Earticle

Open Source Software Development (OSSD) differentiates itself from traditional closed software development in that it reveals its source codes online and allows anyone to participate in projects. Even though its success was in doubt, many of the open collaborative working models produced successful results. Academia started to get interested in how developers are willing to participate even when there are no extrinsic rewards for their efforts. Many studies tried to explain developers' motivations, and the pursuit of ideology, reputation, and altruism are found to be the answers. Those studies, however, focused mostly on how the first contribution is made out of a certain motivation. Nowadays, OSSD reaches at its maturity and 70% of professional developers have used or utilized open source software or code in their works. As the proportion of people experiencing OSS, the accounts from previous studies are expected to be weakened. Also, extant literature fails to explain how the motivation of participating in OSS evolves over time and experiences. Given that changing over time or over experiences is the natural in the perception of motivation, studies in an attempt to understand how the motivation changes or evolves are in need. In this study, we aimed to explain how the perception about OSS from past usage or related experiences leads to the intention to sustain OSS participations. By doing so, we try to bridge the gap between previous studies and the actual phenomenon. We argued that perceived instrumentality about OSS learned from past experiences will first affect the formation of organizational identity towards general OSS community. And once the organizational identity is formed, it will affect the one’s following behaviors related to OSS development, most likely to sustain the favoring stance toward OSS community. Our research distinguishes itself from previous one in that it divides the paths from organizational identity formed to the intention to sustain the voluntary helping behaviors, by altruistic and conforming intentions. Drawing on this structural model, we could explain how organizational identity engages in forming the sustaining intention from past experiences, and that the intention to help at individual level and organizational level works at different level in OSS community. We grounded our arguments on Social identity theory and Organizational Citizenship theory. We examined our assumption by constructing a structural equation model (SEM) and had 88 developers to answer our online surveys. The result is analyzed by PLS (partial least square) method. Consequently, all paths but one in our model are supported, the one which assumed the association between perceived instrumentality and altruistic intention. Our results provide directions in designing online collaborative platforms where open access collaboration is meant to occur. Theoretically, our study suggests that organizational citizenship behavior can occur from organizational identity, even in bottom-up organizational settings. More specifically, we also argue to consider both organizational level and individual level of motivation in inducing sustained participations within the platforms. Our result can be interpreted to indicate the importance of forming organizational identity in sustaining the participatory behaviors. It is because there was no direct association between perceived instrumentality from past experiences and altruistic behavior, but the perception of organizational identity bridges the two constructs. This means that people with no organizational identity can sustain their participations through conforming intention from only the perception of instrumentality, but it needs little more than that for the people to feel the intention to directly help someone in the community–first to form the self-identity as a member of the given community.

This study analyzes the effect of Computer Aided Innovation (CAI) to improve R&D Capabilities empirically. Survey was distributed by e-mail and Google Docs, targeting CTO of 235 SMEs. 142 surveys were returned back (rate of return 60.4%) from companies. Survey results from 119 companies (83.8%) which are effective samples except no-response, insincere response, estimated value, etc. were used for statistics analysis. Companies with less than 50billion KRW sales of entire researched companies occupy 76.5% in terms of sample traits. Companies with less than 300 employees occupy 83.2%. In terms of the type of company business Partners (called 'partners with big companies' hereunder) who work with big companies for business occupy 68.1%. SMEs based on their own business (called 'independent small companies') appear to occupy 31.9%. The present status of holding IT system according to traits of company business was classified into partners with big companies versus independent SMEs. The present status of ERP is 18.5% to 34.5%. QMS is 11.8% to 9.2%. And PLM (Product Life-cycle Management) is 6.7% to 2.5%. The holding of 3D CAD is 47.1% to 21%. IT system-holding and its application of independent SMEs seemed very vulnerable, compared with partner companies of big companies. This study is comprised of IT infra and IT Utilization as CAI capacity factors which are independent variables. factors of R&D capabilities which are independent variables are organization capability, process capability, HR capability, technology-accumulating capability, and internal/external collaboration capability. The highest average value of variables was 4.24 in organization capability 2. The lowest average value was 3.01 in IT infra which makes users access to data and information in other areas and use them with ease when required during new product development. It seems that the inferior environment of IT infra of general SMEs is reflected in CAI itself. In order to review the validity used to measure variables, Factors have been analyzed. 7 factors which have over 1.0 pure value of their dependent and independent variables were extracted. These factors appear to explain 71.167% in total of total variances. From the result of factor analysis about measurable variables in this study, reliability of each item was checked by Cronbach's Alpha coefficient. All measurable factors at least over 0.611 seemed to acquire reliability. Next, correlation has been done to explain certain phenomenon by correlation analysis between variables. As R&D capabilities factors which are arranged as dependent variables, organization capability, process capability, HR capability, technology-accumulating capability, and internal/external collaboration capability turned out that they acquire significant correlation at 99% reliability level in all variables of IT infra and IT Utilization which are independent variables. In addition, correlation coefficient between each factor is less than 0.8, which proves that the validity of this study judgement has been acquired. The pair with the highest coefficient had 0.628 for IT utilization and technology-accumulating capability. Regression model which can estimate independent variables was used in this study under the hypothesis that there is linear relation between independent variables and dependent variables so as to identify CAI capability's impact factors on R&D. The total explanations of IT infra among CAI capability for independent variables such as organization capability, process capability, human resources capability, technology-accumulating capability, and collaboration capability are 10.3%, 7%, 11.9%, 30.9%, and 10.5% respectively. IT Utilization exposes comprehensively low explanatory capability with 12.4%, 5.9%, 11.1%, 38.9%, and 13.4% for organization capability, process capability, human resources capability, technology-accumulating capability, and collaboration capability respectively. However, both factors of independent variables expose very high explanatory capability relatively for technology-accumulating capability among independent variable. Regression formula which is comprised of independent variables and dependent variables are all significant (P < 0.005). The suitability of regression model seems high. When the results of test for dependent variables and independent variables are estimated, the hypothesis of 10 different factors appeared all significant in regression analysis model coefficient (P < 0.01) which is estimated to affect in the hypothesis. As a result of liner regression analysis between two independent variables drawn by influence factor analysis for R&D capability and R&D capability. IT infra and IT Utilization which are CAI capability factors has positive correlation to organization capability, process capability, human resources capability, technology-accumulating capability, and collaboration capability with inside and outside which are dependent variables,, R&D capability factors. It was identified as a significant factor which affects R&D capability. However, considering adjustable variables, a big gap is found, compared to entire company. First of all, in case of partner companies with big companies, in IT infra as CAI capability, organization capability, process capability, human resources capability, and technology capability out of R&D capacities seems to have positive correlation. However, collaboration capability appeared insignificance. IT utilization which is a CAI capability factor seemed to have positive relation to organization capability, process capability, human resources capability, and internal/external collaboration capability just as those of entire companies. Next, by analyzing independent types of SMEs as an adjustable variable, very different results were found from those of entire companies or partner companies with big companies. First of all, all factors in IT infra except technology-accumulating capability were rejected. IT utilization was rejected except technology-accumulating capability and collaboration capability. Comprehending the above adjustable variables, the following results were drawn in this study. First, in case of big companies or partner companies with big companies, IT infra and IT utilization affect improving R&D Capabilities positively. It was because most of big companies encourage innovation by using IT utilization and IT infra building over certain level to their partner companies. Second, in all companies, IT infra and IT utilization as CAI capability affect improving technology-accumulating capability positively at least as R&D capability factor. The most of factor explanation is low at around 10%. However, technology-accumulating capability is rather high around 25.6% to 38.4%. It was found that CAI capability contributes to technology-accumulating capability highly. Companies shouldn't consider IT infra and IT utilization as a simple product developing tool in R&D section. However, they have to consider to use them as a management innovating strategy tool which proceeds entire-company management innovation centered in new product development. Not only the improvement of technology-accumulating capability in department of R&D . Centered in new product development, it has to be used as original management innovative strategy which proceeds entire company management innovation. It suggests that it can be a method to improve technology-accumulating capability in R&D section and Dynamic capability to acquire sustainable competitive advantage.

The principal objective of the work is to confirm the effects of perceived interactivity, trust, and emotion on intentions to use IPTV service. The empirical investigation into IPTV service users suggests that (i) the perception of interactivity should be directly related with trust, (ii) Users’ trust should bolster users’ emotion in a positive or negative aspect, and (iii) such emotion is verified to affect the intention to use IPTV continuously. More specifically, we demonstrate that positive and negative emotions influence user intentions positively and negatively. Additionally, we find that the trust mediates perceived interactivity and emotions, and both trust and emotion mediate the relationship between perceived interactivity and intentions to use IPTV. The work indicates that trust and emotion of users should be considered from IS perspective in an attempt to build the intention to use IPTV. IPTV firms should consider in their IPTV design and offering strategy how to enhance positive emotions for user retention and eventually bolster intentions to use IPTV continuously.

Mobile technology is accelerating innovative changes across all fields of our society as well as business environments. Especially, demands on mobile government (M-government) services have been increased gradually since e-government has improved national administration services dramatically. However, high-quality services which are acceptable to may users are not actually supplied because technical issues such as security on mobile e-government services have not solved and governance policy was not established yet. Previous studies show that most researches are devoted to technical ones or limited to theoretical exploratory study. As a result, developing useful guidelines which are practically and theoretically proved is one of the very important research issues. This study reviews the previous research works such as concept of mobile, e-government, M-government, technical trends of mobile, market situations, present status, and various case studies. And then we develop a research model with five factors, twenty four variables and seventy six measurement for measuring the influencing factors to adoption of M-government services. The model is composed of total 16 hypotheses, 22 variables, and 76 measurements. The model is analyzed by using statistical package SPSS (18.0) and AMOS (18.0) together with structural equation method based on 294 samples. The results show that the model is valid and there are statistically significant influence between ease of use and usefulness, ease of use and user’s satisfactions, usefulness and intent of re-use, and user’s satisfactions and intent of re-use, excepting usefulness and user’s satisfaction, ease of use and intent of re-use did not affect significant influences. Especially, service quality, system quality, and relationship quality are identified as influencing factors to adaption of M-government service. The results are expected to provide a theoretical research framework which generate new research issues in M-government service area. It also can provide an useful guidelines to practical experts in successfully implementing M-government services. Further research directions are as follows. User’s intents have to be studied in details by classifying users by individual, enterprise, and government as well as developing a new hypothetical model. Since M-government service is at the initial stage, longitudinal studies have to be conducted to trace the peoples’ need in order to develop new high-quality mobile services.

This study draws important factors in electronic Word-of-Mouth (eWOM) and examines how these influence the building of customer loyalty. eWOM is viewed as social communication between customers and sellers, and thus the communicative action theory is applied. With the theory, we identify reviewer and seller as influential players on customers, and derive important factors such as correctness and veracity of reviews from the reviewers’ action, and information compactness and adequacy from the seller’s action. We propose these constructs as antecedents of customer loyalty and further hypothesize their curvilinear impacts as follows: the marginal impacts of veracity and correctness will decrease as veracity and correctness increase, and the marginal impacts of compactness and adequacy will increase as compactness and adequacy increase. The result indicates that only the seller’s action has a curvilinear impact, whereas the reviewer has proportional positive impact on customer loyalty. This study indentifies important factors in eWOM from a critical social theory perspective and validates them using the positivistic approach. For practitioners, it discusses the important factors in eWOM with the identification of the individuals who are responsible for these factors.

New internet technologies have created a revolutionary new platform which allows consumers to make decision about product price and quality quickly and provides information about themselves through the transcript of online reviews. By expressing their feelings toward products or services on virtual opinion platforms, users extend their influence into cyberspace as electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM). Existing research indicates that an impact of eWOM on the consumer decision process is influential. For both academic researchers and practitioners, investigating this phenomenon of information sharing in online website is essential given the increasing number of consumers using them as sources of purchase decisions. It is worthwhile to examine the extent to which opinion seekers are willing to accept and adopt online reviews and which factors encourage adoption. Discerning the most motivating aspects of information adoption in particular, could help electronic marketers better promote their brand and presence on the internet. The objectives of this study are to investigate how online WOM influences a persons’ purchase decision by discovering which factors encourage information adoption. Especially focused on the self-efficacy, this research investigates how self-efficacy affects on information usefulness and adoption of online information. Although people are exposed to same review or comment about product or service, some accept the reviews while others do not. We notice that accepting online reviews mainly depends on the person’s preference or personal characteristics. This study empirically examines this issue by using cognitive dissonance theory. Specifically, in the movie industry, we address few questions–is always positive WOM generating positive effect? What if the movie isn’t the person’s favorite genre? What if the person who is very self-assertive so doesn’t take other’s opinion easily? In these cases of cognitive dissonance, is always WOM generating same result? While many studies have focused on one direct of WOM which indicates positive (or negative) informative reviews or comments generate positive (or negative) results and more (or less) profits, this study investigates not only directional properties of WOM but also how people change their opinion towards product or service positive to negative, negative to positive through the online WOM. An experiment was conducted quantitatively by using a sample of 168 users who have experience within the online movie review site, ‘Naver Movie’. Users were required to complete a survey regarding reviews and comments taken from the real movie page. The data reflected user’s perceptions of online WOM information that determined users’ adoption level. Analysis results provide empirical support for the proposed theoretical perspective. When user can’t agree with the opinion of online WOM information, in other words, when cognitive dissonance between online WOM information and users’ preference occurs, perceived self-efficacy significantly decreases customers’ perception of usefulness. And this perception of usefulness plays an important role in determining users’ intention to adopt online WOM information. Most of researches have been concentrated on characteristics of online WOM itself such as quality or vividness of information, credibility of source and direction of online WOM, etc. for describing effect of online WOM, but our results suggest that users’ personal character (e.g., self-efficacy) plays decisive role for acceptance of online WOM information. Higher self-efficacy means lower possibility to accept the information that represents counter opinion because of cognitive dissonance, whereas the people that have lower self-efficacy are willing to accept the online WOM information as true and refer to purchase decision. This study suggests a model for understanding role of direction of online WOM information. Also, our result implicates the importance of online review supervision and personalized information service by confirming switching opinion negative to positive is more difficult than positive to negative through the online WOM information. This implication would help marketers to manage online reviews of their products or services.