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In order to provide an updated view on the drivers of German stock returns, the authors evaluate the relative performance of nine competing neoclassical asset pricing models in the German stock market between November 1991 and December 2021.

The authors conduct asymptotically valid tests of model comparison when the extent of model mispricing is gauged by the squared Sharpe ratio improvement measure of Barillas et al. (2020).

The study finds that the Fama and French six-factor model with both traditional and updated value factors emerges as the dominant model.

The authors shed new light on the drivers of German stock returns through an updated and extended period of analysis, wider range of potential models and utilization of valid asymptotic tests of model comparison when models are nonnested (Barillas et al., 2020).

By focusing on a Greek traditional learning university, during and post Covid-19 restrictions, the study aims at examining the concurrent effects of teaching and assessment format on students' academic performance. The inclusion of case studies in course assessment post Covid-19 restrictions is also expected to give a rough insight into students' employability skills and workplace readiness.

The academic performance of 489 undergraduate students, as determined by the grades they earned, was measured in the final exams of business-to-business marketing and integrated marketing communication courses, held in January 2021 and 2022 at a Greek public university. The primary predictor variable or interest was “teaching and assessment format”, and took two values: (1) online teaching with multiple-choice assessment format (during Covid-19 restrictions) and (2) traditional classroom teaching with in-person case study and open-ended assessment format (post Covid-19 restrictions).

Grades were found to be affected by the participants' year of study, the type of marketing course, in which they were examined, and the teaching and assessment format employed. Either in whole or by gender, students appear to perform significantly worse in the traditional teaching with in-person case study and open-ended questions assessment format.

Good pedagogical practice in the use of digital technology is advised to incorporate diverse teaching tools and assessment methods.

Examination of the concurrent effects of teaching and assessment on academic performance unveils significant variation in students' academic performance under different formats, which may be attributable to multiple reasons.

In the purchase intention of green products context, researchers have mainly investigated the role of symbolism but have mostly discussed symbolic attributes/meanings in terms of social status only. This research aims to investigate the impact of four perceived symbolic meanings of green clothing (status, environmentalism, innovation and fashion symbols) on consumers' purchase intention of green clothing through their attitude toward it. Besides, the moderating role of a consumer mindset in the indirect relationship between symbolic attributes and the purchase intention of green products through consumer attitude is examined.

The data were collected through a survey from a sample of 325 respondents in Turkey, especially younger ones. The data were analyzed via confirmatory factor analysis and hypothesized relationships were tested with multiple and simple regression analyses and PROCESS macros in SPSS.

All symbolic meanings of green clothing impact purchase intention positively and indirectly through consumers' attitudes toward it. The results of moderated mediation analyses showed that the impact of symbolic meanings, except for environmentalism symbol, on purchase intention through consumer attitude was significantly moderated by the consumer mindset.

This research contributes to the under-researched areas of the impact of various symbolic attributes/meanings of green clothing on consumers' purchase intention. Besides, this study advances the role of consumer mindset in consumer behavior research in such a way that it connects mindsets of personality, consumers' attitudes toward green products and their green purchase intention. Furthermore, this study addresses the gap in regard to the role of mindsets of personality on sustainable/environmental behaviors. It will provide implications for fashion marketing managers to develop appropriate targeting, positioning and communication strategies for consumers' mindsets.

This paper aims to present a set of processes for obtaining the global spraying trajectory of a cold spraying robot on a complex surface.

The complex workpiece surfaces in the project are first divided by triangular meshing. Then, the geodesic curve method is applied for local path planning. Finally, the subsurface trajectory combination optimization problem is modeled as a GTSP problem and solved by the ant colony algorithm, where the evaluation scores and the uniform design method are used to determine the optimal parameter combination of the algorithm. A global optimized spraying trajectory is thus obtained.

The simulation results show that the proposed processes can achieve the shortest global spraying trajectory. Moreover, the cold spraying experiment on the IRB4600 six-joint robot verifies that the spraying trajectory obtained by the processes can ensure a uniform coating thickness.

The proposed processes address the issue of different parameter combinations, leading to different results when using the ant colony algorithm. The two methods for obtaining the optimal parameter combinations can solve this problem quickly and effectively, and guarantee that the processes obtain the optimal global spraying trajectory.

The construction industry sector is developing rapidly, especially with the increasing pace of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in this sector. Construction projects can benefit from greater integration and collaboration between their technologies and processes to reap the advantages and keep pace with the recent significant technological and managerial techniques developments. Therefore, this study aims to delve into and investigate building information modeling (BIM) and Lean Construction (L.C.) with a concentration on the potential BIM–lean interactions synergy and integration in the Jordanian construction industry.

This study takes exploratory nature, followed by the deductive research approach, and is designed to be a mono-quantitative research methodology. Moreover, the sampling technique is non-probability convenience sampling, and the research strategy is implemented through a questionnaire used and analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Science to conduct descriptive and inferential statistical analysis and verify the reliability and validity through proper tests.

The BIM–lean interactions synergy and integration findings revealed that eliminating waste (time, cost, resources), promoting continuous improvement (Kaizen) and standardizing as lean construction principles are the most significant and agreeable toward achieving BIM–lean interactions synergy. On the other hand, “High 3D Visualization Modelling” was the most significant BIM function, followed by “Rapid and Auto-Generation of Documents and Multiple Design Alternatives” and “Maintenance of Information and Design Model Integrity.” Moreover, based on the relative importance index (RII) values, “Lack of Technical Expertise in BIM-LEAN” is the most significant challenge with a 0.89 value of RII, followed by “Lack of Government Direction and Standard Guidelines” with a 0.88 value of RII and “Financial considerations” with a 0.83 value of RII.

This study will help provide a new detailed overview that investigates the effects and expected benefits of integrating BIM processes and technological functionalities with lean construction principles within a synergetic environment. Moreover, the study will increase the awareness of using new technologies and management approaches in the architectural, engineering and construction industry, seeking to achieve integration between these technologies to reach ideal results in terms of the outputs of construction operations.

This research is about embedding service-based supply chain management (SCM) concepts in the education sector. Due to Canada's competitive education sector, the authors focus on Canadian universities.

The authors develop a framework for evaluating and forecasting university performance using data envelopment analysis (DEA) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) to assist education policymakers. The application of the proposed framework is illustrated based on information from 16 Canadian universities and by investigating their teaching and research performance.

The major findings are (1) applying the service SCM concept to develop a performance evaluation and prediction framework, (2) demonstrating the application of DEA-ANN for computing and predicting the efficiency of service SCM in Canadian universities, and (3) generating insights to enable universities to improve their research and teaching performances considering critical inputs and outputs.

This paper presents a new framework for universities' performance assessment and performance prediction. DEA and ANN are integrated to aid decision-makers in evaluating the performances of universities.

The findings suggest that higher education policymakers should monitor attrition rates at graduate and undergraduate levels and provide financial support to facilitate research and concentrate on Ph.D. programs. Additionally, the sensitivity analysis indicates that selecting inputs and outputs is critical in determining university rankings.

This research proposes a new integrated DEA and ANN framework to assess and forecast future teaching and research efficiencies applying the service supply chain concept. The findings offer policymakers insights such as paying close attention to the attrition rates of undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In addition, prioritizing internal research support and concentrating on Ph.D. programs is recommended.

The study aims to look at the link between horizontal violence (HV) and organizational culture aspects. Bullying and hostility including intergroup conflict are referred to as HV. HV is a significant issue that is encountered in various professions. The different cultural typologies of group, developmental, hierarchical and rational culture have been addressed in this study. Additionally, it is identified that the prevalence of HV in organizations with different cultural dimensions.

Using a non-probability multistage sampling strategy, a quantitative method was used and questionnaires were circulated to collect data from the information technology sector. The data were analyzed using multiple regression analysis.

The findings demonstrated that HV has a positive and substantial association with the group and developmental culture, whereas HV has a negative link with hierarchical and rational culture.

These results provide a valuable tool for human resource managers and policymakers in promoting a healthy work environment and employee interpersonal collaboration, which will improve the organization’s overall performance.

This study is a novel work exploring the HV among employees in technological firms, and also combining the concepts of HV and organizational culture and also assists future researchers in many folds.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence mechanisms of multi-level ecological participants on technological innovation capabilities within the focal small and mid-size enterprises' (SME) innovation ecosystem. The author examines the moderating role of the innovation ecological environment.

With the lenses of innovation ecosystem theory, technological innovation theory and ecological theory, the author constructs and empirically tests a conceptual framework for exploring the effects of the focal SME's connections with universities and research institutions, and the industrial chain and ecosphere on their independent and collaborative innovation capabilities. The innovation ecological environment is employed as a moderating variable in the proposed model. The author issued email questionnaires to managers at innovative SMEs in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Jiangsu provinces. The data were used for multiple regression analyses to test the hypotheses.

As predicted, the author found that SMEs’ cooperation with universities and research institutions positively affects independent and collaborative innovation capability. The relationships between the industrial chain, the ecosphere and independent and collaborative innovation capabilities are all inverted U-shaped. Additionally, the author demonstrates that the innovation ecological environment positively moderates relationships between the focal SME's ecological participants and these two types of technological innovation capabilities.

The results enrich research on innovation ecosystems and technological innovation capability and provide important managerial implications for Chinese SMEs to enhance their technological innovation capability by constructing and coordinating innovation ecosystems. It also allows China, as well as other developing countries, to cultivate world-class enterprises as an innovative nation.

This study investigates restaurant patrons' comfort level with the sudden shift in the dining-in climate within the state of Massachusetts during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

An exploratory study utilized learning algorithms via gradient boosting techniques on surveyed restaurant patrons to identify which restaurant operational attributes and patron demographics predict in-dining comfort levels.

Past consumers' eating habits determine how much their behavior will change during a pandemic. However, their dining-in frequency is not a predictor of their post-pandemic dining-in outlook. The individuals who were more comfortable dining in prior to the pandemic dined in more often during the COVID pandemic. However, they had a poorer outlook on when dining in would return to normal. Although there are no clear indicators of when and how customers will embrace the new norm (a combination of pre-, peri-, and post-pandemic), the results show that some innovative approaches, such as limiting service offerings, are not well accepted by customers.

The study offers several managerial implications for foodservice providers (i.e. restaurants, delivery services, pick-up) and investors. In particular, the study provides insights into the cognitive factors that determine diners' behavioral change in response to a pandemic and their comfort level. Operators must pay attention to these factors and consider different offering strategies when preparing to operate their business amid a pandemic.

This is a study of a specific location and period. It was conducted in Massachusetts before a vaccine was available. The restaurant industry was beset with uncertainty. It fills a gap in the current literature focused on the COVID-19 pandemic in customers' transition from pre-COVID-19 dining-in behaviors to customers' refreshed COVID-19 outlook and industry compliance with newly established hygiene and safety standards.

This research aims to present the results of a study that operationalizes the construct of perceived work identity deprivation (PWID) and examines its validity.

The authors adopted a mixed method design in this study where a Likert-type scale to measure PWID was developed based on the interviews of 40 workers and the questionnaires of 625 participants successively. Later, the generalizability of the scale was tested through quantitative data from 412 workers. Finally, validity analysis was conducted based on 380 usable questionnaires. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS 24 and Mplus 7.0.

The findings of the study indicate that the reliability measures, exploratory factor analyses, confirmatory factor analysis and subsequent convergent and discriminant validity tests support the PWID scale. The nomological validity of PWID is also presented, which demonstrates its predictive validity.

Despite highlighting the importance of work identity, prior research lacked to provide empirical foundations to understand this perception. This study fills this gap in the literature by providing a measure of PWID, distinguishing it from similar constructs and establishing convergent, discriminant and nomological validity. Moreover, by extending the range of theoretical and measurable deprivation of work identity, the authors hope to allow research to take into account a more complete picture of it. PWID scale can be used to develop more relevant suppression plans.