Case Study: Measurement of Variables Operational Definitions
Chapter 11: TheStandard AsianMerchantBank
TheStandardAsianMerchantBankisa MalaysianmerchantbankheadquarteredinKuala Lumpur.Thebankprovidesfinancialservicesin assetmanagementcorporatefinanceand securities broking. Clients of The Standard Asian Merchant Bank are among others institutional investors foundations (semi) public institutions companies and high net- worthindividualclients.SegmentsinwhichTheStandardAsianMerchantBankoperatesare smallandmedium-sizedlistedcompaniesrealestateandbiotechfirms.
SyafiqAimiisa BusinessstudentfromtheNationalUniversityof Malaysiawhichislocatedin Bangi Selangor -about 35km south ofKuala Lumpur. Syafiq iscurrentlyundertaking a research project for the Structured Products (SP) desk ofThe Standard Asian Merchant Banks securities department. The SP desk is responsible for developing and selling structuredproducts:investmentsthatconsist ofa portfolioofsecuritiesandderivatives. Structured products areinvestment instruments thatarecreatedtomeetspecific needs thatcannotbemetfromstandardizedfinancialinstruments.TheproductsoftheSPdeskare tailor-madeandtheyaredevelopedbasedonthe StandardAsian MerchantBanksniche specializations which are Asian listed real estate companies life sciences companies and shares.
TheSPdeskofTheStandardAsianMerchantBankhasitsownwebsitethatisprimarilyused toprovideinformationtotheusersofthewebsite.Thewebsitecontainsinformationabout theproductsoffered(e.g.brochureslegaldocumentsandbid-askspreads)publications andcontactinformation.Thewebsitecanbeclassifiedasa services-oriented relationship- building website. There are two main groups of website users; financial advisors and institutionalclientsoftheSPdesk.Theyusethewebsitetoexamineproductfeaturesprices oftheproductsofferedbytheSPdeskandlegalinformation.
For the SP desk there are several reasons why they have asked Syafiq to undertake a researchproject:
1. Satisfactionwiththewebsitehasneverbeenmeasured.AsaresulttheSPdeskdoes notknowhowtheusersexperiencethewebsite.Thecurrentcontentandlayoutof thewebsitearebasedonassumptionsofwhatusersarelookingforonthewebsite. Forthisreasonthewebsitemaycontainelementsdeemedunnecessarybytheusers andit mightlackfeaturesthatareimportanttotheusers.
2. Usersofthewebsiteonlyspendasmallamountoftimeonthewebsite.In2011
morethan70%(75.4%)ofthevisitorsspentlessthan30secondsonthewebsiteof theSPdesk(AWStats2011).Theproductsofferedatthewebsitearequitecomplex and clients often have a lack of knowledge concerning Structured Products. Therefore it is desirable to encourage website users to spend more time on the website.
3. Thewebsiteisnotself-explanatory.Consequentlypeoplecontactemployeesofthe SPdesktoaskforexplanationandclarification.Thisisatimeconsumingprocessthat isrelativelyexpensiveforasmalldesk.
BasedonpreliminaryresearchthefollowingproblemstatementwascreatedbySyafiq:
WhatelementsareofimportanceindrivingSatisfactionwiththe WebsiteintheAsian investmentbankingindustrytowhatextentdothesevariablesinfluenceSatisfaction with theWebsiteandhowcantheresultsofthisstudybeusedtocreateawebsitefortheSP deskthat isself-explanatory that peopleuseas theirmain information sourceand that websiteusersspendmoretimeon?
SeveralresearchmethodsareusedbySyafiqtoanswertheproblemstatement.Inorderto determinethevariablesrelevanttohisstudySyafiqhascarriedoutaliteraturereviewand face-to-face interviews. Based on the literature review and a rigorous analysis of the interviewsSyafiqhasdevelopedthefollowingconceptualmodel.
Informationquality
Systemquality
Interactivity
SatisfactionwiththeWebsite
Systemdesignquality
Syafiqnowwantstocollectquantitativedatatobeabletotestthismodelwithmultivariate regressionanalysis.In ordertocollectthesequantitativedataSyafiqis currentlybusywith designingasurveywhichhewantstopostonline.Hehasdevelopedthefollowingtablethat shouldhelphimtooperationalizetheconstructsinhisconceptualmodel.
Table 1:Overview oftheConstructs/variables inmyModelSubconstructs andSurvey
Questions
Information quality
Variable
Definition
Surveyquestions
Informationcontent
Referstothecontent ofthe information providedbythewebsite (Hernandezet al. 2009)
Therangeofinformationishigh.
The information isapplicabletothewebsitesactivities(zie relevance).
The information isdetailed (zieaccuracy).
The maingoalofthe informationonthewebsiteisclear.
Thewebsiteprovidesin-depth information.
The information onthewebsiteisinformative toyourusage. The information onthewebsiteisvaluable toyour usage. The information onthewebsiteisoftheappropriatedetail.The contentonthewebsitesupportsitsintendedpurpose.
Relevance
Referstothedegreetowhichthe
information meetstheneeds ofthe websiteuser (Muylle etal.2004).
Thewebsiteprovidesinformation thatexactlyfits your needs.
The information isapplicabletothewebsitesactivities.
The information inthewebsiteisrelevant.
The information inthewebsiteistothepoint.
The information inthewebsitedoesnothelpmeatall.
Up-to-date
Referstothecurrencyofthe information onthewebsite (McKinneyetal. 2002).
Information isalwaysupdated inthesite.
Thewebsiteprovidesup-to-dateinformation.
The information iscurrent.
Yougetthe information youneedintime.
Understandability
Referstotheclearnessand goodnessofthe information (Cheung and Lee2005 2008).
Thecontentofthewebsiteiseasytounderstand. The meaning ofthe informationisclear.
The information inthewebsiteisclear to me.
The information inthewebsiteispresentedclearly. The information isclear in meaning.
The information iseasytocomprehend.
Ingeneral information onthewebsite isunderstandablefor youto use.
Completeness
Referstothecompletenessofthe
information onthewebsite(Muylle
etal. 2004)
Thewebsiteprovidescomprehensive information.
Thewebsiteprovidessufficientinformation. The information inthewebsiteiscomplete.
The information inthewebsiteissufficientlydetailed.
Reliability
Referstothedegreeofconsistency anddependabilityoftheinformation onthewebsite(Cheung andLee
20052008; McKinneyetal.2002).
Thewebsiteprovidesinformation that youtrust. The information onthewebsiteistrustworthy. The information onthewebsiteis credible.
Ingeneral information onthewebsite isreliableforyoutouse.
Accuracy
Referstothedegreetowhichthe information onthewebsite is perceivedtobeprecise(Muylle etal.
2004;Zhangand vonDran2002).
Thewebsiteprovidesaccurate information. Thewebsiteprovidespreciseinformation. The information onthewebsiteisdetailed. The information onthewebsiteisaccurate.
The information onthewebsiteisnotprecise. I canrelyonthe information inthewebsite.
The information inthewebsiteissufficientlydetailed.
Usefulness
Referstothedegreetowhichthe user believesthattheinformation onthewebsitewill enhancetheir decision (Cheung and Lee2005
2008; McKinneyetal.2002)
The information onthewebsiteisuseful.
The information onthewebsiteisinformative toyour usage.
The information onthewebsiteisvaluable toyour usage.
Ingeneral information onblackboard isusefulfor youtouse.
Systemquality
Variable
Definition
Surveyquestions
Navigability
Referstothe easewithwhichusers
canfindtheneededinformation on thewebsite(Schmidt etal. 2007; EvansandKing 1999*).
I findthesite easytonavigate.
Thenavigation linksarestated in everypage.
Itiseasytofindtheinformation I needfromthiswebsite.
The organizationofthecontentsofthissite makesit easyfor meto know whereI amwhennavigatingit.
You obtaindesired information quickly. Itiseasyto locate the information.
Thewebsite isbeing easytogobackandforthbetweenpages. Thewebsite isprovidinga few clickstolocate information.
Ingeneral thewebsite iseasytonavigate.
Access
Referstotheavailabilityofthe websiteatall times(Cheung and Lee
2005; 2008)
Thewebsite isresponsivetoyour request.
Ingeneral thewebsiteprovidesgoodaccess.
Thewebsite isavailable atall times.
Thewebsitecanbeaccessedusingdifferentbrowsers(OS).
Easeof use
Referstothe easewithwhichthe website canbeused(Tarafdar and Zhang 2006).
I findthesite easytooperate.
Thewebsite iseasytounderstand.
Thiswebsite issimple touse evenwhenusing itfor thefirsttime. Thewebsite iseasytouse.
Thewebsite isuser-friendly.
Itisdifficulttooperatethewebsite.
Ingeneral thewebsite isuser friendly.
Thewebsite iswell organized.
I findthewebsite easytouse.
Speed
Referstothedegreetowhichthe websiteusersperceivethewebsite tobefastorslow(Muylle etal.
2004).
I findthesitedownloadtimeacceptable. Thespeedofdisplaybetweenpagesishigh.
There isverylittle timebetween myrequest forpagesandhavingthe pagesdisplayed onmy computer.
Therateatwhich informationisdisplayed isfast. Thesitedoesntwastemytime.
Thewebsite istimeconsuming.
Itdoesnottake muchtimetogetfromoneplace inthewebsiteto
another.
Thewebsite isfast.
Thewebsite isquicklyloadingall thetextandgraphics.
WhenI usethewebsitethere is verylittle waitingtimebetweenmy actions andthewebsitesresponse.
Thewebsite loadsquickly.
Thewebsitetakeslongtooload.
Security
Referstotheusersperceptions of thewebsitesreliabilityandsafety (AwamlehandFernandes2005).
Youfeelthewebsite issecure.
Thewebsitehasprovisionsfor user authentication.
Thewebsitehasan informationpolicy.
Thewebsitehasadequatesecurityfeatures.
Privacy
Referstothe elementsthatprovide websiteusersasenseof privacy (Schmidt etal. 2008).
I feel like myprivacyisprotectedatthiswebsite.
Systemaccuracy
Referstotheaccuracyofthewebsite inprovidinginformationto itsusers.
Thesystem isaccurate.
Areyousatisfiedwith theaccuracyofthesystem?
Systemreliability
Referstothereliabilityofthe website inprovidinginformationto itsusers.
Yougetthe informationthatyourequested onthewebsite.
Interactivity
Variable
Definition
Surveyquestions
Customersupport
Referstothefacilitiesand
communication channelsthata companyofferstoestablish direct contactwithusersinordertohelp themwithquestions or problems (ChenandYen2004; Hernandez etal.
2009;Wan2000; Wolfinbargerand
Gilly2003**).
I cansendmyfeedbackaboutthesite.
Think ofall thepossible waysthat you cancontactour bank whenyou needto. Based onthisinformation andonyour ownpreferences how easydoyouthink it istocontactus?
Youaresatisfiedwiththecustomersupportprovidedbythewebsite. Youaresatisfiedwiththeafter-salessupportprovidedbythewebsite. Thewebsiteunderstands your problemsandrequests.
Thewebsiterespondstoyour requestsfast enough.
Thewebsiteprovidesthepersonalized customer supportyouneed.
Thewebsiterespondstoyour problemsandrequestspromptly. Thecompanyiswillingandreadytorespondto customer needs. Whenyouhaveaproblem thewebsiteshowsasincere interest in solvingit.
Inquiriesareansweredpromptly.
Customisation
Referstotheabilityofwebsitesto presentcustomized informationto fulfill the individual needs ofusers (Tarafdar andZhang 2006; Chenand Hitt2002***; Greer andMurtaza
2003****)
Thewebsiteprovidesinformation thatexactlyfits your needs. Thewebsitecanunderstandwhat you need viainteractive communication.
Thewebsitehaspersonalization characteristics. Thewebsite offerscustomized information.
The levelofpersonalization isaboutright nottoo muchortoo little. Thewebsiteprovidestheprecise information youneed.
Thewebsiteprovidesreportsthat seemtobejustabout exactlywhat youneed.
Thewebsiteallowsmeto interactwithit toreceivetailored information.
I can interactwiththewebsite in ordertogetinformationtailored to my specificneeds.
Control
Referstothe featuresonthewebsite that influence theuserssense of control(WolfinbargerandGilly
2000)*****.
Thesiteprovidesvalueadded features.
WhenI amusingthiswebsite I feelthatI am incontrolofwhatI can
do.
Theuser controlstheorder or sequenceofinformation access. Theuser controlshowfasttogo throughthewebsite.
Theuser controlsopportunitiesfor interaction.
Userscontrolthedifficultyleveloftheinformation accessed. Thewebsitehasfeatureswhichhelpmeaccomplish mytask.
Systemdesignquality
Variable
Definition
Surveyquestions
Visualappeal
Referstotheaestheticsofthe website(Loiacono etal. 2002).
Thesitehasanattractiveappearance. Thewebsitehasanattractive layout.
I like thelayoutofthewebsite.
The layoutofthewebsiteis visuallycomforting. The layoutofthewebsiteisannoying.
Thewebsite isvisuallyattractive.
Thewebsitehasanattractivescreen layout. Thewebsite isvisuallypleasing.
Thewebsitedisplaysvisuallypleasing design. Thewebsite isvisuallyappealing.
Innovativeness
Referstotheuniquenessand creativityofthewebsite(Loiacono et al. 2002).
Thedesignisappropriatetothetypeofthesite. Thewebsite isinnovative.
Thewebsitedesignisinnovative. Thewebsite iscreative.
Legibility
Referstothe easeofreading ofthe
information onthewebsite(Palmer
2002).
Thesitepresentsthe information inanappropriateformat.
The outputformat iseasytoread.
The layoutofthe information iseasytounderstand. Thewebsite iswell organized.
Thewebsitehasasimple layoutfor itscontent. Thewebsitehasacleardesign.
The information onthewebsiteiseasytoread. Thetext on thewebsite iseasytoread.
Consistent image
Referstotheconsistencyofthe imageprojectedbythewebsitewith the imageofthefirm (Loiacono et al.
2002).
Thedesignisappropriatetothetypeofwebsite. I findthesitehasconsistentpagelayout.
Youaresatisfiedwiththe imageofthewebsite.
The companyto which the website belongshasa well-knownbrand. The website projectsanimage consistentwiththe companysimage. Thewebsite fitswithmyimageofthecompany.
Thewebsitesimage matchesthat ofthecompany.
SatisfactionwiththeWebsite
Satisfactionwiththe
website
Definition
Surveyquestions
Thediscrepancybetweena customersexpectations andperceptions of performance
Ingeneralterms I amsatisfiedwiththewaythatthiswebsitehas carried out myactions.
IngeneralIam satisfied withtheservicethatIreceivedfromthewebsite. Pleasethinkofyouroverallexperience withthewebsite.Onascaleof1-7 overallhowsatisfiedareyouwiththewebsite?
Youaresatisfiedwith thewebsite.
Note.Thesurveyquestionsinthe last columnarequestionsfromvariousstudiesonwebsitequality.I havetriedtofind
asmanyquestionsas Icould.Everysinglesurveyquestionis takenoutof(oneof)thepaperspresentedinthereference list.
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QUESTIONS
1. Measurement is the assignment of numbers to characteristics (or attributes) of
objects according to a pre-specified set of rules. Describe the object and characteristicsofSyafiqsstudy.
2. The measurement ofmore abstract andsubjective characteristics (orattributes – such for instance the attributes in Syafiqs study) is more difficult than the
measurement of other more tangible attributes such as weight length gender age and marital status. Why is that?
3. Onewayoftappingmoreabstractandsubjectiveattributesisoperationalizingthese attributes.
a. Whatisoperationalization?
b. Describetheprocessofoperationalizingvariables.
4. BasedonareviewoftheliteratureSyafiqhasdevelopedatable(Table1)thatshould helphimtooperationalizethe variablesof his conceptualmodel.Usethistableto discusstheattributeInformationQualityintermsofdimensionsandelements.In other words which dimensions of Information Quality has Syafiq found in the literatureand howhavethesedimensionsfurtherbeenbrokenintoelementsby researcherswhohaveinvestigatedthisissueinthepast?
5. Syafiqcoulddecidetousethesurveyquestionshehasfoundintheliteratureasa
basis for hisquestionnaire. Isitingeneral agood or a badideatouseexisting scales?Why?
Reference:
Sekaran U. & Bougie R. (2013). Research methods for business: A skill building approach (6th ed.). Chichester United Kingdom: Wiley. ISBN: 978-1-119-94225-2.