Learning What is Top-of-Mind: A Course on Neuro-Information Systems

Neuromarketing, neuro-economics, and now the field of neuro-information systems (neuro-IS) is growing and our students want to know more about it all. This poster presents an elective course targeted to undergraduate IS majors. The course is focused on design aspects of brain-based computer interfaces for people with disabilities, new uses in organizations, and better understanding of human mental states. Students read seminal book chapters and papers, engage with guest lecturers on specialized topics, and watch related video and films to gain a background in the latest brain-based technology and its application to various organizations. The course material focuses on design, usability, psychological and cognitive states of users, and evaluation. Students demonstrate their understanding of key concepts by designing and conducting a related research study, analyzing a case in the field, or designing their own brain-based interface. Taught to forty undergraduate students in a face-to-face format, the course was met with positive reviews and sparked creation in an online format

Wearable Technologies for Healthcare Innovation

Healthcare is becoming more and more prone to technology. For this reason products are being developed geared toward implementing more sufficient ways of providing healthcare. Wearable technology has become one of the leading and considerably most valuable assets within the category. There are many types of wearable technology that do various tasks concerning health. Whether intended focus is on filling a void where human-error can be present or creation of a process where one was obsolete, wearable technology’s presence is felt within healthcare today. This exploratory study reviews wearable technologies that exist, are being used, as well as those that are developing or in the ideation phase concerning healthcare. We present a summary of wearable technologies used in healthcare and sample categorization to serve as a working framework for understanding the future direction of the field. Exemplar cases are provided

Engaged Brains: A Course on Neuro-Information Systems

Neuro-marketing, neuro-economics, and now the field of neuro-information systems (neuro-IS) is growing, and our students want to know more about it all. This paper presents the examination of the learning-needs of new entrants to the field of neuro-IS. The resulting elective course is targeted at IS undergraduate majors interested in learning about the use of neurophysiological tools in organizational settings. The course is focused on the design aspects of brain-based computer interfaces for people with disabilities and the general use of neurophysiological tools to understand human mental states better. Students read seminal papers to gain a background in the latest brain-based technology and its application to various organizations. The course material focuses on the design and usability of systems, the psychological and cognitive states of users, and the evaluation of novel technology. Students demonstrate their understanding of key concepts by designing and conducting a related research study, analyzing a case in the field, or designing their own brain-based interface. This course was taught to forty-one undergraduate students in a face-to-face format and thirty-seven in an online class using active learning principles, and the course was met with highly positive reviews. Delivering a version of the class online did not have a noticeable impact on either student performance or course evaluations

Creating Sustainable Education Projects in Roatan, Honduras Through Continuous Process Improvement

The investigators worked together with permanent residents of Roatán, Honduras on sustainable initiatives to help improve the island’s troubled educational programs. Our initiatives focused on increasing the number of students eligible and likely to attend a university. Using a methodology based in continuous process improvement, we developed tutoring programs, college preparation workshops, long-term plans for a local school, and solicited involvement by an island educational coalition. Lessons learned from these initiatives may be used to expand other efforts on the island and can be generalized to other programs in Central America

Stuck in the Middle: Reflections from the AMCIS Mid-career Workshop

Studies often show that mid-career faculty are some of the unhappiest people in academia. Many mid-career faculty have tenure, have more freedom to pursue different types of projects, and have many options ahead. Yet, mid-career faculty members also deal with the personal politics that arise during the tenure process, with figuring out what to do with the newfound freedom, and with finding their own way among the many options in an academic career path. As a junior faculty member, one often has a singular goal: obtaining tenure. However, mid-career faculty members need to concern themselves with not only becoming a “full” professor but also figuring out what to do once they have reached that milestone and feeling full in their overall career path. In this paper, we discuss the challenges associated with being a mid-career faculty member based on research and insights discussed in the mid-career workshop offered at the Americas Conference on Information Systems. We offer examples of how to support mid-career faculty through workshops and mentoring relationships. We also provide insights on how individuals at different career stages can support and understand the challenges among mid-career faculty in information systems

Creating Sustainable Education Projects In Roat, Honduras Through Continuous Process Improvement

The investigators worked together with permanent residents of Roatán, Honduras on sustainable initiatives to help improve the island’s troubled educational programs. Our initiatives focused on increasing the number of students eligible and likely to attend a university. Using a methodology based in continuous process improvement, we developed tutoring programs, college preparation workshops, long-term plans for a local school, and solicited involvement by an island educational coalition.  Lessons learned from these initiatives may be used to expand other efforts on the island and can be generalized to other programs in Central America

Toward a More Secure HRIS: The Role of HCI and Unconscious Behavior

By design, human resource information systems (HRIS) hold confidential and sensitive information. Therefore, one needs to ensure the security of these systems from unintentional mistakes that may compromise such information. Current systems design and training procedures of HRIS unintentionally help reinforce unsecure behaviors that result in non-malicious security breaches. Measures to improve security through design and training may only occur by breaking the use/impact cycle that individuals have habitually formed. Using strong contexts and cues allow trainers to interrupt individuals’ habits. Then, they have the opportunity to enforce the repetition of the desired behavior. This paper introduces a model of habit formation from consumer behavior that one may apply to HRIS

The Story of Taste: Using EEGs and Self-Reports to Understand Consumer Choice

The authors investigate consumers’ willingness to switch from a preferred manufacturer brand to an unfamiliar private-label brand if taste is perceived as identical. Consumer decisions are examined through recordings of electrical brain activity in the form of electroencephalograms (EEGs) and self-reported data captured in surveys. Results reveal a willingness of consumers to switch to a less-expensive brand when the quality is perceived to be the same as the more expensive counterpart. Cost saving options for consumers and advertising considerations for managers are discussed

BioGauges: Toward More Objective Evaluation of Biometrically-Based Interfaces

In an effort to better understand and fully characterize human interaction with biometrically-based interfaces, the BioGauges method and toolset are presented. BioGauges provide a mechanism for determining the range, reliability, and granularity of control possible for a user operating a biometrically-based interface. We first demonstrate the method with a study of ten able-bodied people characterizing two different continuous biometrically-based interfaces with a thresholded task. Then, we further demonstrate the method by assessing the spatial granularity of two continuous biometrically-based interfaces for five people with varying stages of paralysis due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

The Potential of Neuroscience for Human-Computer Interaction Research

Due to the increased availability of both neuroscience methods and theories, Information Systems (IS) scholars have begun to investigate the potential of neuroscience for IS research. This new field of research is referred to as NeuroIS. Moreover, large technology companies (e.g., Microsoft and Philips) started research programs to evaluate the potential of neuroscience for their business. The application of neuroscientific approaches is also expected to significantly contribute to advancements in human-computer interaction (HCI) research. Against this background, a panel debate is organized to discuss the potential of neuroscience for HCI studies. The panel hosts an intellectual debate from different perspectives, both conceptually (from behaviorally-oriented research to design science research) and methodologically (from brain imaging to neurophysiological techniques), thereby outlining many facets that neuroscience offers for HCI research. The panel concludes that neuroscience has the potential to become an important reference discipline for the field of HCI in the future