INFO 370 - Lecture 03 - October 6, 2004 Notes By: Prins, Yaptinchay, Egaas From Last Lecture Significance of Study 1. Affects of E-Commerce 2. Resembles Organizational Behavior Open Ended Questions -> Open Reponses -> Create Coding Scheme Concepts -> Variables Predictor/Determinant Variable (Indepedent) Attitudinal Believe Structure - Utilitarian Outcomes - Hedonic Outcomes - Social Outcomes Normative - Social Influence - Secondary Sources Control - Lack of Knowledge - Difficulty - High Cost Outcome Variables (Dependent) - Adoption (Produce Acquisition) * Yes/No - Intent to Adopt * Yes/No *For Proposal, identify all your indepedent variables and all possible range of outcomes like above DISCUSSION - Question of audience, who was excluded out of the study a - Cell phone as primary phone users a - Homeless a - Very Poor a - Incarcerated People Sampling Frame - The list from which you draw your sample (ex. US population) Response Rates over time Incentives to not bias survey Questions were asked over a three week period within the current frame (T or T+6mos) - By spreading it out you diminish the impact of other events on the data (timely events) Look at Table 2 - Main difference is found in the residential category Research design and findings ! Longitudinal sample (data gathered in multiple points in time a time series - 60 people in pilot study * 20 to 30 is usually good - 9 minute interviews - Types of Data * Qualitative data (topping type) * Quantitative (numbers mean something) * Nominal data (categorical) * Ordinal (categories of increasing amounts, ex. grade level) - Most important limitation * The 'M' column is very biased and not very representative (leading) - Major Findings * Adopters - Predominately Hedonic & Social but also Utilitarian * Non-Adopters - Obsolescence Major Outcomes 1) Offer insight to the facilitators to e-commerce Instructor Comment: Perhaps added just to elevate the significance of study :P 2) Resembles organizational behavior 3) Results points to cost as a salient factor 4) Point towards managers in the IT industry OVERALL A GOOD MODEL OF A RESEARCH STUDY, DESPITE ITS FLAWS // Start Slides Research is... - A systematic investigation using empirical methods to address a knowledge void Social Research Exploratory – Investigating processes and meaning without expectations don't know what you're looking for Descriptive – Defining and “measuring” social phenomena; Explanatory – Identify causes and effect of social phenomena Evaluation - Asks what/why against some standard or expectiation Definition What is evaluation? Determining the effectiveness of systems or services Effectiveness: How well it does the job it is supposed to do Why do we need evaluation? To improve the design of a system or a service (or policy) To support decision-making Evaluation-Research Question A question about the *effectiveness* of a system or a program that will be answered through the collection of *verifiable*, *empirical* data. Definitions Effectiveness = Ability of the system to meet a user requirement or other standard Verifiable = Replicable, method can be followed and have same results Empirical = Collecting data via the senses, evidence from the real world Examples 1. Question: Does gender affect Internet usage? Method: Search the literature for articles about the topic 2. Question: Which search engine does a better job for students, Yahoo or Google? Method: Self-reflection (a form of deduction) 3. Question: How useful is MyUW for Informatics students? Method: Have a conversation and make sure the topic comes up Another Way to Look at Evaluation What difficulties or problems people have with the system or the program What features caused what problems and why Does the system or program match the users in what they need to do First Requirement Some kind of a system: Old system about to be replaced Prototype of a system being developed Existing system that can be improved by modifying/extending it What is a Prototype? A representation of the system or the program that a user can interact with, *built to be changed and improved*. Examples: A paper simulation A software simulation using a prototyping tool or interface generator An early version of the software The system to be replaced Pilot program Second Requirement A clear definition and understanding of: What is being evaluated Functionality? Interface? Appearance? Cost? For what purpose the evaluation is being conducted Stages in the Design of a System or a Program (Research required @ each stage) Identification (User Needs/Requirements) what is the system or program to achieve Specification a blueprint that is easy to change and available for testing Implementation the final product—a system or a program-- that cannot be easily changed User Needs/Requirements Examples of issues on which to decide: system functionality goals of the program cost performance type of user job design learning and training time Specification Examples of issues: system architecture details of functionality dialogue design details of user interface requirements from the user’s point of view details about the type of the program specific ideas about how users will participate in the program Implementation Examples: working software that follows the specifications a new way of working for the user a new service to users A new organization of the job #END#