Thesis--PlanB (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Stout, 2003. / Field problem. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, August, 2008. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Drexel University, 2005. / Includes abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 97-104).

The widespread distribution of personal computers (PCs) throughout organizations has made a substantial impact on information systems. Additionally, the tremendous growth of the Internet has changed the way business is carried out. As the user population evolves into a much more technical and demanding group, their needs are also changing. With this change, Management Information Systems (MIS) departments must develop new ways of providing service and support to the user community. This study investigates the relationship between information systems support structures, support services, service quality and the characteristics of a diverse user population. This includes investigating technical support issues influencing user satisfaction. This study attempts to improve the understanding of the support function within MIS. The results of this study clarify the support needs of the users and identify user satisfaction factors, as well as factors relative to the quality of the support received. Six streams of prior research were reviewed when developing the research framework. These include: user support, end users and end-user computing, identifying and classifying user types, information centers, user satisfaction, service quality and other sources of computer support. A survey instrument was designed using the (UIS) user satisfaction instrument developed by Doll and Torkzadeh (1988) and the SERVQUAL instrument as modified by Kettinger and Lee (1994). The survey was distributed to 720 individuals. A total of 155 usable responses were analyzed providing mixed results. Of the ten hypotheses, only four were rejected. The finding of this study differ from those in earlier studies. The variables that were found to be significant to the users for service quality are the method of support that is provided to the user, i.e., help desk or local MIS support and the support technician's experience level. For user satisfaction the location of the service personnel made a difference to the end user. As with service quality, the support technician's experience level added to the users' satisfaction with MIS support. The results of this study are pertinent to managers of MIS departments as it clarifies the support needs of the users and identifies issues of user satisfaction and service quality.

Thesis (M.P.A.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 2001. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2921. Typescript. Abstract precedes thesis as preliminary leaves [1-2]. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-97).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004. Directed by John A. Copeland. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 79-86).

Simulation analysis makes use of statistical distributions to specify the parameters of input data. It is well known that fitting a distribution to empirical data is more of an art than a science (Banks J., 1998, p. 74) because of the difficulty of constructing a 'good' histogram. The most difficult step is choosing an appropriate interval width. Too small a width will produce a ragged histogram, whereas too large a width will produce one that is overaggregated and block-like. De Beer and Swanepoel (1999) have developed 'Simple and effective number-of-bins circumference selectors' for creating histograms for the purpose of fitting distributions. When using simulation software such as Arena, one can generally fit distributions to input data using a built-in function in the software. If input distributions could be compared regarding their effect on the outcomes of a simulation model, one could assess whether input distributions generated by Arena could be accepted unconditionally or whether one should pay special attention to the input distributions used in the simulation model. In this study a simulation model of a computer helpdesk system is constructed to test the effect of input distributions. Distributions fitted with the 'circumference technique' are compared with those from the simulation package, Arena, and those calculated by the statistical package 'Statistica', and then compared with empirical distributions. In the helpdesk system, calls from employees experiencing problems with any computer hardware or software are logged, redirected when necessary, 'attended to, resolved and then closed. Queue statistics of the simulation model using input distributions suggested by Arena as opposed to input distributions deduced from the other methods are compared and a conclusion is reached as to how important or unimportant it is for this specific model to select appropriate input distributions. / Business Management / M. Com. (Quantitative Managemment)

Simulation analysis makes use of statistical distributions to specify the parameters of input data. It is well known that fitting a distribution to empirical data is more of an art than a science (Banks J., 1998, p. 74) because of the difficulty of constructing a 'good' histogram. The most difficult step is choosing an appropriate interval width. Too small a width will produce a ragged histogram, whereas too large a width will produce one that is overaggregated and block-like. De Beer and Swanepoel (1999) have developed 'Simple and effective number-of-bins circumference selectors' for creating histograms for the purpose of fitting distributions. When using simulation software such as Arena, one can generally fit distributions to input data using a built-in function in the software. If input distributions could be compared regarding their effect on the outcomes of a simulation model, one could assess whether input distributions generated by Arena could be accepted unconditionally or whether one should pay special attention to the input distributions used in the simulation model. In this study a simulation model of a computer helpdesk system is constructed to test the effect of input distributions. Distributions fitted with the 'circumference technique' are compared with those from the simulation package, Arena, and those calculated by the statistical package 'Statistica', and then compared with empirical distributions. In the helpdesk system, calls from employees experiencing problems with any computer hardware or software are logged, redirected when necessary, 'attended to, resolved and then closed. Queue statistics of the simulation model using input distributions suggested by Arena as opposed to input distributions deduced from the other methods are compared and a conclusion is reached as to how important or unimportant it is for this specific model to select appropriate input distributions. / Business Management / M. Com. (Quantitative Managemment)

The purpose of this research was to measure users' satisfaction with computer support in the higher education environment. The data for this study were gathered over a 5-week period using an online survey. Subjects (N=180) were members of a college at a major Texas university, which included both faculty and staff. SERVQUAL was the instrument used in this study. Two-ways statistical ANOVA analyses were conducted and revealed three statistically significant differences for Gender, Classification, and Comfort Level.

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