Alison Parkes

The effect of task-individual-technology fit on user attitude and performance

Decision support research explores interactions between individuals, tasks, and technology. In this paper, I deconstruct the task-technology-individual fit model into three two-way interactions and ascertain how these interactions affect user attitude and performance. Performance is conceptualized as consisting of two dimensions, technology performance and task performance. The paper reports a controlled laboratory experiment involving 94 subjects using a purpose built decision support system. The results demonstrate several important principles. User attitude is affected by the fit between individual and technology whereas technology performance is affected by the fit between task and technology, and task and individual. Users of technology fitted to them as an individual can perceive it as more useful than it actually is, in terms of improving task performance. Finally, technology performance translates into task performance. Technology performance is a necessary but not sufficient precursor to task performance. Highlights? Task-technology-individual fit model is deconstructed into three two-way dimensions. ? Performance consists of two components; technology performance and task performance. ? User attitudes are affected by fit between individual and technology. ? Technology performance is a function of user attitude and fit. ? Task performance is a function of user attitude and technology performance.

A challenging success: a process audit perspective on change

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how success emerges in a business process change initiative, given the often conflicting forces and challenges present in a workflow implementation. A detailed reflective analysis provides an opportunity to explore how different process enablers interact to achieve non‐obvious outcomes.Design/methodology/approach – Data collection entailed semi‐structured interviews, observation of project activities, and analysis of project documentation for a workflow project at a public sector organisation (AustGov). Data collection occurred from project initiation to implementation and is analysed utilizing the process enterprise maturity model.Findings – Despite encountering numerous issues, the process workflow went live as planned; the project was a success. The case demonstrates how project drivers interact in context to provide a coherent explanation of project outcomes. That the project did not fail, despite encountering obstacles and challenges, is attributed to...

The effect of individual and task characteristics on decision aid reliance

ABSTRACT This research explores reliance behaviours of decision-makers using a decision aid. Objective and subjective task characteristics in the form of task complexity and task difficulty, respectively, are examined, along with the effect of the individual characteristic of expertise. A total of 130 subjects (65 novices and 65 experienced practitioners) completed a lab experiment using a decision aid (Insolve-DG) to help them make decisions for two insolvency tasks with differing levels of complexity. The research finds that the objective task characteristic (task complexity) and individual characteristic (expertise) both affect reliance behaviours; however, their effects are fully mediated by the subjective task characteristic (task difficulty). Expertise and task complexity are both associated with the degree of task difficulty experienced by an individual user: increasing task complexity increases task difficulty, and increasing expertise reduces task difficulty. Task difficulty and task complexity are established as different constructs; and importantly it is task difficulty, not task complexity, that ultimately affects reliance.