanisms�??relational, influence, and inertial�??to explain the assimilation of IBPS in organizations. We theorize that these mechanisms will have differential effects on the assimilation of IBPS in dominant and nondominant firms. Using a cross-case analysis based on data from 11 firms in the high-tech industry, we found evidence to support our propositions that relational depth, relationship extendability, and normative pressure were important for dominant firms while relational specificity and influence mechanisms (coercive, mimetic, and normative pressures) were important for nondominant firms. Inertial mechanisms, i.e., ability and willingness to overcome resource and routine rigidities, were important for both dominant and nondominant firms.

Research on individual-level technology adoption is one of the most mature streams of information systems (IS) research. In this paper, we compare the progress in the area of technology adoption with two widely-researched streams in psychology and organizational behavior: theory of planned behavior and job satisfaction. In addition to gauging the progress in technology adoption research, this allows us to identify some fruitful areas for future research. Based on our comparison, we conclude that there has been excellent progress in technology adoption research. However, as a next step, we call for research focused on interventions, contingencies, and alternative theoretical perspectives (to the largely social psychology-based technology adoption research. Also, we believe it would be important to use the comparisons discussed here as a basis to develop a framework-driven set of future research directions to guide further work in this area.

The Veterans Health Administration�??s (VHA) health care system was once considered one of the worst in the United States. For many veterans, it was the last resort. In the early 1990s, in fact, its system had deteriorated so much that Congress considered disbanding it. However, since then, it has undergone a dramatic transformation and is now considered one of the best health care systems in the nation and a leader in almost every health care performance metric. We conducted an in-depth investigation of the VHA for about a year to understand its dramatic turnaround. We found that information technology (IT) played a key role. In particular, we found that by increasing the maturity of its enterprise architecture, the VHA achieved a high degree of integration and standardization in its business processes, which helped it transform its operations. Based on our study of the VHA, we postulate six catalysts for successfully evolving enterprise architecture maturity: (1) formulate a strategic vision for enterprise architecture and gain long-term commitment from top management; (2) involve central and local groups; (3) take an evolutionary, rather than a revolutionary, approach; (4) have a strategy for supporting IT systems and business processes; (5) require local accountability for implementing global objectives; and (6) implement an effective performance management program. Once an enterprise architecture is mature, it can be used for strategic advantage.

Recently, the model of adoption of technology in households (MATH) was developed and tested in the context of household personal computer (PC) adoption. In this study, we apply MATH to predict PC use. We conducted a nationwide survey including 370 households that owned at least one PC. Results indicate that attitudinal beliefs are extremely important in determining use of a PC in the household. In contrast to previous work examining adopters, normative and control beliefs were not significant in predicting use. Furthermore, several determinants of adoption that were important at different stages of the household lifecycle were found non-significant in predicting use for the same stages of the household lifecycle. Overall, the results demonstrate that the belief structure for household PC use is different from that of household PC adoption. Further, the results provide additional evidence regarding the importance of including household lifecycle in studies of household technology adoption and use.

This paper examines three specific manifestations of time�??anticipation (proximal vs. distal), prior experience with the behavior, and frequency (episodic vs. repeat)�??as key contingencies affecting the predictive validity of behavioral intention, perceived behavioral control, and behavioral expectation in predicting behavior. These three temporal contingencies are examined in two longitudinal field studies: (1) study 1�??a 6-month study of PC purchase behavior among 861 households and (2) study 2�??a 12-month study among 321 employees in the context of a new technology implementation in an organization. In study 1, where the episodic behavior of PC purchase was examined, we found that increasing anticipation (i.e., more distal) weakened the relationship between behavioral intention and behavior and strengthened the relationship between behavioral expectation and behavior. In contrast, increasing experience strengthened the relationship between behavioral intention and behavior and weakened the relationship between behavioral expectation and behavior. In study 2, where the repeat behavior of technology use was examine, we found two significant three-way interactions�??(1) the relationship between behavioral intention and behavior is strongest when anticipation is low (i.e., proximal) and experience is high; and (2) the relationship between behavioral expectation and behavior is strongest when anticipation is high (i.e., distal) and experience is low.

We develop a theoretical model for predicting purchase behavior in electronic channels. The model suggests that website use (i.e., technology use), a key indicator of the degree to which a site is "sticky," is a significant antecedent of purchase behavior. Furthermore, we relate the usability of a website to use behavior and purchase behavior. Specifically, individual characteristics and product type are argued to differentially influence the weights that customers place on five different categories of usability. The weighted ratings of the five categories together determine use behavior and purchase behavior, after controlling for purchase need, experience with similar sites, and previous purchase on the specific sites. The model was tested in a longitudinal field study among 757 customers who provided usability assessments for multiple websites from four different industries-i.e., airlines, online bookstores, automobile manufacturers, and car rental agencies. Six months later, 370 of these individuals provided responses to help understand the transition from visitor to customer, i.e., whether they actually transacted with a specific website. Results provided strong support for the model and yield important theoretical and practical implications.

Recent research has presented a conceptualization, metric, and instrument based on Microsoft Usability Guidelines (MUG; see Agarwal and Venkatesh 2002). In this paper, we use MUG to further our understanding of web and wireless site use. We conducted two empirical studies among over 1,000 participants. In study 1, conducted in both the United States and Finland, we establish the generalizability of the MUG conceptualization, metric, and associated instrument from the United States to Finland. In study 2, which involved longitudinal data collection in Finland, we delved into an examination of differences in factors important in determining web versus wireless site usability. Also, in study 2, based on a follow-up survey about site use conducted 3 months after the initial survey, we found support for a model of site use that employs the MUG categories and subcategories as predictors. The MUG-based model outperformed the widely employed technology acceptance model both in terms of richness and variance explained (about 70 percent compared to 50 percent).

This article recognizes the maturity of individual-level technology-adoption research and suggests three broad future research directions. They are: (i) business process change and process standards, (ii) supply-chain technologies, and (iii) services. Each of these areas is identified based on the topics likely of interest to the readers of the "Decision Sciences" by closely examining "Decision Sciences'" editorial mission and the recent research published in it. Within each of these three different broad topic areas, a few different specific directions are identified. The directions outlined here are not meant to be exhaustive but rather potential directions that can result in a theoretical contribution to individual-level technology-adoption research and the specific topic area.

Individual adoption of technology has been studied extensively in the workplace. Far less attention has been paid to adoption of technology in the household. In this paper, we performed the first quantitative test of the recently developed model of adoption of technology in the household (MATH). Further, we proposed and tested a theoretical extension of MATH by arguing that key demographic characteristics that vary across different life cycle stages would play moderating roles. Survey responses were collected from 746 U.S. households that had not yet adopted a PC. The results showed that the integrated model, including MATH constructs and life cycle characteristics, explained 74 percent of the variance in intention to adopt a PC for home use, a significant increase over baseline MATH that explained 50 percent of the variance. Finally, we compared the importance of various factors across household life cycle stages and gained a more refined understanding of the moderating role of household life cycle stage.

This research extends the theory of planned behavior by incorporating gender and age as moderators of user perceptions and individual adoption and sustained use of technology in the workplace. Individual reactions and technology use behavior were studied over a six-month period among 342 workers being introduced to a new software technology application. While previous studies in the literature have reported gender or age differences separately, the pattern of results from the study reported here indicated that gender effects in individual adoption and use of technology differed based on age. Specifically, gender differences in technology perceptions became more pronounced among older workers, but a unisex pattern of results emerged among younger workers. The theory and empirical results are also discussed in relation to the widely employed technology acceptance model. The results from this study suggest that old stereotypes that portray "technology" as a male-oriented domain may be disappearing; particularly among younger workers. In light of these findings, theoretical implications for researchers and practical suggestions for managers are discussed.