Using interpretive structural modeling to uncover shared mental models in IS research

Abstract

The role of grounded approaches has been advocated for long in IS research. However, the

inherent subjectivity of such approaches and the apparent lack of a basis to validate or even

replicate such research has often been the subject of debate among IS researchers. As a result,

many IS researchers tend to fall back on variance-theoretic approaches to conceptualize, design

and operationalize their research. In this paper, we show how a grounded approach, interpretive

structural modeling (ISM), can be used to qualitatively elicit individual cognitive structures.

Further, we show how it can be applied to derive the shared aspects of such a structure across

many individuals. We use the well-known technology acceptance model (TAM) to demonstrate the

utility of our approach. We conclude the paper by discussing the strengths and weaknesses of this

approach.

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