 |
|
 |
|
|
|
My mentor is Dr. Will Money, Associate Professor of Information Systems at the GW Virginia Campus. I'm partial to the Virginia Campus, since I completed the Executive Master of Science in Information Systems (EMIS) program there. With regard to undergraduate work, I'm a 1980 graduate of the US Naval Academy, and was a Naval Flight Officer flying the Grumman E-2C Hawkeye before switching to flying for the US Coast Guard. I retired from the Coast Guard in 2000.
The title of my dissertation was "Online Social Networking: A Task-Person-Technology Fit Perspective. Online Social Networking (OSN) systems such as MySpace, Facebook and Friendster have achieved tremendous popularity. This research investigates whether stronger computer skills (Computer Self-Efficacy) relate to increased systems usage and participation in more complex tasks. It uses a compilation of models resulting in the Task-Person-Technology Fit Model, which suggests that the highest system performance is the result of the best fitment of task, technology and individual factors. My study found all of the research propositions to be supported. The study's analysis increases the body of knowledge on usability and use of online systems, and adds commercial value for developers and managers of such systems. Further, analysis of the literature, combined with qualitative and quantitative analyses, suggest an epidemiological model of OSN adoption. In this model, a few users with high levels of CSE, combined with certain viral conditions, result in an exponential, viral-loop rate of adoption of OSN.
Members of my committee included Professor Will Money (Advocate), Professors Erik K. Winslow and Ross Lumley (Research Advisory Committee), and Professors Erran Carmel (American University IT Department Chair) and Vikas Sahasarubhe (Examining Committee members).
To support my research interests, I rely on my pension as a retired U.S. Coast Guard Officer, and I do information systems development and management consulting. I also teach as an adjunct professor at American University's Kogod School of Business, and at GWU.
Links: