Group Facilitation Software Perceptions in a Practice Management Setting

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2011-08

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Abstract

Healthcare is a complex industry with a diverse workforce and a wide array of business issues that often require the formation of groups to solve problems. Group facilitation software, such as Microsoft’s SharePoint, has the promise to provide workgroups with the ability to solve complex problems. The study involved 141 health care employees of a large Southwestern academic health center who responded to survey items concerning the perceived usefulness and the ease of use of SharePoint. The survey also contained items designed to measure employees need for affiliation and computer self efficacy. Results revealed different demographic profiles between respondents that had a high acceptance of SharePoint and those that reported a low acceptance of SharePoint. The respondents that had a lower acceptance of SharePoint reported lower computer self efficacy scores than the respondents that reported a high acceptance of SharePoint. The respondents that are required to use SharePoint were less likely to report that SharePoint is useful and easy to use. The respondents that are not required to use SharePoint had significantly higher TAM scores than those required to use SharePoint. This finding suggests that the acceptance of group facilitation software differs for those employees that are required to use SharePoint from employees that are not required to use this technology. Other findings revealed that TAM was positively correlated to both the need for affiliation and computer self efficacy. TAM was found to be inversely related to the frequency of use of the SharePoint features of upload a document and download a document. Computer self efficacy was found to be inversely related to the frequency of use of the SharePoint features of upload a document, download a document, search, and automated notifications. The two components of TAM, perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, were found to be positively correlated. Perceived ease of use was found to be inversely related to the SharePoint features of comment, upload, download, announce, and alert. Further research is recommended to provide a more rigorous examination of these relationships.

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