COURSE PREREQUISITES

Only students officially admitted in the Ph.D. Program in Information Systems are allowed to register for class.

WINTER 2003 CLASS

Charles Chowa chowa@studentmail.umsl.edu 516-4883

Michael Griggs griggs@studentmail.umsl.edu 516-4882

Anand Jeyaraj jeyaraja@msx.umsl.edu 516-4882

Chris Kang sbk8qf@studentmail.umsl.edu 516-6291

Dennis Shi 516-4881

Danai Tsotra dgt066@studentmail.umsl.edu 516-4883

Jian (Jay) Wang swab2@studentmail.umsl.edu 516-4881

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The theoretical foundations of information systems are largely built upon the theories from other disciplines, including the physical sciences, computer science, sociology, psychology, and mathematics. In this course, we survey a variety of theoretical foundations from other disciplines by reading the original works, critical responses to these theories, and representative applications of these theories in the IS domain. Topics include information theory, network and topology theory, relational theory, systems theory, sociological paradigms, theories of mind and computers, innovation diffusion theory, structuration theory, and more.

GRADING:

Assignment:	Percent of Grade	Due Date
Paper	40%	1/21/03: Topic selection
		2/4/03: Initial bibliography
		3/4/03: Categorization/Framework student proposes to use to analyze topic
		4/8/03: Rough draft due start of class
		4/29/03: Final Paper due start of class,
Weekly Quizzes	20%	Start of Class
Weekly Summary/Critique	20%	Start of Class
Weekly Class Participation	20%

PAPER:

Each student will be required to write a review of the empirical research in IS for one of the theories discussed in class. The model to use is:

Fichman, R., "Information Technology Diffusion: A Review of Empirical Research," in International Proceedings on Information Systems, 1992, pp. 195-206.

You will note that this paper is not just a laundry list of summarized articles, but offers a framework for categorizing the research, maps the empirical research to this framework, and offers insightful comments on the lessons learned so far and gaps in knowledge. Students should ideally pick a topic that might serve as a theoretical foundation for their dissertation topic. However, we are looking for a unique paper, not a paper previously written for another course.

Given the scope of the paper, students must select a topic by the second week of class. Topics are summarized below to help you with your selection decision. Both professors will grade each student's paper. However, you should work closely throughout the semester with the professor who is leading the discussion on that topic. We are both happy to discuss your papers many times during the semester.

WEEKLY QUIZZES:

At the start of class each week, we will administer a brief quiz on the assigned readings. The purpose of the quiz is to give you that extra incentive to read all assignments prior to class. The quizzes will assess basic understanding of the material, while the subsequent class discussion will provide more erudite analysis.

WEEKLY PAPER SUMMARY/ CRITIQUES:

One of our goals is to also prepare you for your comprehensive exams. One of the best ways to do this is to summarize each book/article you read and file it into meaningful categories so that you only have to study your summaries rather than revisiting the 1,000 plus articles/books you will read during your doctoral studies. For class, we are only asking that you each prepare one summary each week, then share your summaries with your classmates.

Each student will also be asked to present/lead the class discussion for the article/book. We will show you how to do this during our first meeting.

WEEKLY CLASS PARTICIPATION:

It is vital that students attend all sessions. Please make attendance your number one priority. This class will only be valuable if each and everyone of us makes a commitment to be prepared. That means that each student must have carefully read all the reading assignments prior to class. We will assess the class participation grade based on our impression of your weekly preparation, meaningful insights, plentiful comments, intellectual curiosity, and enthusiasm.

In a rare circumstance that a student has to miss class (such as the birth of a child or severe illness), please contact us immediately so we may organize an audio recording of class. Students will be responsible for making up any missed quizzes with the appropriate instructor.

TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE:

Week 1 -- 1/14/03 Subramanian & Lacity: Introduction

Week 2: -- 1/21/03 Subramanian & Lacity: Paper topic Selection

Subramanian: Information Theory & Computing

Week 3: -- 1/28/03 Subramanian: Quantum Information & Computing

Week 4: -- 2/4/03 Subramanian: Ontology Development

Week 5: -- 2/11/03 Subramanian: Ontologies & Information Systems

Week 6: -- 2/18/03 Subramanian: Artificial Intelligence & The Human Mind

Week 7: -- 2/25/03 Subramanian: Artificial Intelligence & The Human Mind

Week 8: -- 3/4/03 Subramanian: Emergent Theories: The Science of Networks

Week 9:-- 3/11/03 Lacity: Systems Theory: Part I

Week 10:--3/18/03 Lacity: Systems Theory: Part II

3/25/03 SPRING BREAK NO CLASS

Week 11:--4/1/03 Lacity: Sociological Paradigms

Week 12:--4/8/03 Lacity: Theories of Mind and Computers

Week 13:--4/15/03 Lacity: Media Research Theory

Week 14:--4/22/03 Lacity: Innovation Diffusion Theory & Self Efficacy

Week 15:--4/29/03 Lacity: Structuration Theory

Information Theory & Computing, Quantum Information & Computing
Information Theory defines the fundamental concepts that determine the design and efficacy of communications technologies. Although the theory has been adapted to a variety of disciplines and problems such as the behavior of stocks, investments, and even psychology, it is fundamentally a theory of communications. Claude Shannon articulated the theory in his seminal (but unfortunately seldom read) paper in 1954 and reprinted later in book form in 1963. The content of the readings is certainly very conceptual but it provides a different view of what information is. In this world where content is king, it will refresh your notion of syntax and semantics, and the difference between just words and the information that lies within them.

The book about Quantum Computing provides the first comprehensive overview of the field of Quantum Computing and Communications. It looks at the background of an emerging technology which promises to revolutionize information processing and, as a result, many areas of computing and communications. The book is relatively devoid of the typically heavy mathematical content papers in this area and it highlights the main areas of interest, including: - Fundamentals of Quantum Information; - Experimental Realizations; - Applications; - Quantum Cryptography; - Categories and Definitions.

Readings

Mathematical Theory of Communication - Claude E. Shannon, Warren Weaver. (Required)

An Introduction to Information Theory: Symbols, Signals and Noise - John Robinson Pierce. (Supplemental)

Quantum Computing and Communications - Michael Brooks. (Required)

Ontology Development & Information Systems

Ontologies, a term from philosophy referring to the types and classifications of things that exist, recently has become a term of art in the area of business technology design. The notion of ontologies first gained acceptance outside philosophical circles among those working on the Semantic Web as a means to enable agents to reason about Web content and provide sensible responses to unanticipated situations. The readings listed below systematically introduce the idea of ontologies. The book by Gardenfors is a theoretical and conceptual examination of domains and ontologies. In the second book, Fensel provides a thorough survey of a range of ontology-based knowledge representation techniques in terms of their applicability to Web-based information exchange.

Readings

Conceptual Spaces: The Geometry of Thought - Peter Gardenfors. (Required)

Ontologies: A Silver Bullet for Knowledge Management and Electronic Commerce - Dieter Fensel. (Supplemental)

Artificial Intelligence & The Human Mind

In this set of readings we will examine the correspondence between machine learning and its human counterpart. In the first reading, Douglas Hofstadter, best known for his masterpiece Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, tackles the subject of artificial intelligence and machine learning in his thought-provoking work Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies, written in conjunction with the Fluid Analogies Research Group at the University of Michigan. Driven to discover whether computers can be made to "think" like humans, Hofstadter and his colleagues created a variety of computer programs that extrapolate sequences, apply pattern-matching strategies, make analogies, and even act "creative."

In the second reading, Marvin Minsky, one of the undisputed fathers of the discipline of AI, sets out to provide an abstract model of how the human mind really works. His thesis is that our minds consist of a huge aggregation of tiny mini-minds or agents that have evolved to perform highly specific tasks. Most of these agents lack the attributes we think of as intelligence and are severely limited in their ability to intercommunicate. Yet rational thought, feeling, and purposeful action result from the interaction of these basic components. Minsky's theory does not suggest a specific implementation for building intelligent machines. This book is considered by many in the field as one of the most influential for the future of AI

Readings

Fluid Concepts & Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought - Douglas R. Hofstadter. (Required)

The Society of Mind - Marvin L. Minsky (Required)

Emergent Theories: The Science of Networks

Will a network science emerge that helps us understand a variety of complex organizational systems by describing the puzzles of human behavior and connections in mathematical terms? This is the belief of theoretical physicists who ascribe to the "small worlds" theory of networks. They see biology, computer science, physics, and sociology as intimately connected. In the reading listed below, the author Buchanan illustrates social and physical networks with examples ranging from the infamous "six degrees of separation" theories, to the spread of the AIDS virus, to the mapping of the nervous system of the nematode worm. Are the similarities among these networks merely a coincidence or the result of some underlying physics? Only further research will tell, but in the meantime this book is a good primer to basic network concepts and contains references to key journal articles and studies for further reading.

Reading

Nexus: Small Worlds and the Groundbreaking Science of Networks - Mark Buchanan (Required)

Note From Lacity:

I realize that I have a number of expensive books on my reading list, but I just think it is vitally important that doctoral students read the original works. Therefore, I ordered two entire sets of books from Amazon, one for myself and one set for the class. I will keep your set in my office. Each student is welcome to borrow any book for two days. This way I hope the entire class has an opportunity to read the books even if they are out of your price range.

Systems Theory: Part I

In the two sessions on systems theory, we will define systems, and look at properties of systems, including the rational and political nature of information and information systems. I know this section's reading list is a bit ambitious, but we will start with Von Bertalanffy, generally recognized as the father of general systems theory. Von Bertalanffy was a biologist and philosopher, who searched for the universal laws of organization. His legacy is important because many believe social systems are like living organisms in the sense that both display wholeness, interact with their environment, exhibit strategies of self-maintenance, and experience cycles of birth, growth, maturity and death. Two other biologists, Stephen Jay Gould and Elderidge, made significant contributions to their field, which have been subsequently adopted in ours. Specifically, Gould and Elderidge challenge Darwin's notion of evolutional diversity. Darwin saw diversity as an expanding cone, i.e., with diversity increasing over time. Gould and Elderidge noted that biological diversity was actually greater in the past, leading them to conclude that evolution has periods of rapid growth in diversity punctuated by periods of rapid extinction.

Von Bertalanffy, General Systems Theory: Foundations, Development and Applications, New York, George Braziller, 1968. (Available on Amazon for $11.17 or to borrow from Lacity). (CHRIS)

Gould, Stephen, "Punctuated Equilibrium in Fact and Theory," Journal of Social Biological Structure," Vol. 12, 1989, pp. 117-136. (ANAND)

Sabherwal, Rajiv, Hirschheim, Rudy, and Goles, Tim, “The Dynamics of Alignment: A Punctuated Equilibrium Model” , Organization Science, Vol.12, No.2, 2001, pp. 179-197. (JAY)

Gersick, Connie, "Revolutionary Change Theories: A Multilevel Exploration of the Punctuated Equilibrium Paradigm," The Academy of Management Review, Briarcliff Manor; Jan 1991; Vol. 16, Iss. 1; pg. 10-37. (DANAI)

Lichtenstein, Benyamin M., "Evolution or transformation: A critique and alternative to punctuated equilibrium," Academy of Management Journal, Briarcliff Manor; 1995; pg. 291-296. (CHARLES)

Systems Theory: Part II

Part II focuses on social systems. We begin with C. West Churchman's seminal work on The Design of Inquiring Systems, which pushed the envelop of social systems design. Churchman's legacy to our field was celebrated in a 1994 issue of Interfaces, on his 80th birthday. Jaana Porra, a good friend and colleague, became friends with Churchman and subsequently interviewed him for Information Systems Frontiers. Her own original contribution to systems thinking is captured in her research on Colonial Systems, published in Information Systems Research. Another eminent thinker is Peter Checkland, who for thirty years has argued that our engineering approaches to technical problems are insufficient to address complex social organizational problems. He has argued for a soft systems methodology. Another Classic, Gareth Morgan's Images of Organization, uses five powerful metaphors to understand organizations: organizations as machines, organizations as organisms, organizations as brains, organizations as cultures, organizations as politics.

Churchman, C.W., The Design of Inquiring Systems: Basic Concepts of Systems and Organization, New York, Basic Books, Inc. 1971. (Limited Availability, full copy in packet) (MICHAEL)

Churchman, C.W., "Management Science: Science of Managing and Managing of Science," Interfaces, Jul/Aug 1994; Vol. 24,Iss. 4; pp. 99-110. (DENNIS)

Muller-Merbach, Heiner, "A System of Systems Approaches," Interfaces, Linthicum; Jul/Aug 1994; Vol. 24,Iss. 4; pg. 16-25. (JAY)

Porra, J., “A Dialogue with C. West Churchman,” Information Systems Frontiers, 3, 1 2001, 19-27.

Porra, J., "Colonial Systems," Information Systems Research, 10, 1 (March), 1999, pp. 38-69. (ANAND)

Checkland, Peter, Systems Thinking, Systems Practice, Wiley, UK, 1981. (available on Amazon for $60.00 or to borrow from Lacity) (DENAI)

Morgan, Gareth, Images of Organization, Sage Publications, Newbury Park, California, 1986. (Available on Amazon for $40.95 or to order from Lacity) (CHARLES)

Optional: Students interested in Jaana's work may refer to her published dissertation: Porra, J., Colonial Systems, Information Colonies, and Punctuated Prototyping, University of Jyvaskyla Printing House, 1996.

Optional: Swanson, Burt, "Churchman's Theory of Design Integrity," Interfaces, Linthicum; Jul/Aug 1994; Vol. 24,Iss. 4; pg. 54-60.

Optional: Mason, Richard, "Securing: One Man's Quest for the Meaning of Therefore," Interfaces, Linthicum; Jul/Aug 1994; Vol. 24,Iss. 4, pp. 67-72.

Sociological Paradigms

Burrell and Morgan's seminal summary of sociological paradigms has long been a required reading list on Ph.D. seminars in North American and European business schools. The book's impact was to compellingly argue for theoretical and methodological diversity in organizational studies. Critics, however, subsequently contested that research paradigms can be neatly organized into a Cartesian plane, and some have even called their framework "boring and misleading." I look forward to your own reactions to these fascinating arguments.

Burrell, G., and Morgan, G., Sociological Paradigms and Organizational Analysis, Heinemann Educational Books, New Hampshire, 1979 (reprinted 1988; Available on Amazon for $49.95 or to borrow from Lacity). (DANAI)

Hirschheim, R., and Klien, H., "Four Paradigms of Information Systems Development," Communications of the ACM, Vol. 32, 10, pp. 1199-1216. (JAY)

Hirschheim, R, Goles, Tim, "The Paradigm is Dead, the Paradigm is Dead…. Long Live the Paradigm: The Legacy of Burrell and Morgan", OMEGA, Vol. 28, May 2000, pp.249-268. (MICHAEL)

Deetz, Stanley, "Describing differences in approaches to organization science: Rethinking Burrell and Morgan and their legacy," Organization Science, Linthicum; Mar/Apr 1996; Vol. 7, Iss. 2; pg. 191, 17 pgs (DENNIS)

Willmott, Hugh; "Breaking the paradigm mentality, " Organization Studies, Berlin; 1993; Vol. 14, Iss. 5; pg. 681, 39 pgs. (CHRIS)

Theories of Minds and Computers

Is your brain merely the biological equivalent of a computer? Do/Will computers think? This session explores the history of artificial intelligence, beginning with Alan Turing, who provided us with the Turing Test. Turing's test basically said we will achieve AI when an outsider cannot tell the difference between a computer-generated result and a human-generated result. Searle kicked up the ante by looking inside the machine in his Chinese Room metaphor. Godel is the author of one of the most formidable ideas of the twentieth century; he proved that formal systems (like chess, math, or computers) cannot be both complete and consistent. Godel's contribution to this "Can A Machine Think" debate is devastating--formal systems cannot cope with paradoxes, but human intelligence can.

Casti, John, "The Cognitive Engine," in Paradigms Lost, William Morrow & Company, New York, 1989, pp. 261-339. (New version available in Amazon for $11.17 or to borrow from Lacity.) (DENNIS)

Turing, Alan, "Can a Machine Think?" in 1951, (CHRIS)

Searle, John., Mind, Language, and Society : Philosophy in the Real World. (Available on Amazon for $11.20 or to borrow from Lacity). (MICHAEL)

Godel, K., "Formally Undecidable Propositions of Principia Mathematica and Related Systems, Translated by B. Meltzer (available on Amazon for $6.95 or to borrow from Lacity) (ANAND)

Students interested in this topic should read:

Optional: Dreyfus, Hubert, and Dreyfus, Stuart, Mind Over Machine, Free Press, New York, 1986.

Optional: Crevier, Daniel, AI: The Tumultuous History of the Search For Artificial Intelligence, Basic Books, 1993.

Media Richness Theory:

When you want to communicate--do you walk into someone's office, use email, the telephone, voice mail, or memos? Media Richness Theory posits that you select certain media based on the richness required for effective communication. Face-to-face is the richest medium because you can use verbal and non-verbal feedback to determine the effectiveness of your communication. Email is one of the least rich media--it is essentially unilateral and does not always effectively communicate your tone. But do we really make such rational choices when selecting communication media?

Daft, R. L. and Lengel, R. H. "Organizational Information Requirements, Media Richness and Structural Design," Management Science (32:5), 1986, pp. 554-571. (DANAI)

Lee, Allen, "Electronic Mail as a Medium for Rich Communication: An Empirical Investigation Using Hermeneutic Interpretation.", MIS Quarterly, Vol. 18, 2, 1994, pp. 143-157. (MICHAEL)

Ojelanki K. Ngwenyama and Allen S. Lee:"Communication Richness in Electronic Mail: Critical Social Theory and the Contextuality of Meaning," MIS Quarterly, Minneapolis; Jun 1997; Vol. 21, Iss. 2; pg. 145, 23 pgs (CHARLES)

Carlson, and Zmud, Robert, " Channel expansion theory and the experiential nature of media richness perceptions," Academy of Management Journal, Briarcliff Manor; Apr 1999; Vol. 42, Iss. 2; pg. 153, 18 pgs. (ANAND)

Carlson, Patricia, "An investigation of media selection among directors and managers: From "self" to "other" orientation," MIS Quarterly, Minneapolis; Sep 1998; Vol. 22, Iss. 3; pg. 335, 28 pgs. (DENNIS)

Dennis, Alan R and Kinney, Susan, "Testing media richness theory in the new media: The effects of cues, feedback, and task equivocality", Information Systems Research, Linthicum; Sep 1998; Vol. 9, Iss. 3; pg. 256, 19 pgs. (CHRIS)

Innovation Diffusion Theory & Self Efficacy:

What good are information systems if people do not adopt them? Innovation Diffusion Theory posits that the rate of innovation adoption (innovations can of course include information systems) is dependent upon the attributes of the innovation (such as its relative advantage over other options, the ability to try the innovation out, etc), attributes of the social system (such as absence or presence of a change agent or opinion leader), attributes of the communication channel (such as marketing the innovation), degree of self efficacy (extent to which the user believes herself capable of performing), etc. This session explores the original theories associated with adoption behavior and explores empirical IS examples.

Rogers, E.M., Diffusion of Innovations, New York, Free Press, 1995. (Available on Amazon for $32.95 or to borrow from Lacity) (ANAND)

Ajzen, I., and Fishbein, M., Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, 1980. (Available on Amazon for $22.40 or to borrow from Lacity) (JAY)

Fichman, R., "Information Technology Diffusion: A Review of Empirical Research," in International Proceedings on Information Systems, 1992, pp. 195-206.

Wood, Robert, and Bandura, Albert, "Social Cognitive Theory of Organizational Management," Academy of Management Review, Vol. 14, Iss. 3; pg. 361, 24 pgs. (CHARLES)

Davis, Fred, "Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology," MIS Quarterly, September, 1989, pp. 318-339. (MICHAEL)

Adams, Dennis, Nelson, Ryan, and Todd, Peter, "Perceived Usefulness, Ease of Use, and Usage of Information Technology: A Replication," MIS Quarterly, June, 1992, pp. 227-245. (DENNIS)

Taylor, Shirley; Todd, Peter A; "Understanding information technology usage: A test of competing models"; Information Systems Research, Linthicum; Jun 1995; Vol. 6, Iss. 2; pg. 144, 33 pgs. (CHRIS)

Optional: Students interested in this topic should read Dr. Joseph Rottman's dissertation, Social Closeness As a Contributing Factor to the Rate of Diffusion of a Technological Innovation, Washington University, 2002.

Structuration Theory:

Does IS change organizational structure, or does the organizational structure dictate what type of IS is adopted? A stream of IS researchers have turned to Gidden's structuration theory to help answer the question. Borrowed from sociology, structuration theory poses that societal structures, while enduring, are constantly recreated and evolving. In the context of IS, the same computer system will have drastically different effects on an organization. Structuration theory helps us to understand why. I've also included four articles that debate structuration theory in the accounting context (the Boland verses Scapens & Macintosh papers.)

Giddens, The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration (Available on Amazon for $21.95 or to borrow from Lacity). (DENAI)

Jones, Matthew, " Structuration Theory," Rethinking Management Information Systems, (Currie and Galliers, eds., Oxford University Press, 1999, pp. 103-135. (DENNIS)

DeSanctis, Geradine; Poole, Marshall Scott; "Capturing the complexity in advanced technology use: Adaptive structuration theory," Organization Science, Linthicum; May 1994; Vol. 5, Iss. 2; pg. 121, 27 pgs. (ANAND)

Alexander, E.R., "A Structure Theory of InterOrganizational Coordination: Cases in Environmental Management," The International Journal of Organizational Analysis, Vol. 6, 4, October, 1998, pp. 334-354. (MICHAEL)

Structuration Theory as Applied to Accounting:

Scapens, Robert, and Macintosh, Norman, "Structuration Theory in Management Accounting," Accounting, Organizations, and Society, 1990, Vol. 15, 5., pp.455-478. (JAY)

Boland, Richard, "Accounting and the Interpretive Act," Accounting, Organizations, and Society, Oxford, Feb/Apr 1993, Vol. 18, Issue 2,3, pp. 125-147. (CHRIS)

Scapens, Robert, and Macintosh, Norman, "Structure and Agency in Management Accounting Research: A Response to Boland's Interpretitive Act," Accounting, Organizations, and Society, Oxford, Oct/Nov 1996, Vol. 21, Issue 7,8, pp. 675-690.

Boland, Richard, "Why Shared Meanings Have No Place in Structuration Theory," Accounting, Organizations, and Society, Oxford,Oct/Nov 1996; Vol. 21, Iss. 7,8; pg. 691.