Thamer Alhussain

Employees’ Perceptions of Biometric Technology Adoption in E-Government: An Exploratory Study in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

This paper discusses an exploratory study of government employees’ perceptions of the introduction of biometric authentication at the workplace in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The authors suggest that studying the factors affecting employees’ acceptance of new technology will help ease the adoption of biometric technology in other e-government applications. A combination of survey and interviews was used to collect the required data. Interviews were conducted with managers and questionnaires were given to employees from two different government organisations in Saudi Arabia to investigate the employees’ perceptions of using biometrics. The results of this study indicate a significant digital and cultural gap between the technological awareness of employees and the preferred authentication solutions promoted by management. A lack of trust in technology, its potential for misuse and management motives reflect the managers’ need to consider their responsibilities for narrowing these gaps. It was apparent that overcoming employees’ resistance is an essential issue facing biometric implementation. Based on the research the authors recommend that an awareness and orientation process about biometrics should take place before the technology is introduced into the organisation.

Biometric authentication for mobile government security

Mobile government provides unique opportunities to utilize mobile technology to receive government services and information literally from any place, at any time, using varieties of wireless networks. However, mobile devices are using wireless network broadcasts which are vulnerable as they send signals over the public airwaves. With the rapid growth of mobile devices and Internet services, there is a growing need for user and government authentication for the protection of data and services, and to promote public trust. This paper presents the process of the grounded theory application to information system security research to develop a substantive theory for the successful implementation of biometric authentication in m-government security. It concludes by presenting the findings in the form of categories with their relationships. These emerging categories indicate the factors that influence the adoption of biometrics in m-government security.

Towards User Acceptance of Biometric Technology in E-Government: A Survey Study in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The paper discussed an exploratory study of government employees’ perceptions of the introduction of biometric authentication at the workplace in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We suggest that studying the factors affecting employees’ acceptance of new technology will help ease the adoption of biometric technology in other e-government applications. A combination of survey and interviews was used to collect the required data. Interviews were conducted with managers and questionnaires were given to employees from two different government organisations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to investigate the employees’ perceptions of using biometrics. The results of this study indicate a significant digital and cultural gap between the technological awareness of employees and the preferred authentication solutions promoted by management. A lack of trust in technology, its potential for misuse and management motives reflect the managers’ need to consider their responsibilities for narrowing these gaps. It was apparent that overcoming employees’ resistance is an essential issue facing biometric implementation. Based on the research we recommend that an awareness and orientation process about biometrics should take place before the technology is introduced into the organisation.

Developing a Theoretical Framework for the Adoption of Biometrics in M-Government Applications Using Grounded Theory

Mobile devices have become the world’s most common means of interpersonal communication; and, the growing marketplace for new software, or “apps”, enriches an already burgeoning array of purposes to which mobile technology can be lent. We are thus witnessing the advent of conditions for a range of mobile technology enabled information systems. According to the latest statistics produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), there were 5.3 billion mobile subscriptions worldwide in 2010 out of a world population of about 7 billion people (World Fact Book 2011). With the advancements in mobile technologies, several governments have started looking to provide their services via wireless and mobile devices. Mobile government (m-government) is a new delivery channel using Information and Communication Technology to deliver and improve government services that complements current e-government (Antovski and Gusev 2005). Currently, a number of m-government applications exist in several countries around the world. With the growth of m-government services, the importance of security for its acceptance and adoption has been noted in many studies (NECCC 2001; Al-khamayseh et al. 2006; Clarke and Furnell 2005, 2007). Requirements for user acceptance lead to a greater need for user and government authentication to protect data, services, and the promotion of public trust. The negative security perception is a serious issue that citizens have regarding the use of mobile services which may affect their adoption of the technology for critical applications (Chang and Kannan 2002).

Making Sense of E-Government development in Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Investigation

The implementation of eGovernment across countries is rapidly increasing. However, with this increase in the development of eGovernment projects especially in developing countries such as Saudi Arabia, there are still some difficulties facing the proper development of eGovernment. This paper aims to explore how eGovernment implementation and development can be understood in the context of Saudi Arabia based on the developers’ perspectives. An attempt is made to identify the factors influencing the development of eGovernment and contribute to cause the delay of its initiatives at government organisations in Saudi Arabia. To achieve the aim, an unstructured interview within a qualitative approach was adopted in this study. Grounded theory techniques based on Strauss and Corbin approach (1990) were employed in this study in order to analyze the collected data. Keywords-eGovernment; Saudi Arabia; Development; Grounded Theory Techniques

Faculty at Saudi Electronic University attitudes toward using augmented reality in education

This study aims to examine the possibility of implementing the Augmented Reality (AR) application in higher education by answering three questions: Which extended faculty at the Saudi Electronic University are familiar with such applications, what the perceptions do they hold toward using it in education, and what barriers do they believe may hinder implementing this technology. An online survey was designed and distributed to faculty members at two colleges selected randomly to collect data from participants. Even though the faculty were at an accepted level of familiarity with this technology, they did not use it in their classes. Results showed that faculty have a positive attitude toward the use of AR and have confidence in its potential to enrich the learning environment. This result is connected to the AR advantages the faculty were in agreement with. Results also showed that faculty have concerns about some barriers that might impact implementation of AR in the education environment, such as the lack of technical support.

Measuring the Impact of the Blackboard System on Blended Learning Students

With the advantages of using learning management systems (LMS) such as Blackboard in the educational process, assessing the impact of such systems has become increasingly important. This study measures the impact of the Blackboard system on students at Saudi Electronic University (SEU) in order to help improve the quality of existing learning environment. For this assessment and measurement, the IS-Impact Measurement Model is used, since it is the most comprehensive model that is valid in the context of this study. The results of this paper indicate how Blackboard is influencing individual performance. It concludes that the use of the Blackboard system has a positive impact on individuals.