Search results

In this study, the authors examine how a retail bank's positive, neutral, and negative prior ethical reputations influence customers' perceptions and attitudes, leading to their bank selection decisions and also analyze whether there is a trade-off between a bank's negative prior ethical reputation and its functional benefits to customers.

The authors followed a sequential exploratory mixed-methods research design with two studies. The authors’ first study was qualitative, in which the authors conducted interviews and focus groups with banking customers in Pakistan. The results of this study were used to generate hypotheses that were tested in the second study using random choice experiments.

The results indicate that positive and neutral prior ethical reputations do not significantly impact customers' choices; however, a negative reputation does affect selection. The results also show that customers punished negative reputations, even when the associated functional benefits were higher than the alternatives.

This is one of the first mixed-methods studies in an emerging economy context to consider the impact of ethical reputation on consumer orientation and bank selection decisions.

This paper aims to understand the factors that influence a supplier’s choice to treat selected customers more preferentially than others. Suppliers often lack the resources to treat all their customers equally, instead having to make choices to treat some customers as preferred. Empirical evidence indicates that preferential treatment by suppliers provides substantial benefits for the purchasing firm.

This study applies a mixed-methods approach. First, a qualitative analysis of a sample of buyers from an automotive manufacturer was conducted. In the second step, the findings were triangulated via a quantitative survey among key account managers of the automotive firm’s suppliers.

This paper is the first to provide quantitative data collected from a large sample of automotive suppliers about the drivers of preferential customer treatment. The authors were able to show that the growth opportunities for suppliers and customers’ operative excellence, reliability and relational behavior are factors that induce suppliers to award preferential customer treatment. In contrast, innovation potential for suppliers, customers’ support of suppliers, supplier involvement and contact accessibility do not show a significant effect on suppliers’ behavioral intentions toward preferential customer treatment.

The mixed-methods approach is introduced as a form of academic enquiry in supply chain management. The factors influencing preferential customer treatment by suppliers are explored in discussions with purchasers and validated in a subsequent survey among suppliers. Recommendations for managerial practice and theory are drawn.

This study aims to construct a scale and identify the factors that might affect the implementation of gamification and Bloom's Digital Taxonomy-based assessment of students' learning, guided by the Goal-Setting Theory.

This study used a sequential exploratory mixed-methods design where data were collected qualitatively via interviews (n = 18) and field notes. Quantitative analysis was then applied via questionnaires (n = 96).

Four major themes emerged following thematic analysis of the observation notes and interview data: learning engagements; understandable learning goals; friendly competitions; and interactive learning feedback. A scale consisting of 32 items was developed based on the qualitative data. The quantitative data were then collected to evaluate the scale's factor structure using maximum likelihood exploratory factor analysis with Promax factor rotation. The final version of the scale had 29 items. The authors verified the alpha coefficients for each element and the entire hierarchy, ranging from 0.94 to 0.98 for the factors. The total scale was determined to be 0.96, and the Item Content Validity Index was considered valid.

The scale developed in this study is expected to inform future research and guide educators who wish to incorporate contemporary digital pedagogies in a different context. This study could also be beneficial to researchers who aspire to perform research on Goal-Setting Theory in the educational context.

This paper aims to explore student teachers’ views related to the online academic support e-tools used under the COVID-19 lockdown.

Mapping a pragmatic research approach, an explanatory mixed methods design was used for the study.

Empirical evidence revealed that student teachers were satisfied and experienced the academic support tools as being positively applied to their online learning. Furthermore, it is reported that student teachers preferred the discussion forum as the most appropriate academic support e-tool in the course under coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.

This exploratory pragmatic study extends the knowledge of the online academic support e-tools for an open distance e-learning (ODeL) context that was used under COVID-19 lockdown. This study provides additional evidence concerning a revised academic support frame for an ODeL online learning context. Research limitations: small sample size was used, and therefore caution must be applied, as the findings might not be transferable to a similar context. The current study has only examined a teacher education course and could not be generalised to similar conditions as those under COVID-19 lockdown. This exploratory research has raised many questions that require further investigation. More research is required to determine the efficacy of the academic support e-tools with regard to student learning in other online courses and contexts.

The student teachers that participated in this study were empowered to using the academic support e-tools to support them under COVID-19 lockdown. The discussion was mostly preferred academic supportive e-tool as an engaged, participatory and communicative platform for accelerated learning in the teaching methodology of economics course.

A noteworthy contribution was made in the design and testing of the reliability of methodological tools, which could be replicated in blended and ODeL contexts.

The cross-cultural significance of autonomy within self-determination theory is divisive on universal significance. This paper aims to report a sequential exploratory mixed methods study conducted to construct and validate a scale to investigate how, in Malaysian context, the construct of autonomy is conceptualized in comparison with the existing scale owing to cultural variation.

Focus group interviews identified dimensions of autonomy support that were specific to Malaysian culture and guided the development of the survey and construct validation was done using structure equation modeling.

The results show that the proposed scale has satisfactory psychometric properties, and the hypothesized model had a good fit to the data. The new scale produced four dimensions of teacher autonomy support, namely, responsible, approachable, shows respect and conveys confidence, with three items in each dimension. Malaysian secondary school students’ perception of autonomy support was found to be distinctive from the traditional measure.

Implications for teachers are discussed for culturally meaningful interpretation of the autonomy construct for classroom teaching practices.

Little is known about the variations in service co-creation on social media, despite the resource integrating capabilities and co-creator roles afforded by these platforms. The gap is even more troubling in the nonprofit sector, where leveraging public interaction on social media is prevalent and vital to charitable and philanthropic endeavors. Arguably, such interaction is embedded in resource integrating activities leading to nonprofit service co-creation. This paper reports the forms, dimensions or service co-creation measures enabled by social media use in the nonprofits' sector.

The authors conducted a sequential exploratory mixed methods design. First, the authors interviewed 19 social media managers in education, health and social service nonprofit organizations to identify the varieties in service co-creation realized. Second, the authors surveyed 73 nonprofit organizations on social media and gathered 267 useable responses, which were used to analyze and validate the identified forms of service co-creation.

The authors found that nonprofit organizations realize up to seven forms of service co-creation using social media. These include co-ideating to tweak service ideas, co-diagnosing social needs and problems, co-assessing service events, co-transforming services to targeted communities, co-advocating for community and service reach, co-resourcing in service delivery, and co-experiencing through a pool of diverse service experiences.

This study develops a reliable and valid multidimensional measure for nonprofit service co-creation enabled by social media platforms. Theoretically, this study offers a nonprofit service co-creation model to drive nuanced explanatory research and service co-creation perspectives in other contexts and engagement platforms. Managerially, this research illustrates the variations in service co-creation, which inform the strategic value of social media to nonprofits and will assist nonprofit practitioners in planning and evaluating their service co-creation outcomes.

The purpose of this paper is to draw on the theory of institutional isomorphism to investigate how Mississippi’s centralized cash management policy affects the cash management practices in the state’s rural and urban counties.

The study uses a sequential exploratory mixed methods design involving a qualitative documentary analysis and a quantitative analysis of a survey of Mississippi counties.

The study finds that institutional isomorphism drives cash management practices in the counties by influencing how they follow state and agency mandates. Moreover, while urban counties have superior socio-economic indicators compared to their rural counterparts, no differences exist regarding standardized financial indicators, which suggest that local governments in the state may be imitating the practices of one another.

First, states should consider the different financial and economic conditions of their local governments when prescribing cash management policies because uniform policies could stifle local innovation and reduce efficiency in cash management. Second, when there is pressure from a higher-level government or a state agency, local governments may end up imitating one another rather than exploring opportunities for innovation within state policies. Third, state policies should consider requiring education and training in cash management practices that help identify strategies to add value to public funds within the scope of local fiscal capabilities.

The study uses one state to investigate a unique case of centralized cash management practices. The lessons learned can apply to other states seeking to develop a policy for their small local governments without placing the larger ones at a disadvantage.

Despite several policies in the Arab Gulf States aimed at promoting women’s empowerment through employment, women’s career progress has not met the expected gains. Workplace empowerment is a critical aspect of women’s economic empowerment. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the factors that contribute to workplace empowerment for women in the Qatari public sector.

This research uses a mixed-methods approach to explore workplace empowerment among female civil servants in the State of Qatar. The study combines surveys (N = 310) and interviews (N = 30) and uses an inductive thematic approach that considers women’s narratives as the primary source of knowledge construction.

The authors’ findings strongly suggest that perception-related factors have a more significant impact on workplace empowerment than structural ones. The results indicate that feelings of disempowerment are influenced by perceptions of gender-based discrimination, poor relationships with supervisors and dissatisfaction with work–life balance. Women feel empowered when they have access to decision-making opportunities and perceive that their workplace supports their professional growth and advancement.

Although this paper focuses solely on women’s perceptions, additional research is necessary to compare the experiences of both men and women regarding workplace empowerment. While individual and organizational factors were examined in this paper, future studies should also consider societal factors. The results highlight the importance of equal and supportive organizational practices and cultures to foster empowerment among women in the workplace, providing valuable insights for policymakers.

This paper addresses a critical research gap on the intersection of gender, work and management in the Middle East. It responds to the need for more diverse contextual research on Arab women’s work experiences and provides methodological diversity by using an exploratory, mixed-methods design with a grounded approach. The study highlights the interaction between structural and psychological factors, emphasizing the gap between policies and resources and women’s lived experiences and perceptions of workplace empowerment.

As it gains more popularity, e-wallets drive its users to spend more. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to explore how and why e-wallets may encourage excessive spending behavior among young adult consumers.

An exploratory sequential or QUAL-QUANT design, combining qualitative and quantitative, is used in this study. It is a type of mixed-method design consisting of both the core and supplementary methods. The qualitative method is conducted in Study 1 using online focus group discussion to answer “why” and “how” questions, whereas the quantitative method is used in Study 2 to test or examine the hypothetical model. The questionnaires are extracted from focus group discussion in Study 1, which is further tested for validity and reliability and model estimation in Study 2. The model is evaluated using structural equation modeling.

Study 1 extracted four keywords to affect young adults spending behavior, easiness, promotions, self-control and perception of having more money (the illusion of liquidity). In Study 2, it is found that those four variables significantly affect spending behavior. Interestingly, it is also found in Study 2 that the illusion of liquidity mediates the relationship between self-control and spending behavior.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, where a physical meeting is not encouraged, focus group discussion is conducted online via Zoom. Perhaps, this condition can be one limitation this study faced.

This study offers a theoretical contribution to the literature by exploring how and why e-wallet payment is connected to excessive spending behavior among young adult consumers. This study also provides a model that further explains the relationship between young adults’ spending behavior by adding the illusion of liquidity as the mediating variable.

The purpose of this paper is threefold: first, to identify the dimensions for evaluating the service quality of internet service providers (ISPs); second, to investigate the relationship between service quality and customers’ behavioural intentions; and third, to investigate the influence of ISP customers’ usage patterns on their perceptions of ISP’s service quality dimensions.

The study employs a sequential exploratory mixed method design incorporating quantitative and qualitative elements. Data in Study 1 was obtained from 2,059 internet users using an online survey. The relationships between the constructs of the proposed conceptual model were tested using structural equation modelling and the bias corrected bootstrapping technique. Also, the moderating effect of internet usage was examined. Study 2 featured 30 in-depth interviews with internet users.

The findings reveal that dominant service quality dimensions for ISPs were network quality, customer service, information quality and privacy. The contribution of these factors to overall service quality was moderated by the internet usage. Results of Study 2 indicate that most respondents with heavy usage found network quality indifferent among ISPs and demonstrated hesitation in direct contact with customer service, making information support the most significant dimension. Additionally, service quality directly influenced customers’ complaining and switching intention. It was clarified in Study 2 that intention to continue the contract also depended on factors such as switching barriers, value and promotional offers.

This study is original in that it is among the first studies to attempt to investigate the dimensions of an ISP’s service quality, and its influence on ISP customers’ behaviours. An additional contribution of the study stems from the incorporation of a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach.