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The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of personalized task communication and examine auditor willingness to rely on and factor into their judgments and decisions historically accurate internal evidence suggesting a less conservative collectability judgment and audit adjustment decision than unfavorable external and less credible internal evidence.

This study uses a 2 × 2 between-subjects experimental design manipulating whether participants receive source credibility insights leading to an evidence set consisting of mixed internal evidence signals, where historically accurate internal evidence suggests either a less conservative or similar collectability signal as unfavorable external evidence; and receive personalized or non-personalized task communication.

Through experimental analysis of 103 Big Four audit senior associates, the author found auditors factor into their collectability judgments and audit adjustment decisions historically accurate internal evidence suggesting less conservative collectability judgments and audit adjustment decisions than unfavorable external and less credible internal evidence. The author also found evidence that communication personalization elicits affect and increases effort levels for purposes of improving pre-task information processing and subsequent collectability judgments. The results also indicate that the influence of perceived personalization may not incrementally influence reliance on internal evidence that is consistent with unfavorable external evidence.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to examine auditor reliance behaviors when internal evidence suggests a less conservative collectability judgment and audit adjustment decision than unfavorable external evidence and is the first to explore communication personalization as a tool for effective audit knowledge transfer.

Draws a comparison between the use of a genetic algorithm and the sequential function specification method for the solution of a one‐dimensional linear inverse thermal field problem, based on the use of noisy measurements. In solving this problem aims to estimate the value of a single constant convective heat transfer coefficient. Documents the findings that both approaches can provide estimates within 1 per cent of the target solution and that the sensitivity and robustness of each approach to measurement location, time step size and measurement errors are markedly different.

The purpose of this paper is to determine both analytically and numerically the existence of smooth, cusped and sharp shock wave solutions to a one-dimensional model of microfluidic droplet ensembles, water flow in unsaturated flows, infiltration, etc., as functions of the powers of the convection and diffusion fluxes and upstream boundary condition; to study numerically the evolution of the wave for two different initial conditions; and to assess the accuracy of several finite difference methods for the solution of the degenerate, nonlinear, advection--diffusion equation that governs the model.

The theory of ordinary differential equations and several explicit, finite difference methods that use first- and second-order, accurate upwind, central and compact discretizations for the convection terms are used to determine the analytical solution for steadily propagating waves and the evolution of the wave fronts from hyperbolic tangent and piecewise linear initial conditions to steadily propagating waves, respectively. The amplitude and phase errors of the semi-discrete schemes are determined analytically and the accuracy of the discrete methods is assessed.

For non-zero upstream boundary conditions, it has been found both analytically and numerically that the shock wave is smooth and its steepness increases as the power of the diffusion term is increased and as the upstream boundary value is decreased. For zero upstream boundary conditions, smooth, cusped and sharp shock waves may be encountered depending on the powers of the convection and diffusion terms. For a linear diffusion flux, the shock wave is smooth, whereas, for a quadratic diffusion flux, the wave exhibits a cusped front whose left spatial derivative decreases as the power of the convection term is increased. For higher nonlinear diffusion fluxes, a sharp shock wave is observed. The wave speed decreases as the powers of both the convection and the diffusion terms are increased. The evolution of the solution from hyperbolic tangent and piecewise linear initial conditions shows that the wave back adapts rapidly to its final steady value, whereas the wave front takes much longer, especially for piecewise linear initial conditions, but the steady wave profile and speed are independent of the initial conditions. It is also shown that discretization of the nonlinear diffusion flux plays a more important role in the accuracy of first- and second-order upwind discretizations of the convection term than either a conservative or a non-conservative discretization of the latter. Second-order upwind and compact discretizations of the convection terms are shown to exhibit oscillations at the foot of the wave’s front where the solution is nil but its left spatial derivative is largest. The results obtained with a conservative, centered second--order accurate finite difference method are found to be in good agreement with those of the second-order accurate, central-upwind Kurganov--Tadmor method which is a non-oscillatory high-resolution shock-capturing procedure, but differ greatly from those obtained with a non-conservative, centered, second-order accurate scheme, where the gradients are largest.

A new, one-dimensional model for microfluidic droplet transport, water flow in unsaturated flows, infiltration, etc., that includes high-order convection fluxes and degenerate diffusion, is proposed and studied both analytically and numerically. Its smooth, cusped and sharp shock wave solutions have been determined analytically as functions of the powers of the nonlinear convection and diffusion fluxes and the boundary conditions. These solutions are used to assess the accuracy of several finite difference methods that use different orders of accuracy in space, and different discretizations of the convection and diffusion fluxes, and can be used to assess the accuracy of other numerical procedures for one-dimensional, degenerate, convection--diffusion equations.

The purpose of this paper is to develop an automatic disassembly navigation approach for human interactions in the virtual environment to achieve accurate and effective virtual assembly path planning (VAPP).

First, to avoid the error-prone human interactions, a constraint-based disassembly method is presented. Second, to automatically provide the next operable part(s), a disassembly navigation mechanism is adopted. Finally, the accurate assembly path planning can be obtained effectively and automatically by inversing the ordered accurate disassembly paths, which are obtained interactively in the virtual environment aided with the disassembly navigation matrix.

The applications present that our approach can effectively avoid the error-prone interactive results and generate accurate and effective VAPP.

There are several works that could be conducted to make our approach more general in the future: to further study the basic disassembly direction deducing rules to make the process of determining disassembly direction totally automatic, to consider the hierarchy of the parts in virtual reality system and to consider the space for assembly/disassembly tools or operators.

The approach has the following characteristics: a new approach to avoid the error-prone human interactions for accurate assembly path planning obtaining, a new constraint deducing method for determining the disassembly semantics automatically or semi-automatically is put forward and a new method for automatically identifying operable parts in VAPP is set forward.

The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of innocent suspects to produce accurate alibis, as well as to identify procedures police interviewers can use to increase the probability of generating accurate alibis.

In Study 1, 54 university students had a lecture (target event) end at either the normal time (schema group) or 25 min early (non-schema group) and then attempted to generate an alibi for the target event after either a short, moderate or long delay. In Study 2, 20 students had a lecture end 25 min early and underwent an interview regarding their whereabouts using a reverse-order interview technique designed to disrupt schema usage.

Results from Study 1 suggested that participants relied on schemas to generate their alibis, which led to false alibis for the non-schema group, and this reliance was more pronounced as the delay between event and recall increased. In Study 2, all but one participant produced a false alibi, suggesting reverse order is ineffective in increasing accurate recall in alibi situations.

Results from the two studies revealed that people can produce false alibis easily in mock police interviews – a finding that appears to result from the reliance on schemas. These findings highlight the relative ease with which innocent individuals can produce false alibis. Further research, specific to the alibi generation process, is needed to give police interviewers the tools to produce more accurate and detailed alibis.

This research provides additional evidence regarding the role of schemas in alibi generation. Contrary to findings from the eyewitness area, reverse-order instructions failed to disrupt schema reliance and do not appear to be an effective alibi-elicitation technique.

The purpose of this paper is to design a simple and accurate a-posteriori Lagrangian-based error estimator is developed for the class of backward differentiation formula (BDF) algorithms with variable time step size, and the adaptive time-stepping in BDF algorithms is demonstrated for efficient time-dependent simulations in fluid flow and heat transfer.

The Lagrange interpolation polynomial is used to predict the time derivative, and then the accurate primary result is obtained by the Gauss integral, which is applied to evaluate the local error. Not only the generalized formula of the proposed error estimator is presented but also the specific expression for the widely applied BDF1/2/3 is illustrated. Two essential executable MATLAB functions to implement the proposed error estimator are appended for practical applications. Then, the adaptive time-stepping is demonstrated based on the newly proposed error estimator for BDF algorithms.

The validation tests show that the newly proposed error estimator is accurate such that the effectivity index is always close to unity for both linear and nonlinear problems, and it avoids under/overestimation of the exact local error. The applications for fluid dynamics and coupled fluid flow and heat transfer problems depict the advantage of adaptive time-stepping based on the proposed error estimator for time-dependent simulations.

In contrast to existing error estimators for BDF algorithms, the present work is more accurate for the local error estimation, and it can be readily extended to practical applications in engineering with a few changes to existing codes, contributing to efficient time-dependent simulations in fluid flow and heat transfer.

In marketing, most research on intention–behavior consistency (IBC) is dedicated to improving the predictive ability of stated intentions for future behaviors, with relatively less exploration into the precursors of IBC, especially those linked to regular durable goods void of ethical consumption characteristics. This study aims to focus on the antecedents of IBC for such products, specifically examining category-level and product-level IBC in light of consumer knowledge.

The authors conducted a two-round survey to collect 3,560 Chinese consumers' vehicle purchase intentions and behaviors. The authors have also leveraged a large vehicle database (containing detailed vehicle attribute information) to measure consumer product knowledge (i.e. product judgment accuracy). A trivariate probit model was proposed to account for the potential selection bias arising from sample attrition while examining the effects of consumer knowledge on category- and product-level intention-behavior consistency.

Findings reveal that 47% of the participants displayed category-level IBC, and within this group, a further 39% exhibited product-level IBC. Notably, product knowledge, manifested as accurate product judgment, correlates negatively with category-level IBC but positively with product-level IBC. Intriguingly, the negative association between inaccurate judgment and product-level IBC is less pronounced for consumers overestimating the target product than for those underestimating it. Furthermore, consumers with direct experience are less prone to show category-level IBC, but are more inclined to display product-level IBC.

Vehicle marketers should prioritize consumers who show interest in their products but possess inaccurate knowledge, to retain whom companies can nurture their product knowledge. As for consumers with accurate knowledge, companies should try to expedite their purchase. Vehicle marketers also need to devise suitable advertising strategies to prevent consumers from undervaluing their products. For those overestimating competitors' products, companies can provide information to correct their overestimation and draw attention to possible confirmation biases. Vehicle marketers should encourage potential buyers who have shown interest in their product to participate in test-drive events, exhibitions, and other direct experience opportunities. Yet, for consumers still in the “whether-to-buy” decision-making phase, companies should not rush them into a test drive.

In the policy-making realm, governmental administrators can implement extensive consumer education programs, with a focus on the importance of product knowledge. This may involve providing consumers with accurate information and buying guides through various channels, which can help consumers make informed purchase decisions. Moreover, to foster healthy competition among vehicle companies, governmental administrators can establish regulations that require vehicle companies and other relevant industries to provide accurate and transparent product information, including performance, safety, and environmental aspects. Finally, in order to protect consumer rights, governmental administrators can also strengthen regulations to ensure fair treatment and safeguards for consumers throughout the purchasing process. This includes cracking down on false advertising and fraudulent practices, maintaining market order, and enhancing consumer confidence and purchase consistency.

This study is among the first attempts to examine the relationship between consumer knowledge and intention-behavior consistency, especially for regular durable products void of ethical consumption characteristics. Responding to the call of previous literature (e.g. Morwitz, 1997), the authors distinguish between and examine two forms of intention-behavior consistency simultaneously (using a sample selection model) and obtain more reliable conclusions. Moreover, the study's large-scale two-round survey had obtained individual-level purchase behavioral outcomes, which allowed the authors to measure each consumer's IBC at both category and product levels. More importantly, the authors show the opposite effects of consumer knowledge on the two forms of intention-behavior consistency.

The problem that original design manufacturing (ODM) companies encounter with the request for quotation (RFQ) process is that there is no effective and efficient methodology for them to formulate accurate and profitable RFQs. The purpose of this paper is to present a quality function deployment (QFD)‐, concurrent engineering (CE)‐, and target costing‐based methodology for ODM companies to formulate accurate and profitable RFQs.

From eight Taiwan electronics ODM companies, 15 people are interviewed to understand their current methods for formulating RFQs and the problems of these methods. Based on the interview results, it was decided to make use of the merits of QFD, CE, and target costing by integrating them into the proposed methodology.

A case study is presented to illustrate a successful application of the proposed methodology in a case company. The case study shows integrating QFD, CE, and target costing into the proposed methodology allows the authors to effectively and efficiently formulate an accurate and profitable RFQ for the case company.

The interview sample quantity of this study is limited to eight Taiwan electronics companies, which is insufficient to represent all ODM companies in various industries. For the future research, it is suggested researchers collect more samples from different industries in order to verify the effectiveness of the proposed methodology in ODM companies from different industries.

This paper aims to integrate QFD, CE, and target costing to come up with a systematic ten‐step approach that can accurately formulate the three parts of an RFQ: the product specifications proposal, the product price quotation, and the product development schedule. By adopting this methodology, ODM companies can provide accurate and profitable RFQs to ODM customers, thus increasing their chances of obtaining ODM business.

Design sensitivities of plates and shells under transient dynamic loads with constraints on displacements and stresses are likely to be highly erroneous if proper care is not taken in selecting appropriate finite element mesh and time step size to be used in the analysis. An accurate value of design derivative is assured if an optimal mesh coupled with a reasonably fine time step size is used. The optimal mesh can be obtained iteratively and a number of examples are solved to demonstrate the importance of controlling discretization errors in space and time.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of acquaintance on performance rating accuracy and halo.

After expert ratings were obtained, US Air Force Officers (n=104) with an average of six years experience rated the performance of four officers who delivered 6‐7 minute briefings on their research projects; 26 raters reported being acquainted with one or more of the briefers. Raters were randomly assigned to use a rating format designed to encourage between‐ratee comparisons on each dimension or a format in which each ratee was separately rated on all dimensions.

Ratings made by acquainted raters were more accurate than ratings by unacquainted raters. Accuracy was positively correlated with halo for both sets of ratings. Rating format had no discernible effect on accuracy or halo.

One limitation of this study is that the measure of acquaintance was not designed as a surrogate for familiarity. Development of a multi‐item, psychometrically‐valid measure of acquaintance should be the first step in pursuing this research. The use of a laboratory design where only a small percentage of the sample was acquainted with those being rated also limits the study's generalizability.

The results show that prior acquaintance with the ratee results in more accurate ratings. Ratings were also more positive when raters had prior contact with the person they rated.

The hypothesis is that the cognitive processes used to produce ratings are different for raters who have had no prior contact with a ratee and raters who are in some manner acquainted with a ratee. In the past, a positive halo effect from acquaintance between raters and ratees has been a concern. However, this limited study indicates that acquaintance may actually result in more accurate ratings.