In Search of the Primary Suppliers of IS Research: Who Are They and Where Did They Come From?

The purpose of this study was to determine the leading IS researchers and the universities that supply them. We reviewed publications from the seven leading IS journals (CAIS, DSS, Information & Management, ISR, JAIS, JMIS, and MIS Quarterly) during calendar years 2001 to 2005. During that time, 2,401 authors contributed toward 1,486 published articles. We believe our findings to be valuable to the field of IS research by providing a means for assessing research productivity within the IS field

Current State of Information Security Research In IS

The importance of information security in a pervasive networked environment is undeniable, yet there is a lack of research in this area. In this study we conduct a comprehensive survey of the information security articles published in leading IS journals. We then compared the research themes with those of the IBM Information Security Capability Reference Model

Assessing Researcher Publication Productivity in the Leading Information Systems Journals: A 2003-2007 Update

This study examines the leading IS researchers and the universities that supply them. We reviewed publications from nine leading IS journals during calendar years 2003 to 2007. During that time, 3,404 researchers contributed toward 2,155 published articles. Our analysis shows that most of the leading researchers were affiliated with institutions in North America. Our study also includes an analysis of the publication productivity of both IS faculty and doctoral students. This research contributes to the scientometric literature by providing a means for assessing IS publication productivity

An Exploration of Human Resource Management Information Systems Security

In this exploratory study we investigate differences in perception between management and staff with regard to overall information security risk management and human resources security risk management at two Fortune 500 companies. This study is part of a much larger study with regard to organizational information security issues. To our knowledge, this is the first time the issue of security risk management has been discussed in the context of human resource systems. We found significant differences between management and staff perceptions regarding overall security risk management and human resources security risk management. Our findings lay the ground work for future research in this area

Identifying Exceptional Application Software Developers: A Comparison of Students and Professionals

Exceptional application software developers are a scarce resource. It is therefore important for employers to identify, retain, and cultivate individuals who exhibit this capacity. This study compared the personality characteristics of exceptional, experienced application software developers with the personality characteristics of junior and senior level IS and CS students (who can be seen as entry-level, or pre-entry level, IT developers). We used the Adjective Checklist to measure personality characteristics for all subjects, then mapped the resultant scales to the Five Factor Model of Personality. The results of this study suggest that exceptional application software developers exhibit significantly higher levels of Extraversion and Conscientiousness. Exceptional students (as determined by GPA), however, were actually found to be introverted. Thus, when GPA is used to pre-screen or filter for entry-level positions, recruiters may actually be excluding some of those candidates who are most likely to become exceptional application software developers. These results have implications for understanding and managing the recruiting of IT personnel and their progression from entry level (novice) to more experienced positions

A Multilevel Investigation of Participation Within Virtual Health Communities

Virtual health communities are a major channel through which health consumers share health-related knowledge and/or exchange social support with their peers. These virtual environments can be a form of, or a potential component of, integrated Patient-centered e-Health (PCEH) applications, which represent emerging healthcare information systems that emphasize the role of patients and revolve around providing patient-focus, patient-activity, and patient-empowerment services. Because of the collaborative nature of virtual health communities, user participation is a critical factor for community growth and prosperity. In this study, we examine user participation at the individual and group (thread) levels. At the individual level, we investigate the impact of reciprocity and homophily (similarity of user characteristics such as age, gender, and tenure) on user participation within virtual health communities. At the thread level, we study the role of highly active users (power users) as thread initiators as well as the role of thread initiators’ participation on the overall thread vibrancy. To do so, we analyzed 2,176 threads initiated by 130 users and 1,947 messages exchanged between these users and their peers. Our results support short-term reciprocity, but refute the positive relationship associated with long-term reciprocity. Among homophily hypotheses, our results support gender homophily, but not age or tenure homophily. At the thread level our findings suggest that a discussion thread is vibrant if the thread initiator is a power user or participates actively within the thread. These findings have important implications for future research and practice in PCEH applications

Assessing Researcher Publication Productivity in the Leading Information Systems Journals: A 2005–2009 Update

This study is an update of a previous scientometric study that examined the leading Information Systems (IS) researchers, their university affiliations, and the universities that supply them. We provide geographical comparisons of researcher affiliations for the AIS regions and for North American versus global institutions, along with a comparison of prior and current results. Our analysis shows that coauthorship is increasing in the top three IS journals and that most of the leading researchers continue to affiliate with institutions in North America. However, the proportion of publications from North American researchers in the top three journals has decreased slightly over time This research contributes to the scientometric literature by identifying a more broad and inclusive set of leading IS publications and by providing benchmarks for the productivity of IS scholars. These results can be valuable for deans and department chairs making tenure and promotion decisions. Prospective students and faculty can use these results to identify universities which match their personal research goals. This study also helps to define and expand the boundaries of the IS discipline due to its use of a broader set of leading journals

Understanding the Information Technology Innovation Impact on Firm Performance: An Empirical Investigation

This study revisits the impact of IT innovation on firm performance using the Information Week 500 databases and tests the robustness of innovation theory. Using the most recent dataset, this study not only compares performance of IT innovators with average industry performance but also compares it with a firm in the same industry and of similar size. It also compares performance of IT innovators from IT strategic industries with IT innovators from non-IT strategic industries. As expected, IT innovators performed better than the control group of all other firms within the same industry. However, there was no statistical difference between IT innovators and the control group of firms within the same industry and comparable size. IT innovators from transformational industries also fared better than IT innovators from either informate or automates industries. Therefore, our study confirms the strategic role of IT is an important factor on firm performance