Ross Hightower

Effects of Communication Mode and Prediscussion Information Distribution Characteristics on Information Exchange in Groups

One advantage of groups is that they have access to a larger pool of expertise and knowledge than individual group members. However, groups are sometimes ineffective at exchanging information. This tendency has been called biased discussion. The present study examines the effects of communication mode face-to-face vs. computer mediated, and Prediscussion information distribution characteristics on biased discussion. Biased discussion was found to occur to a greater degree when communication mode was computer-mediated, and the group members were not in conflict prior to the discussion.

The Impact of Group Size and Social Presence on Small-Group Communication Does Computer-Mediated Communication Make a Difference?

This study evaluates the impact of varying group size and social presence on small-group communication. It compares key communication factors—faceto-face (FtF) without computer-mediated communication (CMC) support, FtF with CMC support, and virtual with CMC support—on two different small group sizes (3 and 6). Results indicate that smaller groups establish and maintain higher levels of communication quality, and FtF with CMC support groups have higher levels of communication quality than virtual with CMC support groups; however, no significant difference between traditional FtF groups and virtual groups with CMC support was found. Also, CMC minimized the impact of increased group size. Process losses that a larger FtF group might ordinarily experience can be reduced through the use of CMC. These results should help project managers plan for and deal with the difficulty of communication between project group members in virtual environments.

The impact of computer-mediated communication systems on biased group discussion

Abstract One advantage of groups is that they have access to a larger pool of expertise and knowledge than individual group members. However, groups are sometimes inefficient at sharing information and tend to focus on only a portion of the available information. This tendency has been called biased discussion. The present study examines the effects of communication mode (face-to-face vs. remote), information load, and distribution of information on biased discussion. Biased discussion was found to occur to a greater degree when (1) communication mode was remote (i.e., computer mediated), (2) information load was high, and (3) the majority of the available information was known by all group members. The difference in the size of information pool accommodated by the types of communication media was found to affect the extent of information sharing in the groups.

The Effects of Information Technology Project Complexity on Group Interaction

This study investigates the effect of varying project complexity on the group interaction processes of small information technology (IT) project teams. The projects included two complex tasks (i.e., LAN and WAN development tasks) and a less complex development task (i.e., a small business Web site development task). The study found that project complexity can affect the group interaction process. Participants reported significantly higher expectations, group integration, communication, and participation while working on less complex projects. Efforts to organize project personnel and define roles were more effective with less complex projects. Power struggles and noninvolvement remained a problem for teams regardless of project complexity. This study identifies and confirms key problem areas that can lead to project failure as IT projects become more complex. The results should interest both researchers and information systems managers, because the study is among the first to extend the common body of knowledge concerning group interaction and task complexity to IT projects.

Total quality management: are information systems managers ready?

Abstract The results of an empirical survey of information systems (IS) managers indicated that 41% understood the basic philosophy of Total Quality Management (TQM) fairly well. Furthermore, the IS managers typically indicated they thought most of the concepts/tools commonly associated with TQM would be useful to both the organization and the IS function. IS managers currently involved in implementing TQM reported their IS function had achieved the following benefits: improved customer satisfaction, enhanced quality of products and services delivered to the customer, and increased flexibility in meeting customer demands. It was also reported, however, that these benefits typically were not achieved until three-to-five years after TQM initiation.

Bridging the divide: A qualitative comparison of information security thought patterns between information security professionals and ordinary organizational insiders

Organizational insiders have considerable influence on the effectiveness of information security efforts. However, most research conducted in this area fails to examine what these individuals believe about organizational security efforts. To help bridge this gap, this study assesses the mindset of insiders regarding their relationship with information security efforts and compares it against the mindset of information security professionals. Interviews were conducted with 22 ordinary insiders and 11 information security professionals, which effort provides insight into how insiders gauge the efficacy of recommended responses to information security threats. Several key differences between insiders’ and professionals’ security mindsets are also discussed.

Implications of researcher assumptions about perceived relative advantage and compatibility

Although scale reuse is an important and efficient research practice, it may not always be the most appropriate practice. Mechanistically reusing scales developed for a particular context may lead to a variety of undesirable effects. One of the risks is that frequently reused scales can inadvertently begin to alter the definitions of related constructs. When this occurs, a full understanding of the constructs can be lost. Innovation diffusion is one area in which evidence suggests that this has occurred, specifically for relative advantage and compatibility. This article seeks to better understand the risks of mechanistic scale reuse within the information systems field, with a specific focus on the relative advantage and compatibility constructs. We review the information systems literature focusing on IT adoption and diffusion, examining the theoretical and empirical relationships between relative advantage and compatibility. Evidence from this review indicates that there may be both conceptual and empirical overlap between the two, which has led to inconsistent empirical and theoretical treatment of the constructs across studies. We also report an empirical examination of the domain coverage of the scales, which provides evidence that the scales a) exhibit a high degree of conceptual and empirical overlap and b) only represent a subset of their full conceptualization. We offer recommendations for researchers who wish to use these constructs in future work.

Mobile Device Adaptation Efforts: The Impact of Hedonic and Utilitarian Value

This research delves into the acceptance and use of mobile device (MD) technology and goes beyond what is provided in the technology acceptance literature. The hedonic and utilitarian value that an individual assigns to a mobile device can have a significant impact on the overall value of the device to that person. For those individuals that see the high value of the mobile devices, a high degree of opportunity for utilizing the mobile device is seen. Further, those who see the opportunities that exist with the mobile devices place an added amount of effort into using the device. In addition, it was determined that for those individuals perceiving greater control by the organization, more user adaptation effort was put forth. The impact of this organizational-level study could have an impact on the use of MDs within an organization as well as the efforts used by employees related to MD use.

A Longitudinal Study of Information Exchange in Computer-Mediated and Face-to-Face Groups

Recent research has suggested that groups do not exchange information effectively. This is particularly true of groups using computer-mediated communication systems (CMCS). However, generalizing the findings of these studies to real groups is difficult because they used ad hoc groups and/or the groups did not have experience with the CMCS and were working on novel tasks. In this study face-to-face groups and groups using two types of CMCS completed three information exchange tasks. Information exchange performance and relational links were collected for each task. The results suggest that CMCS groups are not able to exchange information as effectively as face-to-face groups, even as they become familiar with the task and CMCS. In addition, although relational links were slightly related to information exchange performance, they were not as important as communication mode in explaining differences in information exchange performance.

Improving Group Communication Outcomes with Collaborative Software: The Impact of Group Size, Media Richness, and Social Presence

Project groups are becoming a mainstay in today’s work environment. This coupled with globalization has distributed many teams. This makes communication among team members vital to project success. This study evaluates the impact of group size and social presence upon group communication. It compares key communication factors for three different social presence treatments (Face-to-Face without CS support; Face-to-Face with CS support; and distributed with CS support). In addition, it evaluates these impacts with two different group sizes. The results indicate that smaller and higher social presence groups maintain higher levels of communication than larger groups and groups with lower social presence. These results should alert project managers to the difficulty of communication between project team members in distributed global environments.