Are All Systems Alike? Moderating Effects of System Characteristics on Institutional Explanations for Systems Adoption

摘要

Prior research has used various theoretical perspectives, including institutional theory, to investigate the adoption of information systems. Institutional studies have examined the adoption of a number of different systems, such as EDI, ERP, and accounting information systems. However, an important, but long overlooked question in this literature is, "What is it about a system that makes it susceptible to institutional forces?" In other words, "Are all systems equally likely to be influenced by institutional factors?" In this paper, we argue that all systems are not alike and report on an on-going research project that examines how system characteristics moderate the effects of institutional forces on the adoption of information systems. Thus, this paper contributes to the adoption literature by investigating the boundary conditions of institutional theory.