Most research on information presentation is based on the rational approach to display design. This approach assumes that the quality of displays is determined by their relative efficacy to provide the relevant information for the viewer, as assessed through variables such as response latency, accuracy, or decision quality. However, presentations often are intended to convince viewers and create desired impressions. These considerations may lead to the choice of displays that differ from those prescribed by the rational approach. Three experiments addressed the degree to which the presenter's objectives and the desirability of the presented information affect presenters' preferences for display formats. Presenters exhibited different preferences when they tried to create a favorable impression compared to when they tried to reach optimal decisions or provide information for optimal decision making by others. There was an increased use of depth in graphic displays when impressions were crucial, and this tendency was particularly strong when the presented information was undesirable for the presenter. The results demonstrate the importance of understanding the social circumstances of information presentation when evaluating the adequacy of display formats.
This study was motivated by the existence of two opposing schools of thought on managing information technology (IT) in a global context. One study proposes that managing IT in a global context is largely the same as managing IT in a domestic context. The other proposes that there is a difference. The results from interviews with 65 project managers, of whom 27 had international management experience, reflect a reality that lies somewhere between the two extremes. Using Q-methodology techniques, the project managers rated the relative importance of 33 items for decisions about the distribution of IT applications' hardware, software, and data. Although the most important factors influencing an application's IT distribution decision appear to hold across both domestic and global contexts, the global context contributes variability, unfamiliarity, and complexity that cannot be ignored. Compared with their domestic counterparts, project managers with global experience tended to be more cosmopolitan in their viewpoints, emphasized more local units' responsiveness, were more sensitive to power issues at headquarters as well as in local units, stressed the need for continuous, uninterrupted 24-hour services, and took into greater account the legal issues related to governmental regulations.