Exploring the effects of health information seeking on e-satisfaction in online health communities: an empirical investigation

BACKGROUND

Online health communities (OHCs) are becoming effective platforms for people to seek health information. Existing studies divide health information into general and specific information in OHCs. However, few studies discuss the effects of different types of information seeking in OHCs on users' electronic satisfaction (e-satisfaction).

OBJECTIVE

This study explores the effects of general and specific information seeking on users' e-satisfaction with OHCs through the mediating roles of perceived benefits and costs drawing on the social information processing theory and the social exchange theory.

METHODS

This study conducted an online survey to collected data from individuals who used OHCs to seek information. The structural equation model was used to analyze the collect data and the research model. Specifically, this study examined the common method bias and conducted a robustness check.

RESULTS

Results show that general and specific information seeking affect e-satisfaction through the mediating roles of perceived benefits and costs. An interesting result is that general information seeking has a stronger effect on e-satisfaction than specific information seeking.

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests that e-satisfaction should be further enhanced by information seeking as online healthcare practices evolve and change. Managers of OHCs should focus on increasing users' perceived benefits, thereby increasing their e-satisfaction. Besides, this study discusses implications, limitations, and future research directions.

Conceptualizing Information Systems Development as an Organizational Routine

Research acknowledges that information systems development (ISD) teams experiment with, overlook, or adapt the methods that they purportedly use. Given this, one stream of research adopts a perspective focused on prescriptions based on the idea of a method. Another stream of research adopts a perspective anchored in the view that human agency plays a critical role in the unfolding of ISD projects. We suggest that our understanding of ISD can be enriched by mobilizing both perspectives. Specifically, we propose a conceptualization of ISD as an organizational routine based on the ontology developed by Feldman and Pentland. We build on the elements of this ontology- (1) the idea of a routine (the ostensive aspect) and (2) its enactment (the performative aspect) as the two mutually constitutive aspects of organizational routines; and (3) the role of artifacts as mediators of the relationship between actors and the ostensive and performative aspects of organizational routines - to develop theoretical arguments explaining the benefits of applying this ontology to the ISD phenomenon. Extending the contextual boundaries of Feldman and Pentland's ontology, we propose research avenues that have the potential to contribute to our understanding of this core phenomenon of the IS discipline.

Implementation strategies for high-performance health care simulation centres: A multicentre exploratory case study in China

INTRODUCTION

The number of health care simulation centres (HSCs) in mainland China has increased exponentially recently. However, the performance of these centres varies significantly between hospitals. The aim of this study is to address two research questions: (i) what are the critical factors for implementing high-performance HSCs and (ii) how are these critical factors used in the development of implementation strategies to achieve satisfactory performance?

METHODS

Following a literature review on information technology (IT) implementation, we identified a framework comprising four key dimensions for HSCs implementation: technology, organisation, environment and individuals. This TOEI (technology-organisation-environment-individual) framework was then used as a basis for a multicentre case study through which data collection and analysis proceeded. We collected 12 one-to-one in-depth interviews alongside secondary data from six high-performance HSCs in mainland China.

RESULTS

Our study identifies critical TOEI factors that collectively influence HSC implementation performance and major activities at the six high-performance HSCs. Three strategies for implementing high-performance HSCs are also identified: facility management platform, education and training centre and innovation centre.

CONCLUSIONS

HSC implementation is an holistic approach. The critical TOEI factors collectively build a foundation for centre activities. An HSC's implementation strategy highly relies on organisational strategic goals. Additionally, HSCs in mainland China face some common challenges such as faculty retention and future opportunities such as expanding the research scope. Our study also provides insights for hospital leadership, medical associations and policymakers.

The “case to theory transformation method” for initiating is theory: the process and an illustration using is integration following mergers and acquisitions

Purpose

This to show how critical success factors (CSFs) from practitioner-oriented research can be tested and used to generate new theory.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses an extended example regarding the integration of IT departments following organizational mergers and acquisitions to illustrate in proof of concept that such practitioner-oriented research can generate new substantive theory and be used to begin a cycle of representation-testing leading to enhancing domain knowledge. The method used consists of the identification of an exemplary practitioner-oriented research article, restatement of CSFs into testable propositions, gathering data through interviews with phenomenon participants, analyzing and interpreting data relative to these CSFs, then presenting the results pertaining to these CSFs and observations from examining them holistically.

Findings

No CSFs were affirmed in all cases, neither were they rejected in all cases. The pattern of answers reveals a significant difference between factors representing general management best practices and technical practices. The higher frequency among management factors shows a relative universality to these items, whereas the technical issues are noted less frequently as they each apply to smaller subsets of all post mergers and acquisitions integrations but remain critical when they do apply. This set of responses suggests that the frequency of responses does not indicate the importance of any given factor across settings.

Research limitations/implications

This study suggests (1) CSFs, while generally helpful, can also be misleading when applied such that, where of potential importance, they can be brought into a theorizing mode for refinement and extraction of additional knowledge; (2) that CSFs can be sorted into those tending toward general management principles that apply most frequently in contrast to those of critical importance but applicable across fewer situations; and (3) that as a proof of concept the case to theory transformation method can work to introduce heuristic knowledge into a process-initiating theorizing, raising prospects for subsequent continued improvement.

Practical implications

Assuming robust reporting of CSFs in well-conducted cases, this study knows that at least in one setting these factors were important in achieving particular results. However, this study does not know, without subsequent testing and theorizing, whether the factor applies across circumstances and whether it requires particular handling (e.g. timing may be critical but relies on varied conditions to indicate when actions need be taken). By theorizing based upon CSFs for important IS phenomena, the authors create a bridge between knowledge as used in practice and the scientific tools for increasing its value over time.

Originality/value

Although the authors know of case and multiple case studies surfacing best practices in post mergers and acquisitions integrations, they know of no broad studies across numerous organizations; they also know of no studies demonstrating the relationship of management and technical CSFs in an IS phenomenon. Further, although there are other techniques advocated for theory initiation and building, the authors know of none that transforms heuristic or anecdotal knowledge for subsequent theorizing and continual improvement at a more detailed level than mid-range theory.

Machine learning techniques and older adults processing of online information and misinformation: A covid 19 study

This study is informed by two research gaps. One, Artificial Intelligence's (AI's) Machine Learning (ML) techniques have the potential to help separate information and misinformation, but this capability has yet to be empirically verified in the context of COVID-19. Two, while older adults can be particularly susceptible to the virus as well as its online infodemic, their information processing behaviour amid the pandemic has not been understood. Therefore, this study explores and understands how ML techniques (Study 1), and humans, particularly older adults (Study 2), process the online infodemic regarding COVID-19 prevention and cure. Study 1 employed ML techniques to classify information and misinformation. They achieved a classification accuracy of 86.7% with the Decision Tree classifier, and 86.67% with the Convolutional Neural Network model. Study 2 then investigated older adults' information processing behaviour during the COVID-19 infodemic period using some of the posts from Study 1. Twenty older adults were interviewed. They were found to be more willing to trust traditional media rather than new media. They were often left confused about the veracity of online content related to COVID-19 prevention and cure. Overall, the paper breaks new ground by highlighting how humans' information processing differs from how algorithms operate. It offers fresh insights into how during a pandemic, older adults-a vulnerable demographic segment-interact with online information and misinformation. On the methodological front, the paper represents an intersection of two very disparate paradigms-ML techniques and interview data analyzed using thematic analysis and concepts drawn from grounded theory to enrich the scholarly understanding of human interaction with cutting-edge technologies.

How to make intelligent automation projects agile? Identification of success factors and an assessment approach

Purpose

Organizations are fast adopting new technologies such as automation, analytics and artificial intelligence, collectively called intelligent automation, to drive digital transformation. When adopting intelligent automation, there is a need to understand the success factors of these new technologies and adapt agile software development (ASD) practices to meet customer expectations. The purpose of this paper is to explore the success factors of intelligent automation and create a framework for managers and practitioners to meet dynamic business demands. Total interpretive structural modeling (TISM) framework is a suitable approach to integrate quantitative measurement with qualitative semi-structured interviews capturing the context of the individual organization environment.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper identified agility factors and their interrelationships using a TISM framework. TISM results were validated using a one-tailed t-test to confirm the interrelationships between factors. Furthermore, the agility index of a case project organization was assessed using a graph-theoretic approach (GTA) to identify both the triggering factors for agility success and improvement proposals.

Findings

Results showed that leadership vision, organization structure and program methodology were driving factors. The TISM model was validated statistically and the agility index of the intelligent automation case project organization was calculated to be79.5%. Here, a GTA was applied and the triggering factors for improvement of the agility index were identified.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations of the study are described along with the opportunities for future research as the field evolves through the rapid innovation of technology and products.

Practical implications

The increasing role of digital transformation in enterprise strategy and operations requires practitioners to understand how ASD practices must be planned, measured and/or improved over time through the implementation of automation, analytics and artificial intelligence programs. The TISM digraph provides a framework of hierarchical structure to organize the influencing factors, which assists in achieving organizational goals. This study highlights the driving factors which contribute to the success of intelligent automation projects and project organizations.

Originality/value

This is a first attempt to analyze the interrelationships among agility factors in intelligent automation projects (IAP) using TISM and the assessment of the agility index of a case IAP organization using a GTA.

Adopting Learning Analytics to Inform Postgraduate Curriculum Design: Recommendations and Research Agenda

Understanding student sentiment plays a vital role in understanding the changes that could or should be made in curriculum design at university. Learning Analytics (LA) has shown potential for improving student learning experiences and supporting teacher inquiry. Yet, there is limited research that reports on the adoption and actual use of LA to support teacher inquiry. This four-year longitudinal study captures sentiment of postgraduate students at a university in Ireland, by integrating LA with the steps of teacher inquiry. This study makes three important contributions to teaching and learning literature. First, it reports on the use of LA to support teacher inquiry over four one-year cycles of a Master of Science in Business Analytics programme between 2016 and 2020. Second, it provides evidence-based recommendations on how to optimise LA to support teacher inquiry, with specific attention as to how these can improve the assimilation of LA into the curriculum design and delivery. Third, the paper concludes with a research agenda to help improve the adoption and integration of LA in the future.

Caring for Computers: The Hidden Work of Clinical Nurses during the Introduction of Health Information Systems in a Teaching Hospital in Taiwan

Implementing health information systems for enhancing patient care and management occurs worldwide. Discovering how nurses, as important system end-users, experience technology-reliant clinical practice involved focus groups (n = 25) and in-depth individual interviews with nurses (n = 4) and informatics staff (n = 3) in a major Taiwanese medical center. This qualitative study explores the unintended effects of these systems on nurses’ role and clinical practice. First, nurses’ additional role caring for computer devices supporting patient care involves highly-demanding invisible effort, especially when tackling system malfunctions affecting patients with urgent conditions. Second, nurses are resourceful in developing solutions to protect patients during unexpected technical malfunctions. Third, troubleshooting using telephone technical support as the first resort is problematic. It is argued that computerization requires nurses to care for co-clients: patients and computers. Managing technical malfunctions is an unintended consequence for nurses, reflecting the hidden work required by new technology.

Caught in a crossfire: Front-end decision-making in airport expansion programmes

This paper revisits the main factors and considerations that drive the decision to invest in major capital projects in airport infrastructure, specifically airport expansion programmes. To this end, the paper explores how governments, operators and investors have navigated the project front-end considerations (strategic assessment, business justification, option decision, investment decision) in the planning of Heathrow, Schiphol and Dublin Airport expansion programmes. Through inductive research on publicly available material, professional conference reports, planning documentation and exploratory interviews with key personnel involved in the selected projects, the study compares and contrasts the three projects and contributes to the current debates on the role that governments have into fostering economic growth whilst taking into account environmental restriction and climate change. The goal of the study is to inform the upcoming restructuring and transformation of business models in air travel as a response to the Covid-19 crisis.

Privacy-deprived e-commerce: the efficacy of consumer privacy policies on China's e-commerce websites from a legal perspective

Purpose

Despite grave public concerns over information privacy and ongoing academic explorations of privacy policy, there is a general lack of understanding toward this issue in the legal context in China, the largest e-commerce market in the world. Departing from the extant literature of general discussion in nature, the authors undertook an exploratory study on the efficacy of e-commerce websites' privacy policies in China from the legal perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors drew on a qualitative grounded theory approach to identify selective codes relating to the focal issue and established a theoretical framework therefrom. The authors then conducted theoretical integration by linking them to the Theory of Development Blocks and the System Justification Theory.

Findings

The research identifies a general distrust of Chinese consumers toward privacy policies and highlights that despite their growing concerns about privacy, the privacy policies are largely ineffective in reflecting legal enforcement, changing their perceptions or influencing purchase behaviors. It also reveals that the current Chinese legislation is unable to fully render consumers' confidence in e-commerce websites' privacy policies effectiveness and privacy protection due to its limited recognition and influences among them.

Originality/value

The research has multiple ramifications. The authors empirically confirmed a mismatch between customers' perception of privacy policies and their actual behaviors and then theoretically explained the seemingly conflicting scenario in the context of development block of legal enforcement and system justification. The authors theorized the absence of the legal enforcement in privacy policies to supplement the legal perspective to the literature. The research further leads us to suggest that the time has come to update and strongly enforce privacy regulation in China to fuel the further development of e-commerce sector in practice.

Informatics and the Challenge of Determinism

Motivation: There is a paradox at the heart of informatics where practical implementation generally fails to understand the socio-technical impact of novel technologies and disruptive innovation when adopted in ‘real-world’ systems. This phenomenon, termed technological determinism, is manifested in a time-lag between the adoption of novel technologies and an understanding of the underlying theory which develops following research into their adoption. Methods: We consider informatics theory as it relates to: social informatics and how humans’ function in society, the relationship between society and technology, information systems, information systems design, and human–computer interactions. The challenges posed by novel technologies and disruptive innovation are considered as they relate to information systems and information systems design. Open research questions with directions for future research are discussed with an introduction to and our proposed approach to socio-technical information system design. Significance: We conclude that the adoption of disruptive innovation presents both opportunities and threats for all stakeholders in computerised systems. However, determinism is a topic requiring research to generate a suitable level of understanding and technological determinism remains a significant challenge.

Technological, Organizational, and Environmental Factors Influencing Social Media Adoption by Hospitals in Switzerland: Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND

Social media platforms are important tools for hospitals. These platforms offer many potential benefits in various areas of application for hospitals to connect and interact with their stakeholders. However, hospitals differ immensely in their social media adoption. There are studies that provide initial findings on individual factors influencing social media adoption by hospitals, but there is no comprehensive and integrated model.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to develop a comprehensive model of social media adoption by hospitals in the context of the Swiss health care system and to test the model with empirical data from Switzerland.

METHODS

To develop our model, we applied the general technology-organization-environment framework of organizational technology adoption and adapted it to the specific context of social media adoption by hospitals in Switzerland. To test our model, we collected empirical data on all 283 hospitals in Switzerland and identified the accounts they operate on 7 different social media platforms (Facebook, Google+, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, XING, and YouTube). We tested the hypotheses of our model by means of binary logistic regression (dependent variable: platform adoption) and negative binomial regression (dependent variable: number of different platforms adopted).

RESULTS

Our general model on social media adoption received broad support. Overall, hospitals in Switzerland are more likely to adopt social media if they have a higher share of patients with voluntary health insurance or have a higher patient volume. In contrast, they are less likely to operate their own social media accounts if they are associated with a hospital network. However, some hypotheses of our model received only partial support for specific social media platforms; for instance, hospitals in Switzerland are more likely to adopt XING if they provide an educational program and are more likely to adopt LinkedIn if they are located in regions with higher competition intensity.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study provides a comprehensive model of social media adoption by hospitals in Switzerland. This model shows, in detail, the factors that influence hospitals in Switzerland in their social media adoption. In addition, it provides a basic framework that might be helpful in systematically developing and testing comprehensive models of social media adoption by hospitals in other countries.

The hunt for computerized support in information security policy management

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to survey existing information security policy (ISP) management research to scrutinise the extent to which manual and computerised support has been suggested, and the way in which the suggested support has been brought about.

Design/methodology/approach

The results are based on a literature review of ISP management research published between 1990 and 2017.

Findings

Existing research has focused mostly on manual support for managing ISPs. Very few papers have considered computerised support. The entire complexity of the ISP management process has received little attention. Existing research has not focused much on the interaction between the different ISP management phases. Few research methods have been used extensively and intervention-oriented research is rare.

Research limitations/implications

Future research should to a larger extent address the interaction between the ISP management phases, apply more intervention research to develop computerised support for ISP management, investigate to what extent computerised support can enhance integration of ISP management phases and reduce the complexity of such a management process.

Practical implications

The limited focus on computerised support for ISP management affects the kind of advice and artefacts the research community can offer to practitioners.

Originality/value

Today, there are no literature reviews on to what extent computerised support the ISP management process. Findings on how the complexity of ISP management has been addressed and the research methods used extend beyond the existing knowledge base, allowing for a critical discussion of existing research and future research needs.

Low-Code as Enabler of Digital Transformation in Manufacturing Industry

Currently, enterprises have to make quick and resilient responses to changing market requirements. In light of this, low-code development platforms provide the technology mechanisms to facilitate and automate the development of software applications to support current enterprise needs and promote digital transformation. Based on a theory-building research methodology through the literature and other information sources review, the main contribution of this paper is the current characterisation of the emerging low-code domain following the foundations of the computer-aided software engineering field. A context analysis, focused on the current status of research related to the low-code development platforms, is performed. Moreover, benchmarking among the existing low-code development platforms addressed to manufacturing industry is analysed to identify the current lacking features. As an illustrative example of the emerging low-code paradigm and respond to the identified uncovered features, the virtual factory open operating system (vf-OS) platform is described as an open multi-sided low-code framework able to manage the overall network of a collaborative manufacturing and logistics environment that enables humans, applications, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices to seamlessly communicate and interoperate in the interconnected environment, promoting resilient digital transformation.

Electronic health records implementation in Morocco: Challenges of silo efforts and recommendations for improvements

OBJECTIVE

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) interventions hold the promise for enabling better healthcare. However, the implementation of EHR systems has been scarce in developing countries. The objective of this study is to investigate the state of EHRs implementation in Morocco; and draw insights for potential improvements.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

University Medical Centers, known by locals in French as Centres Hospitalier Universitaires (CHU), are the largest and most advanced public healthcare centers in Morocco. A two-phase qualitative study was conducted in four out of the five CHUs. Phase One involved data collection through semi-structured interviews with 27 clinician champions, administrators, and medical directors. Phase Two included a brainstorming session during a health informatics conference held in Fes, Morocco. The data were analyzed using inductive analysis.

RESULTS

We identified five main categories of challenges due to silo strategies: (1) EHRs selection and weak bargaining power, (2) identical errors repeated across silos, (3) a lack of interoperability standards, (4) insufficient human and financial, and (5) missed cooperation and collaboration opportunities.

DISCUSSION

While identifying these silo challenges is an important milestone, proposing guidelines to address these challenges can bring Morocco and similar developing countries a step closer to improving healthcare through the use of health informatics and EHRs. Our recommendations for public healthcare organizations are threefold: (1) recognize the power of partnerships among all CHUs, (2) establish an e-health framework, and (3) seek national and international collaborations to drive and shape the eHealth agenda. Furthermore, we align our recommendations with the World Health Organization toolkit for an eHealth strategy to further benefit developing countries.

CONCLUSION

This study identifies the challenges faced by the Moroccan EHRs implementation silo-ed strategy, and it proposes practical and fundamental guidelines to address these challenges and develop an interoperable and sustainable national eHealth system in Morocco and similar developing countries.

Identifying Challenges and a Research Agenda for Flow in Software Project Management

Flow and its associated tools and metrics are increasingly being reported as an approach used to achieve continuous deployment of software and delivery of value in software development projects. Yet, the extant literature on flow tools to date is rather limited. Also, what does exist tends to largely focus on the generic version of flow, rather than any rigorous examination of its use in the turbulent and constantly changing ‘real world’ environment within which it is applied. This study draws on a longitudinal case to identify the challenges of implementing flow and to provide a research agenda for flow project management.

Business Intelligence Systems Adoption Model

Decision support and business intelligence systems have been increasingly adopted in organizations, while understanding the nature of affecting factors on such adoption decisions need receiving much academic interest. This article attempts to provide an in-depth analysis toward understanding the critical factors which affect the decision to adopt business intelligence (BI) in the context of banking and financial industry. In this regard, it examines a conceptual model that shows the impacts of different technological, organizational, and environmental factors in the decision to adopt BI by a firm. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used for data analysis and test the relevant hypothesis. The results of this article which are derived from theoretical discussion of hypothesizes show that from nine hypothesized relationships—perceived tangible and intangible benefits, firm size, organizational readiness, strategy, industry competition and competitors absorptive capacity—affect BIS adoption in the surveyed cases.

An empirical analysis on outsourcing decision: the case of e-banking services

Purpose

A multitude of factors influence the information technology outsourcing (ITO) decision. Organizations must systematically evaluate these factors prior to making the ITO decision. The purpose of this paper is to provide an in-depth analysis toward understanding the critical factors in affecting ITO decision in the context of e-banking services.

Design/methodology/approach

The effect of technological, organizational, and environmental attributes on e-banking services outsourcing decision were investigated in this paper. The study was carried out using the quantitative research methodology based on a survey of 23 banks. The partial least squares technique was utilized as the method of data analysis.

Findings

The results of the data analysis illustrated that nine out of 11 assumed factors (i.e. perceived complexity, perceived cost, service observability to the client, cultural fit between client and supplier, perceived loss of organizational knowledge, prior outsourcing experience, external pressure, market volatility, and suppliers’ power) influence the outsourcing decision of e-banking services. The findings also confirmed that the nature of the service and client IT capabilities did not exert any influence on the outsourcing decision.

Originality/value

The study is among the first kind of ITO decision research which empirically investigates the effect of service observability, cultural fit, perceived loss of organizational knowledge, external pressure, market volatility, and suppliers’ power amongst other factors on the ITO decision. The findings from this study provide insights for the banks and service providers to better understand the factors affecting the outsourcing decisions of e-banking services in contexts of less developed countries. Implications based on a specific situation of the Iranian banking sector is also proposed.