The Effects of Digitally Delivered Nudges in a Corporate Wellness Program

2023 | Journal of the Association for Information Systems | Citations: 1

Authors: Babar, Yash; Curley, Shawn; Ke, Zhihong; Liu, De; Sheffler, Zachary

Abstract: We investigate how two digitally delivered nudges, namely light social support ... Expand

Abstract: We investigate how two digitally delivered nudges, namely light social support (nonverbal cues such as kudos or likes) and motivational messaging, affect employees' self-reported physical activity in an online, corporate wellness program. Within this unique field setting, using data from several years, we found evidence that both types of nudges provide benefits beyond the effect of cash incentives. However, the effects vary by individual, depending on whether the employee is actively engaging in physical activity, and by time, depending on how long the employee has been in the wellness program. We found light social support to be less effective over time, while motivational messages were found to be more effective with the duration in the program and generally more effective for physically inactive users. Our findings have implications for the design of wellness systems, suggesting different approaches depending on an employee's current activity level and tenure in the program.De Liu is a Xian Dong Eric Jing Professor of Information and Decision Sciences at the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota. He received his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin, and his master's and bachelor's degrees from Tsinghua University. His recent research interests include gamification, AI /augmented reality, internetbased auctions and market mechanisms, online reviews, and crowdfunding. His research has appeared in leading journals such as MIS Quarterly, Management Science, Information Systems Research, Journal of Marketing, Journal of Market Research, and Production and Operations Management. He has served as an associate editor for Information Systems Research and Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce. He is also the academic director of the Business Analytics programs at the Carlson School of Management.Yash Babar is an assistant professor in the Department of Operations and Information Management at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his PhD from the University of Minnesota in information and decision sciences and his bachelor's degree from BITS Pilani Goa. He researches the socioeconomic impacts of information systems exploring online-offline interactions in digital platforms like the gig economy, online communities, social media, and mobile fitness applications. His work has appeared in Information Systems Research and MIS Quarterly and at several international IS conferences. Collapse

Topics: mobile phone web forum intrinsic motivation user behavior

Methods: longitudinal research difference in differences Poisson regression propensity score matching robustness check

Theories: self determination theory

Network Centralization and Collective Adaptability to a Shifting Environment

2023 | Organization Science | Citations: 1

Authors: Bernstein, Ethan S.; Shore, Jesse C.; Jang, Alice J.

Abstract: We study the connection between communication network structure and an organizat ... Expand

Abstract: We study the connection between communication network structure and an organization’s collective adaptability to a shifting environment. Research has shown that network centralization—the degree to which communication flows disproportionately through one or more members of the organization rather than being more equally distributed—interferes with collective problem-solving by obstructing the integration of existing ideas, information, and solutions in the network. We hypothesize that the mechanisms responsible for that poor integration of ideas, information, and solutions would nevertheless prove beneficial for problems requiring adaptation to a shifting environment. We conducted a 1,620-subject randomized online laboratory experiment, testing the effect of seven network structures on problem-solving success. To simulate a shifting environment, we designed a murder mystery task and manipulated when each piece of information could be found: early information encouraged an inferior consensus, requiring a collective shift of solution after more information emerged. We find that when the communication network within an organization is more centralized, it achieves the benefits of connectivity (spread of novel better solutions) without the costs (getting stuck on an existing inferior solution). We also find, however, that these benefits of centralization only materialize in networks with two-way flow of information and not when information only flows from the center of the network outward (as can occur in hierarchical structures or digitally mediated communication). We draw on these findings to reconceptualize theory on the impact of centralization—and how it affects conformity pressure (lock-in) and awareness of diverse ideas (learning)—on collective problem-solving that demands adaptation.History: This paper has been accepted for the Organization Science Special Issue on Experiments in Organizational Theory.Funding: The authors acknowledge financial support from the Division of Research at the Harvard Business School for making this research possible. Collapse

Topics: social influence problem solving internet technology social network debugging

Methods: experiment machine learning simulation Poisson regression logistic regression

Theories: organizational theory

Understanding active participation of online dating services: A mixed methods study

2023 | Decision Support Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Chen, Qi; Yun, Guobiao; Lu, Jiandong; Wang, Xiaolei

Abstract: Online dating has transformed the way people meet and start relationships. Howev ... Expand

Abstract: Online dating has transformed the way people meet and start relationships. However, online dating platforms typically have many lurkers without active participation. Using a self-regulation framework, this paper aims to study users’ active participation in online dating through a mixed methods study. We first conducted qualitative and quantitative investigations with a machine learning method to explore user active participation and its antecedents. We then developed a theoretical model and conducted a statistical analysis of the model. The empirical findings showed that service quality and trust significantly affected individual active participation in a dating site through attachments to the daters and services. The findings of the study contribute to the extant literature by analyzing user participation in online dating from an attachment perspective. Collapse

Topics: service quality online dating participatory design online dating service Python

Methods: design methodology mixed method qualitative coding machine learning machine learning method

Theories: attachment theory marketing theory

Economic Impacts of Platform-Endorsed Quality Certification: Evidence from Airbnb

2023 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 0

Authors: Dewan, Sanjeev; Kim, Jooho; Nian, Tingting

Abstract: We contribute to the emerging literature on quality certification by digital pl ... Expand

Abstract: We contribute to the emerging literature on quality certification by digital platforms by studying the launch of the Airbnb Plus service, wherein the platform inspects properties and provides a badge that presumably signals the quality of the property and the reliability of the host. Our identification strategy relies on the fact that the Airbnb Plus service was launched in different cities at different times, and listings within the cities received the certification at different times. Using a staggered difference-in-differences estimation strategy in conjunction with suitable matching methods, we found that the Airbnb Plus certification increased the weekly booking rate of Plus listings by about 6.8% on average (direct effect). We also found some evidence that non-Plus listings saw a temporary decline in booking rate when one or more nearby properties received a Plus certification (externality effect). The net impact of the Airbnb Plus service on the platform itself was an annual increase in revenue of about $37,500 for the average 2-kilometer zone in a U.S. city that included one or more Plus listings, as compared to matched zones without any Plus listings (local platform effect). We performed additional analyses, including a randomized experiment, to demonstrate the robustness of our findings. Overall, our results suggest that platform-endorsed quality certification has significant economic impacts-not just on the listings that receive the certification but on other listings on the platform as well as on the platform itself. Collapse

Topics: Airbnb website sharing platform peer-to-peer model Google+

Methods: experimental group experiment propensity score method product review robustness check

Should Doctors Open Online Consultation Services? An Empirical Investigation of Their Impact on Offline Appointments

2023 | Information Systems Research | Citations: 0

Authors: Fan, Wenjuan; Zhou, Qiqi; Qiu, Liangfei; Kumar, Subodha

Abstract: Online healthcare portals have become prevalent worldwide in recent years. One c ... Expand

Abstract: Online healthcare portals have become prevalent worldwide in recent years. One common form of a healthcare portal is the online consultation website, which provides a bridge between patients and doctors and reduces patients’ time and cost when seeking healthcare services. Another form is the healthcare service appointment website, which facilitates offline visits for patients. Although nominally separate, the behaviors of the users (including patients and doctors) on these two types of websites could be related to each other. In particular, how does opening online consultation services impact the offline appointments of doctors? Although this is an important question for healthcare portals, doctors, and policy makers, it has not been rigorously examined in the literature. In this paper, we attempt to bridge this important gap by examining the overall impact of offering online consultations on offline appointments. Our results show that the number of offline appointments for doctors increases after opening an online consultation service. Additionally, we examine how several factors, such as recommendation heat, hospital ranking, and doctor title, moderate the impact of opening online consultation services on doctors’ offline appointments. Given that online consultation is a new but important way to connect patients and doctors, our findings provide useful implications for all the stakeholders—doctors, patients, hospitals, and policy makers—regarding how to integrate online and offline channels in the healthcare context.History: Param Singh, Senior Editor; Yuliang (Oliver) Yao, Associate Editor.Funding: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grants 72071057, 71922009, 71871080, and 72188101].Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/isre.2022.1145. Collapse

Topics: website electronic health price management online review telephone

Methods: robustness check regression analysis method instrumental variables estimation experimental group hierarchical linear modeling

Theories: signaling theory theory of economic development

Evolution of Referrals over Customers’ Life Cycle: Evidence from a Ride-Sharing Platform

2023 | Information Systems Research | Citations: 0

Authors: Fernández-Loría, Carlos; Cohen, Maxime C.; Ghose, Anindya

Abstract: Online platforms often ask their users to refer friends in exchange for a reward ... Expand

Abstract: Online platforms often ask their users to refer friends in exchange for a reward. This paper addresses how referral generation and referral value evolve throughout the customer’s life cycle as a function of service usage, experience level, and past referral behavior. Our analysis is based on a longitudinal data set that comprises the transactions and referral actions of 400,000 users in a ride-sharing platform over a year. The richness of our data set allows us to address two shortcomings from previous studies: modeling dynamic behavior (i.e., the relationship between past and future referrals) and accounting for unobserved heterogeneity across users. Our results show that users make more referrals when they have used the service recently and intensively. For example, users become 9% less likely to make referrals for each week they have not used the service. Furthermore, users make more high-value referrals as they become more experienced with the service. The referral generation and referral value of the top 10% most experienced users are more than 18% higher relative to when they first used the service. Finally, as users make more referrals, they become more likely to run out of friends to whom they can refer the service, leading to less referrals in the future. After users make their first referral, the probability of making additional referrals decreases by more than 78% and the value of subsequent referrals reduces by 19% on average. The results imply that platforms should consider tailoring their referral programs according to how referral generation and referral value evolve over time.History: Xiaoquan (Michael) Zhang, Senior Editor; Khim Yong Goh, Associate Editor. Collapse

Topics: ride sharing platform mobile application logistics management accounting marketing management

Methods: longitudinal research robustness check instrumental variables estimation regression analysis method Poisson regression

Theories: social contagion theory

On the Same Page? What Users Benefit from a Desktop View on Mobile Devices

2023 | Information Systems Research | Citations: 0

Authors: Fink, Lior; Papismedov, Daniele

Abstract: The presentation of online content is routinely adapted to the smaller screens o ... Expand

Abstract: The presentation of online content is routinely adapted to the smaller screens of mobile devices by implementing an information architecture (IA) that hierarchically restructures the information being presented to users, in conjunction with layout and size adaptations. Despite the understanding that users of mobile devices are likely to experience lower usability and higher load without such adaptations, a recent trend is to offer these users the ability to opt out of content adaptation and revert to a desktop view. The prevailing justification for this trend is the existence of websites that fail to provide an optimal mobile experience. In this work, we show that a desktop view may benefit mobile users by increasing the accuracy of their decisions. Focusing on the difference between a desktop IA, where information is presented on a single page, and a mobile IA, where information is hierarchically distributed across pages, we hypothesize that mobile users exhibit lower decision accuracy when a mobile IA is implemented. We theoretically anchor this hypothesis in the effort-accuracy framework, which views decision behavior as contingent on the trade-off between effort and accuracy. This hypothesis is supported in two laboratory experiments in which participants are faced with the multiattribute choice task of making an online hotel reservation. The experiments also highlight a boundary condition for the negative effect of the mobile IA on decision accuracy, depending on whether the mobile IA is congruent with user preferences. The findings suggest that content adaptation on mobile devices deserves greater research attention, particularly from the perspective of adaptive decision behavior.History: Anandasivam Gopal, Senior Editor; Likoebe Maruping, Associate Editor.Funding: The authors thank the Israel Science Foundation [Grant 604/18] for providing funding in support of this research.Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/isre.2022.1140. Collapse

Topics: mobile system information storage and retrieval system decision making website smartphone

Methods: experiment descriptive statistic regression analysis method survey statistical hypothesis test

Theories: theory of bounded rationality

The Effect of Community Managers on Online Idea Crowdsourcing Activities

2023 | Journal of the Association for Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Hornuf, Lars; Jeworrek, Sabrina

Abstract: In this study, we investigate whether and to what extent community managers in o ... Expand

Abstract: In this study, we investigate whether and to what extent community managers in online collaborative communities can stimulate community activities through their engagement. Using a novel data set of 22 large online idea crowdsourcing campaigns, we find that moderate but steady manager activities are adequate to enhance community participation. Moreover, we show that appreciation, motivation, and intellectual stimulation by community managers are positively associated with community participation but that the effectiveness of these communication strategies depends on the form of participation managers wish to encourage. Finally, the data reveal that community manager activities requiring more effort, such as media file uploads vs. simple written comments, have a stronger effect on community participation. Collapse

Topics: crowdsourcing innovation management online community missing data privacy

Methods: propensity score method statistical power analysis Poisson regression regression analysis method econometric modeling

Theories: transformational leadership theory

Trust antecedents in online reviews across national cultures

2023 | Decision Support Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Kim, Youngeui; Srite, Mark; Zhao, Huimin

Abstract: When reading an online review, consumers rely on implied trust-building factors ... Expand

Abstract: When reading an online review, consumers rely on implied trust-building factors within it. Trust antecedents have been extensively researched and categorized into argument quality and source credibility. However, there is still a need to investigate how their help for consumers differs across national cultures. Furthermore, while a profile photo has been found to enhance the helpfulness of a review by improving source credibility, little is known about how consumers perceive user appearance in a review picture and no research has compared these two types of visual information. To bridge these gaps, we examine how trust antecedents and visual information help consumers’ decision making differently across national cultures, using reviews collected from Amazon in the US and Germany, respectively. Our results show that information quality is more helpful for consumers in an individualistic and low uncertainty avoidance culture, whereas source credibility is more valued in the opposite culture. Interestingly, the effects of the two types of visual information, user appearance in a profile photo versus in a review picture, also differ across cultures. This research contributes to the online review literature by introducing visual information and national culture with new perspectives of trust. Our findings suggest that multinational e-commerce businesses adopt culture-specific strategies in review systems to better help consumers make informed purchase decisions. Collapse

Topics: national culture online review Vine data quality information retrieval

Methods: robustness check topic model term frequency–inverse document frequency propensity score method natural language processing

Learning in Temporary Teams: The Varying Effects of Partner Exposure by Team Member Role

2023 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Kim, Song-Hee; Song, Hummy; Valentine, Melissa A.

Abstract: In many workplaces, temporary teams convene to coordinate complex work, despite ... Expand

Abstract: In many workplaces, temporary teams convene to coordinate complex work, despite team members having not worked together before. Most related research has found consistent performance benefits when members of temporary teams work together multiple times (team familiarity). Recent work in this area broke new conceptual ground by instead exploring the learning and performance benefits that team members gain by being exposed to many new partners (partner exposure). In contrast to that new work that examined partner exposure between team members who are peers, in this paper, we extend this research by developing and testing theory about the performance effects of partner exposure for team members whose roles are differentiated by authority and skill. We use visit-level data from a hospital emergency department and leverage the ad hoc assignment of attendings, nurses, and residents to teams and the round-robin assignment of patients to these teams as our identification strategy. We find a negative performance effect of both nurses’ and resident trainees’ partner exposure to more attendings and of attendings’ and nurses’ exposure to more residents. In contrast, both attendings and residents experience a positive impact on performance from working with more nurses. The respective effects of residents working with more attendings and with more nurses is attenuated on patient cases with more structured workflows. Our results suggest that interactions with team members in decision-executing roles, as opposed to decision-initiating roles, is an important but often unrecognized part of disciplinary training and team learning. Funding: This work was supported by the New Faculty Startup Fund from Seoul National University; Harvard Business School; Stanford Center for Work, Technology, and Organization; and Stanford Center for Designing Organizational Change. Supplemental Material: The online supplement is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2022.1585. Collapse

Topics: team productivity individual productivity electronic health record missing data task structure

Methods: Poisson regression qualitative interview statistical hypothesis test archival research experiment