Date of Award

5-21-2010

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Middle-Secondary Education and Instructional Technology

First Advisor

Dr. Mary B. Shoffner - Committee Chair

Second Advisor

Dr. Charles Xiaoxue Wang - Committee Member

Third Advisor

Dr. Laurie B. Dias - Committee Member

Fourth Advisor

Dr. Barbara A. Reilly - Committee Member

Abstract

The process of information technology adoption and use is critical to deriving benefits of information technology. Thus, one of the most challenging issues in information systems research is to understand how people have experienced the adoption process that may lead to insights to why they accept or reject the information technology (Davis, Bagozzi, & Warshaw, 1989). There are many factors affecting the adoption process of information technology innovations within an organization. To ensure successful adoption of information technology innovations, organizations develop a planned approach to change and employ change management strategies such as communication, training, and functional users support groups to serve as leverage for the adoption. The purpose of this study informed by phenomenological perspectives was to better understand the lived experiences of university staff in the Student Information System (SIS) adoption process. By following Moustakas’ (1994) four primary steps in phenomenological research and his systematic approach, the inductive data analysis process assists in revealing the essence of Big University (Big U) (pseudonym) staff’s lived experiences of the change management strategies put in place for the SIS adopting process via long, in-depth interview sessions. The 24 participants were grouped by criteria profiles with the textural descriptions clustered by the ten emergent themes. Structural descriptions for each participant were developed based on the textural descriptions. The validated textural and structural descriptions were then used to develop the composite textural-structural descriptions. The composite textural-structural description for each criteria profile integrated the experiences of all the individual participants within the criteria profile. The validated composite textural-structural descriptions were then used to develop the synthesis textural-structural descriptions to reveal the universal experiences of all the participants. Thus, this study provided a detailed account of the Big U staff’s experiences which revealed how the change management strategies informed their decision in adopting and using the SIS. The universal experiences indicated that the success of the Big U SIS adoption and use after the initial SIS implementation was greatly enhanced by these planned change efforts. Thus, Big U upper administration declared the success of the SIS implementation when the project was completed on time and under budget. However, while the universal experiences reflected the success of the initial SIS adoption and use due to the planned changed efforts, a very different picture emerged for the SIS post-implementation for unit functions on-going support.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.57709/1346617

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