[AISWorld] JAIS 2015 Volume 16, Issue 08 (August) Contents

[JAIS]

Contents of Volume 16, Issue 08 (August) Journal of the Association for Information Systems (JAIS), Official Publication of the Association for Information Systems
Published: Monthly Electronically
ISSN: 1536-9323
Published by the Association for Information Systems, Atlanta, USA (http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/)

Editor-in-Chief:  Professor Suprateek Sarker, University of Virginia, USA


PAPER ONE
Seeing for Understanding: Unlocking the Potential of Visual Research in Information Systems

Antonio Díaz Andrade, Auckland University of Technology
Cathy Urquhart, Manchester Metropolitan University
Tiru S. Arthanari, The University of Auckland

In this paper, we argue that information researchers should use images as a source of data. The information systems field is overwhelmingly visual in nature. Not only is the Internet crammed with images, but also almost every detail observed during fieldwork in different research settings can be captured in the form of digital images. Yet, we rarely engage with those images. Except for sporadic video recordings in analyzing human-computer interaction and, more recently, neurophysiological imaging, using images in information systems research has been sparse and non-systematic. Where images are used, the purpose of using them has been largely restricted to visually representing the context of the research setting. This approach underuses the knowledge embedded in visual material, which needs to be unpacked in a systematic fashion. We discuss the theoretical underpinnings of visual research and illustrate via a three-step framework how images in information systems research can be collected, analyzed, and presented. We conclude with four considerations for researchers that can help them develop a visual research capacity in information systems and encourage researchers to engage with the images that are now a major feature of the information systems environment.
To obtain a copy of the entire article, click on the link below:
http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol16/iss8/3/


PAPER TWO
Loyalty, Ideology, and Identification: An Empirical Study of the Attitudes and Behaviors of Passive Users of Open Source Software

Namjoo Choi, University of Kentucky
Indushobha Chengalur-Smith, University at Albany, SUNY
Saggi Nevo, University at Albany, SUNY

Abstract
Extant research on open source software (OSS) has primarily focused on software developers and active users but has paid limited attention to the less visible “passive” users who form the silent majority of OSS communities. Passive users play a critical role in the adoption and diffusion of OSS, and we need more research to understand their behaviors and motivations. We address this gap by drawing on the sociological theory of community markers. The three community markers in the context of OSS are loyalty, ideology, and identification. We also draw on marketing literature to propose four contributory behaviors of passive users of OSS that we theorize to be impacted by the community markers: user brand-extension, word-of-mouth, endorsement, and community involvement. We further classify passive users’ contributory behaviors according to the difficulty of their enactment and examine the differential influence of the OSS community markers. Partial-least squares (PLS) analyses of data obtained through a survey of passive users of an OSS product provide support for the majority of the hypotheses.

To obtain a copy of the entire article, click on the link below:
http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol16/iss8/2/


PAPER THREE
Leveraging Social Capital to Obtain Top Management Support in Complex, Cross-Functional IT Projects

Gloria H. W. Liu, National Central University
Eric Wang, National Central University
Cecil Eng Huang Chua, The University of Auckland

Abstract
Research argues that a major reason for IT project failure is the lack of top management support. However, obtaining top management support is often considered outside the IT project team’s control. In this paper, we investigate how IT project teams can obtain such support. We find that creating and mobilizing social capital through repeated interaction with top managers and their confidants helps a project obtain top management support. Also, a failure to use social capital to engage top management can cause a decrease in their support. We demonstrate these points through a natural experiment of the support of three division heads and their corresponding divisions in the implementation of an enterprise system. We demonstrate how and why top management support may be obtained by (1) building social capital and (2) mobilizing existing social capital—directly with top management or indirectly with individuals with influence on top management.

To obtain a copy of the entire article, click on the link below:
http://aisel.aisnet.org/jais/vol16/iss8/1/