LESSON 7

QUALITY AND QUANTITY INFORMATION

Information quality (IQ) is the quality of the content of information systems. It is often
pragmatically defined as: "The fitness for use of the information provided.". IQ frameworks also
provides a tangible approach to assess and measure DQ/IQ in a robust and rigorous manner.

Conceptual Problems

Although this pragmatic definition is usable for most everyday purposes, specialists often use more
complex models for information quality. Most information system practitioners use the term
synonymously with data quality. However, as many academics make a distinction
between data and information, some will insist on a distinction between data quality and
information quality. This distinction would be akin to the distinction
between syntax and semantics where for example, the semantic value of "one" could be expressed
in different syntaxes like 00001; 1.0000; 01.0; or 1. Thus a data difference may not necessarily
represent poor information quality.

Information quality assurance is the process to guarantee confidence that particular information
meets some context specific quality requirements. It has been suggested, however, that higher the
quality the greater will be the confidence in meeting more general, less specific contexts.

Dimensions and metrics of information quality

"Information quality" is a measure of the value which the information provides to the user of that
information. "Quality" is often perceived as subjective and the quality of information can then vary
among users and among uses of the information. Nevertheless, a high degree of quality increases
its objectivity or at least the inter subjectivity. Accuracy can be seen as just one element of IQ but,
depending upon how it is defined, can also be seen as encompassing many other dimensions of
quality.

If not, it is perceived that often there is a trade-off between accuracy and other dimensions, aspects
or elements of the information determining its suitability for any given tasks. Wang and

Strong proposes a list of dimensions or elements used in assessing Information Quality is:

Intrinsic IQ: accuracy, objectivity, Believability, reputation

Contextual IQ: relevance, value-added, Timeliness, Completeness, amount of information
Representational IQ: interpretability, format, coherence, compatibility
Accessibility IQ: accessibility, access security

Quality Metrics

Authority/verifiability

Authority refers to the expertise or recognized official status of a source. Consider the reputation
of the author and publisher. When working with legal or government information, consider
whether the source is the official provider of the information. Verifiability refers to the ability of
a reader to verify the validity of the information irrespective of how authoritative the source is. To
verify the facts is part of the duty of care of the journalistic deontology, as well as, where possible,
to provide the sources of information so that they can be verified

Scope of coverage

Scope of coverage refers to the extent to which a source explores a topic. Consider time periods,
geography or jurisdiction and coverage of related or narrower topics.
Composition and organization

Composition and organization has to do with the ability of the information source to present its
particular message in a coherent, logically sequential manner.

Objectivity

Objectivity is the bias or opinion expressed when a writer interprets or analyze facts. Consider the
use of persuasive language, the source’s presentation of other viewpoints, its reason for providing
the information and advertising.

Integrity

Adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character

The state of being whole, entire, or undiminished

Comprehensiveness

Of large scope; covering or involving much; inclusive: a comprehensive study.

Comprehending mentally; having an extensive mental grasp.
Insurance. covering or providing broad protection against loss.

Validity

Validity of some information has to do with the degree of obvious truthfulness which the
information carries

Uniqueness

As much as ‘uniqueness’ of a given piece of information is intuitive in meaning, it also

significantly implies not only the originating point of the information but also the manner in which
it is presented and thus the perception which it conjures. The essence of any piece of information
we process consists to a large extent of those two elements.

Timeliness

Timeliness refers to information that is current at the time of publication. Consider publication,
creation and revision dates. Beware of Web site scripting that automatically reflects the current
day’s date on a page.

Reproducibility (utilized primarily when referring to instructive information)

Means that documented methods are capable of being used on the same data set to achieve a
consistent result.

QUANTITIES OF INFORMATION

The mathematical theory of information is based on probability theory and statistics, and measures
information with several quantities of information. The choice of logarithmic base in the following
formulae determines the unit of information entropy that is used. The most common unit of
information is the bit, based on the binary logarithm. Other units include the nat, based on
the natural logarithm, and the hartley, based on the base 10 or common logarithm.
 LESSON 8
INFORMATION SYSTEM (IS)

An Information system (IS) is a formal, sociotechnical, organizational system designed to collect,

process, store, and distribute information. In a sociotechnical perspective, information systems are
composed by four components: task, people, structure (or roles), and technology. Information
systems can be defined as an integration of components for collection, storage and processing of
data of which the data is used to provide information, contribute to knowledge as well as digital
products.

A computer information system is a system composed of people and computers that processes or
interprets information. The term is also sometimes used to simply refer to a computer system with
software installed.

Information Systems is an academic study of systems with a specific reference to information and
the complementary networks of hardware and software that people and organizations use to
collect, filter, process, create and also distribute data. An emphasis is placed on an information
system having a definitive boundary, users, processors, storage, inputs, outputs and the
aforementioned communication networks.

Any specific information system aims to support operations, management and decision-
making. An information system is the information and communication technology (ICT) that an
organization uses, and also the way in which people interact with this technology in support of
business processes.

Some authors make a clear distinction between information systems, computer systems,
and business processes. Information systems typically include an ICT component but are not
purely concerned with ICT, focusing instead on the end-use of information technology.
Information systems are also different from business processes. Information systems help to
control the performance of business processes.

Alter argues for advantages of viewing an information system as a special type of work system. A
work system is a system in which humans or machines perform processes and activities using
resources to produce specific products or services for customers. An information system is a work
system whose activities are devoted to capturing, transmitting, storing, retrieving, manipulating
and displaying information.

As such, information systems inter-relate with data systems on the one hand and activity systems
on the other. An information system is a form of communication system in which data represent
and are processed as a form of social memory. An information system can also be considered a
semi-formal language which supports human decision making and action.

The Six Components of IS

The six components that must come together in order to produce an information system are:

Hardware: The term hardware refers to machinery and equipment. In a modern information
system, this category includes the computer itself and all of its support equipment. The support
equipment includes input and output devices, storage devices and communications devices. In pre-
computer information systems, the hardware might include ledger books and ink.

Software: The term software refers to computer programs and the manuals (if any) that support
them. Computer programs are machine-readable instructions that direct the circuitry within the
hardware parts of the system to function in ways that produce useful information from data.
Programs are generally stored on some input/output medium, often a disk or tape. The "software"
for pre-computer information systems included how the hardware was prepared for use (e.g.,
column headings in the ledger book) and instructions for using them (the guidebook for a card
catalog).

Data: Data are facts that are used by systems to produce useful information. In modern information
systems, data are generally stored in machine-readable form on disk or tape until the computer
needs them. In pre-computer information systems, the data are generally stored in human-readable
form.
Procedures: Procedures are the policies that govern the operation of an information system.
"Procedures are to people what software is to hardware" is a common analogy that is used to
illustrate the role of procedures in a system.

People: Every system needs people if it is to be useful. Often the most overlooked element of the
system is the people, probably the component that most influence the success or failure of
information systems. This includes "not only the users, but those who operate and service the
computers, those who maintain the data, and those who support the network of computers."

Feedback: it is another component of the IS, that defines that an IS may be provided with feedback
(Although this component isn't necessary to function). Data is the bridge between hardware and
people. This means that the data we collect is only data until we involve people. At that point, data
is now information.

Types of Information System

A four level hierarchy

The "classic" view of Information systems found in textbooks in the 1980s was a pyramid of
systems that reflected the hierarchy of the organization, usually transaction processing systems at
the bottom of the pyramid, followed by management information systems, decision support
systems, and ending with executive information systems at the top. Although the pyramid model
remains useful since it was first formulated, a number of new technologies have been developed
and new categories of information systems have emerged, some of which no longer fit easily into
the original pyramid model.

Some examples of such systems are:

 decision support system
 social information systems
 process control system
 management information system
 intelligent system
 enterprise systems
 data warehouses
 enterprise resource planning
 computing platform
 expert systems
 search engines
 geographic information system
 global information system
 multimedia information system
 office automation.