ITcon Vol. 13, pg. 56-68, http://www.itcon.org/2008/4

Resistance to IT change in the AEC industry: an individual assessment tool

submitted:September 2007
revised:February 2008
published:March 2008
editor(s):Björk B-C
authors:Kirsten A. Davis, Assistant Professor
Dept. of Construction Management, Boise State University
Boise, ID, USA
Email: kirstendavis@boisestate.edu

Anthony D. Songer, Associate Professor
Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Blacksburg, VA, USA
Email: adsonger@vt.edu
summary:Numerous IT adoption studies within the AEC industry identify issues with individuals resisting IT changes. Current change models often only look at organizations and tasks and frequently neglect the individuals involved. The limitations in existing change models and the criticality of people issues in the successful implementation of change necessitates the investigation of individual resistance to IT change. Change management theory and attitude-behavior connections provide a framework to study variables associated with impeding/promoting the use of technologies. Data collected from a 50-person sample of the AEC population allowed reductions of the attitudes, fears, and beliefs variables. Reducing the variables indicative of resistance to information technology change facilitated the creation of a detailed social architecture factor model. Subsequently, a Resistance to Change Index (RTCI) was created, enabling estimations of the intensity of resistance an individual is likely to exhibit using the personality traits and behavioral characteristics identified in the revised social architecture factor model. The RTCI assists practitioners in developing new technology implementation plans. The RTCI also enables researchers to understand how individual participants resist and adapt to change allowing the development of enhanced organizational adoption models for new technology implementation within the building industry.
keywords:Resistance, Change Management, Information Technology, Technology
full text: (PDF file, 0.169 MB)
citation:Davis K A, Songer A D (2008). Resistance to IT change in the AEC industry: an individual assessment tool, ITcon Vol. 13, pg. 56-68, https://www.itcon.org/2008/4