Habermas and information systems research: New directions

Habermas' critical social theory has proven to be an important and useful lens in information systems research, especially in understanding the communicative potential of information systems and in conceiving alternative approaches to information systems development. As communication and engagement have become increasingly important in the context of today's information systems, his work has perhaps even greater applicability. However, concerns that it is too utopian to apply in organizational settings have led to skepticism regarding Habermas' work. Participation by all, the “ideal speech situation” and the consensus ideal are each Habermasian requirements that have sparked this criticism.However, Habermas' work has continued to grow and evolve since the Theory of Communicative Action, the basis of much IS research drawing on his work. His contributions in discourse ethics (1990, 1993) and deliberative democracy (1998) have offered us new and important theory, and have brought to light Habermas' own clarification and evolution of his original ideas.The intent of this paper is to reopen a communicative dialog about Habermas' work. After summarizing his critical social theory, we turn to addressing our two main objectives: first, to demonstrate that evolutions in Habermasian thought have renewed its empirical possibilities and, second, to show that this new understanding constructively informs future IS research. As an illustration, we sketch out the conditions for a Habermasian-inspired requirements process and show their application to a well-studied IS development model, ETHICS (Mumford, 1983). We conclude by suggesting that Habermas' theoretical ideas can no longer be dismissed as naive, but as a constant guide to critical action — as a reference point for opening up new possibilities for communicative action in IS research and activity.     

Affection not affliction: The role of emotions in information systems and organizational change

Most IS research in both the technical/rational and socio-technical traditions ignores or marginalizes the emotionally charged behaviours through which individuals engage in, and cope with the consequences of, IS practice and associated organizational change. Even within the small body of work that engages with emotions through particular conceptual efforts, affections are often conceived as a phenomenon to be eradicated – an affliction requiring a cure. In this paper, I argue that emotions are always implicated in our lived experiences, crucially influencing how we come to our beliefs about what is good or bad, right or wrong. I draw from the theoretical work of Michel Foucault to argue for elaborating current notions of IS innovation as a moral and political struggle in which individuals’ beliefs and feelings are constantly tested. Finally, I demonstrate these ideas by reference to a case study that had considerable emotional impact, and highlight the implications for future work.     

电力企业信息化项目后评估方法探索

针对电力企业信息项目大量出现、信息化水平不断提升、应用信息技术的成本也与日俱增的情况,为实现信息化建设项目有效管控,保障项目建设效果与项目管理效率,对电力企业信息化项目后评估方法进行了探索研究。文章首先分析了电力企业信息化项目的特点,然后从项目目标实现程度、项目实施组织管理和应用效果3个方面建立了信息项目后评估指标体系,最后对信息项目的后评估方法进行了探索。     

Methodological problems in gender and media research

This paper will focus on the main questions that have arisen from a methodological point of view relating to the theoretical and research area of gender and media, which continues to be the subject of discussion and debate. The methodology chosen by scholars has changed over the course of time, depending on: the interpretative paradigm underlying the researchers (especially from the feminist perspective which leads the analysis, due to the theme); the sociocultural context; the type of contents offered by the media (old, new media); and technological innovations in the communications field. In particular, the author underlines that scholars who adopt the equality between the sexes perspective tend to favour quantitative methods, while scholars oriented towards highlighting sexual and gender differences tend to favour qualitative methods.     

不对称信息理论与会计信息披露问题研究

会计信息披露是资本市场实现资源有效配置的基础,也是会计工作的基本目标之一。本文通过不对称信息理论深入分析了目前我国会计信息披露中产生的各种问题,并找出其中的内在动因,为规范我国会计信息披露制度进行了深入的思考和分析。本文的结构分为三个部分,首先简单介绍一下不对称信息理论及其基本理论,其次分析目前我国证券市场上会计信息披露存在的各种问题,最后利用不对称信息理论针对这些问题进行深入的分析研究,并得出相应的结论。     

The gender dimension of technical change and the role of task inputs

By 2011, the employment shares of UK graduate men and women had become equal for the first time. With no evidence of a significantly declining graduate female–male wage differential, this suggests that the relative demand for graduate women must have increased in order to accommodate the faster increase in their relative supply. However, gender clustering in degree subjects suggests that male and female graduates may not be perfect substitutes in production and therefore that gender biases may exist in the relative demand and supply of graduate labour. Consequently, this paper investigates whether industry level skill demand shifts have differed for men and women, focussing specifically on the role of technical change and job task inputs. The paper shows that, despite the large growth in the percentage of women obtaining a degree, overall women lost out from technical change between 1997 and 2006. This was most likely as a consequence of their lower quality numeracy and literacy skills, as well as other skills required to undertake the tasks that are correlated with technical change, especially in highly computerised private sector industries like finance and machine manufacturing.     

影响网络购物意向因素的性别差异研究

文章对影响网络购物意向的因素进行了整理归纳,并重点分析了不同性别消费者对这些因素认知的差异,认为男女消费者对创新性接受度、信任倾向、价格感知、风险感知和售后服务各因素的认知有差异.     

影响网络购物意向因素的性别差异研究

文章对影响网络购物意向的因素进行了整理归纳,并重点分析了不同性别消费者对这些因素认知的差异,认为男女消费者对创新性接受度、信任倾向、价格感知、风险感知和售后服务各因素的认知有差异。     

Entrepreneurial intention: the role of gender

There is general agreement in previous research, drawing on the Theory of Planned Behaviour, that attitudes towards entrepreneurship are determining factors on entrepreneurial intention and gender also seems to play a key role. This study supports the core entrepreneurial intention model and focuses on the role of gender in this process, showing that men are more likely to think about creating a firm than being determined to do it. However, of those men, the ones who perceive higher congruence between masculine and entrepreneurial attributes are more likely to have a firm entrepreneurial intention. Also, both men and women with a firm entrepreneurial intention perceive successful entrepreneurs to have feminine attributes. This, together with the characteristics of the sample, may explain the lack of a gender difference in entrepreneurial intention.     

知识型客户关系管理中的信息技术应用研究

随着商业环境逐渐向知识密集型转变,知识管理在客户关系管理中的作用变得越来越重要,将知识管理应用于CRM(客户关系管理),使之具有知识性、分析性的特点,增强了企业对客户的识别、交流以及保持,同时信息技术的发展也为KCRM(知识型客户关系管理)的应用提供了技术上的保障和支持。因此探讨如何有效地将信息技术应用于KCRM,充分发挥KCRM对客户关系的管理,就显得十分有意义。     

The role of prior information in updating regional input-output models

The research reported here focuses on several issues: (1) the specification and measurement of errors in single region input-output models and their impacts on the construction of new models from survey and nonsurvey sources and the updating of existing models; (2) the problems of errors in input-output models when the latter are incorporated into more extensive social accounting systems and (3) linkages between the aggregation issue, error analysis and micro-to-macro modelling within an input-output framework. Empirical analysis is conducted on many of these issues by reference to the State of Washington input-output models for 1963, 1967 and 1972.     

Economics of information examples in location and land-use theory

In many contexts a decision taken by one economic agent reveals valuable market information to other agents. Two such examples are displayed. In the first case, the location of a retailer reduces locally the uncertainty in the spatial variation of demand, thereby attracting other retailers. In the second case, the change in the quality of rental housing in a homogeneous neighborhood reveals consumer demand which may invite other landlords to follow suit causing capid neighborhood change.     

信息共享研究中的信任问题

供应链绩效问题自从上个世纪90年代以来就是管理学的研究热点,其中信息共享中信任问题也是近年来学术界的关注点之一.对于信任问题的研究,国内外大多采用的实证研究方法得到了很多有指导意义的结论.近年来国外的学者也尝试通过对信任建模的方法来研究,并取得了一些有意义的结论.本文简单汇总了信任问题在信息共享中作用的相关文献,并对研究对象、研究方法等做了一些介绍,从中总结了目前的研究成果,也对进一步的研究给出了作者自己的思路.     

Multi-level analysis in information systems research: the case of enterprise resource planning system usage in China

Information technology (IT) usage within organisations is a multi-level phenomenon that is influenced by individual-level and organisational-level variables. Yet, current theories, such as the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, describe IT usage as solely an individual-level phenomenon. This article postulates a model of organisational IT usage that integrates salient organisational-level variables such as user training, top management support and technical support within an individual-level model to postulate a multi-level model of IT usage. The multi-level model was then empirically validated using multi-level data collected from 128 end users and 26 managers in 26 firms in China regarding their use of enterprise resource planning systems and analysed using the multi-level structural equation modelling (MSEM) technique. We demonstrate the utility of MSEM analysis of multi-level data relative to the more common structural equation modelling analysis of single-level data and show how single-level data can be aggregated to approximate multi-level analysis when multi-level data collection is not possible. We hope that this article will motivate future scholars to employ multi-level data and multi-level analysis for understanding organisational phenomena that are truly multi-level in nature.     

The ever‐declining role of gender equality in the European Employment Strategy

This article analyses the changing position of gender in the European Employment Strategy (EES) since its 2005 relaunch. Overall, we find a picture of mixed progress towards gender equality goals across Member States. There is evidence of the EU soft law approach leading to positive developments as the use of targets in conjunction with Country‐Specific Recommendations and Points‐to‐Watch have had some influence in promoting gender equality policies among Member States. However, the weakened position of gender mainstreaming in European‐level initiatives has led to gender being marginalised or ignored in national and EU policy responses to the crisis. The prominence of gender has declined further in the 2010 revision of the EES under the 2020 banner. This introduces new risks as the emphasis on gender equality falls further down the list of priorities in the streamlining of the Lisbon Process.