1 Brief Review of Research Model / Hypothesis

2 Research is Argument

3 Research One definition of research: “Research is a formal, systematic, and rigorous process of inquiry used to generate and test the concepts and propositions that comprise middle-range theories, which are derived from or linked with a conceptual model.” Reference: Fawcett, J., The relationship of theory and research, 3rd ed., F.A. Davis Company, (p.8)

4 Journal Review Articles pass through a double blind review process to ensure the quality of their underlying research methodology and argument. Australian Accounting Review What’s interesting here? Rigorous argument and presentation are expected throughout. Information Systems Research

5 ICIS 2006 Review Criteria for Research Papers Fit with track Interesting/important problem Clear motivation (why the problem is interesting theoretically or practically) Conceptual development or grounding in prior literature Methodological adequacy (if relevant) Interesting findings Well structured and clearly written paper

6 Conceptual Model …Hypothesis

7 Different Levels of Abstraction Most abstract Conceptual Model Grand Theory Middle-range theory Most concrete Empirical research methods

8 Concept A concept is a word or phrase that summarizes the essential characteristics or properties of a phenomenon. A proposition is a statement about a concept or a relation between concepts. A construct usually means a concept that is complex or inferred. A variable refers to the concrete, measured values.

9 Hypothesis Hypotheses are special types of propositions that represents conjectures about the concepts of middle-range theories stated in empirically testable forms. (Concepts are linked to empirical indicators. But many reports use concepts directly in the hypothesis.)

10 Example 1 Proposition: There is a phenomenon known as X. Hypothesis: The phenomenon known as X is empirically demonstrated by X’ X X’

11 Example 2 Proposition: There is a relation between X and Y. Hypothesis: X’ and Y’ are related. X X’ Y Y’

12 Example 3 Proposition: There is a negative relation between loneliness and cognitive functioning. Hypothesis: The higher the score on the Revised Loneliness Scale, the lower the score on the Mental Status Examination.

13 Example 4 Proposition: There is a strong positive relation between walking exercise and physical functioning, such that moderate walking exercise is associated with much better physical functioning than usual care. Hypothesis: The difference in scores on the 12- minute walk test between the experimental moderate walking exercise program group and the control usual care group signify a large effect size, with higher scores for the experimental group.

14 Example 5 Hypothesis: Groups will make fewer spreadsheet development errors than will individuals working alone. What are the constructs & relations?

15 Example 6 Hypothesis: If individuals sustain a distinction between entities and attributes, they will recall an item that represents an entity first during a recall task. What are the constructs & relations?

16 Examples (bad) Hypothesis: Gender has higher speed. Hypothesis: Good interfaces lead to better interaction. Hypothesis: Old men have higher anxiety about computer applications. Checks 1) How are these measured? 2) How are the measurements to be related? 3) What are the comparison groups?

17 Conceptual Model A conceptual model is a set of relatively abstract and general concepts and the propositions that describe or link those concepts. A conceptual model shows the relevant phenomena, while ignoring less important phenomena.

18 Theory A theory is a set of relatively concrete and specific concepts and the propositions that describe or link these concepts. Grand theory: broader, more abstract Middle-range theory: narrower, more concrete (could be tested) Theories allow us to explain or unite phenomena.

19 Theory –Example 1 Technology acceptance model -constructs: perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, intention to use -Relations among constructs -Measurement items PU PEOU IU

20 Theory –Example 2 Fitts’ Law -Movement time (for a device) is a function of the distance and width of the target. -MT=a + b log 2 (D/W + 1)

21 Theory –Example 3 Hick’s Law -Time taken to choose between a number N of alternative targets. -Time=a + b log 2 (N + 1)

22 Theory –Example 4 Levels of analysis theories A 4-level theory (Foley et al., 1995) Conceptual level (user’s mental model) Semantic level (input/output meanings) Syntactic level (sequence of input actions) Lexical (precise mechanisms for input) See Ch 2 of Shneiderman & Plasiant

23 Theory –Example 5 Stages of action model (Norman, 1988) Cycles of action and evaluation Forming goal, forming intention, specifying action, executing action, perceiving system state, interpreting system state, evaluating outcome. Gulf of execution / evaluation See Ch 2 of Shneiderman & Plasiant

24 Theory –Example 6 GOMS model (Card et al., 1983) Goals (e.g. to delete some words) Operators (mouse, delete key) Methods (the sequence of actions) Selection (rules to choose among alternative methods) See Ch 2 of Shneiderman & Plasiant

25 Types of Theory Descriptive – what is (descriptive) Explanatory – why (correlational) Predictive – does an intervention result in the intended effect (experimental)