Growing up local: A value chain analysis of local produce in Iowa

This was the original project description: Investigators will detail a value chain analysis of locally grown produce in Iowa. Investigators will identify supply chain structures that support production and distribution using methodologies compatible with sustainable agriculture

An Experimental Examination of Group Information Sharing, Group Size, and Meeting Structures for Groups Using a Group Support System

This paper reports on an experimental study of information sharing for groups using a group support system (GSS). Information sharing is important because a group member\u27s success or failure in sharing unique information that he or she alone possesses can have important impacts onthe group\u27s success. This research builds on work by Stasser and colleagues (Stasser & Titus, 1985, 1987, Stasser, Taylor, & Hanna, 1989, Stasser, 1992) which examined various factors that impact on group information sharing performance. To examine these issues, groups processed a hidden profile task; that is, a task with an asymmetrical distribution of information. In addition, group size (groups of size four and size seven) and the type of structure used during the meeting (structured or unstructured meeting agenda) were manipulated. The results for group size indicate that smaller sized groups were more likely to select a better solution, however, no significant differences were found related to group size for other performance measures or for the perceptual variables. The results for the meeting structure manipulation indicate that a structured agenda leads to better information sharing performance but that it also results in more negative perceptions about the meeting. The paper concludes with a discussion of the findings and the implications for future research and GSS us

THE EFFECTS OF RESTRICTIVENESS AND PREFERENCE FOR PROCEDURAL ORDER ON THE APPROPRIATION OF GROUP DECISION HEURISTICS IN A GSS ENVIRONMENT

This research examines two research questions. First, does restrictiveness (i.e., the manner in which use of group resources is limited or channeled) (Silver 1988, 1990; DeSanclis et al. 1989) influence group performance and member perceptions as measured by decision quality and satisfaction? Second, does the composition of a GSS supported group in terms of individual preference for procedural order (PPO) (Putnam 1979) influence group performance and member perceptions? 7\u27his research tests and extends the Adaptive Structuration Theory (AST) (Poole and DeSanctis 1990). AST argues that GSSs are a social technology through which groups may choose to faithfully or ironically appropriate GSS structures. The PPO construct was also examined in this research. The PPO construct suggests that individuals enter group work with predispositions for particular work habits. For instance. High Procedural Order (HPO) individuals prefer planned, sequential patterns of organizing task activities and will seek to structure activities by sending procedural messages while Low Procedural Order (LPO) individuals send fewer procedural messages and prefer a cyclical ordering of activities. We suggest lhat a group member\u27 s PPO may be an important source of contextual structures for the appropriation processes described by AST. A laboratory experiment was conducted to evaluate the impacts of GSS- and facilitator-based restrictiveness on group processes and outcomes. The independent variables in this study were restrictiveness and the group\u27s PPO composition. Twenty-eight 5-member groups composed entirely of all HPO individuals (fourteen groups) or all LPO individuals (fourteen groups) were randomly assigned to either a restrictive or nonrestrictive treatment. The restrictive treatment was operationalized by activating three sources of restrictiveness: user-based training, facilitator-based process guidance, and GSS-based (via a level-2 GSS - VisionQuest™). The nonrestrictive treatment did not specifically impose any form of restricliveness. The comprehensive heuristic was a modification of Dewey\u27s (1910) reflective thinking process. The $OB Policy Task. a hidden profile task (Stasser 1992), was developed and used for this experimenL This task is designed so that information from all members is essential for identifying the dominant problems and for finding a jointly acceptable solution. In tenns of decision quality. an ANOVA found no significant difference between groups in each of the treatment conditions; however, the trends in the data are suggestive and imply that I-PO groups in the non-reslrictive condition tend to produce better quality solutions (F = 1.594. p = 0.219). Further. a one-way analysis for groups in the non-restrictive condition across the PPO dimension approached significance (F = 3.0846; p = 0.105) and suggests that groups composed of LPO me:nbers performed this task better than groups composed of }IPO members, Results for satisfaction (Green and Taber 1980) indicate that I IPO group members reported greater participation in the discussion (F = 12.27, p = 0.001), that they were more satisfied with their group\u27s solution (F = 10.94, p = 0.001), and that they were also more satisfied with the process than were LPO members (F = 6.61, p = 0.011). No significant difference was identified for participation in terms of the restrictiveness treatment; however, groups in the restrictive condition were more satisfied with the solution (F = 5.78, p = 0.018) and with the process (F = 6.43, p = 0.012). In terms of qualitative results, the facilitators noted that groups in the non-restrictive treatment generally could not or chose not to appropriate the heuristic. Even when groups requested the GSS tool specified by the heuristic, they often misappropriated the heuristic or the GSS. These preliminary results are intriguing and suggest that PPO is a useful construct for understanding how group members appropriate and react to GSS technology and structured heuristics. A better understanding of the intlicacies and differences in this appropriation process in the various conditions will be gained Lhrough a detailed examination of the decision-making process adopted by each group

Collaboration, Connectedness, and Community: An examination of the factors Influencing Student Persistence in Virtual Communities

Institutions of higher education are being called upon to provide a more robust pathway to a college degree and improve upon the advanced workforce for the needs of the 21st century. While active collaborative learning environments have been encouraged in higher education to improve student engagement, there is a gap in the literature when it comes to connecting the two research areas of collaborative learning and student intention to persist. This research fills this gap by creating and conducting research to examine a model that measures the factors that significantly influence a student\u27s persistence in a virtual collaborative learning environment. The model examines how collaborative learning, campus connectedness, sense of community, organizational commitment, and turnover intention influence student persistence. The model was tested using a sample of students who participated in a virtual learning community (VLC) and the results suggest that all but one of the factors were found to significantly influence student persistence, with the final factor dependent on the number of hours of system usage. We discuss the implications of the research and the model for team-based theory and organizational practice in education and teamwork

Introduction to the Geographic Information Systems Minitrack

This paper discusses the status of geographic information systems (GIS) research in the fields of MIS. To do this, we define the technology as it relates to the IS field. We then discuss the research that has been done in other disciplines to study this technology. Finally, we present an outline of the research topics pertaining to GIS that appear to be of relevance to the IS field

Website Credibility Assessment: An Empirical - Investigation of Prominence-interpretation Theory

While a variety of research studies have examined factors that influence individuals’ attitudes toward and use of websites, an important yet understudied stream looks at the role of website credibility. We examine website credibility through the lens of prominence-interpretation theory. Fogg (2003) developed this theory to help explain the relationships between what users observe about a website, how they interpret it, and how observation and interpretation together determine website credibility. In this paper, we look specifically at the relationship between prominence and interpretation and how these variables interact to influence attitudes about website credibility. We examined this relationship using a controlled laboratory experiment in which we exposed subjects to a website and asked them what they saw and how they interpreted what they saw. We analyzed these data using discriminant analysis and show that the interaction between prominence and interpretation accurately predicts attitudes about credibility, which offers strong support for prominence-interpretation theory. We discuss these findings and their implications for theory and practice

Does Technology Thwart Gender Stereotypes? An Impression Formation-Based Examination of the Differential Influence of Technology across Gender and Messages

This research examines the relationship between gender, message sentiment, and technology use on the way that observers form impressions of others. Building on impression formation and gender stereotype research and theory, we develop a two-study research methodology for examining how impressions of technology users are formed. The results of our two studies indicate that technology use is an important component in impression formation, significantly inhibiting the effects of gender stereotyping, such that women and men are not evaluated differently based on their apparent competency in using technology nor on the content of their messaging. Our findings indicate that the use of technology subverts both the male and female stereotypes that observers normally engage