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1 – 10 of 42In this paper, I will discuss basic concepts of distance education and will provide suggestions for ways to increase student involvement and satisfaction with the course. Teaching…
Abstract
In this paper, I will discuss basic concepts of distance education and will provide suggestions for ways to increase student involvement and satisfaction with the course. Teaching business and related courses in a mediated classroom setting does not have to be an impersonal, negative experience for either the students or the instructor. Increased levels of planning and preparation for the distance‐education course are necessary to make it successful. My experience using frequent experimential exercises in a two‐way interactive televised class are described.
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Gary Davies and Isabel Olmedo-Cifuentes
This paper aims to identify a typology of corporate misconduct affecting trust; to test the relative ability of individual misconducts to reduce trust and; to explain differences…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify a typology of corporate misconduct affecting trust; to test the relative ability of individual misconducts to reduce trust and; to explain differences in how individuals respond to corporate crises.
Design/methodology/approach
The main research design uses conjoint analysis. Respondents (n = 404) rated eight combinations of six types of misconduct, identified from prior work on trust as likely to reduce trust. Initial levels of trust were established by varying both country of origin and product type.
Findings
The importance ranking for the six types was consistent across most conditions, with “bending the law” and “not telling the truth” as the most salient and “acting unfairly” and “acting irresponsibly” as the least salient in damaging trust. The characteristics of the respondent influenced the effect size.
Practical implications
As loss of trust represents loss of reputation, understanding how and when the framing of misconduct damages trust is important in managing reputation risk. The impact of any report of misconduct can be moderated if attributed by a company, the media or the individual, to a type that is less damaging to trust.
Originality/value
This study adds to our understanding as to why individuals respond differently to corporate misconduct, and contributes to prior work on reputation damage. The typology of corporate misconduct developed and tested here offers a different framework for researchers and practitioners with which to explore loss of trust and to develop existing crisis communication theory.
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Jean Pierre Guy Gashami, Christian Fernando Libaque-Saenz and Younghoon Chang
Cloud computing has disrupted the information technology (IT) industry. Associated benefits such as flexibility, payment on an on-demand basis and the lack of no need for IT staff…
Abstract
Purpose
Cloud computing has disrupted the information technology (IT) industry. Associated benefits such as flexibility, payment on an on-demand basis and the lack of no need for IT staff are among the reasons for its adoption. However, these services represent not only benefits to users but also threats, with cybersecurity issues being the biggest roadblock to cloud computing success. Although ensuring data security on the cloud has been the responsibility of providers, these threats seem to be unavoidable. In such circumstances, both providers and users have to coordinate efforts to minimize negative consequences that might occur from these events. The purpose of this paper is to assess how providers and users can rely on social media to communicate risky events.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the Situational Theory of Publics and trust, the authors developed three research questions to analyze stakeholders’ communication patterns after a security breach. By gathering Twitter data, the authors analyzed the data security breach faced by the Premera Blue Cross’ Web application.
Findings
The results indicate that Premera acted as the main source of information for Twitter users, while trustworthy actors such as IT security firms, specialists and local news media acted as intermediaries, creating small communities around them. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.
Originality/value
Social media could be used for diffusing information of potential threats; no research has assessed its usage in a cloud-based security breach context. The study aims to fill this gap and propose a framework to engage cloud users in co-securing their data along with cloud providers when they face similar situations.
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Joon Hye Han, Gary Davies and Anthony Grimes
Drawing from the theory of how relevant items are processed in memory when making judgements, this study aims to test for recency effects between CSR advertising and related…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing from the theory of how relevant items are processed in memory when making judgements, this study aims to test for recency effects between CSR advertising and related, negative news on how a company is perceived and the explanatory roles of environmentalism, attribution and both feelings and attitudes towards the advertising itself.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses between-subjects experimental design with pretests.
Findings
Order effects exist, which, when ads and news are similarly influential, evidence a recency effect. The process is explained by both the mediating influence of attribution of blame and the moderation of this influence by attitude towards the environment. Differences between the effectiveness of ads are explained by the mediating influence of attitudes towards and feelings about the ad together with the moderation of this influence by involvement in the ad context.
Practical implications
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) ads should be pretested in the context of related but negative news, and not just on their own, to ensure they can buffer such news. CSR ads can be more effective when following rather than preceding such news and should not be withdrawn if such a crisis occurs.
Originality/value
The research first attempts to explain recency effects theoretically from the influence of CSR ads on negative CSR-related news. It also shows the determining factors in how such effects influence consumers by considering attribution, environmentalism, attitude to the context and attitude and feelings towards CSR ads.
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A good corporate image is important to organizations. However, little is elaborated on how organizations can work on their images. This study seeks to explicate the types of image…
Abstract
Purpose
A good corporate image is important to organizations. However, little is elaborated on how organizations can work on their images. This study seeks to explicate the types of image management before, during, and after a crisis through the development of the crisis pre‐emptive image management model.
Design/methodology/approach
Integrating insights from communication and marketing literature, this paper uses cases from the USA, Europe and Asia to make the concepts come alive.
Findings
At each stage of Wilcox and Cameron's crisis life cycle, different types of image management can take place. At the proactive stage are image creation and maintenance; at the strategic stage are image strengthening and transformation; at the reactive stage is image repair; and at the recovery stage are image renewal and reinvention.
Research limitations/implications
This paper is a comprehensive examination of the types of image management that organizations can consider as they seek to solidify their images at different stages of the organizations' existence.
Practical implications
This study demonstrates what organizations can do to communicate their desired images through multiple platforms with the aim of heightening their awareness of the profound effects lingering images have on the organization.
Originality/value
While certain concepts like image creation and maintenance and image repair have been explored before, this paper introduces new concepts like image strengthening, image transformation, image renewal, image reinvention, and enduring image with the view of demonstrating how image can work for or against the organization.
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W. Timothy Coombs and Sherry J. Holladay
The purpose of this paper is to craft a new perspective on how we can view public relations that reflects important trends emerging in the field including digital media…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to craft a new perspective on how we can view public relations that reflects important trends emerging in the field including digital media, storytelling, engagement and co-creation of meaning. Transmedia storytelling (an idea with some ties to public relations) and narrative transportation theory are synthesized to form the transmedia narrative transportation (TNT) approach to public relations. The paper details the development of the TNT approach and how it can be applied to public relations initiatives.
Design/methodology/approach
The approach is a literature review to inform the creation of the TNT approach. A case study is used to illustrate the TNT approach.
Findings
An innovative approach to conceptualizing and creating public relations initiatives is developed, explained and illustrated.
Research limitations/implications
The paper examines only one case to illustrate the TNT approach.
Practical implications
The TNT approach develops a new perspective for public relations for developing and executing public relations initiatives. Transmedia storytelling has already been connected to the practice and TNT builds a more comprehensive approach for understanding its value to public relations.
Originality/value
There has been a limited application of transmedia storytelling to public relations. This paper synthesizes transmedia storytelling with narrative transportation theory to develop a theory-driven, new approach for public relations thinking. The TNT approach is a unique fusion of ideas that can bring an innovative approach to the practice of public relations that captures four emerging trends that are shaping the practice.
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Elizabeth Dreike Almer, Amelia A. Baldwin, Allison Jones-Farmer, Margaret Lightbody and Louise E. Single
To understand the reasons that accounting academics leave the tenure-track academic pipeline.
Abstract
Purpose
To understand the reasons that accounting academics leave the tenure-track academic pipeline.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey study was conducted of PhD graduates who left the tenure-track accounting pipeline over a 22-year period.
Findings
We located and surveyed accounting PhD graduates who have opted out of the tenure-track. These opt-outs included those who have left academia entirely and those who have moved into non-tenure-track positions. Survey results indicate that dissatisfaction with research expectations is the most significant factor for faculty now employed in non-tenure-track positions. Although there were no gender-related differences in the number of faculty who left the tenure-track but stayed in academia, there were some gender differences in the importance of family-related factors in motivating the move off of the tenure-track.
Research limitations/implications
The study examines the importance of the “push” and “pull” factors associated with changing career paths in academia that have been identified in the literature. The study finds some differences in influential factors between accounting academia and other fields. Sample size is a potential limitation.
Practical implications
The study provides recommendations for PhD program directors and for hiring institutions to help reduce the number of opt-outs.
Social implications
Retention of qualified faculty who are dedicated teachers improves students’ educational outcomes.
Originality/value
This is the first study to examine factors that drive accounting academics to opt-out of the tenure-track.
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Gary Waller and Saeid Abbasian
The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding on if and how hotel senior managers (HSMs) in four-star chain hotels in London and Stockholm implemented crisis…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding on if and how hotel senior managers (HSMs) in four-star chain hotels in London and Stockholm implemented crisis management techniques (CMTs) as a response to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative questionnaires were sent to 30 HSMs in London and Stockholm. From the feedback, this paper assesses, using thematic analysis, differences in CMTs used, past and present, alluding to COVID-19’s economic impacts on hotels.
Findings
Results determined that crises broadly economically impacted destinations similarly through loss of travellers and thus revenue. However, with a more intricate and specific assessment, destinations are impacted differently; thus, CMTs must alter. Findings show many CMTs can be implemented to reduce crises’ economic impacts. The literature review and empirical results allude to many previous and current CMTs, although these must be relevant and specific to the crisis, hotel and/or destination.
Practical implications
This paper has theoretical implications for academics on, among other things, theory building. Practically, it supports hotels in developing and determining CMTs to reduce the economic impacts of crises, to be better prepared when another pandemic emerges and contributes to the tourism and hospitality industry’s knowledge of management strategy within crises.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first Swedish study focusing on post-COVID-19 crisis management in hotels in London and Stockholm.
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Joon Hye Han, Anthony Grimes and Gary Davies
The main purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature concerned with improving the effectiveness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) advertising by considering…
Abstract
Purpose
The main purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature concerned with improving the effectiveness of corporate social responsibility (CSR) advertising by considering how such ads are pre-tested.
Design/methodology/approach
Two similar video ads were produced: one using an informative appeal and the other using an emotional appeal. The latter appeal is more widely used by practitioners. Each ad was designed to promote the CSR credentials of the same (fictitious) company. A web-based experiment (n = 244) was used to test both using two types of measure: first attitude towards the company (such as its image) and second the feelings evoked by the ad.
Findings
As predicted from theory, the ads promoted similar evaluations of the company but the evaluations measured by evoked feelings differed significantly. The information-based ad evoked more positive emotions, less negative emotions and more positive attitudes toward the ad. If the ads had been pretested using only measures of evoked feelings, the more emotive treatment would have been rejected.
Practical implications
The study shows why CSR ads should be pretested and why such tests should include multiple measures. It also illustrates how informative CSR video ads can be better received but how both informative and emotional appeals can be used when communicating a company's CSR.
Originality/value
There is little research relevant to the pretesting of ads designed to communicate a company's CSR. Signaling theory can help explain why comparable (CSR) video ads can be evaluated as similar in their effect on company related evaluations.
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Drawing on interviews with football wives from the Canadian Football League (CFL), this article examines how these women define their personal identity through their talk about…
Abstract
Drawing on interviews with football wives from the Canadian Football League (CFL), this article examines how these women define their personal identity through their talk about being married to a pro football player. Using the concept of courtesy identity and Anderson and Snow’s (1987) conceptualization of identity talk, this chapter explains the processes in which these women claim a courtesy identity of a football wife. I identify two strategies these women use to construct their identity: distancing from stereotypes and envisioning self as his teammate. I argue that women performed this verbal identity work in pursuit of legitimizing their courtesy identity of a football wife. They accomplish this by distancing self from a stereotypical, anticipated social identity of the football wife as a “gold digger” or naïve woman and then working up another socially positive and normative one that they are supportive women who have worked alongside their husband and are part of their career. I conclude by summarizing the findings and argue that by constructing themselves as devoted football wives, they uphold these idealized images of traditional masculinity and femininity in professional sports.
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