Nita G. Brooks

IT professional identity: needs, perceptions, and belonging

A theoretical model of professional identification is developed and empirically examined as a means to understanding information technology (IT) workers’ attachment to the IT profession. Professional identification represents oneness with or belonging to a profession and provides a unique means of investigating and evaluating the IT profession. Results from a survey of 305 IT workers indicate that professional identification is directly impacted by three factors: (1) the individuals need for professional identification; (2) the individuals perceived similarity to others in the IT profession; and (3) the individuals perceptions of the IT profession, signifying the importance of internalization to identification. Professional identification is also indirectly impacted by the publics perception of the IT profession.

The Binding and Blinding Influence of Project Commitment

Proper management of information technology (IT) projects remains important within organizations; they require tremendous investment and consume valuable resources. To enhance ones understanding of IT projects and the continued issue of project failure, this study develops a model of the psychological influences of IT project commitment for individuals working on IT projects and its influence on intentions to continue an IT project (ICITP). Survey responses from 232 individuals across several organizations were obtained, and structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data. Three forms of project commitment (affective, continuance, and normative), subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control – internal were significant predictors of ICITP, explaining 64% of the variance. Additionally, continuance commitment and perceived behavioral control – internal were found to explain 46% of the variance in affective commitment. Implications and directions for future research are provided.

Information Systems Service Quality: An Examination of User Expectations

This paper reports the results of a field study that examined the expectations of users as they relate to the quality of service offered by the information systems (IS) function within organizations. While the results indicate that users have consistently high expectations across organizations, the results also indicate that expectations can differ due to age and gender. The paper discusses the implications of these results, along with ways that management can use this information to better influence user expectations.

Identifying with the Information Technology Profession: Implications for Turnaway of IT Professionals

As a profession, IT provides tremendous and irreplaceable resources to organizations. In an effort to understand individual attitudes related specifically to the profession, outside the bounds of any one organization, this paper extends research on the IT professional by examining the relationship between professional identification and profession-level outcomes. Results from more than 300 IT professionals across several organizations indicate professional identification is directly related to key outcome variables including affective commitment to, and satisfaction with, the IT profession. Identification with the IT profession was also found to have a significant indirect effect on intention to leave the profession (also known as turnaway intention). The analysis provides insight into the importance of affect to identification and lends support to previous discussions on the dual nature of identification. Findings maintain that there is more than cognitive belief driving the influence of identification on outcomes for IT professionals. Implications derived from the results of this study and directions for future research on professional identification and the IT professional are discussed.