On Becoming an Information Systems Professional: Reflections on Academic Career Demands

Information systems academics face many challenges in remaining knowledgeable about the field of information systems. This essay addresses the challenge of breadth versus specialization, based on insights gleaned from a discussion with Dr. Gary Dickson

A Resource Review for Health Care Quality Execution: Business Intelligence Strategy

Health care decision-makers are juggling multiple demands and environmental pressures in today’s world. One area ofinformation systems practice that holds promise for addressing very salient issues in health care is the area of businessintelligence. This review is structured to prepare a health-care decision maker with the knowledge and understandingnecessary to support a successful Business Intelligence environment in the healthcare organization. Ultimately, the goal ofthis resource review is to provide insights into possible curricular development to address a well-rounded understanding ofhow business intelligence strategy can be brought to bear upon the execution of health care operations

Leading by Example: The Importance of Early Adopter Experimentation for Emerging Technologies Diffusion

Information technology management regularly grapples with decisions related to identifying and diffusing emerging technologies in their organizations. Prototyping methodology, a form of rapid application development, is usually suggested as a useful approach for custom systems development. An adapted form of the prototyping methodology may prove useful for understanding early adopter experimentation episodes in the context of new technology diffusion. A case study examines one university that utilized early adopters to initiate the diffusion of an emerging collaborative technology. Implications for practice and research are discussed

An Examination of the Relationship Between Computer Anxiety, Communication Apprehension and Student Experiences With Electronic Mail

Electronic mail (email) communication is fast becoming ubiquitous in the workplace and on the university campus (Garton and Wellman, 1995). Its wide availability and perceived usefulness make it a particularly attractive software tool for inclusion as a course instructional method. However, there has been little principled investigation into how this blending of computer technology and communication medium may be perceived by the users of such technology when integrated into a course as an instructional method1. This research is aimed at uncovering certain characteristics that might influence students\u27 experiences with this medium. We argue that due to the nature of the medium communication and computer its use will be affected by both computer anxiety and communication apprehension. To complicate matters further, the typical distinction between written or oral communication apprehension is likely to be less clear when we examine email. In this paper, we discuss our rationale for the research, the research question and propositions, current project status, and the potential contributions of this stream of research

The relationship among student characteristics, choice of participation mode, and student performance in technologically-supported learning environments

Technologically-supported learning (TSL) environments offer considerable promise for the enhancement of student learning through the various interaction opportunities available in the feature sets of the computer-based communication tools. At the very least, the computer-based communication provides additional venues for class participation. However, when class participation is positioned within a TSL environment, it is not clear how learning/performance benefits are associated with student predispositions toward communication mediums and computer technology, student attitudes toward participation, and student choice of participation mode. This paper describes apilot study that investigates the relationship among student characteristics (computer anxiety, communication apprehension, computer-based communication apprehension, attitudes toward participation), student choice of participation mode, and student performance in a technologically-supported learning environment

A Longitudinal Investigation of the Effects of Computer Anxiety on Performance in a Computing-Intensive Environment

Computers are pervasive in business and education, and it would be easy to assume that all individuals embrace technology. However, evidence shows that roughly 30 to 40 percent of individuals experience some level of computer anxiety. Many academic programs involve computing-intensive courses, but the actual effects of this exposure on computer anxiety are unknown. This study contributes to the literature as follows. First, direct evidence of a relationship between longitudinal changes in individuals\u27 computer anxiety and performance are reported. Second, the effects of changes in computer anxiety are shown to be dependent on individuals\u27 initial level of anxiety. Third, some evidence is provided that changes in computer anxiety from exposure to a computing-intensive environment are not uniform across individuals. Lastly, the subjects in this study appear to be more representative of contemporary students and workers than those used in prior studies. Implications for research and practice are presented