The goal of this thesis was to investigate the factors that influence the adoption of big data analytics by public sector employees based on the adapted Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model. A mixed method of survey and interviews were used to collect data from employees of a Canadian provincial government ministry. The results show that performance expectancy and facilitating conditions have significant positive effects on the adoption intention of big data analytics, while effort expectancy has a significant negative effect on the adoption intention of big data analytics. The result shows that social influence does not have a significant effect on adoption intention. In terms of moderating variables, the results show that gender moderates the effects of effort expectancy, social influence and facilitating condition; data experience moderates the effects of performance expectancy, effort expectancy and facilitating condition; and leadership moderates the effect of social influence. The moderation effects of age on performance expectancy, effort expectancy is significant for only employees in the 40 to 49 age group while the moderation effects of age on social influence is significant for employees that are 40 years and more. Based on the results, implications for public sector organizations planning to implement big data analytics were discussed and suggestions for further research were made. This research contributes to existing studies on the user adoption of big data analytics.

O trabalho visa desenvolver uma metodologia para avaliar o impacto do emprego das tecnologias de percepção de uso no ambiente residencial quanto às reduções da demanda por energia elétrica e emissões de CO2. Tais tecnologias são: eliminador de stand-by, gerenciador de energia em computadores e sensor de presença. Inicialmente são selecionadas cargas residenciais e coletados seus dados para compor um banco de dados que será utilizado nas análises. Cada carga e conjunto destas recebe a tecnologia adequada, sendo então calculado o consumo evitado e o investimento relacionado. Foram criados perfis de funcionamento das cargas (6, 8 e 10h) para reproduzir diferentes comportamentos dos usuários e cenários de utilização das cargas (A, B e C) para a análise de sensibilidade. Foram feitos estudos de caso com diferentes modelos residenciais, sendo calculados: consumo e demanda de energia evitados e redução de emissões (considerando um conjunto de residências similares). Também foi realizada a análise de viabilidade econômica da implantação, considerando o Custo Marginal de Expansão do setor elétrico (visão do investidor em infraestrutura) e as tarifas de energia elétrica (visão do consumidor). Os resultados apontam para uma contribuição relevante, em termos de eficiência energética, do emprego de tais tecnologias, representando 35 a 85 MW evitados e redução de emissões de 59 a 145 mil tCO2/ano, dependendo do tipo de modelo residencial adotado, considerando a cidade de São Paulo. A análise de viabilidade econômica por payback simples apontou os seguintes retornos de investimento: 7,2 a 15,5 anos e 2,3 a 7,4 anos para o investidor em infraestrutura e consumidor, respectivamente, dependendo do modelo residencial. Já a análise por Custo da Energia Economizada (CEE) apontou a viabilidade para o consumidor em todos os modelos residenciais, exceto o de tarifa social. Desta forma, o emprego de tais tecnologias pode contribuir de forma importante com a postergação da expansão da matriz energética, resultando em redução de investimentos em expansão e das emissões de CO2 relacionados à geração de energia elétrica, além de poder representar economia na conta de energia dos moradores. / This study aims to develop a methodology to evaluate the utilization impact of the use perception technologies in residential environment in reducing the demand for electricity and CO2 emissions. These technologies are: standby killer, power manager for computers and presence sensor. Initially, residential loads are selected and their data is collected to compose a database that will be used in the analyzes. Each load and load group receives the appropriate technology and then are calculated the avoided consumption and the acquisition investment of the technology. Loads operational profiles (6, 8 and 10h) were created to represent user behaviors and loads usage scenarios (A, B and C) were created to conduct a sensitivity analysis. Case studies were carried out with different residential models, where were calculated: avoided electricity consumption and electric energy demand and CO2 emission reduction (considering a set of similar residences). Also, it was conducted the analysis of economic implantation viability, considering the Expansion Marginal Cost of the electric sector (infrastructure investor view) and the electric energy rates (customer view). The results point out to a relevant contribution, in terms of energy efficiency, of the utilization of such technologies, representing 35 to 85 MW of avoided demand and emission reductions of 59 to 145 thousand tCO2, per year, depending on the residential model type adopted, considering Sao Paulo city region. The analysis of economic implantation viability by payback point out the following investments returns: from 7.2 to 15.5 years and from 2.3 to 7.4 years to infrastructure investor and customer, respectively, depending on the residence model. The analysis by Cost of Saved Energy point out the implementation viability for the costumer in all residential models, except the social tariff. Thus, the use of such technologies can significantly contribute to the postponement of the energetic matrix expansion, resulting in reduction of expansion investments and of CO2 related to electric energy generation, besides can represent savings in the residents energy bill.

Information and Communication Technology is used in the education field in Sweden toimprove learning quality. The aim of this research is to investigate the use of LearningManagement Systems in primary schools, in the specific context of the role of LearningManagement System (LMS) in learning and teaching processes from teachers‟perspectives. Furthermore, This Thesis aims to explore teachers‟ perceptions of how touse this learning management system which is used in primary Swedish schools.Six teachers from two different primary schools in small municipality in the south ofSweden participated in semi-structured interviews. The theoretical model of UnifiedTheory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) inspired this qualitativeresearch along with the other related past studies. This quantitative model was only usedto sensitize the research process, for collecting and analysing qualitative data in thisstudy.The different elements of the theory such as performance expectancy, effort expectancy,social influence and facilitating conditions along with studies helps in conducting studybasedon qualitative approach for analysing the interviews. The research results indicatethat teachers were content with the usage of this learning management system, but thereis a lack of knowledge regarding this system. The system is helpful in performanceevaluation, planning, communication and overall working for routine tasks. Theresponses of interviews showed that teachers are not trained for using the features ofLearning management system in the way that it is designed for. The findings showed thatteachers require the support from professionals to integrate the system into their routineplanning. Furthermore, they also emphasise on the need to make the system user-friendlywith easy navigation. The findings of this study were compared to previous studies, anda further comparison was carried out regarding how it relates to the determinants andmoderating factors such as peer influence, internal perceptions and motivations, timeconstraints, organisational structure and facilitating conditions. Hence, support andtraining are needed to enhance learning and teaching through this Learning managementsystem.

The mobile banking is an increasingly popular service for customers of the traditional banking industry. On the surface, China has the highest adoption rate of this new technology, yet many users do not remain active or they only use mobile banking for the simplest tasks such as checking their balance. This research was designed to uncover the reasons for these two issues by identifying the major factors influencing users' intention to continue using mobile banking (continuance intention) as well as their behavioural intention to try new mobile banking functions. To do so, an integrated model was developed on the basis of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology model (UTAUT), task-technology fit model (TTF) and expectation confirmation model (ECM). Empirical data were collected from China's mobile banking users and the integrated model was tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) approach. The results indicate that the main factors which positively influence the continuance intention include satisfaction, performance expectancy and effort expectancy. Continuance intention, in turn, influences behavioural intention to try new functionality, together with social influence, facilitating conditions and confirmation. Moreover, some mediating effects were discovered. For example, task-technology fit may indirectly affect the continuance intention through users' satisfaction. The research results have a number of theoretical contributions. Firstly, this research discovers that the impact of task-technology fit on users' continuance intention towards mobile banking is fully mediated by users' satisfaction. This enriches the extant literature that is mostly focused on the technology perceptions (e.g. performance expectancy and effort expectancy) of users. Secondly, this research identifies that satisfaction also mediates the impact of confirmation of expectations on continuance intention, also extending the literature on the continuance usage of information systems. Thirdly, this research fills the gap in extant research regarding users' intention to try new mobile banking functions, by proposing a new integrated model using constructs from UTAUT, TTF, and ECM, and demonstrating that continuance intention itself fully mediates the impact of performance expectancy and effort expectancy on behavioural intention. The new model has a high explanatory power than each individual model offers. The research results also have management implications in terms of how to improve the task-technology fit to support continuous use and extended the use of mobile banking. For instance, to improve continuance intention banks can improve satisfaction by optimising task-technology fit. This in turn will require better understanding of users' different task requirements in specific market segments. In addition, banks can also attract users' behavioural intention to try new functionality by timely updating corresponding technology and launching marketing campaigns to keep users informed of any new functions of their mobile banking application.

O trabalho visa desenvolver uma metodologia para avaliar o impacto do emprego das tecnologias de percepção de uso no ambiente residencial quanto às reduções da demanda por energia elétrica e emissões de CO2. Tais tecnologias são: eliminador de stand-by, gerenciador de energia em computadores e sensor de presença. Inicialmente são selecionadas cargas residenciais e coletados seus dados para compor um banco de dados que será utilizado nas análises. Cada carga e conjunto destas recebe a tecnologia adequada, sendo então calculado o consumo evitado e o investimento relacionado. Foram criados perfis de funcionamento das cargas (6, 8 e 10h) para reproduzir diferentes comportamentos dos usuários e cenários de utilização das cargas (A, B e C) para a análise de sensibilidade. Foram feitos estudos de caso com diferentes modelos residenciais, sendo calculados: consumo e demanda de energia evitados e redução de emissões (considerando um conjunto de residências similares). Também foi realizada a análise de viabilidade econômica da implantação, considerando o Custo Marginal de Expansão do setor elétrico (visão do investidor em infraestrutura) e as tarifas de energia elétrica (visão do consumidor). Os resultados apontam para uma contribuição relevante, em termos de eficiência energética, do emprego de tais tecnologias, representando 35 a 85 MW evitados e redução de emissões de 59 a 145 mil tCO2/ano, dependendo do tipo de modelo residencial adotado, considerando a cidade de São Paulo. A análise de viabilidade econômica por payback simples apontou os seguintes retornos de investimento: 7,2 a 15,5 anos e 2,3 a 7,4 anos para o investidor em infraestrutura e consumidor, respectivamente, dependendo do modelo residencial. Já a análise por Custo da Energia Economizada (CEE) apontou a viabilidade para o consumidor em todos os modelos residenciais, exceto o de tarifa social. Desta forma, o emprego de tais tecnologias pode contribuir de forma importante com a postergação da expansão da matriz energética, resultando em redução de investimentos em expansão e das emissões de CO2 relacionados à geração de energia elétrica, além de poder representar economia na conta de energia dos moradores. / This study aims to develop a methodology to evaluate the utilization impact of the use perception technologies in residential environment in reducing the demand for electricity and CO2 emissions. These technologies are: standby killer, power manager for computers and presence sensor. Initially, residential loads are selected and their data is collected to compose a database that will be used in the analyzes. Each load and load group receives the appropriate technology and then are calculated the avoided consumption and the acquisition investment of the technology. Loads operational profiles (6, 8 and 10h) were created to represent user behaviors and loads usage scenarios (A, B and C) were created to conduct a sensitivity analysis. Case studies were carried out with different residential models, where were calculated: avoided electricity consumption and electric energy demand and CO2 emission reduction (considering a set of similar residences). Also, it was conducted the analysis of economic implantation viability, considering the Expansion Marginal Cost of the electric sector (infrastructure investor view) and the electric energy rates (customer view). The results point out to a relevant contribution, in terms of energy efficiency, of the utilization of such technologies, representing 35 to 85 MW of avoided demand and emission reductions of 59 to 145 thousand tCO2, per year, depending on the residential model type adopted, considering Sao Paulo city region. The analysis of economic implantation viability by payback point out the following investments returns: from 7.2 to 15.5 years and from 2.3 to 7.4 years to infrastructure investor and customer, respectively, depending on the residence model. The analysis by Cost of Saved Energy point out the implementation viability for the costumer in all residential models, except the social tariff. Thus, the use of such technologies can significantly contribute to the postponement of the energetic matrix expansion, resulting in reduction of expansion investments and of CO2 related to electric energy generation, besides can represent savings in the residents energy bill.

Responding to globalization and its effects on education and research development, the Thai government decided to push all public universities to become autonomous and establish a system of quality assurances. The establishment of quality assurances has had a large impact on many Thai instructors, especially in new public universities. Thai instructors are now forced to more focus on conducting research because the number of research publications is regarded as one of the main criteria for quality universities. The purpose of this study is to investigate the key factors, at the individual and university levels, which impact on the instructors' behavior in conducting research of the full-time instructors in the faculty of Management Science from the Rajabhat Universities in Thailand. The current study will help explain how and why the instructors accept or refuse to conduct research and provide insight into the salient factors motivating the instructors to produce more research by conducting HLM. Data were collected from 694 participants at 37 institutions via a questionnaire survey. The findings revealed that there was no difference among these 37 universities on behavior in conducting research. The key factors statistically influencing behavior in conducting research of the instructors were facilitating conditions, academic degree, social influence, and usefulness as well as ease of conducting research that the instructors perceived. This study gained 46% of effect size.

The purpose of this quantitative research study was to investigate the integration of technology in undergraduate courses by faculty at private colleges and universities. Integration of technology is using technology as an instructional tool to improve teaching and learning (Clayton-Pedersen & O’Neill, 2005; Wilson & Hayes, 2000; Woodbridge, 2004). Chickering and Gamson’s (1987) 7 principles for good practice in undergraduate education provided the theoretical framework for this research. The researcher conducted a survey of full-time faculty at 21 private colleges and universities in Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The results of the study indicated that faculty use technology significantly to communicate high expectations to students and to support diverse talents and ways of learning. However, faculty reported that they do not use technology significantly for the other 5 principles: to support student-faculty contact, promote cooperation and reciprocity among students, promote active learning, provide prompt feedback, and promote time on task. Analysis of the data indicated that female faculty use technology significantly more than male faculty for all 7 principles. Findings regarding age indicated that faculty who are 40-59 use technology significantly more than faculty under 40 to support prompt feedback, time on task, and diverse talents and ways of learning. No significant differences existed between other age groups regarding these 3 principles. No significant differences existed between any age groups regarding use of technology to promote student-faculty contact, encourage reciprocity and cooperation, promote active learning, and communicate high expectations. The results of this study extend the current knowledge about faculty use of technology to advance good practice in undergraduate education. Additionally, the results provide information about differences in use of technology by faculty based on gender and age. These findings may inform institutional policies and practices with regard to implementing a systemic approach to teaching with technology.

A widespread access to computers and the Internet at home signals a change in the "information environment" of everyday life. This thesis deals with how this new situation can be studied and understood. Based on the assumption that Internet should be seen as an informationsystem that is finding its place alongside more familiar information systems in everyday life, the objective is set out to develop a conceptual framework of information behavior in everyday life. The empirical material consists of previous research on informationbehavior (predominantly from the Information Studies field of research), and of qualitative case studies of ten information users in the context of their nonwork everyday lives, collected by means of diaries and interviews. The primary result is a model which offers a viable framework forunderstanding information behavior in everyday life, with the characteristics that: It considers all forms of information behavior; it makes it possible to study information systems in concert that previously have been studied only separately; it goes deeply into the circumstances of everyday life; it offers means to understand the significance of social relations and communities for individual information behavior. The secondary result offers insights into particular user behavior concerning the Internet in relation to other information systems in everyday life.

Abstract The main focus of this study is the identification of factors influencing the use and effectiveness of information system development methodologies (Le., systems development methodologies) in health information systems. In essence, it can be viewed as exploratory research, utilizing a conceptual research model to investigate the relationships among the hypothesised factors. More specifically, classified as behavioural science, it combines two theoretical models, namely the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and the Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory. The main aim of behavioural science in information systems is to assist practitioners (Le., social actors) in improving business processes and competitiveness, thus the effective use of information systems. A wider view of behavioural science incorporates other social actors (e.g., end users) and organisational actors (e.g., executives). In health information systems, the effective use of information systems is especially relevant Health information systems are vital in the area of health care, since only by having access to pertinent health information, can the correct decisions relating to diagnostics and curative procedures be made. The use of systems development methodologies in health information systems development is therefore crucial, since they can make the development process more effective, while improving software quality. By empirically evaluating the conceptual research model, utilizing a survey as the main research method and structural equation modelling as the main statistical technique, meaningful results were obtained. Focussing on the factors influencing the individual's behavioural intent, it was found that the compatibility of systems development methodologies to the developer's pre-existing software development style is vital. Furthermore, performance expectancy, self-efficacy, organisational culture, policies, customer influence, voluntariness and facilitating conditions, all directly influenced the use of systems development methodologies, with policies and customer influence playing a significant role, especially in relation to health information systems. No significant direct effects or indirect effects could be established for the factors effort expectancy, personal innovativeness and social influence. It appears that individuals working in the health care software development discipline are more autonomous, less influenced by others. Also, the lack of support for the factor effort expectancy may indicate that systems development methodologies have entered a mature state, with less concern on the effort required for use. Furthermore, with regard to effectiveness and the continued use of information systems methodologies, satisfaction had a significant direct effect, with confirmation having a significant indirect effect. Keywords: behavioural science; conceptual research model; direct effect; exploratory research; Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory; indirect effect; Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology; structural equation modelling; survey; systems development methodologies. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Computer Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010.

Abstract The main focus of this study is the identification of factors influencing the use and effectiveness of information system development methodologies (Le., systems development methodologies) in health information systems. In essence, it can be viewed as exploratory research, utilizing a conceptual research model to investigate the relationships among the hypothesised factors. More specifically, classified as behavioural science, it combines two theoretical models, namely the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology and the Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory. The main aim of behavioural science in information systems is to assist practitioners (Le., social actors) in improving business processes and competitiveness, thus the effective use of information systems. A wider view of behavioural science incorporates other social actors (e.g., end users) and organisational actors (e.g., executives). In health information systems, the effective use of information systems is especially relevant Health information systems are vital in the area of health care, since only by having access to pertinent health information, can the correct decisions relating to diagnostics and curative procedures be made. The use of systems development methodologies in health information systems development is therefore crucial, since they can make the development process more effective, while improving software quality. By empirically evaluating the conceptual research model, utilizing a survey as the main research method and structural equation modelling as the main statistical technique, meaningful results were obtained. Focussing on the factors influencing the individual's behavioural intent, it was found that the compatibility of systems development methodologies to the developer's pre-existing software development style is vital. Furthermore, performance expectancy, self-efficacy, organisational culture, policies, customer influence, voluntariness and facilitating conditions, all directly influenced the use of systems development methodologies, with policies and customer influence playing a significant role, especially in relation to health information systems. No significant direct effects or indirect effects could be established for the factors effort expectancy, personal innovativeness and social influence. It appears that individuals working in the health care software development discipline are more autonomous, less influenced by others. Also, the lack of support for the factor effort expectancy may indicate that systems development methodologies have entered a mature state, with less concern on the effort required for use. Furthermore, with regard to effectiveness and the continued use of information systems methodologies, satisfaction had a significant direct effect, with confirmation having a significant indirect effect. Keywords: behavioural science; conceptual research model; direct effect; exploratory research; Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory; indirect effect; Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology; structural equation modelling; survey; systems development methodologies. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Computer Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2010.