What Makes Resource Provision an Effective Means of Poverty Alleviation? A Resourcing Perspective

2023 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Sutter, Christopher; Bhatt, Babita; Qureshi, Israr

Abstract: Adequately addressing the grand challenge of poverty requires addressing resourc ... Expand

Abstract: Adequately addressing the grand challenge of poverty requires addressing resource scarcity. However, efforts to provide resources as a means of poverty alleviation have met with mixed success. We explore what makes resource provision effective as a means of poverty alleviation. We adopt a resourcing perspective, which focuses on the relationship between potential resources and schemas, or shared understandings, that shape how resources are used. Consistent with prior research, we find that schemas shape how resources are used in practice. However, we also find that who can access the resources is as consequential as how they are used. In exploring this issue, we identify a new category of schemas related not to use but to access, which we refer to as access schemas. We define access schemas as shared understandings regarding who can appropriately access potential resources. We find that different social groups have distinct schemas regarding access, and we identify three mechanisms—precedence, complementarity, and scaffolding—that shape the way that access schemas are enacted in resource-scarce settings. Our study contributes to the literature on grand challenges by clarifying the link between resource provision and resource use. We also contribute to the literature on resourcing by uncovering mechanisms that shape schema enactment in the presence of conflicting access schemas held by different social groups. Funding: This work was supported by the Research Grants Council, University Grants Committee [GRF Grants PolyU 548210 and PolyU 549211], and International Development Research Centre [Doctoral Research Award 107473-99906075-074]. Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1570. Collapse

Topics: organizational context mobile platform social norm

Methods: qualitative interview archival research field study longitudinal research grounded theory

Theories: social practice theory management theory

Competing Affordance Potencies Shaping Data Collection: Case of Humanitarian Organizations

2022 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Vila-Pozo, Marta; Martinez, Rosario; Sahay, Sundeep

Abstract: Individual adoption of technology in humanitarian settings is linked with expec ... Expand

Abstract: Individual adoption of technology in humanitarian settings is linked with expectancies of performance and effort, and users tend to easily default to "whatever works". A deeper understanding of the process of field users' adoption of a new technology is of utmost importance for humanitarian organizations. We used Affordance Potency framework for comparing competing affordances of a mobile based solution with existing paper-based processes, against 4 identified affordances. The mobile solution was deployed in seven inpatient wards of two humanitarian field hospitals during a period of four months. This analysis demonstrated how technology features are as important as it is to be flexible to respond to contextualised work practices. The affordance potency lens helped understand how competing systems can shape the data collection process. A key contribution of this study is the use of affordances from a "competing" lens perspective within the unique context of a humanitarian organization. Collapse

Topics: affordance usability information system use user experience data quality

Methods: qualitative interview group interview participant observation qualitative content analysis literature study

Theories: theory of affordance information systems theory

Generativity and the paradox of stability and flexibility in a platform architecture: A case of the Oracle Cloud Platform

2021 | Information & Management | Citations: 22

Authors: Sun, Ruonan; Gregor, Shirley; Fielt, Erwin

Abstract: Generativity is a technology’s capability of producing new outputs without input ... Expand

Abstract: Generativity is a technology’s capability of producing new outputs without input from the originator. Platforms are important technologies that embrace generativity. While the literature generally assumes that generativity arises from platform governance and high-level platform design, we propose that generativity also arises from a platform’s three architectural components: the base, the interface, and the add-ons. Drawing on a case study of the Oracle Cloud Platform, we reveal how generativity emerges through the paradox of stability and flexibility in a platform’s architectural components. Further, standardization navigates this paradox by coordinating the dependencies between stability and flexibility across heterogeneous stakeholders. Collapse

Topics: Oracle database cloud computing digital platform database system platform governance

Methods: case study literature study focus group literature sample qualitative content analysis

Using discussion logic in analyzing online group discussions: A text mining approach

2019 | Information & Management | Citations: 1

Authors: Deng, Shasha; Zhou, Yilu; Zhang, Pengzhu; Abbasi, Ahmed

Abstract: We propose a Discussion Logic-based Text Analytics (DiLTA) framework, which comb ... Expand

Abstract: We propose a Discussion Logic-based Text Analytics (DiLTA) framework, which combines theories developed in social science and text mining fields. The framework extracts features that uncover discussion logic and uses these features in analyzing online discussions. A series of models are proposed including conversation disentanglement, coherence analysis, and visualization. Validation experiments showed that DiLTA achieved significantly superior performance over existing text analytics methods in reconstructing internal structure. A case study using DiLTA-enabled visualization on a healthcare forum illustrates the great potential of DiLTA in assisting comprehension of the internal linkage, structure, and logic of online group discussions. Collapse

Topics: social network group support system chat room social media web forum

Methods: machine learning computational algorithm experiment coherence analysis longitudinal research

Theories: argumentation theory

Text Analytics to Support Sense-Making in Social Media: A Language-Action Perspective

2018 | Management Information Systems Quarterly | Citations: 0

Authors: Abbasi, Ahmed; Zhou, Yilu; Deng, Shasha; Zhang, Pengzhu

Abstract: Social media and online communities provide organizations with new opportunities ... Expand

Abstract: Social media and online communities provide organizations with new opportunities to support their businessrelated functions. Despite their various benefits, social media technologies present two important challenges for sense-making. First, online discourse is plagued by incoherent, intertwined conversations that are often difficult to comprehend. Moreover, organizations are increasingly interested in understanding social media participants’ actions and intentions; however, existing text analytics tools mostly focus on the semantic dimension of language. The language-action perspective (LAP) emphasizes pragmatics; not what people say but, rather, what they do with language. Adopting the design science paradigm, we propose a LAP-based text analytics framework to support sense-making in online discourse. The proposed framework is specifically intended to address the two aforementioned challenges associated with sense-making in online discourse: the need for greater coherence and better understanding of actions. We rigorously evaluate a system that is developed based on the framework in a series of experiments using a test bed encompassing social media data from multiple channels and industries. The results demonstrate the utility of each individual component of the system, and its underlying framework, in comparison with existing benchmark methods. Furthermore, the results of a user experiment involving hundreds of practitioners, and a four-month field experiment in a large organization, underscore the enhanced sense-making capabilities afforded by text analytics grounded in LAP principles. The results have important implications for online sense-making and social media analytics. Collapse

Topics: sensemaking social media social network web forum productivity

Methods: experiment longitudinal research coherence analysis machine learning field experiment

Theories: speech act theory language action perspective statistical learning theory

A Design Framework for Adaptive Gamification Applications

2018 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Böckle, Martin; Micheel, Isabel; Bick, Markus; Novak, Jasminko

Abstract: The application of gamification does not always achieve the expected results due ... Expand

Abstract: The application of gamification does not always achieve the expected results due to the shortcomings of the quite common “one size fits all” approach of standard gamification concepts. We therefore propose a design framework that can inform systematic development of adaptive gamification applications. The developed framework draws on the current body of gamification literature, focusing on the emerging research stream of adaptive gamification. It provides design paths and design principles that translate the individual elements into concrete guidelines to assist the design practice. The framework has been successfully applied to the design and implementation of a prototype application using gamification to incentivize knowledge exchange on an existing online platform for physicians in practical medical training. The evaluation in a case study indicated positive user acceptance and increased system usage after the introduction of the developed adaptive gamification solution. Collapse

Topics: gamification information system use user acceptance user centered design online community

Methods: design framework case study design artifact design principle design science

Theories: unified theory of acceptance and use of technology

Socio-Technical Change: The Equilibrium Paradox

2018 | European Conference On Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Fischer, Louise Harder; Baskerville, Richard

Abstract: In the domain of change and information systems (IS), we have persisted in the a ... Expand

Abstract: In the domain of change and information systems (IS), we have persisted in the assumption that a wellfunctioning IS exhibits a balance between the social and the technical structures such that this system rests in a state of stable equilibrium. When transformational change arises, the system falls into a state of disequilibrium, until it reaches a new state of equilibrium. This assumption no longer gives a full explanation of the complex dynamics in today’s enterprise. In this paper, we explain the concept of unstable equilibrium that results from the continuous change that individuated individuals make in socio-technical structures. Our findings arise from a critical realist perspective used to interpret data from an e-group interview with 11 professionals working in platform-based organizations. We find that a generative mechanism of contradictory complementarity, denoted as individualization and socialization, now inhabits the IS and causes outcomes that are both individual-technical and sociotechnical. Now change happens in the surface-structures resting in unstable equilibrium, while the deep structures remain in stable equilibrium. This equilibrium paradox in socio-technical change explains how platform-based organizations achieve change by both achieving agility from their IS while simultaneously achieving stability. Collapse

Topics: cloud computing productivity mobile application electronic mail enterprise resource planning

Methods: group interview focus group survey personal interview qualitative coding

Theories: punctuated equilibrium theory theory of change sociotechnical systems theory adaptive structuration theory economic theory

Asking Questions: A Sine Qua Non of Facilitation in Decision Support?

2018 | Group Decision and Negotiation | Citations: 0

Authors: McCardle-Keurentjes, Marleen; Rouwette, Etiënne A. J. A.

Abstract: This paper reflects our ongoing interest in discovering essential elements of fa ... Expand

Abstract: This paper reflects our ongoing interest in discovering essential elements of facilitation in decision support for groups with members having different perspectives on a strategic problem. We investigated questioning behaviour, a critical aspect of microlevel behaviour, of the facilitator in a classroom experiment with five-person groups (N = 26). The supported groups used a facilitated modelling approach, that is, group model building, which is based on system dynamics. In the control condition, one of the participants led the group discussion in the role of chairperson. As expected, we found that the facilitator asked more questions than the chairperson. Subsequently, based on proposed functions of questions by discussion leaders in group decision making, we distinguished three categories of questions; related to (a) rational and social validation, (b) reflection, and (c) information management. Analysis of question type frequencies revealed that facilitators mainly ask questions from the rational and social validation category, and that this question type declines over the course of the discussion process. Questions prompting reflection increased over time. Information management questions were mostly used in the beginning and middle part of the session. In the groups led by a chairperson, a less clear picture emerged. There was a great variety between groups with respect to type of questions and sequence in which the chairperson asked questions. The only consistent result for unsupported meetings is that information management primarily took place at the end of the sessions. Collapse

Topics: information management decision support decision making

Methods: experiment qualitative coding group interview nonparametric test Mann Whitney U test

Learning to Trust: From Relational Exchange to Generalized Trust in China

2018 | Organization Science | Citations: 4

Authors: Nee, Victor; Holm, Håkan J.; Opper, Sonja

Abstract: Where does generalized trust—that is, the inclination to place trust in stranger ... Expand

Abstract: Where does generalized trust—that is, the inclination to place trust in strangers—come from? Our claim is that in economic action, sources of generalized trust may not differ much from the sources of personalized trust. Contrary to a common assumption of a sharp distinction between personalized and generalized trust, we assert a likely spillover effect from relational exchange to a person’s expectations in interacting with an anonymous other. Our research integrates behavioral measures elicited by a novel incentivized trust game with survey data using a random sample of 540 entrepreneurs of private industrial firms in the Yangzi delta region of China. We show that entrepreneurs with more experience in relational exchange display greater trust in strangers. Likewise, we find robust evidence of a positive association between beliefs in the effectiveness of community business norms and generalized trust. Collapse

Topics: anonymity marketing management social norm accounting entrepreneurship

Methods: survey descriptive statistic qualitative interview survey design digital trace data

Theories: management theory game theory

When Institutional Logics Meet Information and Communication Technologies: Examining Hybrid Information Practices in Ghana’s Agriculture

2018 | Journal of the Association for Information Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Slavova, Mira; Karanasios, Stan

Abstract: In this paper, we describe how changes in the availability of information artifa ... Expand

Abstract: In this paper, we describe how changes in the availability of information artifacts—in particular, information and communication technologies (ICTs)—among smallholder farmers in Ghana, led to a process of hybridization of information practices, and how this process could be linked to underlying institutional change. We use the notions of institutional carriers and activity systems to study the evolution of the prevailing “smallholder” institutional logic of Ghanaian agriculture toward an incoming “value-chain” institutional logic concerned with linking farmers to output markets, improving the knowledge base in agriculture, and increasing its information intensity. We draw on a mixed-methods approach, including in-depth qualitative interviews, focus groups, observations, and detailed secondary quantitative data. We cultivate activity theory as a practice-based lens for structuring inquiry into institutional change. We find that information artifacts served to link the activities of farmers that were embedded in the smallholder logic with those of agriculturaldevelopment actors that promoted the value-chain logic. Hybridization occurred through the use of artifacts with different interaction modalities. In terms of conceptualizing change, our findings suggest that hybridization of the two logics may be an intermediary point in the long transition from the smallholder toward the valuechain logic. Collapse

Topics: internet technology mobile phone information system use usability personalization

Methods: mixed method qualitative interview field study survey focus group

Theories: activity theory institutional theory