Kowledge Management and Organizational Learning: An Overview of the Mini Track

This paper provides an introduction to the knowledge management and organizational learning mini track. We begin with a discussion of how the mini track has evolved over time, which is followed by an overview of knowledge management and organizational learning. This is followed by a discussion of some of the pressing research issues in the area. This overview concludes with a discussion of the journals and conferences associated with knowledge management and organizational learning

The Influence of Psychographic Beliefs on Website Usability Requirements

Designing websites that are responsive to customer needs is a critical prerequisite for the success of online services. To date, much research has focused on understanding which design requirements can be successfully applied to a website’s design. However, there has been limited research examining why some requirements may have more or less importance to customers. In addition to demographic characteristics, we propose that psychographic characteristics influence usability-related requirements. To develop our research model and hypotheses, we draw from usability literature and research in consumer behavior concerned with customers’ prevailing beliefs about technology. Conceptualizing customer beliefs should not only help distinguish between positive and negative processes but also help further investigate their consequences. To explore the relationship between customer characteristics (i.e., gender and technology beliefs) and usability requirements, we use a usability procedure based on the Microsoft Usability Guidelines (MUG). MUG identifies multiple design requirements that are expected to increase the usability of sites. We present the results of our study involving 215 participants. Overall, our results suggest that negative beliefs may play a larger role in influencing usability requirements than positive beliefs. And, the results suggest that prior Web experience moderates the relationship between beliefs and requirements

3D virtual environments and corporate learning:An empirical investigation of benefits

Organizations invest significant resources in learning and development (L&D) to both enhance and protect their human capital. As such, they continue to search for innovative design and delivery approaches that are both cost efficient and learning effective. In this article, we consider one organization’s use of a 3D virtual environment (VE) to bring a managerial and leadership development program, informed by collaborative learning principles, to globally distributed participants. To date, there is little empirical evidence that attests to the specific learning benefits of a VE, that is, benefits that derive from distinguishing features such as presence (i.e., the sense of ‘being there’ in the VE). Given this, and drawing from prior research, we develop and empirically test a model that examines the relationships among organizational participants’ perceptions of presence, teamwork quality and outcomes. Our results provide important insights into the mechanisms underlying L&D processes and outcomes in VEs

It\u27s All Fun and Games... Until Students Learn

Faculty are often frustrated by student preparedness (or lack thereof) for exams and review sessions. This may be partially attributed to passive involvement during lectures and the failure of students to discuss and reflect on topics as they are introduced. Active learning refers to techniques that move students beyond listening to lectures to activities (in and out of the classroom) that engage students in topics (e.g., discussion, reflection). The purpose of this teaching tip is to describe the use of games as active learning techniques to encourage students to review materials over the life of a course and engage them in review sessions. Through a study conducted in two different information systems courses, we provide evidence of effectiveness including impact on exam performance and feedback from students derived from a questionnaire

Collaboration Engineering: Foundations and Opportunities: Editorial to the Special Issue on the Journal of the Association of Information Systems

Collaboration is a critical phenomenon in organizational life. Collaboration is necessary yet many organizations struggle to make it work. The field of IS has devoted much effort to understanding how technologies can improve the productivity of collaborative work. Over the past decade, the field of Collaboration Engineering has emerged as a focal point for research on designing and deploying collaboration processes that are recurring in nature and that are executed by practitioners in organizations rather than collaboration professionals. In Collaboration Engineering, researchers do not study a collaboration technology in isolation. Rather, they study collaborative work practices that can be supported on different technological platforms. In this editorial, we discuss the field of Collaboration Engineering in terms of its foundations, its approach to designing and deploying collaboration processes, and its modeling techniques. We conclude with a Collaboration Engineering research agenda for the coming decade

A GSS Tool for Collaborative Cause and Effect Diagramming: Motivation and Design

Although GSSs provide a variety of problem solving methods, current GSSs do not provide groups the capability to employ traditionally used diagramming techniques. This paper presents a tool specifically designed to support collaborative cause and effect (C&E) diagramming. The C&E tool takes advantage of both GSS and representational approaches and provides a unique problem formulation and identification aid. The place of the GSS tool in a cumulative program of information systems research is described

The role of social networks in students’ learning experiences

The aim of this research is to investigate the role of social networks in computer science education. The Internet shows great potential for enhancing collaboration between people and the role of social software has become increasingly relevant in recent years. This research focuses on analyzing the role that social networks play in students’ learning experiences. The construction of students’ social networks, the evolution of these networks, and their effects on the students’ learning experience in a university environment are examined

'To live and die [for] Dixie': Irish civilians and the Confederate States of America

Around 20,000 Irishmen served in the Confederate army in the Civil War. As a result, they left behind, in various Southern towns and cities, large numbers of friends, family, and community leaders. As with native-born Confederates, Irish civilian support was crucial to Irish participation in the Confederate military effort. Also, Irish civilians served in various supporting roles: in factories and hospitals, on railroads and diplomatic missions, and as boosters for the cause. They also, however, suffered in bombardments, sieges, and the blockade. Usually poorer than their native neighbours, they could not afford to become 'refugees' and move away from the centres of conflict. This essay, based on research from manuscript collections, contemporary newspapers, British Consular records, and Federal military records, will examine the role of Irish civilians in the Confederacy, and assess the role this activity had on their integration into Southern communities. It will also look at Irish civilians in the defeat of the Confederacy, particularly when they came under Union occupation. Initial research shows that Irish civilians were not as upset as other whites in the South about Union victory. They welcomed a return to normalcy, and often 'collaborated' with Union authorities. Also, Irish desertion rates in the Confederate army were particularly high, and I will attempt to gauge whether Irish civilians played a role in this. All of the research in this paper will thus be put in the context of the Drew Gilpin Faust/Gary Gallagher debate on the influence of the Confederate homefront on military performance. By studying the Irish civilian experience one can assess how strong the Confederate national experiment was. Was it a nation without a nationalism

Female Urethral Reconstruction

Female urethral strictures are rare; thus, the literature describing stricture management in women is sparse. Although urethral dilation continues to be performed at a high frequency in women despite lack of proven efficacy, this procedure is used for a variety of voiding complaints other than stricture. Hence, the long-term utility of dilation and urethrotomy for urethral stricture in women is unknown. This review describes the various urethroplasty techniques used in the management of female urethral stricture. Although grafts using a dorsal approach have been shown to be feasible in women, ventral flap techniques offer good long-term outcomes with minimal morbidity. Acute and delayed management of pelvic fracture–associated urethral distraction defects in women is also described. Unlike in men, immediate urethroplasty in women should be performed once the patient is hemodynamically stable