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1 – 10 of over 11000Yi Zhang, Tianqi Zhang, Hang Zhou and Jian Qin
People usually try to avoid uncertainty. Recently, however, uncertainty has become an emerging marketing tool in the hedonic product industry. In the case of blind box…
Abstract
Purpose
People usually try to avoid uncertainty. Recently, however, uncertainty has become an emerging marketing tool in the hedonic product industry. In the case of blind box consumption, for example, the consumers become addicted to the uncertainty created by businesses, leading to repeat purchases and even indulgences. Previous research has, yet, to focus on the impact of uncertainty on indulgence and the role of emotions.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper constructs and validates a chain mediation model of uncertainty triggering indulgent consumption based on the information gap theory, positive emotion theory and uncertainty resolution theory and examines the difference between resolved and unresolved uncertainty. This study also explores differences in the impact of whether uncertainty is resolved on emotions. The uncertainty-resolved group elicited a more positive emotional response than the uncertainty-unresolved group, leading to a more indulgent consumption.
Findings
The results of three studies show that uncertainty influences indulgent consumption through curiosity and positive emotion, and that curiosity and positive emotion play separate and chain mediating roles between uncertainty and indulgent consumption, respectively. We validate our central hypothesis with questionnaires among blind box consumer groups, examining the moderating role of perceived luck and risk preferences.
Originality/value
The findings shed new light on firms' use of uncertainty to promote consumer purchases.
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The aim of this paper is to review the psychological literature on curiosity and its relationship to information-seeking behaviour, and compare this with the information science…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to review the psychological literature on curiosity and its relationship to information-seeking behaviour, and compare this with the information science literature on the same subject.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach adopted is that of a comparative literature review, with an analysis of the papers retrieved in terms of their theoretical approach, context, study population and research method.
Findings
Curiosity is understood as a multi-faceted cognitive trait in humans and the relationship to information-seeking behaviour is explored through an exploration of other personality characteristics. There is very little citation of the information science literature in the psychological papers, and only a little more citation of the psychological literature in the information science papers.
Originality/value
The author is not aware of any similar exploration of the literature on curiosity.
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Christopher K. Hsee and Bowen Ruan
This chapter reviews and integrates recent research on curiosity. We discuss potential costs and benefits of curiosity, both hedonic and motivational. In particular, we examine…
Abstract
This chapter reviews and integrates recent research on curiosity. We discuss potential costs and benefits of curiosity, both hedonic and motivational. In particular, we examine the Pandora effect, the teasing effect, and the motivating-uncertainty effect.
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The debate about university technology transfer policy would benefit from increased attention to two parts of the technology transfer equation: the societal purpose of basic…
Abstract
The debate about university technology transfer policy would benefit from increased attention to two parts of the technology transfer equation: the societal purpose of basic scientific research and the characteristics of scientific researchers.11This Chapter was prepared for the Colloquium on University Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer hosted by the Karl Eller Center of the University of Arizona and sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. I am grateful to them for their support. I am also grateful to the participants in the Colloquium for helpful comments. Finally, I thank my research assistant, David Zelner, for assistance with this project. One purpose of curiosity-driven research is to provide a demand function that can serve as a proxy for the socially optimal (but unknowable) demand function for the unpredictable research that is necessary for long-term technological progress. Preserving the curiosity-driven research peer review “market” is thus important for that progress. This analysis highlights the importance of adequate funding for curiosity-driven research. A model of typical university scientists’ preferences can be used to assess how technology transfer policies may affect the social norms of the research community and the long-term viability of the curiosity-driven research endeavor. The analysis suggests that patenting will be an ineffective technology transfer mechanism unless researchers are precluded from using patenting to maintain control over follow-on research.
Jacqueline Gottlieb, Manuel Lopes and Pierre-Yves Oudeyer
Based on a synthesis of findings from psychology, neuroscience, and machine learning, we propose a unified theory of curiosity as a form of motivated cognition. Curiosity, we…
Abstract
Based on a synthesis of findings from psychology, neuroscience, and machine learning, we propose a unified theory of curiosity as a form of motivated cognition. Curiosity, we propose, is comprised of a family of mechanisms that range in complexity from simple heuristics based on novelty, salience, or surprise, to drives based on reward and uncertainty reduction and finally, to self-directed metacognitive processes. These mechanisms, we propose, have evolved to allow agents to discover useful regularities in the world – steering them toward niches of maximal learning progress and away from both random and highly familiar tasks. We emphasize that curiosity arises organically in conjunction with cognition and motivation, being generated by cognitive processes and in turn, motivating them. We hope that this view will spur the systematic study of curiosity as an integral aspect of cognition and decision making during development and adulthood.
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Sultan Salem Saeed AlShamsi, Kamarul Zaman Bin Ahmad and Sajjad M. Jasimuddin
This paper aims to examine the mediating effect of work engagement on the relationship between curiosity and innovative work behavior. The context of the study is the initial…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the mediating effect of work engagement on the relationship between curiosity and innovative work behavior. The context of the study is the initial stages of the pandemic starting April 2020, when international travel became restricted.
Design/methodology/approach
Self-administered questionnaires were distributed and collected from 327 respondents of 32 organizations in the aviation industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Findings
As hypothesized, work engagement is a mediator of the relationship between curiosity and innovative work behavior.
Research limitations/implications
The limited sample size and confinement to the aviation industry in the UAE limit the generalisation of the results.
Practical implications
Managers desirous of improving employees’ innovative work behavior will now understand how employees’ curiosity and exploration can impact innovative work behavior through the employees’ work engagement. Therefore, managers should focus on ensuring how employees’ curiosity and exploration can be created into work engagement, ultimately leading to innovative work behavior.
Originality/value
This research extends the social learning theory by positing that people who have strong traits of curiosity and exploration, will learn from others on how to work more effectively. This will make them more absorbed in their work (work engagement) and subsequently lead to innovative work behavior.
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Angela Shin-yih Chen, Min-dau Bian, Trung Kim Nguyen and Chien-Hua Chang
This study aimed to examine the effects of curiosity on expatriates' innovative work behaviour and job satisfaction in a cross-cultural setting, with the sequential mediating…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aimed to examine the effects of curiosity on expatriates' innovative work behaviour and job satisfaction in a cross-cultural setting, with the sequential mediating effects of cultural intelligence (CQ) and knowledge-sharing behaviour.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected by distributing an online survey to 465 Taiwanese expatriates living and working abroad. Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses via AMOS v.22.
Findings
The results indicate that curiosity is an antecedent of an individual's CQ and both CQ and knowledge-sharing behaviour are sequential mediators in the relationships between curiosity and innovative work behaviour and between curiosity and job satisfaction.
Originality/value
The study expands the existing body of research to analyse personal traits as meaningful factors that enhance CQ and the mechanisms of CQ and knowledge sharing behaviour in the relationship between curiosity and innovative work behaviour and between curiosity and job satisfaction. It offers novel empirical evidence for the important role of curiosity, CQ and knowledge-sharing behaviour in enhancing an individual's innovative work behaviour and job satisfaction in a cross-cultural setting.
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Li-Chun Huang and Wen-Lung Shiau
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors that affect how people maintain their friendships by using information on Plurk.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors that affect how people maintain their friendships by using information on Plurk.
Design/methodology/approach
This study extended the Theory of Planned Behavior model to include both interpersonal curiosity and reciprocity. Data were collected via an online survey with 220 valid samples. The respondents answered the survey questionnaire based on their past experiences using Plurk. The proposed research model was assessed using structural equation modeling as performed in the LISREL program.
Findings
The attitude toward using Plurk for maintaining friendships is the strongest predictor of intention to use, followed by perceived behavioral control. The findings indicate that reciprocity has the strongest effect on attitude toward using Plurk for maintaining friendship, followed by subjective norms and interpersonal curiosity. An analysis of the research explained 61 percent of the variance in attitude toward using Plurk for maintaining friendship, and 73 percent of the variance in intention to use Plurk for maintaining friendship.
Research limitations/implications
This study only focussed on a limited number of factors, and as a result, the effects of some variables, such as personal characteristics, may have been overlooked. In the future, researchers can extend this model by incorporating more variables into the analysis of maintaining friendships via Plurk.
Practical implications
As microblogging firms compete for online customers, it would be useful to gain some understanding of the possible effects of reciprocity and interpersonal curiosity on users’ intention to use Plurk for maintaining friendships. As firms compete for internet marketing, managers should know the potential use of Plurk as an effective channel to promote their products and services to whoever needs them.
Originality/value
From the literature available in the public journal databases, no existing research model was found to explain the behavior of Plurk users on microblogs. The paper fulfills this objective.
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Helen Thacker, Ann Anka and Bridget Penhale
The purpose of this paper is to consider the importance of professional curiosity and partnership work in safeguarding adults from serious harm, abuse and neglect.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider the importance of professional curiosity and partnership work in safeguarding adults from serious harm, abuse and neglect.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on a range of materials including: review of published materials in relation to professional curiosity, reports from adult serious case reviews (SCRs) and safeguarding adult reviews (SARs); relevant materials drawn from the SAR Library, thematic reviews of SARs and Google searches; observations from practice and experience. It also refers to the relevant academic literature.
Findings
Lessons from SCRs and SARs show that a lack of professional curiosity and poor coordination of support can lead to poor assessments and intervention measures that can fail to support those at risk of harm and abuse. There are a number of barriers to professionals practicing with curiosity. Working in partnership enhances the likelihood that professional curiosity will flourish.
Practical implications
There are clear implications for improving practice by increasing professional curiosity amongst professionals. The authors argue that there is a scope to improve professional curiosity by utilising and developing existing partnerships, and ultimately to help reduce the number of deaths and incidents of serious harm.
Originality/value
The paper considers the importance of employing professional curiosity and partnership work in safeguarding adults’ practice, so enabling practitioners to better safeguard adults at risk of abuse and neglect.
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Ugochukwu Chinonso Okolie, Chinedu Ochinanwata, Nonso Ochinanwata, Paul Agu Igwe and Gloria Obiageli Okorie
This study investigates the relationship between perceived supervisor support (PSS) and learner career curiosity and tests the mediating role of sense of belonging, engagement and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the relationship between perceived supervisor support (PSS) and learner career curiosity and tests the mediating role of sense of belonging, engagement and learning self-efficacy.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used a three-wave repeated cross-sectional data collected from 509 final-year undergraduate students of 11 Nigerian public universities, who had completed the compulsory work placement to analyze the influence of PSS on learner’s career curiosity via a parallel mediation involving sense of belonging, engagement (behavioural, emotional and cognitive) and self-efficacy.
Findings
The results show that engagement mediates the path through which PSS influences career curiosity. However, the authors found no evidence that sense of belonging and self-efficacy mediated the relationship between PSS and learner’s career curiosity in this population.
Originality/value
The findings of this study highlight the importance of PSS as a resource that influences learner’s career curiosity, particularly during a work placement.
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