Perceived Control in Information Systems

The importance of perceptions of control in explaining human behavior and motivation has been identified, investigated and found to be significant in several disciplines. This study reports on an exploratory investigation assessing perceived control within the information systems domain. A survey instrument was developed based on the research literature to assess perceived control as a multi-dimensional construct. The survey was administered to 241 subjects. The results were analyzed to produce a set of five factors that represent a user’s perceptions of control when working with an interactive information system: 1) timeframe, 2) feedback signal, 3) feedback duration, 4) strategy, and 5) metaphor knowledge.