Information Systems Journal #ISJ Vol. 22 Issue 1
A hermeneutic interpretation of a controlled laboratory experiment: a case study of decision-making with a group support system
We conduct a case study of a laboratory experiment involving a group support system and explain how it went awry. We take the perspectives of the experiment's human subjects and the researchers themselves as the basis on which to interpret what happened in the experiment. We interpret the researchers as imputing, to the human subjects, the ‘conduit model’ of communication and the ‘calculator model’ of human information processing, which together constitute an instance of Ricoeur's hermeneutic ‘world behind the text’. We interpret the human subjects as importing, into the laboratory, their socially constructed world of personal friends, their histories and even their popular culture – a world that is an instance of Ricoeur's hermeneutic ‘world in front of the text’. We explain the experiment's going awry as following from the researchers' not accounting for, much less being aware of, the disparity between the two worlds. In taking the human subjects and the researchers seriously as human beings, we make recommendations about how such experiments might be better conducted, particularly in information systems research. Lee, A. S., & Dennis, A. R. (2012). A hermeneutic interpretation of a controlled laboratory experiment: a case study of decision-making with a group support system. Information Systems Journal, 22(1), 3–27. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2575.2010.00365.x experimental design experiments group support systems hermeneutics information systems interpretation research methods
Perceived discontinuities and constructed continuities in virtual work Boundaries such as time, distance, organisation and culture have been a useful conceptual tool for researchers to unpack changes in the virtual work environment, moving from a dichotomous perspective that contrasts face-to-face and virtual work to a more nuanced hybrid perspective. However, researchers may tacitly assume that all members of a virtual team and virtual teams collectively will respond to a boundary in a similar way. We posit instead that boundaries are a dynamic phenomenon and may have different consequences under different circumstances. We offer organisational discontinuity theory as a tool for more focused investigation of the virtual work environment. Discontinuities and continuities describe the setting in which individuals in a virtual team operate, both actual work practices and the perceptions of the individuals in the virtual work environment. The terms offer a starting point to identify and understand what may otherwise seem to be paradoxical differences in how virtual team members respond to boundaries. Watson-Manheim, M. B., Chudoba, K. M., & Crowston, K. (2012). Perceived discontinuities and constructed continuities in virtual work. Information Systems Journal, 22(1), 29–52. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2575.2011.00371.x boundaries discontinuity virtual teams virtual work
Artificial immune systems for the detection of credit card fraud: an architecture, prototype and preliminary results Some biological phenomena offer clues to solving real-life, complex problems. Researchers have been studying techniques such as neural networks and genetic algorithms for computational intelligence and their applications to such complex problems. The problem of security management is one of the major concerns in the development of eBusiness services and networks. Recent incidents have shown that the perpetrators of cybercrimes are using increasingly sophisticated methods. Hence, it is necessary to investigate non-traditional mechanisms, such as biological techniques, to manage the security of evolving eBusiness networks and services. Towards this end, this paper investigates the use of an Artificial Immune System (AIS). The AIS emulates the mechanism of human immune systems that save human bodies from complex natural biological attacks. The paper discusses the use of AIS on one aspect of security management, viz. the detection of credit card fraud. The solution is illustrated with a case study on the management of frauds in credit card transactions, although this technique may be used in a range of security management applications in eBusiness. Wong, N., Ray, P., Stephens, G., & Lewis, L. (2012). Artificial immune systems for the detection of credit card fraud: an architecture, prototype and preliminary results. Information Systems Journal, 22(1), 53–76. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2575.2011.00369.x artificial immune systems credit card fraud detection eBusiness security management
Information security policies in the UK healthcare sector: a critical evaluation All organisations must take active steps to maintain the security and integrity of their information resources, and nowhere is this strategy more critical than in hospitals where issues of information accuracy and patient confidentiality are paramount. Of all the tools at the information security manager's disposal, none is more widely valued and used than the information security policy. Much research therefore concentrates on the way in which information security policies contribute to the protection of systems from internal and external threats. Such work is legitimate and important, but it often fails to explore alternative views of security and related policies. Against this backdrop, this paper seeks to provide novel insights into the role and purpose of information security policies by reviewing them through a critical theoretical lens. It presents the results of a critical discourse analysis which looked for evidence of ideology and hegemony within a sample of information security policies from the UK's National Health Service. The findings support the contention that an alternative description of information security policies from a critical perspective provides better insights into existing problems than most mainstream work. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the findings and future research avenues. Stahl, B. C., Doherty, N. F., & Shaw, M. (2012). Information security policies in the UK healthcare sector: a critical evaluation. Information Systems Journal, 22(1), 77–94. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2575.2011.00378.x critical research Habermas health care hegemony ideology information security
