Saleh Alwahaishi

Consumers’ Acceptance and Use of Information and Communications Technology: A UTAUT and Flow Based Theoretical Model

The world has changed a lot in the past years. The rapid advances in technology and the changing of the communication channels have changed the way people work and, for many, where do they work from. The Internet and mobile technology, the two most dynamic technological forces in modern information and communications technology (ICT) are converging into one ubiquitous mobile Internet service, which will change our way of both doing business and dealing with our daily routine activities. As the use of ICT expands globally, there is need for further research into cultural aspects and implications of ICT. The acceptance of Information Technology (IT) has become a fundamental part of the research plan for most organizations (Igbaria 1993). In IT research, numerous theories are used to understand users’ adoption of new technologies. Various models were developed including the Technology Acceptance Model, Theory of Reasoned Action, Theory of Planned Behavior, and recently, the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. Each of these models has sought to identify the factors which influence a citizen’s intention or actual use of information technology. Drawing on the UTAUT model and Flow Theory, this research composes a new hybrid theoretical framework to identify the factors affecting the acceptance and use of Mobile Internet -as an ICT application- in a consumer context. The proposed model incorporates eight constructs: Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Facilitating Conditions, Social Influences, Perceived Value, Perceived Playfulness, Attention Focus, and Behavioral intention. Data collected online from 238 respondents in Saudi Arabia were tested against the research model, using the structural equation modeling approach. The proposed model was mostly supported by the empirical data. The findings of this study provide several crucial implications for ICT and, in particular, mobile Internet service practitioners and researchers

Analysis of the DBLP Publication Classification Using Concept Lattices

The definitive classification of scientific journals depends on their aims and scopes details. In this paper, we present an approach to facilitate the journals classification of the DBLP datasets. For the analysis, the DBLP data sets were pre-processed by assigning each journal attributes defined by its topics and then the theory of formal concept analysis is introduced. It is subsequently shown how this theory can be applied to analyze the relations between journals and the extracted topics from their aims and scopes. The result is a concept lattice that contains information on journal-topic relational context depending on how they are associated. It is shown how this approach can be used to facilitate the classifications of scientific journals.

Electronic commerce growth in developing countries: Barriers and challenges

As we enter the third millennium, we are experiencing one of the most important changes to our daily lives, the move to an internet-based society. Internet has grown like a plant, and many welcome it as a tool for productivity and enlightenment. As a result, much has changed at home, school, work and even leisure activities. Some changes are already here and are spreading around the globe, others are just beginning. One of the significant changes is how developing countries are going to conduct their business and how can they harvest the benefits of internet trading. This paper is a qualitative study that can provide the authorities, business owners, researchers as well as the readers with an overview of the current e-commerce status in Saudi Arabia and the major factors that obstacle its growth and development. It is hoped that this study will narrow the gap of knowledge and furnished useful guidelines that could unleash e-commerce maturity in Saudi Arabia and developing countries as well.

A Comparative Study of the Effects of Culture on the Deployment of Information Technology

Culture is thought to be the most difficult to isolate, define, and measure in the adoption and use of IT Information Technology Hassan & Ditsa, 1999. Consequently, the impact of culture on the adoption and use of IT does not feature prominently in Information Systems IS literature. As cultural factors are important to the success of IT adoption and use, this research paper examines cultures impact on the adoption and use of IT in the United Arab Emirates UAE. The results of the study were compared along eight cultural dimensions with a study on the adoption and use of IT in developing and developed countries. The results are also used to identify issues that concern the relationship of culture and IT and their implications for IT adoption and use in the UAE. The study results are further used to suggest ways of bridging the digital divide between the UAE and developed countries.

The Deployment of MIS in Developing Countries

The emerging aspect of Information Systems (IS) and its direct relationship to other reference disciplines did not allow early IS researchers and practitioners to view IS as a socio-technical system. In the early stages of IS research, researchers concentrated their efforts on the technical aspects of the system (e.g. IS development, operation...etc.) Later, the focus shifted to the social aspect of the system. Moreover, research indicates that there has been an increase in reported IS failures, and the adoption issues are not just technical, but encompass wider societal, organizational, and economical factors. Whilst research has shown the effect of such factors, the relationship of specific cultural factors to adoption remains poorly understood. Here, researchers are more concerned with questions such as the characteristics of the users, developers, and implementers; the impact MIS has on the organization and on the individual using it as well as with the use of the system to support organizational strategies.