Search results

1 – 10 of over 1000
Article
Publication date: 11 April 2024

Yi Lu, Gayani Karunasena and Chunlu Liu

From May 2024, Victoria (Australia) will mandatorily raise the minimum house energy rating standards from 6 to 7 stars. However, the latest data shows that only 5.73% of new…

Abstract

Purpose

From May 2024, Victoria (Australia) will mandatorily raise the minimum house energy rating standards from 6 to 7 stars. However, the latest data shows that only 5.73% of new Victorian houses were designed beyond 7-star. While previous literature indicates the issue’s link to the compliance behaviour of building practitioners in the design phase, the underlying behavioural determinants are rarely explored. This study thus preliminarily examines building practitioners’ compliance behaviour with 7-star Australian house energy ratings and beyond.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a widely-applied method to initially examine an under-explored phenomenon, eight expert interviews were conducted with building practitioners, a state-level industry regulator and a leading national building energy policy researcher. The study triangulated the data with government-led research reports.

Findings

The experts indicate that most building practitioners involved in mainstream volume projects do not go for 7 stars, mainly due to perceived compliance costs and reliance on standardized designs. In contrast, those who work on custom projects are more willing to go beyond 7-star mostly due to the moral norms for a low-carbon environment. The experts further agree that four behavioural determinants (attitudes towards compliance, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control and personal norms) co-shape building practitioners’ compliance behaviour. Interventions targeting these behavioural determinants are recommended for achieving 7 stars and beyond.

Originality/value

This study demonstrates the behavioural determinants that influence building practitioners’ compliance decisions, and offers insight regarding how far they will go to meet 7 stars. It can facilitate the transition to 7 stars by informing policymakers of customized interventions to trigger behaviour change.

Details

Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6099

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 February 2024

Junseon Jeong, Minji Park, Hyeonah Jo, Chunju Kim and Ji Hoon Song

This study identifies the policing pre-deployment training content for Korean experts based on needs assessments. Korean policing is at an excellent level to transfer knowledge…

Abstract

Purpose

This study identifies the policing pre-deployment training content for Korean experts based on needs assessments. Korean policing is at an excellent level to transfer knowledge and skills. Pre-deployment training should be designed systematically and training of trainers approaches should be implemented.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used T-tests, Borich needs assessments, and Locus for Focus model analyses to determine the priorities of needs for pre-deployment training in policing. A survey of 116 experienced experts was conducted, with 87 responding (75%).

Findings

The study identified 26 factors that deployed law enforcement professionals want to learn from pre-deployment training. These factors were categorized into three areas: research, training design and methods and understanding of partner countries and international development cooperation. The nine highest priorities for training needs were related to understanding the status and conditions of police training in the country to which policing experts are deployed.

Research limitations/implications

This study was limited to Korean policing experts. And the study did not evaluate the validity of the training curriculum or indicators.

Practical implications

Technical assistance in international policing development cooperation aims to train future trainers who can train local police. This study found that limited learner information and poor communication skills can lead to ineffective technical assistance.

Originality/value

This study highlights the importance of knowledge transfer and effective pre-deployment training for policing. The findings can be used to improve training programs and police human resource development.

Article
Publication date: 21 December 2023

Danuta Rode, Joanna Kabzińska, Magdalena Rode, Ewa Habzda-Siwek and Daniel Boduszek

The role of evidence-based psychological knowledge in cases of juvenile offending is essential to make appropriate decisions relating to youth who violate legal or social norms…

Abstract

Purpose

The role of evidence-based psychological knowledge in cases of juvenile offending is essential to make appropriate decisions relating to youth who violate legal or social norms, as it carries implications for treatment, intervention and practice. Psychological expert opinions therefore need to meet high formal and methodological requirements while maintaining ethical standards. The purpose of this study is to investigate psychological expert opinions in cases of juvenile misbehavior reported to regional courts in Poland. Juvenile court proceedings concern cases of demoralization and/or delinquent offenses. Demoralization is a legal concept described in the Act of June 9, 2022 on juvenile support and resocialization. This concept was not defined; it was only described through examples of behaviors indicating demoralization. These include the following: violations of the principles of community life; evading compulsory education or schooling; use of alcohol, narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, their precursors, substitutes or new psychoactive substances; and prostitution.

Design/methodology/approach

To reach these goals, court records of juvenile cases in six district courts (N = 253) were gathered and analyzed. A semistructured questionnaire was used to examine the cases in which psychologists were appointed and to analyze the procedures used by these experts for assessing adolescents and their families.

Findings

Findings revealed that family judges appoint psychologists both in cases of “demoralization” (i.e. status offenses) and in cases of juvenile delinquency. The opinions were delivered by psychologists who were mostly members of diagnostic teams. Results indicate that such opinions generally comply with the minimal standards recommended by the Ministry of Justice, yet a few problems were observed with the determination of levels of demoralization.

Originality/value

The limitations of diagnostic tools used by psychologists are discussed, and recommendations for future practice are provided.

Details

Journal of Criminal Psychology, vol. 14 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2009-3829

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 September 2023

Rachana Kalelkar and Emeka Nwaeze

The authors analyze the association between the functional background of the compensation committee chair and CEO compensation. The analysis is motivated by the continuing debate…

Abstract

Purpose

The authors analyze the association between the functional background of the compensation committee chair and CEO compensation. The analysis is motivated by the continuing debate about the reasonableness of executive pay patterns and the growing emphasis on the role of compensation committees.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors define three expert categories—accounting, finance, and generalist—and collect data on the compensation committee (CC) chairs of the S&P 500 firms from 2008 to 2018. The authors run an ordinary least square model and regress CEO total and cash compensation on the three expert categories.

Findings

The authors find that firms in which the CC chair has expertise in accounting, finance, and general business favor performance measures that are more aligned with accounting, finance, and general business, respectively. There is little evidence that CC chairs who are CEOs of other firms endorse more generous pay for the host CEO; the authors find some evidence that CC chairs tenure relative to the host CEO's is negatively associated with the level of the CEO's pay.

Research limitations/implications

This study suggests that firms and regulators should consider the background of the compensation committee chair to understand the variations in top executive.

Practical implications

Companies desiring to link executive compensation to particular areas of strategy must also consider matching the functional background of the compensation committee chair with the target strategy areas. From regulatory standpoint, requiring compensation committees to operate independent of inside directors can reduce attempts by inside directors to skim the process, but a failure to also consider the impact of compensation committees' discretion over the pay-setting process can distort the executives' pay-performance relation.

Originality/value

This is the first study to examine the effects of the functional background of the compensation committee chair on CEO compensation.

Details

Asian Review of Accounting, vol. 32 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1321-7348

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 November 2023

Mikhail Gorshunov

The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of audit committee financial experts on the risk of financial corruption in public companies.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of audit committee financial experts on the risk of financial corruption in public companies.

Design/methodology/approach

A time-lagged, matched-pairs sample of 352 corporations was utilized to test the study's hypotheses (176 financially corrupt firms plus 176 compliant firms). To uncover financially corrupt firms, 2,895 Accounting and Auditing Enforcement Releases from the Securities and Exchange Commission were thoroughly evaluated.

Findings

The results show that financial experts on audit committees generally increased financial corruption. However, the impact was reversed when audit committees had three or more financial experts, showing that having at least three financial experts reduced financial corruption.

Originality/value

The study's findings call into question the long-held practice of appointing at least one financial expert to audit committees. This study offers a novel approach to improve corporate oversight and reduce financial corruption by having at least three financial experts on audit committees.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 50 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 April 2024

Hui-Min Lai, Shin-Yuan Hung and David C. Yen

Seekers who visit professional virtual communities (PVCs) are usually motivated by knowledge-seeking, which is a complex cognitive process. How do seekers search for knowledge…

Abstract

Purpose

Seekers who visit professional virtual communities (PVCs) are usually motivated by knowledge-seeking, which is a complex cognitive process. How do seekers search for knowledge, and how is their search linked to prior knowledge or PVC situation factors? From the cognitive process and interactional psychology perspectives, this study investigated the three-way interactions between seekers’ expertise, task complexity, and perceptions of PVC features (i.e. knowledge quality and system quality) on knowledge-seeking strategies and resultant outcomes.

Design/methodology/approach

A field experiment was conducted with 119 seekers in a PVC using a 2 × 2 factorial design of seekers’ expertise (i.e. expert versus novice) and task complexity (i.e. low versus high).

Findings

The study reveals three significant insights: (1) For a high-complexity task, experts adopt an ask-directed searching strategy compared to novices, whereas novices adopt a browsing strategy; (2) For a high-complexity task, experts who perceive a high system quality are more likely than novices to adopt an ask-directed searching strategy; and (3) Task completion time and task quality are associated with the adoption of ask-directed searching strategies, whereas knowledge seekers’ satisfaction is more associated with the adoption of browsing strategy.

Originality/value

We draw on the perspectives of cognitive process and interactional psychology to explore potential two- and three-way interactions of seekers’ expertise, task complexity, and PVC features on the adoption of knowledge-seeking strategies in a PVC context. Our findings provide deep insights into seekers’ behavior in a PVC, given the popularity of the search for knowledge in PVCs.

Details

Information Technology & People, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-3845

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 March 2024

Frank Ato Ghansah and Weisheng Lu

While COVID-19 mitigation measures (CMMs) aided in steady recovery during the pandemic, they also impeded movement across economies/borders, affecting quality assurance (QA) of…

Abstract

Purpose

While COVID-19 mitigation measures (CMMs) aided in steady recovery during the pandemic, they also impeded movement across economies/borders, affecting quality assurance (QA) of Cross-border Construction Logistics and Supply Chain (Cb-CLSC). However, prior studies on the pandemic in the construction project industry have not revealed how CMMs have impacted QA. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the impact of the CMMs on the QA of Cb-CLSC.

Design/methodology/approach

This is achieved by adopting an embedded mixed-method approach involving a desk literature review and engaging 150 experts from different economies across the globe using expert surveys, and results verified via semi-structured expert interviews. Structural equation modelling-based multiple regression analysis (SEM-MRA) was integrated to examine the impact of the CMMs on the QA, along with descriptive and content analysis.

Findings

The study confirmed that CMMs have not only impacted the QA negatively but also influenced the positioning of the QA for the post-pandemic era and probably to survive the risks of future pandemics. Among all the identified CMMs, the top three critical measures include “lockdown (CMM2)”, “use of personal protective equipment, such as nose masks, disinfects, etc. (CMM5)”, and “electronic/virtual meetings (CMM7)”. However, CMM5 possesses the highest contributory power to form CMM in impacting the QA, and this can be regarded as largely positive by strengthening health and safety management systems. Its negative impact lies with the project cost increment and the inconveniences of using nose and face masks.

Practical implications

This study provides a better understanding to construction practitioners and policy makers on how the pandemic policies, i.e. CMMs, have impacted QA and can aid in formulating planning and operational decisions to adequately position the QA for the post-pandemic era and to endure the risks of future pandemics.

Originality/value

The study contributes to knowledge in that it provides a better understanding of how the pandemic policies, such as CMMs, have impacted QA and can aid in formulating planning and operational decisions to adequately position the QA for the post-pandemic era and to endure the risks of future pandemics. This area of study has been given limited attention among prior studies during the pandemic.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 March 2024

Frank Ato Ghansah, Weisheng Lu and Benjamin Kwaku Ababio

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the construction industry, yet still, it is unclear from existing studies about the critical challenges imposed on quality assurance (QA)…

Abstract

Purpose

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the construction industry, yet still, it is unclear from existing studies about the critical challenges imposed on quality assurance (QA), particularly Cross-border Construction Logistics and Supply Chain (Cb-CLSC). Thus, this study aims to identify and examine the critical challenges of QA of Cb-CLSC during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

The aim is achieved via an embedded mixed-method approach pragmatically involving a desk literature review and engaging 150 experts across the globe using expert surveys, and results confirmed by semi-structured interviews. The approach is based on Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM) as its foundation.

Findings

The study revealed ten critical challenges of QA, with the top four including “the shortage of raw construction material (C7)”, “design changes (C6)”, “collaboration and communication difficulties (C1)” and “changes in work practices (C10)”. However, examining the interrelationships among the critical challenges using ISM confirmed C7 and C10 as the most critical challenges. The study again revealed that the critical challenges are sensitive and capable of affecting themselves due to the nature of their interrelationship based on MICMAC analysis. Hence, being consistent with why all the challenges were considered critical amid the pandemic. Sentiment analysis revealed that the critical challenges have not been entirely negative but also positive by creating three areas of opportunities for improvement: technology adoption, worker management, and work process management. However, four areas of challenges in the QA include cost, raw material, time, and work process, including inspection, testing, auditing, communication, etc.

Practical implications

The finding provides a convenient point of reference to researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and decision-makers on formulating policies to enhance the effectiveness of construction QA during the pandemic through to the post-pandemic era.

Originality/value

The study enriches the extant literature on QA, Cb-CLSC, and the COVID-19 pandemic in the construction industry by identifying the critical challenges and examining the interrelationships among them. This provides a better understanding of how the construction QA has been affected by the pandemic and the opportunities created.

Details

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

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 March 2023

Chiung-Wen Hsu

The author examined effects of endorser type and message framing on visual attention and ad effectiveness in health ads, including the moderator of involvement. This paper aims to…

Abstract

Purpose

The author examined effects of endorser type and message framing on visual attention and ad effectiveness in health ads, including the moderator of involvement. This paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

An experiment was conducted with a 2 (celebrity vs. expert) × 2 (positive vs. negative framing) between-subject factorial design. Eye-tracking measured visual attention and a questionnaire measured ad effectiveness and product involvement.

Findings

Experimental data from 78 responses showed no vampire effect in the health advertisements. Celebrity endorsement with negative message framing received more attention and had less ad recall than that with positive message framing. Negative and positive message framing attracted the same amount of attention and ad recall in the expert endorsement condition. High involvement participants paid more attention to the ad message with the expert than that with the celebrity, but ad recall was not significantly increased. Low involvement participants exhibited the same attention to the ad message with the expert and with the celebrity, but had greater recall of the ad message with the expert. Visual attention to the endorser was associated with ad attitude but not with ad recall. Ad attitude impacted behavioral intention.

Originality/value

Studies examining influences of celebrity and message framing on ad effectiveness have focused on the response to advertising stimuli, not the information process. The author provides empirical evidence of the viewers' information processing of endorsers and health messages, and its relationship with ad effectiveness. The study contributes to the literature by combining endorser and message framing in health ads to promote public health communication from the information processing perspective.

Details

Aslib Journal of Information Management, vol. 76 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-3806

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 February 2024

Liisa Lee, Mira Hammarén and Outi Kanste

To explore Finnish experts' perceptions of the forms of digital healthcare that are anticipated to be the most utilised in healthcare in the medium-term future (year 2035) and…

Abstract

Purpose

To explore Finnish experts' perceptions of the forms of digital healthcare that are anticipated to be the most utilised in healthcare in the medium-term future (year 2035) and anticipated healthcare workforce impacts those forms will have.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 17 experts representing relevant interest groups participated in a biphasic online Delphi study. The results for each round were analysed using descriptive statistical methods and inductive content analysis.

Findings

The forms of digital healthcare that the experts perceived as most likely to be utilised were those enabling patient participation, efficient organisation of services and automated data collection and analysis. The main impacts on the healthcare workforce were seen as being the redirection of workforce needs within the healthcare sector and need for new skills and new professions. The decrease in the need for a healthcare workforce was seen as less likely. The impacts were perceived as being constructed through three means: impacts within healthcare organisations, impacts on healthcare professions and impacts via patients.

Research limitations/implications

The results are not necessarily transferable to other contexts because the experts anticipated local futures. Patients' views were also excluded from the study.

Originality/value

Healthcare organisations function in complex systems where drivers, such as regional demographics, legislation and financial constraints, dictate how digital healthcare is utilised. Anticipating the workforce effects of digital healthcare utilisation has received limited attention; the study adds to this discussion.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 38 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 1000