Should “Personal” Computers Be Personally Allocated?

Abstract:This paper reports on a field study examining the effects of different levels of PC availability on usage by auditors working in two large public accounting firms. Respondents’ tasks and information-processing tools were held reasonably constant, permitting an examination of the effect of the independent variable, microcomputer availability.Substantial support was found for the hypothesis that greater PC availability is associated with a greater amount of PC use, which was measured as self-reported hours of use per month and usage supporting 32 auditing tasks in three task categories. The study contributes to the theory of information source availability. The results suggest that future studies of end-user computing should account for the substantial effect of information-processing tools available.Key Words and Phrases: end-user computingpersonal computinguser behaviorinformation-processing tool availability Additional informationNotes on contributorsJanis L. GoganJanis L. Gogan holds a master’s degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education and MBA and DBA degrees from Harvard Business School. She is Assistant Professor of MIS at Boston University School of Management Her research interests include organizational assimilation and use of emerging information technologies and crossfunctional and interorganizational information systems planning, development, and use.

• 저널Journal of Management Information Systems · 7(4) · 91–106
• 토픽Technology Adoption and User Behaviour · Information Systems and Management
• DOI10.1080/07421222.1991.11517905
• 저자Janis L. Gogan