ROLE OF COGNITIVE ABSORPTION AND TRUST FOR COLLABORATION IN VIRTUAL WORLD

Virtual worlds (VWs) have paved a new and important channel for user collaboration and information sharing. Businesses are now considering using VWs as innovative means for collaboration and information sharing among its organizational members. Despite the huge potential of VWs for harnessing and increasing the flow of ideas among organizations, research on the subject is rather sparse. Drawing on the social cognitive theory, we re-specify the concept of cognitive absorption (CA) in the context of VWs by theorizing environmental factors in addition to the individual factors as antecedents of CA. Further, by integrating CA with ‘trust’ we develop a VW usage model. We test the specified model with data collected from 197 VW users in Singapore. Results display the important roles that both CA and ‘trust’ play in the usage of VW. Further, through a post-hoc analysis we demonstrate the imperative need for considering both CA and ‘trust’, together in the proposed VW usage model. The study also delineates a set of implications for research and practice

Evaluating the Role of Trust in Consumer Adoption of Mobile Payment Systems: An Empirical Analysis

Consumer adoption of mobile payment (m-payment) solutions is low compared to the acceptance of traditional forms of payments. Motivated by this fact, we propose and test a “trust-theoretic model for consumer adoption of m-payment systems.” The model, grounded in literature on “technology adoption” and “trust,” not only theorizes the role of consumer trust in m-payment adoption, but also identifies the facilitators for consumer trust in m-payment systems. It proposes two broad dimensions of trust facilitators: “mobile service provider characteristics” and “mobile technology environment characteristics.” The model is empirically validated via a sample of potential adopters in Singapore. In contrast to other contexts, results suggest the overarching importance of “consumer trust in m-payment systems” as compared to other technology adoption factors. Further, differential importance of the theorized trust facilitators of “perceived reputation” and “perceived opportunism” of the mobile service provider, and “perceived environmental risk” and “perceived structural assurance” of the mobile technology, are also highlighted. A series of post-hoc analyses establish the robustness of the theorized configuration of constructs. Subsequent, sub-group analyses highlight the differential significance of trust facilitators for different user sub-groups. Implications for research and practice emerging out of this study are also discussed

Cognitive Absorption and Trust for Workplace Collaboration in Virtual Worlds: An Information Processing Decision Making Perspective

Virtual worlds (VWs) are media-rich cognitively engaging technologies that geographically dispersed organizations can use as a cost effective workplace collaboration tool. Using an information processing decision making perspective and building on unique characteristics of VWs, this paper proposes a nomological net for adaptive use intention (AUI) of VWs for workplace collaborations. AUI implies intention to use a technology in a setting different from the one for which it was initially designed. We study the AUI of VWs as a workplace collaboration tool which were originally conceived as recreational gaming platforms. Decision-making literature directs us to reduction of perceived cognitive burden and minimization of risk as the two key motivations for VWs’ AUI. Building on these motivations, the paper identifies cognitive absorption and user trust in VWs as the mechanisms leading to individual-level AUI decision. Drawing on social cognitive theory and literature on trust, the proposed model not only re-specifies the concept of cognitive absorption in the context of VWs but also relates it to the level of trust and usage intention for VWs. We empirically tested the proposed model via data collected from 197 VW users in Singapore. Results demonstrate the significant roles that cognitive absorption’ and user trust play in VW’s usage as a collaboration tool. Further, through a series of post-hoc analyses, we demonstrate the imperative need for considering both cognitive absorption and user trust together in the proposed research model for theoretical parsimony. We also discuss implications for research and practice emerging out of this study

Understanding the Twitter Usage of Humanities and Social Sciences Academic Journals

Scholarly communication has the scope to transcend the limitations of the physical world through social media extended coverage and shortened information paths. Accordingly, publishers have created profiles for their journals in Twitter to promote their publications and to initiate discussions with public. This paper investigates the Twitter presence of humanities and social sciences (HSS) journal titles obtained from mainstream citation indices, by analysing the interaction and communication patterns. This study utilizes webometric data collection, descriptive analysis, and social network analysis. Findings indicate that the presence of HSS journals in Twitter across disciplines is not yet substantial. Sharing of general websites appears to be the key activity performed by HSS journals in Twitter. Among them, web content from news portals and magazines are highly disseminated. Sharing of research articles and retweeting was not majorly observed. Inter-journal communication is apparent within the same citation index, but it is very minimal with journals from the other index. However, there seems to be an effort to broaden communication beyond the research community, reaching out to connect with the public.Comment: 2018 Annual Meeting of The Association for Information Science & Technolog

Fostering Communication between the Elderly and the Youth with Social Games

In today’s aging societies, elderly people often have difficulties to find people to communicate with. To address this loneliness of the elderly, it has been suggested to create more opportunities for children and elderly people to engage in various shared activities together. In this ongoing research, we investigate that social offline games can facilitate communication between the generations by creating a mutually enjoyable environment where elderly and young persons can interact with each other. A longitudinal approach is used to investigate whether intergenerational communication actually is enhanced by utilizing social offline games as the medium. Prior research has been conducted in related topics, such as the perceptions of the young and elderly participants towards each other in a game setting, as well as the impacts to communication behaviours among players of the same generation. We aim to build a model that connects game enjoyment, intergenerational perceptions and communication, and ultimately contribute to improving the well-being and relieving the loneliness experienced by many elderly people

Understanding Collaborations in Virtual World

Virtual worlds (VW) have paved a new and important channel for workplace collaborations. However, analysts have noted that several organizations that made a strong entrance into using VW as a nouveau channel for communication and collaboration are stepping back due to limited user response. Motivated by this fact, we propose a trust-theoretic ‘virtual world collaboration model’ for collaborations in virtual worlds. The model, grounded in literature on ‘technology adoption’ and ‘trust’, theoretically examines the role of trust in motivating users for using this rich virtual communication medium for collaborations. Results establish the important roles of perceived social presence and perceived structural assurance for fostering user trust in VW. Further, results also indicate that user trust is significantly related to both extrinsic and intrinsic motivations, which in turn influence the behavioural intention to use the VW. Implications for research and practice are discussed

Design lessons on access features in PAPER

Using Nielsen’s Heuristic Evaluation, this paper reports a user study with six usability-trained subjects to evaluate PAPER’s access features in assisting users to retrieve information efficiently, part of an on-going design partnership with stakeholders and designers/developers. PAPER (Personalised Adaptive Pathways for Exam Resources) is an improved version evolving from an earlier implementation of GeogDL built upon G-Portal, a geospatial digital library infrastructure. After two initial evaluations with student and teacher design partners, PAPER has evolved containing a new bundle of personalized, interactive services with four modules : mock exam; personal coach (practice and review); trend analysis and performance review. This paper highlights lessons learnt in the design of PAPER using Nielsen’s heuristics, and discusses implications for the design of access features in digital libraries in general.Accepted versio

An Interactive Learning Environment for a Dynamic Educational Digital Library

GeogDL is a digital library of geography examination resources designed to assist students in preparing for a national geography examination in Singapore. We describe an interactive learning environment built into GeogDL that consists of four major components. The practice and review module allows students to attempt individual examination questions, the mock exam provides a simulation of the actual geography examination, the trends analysis tool provides an overview of the types of questions asked in previous examinations, while the contributions module allows students and teachers to create and share knowledge within the digital library.Published versio

GeogDL: A web-based approach to geography examination

The traditional educational approach with students as passive recipients has been the subject of criticism. A constructivist learner-centered approach towards education has been argued to produce greater internalization and application of knowledge compared to the traditional teacher-centered, transmission-oriented approach. Nevertheless, contemporary instructional design models argue for the use and integration of both approaches especially in complex learning tasks. This paper describes GeogDL, a Webbased application developed above a digital library of geographical resources for Singapore students preparing to take a national examination in geography. GeogDL is unique in that it not only provides an environment for active learning, it also adopts a pragmatic approach to learning that recognizes the importance of examinations especially in the Singapore education system. The paper discusses the components within the system that permit teachers to facilitate active student learning, to draw interconnections, and to promote knowledge sharing and collaboration. GeogDL was pilot-tested on a group of secondary school students in Singapore and the results suggested the viability of the system and also provided direction for future development.Published versio

Evaluation of Supporting Tools for Health Coaches Providing Nutrition and Exercise Coaching to Older Adults in Singapore

A rapidly ageing population and multimorbidity are questioning the sustainability of healthcare systems in Singapore, whereby health coaches, who help older adults build and sustain a healthy lifestyle, have become increasingly popular in recent years. Health coaches however face multiple challenges due to caregiver burden. In this study, we designed and evaluated web and mobile applications (“apps”) to support health coaches with scheduling, managing reports, and providing access to resources related to nutrition and exercise for older adults. We examined the acceptance and usability of the apps with health coaches after they completed 8 weekly online health coaching sessions. We found desirable functions included consideration of ethnic diversity in the context of a multi-culture society, potential of providing just-in-time information when they face problems during coaching, and helpful materials and links for health coaches to refer to