Framework and Items for Measuring End-User Computing Competency with a Case Study

Abstract

Abstract-The end-user computing capability is necessitated for efficiently performing his or her given tasks and improving his or her business performance in an computing environment. A measurement framework and items of an end-user computing competency is extracted from the major components of a general computing competency. Through a survey measurement of 287 respondents, this study performed factor and reliability analyses, and proposed a 15-item framework that can examine an end-user computing competency in an organizational computing environment. The application of the measure is confirmed by applying it to measuring the computing competency of the end-users in a firm computing environment and by presenting the measurement results for them.Index Terms-End-User computing, competency, framework, measurement items. I. INTRODUCTIONIn a computer system environment, the end-users use their computing systems for performing the end-users' given tasks. In this environment, we can think that their computing ability have an effect on the performance of their tasks in a computing environment. Hence, this research considers the measures to efficiently examine the end-user computing ability and improve it for raising his or her business completion and the competitiveness of an enterprise. But the researches on the measurement of the end-user computing ability have not actively executed, and these studies focus on specific software skills, professional skills, and operational skills and so on [1]- [3]. For the end-users effectively accomplish their tasks in a computing environment, they have to be qualified with not fragmentary computing skills but the total computing ability including the concepts, knowledge, application, and experience departments. The measurement scale suitable for examining end-user computing ability in a whole computing capability perspective are very important to effectively manage and improve the computing capability that an end-user can efficiently execute the given tasks in a computing environment. That is, the computing capability of an end-user is a critical factor to raise his or her business execution and results, and it also connects with a firm management performance.Therefore, this study presents a measurement framework Manuscript received August 26, 2013; revised October 20, 2013. The research was supported by a grant from the Academic Research Program of Korea National University of Transportation in 2013.Chui Young Yoon is with the Department of IT Applied-Convergence, Korea National University of Transportation, Chungbuk, 368-701, South Korea (e-mail: yoon0109@ut.ac.kr).and items scale for gauging a perceived end-user computing competency to efficiently perform his or her business tasks in a firm of computing environment. II. END-USER COMPUTING COMPETENCY A. Concepts of End-User ComputingIn previous literature, most of studies define that the end-user is an individual who directly interacting with his or her computer [4]- [6]. End-user computing refers to direct interaction with applic...