Building a Model of Technology Preference: The Case of Channel Choices

Intention theories, such as the Theory of Reasoned Action, the Theory of Planned Behavior, and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), have been widely adopted to explain information system usage. These theories, however, do not explicitly consider the availability of alternative systems that users may have access to and may have a preference for. Recent calls for advancing knowledge in technology acceptance have included the examination of selection among competing channels and extending the investigation beyond adoption of a single technology. In this study, we provide a theoretical extension to the TAM by integrating preferential decision knowledge to its constructs. The concept of Attitude‐Based Preference and Attribute‐Based Preference are introduced to produce a new intention model, namely the Model of Technology Preference (MTP). MTP was validated in the context of alternative behaviors in adopting two service channels: one a technology‐based online store and the other a traditional brick‐and‐mortar store. A sample of 320 responses was used to run a structural equation model. Empirical results show that MTP is a powerful predictor of alternative behaviors. Furthermore, in the context of service channel selection, incorporating preferential decision knowledge into intention models can be used to develop successful business strategies.     

Security Assurance: How Online Service Providers Can Influence Security Control Perceptions and Gain Trust

Security researchers agree that security control is a difficult to observe credence quality of online services that Internet users cannot easily assess through research or experience. Yet there is evidence that users form perceptions of security control that strongly determine how much trust they put in online services. This study investigates whether users’ security control perceptions arise solely from their predispositions or whether online service providers can influence them. The study also examines whether these seemingly undependable perceptions of security control lead to trust or whether more traditional factors might offer a better explanation of trust under security risks. To address these issues, this study proposes a new theory of security assurance that integrates the frameworks of trust and quality signals. The results show that rather than being guided by predispositions, users appear to mainly assess security control based on indirect cues controlled by service providers. Importantly, Internet users do not treat the credence quality of security the same way they treat qualities that can be understood through search and experience. Although returning users develop security control perceptions and trust from the usual heuristics of ongoing relationships, they also continue to evaluate market information about service providers like they do in new relationships. The proposed model offers a new perspective of how users respond to the uncertain and technically challenging qualities prevalent in online services.     

股票价格运行的幂律特征及幂律跳跃扩散模型

在Merton提出的跳跃扩散模型的逻辑框架之下,完成了两方面的修正工作:将计数过程由Poisson过程修正为带有幂律性质的更新过程,同时,赋予股票价格运动过程发生跳跃的时间和幅度以幂律分布特征.通过实证研究表明,修正后可以更加准确地描述股票价格的运动过程,同时得到具有尖峰胖尾的收益率分布和波动聚集性.以此为基础可以更加准确地为期权等金融衍生品进行定价,同时也为金融风险管理提供了有效工具.     

The impact of environmental characteristics on TQM principles and organizational performance

One recurrent theme within the literature on total quality management (TQM) is the study of its effect on organizational performance. Nonetheless, most research has focused on analyzing the relationships between the implementation of different elements and several types of performance. This paper incorporates the effect of organizational environment as a variable for explaining the impact of TQM on business results. The model is tested using structural equations, employing a survey of quality managers in 273 Spanish firms. The causal analysis results show that dynamism, munificence and complexity influence the degree of implementation of the main TQM principles. The most relevant effects emerge as a result of the environmental dynamism, and the least effects are due to munificence. Similarly, the dimensions of TQM have an impact on different types of performance. The model can be used by organizations to assess their level of TQM success depending on specific environmental characteristics.     

A path analytic study of the effect of top management support for information systems performance

Information systems (IS) have become a vital component of an organization's competitive practices. Organizations have tried to differentiate themselves based on their use and adaptation of new information technology. Top management support (TMS) is a significant factor in influencing the effectiveness of the IS function in an organization. The literature has conceptually supported this notion, but empirical evidence has been sparse. This paper develops a two-tiered framework for studying the relationship between top management support, the IS function, and IS performance. This conceptual model was empirically tested using structural equation modeling based on data collected through a survey instrument. The results support the direct and indirect relationships depicted in the model between top management support and IS performance.     

Measuring Modularity‐Based Manufacturing Practices and Their Impact on Mass Customization Capability: A Customer‐Driven Perspective

As uncertainty in markets and technology intensifies, more companies are adopting modular product and process architectures to cope with increasing demands for individually customized products. Modularity‐based manufacturing is the application of unit standardization or substitution principles to create modular components and processes that can be configured into a wide range of end products to meet specific customer needs. This study defines modularity‐based manufacturing practices (MBMP), develops a valid and reliable instrument to measure MBMP, builds a framework that relates customer closeness, MBMP, and mass customization capability, and tests structural relationships within this framework using LISREL. Based on 303 responses from members of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, statistically significant and positive relationships were found among customer closeness, modularity‐based manufacturing practices, and mass customization capability. Managerial implications of the empirical findings of this study and future research directions are also discussed.     

The Effect of Perceived Novelty on the Adoption of Information Technology Innovations: A Risk/Reward Perspective

A fundamental characteristic of any innovation is its novelty, the newness or freshness of the innovation in the eyes of the adopter. Past research has often considered novelty to be inherent to an information technology (IT) innovation, yet it is also likely that perceptions of novelty differ widely across individuals. Nevertheless, the role that the novelty of an IT innovation plays in adoption is not well understood. The primary goal of this research effort is to frame the perceived novelty of an IT innovation as a salient affective belief in the nomological network related to adoption. Further, we examine how perceived novelty influences the way individuals reconcile their perceptions of risk versus reward when considering the adoption of an IT innovation. Two empirical studies with 424 and 138 participants, respectively, examine the effect of perceived novelty on IT innovations from a risk/reward perspective. Results indicate that perceived novelty is a salient affective belief that plays a significant role in the adoption of IT innovations. Implications for both theory and organizational decision making are examined.     

Learning‐by‐Doing,Organizational Forgetting,and Industry Dynamics

Learning‐by‐doing and organizational forgetting are empirically important in a variety of industrial settings. This paper provides a general model of dynamic competition that accounts for these fundamentals and shows how they shape industry structure and dynamics. We show that forgetting does not simply negate learning. Rather, they are distinct economic forces that interact in subtle ways to produce a great variety of pricing behaviors and industry dynamics. In particular, a model with learning and forgetting can give rise to aggressive pricing behavior, varying degrees of long‐run industry concentration ranging from moderate leadership to absolute dominance, and multiple equilibria.     

Supply chain management in the US and Taiwan: An empirical study

This study uses an empirical survey of middle-line managers in the US and Taiwan to study the association of supply chain management components and organizational performance. Through structural equation modeling, critical components of supply chain management are found to have considerable effects on organizational performance. The findings of the study are summarized as follows:

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Supply chain competencies have positive effects on organizational performance in both the US and Taiwan. Supply chain competencies are developed around quality and service, operations and distribution, and design effectiveness. The goal of supply chain competencies is to satisfy customer requirements.     

Examining the Antecedents and Consequences of CIO Strategic Decision‐Making Authority: An Empirical Study*

Despite the strategic importance of information technology (IT) to contemporary firms, chief information officers (CIO) often still have varying degrees of strategic decision‐making authority. In this study, we apply the theory of managerial discretion to define CIO strategic decision‐making authority and argue that the CIO's level of strategic decision‐making authority directly influences IT's contribution to organization performance. We also draw on the power and politics perspective in the strategic decision‐making literature to identify the direct antecedents to the CIO's strategic decision‐making authority. A theoretical model is presented and empirically tested using survey data collected from a cross‐industry sample of 174 matched pairs of CIOs and top business executives through structural equation modeling. The results suggest that organizational climate, organizational support for IT, the CIO's structural power, the CIO's level of strategic effectiveness, and a strong partnership between the CIO and top management team directly influence the CIO's level of strategic decision‐making authority within the organization. The results also suggest that the CIO's strategic decision‐making authority in the organization directly influences the contribution of IT to firm performance and that effective CIOs have a greater influence on IT's contribution when provided with strategic decision‐making authority.