Understanding user satisfaction as key factor in information system success in Malaysian public sector organization

An information system (IS) is a combination of people, hardware, software, infrastructure and trained personnel organized to facilitate planning, control, coordination, and decision making in an organization.IS plays crucial role as a main backbone for an organization to smooth en the business processes.In Malaysian public sector setting, IS are implemented at all department and organization and the question has arise; what is our state of IS currently in public sector organization? Is it success or failure? Continuous monitoring is not a guarantee the success of an IS, but more towards sustaining good IS services provided to IS users.The answer whether an IS is success or failure relies on IS users’ hand since this group of people works directly with IS.This paper proposed two independent variables; user satisfaction and usability to investigate relationship between the current state of IS in Malaysian public sector.This study also targeted operational level worker who using IS as sample. The results will measure satisfaction level among this IS group and more importantly underline new perspective to answer whether our IS in public sector organization success or failure? Yet, this study also will open new opportunities for those who wants to further investigate IS success in Malaysia context

Evaluación de la usabilidad en sistemas de información terminológicos online

En este artículo presentamos un estudio realizado entre diciembre de 2005 y marzo de 2006 por un grupo de investigadores de la Universidad Pompeu Fabra en el que se ha planteado y aplicado una metodología de análisis de calidad de bases de datos terminológicas tomando como criterio principal la usabilidad. La ISO define la usabilidad como la capacidad que tiene un producto para ser usado por determinados usuarios con el fin de alcanzar unos objetivos concretos con efectividad, eficiencia y satisfacción dentro de un contexto de uso específico (ISO 9241-11). Esta definición resulta muy clarificadora, pues divide la usabilidad en los diversos aspectos que considera: efectividad, eficiencia y satisfacción; y hace una diferenciación en función del objetivo, el usuario y el contexto de uso

Exploratory information searching in the enterprise: a study of user satisfaction and task performance.

No prior research has been identified that investigates the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. The impact of user, task, and environmental factors on user satisfaction and task performance was investigated through a mixed methods study with 26 experienced information professionals using enterprise search in an oil and gas enterprise. Some participants found 75% of high-value items, others found none, with an average of 27%. No association was found between self-reported search expertise and task performance, with a tendency for many participants to overestimate their search expertise. Successful searchers may have more accurate mental models of both search systems and the information space. Organizations may not have effective exploratory search task performance feedback loops, a lack of learning. This may be caused by management bias towards technology, not capability, a lack of systems thinking. Furthermore, organizations may not “know” they “don't know” their true level of search expertise, a lack of knowing. A metamodel is presented identifying the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. Semistructured qualitative interviews with search staff from the defense, pharmaceutical, and aerospace sectors indicates the potential transferability of the finding that organizations may not know their search expertise levels

English Language Learners and Library Research

The purpose of this project was to study problems English language learners (ELLs) face when doing research in U.S. academic libraries. A review of the literature indicates that ELLs face both linguistic and cultural barriers. Those barriers are related to learning expectations, library anxiety, and technology. Research on organizational culture and its influence on website design was consulted and used to compare the design of a library catalog’s interface with student responses to a library instruction session offered within Composition 101 for non-native speakers. Based on those results, it is argued that library catalogs are designed to match the cultural expectations of mainstream U.S. audiences and that focused library instruction may help ELLs become more comfortable doing library research

Using the repertory grid and laddering technique to determine the user's evaluative model of search engines

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to explore a method for the determination of users' representations of search engines, formed during their interaction with these systems. Determines the extent to which these elicited “mental models” indicate the system aspects of importance to the user and from this their evaluative view of these tools. Design/methodology/approach – The repertory grid technique is used to elicit a set of constructs that define facets within the mental model of an individual. A related technique of laddering then considers each of the user's constructs to determine the reasons for its importance within the user's mental model. Findings – The model derived from the qualitative data comprises three hierarchical strata and conveys the interrelations between basic system description, evaluative description, and the key evaluations of ease, efficiency, effort and effectiveness. Two additional layers relating to the perceived process and the experience of emotion are also discussed. Research limitations/implications – Ten participants is considered to be optimum for obtaining constructs in a repertory grid, but limits the findings to the context of the user group and the systems used in this study. Originality/value – The methodology has not previously been used to determine mental models of search engines and from these to understand users' evaluative view of systems. The resulting model of key evaluations with the conjunctions of procedural elements suggests a framework for further research to evaluate search engines from the user perspective

Using the information seeker to elicit construct models for search engine evaluation

Users’ internal representations of their interactions with systems are often termed ‘mental models’, and for successful system use, the users’ mental models and system designers’ conceptual models of the tools should be congruent. This study explores a method for non-biased determination of the user’s subconscious view of Internet search engines, in order to derive a mental model comprising those aspects of the systems of importance to the users. The investigation utilises a repertory grid approach in combination with laddering technique, the latter being based on the cause and effect style of mental model development. The detailed qualitative analysis of the data determined through use of laddering interviews is presented here in the development of a mental model comprising three strata. The main hierarchical stratum of the model conveys the interrelations between basic system description, evaluative description, and the key evaluations of ease, efficiency, effort and effectiveness. Two additional strata relating to the perceived process and the experience of emotion are also discussed. The conjunction of the procedural elements with the key evaluations is of particular significance, and further research proposes the extension of this to provide a framework for search engine evaluation

Exploratory information searching in the enterprise: A study of user satisfaction and task performance

No prior research has been identified which investigates the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. The impact of user, task and environmental factors on user satisfaction and task performance was investigated through a mixed methods study with 26 experienced information professionals using enterprise search in an oil and gas enterprise. Some participants found 75% of high value items, others found none with an average of 27%. No association was found between self-reported search expertise and task performance, with a tendency for many participants to overestimate their search expertise. Successful searchers may have more accurate mental models of both search systems and the information space. Organizations may not have effective exploratory search task performance feedback loops, a lack of learning. This may be caused by management bias towards technology not capability, a lack of systems thinking. Furthermore, organizations may not ‘know’ they ‘don’t know’ their true level of search expertise, a lack of knowing. A metamodel is presented identifying the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. Semi-structured qualitative interviews with search staff from the Defence, Pharmaceutical and Aerospace sectors indicates the potential transferability of the finding that organizations may not know their search expertise levels

Exploratory information searching in the enterprise: A study of user satisfaction and task performance

No prior research has been identified which investigates the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. The impact of user, task and environmental factors on user satisfaction and task performance was investigated through a mixed methods study with 26 experienced information professionals using enterprise search in an oil and gas enterprise. Some participants found 75% of high value items, others found none with an average of 27%. No association was found between self-reported search expertise and task performance, with a tendency for many participants to overestimate their search expertise. Successful searchers may have more accurate mental models of both search systems and the information space. Organizations may not have effective exploratory search task performance feedback loops, a lack of learning. This may be caused by management bias towards technology not capability, a lack of systems thinking. Furthermore, organizations may not ‘know’ they ‘don’t know’ their true level of search expertise, a lack of knowing. A metamodel is presented identifying the causal factors for workplace exploratory search task performance. Semi-structured qualitative interviews with search staff from the Defence, Pharmaceutical and Aerospace sectors indicates the potential transferability of the finding that organizations may not know their search expertise levels

Re-examining and re-conceptualising enterprise search and discovery capability: towards a model for the factors and generative mechanisms for search task outcomes.

Many organizations are trying to re-create the Google experience, to find and exploit their own corporate information. However, there is evidence that finding information in the workplace using search engine technology has remained difficult, with socio-technical elements largely neglected in the literature. Explication of the factors and generative mechanisms (ultimate causes) to effective search task outcomes (user satisfaction, search task performance and serendipitous encountering) may provide a first step in making improvements. A transdisciplinary (holistic) lens was applied to Enterprise Search and Discovery capability, combining critical realism and activity theory with complexity theories to one of the worlds largest corporations. Data collection included an in-situ exploratory search experiment with 26 participants, focus groups with 53 participants and interviews with 87 business professionals. Thousands of user feedback comments and search transactions were analysed. Transferability of findings was assessed through interviews with eight industry informants and ten organizations from a range of industries. A wide range of informational needs were identified for search filters, including a need to be intrigued. Search term word co-occurrence algorithms facilitated serendipity to a greater extent than existing methods deployed in the organization surveyed. No association was found between user satisfaction (or self assessed search expertise) with search task performance and overall performance was poor, although most participants had been satisfied with their performance. Eighteen factors were identified that influence search task outcomes ranging from user and task factors, informational and technological artefacts, through to a wide range of organizational norms. Modality Theory (Cybersearch culture, Simplicity and Loss Aversion bias) was developed to explain the study observations. This proposes that at all organizational levels there are tendencies for reductionist (unimodal) mind-sets towards search capability leading to fixes that fail. The factors and mechanisms were identified in other industry organizations suggesting some theory generalizability. This is the first socio-technical analysis of Enterprise Search and Discovery capability. The findings challenge existing orthodoxy, such as the criticality of search literacy (agency) which has been neglected in the practitioner literature in favour of structure. The resulting multifactorial causal model and strategic framework for improvement present opportunities to update existing academic models in the IR, LIS and IS literature, such as the DeLone and McLean model for information system success. There are encouraging signs that Modality Theory may enable a reconfiguration of organizational mind-sets that could transform search task outcomes and ultimately business performance