Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
7.3 Seddon Model
The Seddon
s model presented itself as both an extension and a restructuring of the
D&M model (Seddon
1997
). Seddon believed that the D&M model made important
contributions to IS success measurement, but it was overly ambitious, which caused
it to suffer from lack of clarity and misspeci
'
cation (Seddon
1997
). According to
him, the model presented two main shortcomings: the fact that the model integrated
causal relationship explanations as well as process relationship explanations, a
puzzling combination; and the ambiguity of the employment of
as a
dimension, which is also unsuitable for causal relationships explanations. Seddon
then attempted to resolve both issues within his own framework (Rabaa'i
“
use
”
'
i and Gable
2009
).
There are two parts in the conceptual foundation of the Seddon
s model: a
behavioral structure of IS usage, and the IS success framework itself. According to
the author, the D&M model was unclear, by oversimplifying concepts and mixing
both categories together. The graphical representation of the D&M model itself was
ambiguous, as various meanings could be attributed to the relationships depicted in
that graphic (arrows and boxes). It was, therefore, fundamental to split the model
into two variance submodels, use and success, thus eliminating the simple, one-
directional process interpretation of the D&M model (Seddon
1997
) (Fig.
7.3
).
The behavioral structure outlines the argument that the expectations of users
with regard to IS have great repercussions in the success of IS. Individuals
'
'
expectations determine how they will see the system
s success and the criteria they
will employ to measure that success. Hence, user expectations and IS use fall under
this
'
first part of the model. Whereas the D&M model implies that system quality,
information quality, and user satisfaction are all part of a causal relationship that
allows to directly predict the future IS use, Seddon argues that how well a system
has done in the past is not the only reason behind its usage, and introduces the
fundamental concept of expectation as a key variable. No matter how satis
ed a
user is with a given system, if that user expects a new system to do much better, he
or she will use it. Thus, the behavioral model of IS use consists primarily of a one-
way relationship that starts with expectations about the net benefits of future IS use,
leading to IS use itself (Seddon
1997
).
The second part, the IS success structure, is close to the D&M model as it
identi
es three different categories of IS success measures (Kurian et al.
2000
):
“
measures of information and systems quality, perceptual measures of usefulness
Individual,
Organizational, and
Societal
Consequences of IS
use
IS use
(a behavior, not a
success measure)
Expectations about
the net benefits of
future IS use
Fig. 7.3 Behavioral model of IS use (adapted from Seddon
1997
)
Search WWH ::
Custom Search