Abstract

This panel discusses the opportunities and challenges of applying cognitive neuroscience theories, methods, and tools to inform IS theories, methods, and data (termed “NeuroIS”). Given the ability of cognitive neuroscience to localize the functionality of brain areas that underlie higher-order human processes using functional neuroimaging tools, many social scientists in economics, psychology, and marketing use such tools to derive many interesting insights by opening the “black box” of the brain. Recently in the IS discipline, there have been some attempts to explore the potential of cognitive neuroscience for IS research (e.g., Dimoka, Pavlou, and Davis 2007). The purpose of this panel is to explore the potential of cognitive neuroscience and functional neuroimaging tools for IS research, and consistent with the theme of this year’s ICIS, suggest whether and how NeuroIS may help IS academics conduct IT research that really matters. This panel will host an intellectual debate on the opportunities and challenges of employing cognitive neuroscience and functional neuroimaging tools in IS research. The panelists come from different disciplines (Marketing, IS, Neuroscience), theories (technology adoption, IS economics, IT productivity, design science), and methods (behavioral/organizational, economics, technical), and they will discuss how IS theories and methods in their respective areas can be complemented by cognitive neuroscience theories and neuroimaging data. They will also debate the potential of physiological data for IS research, the pros and cons of functional neuroimaging tools, and whether NeuroIS can help IS researchers do research that they could not do with other means. The panel will have a broad appeal to IS researchers who may be interested in the potential of cognitive neuroscience for IS research but they are concerned about the challenges associated with using neuroimaging tools. The panel will debate whether NeuroIS can help IS researchers learn more than they already know, and whether, how, and when cognitive neuroscience will prove beneficial for IS research. The panel will also debate whether and how NeuroIS can contribute to IS research, whether and how the IS field can benefit by cognitive neuroscience theories, and what research questions could arise from using neuroimaging tools in IS research. The panel’s ultimate goal is to gauge whether NeuroIS is “hype or hope,” aiming to conclude whether NeuroIS could provide valuable opportunities for IS research, or whether the challenges associated with neuroimaging tools will impede their wide usage.

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