Affiliations: Department of Information Systems & Quantitative
Analysis, College of Information Science & Technology, University of
Nebraska at Omaha, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE 68182-0116, USA. E-mail:
gdevreede@mail.unomaha.edu, squreshi@ist.unomaha.edu | Computer Science Department, University of Dar Es
Salaam, Tanzania. E-mail: rmgaya@cs.udsm.ac.tz | Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands
Abstract: In the field of development, Information & Communication
Technology (ICT) is often hailed and cursed at the same time. ICT offers great
promise to enhance development activities' efficiency and effectiveness yet the
literature is littered with examples of failure. A particular challenge
concerns the application of ICT to support collaboration in development
contexts. In this paper, we report on field experiences with one particular
type of collaboration technology, Group Support Systems (GSS), and its role in
supporting groups engaged in development activities. Being an North-American
invention, research into GSS is predominantly focused on Western Euro-American
settings. GSS field studies in other cultural environments are scarce. The
objective of our study is to explore and compare the applicability of GSS in
two particular environments: Tanzania and South Africa. Our data suggest that
the use of GSS is evaluated positively in both countries, although Tanzanian
groups perceived more benefits. In South Africa, top management displayed very
open and non-conservative behavior towards the technology, while in Tanzania
hesitance from top management can be expected to be the greatest hindrance for
GSS acceptance and application. The data further indicate that GSS do not
replace existing meeting customs, but rather introduce new ones that co-exist
next to the traditional ones. A key difference between application of GSS in
western and African environments is a stronger focus on the electronic part of
discussions in Africa. Anonymity is perceived as the key feature.
Keywords: collaborative development, group support systems, collaboration technology, groupware, tanzania, south Africa, field research
