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Article
Publication date: 26 April 2011

Jun Sun, Punit Ahluwalia and Kai S. Koong

This paper seeks to investigate which factors influence user attitudes toward different levels of security measures for protecting data of differing importance. The paper also…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to investigate which factors influence user attitudes toward different levels of security measures for protecting data of differing importance. The paper also examines user characteristics including IT proficiency and risk propensity, which give rise to individual differences in such attitudes.

Design/methodology/approach

To capture user attitudes toward a security measure, a construct called “information security readiness” (ISR) and its corresponding measurement items were developed. Observations were collected from a laboratory experiment based on a 2×3 factorial design, with data criticality and security level as the treatment variables. The participants were undergraduate students of a major American university. The moderating effect of data criticality on the relationship between security level and ISR was tested with multi‐group structural equation modeling. In addition to the treatment variables, IT proficiency and risk propensity were included as covariates in the analysis.

Findings

The results revealed a nonlinear relationship between security level and ISR. For data of high criticality, enhancing security level had a positive impact on ISR, but only up to the point perceived as appropriate by the participants. For data of low criticality, the enhancement of security level was perceived as unnecessary. In addition, IT proficiency was found to be a significant covariate, especially when data criticality was high.

Practical implications

In practice, the specification of a security measure requires a trade‐off between the utility of the data protected and the usability of the security method. The measure of ISR provides a means to locate the equilibrium by examining user attitudes across different security levels in relation to a particular level of data criticality. The significance of IT proficiency demonstrates the importance of user training.

Originality/value

This study introduces the ISR construct to capture evaluation, power, and activity dimensions underlying an individual's cognitive beliefs, affective responses, and behavioral inclinations toward the adoption of security measures. The results provide interesting insights into the role of interaction between security level and data criticality in influencing ISR.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 111 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

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Article
Publication date: 22 February 2013

Punit Ahluwalia, Jerald Hughes and Vishal Midha

Electronic markets are known to be distinct from, and more efficient than, the conventional retail markets. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect on pricing in…

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Abstract

Purpose

Electronic markets are known to be distinct from, and more efficient than, the conventional retail markets. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect on pricing in relation to proximity to a culturally and socially significant peak shopping day and the moderating effects of consumers product rating, product popularity, and featured product website rankings.

Design/methodology/approach

The shopping season during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2010 was used to collect data for this study. This paper uses a case study approach by extracting real store‐level data from the web pages of a B2C e‐retailer. Store level data were downloaded for a total of 19 days, before and after “Black Friday.” The longitudinal data were analyzed using regression analytic procedure to conform the hypotheses.

Findings

The longitudinal data supported the hypothesized relationship between days to the culturally significant shopping event and e‐retailer selling price. The data also confirmed that featured product ranking is a significant moderator of the above relationship.

Research limitations/implications

In e‐retailer websites, webpage ranking determines the order of display of products. Literature suggests that buyers choices are influenced by the volume and order of display of information. Therefore, this study includes webpage rankings of featured products, number of consumer reviews, and consumer ratings as independent variables. Another limitation of this study is that it uses data of one large e‐retailer. Future studies may address these limitations.

Originality/value

This paper examines the pricing behavior of e‐commerce companies during “culturally and socially significant” events. and answers research questions related to the electronic markets: Do e‐commerce companies participate in cultural and social events? How do these companies manipulate pricing during a special shopping season? How are search tools employed to showcase specific products to the buyers? Is there a relationship between proximity to “Black Friday” and product price, product popularity, and product ratings?

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