The Roles of Challenge and Skill in the Flow Experiences of Web Users

Pace, Steven

doi:10.28945/2824

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…Hence, an appropriate approach to get an in-depth view of design mechanisms leading to flow seems to be a qualitative one, since it can account for specific individuals and the context of the flow activities. Whereas some existing qualitative approaches to flow on the Web have provided valuable preliminary steps, the authors have either generically explored "the Web" as a whole [10,11,58,67] or focused on broad activities such as information-seeking on the Web surfing across multiple websites [62,63], and did not focus on design issues. Therefore, as a next step to get an in-depth view of design principles for flow, it seems reasonable to focus on a specific website type on which subjects repeatedly experience flow.…”

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confidence: 99%

A Grounded Theory of Online Shopping Flow

Mahnke

Benlian

Heß

2015

International Journal of Electronic Commerce

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With the increasing number of websites that have found their way into our daily lives, substantial resources are invested in enhancing user experience beyond mere functionality. Optimizing flow-the psychological state of deep focus while conducting a fluent activity-seems a promising approach, resulting in a win-win situation for both users and website operators. Flow has been found to result in "optimal" user experience leading to intrinsically motivated behavior, engagement, and loyalty. However, to date, there is little concrete knowledge of or advice on how to design a website for flow. This study develops a grounded theory of flow experiences in the context of online shopping, and sheds light on the theoretical relationships between concrete realizable website design options, corresponding latent constructs, and flow experience. Based on our findings we derive theoretical as well as practical implications for understanding and designing flow experience on the web.KEY WORDS AND PHRASES: Flow theory, digital service innovation, user experience, human--computer interaction, e-tail, grounded theory.The point that information systems' use can be a source of pleasure has been increasingly emphasized for several decades by researchers in the field of information systems research and human-computer interaction (e.g., [7,48,81]). In this context, pleasure or enjoyment addresses "the extent to which the activity of using the computer is perceived to be enjoyable in its own right, apart from any performance consequences that may be anticipated" [18, p. 1113]. Similarly, motivations to engage in information search that include both utilitarian and hedonic dimensions provide an expanded view on e-commerce that has been increasingly examined in the past decade (e.g., [5,12,65]). In the same vein, the theory of flow has been proposed by various authors as a useful framework to explain user behavior (e.g., [15,22,23,24,31,37,75,82]). Flow describes the state of "self reflection-free immersion in a continual activity" [70, p. 380] in which time, place, and an activity's original external aim are forgotten and the individual is totally absorbed in the activity [14,71]. Flow experiences are related to pleasant, intrinsically motivated activities that are usually experienced as very positive [14,54].Examining flow experiences on the Web seems to be particularly promising, since numerous positive side effects are expected if users surf the Web or a website in a state of flow. The experience of flow is positively related to the affect toward websites [59,60], the attitude toward websites [74], satisfaction with websites [19,47], the evaluation of websites [57], and e-learning success [29]. Flow is associated with a website's usefulness and ease of use [2,30,34,74], as well as the intention to use a website [74].are achieved if users surf the Web in a state of flow, resulting in a win-win situation for users and website operators, it seems to be particularly relevant to design websites in a manner that enhances users' flow exper...

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confidence: 99%

A Grounded Theory of Online Shopping Flow

Mahnke

Benlian

Heß

2015

International Journal of Electronic Commerce

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“…In particular, some PhD studies around the world have used GT (e.g. Pace, 2003; Lehmann, 2001). For example, Pace (2003) employed GT to explore a psychological phenomenon called “flow” in web users.…”

Section: Gt In Lismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pace, 2003; Lehmann, 2001). For example, Pace (2003) employed GT to explore a psychological phenomenon called “flow” in web users. According to Pace (2003) flow refers to a state of consciousness that is experienced by people who are deeply involved in an enjoyable activity and consequently do not pay any attention to anything else.…”

Section: Gt In Lismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Pace (2003) employed GT to explore a psychological phenomenon called “flow” in web users. According to Pace (2003) flow refers to a state of consciousness that is experienced by people who are deeply involved in an enjoyable activity and consequently do not pay any attention to anything else. Pace's (2003) study is an example of successful use of GT to explore conceptual phenomena such as flow experiences by web users.…”

Section: Gt In Lismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pace (2003) developed a theory which demonstrates the role of a number of contextual elements in the interactions between end users and the web including curiosity and time urgency. Pace's theory illustrates the common challenges that web users might encounter while surfing the web and also the coping mechanisms that they usually use to overcome these challenges.…”

Section: Gt In Lismentioning

confidence: 99%

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Adoption of grounded theory in LIS research

Mansourian

2006

New Library World

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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the implementations and implications of Grounded Theory as an exploratory and inductive research method in the LIS studies. The paper seeks to illustrate the opportunities and challenges that this methodology has brought to the methodological paradigms of LIS research body. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on two blended constituents including a selective literature review and the author's personal experience in using Grounded Theory. Regarding the paper's scope it possesses a holistic approach to the issue and does not examine the results of individual reviewed studies in detail. Findings – The results suggest that up to now there have been a considerable number of studies in the LIS area that have successfully employed Grounded Theory. Nevertheless, it does not mean that this methodology is applicable in any research context. Accordingly, there is not a unanimous agreement on the usefulness of this methodology in the research community. Nevertheless, these arguments not only did not diminish the value of Grounded Theory but also helped grounded theorists to enhance this methodology's credibility and trustfulness. Research limitations/implications – Regarding the wide use of Grounded Theory it was not possible to carry out an exhaustive review of all studies that have employed Grounded Theory. However, the reviewed studies in this paper can be considered as a representative of the targeted research body. Providing the research community with an overall image of the applicability of Grounded Theory in LIS research is the main implication of the paper. Future researchers will benefit from the paper by finding out about the nature of this methodology and the aspects that they need to consider before using it. Originality/value – Although Grounded Theory is a widely used methodology, there are few publications about its applicability in LIS research. Therefore, this paper can contribute to the area through providing a holistic picture of the role of this methodology in LIS research.

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Re-conceiving time in reference and information services work: a qualitative secondary analysis

Bossaller¹,

Burns²,

VanScoy³

2017

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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to use the sociology of time to understand how time is perceived by academic librarians who provide reference and information service (RIS). Design/methodology/approach This study is a qualitative secondary analysis (QSA) of two phenomenological studies about the experience of RIS in academic libraries. The authors used QSA to re-analyze the interview transcripts to develop themes related to the perception of time. Findings Three themes about the experience of time in RIS work were identified. Participants experience time as discrete, bounded moments but sometimes experience threads through these moments that provide continuity, time is framed as a commodity that weighs on the value of the profession, and time plays an integral part of participants’ narratives and professional identities. Research limitations/implications Given that the initial consent processes vary across organizations and types of studies, the researchers felt ethically compelled to share only excerpts from each study’s data, rather than the entire data set, with others on the research team. Future qualitative studies should consider the potential for secondary analysis and build data management and sharing plans into the initial study design. Practical implications Most discussions of time in the literature are presented as a metric – time to answer a query, time to conduct a task – The authors offer a more holistic understanding of time and its relationship to professional work. Social implications The methodology taken in this paper makes sense of the experiences of work in RIS for librarians. It identifies commonalities between the experience of time and work for RIS professionals and those of other professionals, such as physicians and software engineers. It suggests revising models for RIS, as well as some professional values. Originality/value This paper contributes a better understanding of time, understudied as a phenomenon that is experienced or perceived, among RISs providers in academic libraries. The use of secondary qualitative analysis is an important methodological contribution to library and information science studies.

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The Roles of Challenge and Skill in the Flow Experiences of Web Users

Cited by 8 publications

References 15 publications

A Grounded Theory of Online Shopping Flow

A Grounded Theory of Online Shopping Flow

Adoption of grounded theory in LIS research

Re-conceiving time in reference and information services work: a qualitative secondary analysis

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