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21 – 30 of over 8000Muhammad Nizam Zainuddin, Mohd Fairuz Abd Rahim and Mohd Rozaini Mohd Rejab
With internet technology, knowledge acquisition surpasses the confinement of the university's campus or syllabus. Concurrently, an entrepreneurship programme has recently been…
Abstract
Purpose
With internet technology, knowledge acquisition surpasses the confinement of the university's campus or syllabus. Concurrently, an entrepreneurship programme has recently been offered to students, positioning universities as an experimental ground for the breeding of entrepreneurs. Thus, this paper seeks to evaluate the effect of entrepreneurship education syllabi empowered with current information communication technology (ICT) exposure towards students' entrepreneurial self‐efficacy together with social norms and their entrepreneurial intention; and whether this latest development lives up to stakeholders' expectations.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected through a census survey of entrepreneurship students at four MSC‐Status universities that offer entrepreneurship degree programmes. Quantitative analyses such as regression were performed.
Findings
Specialised entrepreneurship education with ICT exposure significantly affects a student's entrepreneurial self‐efficacy. However social norms were found to be a poor predictor towards entrepreneurial intention, explaining the diminished level of influence lecturers had upon their students' behaviour.
Research limitations/implications
This study focuses on a group of entrepreneurship students who are exposed to ICT applications at that stipulated time, and as such, the findings cannot be generalised as technology evolves rapidly. The findings are also limited to only entrepreneurial intention and demonstrate the outcome in Malaysia's higher education industry.
Practical implications
The two direct stakeholders i.e. the university's management and lecturers, may need to reconstruct their respective initiatives by introducing “creative disruption” philosophies, policies and pedagogies to facilitate the “creative destruction” mode of education into realising its full potential.
Originality/value
This paper provides an insight into challenges that universities face in delivering distinctive knowledge consisting of theories and practices. Together, they require constructive and radical yet practical initiatives.
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K. Han, D. Peric, A.J.L. Crook and D.R.J. Owen
In the first part of this series of papers on the combined finite/discrete element simulation of shot peening processes, different contact interaction laws for 2D cases are…
Abstract
In the first part of this series of papers on the combined finite/discrete element simulation of shot peening processes, different contact interaction laws for 2D cases are extensively studied with special attention given to the proper selection of the parameter values involved, which is one of the key issues for successful direct simulation. In addition, computational issues including contact forces, partial contact, energy dissipation, and rheological representation are addressed. Numerical examples for a single shot impact system simulated by the coupled finite/discrete element method using different interaction laws are provided to verify the proposed approaches. The results are also compared with those obtained by using only finite element methods. Findings obtained by performing 2D simulations will, in the subsequent article, be used in realistic computational simulations of 3D shot peening processes.
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The purpose of this paper is to show that consumers' expertise of a product influences the number of attributes considered as important, the importance given to the attributes as…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to show that consumers' expertise of a product influences the number of attributes considered as important, the importance given to the attributes as well as the size and the content of the consideration set (CS).
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative empirical study was carried out with 287 French wine consumers.
Findings
The results show that the attributes which were considered as important by the novices differ from those considered important by the experts and that the number of important attributes given by the novices (2) is lower than those given by the experts (7). Furthermore, the results show that the size of the CS itself is also influenced by subjective knowledge. On the other hand, this is not the case for the content of the CS.
Research limitations/implications
The empirical study only focuses on one product category. The data were collected on the basis of statements rather than observations, which is liable to distort the results.
Practical implications
The paper shows that the visual attributes, such as the design and the packaging, are not sufficient to sell wine to French consumers, even if they are novices in this field.
Originality/value
While most research devoted to the effects of the CS focus on a single dimension of it, this paper tests simultaneously the effects on the size and on the variety of the CS, which is analyzed according to both a qualitative and quantitative approach.
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Michael J. Hefferan and Pamela Wardner
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate, through the Delphi technique, how demand drivers and accommodation priorities for emerging knowledge‐intensive firms are understood…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate, through the Delphi technique, how demand drivers and accommodation priorities for emerging knowledge‐intensive firms are understood and how corporate property and asset managers can respond to them.
Design/methodology/approach
This empirical paper discusses the results emerging from a Delphi study in four rounds with ten experts. This research focuses on the high growth, commercial sector in south‐east Queensland in Australia.
Findings
The accommodation priority demands of knowledge‐intensive firms varied depending on the stage of their lifecycle, that is, start‐up, established or mature. For start‐ups, accommodation cost was of primary importance; however, for the established and mature firms, their priorities were directly related to those supporting the progress of the firms itself and the productivity of its employers.
Practical implications
Many of the findings are likely to be applicable to commercial environments elsewhere and would provide a basis for investors, developers, asset owners and managers to better align their “old” assets, through better asset management, to these “new” firms within this rapidly changing environment.
Originality/value
The use of the Delphi technique in this multi‐faceted research topic captures the practical knowledge, wisdom and intuition of experts who deal with such issues on a day‐to‐day basis. Most real estate issues usually involve diverse specialities and perspectives – this paper illustrates how common ground through consensus can be achieved.
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David Leece, Tony Berry, Jia Miao and Robert Sweeting
The purpose of this paper is to identify the key characteristics of the post‐investment relationship between the venture capital firm and its investee companies.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify the key characteristics of the post‐investment relationship between the venture capital firm and its investee companies.
Design/methodology/approach
The research is a case study of a major UK venture capital firm using qualitative research to determine the key characteristics of the post‐investment relationship. The study is based on interviews with parties on both sides of the relationship.
Findings
While the results reflect the findings of the entrepreneurship and venture capital literature they also point to the importance of network growth and development for organizational learning in the venture capital industry, professionalization of investee firms and as a context in which the selection of the entrepreneur and the post investment relationship are set.
Research limitations/implications
The research has the limitation of most case studies that the results cannot readily be generalized, in this case to the wider population of venture capital firms. Confidentiality issues also limited the extent to which a longitudinal study could be conducted.
Practical implications
A better understanding of the post‐investment relationship can inform entrepreneurs in their pitch for funds and in their anticipation of the post investment relationship. This understanding can also assist venture capital firms in the management of this relationship.
Originality/value
The case study uses data from rare access to a venture capital firm. It also differs by interviewing both parties to the post‐investment relationship, that is venture capitalist and investee firm.
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Monia Saïdi and Georges Giraud
This paper investigates how giving additional information to consumers changes their appreciation of wine, and how this effect changes with their knowledge of wine and their…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper investigates how giving additional information to consumers changes their appreciation of wine, and how this effect changes with their knowledge of wine and their characteristics.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey of 415 French consumers was carried-out in 2014, focusing on the sensory evaluation of 37 red Bourgogne wines. Two sensorial evaluations (visual, and smell & taste) are investigated, first without any information about the wine and then with the presentation of the wine bottle with its labels.
Findings
The majority of participants are significantly influenced by the information displayed. The influence of information depends on their initial knowledge and individual characteristics (gender, age, and home area). This influence is robust, whatever be the means of evaluation.
Research limitations/implications
The study was carried out with red Bourgogne wines and focused on the village and regional appellations, with a low and medium price range. The results need a broader investigation to be generalizable.
Practical implications
Information does not have the same influence depending on individual characteristics and on knowledge of wine. Promoting different wines to different consumers who do not have the same knowledge and do not use the same distribution channels is challenging as consumers do not all have the same expectations of red Bourgogne wines. The results provide directions for better targeting consumers through the information on the bottle labels.
Originality/value
By cross-tabulating sensory tastings and knowledge tests, this research contributes to measuring the holistic effect of information on the hedonic appreciation of wine across a significant range of consumers issued from two big cities.
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Jason Lortie, Tais Barreto and Kevin Cox
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between culture and entrepreneurial activity at both the national and regional levels of analyses. While there has…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between culture and entrepreneurial activity at both the national and regional levels of analyses. While there has been significant progress in investigating the effects of culture on entrepreneurial activity, most work overlooks the effects that time-orientation may have on national or regional entrepreneurial activity. Specifically, this study argues for the connection between long-term orientation (LTO) and subsequent levels of entrepreneurship such that the more a nation or region is long-term oriented, the higher the subsequent entrepreneurial activity will be.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from the World Value Survey (WVS), which is a global project that measures individuals’ values across 62 countries (World Value Survey, 2011), were used for this project. The final sample consisted of 36,652 individual observations across 29 nations and 262 regions and was analyzed using ecological factor analyses and multilevel modeling.
Findings
The findings suggest that LTO as a cultural dimension does influence entrepreneurship activity levels. The findings also suggest that the effects of LTO at the regional and national levels vary widely. Specifically, the authors find LTO to be positively related to entrepreneurship at the regional, but not national, level of analysis.
Originality/value
The findings reveal important nuances about the implications that the understudied cultural factor of LTO has on entrepreneurial activity across multiple levels of analysis.
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Suganeswaran Kandasamy, Parameshwaran Rathinasamy, Nithyavathy Nagarajan, Karthik Arumugam, Rajasekar Rathanasamy and Gobinath Velu Kaliyannan
This paper aims to overcome the corrosion in AA7075 by incorporating the dual-reinforcements like Al2O3 and SiC through friction stir processing (FSP). In recent days, an…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to overcome the corrosion in AA7075 by incorporating the dual-reinforcements like Al2O3 and SiC through friction stir processing (FSP). In recent days, an automotive monocoque structure undergoes corrosion because of changes in environmental conditions.
Design/methodology/approach
Surface hybrid composites (SHCs) of AA7075 with different weight ratios of Al2O3 and SiC were fabricated at a rotating speed of 1000 rpm, traveling speed of 56 mm/min and tool tilt angle of 2º with two passes. Surface regions were observed using optical microscopy, and the potentiodynamic corrosion test was performed under a 3.5 per cent NaCl environment at room temperature. Then, the surface morphology analysis of corroded samples and their structural properties were also investigated through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron dispersive spectroscopy (EDS).
Findings
Through FSP, an improved interface between the reinforced particles and the AA7075 base matrix was observed because of the severe plastic deformation. Potentiodynamic polarization tests confirmed that the AA7075 matrix with a higher concentration of Al2O3 and a lower concentration of SiC (Al2O3 – 75 per cent and SiC – 25 per cent) possesses a lower corrosion rate than other specimens. This result is because of the combined effect of stable passive film formation and the resistance produced by hard SiC particles. In addition, the formation of a stronger interface between the reinforcements and the base matrix impedes the NaCl solution attack. The SEM micrograph depicts the film crystallinity variations with an increase in Al2O3 content. Debonding between the layers was observed on increasing the SiC content in the base matrix. XRD shows the peaks of reinforcing elements that influence the corrosion behavior. These observations suggest that the AA7075 reinforced with a higher concentration of Al2O3 and a lower concentration of SiC through FSP affords a suitable solution for automotive monocoque applications.
Originality/value
The corrosion rate has been identified for AA7075 SHCs with various concentrations of Al2O3 and SiC and has been compared with that of the base metal and the friction stir processed specimen without reinforcement.
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Mooweon Rhee, Valerie Alexandra and K. Skylar Powell
Performance feedback theory (PFT) has informed analyses in numerous national contexts and has been used to explain various business and management activities of firms. Stemming…
Abstract
Purpose
Performance feedback theory (PFT) has informed analyses in numerous national contexts and has been used to explain various business and management activities of firms. Stemming from behavioral theory and grounded in a cognitive perspective, which views organizational actions as being the results of decisions produced by groups of individual decision-makers, PFT research has mostly assumed the universal nature of cognition and decision-making processes. However, PFT also presumes that individual decision-makers bring with them different backgrounds and experiences. Hence, this paper offers propositions on how cultural differences in individualism-collectivism influence the major components of PFT, including the formation and revision of performance goals (aspiration levels), and search behaviors and risk preferences in response to gaps between goals and actual performance. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper offers theoretical propositions for the above purpose.
Findings
This is not an empirical analysis.
Originality/value
By integrating the individualism-collectivism differences framework into the PFT model, the authors answer previous calls to integrate concepts and frameworks from other theories into PFT while considering the role of cultural differences in aspiration-consequence relationships. Additionally, much of PFT research has focused on outcomes, while actual internal processes have remained unobserved. By focusing on how cultural differences influence various PFT processes, this conceptual analysis sheds light on the unobserved bounds of decision-makers' cognitions.
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Alain Fayolle, Benoît Gailly and Narjisse Lassas‐Clerc
Facing the multiplication of entrepreneurship education programmes (EEP) and the increasing resources allocated, there is a need to develop a common framework to evaluate the…
Abstract
Purpose
Facing the multiplication of entrepreneurship education programmes (EEP) and the increasing resources allocated, there is a need to develop a common framework to evaluate the design of those programmes. The purpose of this article is to propose such a framework, based on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB).
Design/methodology/approach
TPB is a relevant tool to model the development of entrepreneurial intention through pedagogical processes. The independent variables are the characteristics of the EEP and the dependent variables are the antecedents of entrepreneurial behaviour. To illustrate and test the relevance of the evaluation methodology, a pilot study is conducted.
Findings
Data are consistent and reliable, considering the small scale of this experiment. The EEP assessed had a strong measurable impact on the entrepreneurial intention of the students, while it had a positive, but not very significant, impact on their perceived behavioural control.
Research implications/limitations
This is a first step of an ambitious research programme aiming at producing theory‐grounded knowledge. Reproduction of the experiment will allow researchers to test how specific characteristics of an EEP influence its impact and how the impact differs across several cohorts of students. Those comparisons will serve to improve a priori the design of EEP.
Originality/value
The new methodology is built on a robust theoretical framework and based on validated measurement tools. Its originality is about a relative – longitudinal – measure of impact over time and a particular use of the theory of planned behaviour which is seen as an assessment framework.
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