Lori Baker-Eveleth

The impact of information technology on individual and firm marketing performance

The perceived impacts of information technology use on firm marketing organization performance are examined. A theoretical model is presented linking organizational and end-user traits, information quality, system/service quality, industry traits, and tasks performed using a system to perceptions of organizational performance impacts through ease of system use, perceived individual performance impacts (i.e. perceived usefulness), attitudes toward using the system, and system use. The empirical examination uses a mail survey of US marketing executives to collect the data. The quantitative technique used is structural equation modeling. The results indicate that measures of organizational traits, individual traits, information quality, system/service quality, and tasks performed using the system impact perceived performance of the marketing organization mediated individual performance impacts (i.e. perceived usefulness), attitudes toward using the system, and system use. Managerial implications and conclusions are presented based upon these results.

Students' Intentions to Purchase Electronic Textbooks

Textbooks have played an important role in education for decades. Given the significant number of technology applications in education, it is not surprising that at least one such application is the electronic textbook (e-textbook). There are a variety of motivations to adopt an e-textbook, including frequent content updates and low costs. The research presented here examines students’ behavioral intentions to purchase an e-textbook when given the choice. The theoretical foundation of the research is provided by social cognitive theory. The data used in the empirical study were collected by distributing a questionnaire to students at a medium-sized university in the western United States. Student responses used in the analysis all reported prior use of an e-textbook. The model was estimated using a structural equations approach. The results showed that both ease of e-textbook use and verbal persuasion/social norm positively influence behavioral intentions to purchase an e-textbook through both self-efficacy and outcome expectancy/usefulness. Previous computer experience positively influences behavioral intentions to purchase an e-textbook only through self-efficacy. Based on these results, conclusions are provided.

The Determinants of Electronic Textbook Use Among College Students

Electronic books are a fast-growing component of the publishing industry. Sales of electronic textbooks (e-textbooks) are growing, but at a slower rate. In this research, we use data from an undergraduate college student survey to estimate the determinants of e-textbook use. Students who are younger, lower-income, and graduated from larger high schools are more likely to use e-textbooks. Furthermore, e-textbooks are more likely to be used by students in technically-oriented fields, especially in business, where electronic materials are often required. An environment of continued growth in student technical competence with information technology, continued increases in college cost and a reduction in professor resistance to e-textbooks would bode well for growth in their use.

Lowering Business Education Cost with a Custom Professor-Written Online Text.

Inflation-adjusted tuition and fees in education have risen for decades. College textbook costs have risen as well. The authors discuss reasons for higher textbook costs. The development and use of encyclopedic introductory textbooks creates higher monetary cost for students and higher nonmonetary cost for students and teachers, from increased text–course friction. One method to lower costs is the custom, professor-written online textbook. Development issues, such as curriculum coordination, course organization, copyright, institutional cooperation and contractual agreements, pricing, and revenue distribution, are discussed in the business college context. Additionally, student opinion on whether the text was a valuable learning tool is presented and discussed.

Developing Dialogue Skill--A Qualitative Investigation of an On-Line Collaboration Exercise in a Team Management Course

Abstract Business managers, crossfunctional team members, and boundary spanners in organizations often face situations that require the application of dialogue skill, a process of inquiry to create shared meaning or shared understanding among parties. Previous research has suggested that dialogue skill can be developed through use of specifically designed on-line, collaborative activities. In this article, we describe the qualitative investigation of one such activity and Web-based software that can create an environment for developing dialogue skill.

Factors Influencing Students' Likelihood to Purchase Electronic Textbooks

Introduction Technological advances touch multiple aspects of an individuals life. One such example is the use of information technology to provide online books. Digital books or e-book adoptions have been predicted to grow at a much higher rate than what has actually occurred (Thomas, 2007). Some reasons for this slow growth include a lack of an industry standard for the technology, transferability among technologies and the lack of a clear, consistent business model (Dillion, 2001). Another issue affecting growth is digital text resolution which influences eye strain and fatigue. Bennett and Landoni (2005) identified that screen resolution is not compatible with paper resolution requiring the brain and eyes to work harder to achieve comprehension leading to eye strain. Consistently, Liu (2005) found that individuals often prefer to read print copies rather than a digital version when reading for sustained periods of time. This may well indicate that e-books are suited for references and searching text rather than pleasure or more sustained reading (Thomas, 2007). In conclusion, it appears that an e-book is a better delivery method, not a better way to read (Coleman, 2004). Electronic books have been introduced in education in the form of electronic textbooks (e-texts). Often these e-texts are web-based, digital replicas of print textbooks, or downloadable PDFs (Falc, 2013). E-texts are considered a learning object since they support learning, are reusable, and provide a building block for digital course content (Ritzhaupt, 2010). The structure of an etext allows a student to interact with the content in many ways. Examples include for reference material, practice problems, or as a test environment depending on the needs of the student. A typical textbook can be used in different learning contexts making it reusable (Mogharreban & Guggenheim, 2008). Noyes and Garland (2005, 2006) found that undergraduate students continue to prefer learning with printed text rather than digital. Users have expressed a willingness to use an e-text, but that its usability is too poor to be a close substitute for a print text (Bennett & Landoni, 2005; Buzzetto-More, Sweat-Guy, & Elobaid, 2007). This holds true when the price of the e-text is significantly lower than a print version (Carlson, 2005). Liu (2005) found that 80% of students surveyed prefer print text to digital text in order to understand the text meaning. In this same study undergraduate students found digital text less interesting and the authors less credible (Liu, 2005). The University of California Libraries conducted a study and found that 58% of undergraduate students preferred print books (Falc, 2013) while a study at Northwest Missouri found a 40% reduction in studying because of the e-textbook format (Young, 2009). A final expressed concern is that students frequently need to be tied to a monitor when reading digital text (Carlson, 2005). In spite of the above problems with e-texts, there are a variety of advantages, such as lower costs, better accessibility, and improved currency of content (Cavanaugh, 2004). The cost advantage to students is reasonably clear since e-texts can be rented, available for free or for half the price of a traditional textbook (Baker-Eveleth, Miller, & Tucker, 2011; Falc, 2013). Public school districts are also moving to e-texts as a cost saving mechanism (Tomassini, 2012) although a recent higher education study showed the difference in savings between e-texts and traditional texts is insignificant (DeSantis, 2012). Internet availability has created an opportunity for easy access to digital resources and e-texts. Access refers to the ability to easily identify and read a variety of related content quickly. Electronic book readers and tablet devices have also affected the access to digital resources by providing portability, search-ability, and content tagging (Choi, 2012; Peek, 2012; Weisberg, 2011). …

The Role of Predictor Courses and Teams on Individual Student Success

Research suggests that diverse environments enhance conscious modes of thought, resulting in greater intellectual engagement and active thinking. Ordinal and multinomial logistic regression results indicate that accounting courses and business law classes are useful predictors of subsequent performance. Odds ratio estimates indicate that students who perform poorly in these predictor classes are more than four times as likely to perform poorly in subsequent classes. Academic and gender diversity were not found to be significantly related to student performance.

The Influence of Computer-Based In-Class Examination Security Software on Students' Attitudes and Examination Performance

Expectancy theory is applied to the use of software that secures the testing environment of in-class examinations. This security software prohibits students from viewing unauthorized material during an examination. The empirical study collected 60 student questionnaire responses completed after using the security software. These responses were used to develop measures for a model derived from expectancy theory. Using structural equation modeling, the model was estimated twice for two different variables. These dependent variables were student attitude towards the security software and the student’s examination grade. The empirical results indicated that student attitudes were positively impacted by self-efficacy, outcome expectancy, and the software’s ease of use. However, student grade was not influenced by any measures in the model. It is concluded that the security software is neutral with regard to student performance, while there are manageable actions faculty can take to positively impact student attitude towards security software.