Developing a Theory of Website Usability: An Exploratory Study to Identify Constructs and Nomological Networks

Developing a usable website is pivotal for e-business success, yet previous studies have reported that current websites contain numerous usability problems. There are many reasons for poorly designed websites, but this research focuses on the lack of a good theory of website usability, a theory that explains and predicts the effects of website usability on online customer perceptions. To propose a good theory of website usability, this exploratory study first investigated website usability constructs by integrating the findings of previous studies and the results of interviews with website usability experts. Instruments to measure the constructs were developed and empirically validated. Then nomological networks between website usability constructs and online customer perceptions, focused on purchase intention and purchase, were examined. Three field studies including two questionnaire surveys and a causal mapping analysis were conducted. This study identified 10 website usability factors with strong psychometric properties through conducting a confirmatory factor analysis. Factors include consistency, navigability, supportability, learnability, simplicity, interactivity, telepresence, content relevance, credibility, and readability. Based on these constructs, this study found nomological networks that explain a large amount of variance of purchase intention and purchase through performing a causal mapping analysis and a path analysis (see Figure 1). This research could aid researchers and practitioners of website usability by providing useful knowledge for usable website design. From a theoretical perspective, this study proposed and validated the nomological networks which could be used to develop alternative theoretical models of website usability or enhance the current theoretical models to provide a better understanding of the website usability phenomenon. From a practitioner perspective, using the identified instruments and nomological networks, management of e-business companies can evaluate the usability level of their own website and at the same time, compare the usability level of a company’s website with that of competitors to establish industrial standards. By gauging website usability levels and comparing with competitors’ sites, e-business companies can make strategic decisions on how to improve current websites

The Use of the Delphi Method to Determine the Benefits of the Personas Method – An Approach to Systems Design

A persona represents a group of target users that share common behavioral characteristics. The personas method, an approach to systems design, has been receiving significant attention from practitioners. However, only anecdotal evidence currently exists for the effectiveness of personas. This research-in-progress, a Delphi study of personas experts, attempts to reach consensus on the benefits of incorporating personas into design projects. This study also lays the foundation for future research by identifying variables of interest, and building construct validity through the definitions of items given by the experts. Experimental studies will validate if groups of subjects that are provided with personas design more usable systems than groups that are given data on the target users in a non-persona form. Also, planned case studies will concentrate on studying the use of and effectiveness of personas in the organizational setting

Designing the Introductory IS Course Using Student Personas: Lessons Learned from Product Design

The introductory information systems course has been a challenge to deliver for business school faculty members. One part of the challenge is to clearly understand the students who will take the class. An extension of user-centered design (UCD) called a persona has been used to gain understanding and develop empathy for target users/consumers of product design efforts. Extending the use beyond product design, personas were used to revise and design the introductory operations and information management class at a major western university. The use of personas led to a number of class innovations including the use of a blog, the selection of practitioner oriented book, and the use of recent students who had completed the class as recitation leaders. Preliminary results have included increased enrollments in advanced elective classes in operations and information management

Test Using System 2000 with MLMIS Data.

MLMIS #4002

Knowing You, Knowing Who, and Knowing What Counts: A Multi-Generational Conversation

People who have had the most impact on our lives are those who have seen some special trait or character in us and then nurture that special something. Gary Dickson has had that kind of impact on others. Gary also has left us with a discovery framework for survival in academia. Surviving academics must groom themselves for their careers through the use of knowledge that can be turned into action. Knowing yourself and your strengths and weaknesses, your field and its perception by other academics, key players both while in a Ph.D. program and in an academic position, success factors in the job market and on the road to tenure and promotion, your publication outlets, and how you personally react to criticism are all part of your desired knowledge package. But, knowledge is not enough. You must use your information system and knowledge base along with an action plan to reach your goals. Actions including but not limited to a balance in life, turning unstructured tasks into structured ones, and thinking beyond system boundaries all can guide you to be a survivor in academia. This conversation among Gary Dickson\u27s first Ph.D. student, a newly minted Ph.D. who Ken advised, and a current student of Ken\u27s, provides food for thought on building your knowledge base and some guides to actions that will aid your academic career

Leveling the Playing Field: A Comparative Analysis of Business School Journal Productivity

Equity across academic disciplines is taken for granted in contemporary business schools. The status of a discipline is crucial for such fairness. One might assume, therefore, that IS scholars are treated fairly during tenure and promotion processes when compared to scholars from other business school academic fields. In fact, to the extent that the IS field has short and long term problems, this may not be the case. The playing field used by business academic disciplines may not be level. This study addresses three questions related to this issue. The first asks whether there is a level playing field for publication among the various business disciplines, and second, assuming a level playing field, what are the relative productivity differences between dissemination of scientific results among these disciplines? The third question is how could the playing field be leveled, assuming it is not at the present time. To answer these questions, existing data sources were tapped, one of these containing well over 18,000 data points. Further, original data was gathered from U.S. business schools, and all the data was analyzed in relation to AACSB data on the relative sizes of business school disciplines. Given our finding that the playing field is not level, the differences between the IS discipline and the other disciplines - Accounting, Finance, Management, and Marketing - are examined, and the consequences of the disadvantage to the IS discipline are discussed. The article concludes with recommendations of actions to level the field, and these are presented as a challenge to leaders in the Information Systems discipline

A Preliminary Examination of Using Personas to Enhance User-Centered Design

Organizations now routinely collect information about the needs of their consumers/users, but this information is not sufficiently utilized. This research investigates how encapsulating the user needs in a persona affects the resulting design decisions. Personas put a face on the target users and create a vivid design target by using a narrative, picture, and name. In our study, we examine whether personas help designers make more effective design decisions. We also focus on the roles of empathy and memory, and investigate whether personas introduce greater empathy into product design. The results suggest that personas lead to more effective designs when empathy for the persona is created. On the other hand, when the user needs are summarized in a tabular format, the participants must rely on memorization of the user information. The implications of the results and how follow-up studies will tackle unanswered questions are explored

The Technology Acceptance Model: Past, Present, and Future

While the technology acceptance model (TAM), introduced in 1986, continues to be the most widely applied theoretical model in the IS field, few previous efforts examined its accomplishments and limitations. This study traces TAM\u27s history, investigates its findings, and cautiously predicts its future trajectory. One hundred and one articles published by leading IS journals and conferences in the past eighteen years are examined and summarized. An open-ended survey of thirty-two leading IS researchers assisted in critically examining TAM and specifying future directions

Guide to the CRT Data Entry System.

MLMIS #4001

Using personas to improve feature selectivity by facilitating empathy

This paper examines how the target users should be represented to improve the feature selectivity of designers. Specifically, this research investigates the utility of personas, a method for representing user needs through the use of a vivid, fictional character. We examine whether the persona representation helps designers focus their design choices on the needs of the target users without introducing extraneous features. We also test the role of empathy in the effectiveness of personas. In two experimental studies, we find support that a persona representation that facilitates empathy can help designers focus their design inferences on the target users. Taken as a whole, this research presents an initial step toward validating the impact of the personas and identifying factors that influence their utility.First author draf