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Book part
Publication date: 27 December 2016

Arch G. Woodside

This chapter describes tenets of complexity theory including the precept that within the same set of data X relates to Y positively, negatively, and not at all. A consequence to…

Abstract

This chapter describes tenets of complexity theory including the precept that within the same set of data X relates to Y positively, negatively, and not at all. A consequence to this first precept is that reporting how X relates positively to Y with and without additional terms in multiple regression models ignores important information available in a data set. Performing contrarian case analysis indicates that cases having low X with high Y and high X with low Y occur even when the relationship between X and Y is positive and the effect size of the relationship is large. Findings from contrarian case analysis support the necessity of modeling multiple realities using complex antecedent configurations. Complex antecedent configurations (i.e., 2–7 features per recipe) can show that high X is an indicator of high Y when high X combines with certain additional antecedent conditions (e.g., high A, high B, and low C) – and low X is an indicator of high Y as well when low X combines in other recipes (e.g., high A, low R, and high S), where A, B, C, R, and S are additional antecedent conditions. Thus, modeling multiple realities – configural analysis – is necessary, to learn the configurations of multiple indicators for high Y outcomes and the negation of high Y. For a number of X antecedent conditions, a high X may be necessary for high Y to occur but high X alone is almost never sufficient for a high Y outcome.

Details

Bad to Good
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-333-7

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Book part
Publication date: 27 December 2016

Arch G. Woodside

The introductory chapter includes how to design-in good practices in theory, data collection procedures, analysis, and interpretations to avoid these bad practices. Given that bad…

Abstract

The introductory chapter includes how to design-in good practices in theory, data collection procedures, analysis, and interpretations to avoid these bad practices. Given that bad practices in research are ingrained in the career training of scholars in sub-disciplines of business/management (e.g., through reading articles exhibiting bad practices usually without discussions of the severe weaknesses in these studies and by research courses stressing the use of regression analysis and structural equation modeling), this editorial is likely to have little impact. However, scholars and executives supporting good practices should not lose hope. The relevant literature includes a few brilliant contributions that can serve as beacons for eliminating the current pervasive bad practices and for performing highly competent research.

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Bad to Good
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-333-7

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Article
Publication date: 7 September 2018

Ivan Russo, Ilenia Confente, David Gligor and Nicola Cobelli

The purpose of this paper is to introduce qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to the field of supply chain management and provide a detailed roadmap that supply chain…

2891

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to the field of supply chain management and provide a detailed roadmap that supply chain researchers can utilize when applying this methodology.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection focused on the evaluation of product returns management practices as perceived by business customers who operate in a supplier–customer context. In order to analyze the data using the QCA approach, a multi-step analysis was developed.

Findings

The results indicate five solutions that lead to high levels of customer satisfaction. The existence of multiple sufficient configurations for customer satisfaction indicates equifinality because multiple alternative solutions can lead to the same outcome.

Research limitations/implications

The authors make a methodological contribution by applying the QCA method to the field of supply chain management and providing a detailed roadmap that supply chain researchers can utilize.

Practical implications

The authors provide managers five different and novel combinations of antecedents that lead to higher levels of customer satisfaction.

Originality/value

This study offers supply chain researchers a better understanding of when it is appropriate to use QCA and how to apply this methodology. From a theoretical perspective, past studies focused exclusively on the “net effects” of these antecedents, thus, did not capture the complexity of the relationships between these various antecedents and customer satisfaction. This is a noteworthy contribution as it highlights the complexity of the amalgam of relationships and factors that impact customer satisfaction within the context of reverse supply chain.

Details

International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, vol. 49 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0960-0035

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Book part
Publication date: 29 January 2018

Huat Bin (Andy) Ang and Arch G. Woodside

This study applies asymmetric rather than conventional symmetric analysis to advance theory in occupational psychology. The study applies systematic case-based analyses to model…

Abstract

This study applies asymmetric rather than conventional symmetric analysis to advance theory in occupational psychology. The study applies systematic case-based analyses to model complex relations among conditions (i.e., configurations of high and low scores for variables) in terms of set memberships of managers. The study uses Boolean algebra to identify configurations (i.e., recipes) reflecting complex conditions sufficient for the occurrence of outcomes of interest (e.g., high versus low financial job stress, job strain, and job satisfaction). The study applies complexity theory tenets to offer a nuanced perspective concerning the occurrence of contrarian cases – for example, in identifying different cases (e.g., managers) with high membership scores in a variable (e.g., core self-evaluation) who have low job satisfaction scores and when different cases with low membership scores in the same variable have high job satisfaction. In a large-scale empirical study of managers (n = 928) in four (contextual) segments of the farm industry in New Zealand, this study tests the fit and predictive validities of set membership configurations for simple and complex antecedent conditions that indicate high/low core self-evaluations, job stress, and high/low job satisfaction. The findings support the conclusion that complexity theory in combination with configural analysis offers useful insights for explaining nuances in the causes and outcomes to high stress as well as low stress among farm managers. Some findings support and some are contrary to symmetric relationship findings (i.e., highly significant correlations that support main effect hypotheses).

Details

Improving the Marriage of Modeling and Theory for Accurate Forecasts of Outcomes
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-122-7

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Article
Publication date: 11 May 2015

James Po-Hsun Hsiao, Chyi Jaw, Tzung-Cheng (T.C.) Huan and Arch G. Woodside

This paper aims to advance a configural asymmetric theory of the complex antecedents to hospitality employee happiness-at-work and managers’ assessments of employees’ quality of…

1902

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to advance a configural asymmetric theory of the complex antecedents to hospitality employee happiness-at-work and managers’ assessments of employees’ quality of work performance. The study transcends variable and case-level analyses to go beyond prior statistical findings of small-to-medium effect sizes of happiness–performance relationships; the study here identifies antecedent paths involving high-versus-low happy employees associating with high-versus-low managers’ assessments of these employees’ performances.

Design/methodology/approach

The study merges data from surveys of employees (n = 247) and surveys completed by their managers (n = 43) and by using qualitative comparative analysis via the software program, fsQCA.com. The study analyzes data from Janfusan Fancyworld, the largest (in revenues and number of employees) tourism business group in Taiwan; Janfusan Fancyworld includes tourist hotels, amusement parks, restaurants and additional firms in related service sectors.

Findings

The findings support the four tenets of configural analysis and theory construction: recognize equifinality of different solutions for the same outcome, test for asymmetric solutions, test for causal asymmetric outcomes for very high versus very low happiness and work performance and embrace complexity.

Research limitations/implications

Additional research in other firms and additional countries is necessary to confirm the usefulness of examining algorithms for predicting very high (low) happiness and very high (low) quality of work performance. The implications are substantial that configural theory and research will resolve perplexing happiness–performance conundrums.

Practical implications

The study provides useful case-level algorithms involving employees’ demographic characteristics and their assessments of work facet-specifics which are useful for explaining very high happiness-at-work and high quality of work performance (as assessed by managers) – as well as algorithms explaining very low happiness and very low quality of work performance.

Originality/value

The study is the first to propose and test the tenets of configural theory in the context of hospitality frontline service employees’ happiness-at-work and managers’ assessments of these employees’ quality of work performances.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 27 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-6119

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Article
Publication date: 10 August 2020

Francesca De Canio, Marta Nieto-García, Elisa Martinelli and Davide Pellegrini

Literature on the motives influencing consumers’ intention to use peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms has become vast and fragmented. The purpose of this paper is to shed light on this…

1523

Abstract

Purpose

Literature on the motives influencing consumers’ intention to use peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms has become vast and fragmented. The purpose of this paper is to shed light on this research stream by applying a novel methodological approach that reveals the existence of alternative combinations of motives that equally boost consumers’ intention to use P2P accommodation.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodological approach builds on the complexity theory and includes both linear and nonlinear techniques. The empirical analysis combines multiple regression analysis and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). The sample comprises 458 users of a leading P2P accommodation platform.

Findings

The fsQCA reveals four distinct combinations of motives. Social interaction and social esteem, either combined themselves or in partial combination with economic benefits, emerge as two important drivers of behavioral intention to use P2P accommodation. Sustainability appears in three of the combinations.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the P2P accommodation literature by adopting a novel methodological approach that shows the complexity behind consumers’ intention to use P2P accommodation. Consumer motives cannot be considered as separate entities because their effect on consumer intention depends on the interplay among them. Therefore, the different combinations of motives should be managed simultaneously.

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International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 32 no. 9
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-6119

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Book part
Publication date: 29 January 2018

Arch G. Woodside

This chapter identifies research advances in theory and analytics that contribute successfully to the primary need to be filled to achieve scientific legitimacy: configurations…

Abstract

This chapter identifies research advances in theory and analytics that contribute successfully to the primary need to be filled to achieve scientific legitimacy: configurations that include accurate explanation, description, and prediction – prediction here refers to predicting future outcomes and outcomes of cases in samples separate from the samples of cases used to construct models. The MAJOR PARADOX: can the researcher construct models that achieve accurate prediction of outcomes for individual cases that also are generalizable across all the cases in the sample? This chapter presents a way forward for solving the major paradox. The solution here includes philosophical, theoretical, and operational shifts away from variable-based modeling and null hypothesis statistical testing (NHST) to case-based modeling and somewhat precise outcome testing (SPOT). These shifts are now occurring in the scholarly business-to-business literature.

Details

Improving the Marriage of Modeling and Theory for Accurate Forecasts of Outcomes
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-122-7

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Article
Publication date: 14 December 2022

Sigen Song, Fanny Fong Yee Chan, Yongfa Li and Cheng Lu Wang

Placement prominence is a multidimensional concept. Previous studies have defined and operationalized prominence in different ways, and no studies have tried to systematically…

Abstract

Purpose

Placement prominence is a multidimensional concept. Previous studies have defined and operationalized prominence in different ways, and no studies have tried to systematically examine what should and should not be counted as prominence. This study aims to fill this gap.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a content analysis of six short films and a survey study on 129 Chinese young adults, this study systematically examined 13 dimensions of placement prominence on the memory of placed brands.

Findings

Factor analysis has reduced the 13 dimensions into five factors: contextual, narrative, sensory, exposure and spatial prominence. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) software was used to conduct a contrarian case analysis and test for predictive validity. This was followed by a QCA to identify the optimal configurations of the five factors that may lead to a high recognition of the placed brands. The optimal configurations were also contrasted across two gender and brand familiarity groups. While the optimal configurations of prominence on brand memory for male and female participants were largely the same, the combinations differed between participants with low and high brand familiarity.

Originality/value

Previous studies in product placement usually operationalize prominence with a few dominant dimensions intuitively though several other dimensions, and their interactions could also affect the prominence level. To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that used multiple dimensions of prominence configurations to identify paths that may lead to low and high brand memory. The empirical results contribute to the theory and understanding of the effect of prominence on brand memory and provide guidance to brand managers in determining which prominence configuration is the most suitable for achieving their promotional objective.

Details

Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 32 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1061-0421

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Article
Publication date: 28 February 2023

Habib Jouber

Considering corporate governance (CG hereinafter) practices' variety across Anglo-American and European countries, this study relies on contingency and complexity theories to…

Abstract

Purpose

Considering corporate governance (CG hereinafter) practices' variety across Anglo-American and European countries, this study relies on contingency and complexity theories to investigate the effect of environmental sustainability performance (ESP hereinafter) on shareholder value under various configurations of board of directors (BoD hereinafter), firm and country characteristics.

Design/methodology/approach

The author used the Thomson Reuters Environment Pillar Score (ASSET4) and the Total Shareholder Return to assess ESP and shareholder value respectively. The author applied a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA hereinafter) to an unbalanced panel of 2,284 observations from 486 European and Anglo-American non-financial listed firms over the period 2016–2020.

Findings

The author found a positive association between ESP and shareholder value and he displayed notable differences between Anglo-American and European economies regarding causal predictors of this positive association. Within European firms operating under civil law code where investor protection is low and family ownership is widespread, ESP creates shareholder value under configurations of causal predictors that significantly differ from those of their Anglo-American peers. The author's findings are robust to different identification strategies.

Practical implications

This study assists researchers, practitioners, shareholders and policymakers the significant roles that BoD diversity, organisational and institutional traits are jointly playing as determinants of the ESP-shareholder value relationship.

Originality/value

The author's study offers a more encompassing, complete and theoretically richer picture of the key drivers and outcomes of ESP.

Details

EuroMed Journal of Business, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1450-2194

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Article
Publication date: 28 December 2023

Adilson Carlos Yoshikuni, Rajeev Dwivedi and Yogesh K. Dwivedi

The research aims to identify the impacts of strategic knowledge (SK) and information technology capabilities (ITC) on innovation ambidexterity (IAM) through business process…

140

Abstract

Purpose

The research aims to identify the impacts of strategic knowledge (SK) and information technology capabilities (ITC) on innovation ambidexterity (IAM) through business process performance (BPP).

Design/methodology/approach

The research framework is developed based on the theoretical grounding of resource orchestration (RO) (SK and ITC) impacts on IAM. The structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was used to test the research framework on a sample of 441 responses from Brazilian firms.

Findings

The results suggest that SK and ITC facilitate BPP, resulting in IAM. The findings also suggested differences in path coefficients in the SK and ITC of the business value generation process framework under environmental turbulence (ET). Finally, a strong SK of ITC is especially important in enabling BPP and IAM in large firms. Another case of most manufacturing and service firms demonstrated that both SK and ITC are essential to impacting IAM through BPP mediation.

Practical implications

The findings provide insight into how professionals can think and plan carefully to align SK and ITC for achieving balanced innovation and improving BPP in the dynamic business environment.

Originality/value

The study establishes a relationship between SK, ITC, BPP and IAM. The study developed novel constructs of SK and ITC and tested them, which gives new insight and links among the constructs.

Details

Industrial Management & Data Systems, vol. 124 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-5577

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