The adoption of interorganisational information systems by South African firms: a technological, organisational and environmental perspective

Thesis (M.Com. (Information Systems))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, School of Economic and Business Sciences, 2017Interorganisational information systems (IOIS) are automated systems which allow one or more firms to connect to their suppliers or customers in order to exchange data and information. Previous literature has suggested that the adoption of interorganisational information systems presents several benefits and challenges. IOIS is assumed to offer organisations the capability to improve business processes and provide better working relations with business partners. Despite this advantage that IOIS offers, adoption of IOIS presents complexities such as those associated with compatibility with a firm's IT infrastructure, lack of available skills, and concerns over data security and system failures. Through a review of existing IOIS literature, this study identified that four types of IOISs are available in South African, namely dyadic, multilateral, community, and hub and spoke. In addition, the technological, organisational and environmental (TOE) factors influencing the adoption IOIS were identified. A model exploring the effects of the pre-determined TOE factors on the adoption of IOIS was developed and tested. The TOE framework provided a theoretical contribution and addressed a gap in the literature into the barriers and determinants of the adoption of interorganisational information system (IOIS) across various organisations. A quantitative study was carried out and survey data was collected from a sample of 119 organisations across different sectors in South Africa. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire instrument administered online to a single key informant from each sampled organisation. The results revealed that multilateral IOIS are the most adopted systems while Hub and spoke IOIS are the least used. Furthermore, from the elven technologies which were identified in the literature review, the study revealed that groupware technologies, electronic payment system/online banking, video conferencing and electronic data interchange were the most adopted IOIS technologies within the sampled organisations. Adoption of IOIS was defined in two ways. First, IOIS adoption was measured as the number of implemented IOIS technologies. Second, as the extent which IOIS is used as communication medium with business partners and supports an organisation in decision making, business operation and replaces legacy technologies. Correlation analysis was used to test the model’s hypotheses and multiple regression was used to test the overall TOE model. The results showed that perceived compatibility, competition, and IS technical skill and education and training are most correlated with the adoption of IOIS, where adoption is measured as the extent of IOIS used as communication medium with business partners and used as support within an organisation. Top management support, trading partner pressure and perceived relative advantage of IOIS were also positively correlated with adoption, where adoption is measured as implemented IOIS technologies. Perceived complexity was found to be a barrier to IOIS adoption. This study serves as a guide for assessing factors contributing to interorganisational information system adoption and provides organisations with greater insight into the factors likely to enable and inhibit IOIS adoption. Keywords: IOS, IOIS, Technology-Organisation-Environment (TOE) Framework, information technology, IS department.GR201

Exploring Black Female Post-graduate Science Students’ Experiences and Understandings of their Intersectional Identities

Black women face oppression in various fields but research indicates that black women in the science, technology, mathematics and engineering (STEM) fields face even more scrutiny. Black women belong to two oppressed groups – black and women – and therefore face discrimination on multiple levels. This article, underpinned by the theory of intersectionality, explores ten black female postgraduate science students’ experiences and understandings of their intersectional identities, and interrogates the implications of their views in this era of women’s rights and feminism. Interviews with the students focused on their experiences in their degree, knowledge of their intersectional identities, and understandings of their professional career trajectory and was analysed qualitatively. The study found that these students were a bi-product of their schooling socialization and the influence of their science discipline, prompting the authors to question whether transformation is occurring in higher education in South Africa or if classism is now the new ‘racism’. Further, the implications of entering the workplace, whilst holding outdated patriarchal views, are interrogated

Polygyny and gender : the gendered narratives of adults who were raised in polygynous families.

Doctor of Philosophy in Gender studies. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2015.The thesis interrogates the gender identity construction of adults raised in polygynous families in the Hammarsdale area in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study aims to contribute to the fields of gender and identity construction from an African perspective by examining gender relations in polygynous families of Zulu origin. As researcher I seek to highlight the complexities of the gender identities under investigation, as participants negotiate between modern, constitutional, individual freedoms and patriarchal, cultural, communal customs and traditions. Through the use of a qualitative interpretivist theoretical paradigm, I highlight how the communal processes; revealed in the views and perceptions of the research participants, intersect with my multidimensional positionality as researcher, to produce knowledge. I also position gender relations as an important dynamic in the data collection process. The body of data reveals that although women and men experience different influences on their gendered identity construction, both female and male study participants also cite certain similar factors prevalent in Zulu culture that have bearing on their gender identity construction, namely; gender role socialisation, naming practices, and the principle of seniority. African perspectives on concepts such as gender, feminism and the family are vastly different from their Western counterparts. Similarly, mechanisms of socialisation such as religion, capitalism and the law require context-specific application to the notion of polygyny. The study is underpinned by three key theoretical frameworks, namely; gender relations, social constructionism and African feminism. The gender relations approach entails three key concepts; power relations, sexual division of labour, and cathexis. The themes arising from the study point to the contestation between individuality and collectivism in the construction of gender identity within polygynous families in the Zulu culture. The South African Constitution guarantees gender equality and individual rights and freedoms for its citizens, yet customary law practices, such as polygyny, appear to contravene these principles. The study traces a sample of formally educated participants as they navigate this treacherous contradiction and construct culturally hybrid gender identities for themselves

Enlightened women and polygamy: Voices and perspectives from within

Within the prevalent patriarchal system, polygamy and ilobolo are deeply-rooted practices that still endure and are considered vital within African cultures. The customs, however, have gender and power implication at times, where polygamy causes anguish for women when men consider them ‘paid for’ or ‘bought commodities’, not deserving to be treated with respect. Traditional men have championed polygamy in terms of ‘tradition and culture’ but a cursory observation suggests that it is currently also being embraced by women who seem to marry into these unions freely. By extension, it would seem that some first wives do not find it a problem when their husbands inform them of their intention to take second and subsequent wives. Even in arranged marriages certain women seem content to enter into a polygamous union because they will be answering the call of duty (Mkhize, 2011). This article reports on a study that was conducted at a semi-urban township of Hammarsdale in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa between 2009 and 2011 using qualitative research methodology. The aim of the study was to explore why middle-class educated and employed women enter or even stay in these matrimonial arrangements. The study differed from any previous studies in that it focused on financially independent women; a crucial point which eliminated one of the main assumptions that women enter into such unions for financial and or material gain and/or support. Moreover previous studies had focused on rural women who were mainly housewives entirely dependent on their husbands for their livelihoods. The findings of the study revealed that women entered such unions for numerous reasons, amongst them, love, family, societal pressures as well as desperation to have a higher social standing in the community than being a single woman. It is concluded that most of these women were influenced by society into being married regardless of the type of marriage they wanted.Keywords: Polygyny, polygamy, ilobolo, tradition, culture, patriarchy, gender, power, social phenomeno