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Access to the spatial data and the willingness of organisation to share
IT:
A research methodology
Dr. Uta Wehn de Montalvo
TNO Strategy, Technology and Policy
Schoemakerstraat 97
2600JA Delft, NL
email: wehndemontalvo@stb.tno.nl
Abstract
The diversity of problems addressed using spatial data means that GIS-using organisations
would benefit from greater access to digital spatial data from a variety of sources. An
organising framework for spatial data sharing research has been introduced and a structural
model integrating the factors that determine spatial data sharing has been developed and
validated (Wehn de Montalvo 2001a, b). The research methodology underpinning this model
can be useful for efforts to foster a spatial data sharing culture. This paper addresses the
methodological issues that require consideration in order to operationalise it. The research
design to investigate the determinants of spatial data sharing behaviour involves a
combination of qualitative and quantitative empirical research methods.
Introduction
In many industrialised and developing countries, considerable investments in GIS have been made and
they are being used relatively widely in public, private and non-profit organisations. The diversity of
problems addressed using spatial data means that GIS-using organisations would benefit from greater
access to digital spatial data from a variety of sources. Yet the diffusion of GIS has been accompanied
by the appearance of spatial data bottlenecks in terms of limitations on the required quality,
availability, and scale of spatial data.
An organising framework for spatial data sharing research has been introduced and a structural model
integrating the factors that determine spatial data sharing has been developed and validated (Wehn de
Montalvo 2001a, b). The research methodology underpinning this model can be useful for efforts to
foster a spatial data sharing culture and can be applied to any community of actors (local, national,
regional, international). The methodological issues that require consideration in order to operationalise
this framework are addressed in this paper. In particular, the paper provides details of the steps needed
to implement this approach for an analysis of spatial data sharing behaviour.
Section 1 provides the background by presenting the model of spatial data sharing and a brief
overview of its theoretical foundation in social psychology. Section 2 analyses different
conceptualisations of spatial data sharing in order to arrive at a definition of spatial data sharing.
Section 3 presents the specification of the research design including a definition of the behavioural
elements that are included in the model of spatial data sharing and the two stages of the empirical
research. The following section (Section 4) presents the methods used to implement these two stages
of empirical research. The selection of interviewees and survey respondents, the design of the survey
questionnaire, and sampling procedures are discussed. Section 5 gives consideration to hypothesis
construction and procedures for the validation of the model. Section 6 concludes the paper.
1. A framework to analyse spatial data sharing behaviour
The main focus of the research approach presented here is on the underlying motivations that
precipitate action that results in the release of information beyond the boundaries of an organisation.
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