The technology acceptance model was used to find the relationship between the perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness and users' attitude towards the use of DSS. Hypothesis 2c0: There is a significant correlation between the perceived user-friendliness of the DSS and the decision-makers' attitude towards.
List of Equations
Chapter One Introduction
- Introduction
- Motivation for the Study
- Focus of the Study
- Problem Statement
- Research Sub-Questions
- Hypothesis
- Objectives Primary objective
- Limitations of the Study 1. Size of the population
- Administration of the questionnaire
- Summary
Hypothesis 2a0: There is a significant correlation between the perceived ease of use and the perceived usefulness of DSS. Hypothesis 2b0: There is a significant relationship between the perceived usefulness of the DSS and the decision makers' attitude towards using it.
Chapter Two Literature Review”
Introduction
Decision-Making
Decision making addresses a specific problem and is a unique process that is adaptable to different scenarios. It shows that decision making is an activity that is crucial to the functioning of every level of the organization.
Strategic Decision-Making
This dissertation will focus on strategic-level decision-making capabilities to reduce the overwhelming amount of decision-making information. Looking at Figure 2.2 from the Darden School of Business, it shows an overview of the process shown in Figure 2.1, but with the addition of a box, "intuition."
Information
The arrows indicate decision-making steps that identify the actions taken by the decision-maker and others involved in the decision-making process (Citroen, 2009). Development begins at the intention stage, when the decision maker specifies the needs of the target.
Intuition and Emotion in Decision-Making
- Cognitive Assimilation of Strategic Environment and Affective Perception
- Emotional Experience and Cognitive Functions of the Strategic Decision-Making
Emotional aspects can affect the decision maker's choices by affecting the individual's cognitive decision making options (Kim, 2012). To do this, a person can use previous experience and intuition to help the decision-making process.
Risky and Uncertain Situations
There are more options, but this seems to be the most commonly used approach (Rao, 2012). This approach would consist of identifying the common elements that allow making a decision that could achieve the required goal (Schwartz, 2003).
Emergency Decisions
An implementation path can be developed by identifying and listing all the projects and initiatives that would be needed to realize each future scenario. The most obvious symptoms of stress in decision-making would be the inability to assimilate new information, the effect on the thought process, loss of concentration, hasty decision-making, impaired short-term memory, and the inability to plan initial actions. Bourne & Yaroush, 2003).
Groupthink
Holzer and Schwester (2011) showed that symptoms such as collective rationalization of information cause errors in the understanding of the information present. This places the participants of the group in an adverse emotional state that allows for the threat of exposure.
Decision Support Systems
- Definition of a DSS
- Purpose of DSS
Since DSS has a variety of past information, it has the potential to overwhelm the decision maker with excessive information that may lead to a poor result. The fact that DSS gives alternatives for a decision maker to consider can hinder the individual's ability to think for themselves, causing cognitive bias (Holyoak, 2005). Blame for incorrect decision-making can be seen to fall solely on DSS.
By performing mathematical and formulated algorithms, the DSS is able to create alternative scenarios for the situation based on the given information contained in the system (Asemi et al., 2011).
Acceptance of DSS
- The Technology Acceptance Model
- Decision-Maker’s Style
- Cognitive Style
- Decision-Maker Training
- Decision-Maker Experience
- Decision-Maker Involvement
- Decision-Maker Attitudes and Satisfaction Related to DSS
- Relationship between the Attitude of the Decision-makers and the Perceived Usefulness
- Relationship between the Perceived Ease of Use and the Attitude of the Decision-Makers
- Acceptance and usage of the system
Training can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of users using DSS. Training can make the user more efficient in making the right decisions with the help of DSS. As Davis (1989) demonstrated in TAM, the first step was to discover the possible relationship between perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the system along with the impact it had on the user's attitude towards using the technology.
The relationship between the perceived ease of use and the attitude of decision makers and decision makers.
Summary
By producing these positive relationships, it can be said that there would be a high possibility of acceptance of the new technology. If any criterion does not have a significant positive correlation, it can be assumed that users would not fully accept the new systems. It would take more research to determine what caused users to reject the technology.
The TAM suggests that the users' overall attitude towards the technology ultimately determines whether the user uses the technology or not (Davis, 1989).
Chapter Three Research Methodology
- Introduction
- Aims and Objectives of Study
- Data Collection Strategies
- Construction of the Instrument
- Recruitment of Study Participants
- Presentation and Validation
- Administration of the Questionnaire
- Analysis of Data
- Descriptive statistics
- Frequencies
- Means and Standard Deviation
- Inferential Statistics
- Correlation
- Summary
In order to understand the data obtained, weights were assigned to each choice. The prevalence of the data was also assessed to understand the variability of the results. Spread was determined by mean and population size (Sekaran & Bougie, 2009).
There is an assumption that there was a one-sided random effect from one variable - the explanatory variable, to the other - the response variable (Schneider et al., 2010).
Chapter Four
Presentation and Discussion of Results
Introduction
With a sample size of 143, it allows a confidence level of 99% with a margin of error of 5%.
Decision-Making ability
Survey Response
By not wanting to complete a task, and simply trying to get the event over with, it can lead to serious consequences. It was important to find any patterns in the data that could lead to an understanding of what could be causing such a feeling in the participants.
Decision Categories
Structure the Decision Problem Establishing a Positive Environment
Consider the Impacts of Possible Alternative
The information needed to undertake this consideration would be from the external environment to enable the decision maker to assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to the company so that multiple alternatives can be considered (Brest & Krieger, 2010 ). This can be a great achievement and is a trait of a great decision maker, but it also means that they are not open to innovative approaches. A decision maker should be aware of whether the decision being made is practical or idealistic (Pomerol, 2012), but only 59% of respondents considered this.
The results could be skewed and decisions to be made in emergencies would not be made correctly every time.
Assess Possible Impacts of Each Alternative
Determine the Decision-Maker’s Preferences
It had already been proven that respondents are negatively influenced by the environment, thus making the respondents' 'gut feeling' questionable. The implications that may occur must be considered as this plays a major role in making the decision. Of the alternatives produced, it is important to consider the pros and cons, 71% of respondents claim to do so.
On a positive note, there was a possibility that the respondents did have a certain degree of ability to understand the best way forward from the situation they were in.
Determine Optimum Alternatives
Determine Preferences of Decision-Makers
Implement and Evaluate the Decision
The decisions are continuously monitored to ensure that the end result could be achieved even if there are unexpected changes in the external environment (Harrison, 1996). It can be assumed that the respondents who do not continue to control the processes after a decision has been made, and they take it for granted that the result is achieved. Achieving the result with an above average decision can rarely be achieved and therefore the desired result will not be achieved.
If the respondent notices any deviation from the desired path, that person should be able to correct the actions, which would mean changing his mentality.
Evaluate and Compare Alternatives
Hypothesis 1 0 : There is a possibility of improving the decision-making ability
Implement and Evaluate the Decision
Acceptance of the System
As Davis (1989) explained, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use influence the decision maker's attitude toward using DSS. Using TAM as the basis of this hypothesis, it can be reasoned that the attitudes of decision makers also play a role. Kigongo (2011) agrees stating that perceived usefulness was influenced by perceived ease of use along with external variables such as documentation, support and training.
Hypothesis 2c0: There is a significant relationship between the perceived ease of use of the DSS and the decision makers' attitude towards its use.
Stages of Decision-Making
- Perceived Usefulness of the DSS
- Affects of Users’ Characteristics of the DSS
- Conceptualization of Relationships
- Hypothesis 2a 0 : There is a significant relationship between the perceived ease of use and the perceived usefulness of the DSS
- Hypothesis 2b 0 : There is a significant relationship between the perceived usefulness of the DSS and the decision-makers’ attitude
- Hypothesis 2c 0 : There is a significant relationship between the perceived ease of use of the DSS and the decision-makers’ attitude
- Hypothesis 3 0 : There is a possibility of improving the decision-making ability with the use of a DSS
- Summary
One could conclude that the perceived usability plays a greater role in the user-friendliness of the system, which ultimately leads to acceptance of the system. From the information gathered, it was found that there was a significant positive correlation between the perceived ease of use and the user's attitude towards the use of the system (r = 0.6). From the data collected, a significant and strong positive linear relationship was obtained between the use of the system and the perceived ease of use of the system.
The study examined the relationship between user attitudes toward using the DSS, perceived usefulness of the DSS, and perceived ease of use of the DSS.
Chapter Five
Conclusion and Recommendations
- Introduction
- Has the problem been solved?
- Implications of this Research
- Recommendations to Solve Research Problems
- Recommendations for Future Studies
- Conclusion
From the response it was concluded that the ability of the decision makers can be improved through the use of DSS. By encompassing top management, it will be crucial to observe the acceptance of the system. The research looked at the decision-making ability, acceptance and user's attitude towards the use of the DSS.
It would be a great research topic to undertake to discover the needs of the DSS in a company.
Evaluation of the use of Decision Support Systems in strategic decision making in local government: a comparative study. Effects of time pressure on decision making under uncertainty: changes in affective state and information processing strategy.
Decision-Making Variables
Perceived Ease of Use of a DSS
Perceived Ease of Use of the DSS
Perceived Usefulness of the DSS
Affects of User Characteristics on the DSS
Gate Keeper’s Letter
4 How often do you stick to your decision in the end, regardless of the outcome. 7 How often do you feel in control of situations where time and information are limited. 15 How often do you find it difficult to think clearly when you have to decide something in a hurry.
16 How often do you make up your own mind about things, regardless of what others think.
Questionnaire
14 How often do you keep looking for something better even if you have found a course of action that is almost right. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements about the perceived ease of use of a DSS and the impact a DSS can make on strategic decisions in your organization. 11 Ability to change and use new methods to make strategic decisions 12 Confidence in using DSS.
To what extent do you agree or disagree that the following characteristics of decision makers have an effect on the use of DSS in making strategic decisions.
Ethical Clearance
