Marcus O'Connor

The impact of presentation media on decision making: does multimedia improve the effectiveness of feedback?

This paper reports an experiment that examines the impact of presentation media on the effectiveness of feedback information in a decision-making task. The study was based on control theory and resource-matching theory (RMT). A laboratory experiment with 72 participants was conducted in the context of providing feedback when using a decision support system. Consistent with hypotheses derived from theory, when negative feedback is delivered using non-vivid (textual (TEXT)) messages, it induces a higher level of subsequent task performance than when it is delivered using vivid (multimedia (MM)) messages. On the other hand, contrary to the expectation from Control theory, negative feedback, in general, does not lead to a higher level of subsequent task performance. The implications of the findings on multimedia are discussed.

The interaction of incentives and information disclosure: the case of confidence interval information

Abstract Reliable risk assessment is critical for success in decision-making, but our assessment of risk is often hindered by inherent biases and limitations in our information processing capacities. Consequently, many have presumed that the disclosure of probabilistic or confidence interval (CI) information would aid our judgment of the uncertainty of an estimate. Empirical support for CI information disclosure, however, is generally lacking. Since human beings are goal-directed, the effectiveness of CI information disclosure may be contingent upon the motivation of an individual. This study, through a computer-based laboratory experiment, examines whether the effectiveness of CI information disclosure in an investment choice task setting is contingent upon the availability of performance-based monetary incentives. The results indicate that the disclosure of CI information can enhance or harm decision performance contingent upon the incentive condition: incentives are vital for realizing benefits from the disclosure of CI information. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Variations in user satisfaction with MIS

The results of a field study of management information systems (MIS) in different organizations in Australia which investigates the relationship between type of user, user involvement and user information satisfaction are reported. The results show that user MIS success (UIS) varies between users of the same MIS based on their organizational function and that user involvement in the systems development life cycle has a significant positive effect on UIS. The significance of the effect of user involvement varies for users based on their organizational function. Technical users are less satisfied with MIS than administrative users. Also, the relationship between user involvement/user control of the systems development process and UIS is significantly different for administrative and technical users.<<ETX>>

How Good is the Advice You Receive? The Influence of Social Value Orientation and Knowledge Asymmetry on the Formulation of Advice

What motivates advisors in the formulation of their advice? People seek advice so as to improve the quality of their decisions. But is the advice provided of a consistent quality in all circumstances? We suggest that advice formulation is a selective process. The quality of advice given to a decision maker, far from being consistent, is shaped by a number of factors, including the social value orientations of the advisors and knowledge asymmetry between advisors and their clients. A pilot study was conducted to assess the effect of social value orientations and knowledge asymmetry on the optimality of the advice provided by advisors. Results suggested advice optimality was influenced by knowledge asymmetry between the parties but not by the social value orientations of the advisors. Prosocials were found to exhibit the same type of strategic behaviour observed in competitors

Does feedback improve the accuracy of recurrent judgmental forecasts

Summary form only given. Feedback has been shown to be a useful tool improving decision making and might also be a useful tool in improving the accuracy of recurrent judgmental forecasts. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of feedback on accuracy when forecasting time series with structural instabilities. The underlying model and definitions were derived from (Balzer et al., 1992); the experimental design was similar to that used by (Remus et al., 1995).

The impact of rumors on the judgmental forecasting process

The study investigates the impact of rumors when forecasting changing time series. In this study, the subjects were presented with three types of rumors about the future direction of the time series-correct rumors, incorrect rumors and rumors which provide no information. Results indicate that correct rumors improved the quality of the forecasts; incorrect rumors and rumors with no information content evoked the same quality of the forecasts. The latter relationships persisted and affected forecasting quality in subsequent time series.<<ETX>>