This study explored and described decision factors related to technology adoption. The research used diffusion of innovations and communities of practice (CoP) theoretical frameworks and a case study of Web services technology in the digital library (DL) environment to develop an understanding of the decision-making process. A qualitative case study approach was used to investigate the research problems and data were collected through semi-structured interviews, documentary evidence (e.g., meeting minutes), and a comprehensive member check. The research conducted face-to-face and phone interviews with seven respondents with different job titles (administraive vs. technical) from five different DL programs selected based on distinctive characteristics such as size of the DL program. Findings of the research suggested that the decision-making process is a complex process in which a number of factors are considered when making technology adoption decisions. These factors are categorized as organizational, individual, and technology specific factors. Further, data showed that DL CoPs played an important role in enabling staff members of a DL program to access up-to-date and experienced-based knowledge, provided a distributed problem solving and learning environment, facilitating informal communication and collaborative activities, and informing the decision-making process.

Agricultural technology adoption in developing countries is an interesting topic for two reasons: there is often a gap between the realized and potential hectare yields, and agriculture is an important source of livelihood for a signi_cant part of the third world population. This thesis is attempting to analyze the relationships between time preferences of the Ghanaian cocoa farmers and their willingness to use fertilizers provided on a microcredit basis. It is using mainly basic statistical tests, contingent tables analysis and the logistic regression to find out whether the farmers who are patient and time consistent have different approach to technology adoption than the impatient and time inconsistent farmers. We also test for differences in time preferences between farmers with different gender, age and education, and we find that the younger farmers tend to be more impatient. The main conclusion of this work is that impatient and hyperbolic farmers are more likely to enter a microcredit program. We cannot present any significant inference about the link between the farmers' time preferences and their decision to leave a microcredit program. JEL Classification C12, C14, D9, G2, O13, Q14 Keywords Technology adoption, time preferences, mirco- credit, developing economics, cocoa cultivation...

In 2011, Energy saving (mud) stoves were introduced in villages around the Kachung Forestplantation in rural Uganda as part of an effort to support local sustainable development. Initial fieldwork showedthat the stoves had not been adopted as much as the apparent benefits would suggest. This has been a commonissue with improved cooking stove projects around the world. In order to find out why the stoves are notadopted, 67 women in charge of the cooking were interviewed additionally participant observations of cooking,other daily work routines and building stoves conducted, as well as interviews with other relevant stakeholders.Results show that women struggle to find enough firewood and are bothered by the smoke produced whencooking, which makes them generally very interested in improved mud stoves. Indeed many women hadadopted a local version of the mud stove in order to ease the burden of firewood collection. The reason for notadopting a mud stove in general can be mainly attributed to work burden in constructing it. As for the moresophisticated energy saving mud stoves introduced, additional factors were that the implementation strategyshows weaknesses in how the knowledge on how to build the stove is supposed to spread. Further, the stoveintroduced is rather complex in the way it is supposed to be built, which makes it difficult to spread theknowledge of how to build it. The implementation strategy needs to be revised under consideration of the localcircumstances in order to achieve a higher adoption rate.

企業常藉由採納新科技的作法提升本身的競爭力，科技因此成為創造企業核心競爭力的關鍵。但是要讓科技在組織中發揮其功能，並不是一件容易的事，科技的導入常伴隨著新工作方式的產生，而團隊成員不一定能馬上轉換工作方式，或接受新的工作方式，因此需要經歷過一段調適的過程，使得科技能融入到組織的工作例規當中，成為組織例規的一部份。過去的文獻從例規的觀點談科技採納並不多，本研究從組織例規的觀點著手，探究科技採納的過程中科技與組織的調適行為。 本研究以質性研究的方法進行，長期觀察與分析一家台灣知名的電腦代工廠商，研究其導入產品生命週期管理系統以提升其設計鏈績效的歷程。透過分析優品公司採納產品生命週期管理系統的前後時期，工作例規與審核變化的變化；以及分析內嵌在產品生命週期管理系統中的組織例規，以瞭解組織中的工作例規與審核例規變化的情形。最後，本研究發現有一種例規衝突的現象，我稱之為「例規越界」，這是過去文獻所未曾提及的情況，但是卻對科技採納產生重大的影響。這是科技中的組織例規與採納科技後組織的新例規之間的衝突，我將在研究中呈現不同例規間的衝突對於科技採納的影響。 本研究在學理上的貢獻有三：首先，反思在科技調適的文獻中，是否忽略了科技精神的重要性？調適不能只重視功能面的調適，更需要注重精神面的調適。其次是，透過反思審核例規背後的精神，去凸顯出當使用者在與科技進行調適時，是如何產生學習上的失靈。當使用者能有效的解讀科技的精神時，調適才有可能更有效。最後，回應Feldman的單一例規變化的主張，進行延展性解釋，本研究發現例規是否成為變動的來源取決於例規間互動的關係，其中例規變動的方向，不僅取決於例規間變動的關係，還取決於使用者是否能反思例規的內涵。因此，本研究認為組織例規不只是像Feldman所主張的「例規是變革的來源」，而且還是「例規的反思是變革的路徑」。 / The organization always promotes its competitive ability by adopting new technology. Therefore, technology has been a key element to build core competitive for organization. However, it is a hard work for technology to develop its performance in organization. When organization adopts a new technology, organization will accompany to develop a new work routine. But a lot of organization members could not switch or accept their work routines to new routines. Therefore, organization needs a period of time to adapted technology, then the technology will embed in organizational routine to be a part of organizational routines. In past literatures, there are seldom use “organizational routine” to explore technology adoption. The study will take the “organizational routine” view to understand adoptive process in technology and organizational adaption. The study is an qualitative research that reviews and analysis a famous computer OEM ( Original Equipment Manufacturer) in Taiwan. The study explore the process of a company adopted the PLM（product Lifecycle Management） to improve the performance of design-chain management. In the study , I analysis the organizational routines and the organizational routines embedded in PLM that before and after adopt PLM. And, the study find a routines conflict phenomenon that I call “routine crossover”. It is a important phenomenon in technology adoption that never discuss in prior research. The theoretical contribution as followings: First, the study reflected whether those prior literatures ignore the important of the “Technology Spirit” ? The technology adaption could not only focus on functional level but also spirit level. Second, by to reflect the spirit that embedded in technology, the study illustrate that the “learning disfunction” and argued that the effective technology adaption was come from effective interpret the technology spirit. Third, the study respond Feldman’s argument that “Organizational routines as a source of continuous change”, extend to “The reflect of organizational routines is a path of change.”

<p>The aim of the research was to identify what female and male farmersthink are the best strategies to enhance the role of conservation farming as a buffer against social, economic and environmental hazards, and a means of ensuring livelihood sustainability and food security. The study also aimed at coming up with information useful to policy and other decision makers on how to improve adoption of these technologies. The empirical component of the research included a questionnaire survey of one hundred and fifty two(152) selected households in one identified ward in Insiza District, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews with key informants and in-depth interviews of individual male and female members of a few selected farming households from the sampled population. The desktop portion of the study used secondary data from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government and other stakeholders involved in conservation farming. Collected data was then disaggregated by gender and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Perception statements that emerged as significant in chi-square tests of independence were be subjected to factor analysis and weighted factor scores from factor analysis were then used as independent variables in binary logistic regression analysis. The study concluded that both practising and non practising farmers were of the opinion that conservation farming was good though they indicated that information on conservation farming was not readily available The study found out that most farmers agreed on the possible positive effects of CA in addressing livelihood challenges effected by hazards such as HIV and AIDS and environmental hazards such as declining soil fertility but it had is labour intensive therefore is not suitable for people affected and infected by HIV and AIDS...</p>

Incentive for this research stems from the fact that Business-to-Consumer electronic commerce sector is going to oligopoly and the new actors have relatively less chance to accomplish in the current market if they follow the same ways that the old companies have already paved. Considering this challenge, the aim is to understand the adoption process of customers by analyzing the contemporary perceptions of individuals against e-shopping. Initially, business-to-consumer electronic commerce adoption model is developed. Proposed model and hypotheses are tested with Partial Least Squares as a Structural Equation Modeling technique using data collected from 1115 respondents via an online survey. Then, semi-structured open-ended interviews are conducted in order to grasp the perceptions of customers. The results are interpreted following a systematic mixed methodology involving Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to elucidate the antecedents and causal relations of constructs in an inductive and exploratory way to illuminate a socio-technical phenomenon as complementary to deductive and confirmatory quantitative perspective. Findings and implications are asserted to be utilized as a roadmap especially for start-up companies that challenge to survive and succeed in current market conditions. Trust is found to be the predominant factor in e-shopping adoption. It is proved that, after almost two decades shopping via Internet had been invented, contemporarily, definitions for the dimensions of Enjoyment, Perceived Usefulness, Store Familiarity, Perceived Ease of Use and Subjective Norm have evolved into new semantics and customers perceive each factor according to their actual cognition contexts.

Attitudes of users towards new Information Technology products have been the matters of consumer research studies. Factors that affect user behavior in terms of IT acceptance have been modeled by different researchers with an attempt to predict the actual usage. This study aims to analyze these factors and their significance in military context. One of the robust models, namely Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) is used as the study model with required modifications in order to augment its compatibility. Therefore an exploratory survey study is conducted within the target user group of two rugged mobile computers with the participation of 37 Turkish sergeants. The study used both qualitative and quantitative instruments. The results showed that, for military products, users acceptance criteria mainly concentrate on the performance of the new product and its relative ease of use.

Through the rapid expansion of information technologies, Learning Management Systems have become one of the most important innovations for delivery of education. Successful implementation and management of these systems are primarily based on the instructors&#039 / adoption. However, too few researches have been conducted to evaluate instructors&rsquo / adoption towards e-learning system as taking higher education as base. This study aims to understand behavioral intentions of higher education instructors towards Learning Management Systems and further to identify the influencing factors. A research model has been proposed based on the belief variables of the Technology Acceptance Model. Additionally, Application Characteristics, Individual, Social and Technological dimensions were considered to identify the effects of key variables on behavioral intention of users. A survey instrument has been developed and conducted with 224 academicians after a pilot study through its reliability and validity has been assured. Although the items of the survey instrument were based on the literature, an explanatory factor analysis was performed to strictly determine which items belong to which factors. Then, in order to assess the measurement model Convergent validity and Discriminant validity were conducted via confirmatory factor analyses. After the required prior analyses, Component based Structural Equation Modeling (Partial Least Square - PLS) was used to validate the predictive power of the proposed research model. Consequently, relationships between the influencing factors were detected and the results showed that the factors related with Belief dimension directly influenced behavioral intention of instructors. Also, the factors under the Individual, Social and Technological dimensions indirectly affected behavioral intention of users towards learning management system use. Additionally, structured and informal interviews were performed with ten instructors and the findings of the research model were explained with the opinions of system users. The indications of this research will be valuable for implementation, management and continuous improvement of learning management systems.

Chapter 2 considers technology adoption under both technological and subsidy uncertainties. Uncertainty in subsidies for green technologies is considered as an example. Technological progress is exogenous and modeled as a jump process with a drift. The analytical solution is presented for cases when there is no subsidy uncertainty and when the subsidy changes once. The case when the subsidy follows a time invariant Markov process is analyzed numerically. The results show that improving the innovation process raises the investment thresholds. When technological jumps are small or rare, this improvement reduces the expected time before technology adoption. However, when technological jumps are large or abundant, this improvement may raise this expected time. Chapter 3 studies technology adoption in a duopoly where the unbiased technological change improves production efficiency. Technological progress is exogenous and modeled as a jump process with a drift. There is always a Markov perfect equilibrium in which the firm with more efficient technology never preempts its rival. Also, a class of equilibria may exist that lead to a smaller industry surplus. In these equilibria either of the firms may preempt its rival in a set of technology efficiency values. The first investment does not necessarily happen at the boundary of this set due to the discrete nature of the technology progress. The set shrinks and eventually disappears when the difference between firms’ efficiencies increases. Chapter 4 studies the behavior of two firms after a new investment opportunity arises. Firms either invest immediately or wait until market uncertainty is resolved. Two types of separating equilibrium are possible when sunk costs are private information. In the first type the firm with lower cost invests first. In the second type the firm with higher cost invests first leading to a smaller industry surplus. The results indicate that the second type is possible only for strictly negatively correlated sunk costs. Numerical analysis illustrates that when first mover advantage is large, the firm that delays the investment should be almost certain about its rival’s sunk cost. When market risk increases, the equilibria can exist when the firm is less certain. / text

<p>The aim of the research was to identify what female and male farmersthink are the best strategies to enhance the role of conservation farming as a buffer against social, economic and environmental hazards, and a means of ensuring livelihood sustainability and food security. The study also aimed at coming up with information useful to policy and other decision makers on how to improve adoption of these technologies. The empirical component of the research included a questionnaire survey of one hundred and fifty two(152) selected households in one identified ward in Insiza District, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews with key informants and in-depth interviews of individual male and female members of a few selected farming households from the sampled population. The desktop portion of the study used secondary data from non-governmental organizations (NGOs), government and other stakeholders involved in conservation farming. Collected data was then disaggregated by gender and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Perception statements that emerged as significant in chi-square tests of independence were be subjected to factor analysis and weighted factor scores from factor analysis were then used as independent variables in binary logistic regression analysis. The study concluded that both practising and non practising farmers were of the opinion that conservation farming was good though they indicated that information on conservation farming was not readily available The study found out that most farmers agreed on the possible positive effects of CA in addressing livelihood challenges effected by hazards such as HIV and AIDS and environmental hazards such as declining soil fertility but it had is labour intensive therefore is not suitable for people affected and infected by HIV and AIDS...</p>