Effects of computer experience and task complexity on attitudes of managers

Abstract Attitudes of managers toward computers are important determinates of behavior that may influence both utilization of and satisfaction with information systems. A laboratory experiment was conducted to study the relationship between task complexity and attitudes of 64 managers who were classified according to their computer experience. Participants completed both pretest attitude and computer familiarity instruments. The experimental session required participants to complete either a simple or complex task in a controlled laboratory environment using an interactive application on a terminal device connected to a mainframe computer. Following the experimental session, participants immediately completed a posttest attitude instrument. Attitude shift as a consequence of usage did not occur. Results indicate that managers have a positive attitude toward using computers regardless of computer familiarity and these attitudes do not change as a function of manipulating the task complexity dimension. Results also suggest that organizations should provide managers with increased opportunities for further usage and training. The complexity of computer tasks should be of concern to systems designers but may not have immediate effect on user attitudes.

[1]  D. Campbell.  The effects of goal-contingent payment on the performance of a complex task , 1984 .

[2]  Henry C. Lucas,et al.  Why information systems fail , 1975 .

[3]  Bruce W Knerr,et al.  Relationships between Student Attitudes Toward Computer-Assisted Instruction and Training Performance , 1978 .

[4]  R. Dawes.  Fundamentals of attitude measurement , 1972 .

[5]  Peter Suedfeld,et al.  Personality theory and information processing , 1971 .

[6]  Henry C. Lucas,et al.  Systems Quality, User Reactions, and the Use of Information Systems. , 1974 .

[7]  Jacob Cohen.  Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences , 1969, The SAGE Encyclopedia of Research Design.

[8]  J B Reid,et al.  Learner variables and interpersonal conditions in computer-assisted instruction. , 1969, Journal of educational psychology.

[9]  C. Schewe.  The Management Information System User: An Exploratory Behavioral Analysis , 1976 .

[10]  E. B. Swanson,et al.  Measuring user attitudes in MIS research: a review , 1982 .

[11]  David W. Conrath,et al.  What is being done to measure user satisfaction with EDP/MIS , 1990, Inf. Manag..

[12]  Blake Ives,et al.  An empirical study of the impact of user involvement on system usage and information satisfaction , 1986, CACM.

[13]  J. Neter,et al.  Applied linear statistical models : regression, analysis of variance, and experimental designs , 1974 .

[14]  D. W. Rajecki.  Attitudes, Themes and Advances , 1982 .

[15]  E. Tolman.  Purposive behavior in animals and men , 1932 .

[16]  Howard B. Lee,et al.  Foundations of Behavioral Research , 1973 .

[17]  J. Deese.  The associative structure of some common english adjectives , 1964 .

[18]  Sammy W. Pearson,et al.  Development of a Tool for Measuring and Analyzing Computer User Satisfaction , 1983 .

[19]  R. Wood.  Task complexity: Definition of the construct , 1986 .

[20]  F. G. Brown,et al.  Principles of educational and psychological testing , 1970 .

[21]  Henry C. Lucas,et al.  An Experimental Investigation of the Use of Computer-Based Graphics in Decision Making , 1981 .

[22]  Jr. Henry C. Lucas,et al.  Performance and the Use of an Information System , 1975 .

[23]  C. Osgood,et al.  The Measurement of Meaning , 1958 .

[24]  N. Melone.  A theoretical assessment of the user-satisfaction construct in information systems research , 1990 .

[25]  I. Ajzen,et al.  Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior , 1980 .

[26]  Fred D. Davis,et al.  User Acceptance of Computer Technology: A Comparison of Two Theoretical Models , 1989 .

[27]  Andrew A. Haried.  The Semantic Dimensions of Financial Statements , 1972 .

[28]  A. K. Basu.  A Theory of Decision-Making , 1973, The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare.

[29]  George M. Kasper,et al.  A laboratory study of user characteristics and decision-making performance in end-user computing , 1985, Inf. Manag..

[30]  Ronald N. Taylor.  Behavioral decision making , 1984 .

[31]  Thomas Hill,et al.  Role of efficacy expectations in predicting the decision to use advanced technologies: The case of computers. , 1987 .

[32]  P. H. Lindsay.  Human Information Processing , 1977 .

[33]  Kate M. Kaiser,et al.  User-Analyst Differences: An Empirical Investigation of Attitudes Related to Systems Development1 , 1982 .

[34]  H. Triandis.  Attitude and attitude change , 1971 .

[35]  Henry C. Lucas,et al.  The implementation of computer-based models , 1976 .

[36]  Douglas E. Loyd,et al.  The Reliability and Validity of an Instrument for the Assessment of Computer Attitudes , 1985 .

[37]  F. Heider.  ATTITUDES AND COGNITIVE ORGANIZATION , 1977 .

[38]  K. Spence.  Behavior Theory and Conditioning , 1978 .

[39]  James E. Brinton.  DERIVING AN ATTITUDE SCALE FROM SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL DATA , 1961 .

[40]  Donald J. Campbell,et al.  The interactive effects of task complexity and participation on task performance: A field experiment , 1986 .

[41]  G. A. Marcoulides,et al.  The Relationship between Computer Anxiety and Computer Achievement , 1988 .

[42]  C. Osgood,et al.  The principle of congruity in the prediction of attitude change. , 1955, Psychological review.

[43]  Blake Ives,et al.  The measurement of user information satisfaction , 1983, CACM.

[44]  Varun Grover,et al.  Computer Support for Strategic Decision‐Making Processes: Review and Analysis* , 1989 .

[45]  Perry R. Morrison.  A survey of attitudes toward computers , 1983, CACM.

[46]  Leah R. Pietron,et al.  Cognitive Level and Achievement in Computer Literacy , 1987 .

[47]  I. Ajzen,et al.  Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behavior: An Introduction to Theory and Research , 1977 .

[48]  Robert S. Lee.  SOCIAL ATTITUDES AND THE COMPUTER REVOLUTION , 1970 .

[49]  Edwin A. Locke,et al.  Task experience as a source of attitudes , 1965 .

[50]  Ronald E. Anderson.  Value orientation of computer science students , 1978, CACM.

[51]  Henry C. Lucas,et al.  UNSUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION THE CASE OF A COMPUTER‐BASED ORDER ENTRY SYSTEM , 1978 .

[52]  Jacob Cohen,et al.  Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences , 1979 .

[53]  Charles R. Crowell,et al.  Human-computer interaction: A preliminary social psychological analysis , 1982 .

[54]  Robert D. Smith,et al.  Computer anxiety in management: myth or reality? , 1986, CACM.

[55]  L. Festinger,et al.  A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance , 2017 .

[56]  D. Campbell.  Task Complexity: A Review and Analysis , 1988 .

[57]  Daniel Robey,et al.  User Attitudes and Management Information System Use , 1979 .