Induction of First-Order Decision Lists: Results on Learning the Past Tense of English Verbs

This paper presents a method for inducing logic programs from examples that learns a new class of concepts called first-order decision lists, defined as ordered lists of clauses each ending in a cut. The method, called FOIDL, is based on FOIL (Quinlan, 1990) but employs intensional background knowledge and avoids the need for explicit negative examples. It is particularly useful for problems that involve rules with specific exceptions, such as learning the past-tense of English verbs, a task widely studied in the context of the symbolic/connectionist debate. FOIDL is able to learn concise, accurate programs for this problem from significantly fewer examples than previous methods (both connectionist and symbolic).Comment: See http://www.jair.org/ for any accompanying file

Innate Principles and the Digital Object: Insights from Core Knowledge Theory

Psychology research reveals that humans possess innate principles that govern how we make sense of objects and object-directed actions. These principles are embedded in interrelated systems of core knowledge that shape behavior. This paper theorizes how the innate principles embedded in two core knowledge systems—the system of object representation and the agent system—play a crucial role in shaping how a technology user conceives of and carries out an object-directed action through a digital object and its embedded features. The theorization is instantiated in the context of IS research through a framework we call the user-object action scene, which comprises four interrelated elements: the user, the goal-object/goal-agent, the object-approach, and the goal environment. We conclude by encouraging IS researchers to revisit established IS theories through the lens of innate principles, and provide guidance on how to use innate principles to reexamine two IS theories: technology acceptance and technostress

Sharpening the Ethnographer’s Toolkit: Introducing the Freelist Method to Information Systems Research

Ethnography has been presented as a promising research method for information systems researchers. However, IS research using ethnographic techniques still remains scant. We believe this has occurred for four primary reasons: (1) the techniques needed to conduct effective ethnographic research are often discussed in vague detail; (2) data collection in ethnographic studies is perceived as unfocused and unsystematic; (3) ethnographic studies are perceived as highly time consuming and thus impractical; and (4) IS researchers may not be well-versed in understanding how to make sense of the findings of an ethnographic analysis. In this paper, we address these constraints by introducing a well-established ethnographic method called freelisting to ethnographic research in IS. Specifically, we discuss the essence of freelisting, how it fits into ethnography, and provide an example of how to conduct and analyze a freelist in IS. The benefits of freelisting for IS researchers are also explained

On Technostress and Emotion: A Narrative Approach

Emotion in the context of technostress has been treated by IS researchers as highly general and vague. Little is therefore known about how individuals experience specific emotions when undergoing technostress. This paper is a first step towards understanding how to uncover the relationship between technostress (more specifically techno-stressors) and emotion through a narrative approach. Drawing on The Holistic Technostress Model as a theoretical foundation, and guided by research on psychological stress and emotion, the paper advocates for using emotion narratives to create stories about how emotions are experienced during stressful situations involving technology. The paper illustrates how six hypothetical emotion narratives related to technostress: anger, envy, relief, hope, happiness-joy, and pride. The paper also discusses how IS researchers can use emotion narratives in a variety of empirical studies, such as in survey and qualitative research designs and mixed-methods approaches

Learning the Past Tense of English Verbs Using Inductive Logic Programming

. This paper presents results on using a new inductive logic programming method called Foidl to learn the past tense of English verbs. The past tense task has been widely studied in the context of the symbolic/connectionist debate. Previous papers have presented results using various neural-network and decision-tree learning methods. We have developed a technique for learning a special type of Prolog program called a first-order decision list, defined as an ordered list of clauses each ending in a cut. Foidl is based on Foil [19] but employs intensional background knowledge and avoids the need for explicit negative examples. It is particularly useful for problems that involve rules with specific exceptions, such as the past-tense task. We present results showing that Foidl learns a more accurate past-tense generator from significantly fewer examples than all previous methods. 1 Introduction The problem of learning the past tense of English verbs has been widely studied as an interesti..

Do Distractions and Interruptions Mitigate Online Impulse Purchasing?: An Empirical Investigation

Impulse purchases represent an important source of short-term business revenue. However, impulse purchases can lead to an increase in product returns and can contribute to feelings of buyers’ remorse. In this paper, we examine strategies to mitigate online impulse purchasing behavior. Specifically, we apply distraction-conflict theory to a model of impulse buying to investigate a moderating relationship between perceived enjoyment and the urge to buy impulsively. The moderation effect is tested through online distractions and/or interruptions. A controlled laboratory experiment with three interfaces (control, distraction, interruption) was used to test the impact of the moderators. Results indicate that neither a distraction nor an interruption has a significant effect on mitigating the urge to purchase impulsively. Future research opportunities and suggestions for human-computer interfaces are discussed

Revisiting Technology and Flow: A Call for an Alternative Perspective and Directions for the Future

Employee engagement is critical to individual well-being and organizational performance. The concept of flow has been explored as a marker for such engagement. Yet, an understanding of the role technology plays in employees experiencing flow is not well understood. In this paper, we theorize an alternative viewpoint of flow and technology, which we coin “technoflow.” We do so by critically examining the assumptions within existing IS/flow literature, and propose a research agenda that adopts a relational ontology so that IS researchers can identify several sociomaterial conditions and practices related to how employees experience flow. We explain how researchers can draw on technoflow through four central themes: (1) control; (2) attention; (3) curiosity; and (4) intrinsic interest. We provide guidance about how to incorporate technoflow into two contemporary IS theories: media synchronicity theory and technostress. This intervention offers promising theoretical development and knowledge applications for IS researchers and practitioners alike

Understanding Energy Informatics: A Gestalt-Fit Perspective

World energy consumption is on the rise. Consequently, there is increasing focus on research on energy informatics (EI). Given the nascent state of research in EI, it is important for researchers to understand what has been accomplished within the EI literature and to be provided with a roadmap of what should be examined in future studies. Our study attempts to contribute towards this by providing a comprehensive review of the EI literature. Our analysis reveals that EI studies can be grouped into four different categories, and that there is an overfocus on viewing EI as only an energy-saving mechanism Such a focus ignores EI’s potential to serve non-environmental goals. Our manuscript provides a holistic understanding of EI success by drawing on the gestalt-fit perspective, and highlighting the multi-dimensionality of EI. The model should also help future researchers in understanding the salient topics of investigation with respect to EI