Toward a deeper understanding of system usage in organizations: A multilevel perspective

• 成果类型: Article; Proceedings Paper
• 署名作者: Burton-Jones, Andrew; Gallivan, Michael J.
• 署名单位: University of British Columbia; University System of Georgia; Georgia State University
• 刊物名称: MIS QUARTERLY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0276-7783
• 发表日期: 2007
• 页码: 657-679
• 关键词: information-technology; user acceptance; exploration; performance; issues; LEVEL; aggregation; constructs; complexity; strategies

摘要

The objective of this paper is to contribute to a deeper understanding of system usage in organizations by examining its multilevel nature. Past research on system usage has suffered a levels bias, with researchers studying system usage at single levels of analysis only (e.g., the individual, group, or organizational level). Although single-level research can be useful, we suggest that studying organizations one level at a time will ultimately lead to an unnatural, incomplete, and very disjointed view of how information systems are used in practice. To redress this situation, we draw on recent advances in multilevel theory to present system usage as a multilevel construct and provide an illustration for what it takes for researchers to study it as such. The multilevel perspective advanced in this article offers rich opportunities for theoretical and empirical insights and suggests a new foundation for in-depth research on the nature of system usage, its emergence and change, and its antecedents and consequences.