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1 – 10 of over 6000
Article
Publication date: 7 May 2024

Haonan Qi, Zhipeng Zhou, Javier Irizarry, Xiaopeng Deng, Yifan Yang, Nan Li and Jianliang Zhou

This study aims to modify the human factors analysis and classification system (HFACS) to make it suitable for collapse accident analysis in construction. Based upon the modified…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to modify the human factors analysis and classification system (HFACS) to make it suitable for collapse accident analysis in construction. Based upon the modified HFACS, distribution patterns of causal factors across multiple levels were discerned among causal factors of various stakeholders at construction sites. It explored the correlations between two causal factors from different levels and further determined causation paths from two perspectives of level and stakeholder.

Design/methodology/approach

The main research framework consisted of data collection, coding and analysis. Collapse accident reports were collected with adequate causation information. The modified HFACS was utilized for coding causal factors across all five levels in each case. A hybrid approach with two perspectives of level and stakeholder was proposed for frequency analysis, correlation analysis and path identification between causal factors.

Findings

Eight causal factors from external organizations at the fifth level were added to the original HFACS. Level-based correlation analyses and path identification provided safety managers with a holistic view of inter-connected causal factors across five levels. Stakeholder-based correlation analyses between causal factors from the fifth level and its non-adjacent levels were implemented based on client, government and third parties. These identified paths were useful for different stakeholders to develop specific safety plans for avoiding construction collapse accidents.

Originality/value

This paper fulfils an identified need to modify and utilize the HFACS model for correlation analysis and path identification of causal factors resulting in collapse accidents, which can provide opportunities for tailoring preventive and protective measures at construction sites.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 29 January 2024

Clement Olalekan Olaniyi and Nicholas M. Odhiambo

This study examines the roles of cross-sectional dependence, asymmetric structure and country-to-country policy variations in the inflation-poverty reduction causal nexus in…

1293

Abstract

Purpose

This study examines the roles of cross-sectional dependence, asymmetric structure and country-to-country policy variations in the inflation-poverty reduction causal nexus in selected sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries from 1981 to 2019.

Design/methodology/approach

To account for cross-sectional dependence, heterogeneity and policy variations across countries in the inflation-poverty reduction causal nexus, this study uses robust Hatemi-J data decomposition procedures and a battery of second-generation techniques. These techniques include cross-sectional dependency tests, panel unit root tests, slope homogeneity tests and the Dumitrescu-Hurlin panel Granger non-causality approach.

Findings

Unlike existing studies, the panel and country-specific findings exhibit several dimensions of asymmetric causality in the inflation-poverty nexus. Positive inflationary shocks Granger-causes poverty reduction through investment and employment opportunities that benefit the impoverished in SSA. These findings align with country-specific analyses of Botswana, Cameroon, Gabon, Mauritania, South Africa and Togo. Also, a decline in poverty causes inflation to increase in the Congo Republic, Madagascar, Nigeria, Senegal and Togo. All panel and country-specific analyses reveal at least one dimension of asymmetric causality or another.

Practical implications

All stakeholders and policymakers must pay adequate attention to issues of asymmetric structures, nonlinearities and country-to-country policy variations to address country-specific issues and the socioeconomic problems in the probable causal nexus between the high incidence of extreme poverty and double-digit inflation rates in most SSA countries.

Originality/value

Studies on the inflation-poverty nexus are not uncommon in economic literature. Most existing studies focus on inflation’s effect on poverty. Existing studies that examine the inflation-poverty causal relationship covertly assume no asymmetric structure and nonlinearity. Also, the issues of cross-sectional dependence and heterogeneity are unexplored in the causal link in existing studies. All panel studies covertly impose homogeneous policies on countries in the causality. This study relaxes this supposition by allowing policies to vary across countries in the panel framework. Thus, this study makes three-dimensional contributions to increasing understanding of the inflation-poverty nexus.

Details

International Trade, Politics and Development, vol. 8 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2586-3932

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 December 2023

Catalina Crisan-Mitra and Gregorio Martín-de Castro

This study aims to examine the entrepreneurship profiles of migrants and refugees relying on a neo-configurational approach that increases understanding of causal complexity…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the entrepreneurship profiles of migrants and refugees relying on a neo-configurational approach that increases understanding of causal complexity, equifinality and causal asymmetry patterns to high entrepreneurial intentions in the two groups.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis method, the authors analysed 52 respondents – migrants and refugees. The findings show the existence of equifinality in which different configurations can lead to high and low entrepreneurial intentions, underlying that traumatic experiences have a major role in entrepreneurial intention. It also demonstrates that core conditions are associated with refugee’s configurations and causal asymmetry. The cross-sectional character of this research impedes the searching for a better causal relationship. The lack of studies that approach the subject of refugees makes it challenging to develop a robust theory in this sense.

Findings

The paper highlights five main configurations – two related to migrants’ profile and three related to refugees’ profile – that enable expanding the current knowledge and practices to better customize practices to increase entrepreneurial intention.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research using a configurational approach to explore migrant and refugee entrepreneurship intention profiles.

Details

Journal of Ethics in Entrepreneurship and Technology, vol. 3 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2633-7436

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 June 2024

Mohammad A. Algarni, Murad Ali and Imran Ali

Previous research suggests the crucial role of parents in developing social behaviors of their children. However, less evidence is available on the role of parents in shaping…

Abstract

Purpose

Previous research suggests the crucial role of parents in developing social behaviors of their children. However, less evidence is available on the role of parents in shaping responsible financial management behavior among children for their later life. This study bridges this gap by investigating the role of financial parenting in improving well-being among young Saudi people. Particularly, this study examines the role of financial parenting, childhood financial socialization and childhood financial experiences in developing responsible financial self-efficacy and financial coping behaviors to determine financial well-being among young adults in Saudi Arabia.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a two-step mixed-method approach comprising analyses of symmetric (net effects) and asymmetric (combinatory effects) modelling to test the proposed model. A symmetrical analysis examines the role of financial parenting factors that are sufficient for improving financial well-being among Saudis. An asymmetrical analysis is used to explore that a set of combinations of financial parenting conditions lead to high performance of financial well-being. Data have been collected from 350 students enrolled in undergraduate and postgraduate programs in Saudi Arabia.

Findings

According to asymmetric modeling (i.e. fsQCA) analysis, parents and practitioners can combine financial parenting, childhood financial socialization and childhood financial experiences along with financial self-efficacy and financial coping behaviors in a way that satisfied the conditions (i.e. causal antecedent conditions) leading to high financial well-being. Importantly, the condition of high financial well-being is not mirror opposite of causal antecedent conditions of low financial well-being.

Research limitations/implications

This study contributes to the current knowledge by applying both symmetrical and asymmetrical modelling to indicate a high level of financial well-being. Besides, there is sparse empirical evidence available in the context of Saudi Arabia on how financial parenting, socialization and financial experiences in childhood improve children's financial well-being in their later life.

Practical implications

According to asymmetric modeling (i.e. fsQCA) analysis, parents and practitioners can combine financial parenting, childhood financial socialization and childhood financial experiences along with financial self-efficacy and financial coping behaviors in a way that satisfied the conditions (i.e. causal antecedent conditions) leading to high financial well-being. Importantly, the condition of high financial well-being is not mirror opposite of causal antecedent conditions of low financial well-being. The parents and practitioners must be cautious to regulate the condition in which the combination of the antecedents is not in line with the causal recipes of financial well-being negation.

Originality/value

This study deepens the current knowledge by employing both symmetrical and asymmetrical analysis for testing structural and configurational models indicating the high performance of financial well-being . The study proposes and tests an integrated model to bring new contributions to prior literature. This study also attempts to propose valuable research directions for future researchers interested in the topic.

Details

Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1026-4116

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 February 2024

Andreas Schwarz and Audra Diers-Lawson

This study aims to contribute to strategic crisis communication research by exploring international media representations of third sector crises and crisis response; expanding the…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to contribute to strategic crisis communication research by exploring international media representations of third sector crises and crisis response; expanding the range of crisis types beyond transgressions; and developing a framework that integrates framing and crisis communication theory.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative content analysis was applied to identify patterns in crisis reporting of 18 news media outlets in Canada, Germany, India, Switzerland, UK and US. Using an inductive framing approach, crisis coverage of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) between 2015 and 2018 was analyzed across a wide range of crises, including but not limited to prominent cases such as Oxfam, Kids Company, or the Islamic Research Foundation.

Findings

The news media in six countries report more internal crises in the third sector than external crises. The most frequent crisis types were fraud and corruption, sexual violence/personal exploitation and attacks on organizations. Exploratory factor analysis revealed three components of crisis response strategies quoted in the media, conditional rebuild, defensive and justified denial strategies. Causal attributions and conditional rebuild strategies significantly influenced media evaluations of organizational crisis response. Three frames of third sector crises were detected; the critique, the damage and the victim frame. These frames emphasize different crisis types, causes, crisis response strategies and evaluations of crisis response.

Originality/value

The study reveals the particularities of crises and crisis communication in the third sector and identifies factors that influence mediated portrayals of crises and crisis response strategies of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) from an international comparative perspective. The findings have relevant implications for crisis communication theory and practice.

Details

Corporate Communications: An International Journal, vol. 29 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1356-3289

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 30 April 2024

Bernardinus Harnadi, Albertus Dwiyoga Widiantoro, FX Hendra Prasetya, Ridwan Sanjaya and Ranto Partomuan Sihombing

Research on technology acceptance of online entertainment with age, gender and cultural factors as moderator, is rarely conducted. Previous research predominantly focused on age…

Abstract

Purpose

Research on technology acceptance of online entertainment with age, gender and cultural factors as moderator, is rarely conducted. Previous research predominantly focused on age or gender as moderator, neglecting the influence of cultural factors. Therefore, this study aims to investigate acceptance of online entertainment technology, incorporating age, gender and cultural factors as moderator.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through a survey comprising 1,121 individuals aged 14–24 years from three cities in Indonesia. The proposed theoretical model examined the causal effect of acceptance and moderating effects due to individual gender, age, power distance, individualism, feminism and uncertainty avoidance (AU). Subsequently, structural equation modeling was used to evaluate the theoretical model, and the results confirmed several findings from previous research.

Findings

The findings confirmed the positive direct impact of habit and price value (PV) on behavioral intention and hedonic motivation, as well as social influence on habit. The recent findings derived from the moderating effect analysis showed that age, individualism and feminism played a moderating role in the effects on individual intention due to habit. Additionally, gender and AU moderated the effects on individual habits due to hedonic motivation.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the limited knowledge of technology acceptance of online entertainment, and also integrates the causal effects of individual intention due to habit, PV, hedonic motivation and social influence, considering the moderating role of culture, age and gender. Consequently, the investigation provides valuable insights into the literature by presenting evidence of age, gender and cultural differences in acceptance. Furthermore, it offers practical guidance to online entertainment application developers on designing applications to satisfy consumers of different ages, genders and cultures.

Details

Information Discovery and Delivery, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-6247

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 December 2022

Rong Zhang

The purpose of this research was to explore the stickiness of players' motivation in a virtual community and to explore the important factors for gamers.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research was to explore the stickiness of players' motivation in a virtual community and to explore the important factors for gamers.

Design/methodology/approach

In this research, motivation was the independent variable; the virtual community was the mediator; and stickiness was the dependent variable. An online questionnaire survey was conducted, with users of augmented reality (AR) as the research objects. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS and AMOS software to verify the research model and research hypotheses, to understand the relation between player motivation and stickiness and to determine whether there were any changes in the virtual community.

Findings

The authors found that the relation between players' motivation in AR-based games and the virtual community had a significant positive impact. Ingress had a significant positive impact on the virtual community and stickiness, and Pokémon had a significant positive impact too. The virtual community of the Ingress game played a completely mediating role in motivation and stickiness, but the virtual community in Pokémon did not have a mediating effect.

Originality/value

The novel approach adopted in this study enabled us to determine the causal relation between player motivation, the virtual community and stickiness, on the basis of the theoretical framework formulated, and the latter was used to construct a path analysis model diagram. The correlation between motivation and the virtual community, between the virtual community and stickiness, and the causal relation between all three was verified. The study results and conclusions may help companies understand how to use virtual communities in AR games to improve stickiness and motivate gamers to continue playing.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. 42 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 March 2023

Camilo Osejo-Bucheli

The purpose of this research is to increase academic understanding of the relationship between systems' political identity and their viability, and to contribute to…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to increase academic understanding of the relationship between systems' political identity and their viability, and to contribute to anarchist-cybernetics by examining the idea of organization proposed by Malatesta using Viable Systems. The research also develops the understanding of the relationship between Viable Systems and the environment.

Design/methodology/approach

The author developed a content analysis method that uses dynamic analysis, identifying how some variables affect others, and data is analysed using the Viable Systems Model. The author used Dynamic Causal Diagrams and the Viable System Model to draw conclusions and build theory. The author examined 137 documents produced by Errico Malatesta, studying in detail 39 documents containing the researched concepts.

Findings

The article identifies the literature, proposes an organizational theory for society and for cooperatives, strongly grounded in both, self-management and control. It presents a theory of self-management as a balancing effort to the control exercised by the external economic, political and societal forces of the environment. The literature also shows a form of organization that can be interpreted using the VSM framework. The ideas about self-management found in the literature, extend to economics, social theory, ethics, organizations, management and even operations management. The article finishes proposing a set of committees linked to the VSM structure, and successfully bridges anarchism and organizational cybernetics.

Originality/value

The article presents a novel method of systems analysis for the study of literature. It discovers the theory proposed by Malatesta not identified previously. Using the VSM framework, the ideas presented by the author, are translated into the organizational identity, and the operation of cooperatives. It makes an important contribution to anarchist-cybernetics.

Article
Publication date: 15 September 2022

Xiaozhong Chen and Rongli Chen

This study aims to examine the effects of iPad distribution on all teachers in a university and its application in teaching and student learning at home via wireless network…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the effects of iPad distribution on all teachers in a university and its application in teaching and student learning at home via wireless network during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The attitude towards the use of iPads, behavioural intentions and the impact on the quality of teaching were evaluated.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used the technology acceptance model to explore the use of iPad smart mobile devices in multimedia teaching applications by university teachers. Furthermore, it used the structural equation modelling (SEM) for data analysis to explore the causal relationship between model variables, and it aimed to examine the causal relationship between variables to verify the theory. The SEM analysis included the following two stages: measurement model analysis and structural model analysis.

Findings

The “Internet information environment” had a significant positive impact on “perceived usefulness” and “perceived ease of use”. Amongst them, perceived usefulness had a significant positive effect on the use attitude, and use attitude had a significant positive effect on behaviour intention.

Originality/value

The findings confirmed that a good information network environment will directly and positively affect the perceived usefulness and the ease of use of iPad smart devices, of which the perceived usefulness will further positively affect teachers' perception of iPad smart devices. The attitude and behaviour of using such devices will in turn positively affect the quality of teaching. The results of the quality performance evaluation can be referenced further by manufacturers and scholars regarding the use of iPad smart devices for work at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. 42 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 January 2024

Yunfei Xing, Justin Zuopeng Zhang, Veda C. Storey and Alex Koohang

The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of…

Abstract

Purpose

The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of any media outlet remains static and exogenous to the polarization process. By studying polarization as a whole from an ecosystem approach, the authors aim to identify policies and strategies that can help mitigate the adverse effects of polarization and promote healthier online discourse.

Design/methodology/approach

To investigate online polarization, the authors perform a systematic review and analysis of approximately 400 research articles to explore the connection between cognitive bias and polarization, examining both causal and correlational evidence. The authors extensively evaluate and integrate existing research related to the correlation between online polarization and crucial factors such as public engagement, selective exposure and political democracy. From doing so, the authors then develop a PolarSphere ecosystem that captures and illustrates the process of online polarization formation.

Findings

The authors' review uncovers a wide range of associations, including ideological cognition, bias, public participation, misinformation and miscommunication, political democracy, echo chambers and selective exposure, heterogeneity and trust. Although the impact of bias on social media polarization depends on specific environments and internal/external conditions, certain variables exhibit strong associations across multiple contexts. The authors use these observations as a basis from which to construct PolarSphere, an ecosystem of bias-based polarization on social media, to theorize the process of polarization formation.

Originality/value

Based on the PolarSphere ecosystem, the authors argue that it is crucial for governments and civil societies to maintain vigilance and invest in further research to gain a deep comprehension of how cognitive bias affects online polarization, which could lead to ways to eliminate polarization.

Details

Journal of Enterprise Information Management, vol. 37 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1741-0398

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 6000