BAD 84045 Fall 2006 Howard

OFFICE HOURS: 1:45 - 3:45 Tuesday and Thursday, or by appointment. You're strongly encouraged to get to me by e-mail ( ghoward@kent.edu) which should usually yield a very fast response.

COMMUNICATING: E-mail is the main way we will communicate in the course outside of the classroom. Not that you can't come to office hours, but the e-mail is usually faster and more efficient. 

TEXT: None. We will use a mix of handouts and material available from electronic sources. 

COURSE CONCEPT: For several years we have chosen not to teach system development methods in this course because IS Ph.D. candidates are already well-schooled in this area. Instead, we've adapted the course to focus on methodologies for IS research and publication. To that end, we will engage in two activities. 

1. Review and Critique of IS Research. We will read, study, and critique several articles that were recently published in top-rated refereed IS research journals. The articles have been carefully selected to show you a mix of classical hypothesis-testing methods, case study, pure theory, model development, pure concept development, and meta-analysis. The manuscript submission and review process will be highlighted later in the term, along with key academic career management issues.

2. Development of a Research Paper: Based on what we've learned from assessing published articles, you'll create an outline and the first two main sections of an IS research paper in this course. In that regard, this course articulates loosely with BAD 84007, taught by Dr. Weinroth, in that you can develop the "front end" of a paper in this course, then for Dr. Weinroth's course develop the back end, finish the entire piece, and submit it. This paper could grow into a published piece, a conference presentation, or your dissertation. This BAD 84045 course will provide liberal time for you to develop this paper and get course credit for that effort. 

COURSE DESIGN: The course will be conducted primarily electronically. We will meet in person on the following Thursday afternoons: August 31, September 7, October 5, October 12, and November 9. I'll also be available on campus the last half of finals week if you need to consult with me on your research paper before turning it in. For the other class dates of the semester, we will exchange materials and critiques electronically. The "Course Schedule" which follows outlines what we'll be doing and when. 

DELIVERABLES

ARTICLE CRITIQUES: Each of you will do a one page written article critique, as shown in the accompanying schedule. Each critique should contain: One sentence statement of the research problem, comments on the relevance of the problem, a critique of the validity of the research methods used (instruments, sample, sample selection, statistical procedures), and a critique of the writing style. Comment on the likely impact of the article on future IS theory and practice. Do not restate the findings of the article -- critique it. I'll write the first critique as an example. 

The Following Policies apply to everyone in this course.  

A.   Students attending the course who do not have the proper prerequisites risk being deregistered from the class.  

B.   Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes.  You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Web for Students) during the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section.  Should you find an error in your class schedule, you have until Friday, September 8, 2006 to correct the error with your advising office.  If registration errors are not corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the term for any class in which you are not properly registered.  

C.   Academic Honesty:  Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit.  The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense.  It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course.  Repeat offenses result in dismissal from the University.  

D.   Withdrawal: For Fall 2006, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, November 5, 2006 .  Withdrawal before the deadline results in a "W" on the official transcript; after the deadline a grade must be calculated and reported.  

E.   Students with Disabilities: University policy 3342-3-18 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented disability and require accommodations to obtain equal access in this course, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester or when given an assignment for which an accommodation is required.  Please note, you must first verify your eligibility through the Office of Student Disability Services (SDS) in the Michael Schwartz Service Center (330-672-3391) or visit http://www.registrars.kent.edu/disability/ for more information on registration procedures.

Article Critique	20 %
Research Paper	65 %
Final (take home format)	15 %

1. Understand the mechanics of the research article preparation, submission, review, revision, and resubmission processes. 

2. Understand the distinctions among the various types of research articles, including classical hypothesis testing, pure concept, pure theory, case, model development, and meta-analysis. 

3. Develop the ability to critically analyze published or proposed IS research projects for relevance, impact, validity, replicability, and readability. Learn to avoid executing projects for their own sake.

4. Become familiar with the key top IS research journals.

 

Date	Activity	Article	Meeting Method
31 August	Course Introduction and Procedures	None	On Campus
7 September	Written Critique: Howard Half Page Draft of Paper Idea Due	Classical Empirical Hypothesis-Testing Article:   Wallace, Linda; Keil, Mark and Rai, Arun. How software risk affects project performance: An investigation of the dimensions of risk and an exploratory model. Decision Sciences, Vol. 35, No. 2, Spring 2004, 289-321.	On Campus
14 September			No Class
21 September	Written Critique: Antenucci Paper Research Question Due Electronically	Classical Empirical Hypothesis-Testing: Dennis, Alan R., and Reinicke, Bryan A. Beta versus VHS and the acceptance of electronic brainstorming technology. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 28, No. 1, March 2004, 1-20.	Electronic
28 September	Paper Introduction Section Draft Due		Electronic
5 October	Written Critique: Li	Case Study:   Montleaegre, Ramiro and Keil, Mark. De-escalating information technology: Lessons from the Denver International Airport. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 24, No. 2, September 2000, 417-447	On Campus
12 October	Written Critique: Horne Paper Literature Review Outline Due	Meta-analysis:   Dennis, Alan R.; Wixom, Barbara H. and Vandenberg, Robert J. Understanding fit and appropriation effects in group support systems via meta-analysis. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 2, June 2001, 167-193.	On Campus
19 October	Continue Work on Paper Discussion about the publishing "game."	Career orientation: Chiasson, Mike W. and Davidson, Elizabeth. Taking industry seriously in Information Systems research. MIS Quarterly, Vol. 29, No. 4, December 2005, 591-605.	Electronic
26 October	Paper Methodology Outline Draft Due Discussion about the review and resubmission process.		Electronic
2 November	Finished Paper Introduction Due Discussion about academic career tracks.		Electronic
9 November	Finished Paper Methodology Outline Draft Due Written Critique: None	Pure Model Development:   Fichman, Robert G. Real options and IT platform adoption: Implications for theory and practice. Information Systems Research, Vol. 15, No. 2, June 2004, 132-154.	On Campus
16 November	Finished Paper Literature Review Due		Electronic
30 November	Continue work on paper.  More discussion about academic career tracks.		Electronic
7 December	Finished Paper Due (Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology Outline)		Electronic