Exploring the Application and Acceptance of Group Support Systems in Africa.

Author List: Vreede, Gert-Jan de; Jones, Noel; Mgaya, Rabson J.;

Journal of Management Information Systems, 1998, Volume 15, Issue 3, Page 197-234.

Cross-cultural group support systems (GSS) field studies are scarce. Although the state of knowledge and theory development in this area warrants a focus on descriptive field explorations, most cross-cultural GSS research has taken place in laboratory environments. The study reported here represents the first detailed descriptive field study of GSS application in Africa. A grounded theory approach was used to collect and analyze data on eleven projects in which GSS meetings were organized in Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania. From the data emerged a model of GSS acceptance in the cultures investigated that extends the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) in terms of a specification of a number of relevant external factors. These factors include the endorsement of top management, computer literacy, oral communication preference, referent power, and satisfaction with use. Furthermore, the findings suggest that there is potential for applying GSS in Africa to support capacity-building efforts, which tops the agenda of international development agencies.

Keywords: cross-cultural studies; field study; grounded theory research; group support systems; technology acceptance

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List of Topics

#233	0.180	group gss support groups systems brainstorming research process electronic members results paper effects individual ebs using used anonymity ideas discussion
#127	0.177	systems information research theory implications practice discussed findings field paper practitioners role general important key grounded researchers domain new identified
#99	0.142	perceived usefulness acceptance use technology ease model usage tam study beliefs intention user intentions users behavioral perceptions determinants constructs studies
#222	0.093	research researchers framework future information systems important present agenda identify areas provide understanding contributions using literature studies paper potential review
#198	0.062	factors success information critical management implementation study factor successful systems support quality variables related results key model csf importance determinants
#261	0.060	software development maintenance case productivity application tools systems function tool engineering projects effort code developed applications analysis estimation methodology methods