A Study of Online Hotel Reservations on Asia Pacific-Based, European-Based, and North American-Based Travel Websites

This paper reports a study that examined hotel reservation services on travel websites. Using a systematic search, 90 travel websites were selected with an equal number of North American-based, European-based, and Asia Pacfic-based websites. These regions represent the areas of the world with the most Internet users. Based on the developed framework of information quality, the contents of the selected travel websites were evaluated. Be empirical results indicated that the travel websites achieved different levels of quality in online information, and that North American-based websites performed significantly better in some attributes.

3D TerraFly: Quality of service management for online interactive 3D geographic information system

3D geographic information system (GIS) is data and computation intensive in nature. Internet users are usually equipped with low-end personal computers and network connections of limited bandwidth. Data reduction and performance optimization techniques are of critical importance in quality of service (QoS) management for online 3D GIS. In this research, QoS management issues regarding distributed 3D GIS presentation were studied to develop 3D TerraFly, an interactive 3D GIS that supports high quality online terrain visualization and navigation. ^ To tackle the QoS management challenges, multi-resolution rendering model, adaptive level of detail (LOD) control and mesh simplification algorithms were proposed to effectively reduce the terrain model complexity. The rendering model is adaptively decomposed into sub-regions of up-to-three detail levels according to viewing distance and other dynamic quality measurements. The mesh simplification algorithm was designed as a hybrid algorithm that combines edge straightening and quad-tree compression to reduce the mesh complexity by removing geometrically redundant vertices. The main advantage of this mesh simplification algorithm is that grid mesh can be directly processed in parallel without triangulation overhead. Algorithms facilitating remote accessing and distributed processing of volumetric GIS data, such as data replication, directory service, request scheduling, predictive data retrieving and caching were also proposed. ^ A prototype of the proposed 3D TerraFly implemented in this research demonstrates the effectiveness of our proposed QoS management framework in handling interactive online 3D GIS. The system implementation details and future directions of this research are also addressed in this thesis. ^

A study of learners' perceived value and satisfaction for implied effectiveness of online learning systems

Online learning systems (OLS) have become center stage for corporations and educational institutions as a competitive tool in the knowledge economy. The satisfaction construct has received extensive coverage in information systems literature as an indicator of effectiveness but has been criticized for lack of validity; yet, the value construct has been largely ignored, although it has a long history in psychology, sociology, and behavioral science. The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the value and satisfaction constructs in the context of OLS, and their perceived by learners relationship for implied effectiveness of OLS. ^ First, a qualitative phase is employed to gather OLS values from learners' focus groups, followed by a pilot phase to refine a proposed instrument, and a main phase to validate the survey. Responses were received from 75 students in four focus groups, 141 in the pilot, and 207 the main survey. Extensive data cleaning and exploratory factor analysis were done to identify factors of learners' perceived value and satisfaction of OLS. Then, Value-Satisfaction grids and the Learners' Value Index of Satisfaction (LeVIS) were developed as benchmarking tools of OLS. Moreover, Multicriteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) techniques were employed to impute value from satisfaction scores in order to reduce survey response time. ^ The results provided four satisfaction and four value factors with high reliability (Cronbach's α). Moreover, value and satisfaction were found to have low linear and nonlinear correlations, indicating that they are two distinct uncorrelated constructs. This is consistent with the literature. Value-Satisfaction grids and the LeVIS index indicated relatively high effectiveness for technology and support characteristics, relatively low effectiveness for professor's characteristics, while course and learner characteristics indicated average effectiveness. ^ The main contributions of this study include identifying, defining, and articulating the relationship between value and satisfaction constructs as assessment of users' implied IS effectiveness, as well as assessing the accuracy of MCDA procedures to predict value scores, thus reducing by half the survey questionnaire size. ^

Navigating health sources on the Internet: A mixed-methods examination of online consumer reviews and expert text on psychotropic drugs

Purpose. The Internet has provided an unprecedented opportunity for psychotropic medication consumers, a traditionally silenced group in clinical trial research, to have voice by contributing to the construction of drug knowledge in an immediate, direct manner. Currently, there are no systematic appraisals of the potential of online consumer drug reviews to contribute to drug knowledge. The purpose of this research was to explore the content of drug information on various websites representing themselves as consumer- and expert-constructed, and as a practical consideration, to examine how each source may help and hinder treatment decision-making.^ Methodology. A mixed-methods research strategy utilizing a grounded theory approach was used to analyze drug information on 5 exemplar websites (3 consumer- and 2 expertconstructed) for 2 popularly prescribed psychotropic drugs (escitalopram and quetiapine). A stratified simple random sample was used to select 1,080 consumer reviews from the websites (N=7,114) through February 2009. Text was coded using QDA Miner 3.2 software by Provalis Research. A combination of frequency tables, descriptive excerpts from text, and chi-square tests for association were used throughout analyses.^ Findings. The most frequently mentioned effects by consumers taking either drug were related to psychological/behavioral symptoms and sleep. Consumers reported many of the same effects as found on expert health sites, but provided more descriptive language and situational examples. Expert labels of less serious on certain effects were not congruent with the sometimes tremendous burden described by consumers. Consumers mentioned more than double the themes mentioned in expert text, and demonstrated a diversity and range of discourses around those themes.^ Conclusions. Drug effects from each source were complete relative to the information provided in the other, but each also offered distinct advantages. Expert health sites provided concise summaries of medications’ effects, while consumer reviews had the added advantage of concrete descriptions and greater context. In short, consumer reviews better prepared potential consumers for what it’s like to take psychotropic drugs. Both sources of information benefit clinicians and consumers in making informed treatment-related decisions. Social work practitioners are encouraged to thoughtfully utilize online consumer drug reviews as a legitimate additional source for assisting clients in learning about treatment options.^

Development of a new student evaluation instrument of instructor effectiveness in online courses

The purpose of this study was to (a) develop an evaluation instrument capable of rating students' perceptions of the instructional quality of an online course and the instructor’s performance, and (b) validate the proposed instrument with a study conducted at a major public university. The instrument was based upon the Seven Principles of Good Practice for Undergraduate Education (Chickering & Gamson, 1987). The study examined four specific questions. 1. Is the underlying factor structure of the new instrument consistent with Chickering and Gamson's Seven Principles? 2. Is the factor structure of the new instrument invariant for male and female students? 3. Are the scores on the new instrument related students’ expected grades? 4. Are the scores on the new instrument related to the students' perceived course workload? ^ The instrument was designed to measure students’ levels of satisfaction with their instruction, and also gathered information concerning the students’ sex, the expected grade in the course, and the students’ perceptions of the amount of work required by the course. A cluster sample consisting of an array of online courses across the disciplines yielded a total 297 students who responded to the online survey. The students for each course selected were asked to rate their instructors with the newly developed instrument. ^ Question 1 was answered using exploratory factor analysis, and yielded a factor structure similar to the Seven Principles.^ Question 2 was answered by separately factor-analyzing the responses of male and female students and comparing the factor structures. The resulting factor structures for men and women were different. However, 14 items could be realigned under five factors that paralleled some of the Seven Principles. When the scores of only those 14 items were entered in two principal components factor analyses using only men and only women, respectively and restricting the factor structure to five factors, the factor structures were the same for men and women.^ A weak positive relationship between students’ expected grades and their scores on the instrument was found (Question 3). There was no relationship between students’ perceived workloads for the course and their scores on the instrument (Question 4).^

Online News Media Impact on Disaster Response: October 26, 2010 Indonesian Disaster Case Study

This paper reflects a research project on the influence of online news media (from print, radio, and televised outlets) on disaster response. Coverage on the October 2010 Indonesian tsunami and earthquake was gathered from 17 sources from October 26 through November 30. This data was analyzed quantitatively with respect to coverage intensity over time and among outlets. Qualitative analyses were also conducted using keywords and value scale that assessed the degree of positivity or negativity associated with that keyword in the context of accountability. Results yielded insights into the influence of online media on actors' assumption of accountability and quality of response. It also provided information as to the optimal time window in which advocates and disaster management specialists can best present recommendations to improve policy and raise awareness. Coverage of outlets was analyzed individually, in groups, and as a whole, in order to discern behavior patterns for a better understanding of media interdependency. This project produced analytical insights but is primarily intended as a prototype for more refined and extensive research.

Cuba’s Role in Venezuela’s Control of the Internet and Online Social Networks

The arrival of Cuba’s Information Technology (IT) and Communications Minister Ramiro Valdés to Venezuela in the Spring of 2010 to serve as a ‘consultant’ to the Venezuelan government awakened a new reality in that country. Rampant with deep economic troubles, escalating crime, a murder rate that has doubled since Chávez took over in 1999, and an opposition movement led by university students and other activists who use the Internet as their primary weapon, Venezuela has resorted to Cuba for help. In a country where in large part traditional media outlets have been censored or are government-controlled, the Internet and its online social networks have become the place to obtain, as well as disseminate, unfiltered information. As such, Internet growth and use of its social networks has skyrocketed in Venezuela, making it one of Latin America’s highest Web users. Because of its increased use to spark political debate among Venezuelans and publish information that differs with the official government line, Chávez has embarked on an initiative to bring the Internet to the poor and others who would otherwise not have access, by establishing government-sponsored Internet Info Centers throughout the country, to disseminate information to his followers. With the help of Cuban advisors, who for years have been a part of Venezuela’s defense, education, and health care initiatives, Chávez has apparently taken to adapting Cuba’s methodology for the control of information. He has begun to take special steps toward also controlling the type of information flowing through the country’s online social networks, considering the implementation of a government-controlled single Internet access point in Venezuela. Simultaneously, in adapting to Venezuela’s Internet reality, Chávez has engaged online by creating his own Twitter account in an attempt to influence public opinion, primarily of those who browse the Web. With a rapidly growing following that may soon reach one million subscribers, Chávez claims to have set up his own online trench to wage cyber space battle.

Everglades Online Thesaurus: A Standard Vocabulary for the South Florida Ecosystem

The Everglades Online Thesaurus is a structured vocabulary of concepts and terms relating to the south Florida environment. Designed as an information management tool for both researchers and metadata creators, the Thesaurus is intended to improve information retrieval across the many disparate information systems, databases, and web sites that provide Everglades-related information. The vocabulary provided by the Everglades Online Thesaurus expresses each relevant concept using a single ‘preferred term’, whereas in natural language many terms may exist to express that same concept. In this way, the Thesaurus offers the possibility of standardizing the terminology used to describe Everglades-related information — an important factor in predictable and successful resource discovery.

Evaluating Applicability of E-Service Quality in Online Hotel Bookings

This study evaluates applicability of E-service quality measurements in the context of online hotel bookings. Data was collected from an online survey of undergraduate college students at two universities in the United States. The Transaction Process-based Framework (eTransQual) conceptualized by Bauer et al. (2006) was adapted, and the dimensionality of e-service quality was identified. The study identified process/reliability as the most important factor influencing overall quality of booking websites.

Generating an Online Bottom Line

E-commerce is an approach to achieving business goals through information technology and is quickly changing the way hospitality business is planned, monitored, and conducted. No longer do buyers and sellers need to engage in interpersonal communications for transactions to occur. The future of transaction processing, which includes cyber cash and digital checking, are directly attributable to e-commerce which provides and efficient, reliable, secure, and effective platform for conducting hospitality business on the web.

Online Pricing Practice for Hotel Room Rates in China: The Case of Shanghai

Travel websites that enable hotel room reservations have created unprecedented business opportunities. However, they have also overloaded hotel customers with information. This situation is particularly true of China, an emerging country with the largest population in the world and the most promising growth prospect in tourism. This study investigated the room-rate pricing practice of five online distribution channels, measured by the lowest available rates. These online channels priced hotels of different categories in Shanghai, China’s largest city. Empirical findings indicated that local websites offered lower room rates than international websites for the selected hotels in different categories. Specifically, Chinatravel consistently offered the lowest room rates for the selected hotels.

Mining the online social network data: Influence, summarization, and organization

Online Social Network (OSN) services provided by Internet companies bring people together to chat, share the information, and enjoy the information. Meanwhile, huge amounts of data are generated by those services (they can be regarded as the social media ) every day, every hour, even every minute, and every second. Currently, researchers are interested in analyzing the OSN data, extracting interesting patterns from it, and applying those patterns to real-world applications. However, due to the large-scale property of the OSN data, it is difficult to effectively analyze it. This dissertation focuses on applying data mining and information retrieval techniques to mine two key components in the social media data — users and user-generated contents. Specifically, it aims at addressing three problems related to the social media users and contents: (1) how does one organize the users and the contents? (2) how does one summarize the textual contents so that users do not have to go over every post to capture the general idea? (3) how does one identify the influential users in the social media to benefit other applications, e.g., Marketing Campaign? The contribution of this dissertation is briefly summarized as follows. (1) It provides a comprehensive and versatile data mining framework to analyze the users and user-generated contents from the social media. (2) It designs a hierarchical co-clustering algorithm to organize the users and contents. (3) It proposes multi-document summarization methods to extract core information from the social network contents. (4) It introduces three important dimensions of social influence, and a dynamic influence model for identifying influential users.

Users Acceptance of Online Enrollment Processes in a Higher Education Institution

Little is known about students’ perceptions of online enrollment processes. Student satisfaction is part of the assessment required for accreditation, but evidence suggests that college administrators are oriented to retention and graduation rates rather than to consumer perception. The purpose of this descriptive quantitative study was to develop and validate a model that enables the measurement of online enrollment processes by the analysis of the students’ perceptions. The theoretical framework used to support this study was the process virtualization theory while the conceptual framework was based on Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). TAM is the most valid framework for studying user acceptance of technology and virtual processes. The model was modified, adding a new variable to fit this study. Research questions were used to determine if an institution knows how its students perceive online enrollment processes and how they can become more efficient and effective, improving usage and satisfaction. Descriptive data were collected and analyzed in phases: the pilot study phase, data collection phase, and analysis phases. Inferential statistics were used to draw information from sampled observations of the population; a Cronbach Alpha was conducted to determine the reliability and validity of the model. The study demonstrated that the modified TAM is valid, reliable, and fit to assess the perceptions of the users of online enrollment processes. This study will effect positive social change by providing enrollment managers and administrators information on how to analyze the acceptance their online enrollment processes from the perspective of their students as customers of an institution of higher learning.

The Effectiveness of an Online Workshop on Behavior Management as a Professional Development Tool for Teachers

The current study examines the effects of an online workshop pertaining to classroom behavior management on teacher self-efficacy, attitudes, motivation, knowledge, and practices. In addition, information about teacher utilization of the Internet, their opinions about professional development, and experiences with classroom management were collected. Participants included 57 1st through 5th grade special and regular education teachers. Eligible teachers were those who teach an academic subject and had at least one child in the classroom they considered as disruptive. Teachers were randomized to either a training or waitlist group. Classroom observations of teacher practices and questionnaires were utilized. Teachers in the training group participated in two assessment points, baseline and post-workshop, and received access to the online course immediately following the baseline assessment. Teachers in the waitlist group participated in three assessment points, baseline, post-workshop, and follow-up, and received access to the online course immediately following the post-workshop assessment. Findings show that all teachers had access to the Internet at home and at school and used it on a daily basis. The majority of teachers indicated having some past training on all the techniques that were presented in the online workshop. All teachers expressed satisfaction with the workshop, indicating that it should be offered again. Post-workshop, findings showed significant group differences in knowledge with a large effect for the training group scoring higher than the waitlist group on a quiz. Secondly, group differences in self-efficacy, knowledge, and attitudes with teachers’ past-training as a moderator, was examined. Past-training was not found to be a significant moderator of self-efficacy, knowledge, or attitudes. However, the main effect for training group was significant for attitudes. In addition, teacher attitudes, but not knowledge and self-efficacy, significantly predicted motivation to implement. Next, the moderating effect of barriers on motivation and classroom management skill implementation was examined. Barriers were not found to be a significant moderator. Lastly, the training group was observed to be significantly more effective at giving commands compared to the waitlist group. The current study demonstrates the potential of a low-intensity online workshop on classroom management to enhance the accessibility of teacher professional development.

Mining the Online Social Network Data: Influence, Summarization, and Organization

Online Social Network (OSN) services provided by Internet companies bring people together to chat, share the information, and enjoy the information. Meanwhile, huge amounts of data are generated by those services (they can be regarded as the social media ) every day, every hour, even every minute, and every second. Currently, researchers are interested in analyzing the OSN data, extracting interesting patterns from it, and applying those patterns to real-world applications. However, due to the large-scale property of the OSN data, it is difficult to effectively analyze it. This dissertation focuses on applying data mining and information retrieval techniques to mine two key components in the social media data — users and user-generated contents. Specifically, it aims at addressing three problems related to the social media users and contents: (1) how does one organize the users and the contents? (2) how does one summarize the textual contents so that users do not have to go over every post to capture the general idea? (3) how does one identify the influential users in the social media to benefit other applications, e.g., Marketing Campaign? The contribution of this dissertation is briefly summarized as follows. (1) It provides a comprehensive and versatile data mining framework to analyze the users and user-generated contents from the social media. (2) It designs a hierarchical co-clustering algorithm to organize the users and contents. (3) It proposes multi-document summarization methods to extract core information from the social network contents. (4) It introduces three important dimensions of social influence, and a dynamic influence model for identifying influential users.