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Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

Emerging technologies have the potential to significantly change the way people work and function, with tremendous impacts on people and the societies in which they live. For emergency management practice, efficient and effective use of emerging technologies can save both lives and property, while also improving the way emergency managers communicate with the populations they serve. However, the use of emerging technologies can also have negative and unforeseen consequences. Thus, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of how emerging technologies function as a communications and information-sharing tool to improve the practice of emergency management.

Furthermore, as with the emergence of any new technology, social justice issues must be considered. For example, is an emerging technology affordable enough for all to use, or does the technology add to the so-called “digital divide,” increasing the gap between the haves and have-nots? Or does the emerging technology serve as an equalizer, providing access and availability for all socio-economic status groups? This chapter serves as an introduction to these issues and how they impact emergency management practice in a discussion of how the communication process functions, how emerging technologies impact communication strategies in emergency management, and the importance of including a social justice framework in emergency management operations and plans to understand how these emerging technology tools can be used to keep people and property safe from disasters.

Aims to contribute to the teleworking literature by analysing the differences between teleworking adopters and non‐adopters regarding the use and impact of information and communication technologies.

Analyses the differences on the use and impact of information and communication technologies in a sample of Spanish companies. The data for the study come from a survey of a representative sample of 479 small and medium sized companies located in Galicia, a Spanish region in the northwest of the country. The data were obtained through interviews with the company managers (CEO, systems information manager, or technology manager) between May and October of 2003

The results indicate that teleworking companies have adopted more equipment (per company and per employee), and the differences are statistically significant for all type of information equipment but personal computers. Although there is a positive correlation between the number of equipment and firm size (number of employees), there are not statistically significant differences of firm size between teleworking adopters and non adopters. Firm size is not an explanatory variable of equipment use in the adopter companies.

Contributes to the teleworking literature by analysing the differences between teleworking adopters and non adopters regarding the use and impact of information and communication technologies

Internet has changed radically in the way people interact in the virtual world, in their careers or social relationships. IoT technology has added a new vision to this process by enabling connections between smart objects and humans, and also between smart objects themselves, which leads to anything, anytime, anywhere, and any media communications. IoT allows objects to physically see, hear, think, and perform tasks by making them talk to each other, share information and coordinate decisions. To enable the vision of IoT, it utilizes technologies such as ubiquitous computing, context awareness, RFID, WSN, embedded devices, CPS, communication technologies, and internet protocols. IoT is considered to be the future internet, which is significantly different from the Internet we use today. The purpose of this paper is to provide up-to-date literature on trends of IoT research which is driven by the need for convergence of several interdisciplinary technologies and new applications.

A comprehensive IoT literature review has been performed in this paper as a survey. The survey starts by providing an overview of IoT concepts, visions and evolutions. IoT architectures are also explored. Then, the most important components of IoT are discussed including a thorough discussion of IoT operating systems such as Tiny OS, Contiki OS, FreeRTOS, and RIOT. A review of IoT applications is also presented in this paper and finally, IoT challenges that can be recently encountered by researchers are introduced.

Studies of IoT literature and projects show the disproportionate importance of technology in IoT projects, which are often driven by technological interventions rather than innovation in the business model. There are a number of serious concerns about the dangers of IoT growth, particularly in the areas of privacy and security; hence, industry and government began addressing these concerns. At the end, what makes IoT exciting is that we do not yet know the exact use cases which would have the ability to significantly influence our lives.

This survey provides a comprehensive literature review on IoT techniques, operating systems and trends.

This paper to examine the relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intention to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination in Uganda.

A descriptive field survey method was adopted. A total of 302 commercial farmers and agribusiness traders in Eastern Uganda participated in the study from whom data were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, correlation and regression analyses were used in the study.

The findings reveal a significant positive relationship between performance expectancy and behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information access and dissemination. This implies that, commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information dissemination and access will be influenced if they anticipate mobile-based communication technologies to offer greater performance in their daily transactions.

This study was conducted in the context of resource constrained countries particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, however reflecting knowledge from other contexts. The study was conducted with a structured questionnaire being the main data collection tool, and this limited the study from collecting views outside the questions asked in the questionnaire. The variables studied could not be analysed for a long time, given that the study was cross-sectional in nature.

The study provides recommendations on how to further boost farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural information dissemination. Policy makers need to ensure that policies are put in place that encourage third party software developers and telecommunication companies to provide software products and solutions that are beneficial to the commercial farmers and can enable them complete their agricultural transactions in time.

The study provides critical literature on the influence of performance expectancy on commercial farmers’ behavioural intentions to use mobile-based communication technologies for agricultural market information access and dissemination in resource constrained settings.

It is noted that farmers in Uganda are slowly progressing to newer mobile information and communication technology tools for market information access and dissemination; however, little is known as to why there is slow adoption of these mobile technologies for agricultural purposes; yet policy makers need to come up with proper strategies to encourage wide scale use of mobile technologies for agricultural market purposes.

Looks at two possibilities outcomes for information and communication technology (ICT) in the world. Argues ICT’s development potential is undervalued but its potential is increasing as technology becomes cheaper and diversifies. States ICTs offer important tools to empower the less‐well‐off communities, reducing inequalities.

Citizens are substantial stakeholders in every e-government system, thus their willingness to use and ability to access the system are critical. Unequal access and information and communication technology usage, which is known as digital divide, however has been identified as one of the major obstacles to the implementation of e-government system. As digital divide inhibits citizen’s acceptance to e-government, it should be overcome despite the lack of deep theoretical understanding on this issue. This research aimed to investigate the digital divide and its direct impact on e-government system success of local governments in Indonesia as well as indirect impact through the mediation role of trust. In order to get a comprehensive understanding of digital divide, this study introduced a new type of digital divide, the innovativeness divide.

The research problems were approached by applying two-stage sequential mixed method research approach comprising of both qualitative and quantitative studies. In the first phase, an initial research model was proposed based on a literature review. Semi-structured interview with 12 users of e-government systems was then conducted to explore and enhance this initial research model. Data collected in this phase were analyzed with a two-stage content analysis approach and the initial model was then amended based on the findings. As a result, a comprehensive research model with 16 hypotheses was proposed for examination in the second phase.

In the second phase, quantitative method was applied. A questionnaire was developed based on findings in the first phase. A pilot study was conducted to refine the questionnaire, which was then distributed in a national survey resulting in 237 useable responses. Data collected in this phase were analyzed using Partial Least Square based Structural Equation Modeling.

The results of quantitative analysis confirmed 13 hypotheses. All direct influences of the variables of digital divide on e-government system success were supported. The mediating effects of trust in e-government in the relationship between capability divide and e-government system success as well as in the relationship between innovativeness divide and e-government system success were supported, but was rejected in the relationship between access divide and e-government system success. Furthermore, the results supported the moderating effects of demographic variables of age, residential place, and education.

This research has both theoretical and practical contributions. The study contributes to the developments of literature on digital divide and e-government by providing a more comprehensive framework, and also to the implementation of e-government by local governments and the improvement of e-government Readiness Index of Indonesia.

This paper aims to present recently published resources on information literacy and library instruction through an extensive annotated bibliography of publications covering all library types.

This paper annotates English-language periodical articles, monographs, dissertations and other materials on library instruction and information literacy published in 2017 in over 200 journals, magazines, books and other sources.

The paper provides a brief description for all 590 sources.

The information may be used by librarians and interested parties as a quick reference to literature on library instruction and information literacy.