End user as application developer for decision support

Abstract

This paper discusses a new generation end-user centred information service view, for developing decision support applications. The tailorable solution allows specific applications to be designed by end-users, where integrity is assured by the architecture's control in knowledge-based systems. In the development approach, the end-users at different level engage in interaction for secondary application creation. This initiative reinforces a shift from the traditional IS development process to a new provision where end-users can actively participate for a secondary application design. A secondary application design can be seen as a secondary activity for tailoring applications by the end users so that it fits within their context. However, the achievable boundaries of the architecture and the interplaying roles of end-users for the secondary design are still emergent and increasingly of interest to researchers. This paper describes a process by which 'end-users-as-designers' engage in the secondary design or redesign processes of decision support applications in a rural industry context.