International Journal of Management, Knowledge and Learning
Purpose: In the context of knowledge management, we argue that there is no singular way to under... more Purpose: In the context of knowledge management, we argue that there is no singular way to understand our own reality because we are constantly entangled in a juxtaposed plurality of postmodern information systems. Humans define their realities and worldviews through culture, ethnicity, language, semiotics, systems of meanings, communities of practice, and other physical and sensory interpretations within information systems. But since multiple factors in time and space define one's information systems, we theorize that alternative interpretive models exist for applications of the same situations when perceived by others. Study design/methodology/approach: We explored this inherent knowledge management phenomenon of human information systems entanglements through the literature review of respected scientists, theorists, academics, and philosophers; and herein present our theory of entangled human information systems. Findings: Since all human information systems are dependent...
This paper sets its problematic by asking a questions about the nature of knowledge in the knowle... more This paper sets its problematic by asking a questions about the nature of knowledge in the knowledge management body of literature. The paper's method is a critical review and conceptual analysis, or semiotic inquiry for discourse analysis, of the literature of knowledge management. The paper assumes that the world of knowledge management consists of three ontological perspectives. In this paper, these ontological perspectives are the psychological, the social, and the cultural. Theses perspectives shape the use of the term "knowledge' and "explicit knowledge" and an understanding of the conception of knowledge, in particular explicit knowledge, and the knowns, or knowledge objects.
Knowledge management is an important function in any large organization. In this paper, a concept... more Knowledge management is an important function in any large organization. In this paper, a conceptual model of knowledge management in the large organization will be developed. The organic-like mechanics of knowledge management and a mathematical means of quantifying the model will be discussed. Personal experience from a large organization will be used to provide context for the model.
Creating secure software applications and writing secure programs are difficult affairs. Secure p... more Creating secure software applications and writing secure programs are difficult affairs. Secure programs are well designed software applications which meet specified requirements. Well designed software is reliable in its availability and accessibility. The paper's problem is whether the textbooks used in instruction of beginning programming students directly and actively discuss secure programming issues. A possible flaws model (buffer overrun, format string, integer overflow, SQL injection, command line injection, and exception handling) is constructed. Selected introductory textbooks on Java and C++ were reviewed.
The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a desc... more The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a description and analysis of the ethnosemantics of air traffic controllers and their social cultural environment of information flows and uses of information. Using Skovira's infoscape model and Hall's contexts of communication model, the paper analyzes air traffic controllers' communication contexts and situations.
ABSTRACT The essay is a discussion of the use of the information landscape (ecology) model for an... more ABSTRACT The essay is a discussion of the use of the information landscape (ecology) model for analysis of information use and design. An infoscape (information landscape) model consists of frames of information use. These frames are sociocultural in nature. The frames of informational use bound and structure four aspects of an information system or informational situation. These aspects are people, content, processes, and relationships. The frames of information use of the infoscape model are discussed as ways of understanding information use and design. The model provides a set of categories (the frames) for raising and describing analytical questions and design solutions.
Blended learning is defined as a mix of traditional face-to-face instruction and e-learning (Kooh... more Blended learning is defined as a mix of traditional face-to-face instruction and e-learning (Koohang, 2009). Elearnspace (2005, par. 3) states that “Blended learning takes the best of both worlds and creates an improved learning experience for the student. ” Advantages of blended learning has been documented in the literature as convenience, flexibility, improved learning, improved
This study sought to investigate whether there is a positive contribution of organizational trust... more This study sought to investigate whether there is a positive contribution of organizational trust (OT) on organizational performance (OP) in various enterprises from the Province of Mazovia in Poland. The instrument used in this study included two parts that were used to measure the constructs of OT and OP. The instrument was then administered to 469 managers from 287 companies. A total of 468 usable data was entered into analyses using SPSS. Reliability test was conducted to determine internal consistency among the items for both OT and OP. Principal component analysis with Varimax rotation was conducted to determine the number of valid items in both OT and OP. Correlation procedure was then conducted to explore positive linear relationship between OT and OP. Finally, regression analyses were conducted to see if there is positive contribution of OT on OP. The analyses were followed by results, discussion, and implication for future research.
This is an Ethnographic analysis that views the classroom as an information system. The general p... more This is an Ethnographic analysis that views the classroom as an information system. The general purpose of this project was to identify the causes for differences in view between faculty and student instructor performance assessments. The research was motivated because of the opposition between faculty and student evaluations about an instructor. There is a culture of passive learning that is quietly accompanying the increased emphasis of the "customer focused classroom." This focus encourages passive students to ascribe course dissatisfaction to instructor or instructional deficiencies. When an instructor challenges passive learners, they report being dissatisfied customers. How that assessment will be used by umbrella organizations to retain faculty is uncertain. That uncertainty impacts how faculty members evaluate their peers.
The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a desc... more The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a description and analysis of the ethnosemantics of air traffic controllers and their social cultural environment of information flows and uses of information. Using Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions, specifically his theory of uncertainty avoidance and Hall's theory of culture as a communicational context, the paper analyzes uncertainty avoidance in a high reliability organization, air traffic control, from the perspective of mitigating risk.
Umberto Eco theorized a semiotic process through which people perceive, interpret, internalize (l... more Umberto Eco theorized a semiotic process through which people perceive, interpret, internalize (learn), and produce (articulate) information. The process involves a set of symbolic representations and transformations that model how humans acquire and process information. Hughes and Peirsi investigated Learning Approaches that students use to learn object oriented (OO) programming. Three learning approaches were described and studied to determine how effective each were for acquiring OO programming competencies. The semiotic model stimulated the idea for a conceptual framework that would incorporate these Learning Approaches. In order to integrate them into the framework, nine elemental Learning Techniques (denoted LTs) were identified. Using the framework, a strategy was developed for determining which Learning Techniques students use and which are effective for learning computer programming. This paper describes the research on these learning techniques and how they can be used to ...
This paper is a description and analysis of found conceptualizations of tacit knowledge in the kn... more This paper is a description and analysis of found conceptualizations of tacit knowledge in the knowledge management (KM) literature. The essay’s argument is that there are several different ways of framing or understanding the nature, conceptualizations, of tacit knowledge. Because tacit knowledge is the most foundational idea and experience, in knowledge management literature, the purpose of this essay is to clarify the several perspectives discovered to be in use in the literature.
At IACIS 2007 we presented a pilot research project [13] titled Is the Problematic in CS1 a stude... more At IACIS 2007 we presented a pilot research project [13] titled Is the Problematic in CS1 a student’s Problem Solving Ability? The acronym “CS1” refers to first courses in computer programming (and CS0 to a preparatory course). The symptom of the problem was that 40% of the students enrolled in CS1 courses worldwide withdrew, failed or performed poorly. Several studies suggested that a key factor might be that students lack problem solving ability. The pilot study administered three questionnaires, each with a free writing task, to quantify a student’s ability to analyze and identify problems. The results identified one questionnaire that correlated with student’s CS1 course grades and accounted for 60% of the variance final exam scores. That result was motivated a more comprehensive study. The questionnaire was revised to focus on assessing Problem Formulation Ability. The results in this new study provide strong evidence that Problem Formulation Ability affects student performance...
The hacking group CabinCr3w emerged in conjunction with the Occupy Wall Street movement in late 2... more The hacking group CabinCr3w emerged in conjunction with the Occupy Wall Street movement in late 2011. Initially they were solely involved in releasing personal information or “dox” on Wall Street investment bankers and other individuals who were involved in facilitating the “Great Recession.” However in November of 2011, under an operation they dubbed Operation Pig Roast, CabinCr3w increasingly turned their attention to hacking law enforcement organizations and government institutions across the country. In March of 2012, two of the most active members of the group were arrested and charged with several high-profile hacks. An analysis of secondary data in the form of news articles and unsealed Criminal Citations reveals that both hackers made fundamental and basic mistakes in preserving their anonymity, which law enforcement officials used to connect their online identities to their physical locations.
This paper examines the hype about using social networking as a tool to promote learning in e- le... more This paper examines the hype about using social networking as a tool to promote learning in e- learning environments. Specifically, the validity of the following assertions are delineated and discussed: 1) constructing knowledge using social networking, 2) creating learning communities using social networking, and 3) building communities of practice using social networking.
A student’s problem solving ability (PSA) is often considered a factor in determining their succe... more A student’s problem solving ability (PSA) is often considered a factor in determining their success in a first course in computer programming (CS1). Can a student’s PSA be measured before taking a CS1 course? How? Would such an assessment effectively predict final exam scores? This paper presents the results of a pilot study guiding the development of a PSA assessment method. The approach attempts to use a student’s words in response to an analysis task to extract quantifiers of PSA. This research is viewed as a compass to point out a direction (with much more road to travel). The tentative answer is “PSA may be detectable in student’s expressions.”
International Journal of Management, Knowledge and Learning
Purpose: In the context of knowledge management, we argue that there is no singular way to under... more Purpose: In the context of knowledge management, we argue that there is no singular way to understand our own reality because we are constantly entangled in a juxtaposed plurality of postmodern information systems. Humans define their realities and worldviews through culture, ethnicity, language, semiotics, systems of meanings, communities of practice, and other physical and sensory interpretations within information systems. But since multiple factors in time and space define one's information systems, we theorize that alternative interpretive models exist for applications of the same situations when perceived by others. Study design/methodology/approach: We explored this inherent knowledge management phenomenon of human information systems entanglements through the literature review of respected scientists, theorists, academics, and philosophers; and herein present our theory of entangled human information systems. Findings: Since all human information systems are dependent...
This paper sets its problematic by asking a questions about the nature of knowledge in the knowle... more This paper sets its problematic by asking a questions about the nature of knowledge in the knowledge management body of literature. The paper's method is a critical review and conceptual analysis, or semiotic inquiry for discourse analysis, of the literature of knowledge management. The paper assumes that the world of knowledge management consists of three ontological perspectives. In this paper, these ontological perspectives are the psychological, the social, and the cultural. Theses perspectives shape the use of the term "knowledge' and "explicit knowledge" and an understanding of the conception of knowledge, in particular explicit knowledge, and the knowns, or knowledge objects.
Knowledge management is an important function in any large organization. In this paper, a concept... more Knowledge management is an important function in any large organization. In this paper, a conceptual model of knowledge management in the large organization will be developed. The organic-like mechanics of knowledge management and a mathematical means of quantifying the model will be discussed. Personal experience from a large organization will be used to provide context for the model.
Creating secure software applications and writing secure programs are difficult affairs. Secure p... more Creating secure software applications and writing secure programs are difficult affairs. Secure programs are well designed software applications which meet specified requirements. Well designed software is reliable in its availability and accessibility. The paper's problem is whether the textbooks used in instruction of beginning programming students directly and actively discuss secure programming issues. A possible flaws model (buffer overrun, format string, integer overflow, SQL injection, command line injection, and exception handling) is constructed. Selected introductory textbooks on Java and C++ were reviewed.
The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a desc... more The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a description and analysis of the ethnosemantics of air traffic controllers and their social cultural environment of information flows and uses of information. Using Skovira's infoscape model and Hall's contexts of communication model, the paper analyzes air traffic controllers' communication contexts and situations.
ABSTRACT The essay is a discussion of the use of the information landscape (ecology) model for an... more ABSTRACT The essay is a discussion of the use of the information landscape (ecology) model for analysis of information use and design. An infoscape (information landscape) model consists of frames of information use. These frames are sociocultural in nature. The frames of informational use bound and structure four aspects of an information system or informational situation. These aspects are people, content, processes, and relationships. The frames of information use of the infoscape model are discussed as ways of understanding information use and design. The model provides a set of categories (the frames) for raising and describing analytical questions and design solutions.
Blended learning is defined as a mix of traditional face-to-face instruction and e-learning (Kooh... more Blended learning is defined as a mix of traditional face-to-face instruction and e-learning (Koohang, 2009). Elearnspace (2005, par. 3) states that “Blended learning takes the best of both worlds and creates an improved learning experience for the student. ” Advantages of blended learning has been documented in the literature as convenience, flexibility, improved learning, improved
This study sought to investigate whether there is a positive contribution of organizational trust... more This study sought to investigate whether there is a positive contribution of organizational trust (OT) on organizational performance (OP) in various enterprises from the Province of Mazovia in Poland. The instrument used in this study included two parts that were used to measure the constructs of OT and OP. The instrument was then administered to 469 managers from 287 companies. A total of 468 usable data was entered into analyses using SPSS. Reliability test was conducted to determine internal consistency among the items for both OT and OP. Principal component analysis with Varimax rotation was conducted to determine the number of valid items in both OT and OP. Correlation procedure was then conducted to explore positive linear relationship between OT and OP. Finally, regression analyses were conducted to see if there is positive contribution of OT on OP. The analyses were followed by results, discussion, and implication for future research.
This is an Ethnographic analysis that views the classroom as an information system. The general p... more This is an Ethnographic analysis that views the classroom as an information system. The general purpose of this project was to identify the causes for differences in view between faculty and student instructor performance assessments. The research was motivated because of the opposition between faculty and student evaluations about an instructor. There is a culture of passive learning that is quietly accompanying the increased emphasis of the "customer focused classroom." This focus encourages passive students to ascribe course dissatisfaction to instructor or instructional deficiencies. When an instructor challenges passive learners, they report being dissatisfied customers. How that assessment will be used by umbrella organizations to retain faculty is uncertain. That uncertainty impacts how faculty members evaluate their peers.
The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a desc... more The essay is a report of research carried out in an air traffic control environment. It is a description and analysis of the ethnosemantics of air traffic controllers and their social cultural environment of information flows and uses of information. Using Hofstede's theory of cultural dimensions, specifically his theory of uncertainty avoidance and Hall's theory of culture as a communicational context, the paper analyzes uncertainty avoidance in a high reliability organization, air traffic control, from the perspective of mitigating risk.
Umberto Eco theorized a semiotic process through which people perceive, interpret, internalize (l... more Umberto Eco theorized a semiotic process through which people perceive, interpret, internalize (learn), and produce (articulate) information. The process involves a set of symbolic representations and transformations that model how humans acquire and process information. Hughes and Peirsi investigated Learning Approaches that students use to learn object oriented (OO) programming. Three learning approaches were described and studied to determine how effective each were for acquiring OO programming competencies. The semiotic model stimulated the idea for a conceptual framework that would incorporate these Learning Approaches. In order to integrate them into the framework, nine elemental Learning Techniques (denoted LTs) were identified. Using the framework, a strategy was developed for determining which Learning Techniques students use and which are effective for learning computer programming. This paper describes the research on these learning techniques and how they can be used to ...
This paper is a description and analysis of found conceptualizations of tacit knowledge in the kn... more This paper is a description and analysis of found conceptualizations of tacit knowledge in the knowledge management (KM) literature. The essay’s argument is that there are several different ways of framing or understanding the nature, conceptualizations, of tacit knowledge. Because tacit knowledge is the most foundational idea and experience, in knowledge management literature, the purpose of this essay is to clarify the several perspectives discovered to be in use in the literature.
At IACIS 2007 we presented a pilot research project [13] titled Is the Problematic in CS1 a stude... more At IACIS 2007 we presented a pilot research project [13] titled Is the Problematic in CS1 a student’s Problem Solving Ability? The acronym “CS1” refers to first courses in computer programming (and CS0 to a preparatory course). The symptom of the problem was that 40% of the students enrolled in CS1 courses worldwide withdrew, failed or performed poorly. Several studies suggested that a key factor might be that students lack problem solving ability. The pilot study administered three questionnaires, each with a free writing task, to quantify a student’s ability to analyze and identify problems. The results identified one questionnaire that correlated with student’s CS1 course grades and accounted for 60% of the variance final exam scores. That result was motivated a more comprehensive study. The questionnaire was revised to focus on assessing Problem Formulation Ability. The results in this new study provide strong evidence that Problem Formulation Ability affects student performance...
The hacking group CabinCr3w emerged in conjunction with the Occupy Wall Street movement in late 2... more The hacking group CabinCr3w emerged in conjunction with the Occupy Wall Street movement in late 2011. Initially they were solely involved in releasing personal information or “dox” on Wall Street investment bankers and other individuals who were involved in facilitating the “Great Recession.” However in November of 2011, under an operation they dubbed Operation Pig Roast, CabinCr3w increasingly turned their attention to hacking law enforcement organizations and government institutions across the country. In March of 2012, two of the most active members of the group were arrested and charged with several high-profile hacks. An analysis of secondary data in the form of news articles and unsealed Criminal Citations reveals that both hackers made fundamental and basic mistakes in preserving their anonymity, which law enforcement officials used to connect their online identities to their physical locations.
This paper examines the hype about using social networking as a tool to promote learning in e- le... more This paper examines the hype about using social networking as a tool to promote learning in e- learning environments. Specifically, the validity of the following assertions are delineated and discussed: 1) constructing knowledge using social networking, 2) creating learning communities using social networking, and 3) building communities of practice using social networking.
A student’s problem solving ability (PSA) is often considered a factor in determining their succe... more A student’s problem solving ability (PSA) is often considered a factor in determining their success in a first course in computer programming (CS1). Can a student’s PSA be measured before taking a CS1 course? How? Would such an assessment effectively predict final exam scores? This paper presents the results of a pilot study guiding the development of a PSA assessment method. The approach attempts to use a student’s words in response to an analysis task to extract quantifiers of PSA. This research is viewed as a compass to point out a direction (with much more road to travel). The tentative answer is “PSA may be detectable in student’s expressions.”
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Papers by Robert Skovira