Jane M. Carey

The Impact of Communication Mode and Task Complexity on Small Group Performance and Member Satisfaction.

Abstract Software technology in the form of decision and group support systems has been deployed in many work environments. In some cases, these technologies are installed and used with little understanding of how this genre of software impacts upon group work. It often is presumed that productivity of a group will increase; however, upon further investigation, this may not be the case. The current study examines the impact of technology on a number of factors including time to complete task, member satisfaction, perceived information load, the number of contributing transactions, and task complexity.

Assessing the usability of icons in user interfaces

Abstract This paper presents a methodology and results of an experiment to assess the usability of menu items constructed of text, icons, and text-and-icons. Attributes of menu items are used to form a matrix which can be used to classify menu items for use in certain applications, tasks, or with users of particular experience levels. An experiment was conducted to validate a portion of the attribute matrix. Performance measures were accuracy of selection and time to make a selection. Results suggest that menus constructed of a mixed format (text and icons) result in the fewest number of incorrect selections by users. No significant differences in the time to make a selection were found.

Creating global software: A conspectus and review

Abstract Ten books on the development of international software are reviewed and used to develop a framework for the globalization of software. Most of the books are written or edited by practitioners of global software development and therefore are filled with practical knowledge and methodologies which can guide the novice or even the experienced developer to first internationalize and then localize software. The books span a six year time span, during which the resources available to support the global software development effort have expanded and standards have been established, resulting in reduced effort. This conspectus starts with an introduction that includes several definitions, spells out the issues of translation from one language to another, localization, organization, culture, interface design, documentation, and quality assurance, recommends approaches for development of micro-based software for Macintosh and Windows environments, and ends with a unifying summary.

Information Technology Skills for a Pluralistic Society

Abstract Information technology skills are becoming more and more important to the success of students and teachers. These skills are acquired in many ways, including education, home use of computers, and on-the-job training. Literature has shown that computer access and integration of computers into curricula have been significantly lower in student populations from ethnic minorities in K-12 public schools. Studies have also shown that ethnic-minority households own computers at a lower rate than majority households. However, universities seldom stop to determine if required competencies exist uniformly across all students. This study focuses on access and use issues of students at an urban university across students of many different ethnicities. The findings indicate that discrepancies persist at the university level. A model of computer-based self-efficacy and performance is presented and partially validated. A discussion of the implications of these findings is included.

The Effects of Graphical Versus Numerical Response on the Accuracy of Graph-Based Forecasts

This article explores the literature in graphic information presentation and managerial decision making. The literature suggests that task must be controlled in experimental design. The results of an experiment undertaken to determine the effects of collecting numeric versus graphic responses onforecasting accuracy are discussed. Results of the study show forecasts were significantly more accurate when subjects responded graphically than when they responded numerically. The difference in accuracy was found to be unassociated with preference for the two response approaches and to be independent of graph-reading ability. Based on the experimenteal results, it appears that more accurate subjective visual forecasts can, on average, be obtained by collecting the forecasts in graphical format. Therefore, when in comparisons of performance based on graphical versus tabular information, the way in which the response is elicited must be considered along with otherfactors that affect performance and preference for presentation style. This finding has implications for the design of graphical interfaces for managerial decision support systems.

Providing workflow services using a programmable hypermedia environment

Abstract This paper presents a methodology for designing and implementing workflow within a programmable hypermedia environment, based on a colored petri-net model. We discuss and demonstrate that a collaborative, programmable hypermedia system provides a powerful environment for supporting workflow and document management. Nodes of the workflow manifest as nodes in the hypermedia environment. Transitions manifest as software components. Nodes and transitions are associated with workflow activities through hyperlinks. Hyperlinks relate nodes to transitions, transitions to nodes, users to nodes, and documents to documents. The benefits of this approach are: an environment that integrates workflow and document management activities within a common interface; the ability to support distributed document management and collaboration; and a workflow system that utilizes services within the underlying hypermedia environment, to structure documents and access information by navigation.

Job satisfaction and visual display unit (VDU) usage: an explanatory model

Abstract This study explores the relationship between job salisfaction and the daily usage of visual display units (VDUs). A negative correlation is found to exist between job satisfaction and utilization of the VDU. Workers who have utilized the VDU alone for data entry were more satisfied with their jobs than those workers who had used the key punch for data entry and then switched to the VDU, although they said they preferred the VDU over the key punch. The following model was found to be statistically significant: Job satisfaction =f(-VDU Usage + Supervisor intervention+ Team membership+ job utility—performance of the task)

Pull-down versus traditional menu types: An empirical comparison

An experiment was conducted to test the performance of pull-down versus traditional or explicit menus. Sixty subjects, including novice and experienced computer users, manipulated both types of menus to complete banking tasks similar to those found on Automatic Teller M achines. The order of the menus was randomly varied to control for learning effects. Across both types of users, traditional-style menus elicited fewer errors than did pull-down menus; however, no significant difference was found in the time to complete the banking task. Experienced users outperformed novice users in the amount of time taken to complete the task regardless of menu type, though no difference was found in the number of errors committed by both user types.

The Influence of Attitude on the Acceptance and Use of Information Systems

The nomological network of the technology acceptance model is expanded through the addition of affective and task-preparation variables as antecedents to traditional predictors of technology acceptance:output quality, result demonstrability, and ease of use. An empirical study involving a visual/simulation information system, set in the domain of retail merchandise planning, finds that negative affectivity NA is a consistent and strong negative antecedent to perceptions of output quality, result demonstrability, and ease of use. In contrast, positive affectivity PA is a significant and positive antecedent to ease of use, but not necessarily a significant antecedent to either output quality or result demonstrability. A new construct developed from the job characteristics literature-perceived task preparation-measured the subjects perceptions of the pre-system usage training, which included task design and modeling instruction, scenarios of activities within the prospective information system, discussions and review of the system documentation, and highly structured, pre-task system use activities. Perceived task preparation was found to be a significant and strong positive indicator of computer self-efficacy.