AN ANALYSIS OF USERS REACTIONS TO AN EXPERT ADVISORY SYSTEM

Ignorance of user factors can be seen as one of the nontechnical issue s contributing to expert system failure. An expert advisory system is built for nonexpert users; the users' acceptance is a very important f actor for its successful implementation. If an expert advisory system satisfactorily represents the expertise in tire domain, there still re mains tire question: ''Will the end-users use the system?'' This paper aims to address users' issues by analysing their reactions towards an expert advisory system called ADGAME, developed to help its users mak e better decisions in playing a competitive business game. Two experim ents with ADGAME have been carried out. The research results show that , when the use of the expert advisory system is optional, there is con siderable reluctance to use it, particularly amongst the ''worst'' pot ential users. Users also doubt the potential benefits in terms of impr oved learning and confidence in decisions made. Strangely, the one pos itive expectation that users had, that the system would save them time , proved not to be the case in practice; ADGAME appears to improve the users effectiveness rather than their efficiency.