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1 – 10 of 361Ward van Zoonen, Toni van der Meer and Anu Sivunen
Enterprise social media (ESM) are expressive spaces where users exchange emotional workplace communication. While some studies have explored how positive emotions may be…
Abstract
Purpose
Enterprise social media (ESM) are expressive spaces where users exchange emotional workplace communication. While some studies have explored how positive emotions may be contagious, little research explored the notion that negative communication may accumulate on enterprise social media. This study explores perceived negativity bias and its correlates in the context of ESM.
Design/methodology/approach
This study relies on survey data collected from 599 employees of a global organization. The response rate was 18.7%. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypotheses.
Findings
The results contribute to research on ESM by demonstrating that perceived negativity bias is positively related to feelings of accountability and negatively associated with social support. Furthermore, the results indicate that unmet communication expectations on ESM can have implications for perceived social support beyond online contexts and accountability through perceived negativity bias.
Research limitations/implications
The findings demonstrate how employees' unmet expectations about ESM use increase feelings that a digital environment is disproportionately negative, which may create an “unsafe” space for employees and a fear of being held accountable for their contributions. This study highlights how the Expectation-Disconfirmation Theory provides a fruitful framework for studying enterprise social technologies.
Originality/value
This study suggests that work is not merely a rational endeavor, and that emotions and personal feelings (including negative ones) may shape workplace communication on ESM. We contribute to research on ESM use by using the Expectation-Disconfirmation Theory as a lens to study antecedents and implications of perceived negativity bias.
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This study employed technological frames of reference (TFR) theory to explore officer attitudes toward body-worn cameras (BWCs) in the Chicago Police Department (CPD), identifying…
Abstract
Purpose
This study employed technological frames of reference (TFR) theory to explore officer attitudes toward body-worn cameras (BWCs) in the Chicago Police Department (CPD), identifying frames that may undermine compliance.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 officers, focusing on their perceptions of the BWCs’ purpose, adoption catalysts, effectiveness metrics and benefits and drawbacks.
Findings
Officers viewed BWCs primarily as tools for oversight and cited external influences and the department’s desire to be perceived as progressive as key catalysts for BWC adoption. There was widespread uncertainty regarding the criteria CPD uses to gauge BWC effectiveness. The protective feature of the cameras was cited as the primary benefit of the technology, while privacy intrusion and discretion were identified as key drawbacks. Noteworthy nuances were observed across these perceptual domains.
Research limitations/implications
The study focuses on a single police agency, limiting its generalizability. Nevertheless, it holds value for departments experiencing BWC policy compliance issues and those preparing to implement the cameras.
Practical implications
Insights into officers’ technological frames help identify perspectives that threaten desired use of BWCs and highlight necessary training and policy interventions that align officers' BWC readings with departmental goals to enhance policy compliance.
Originality/value
This study is among the few that employ TFR theory to examine officer perceptions of BWCs in a large urban police agency.
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Nabila Abid, Junaid Aftab and Marco Savastano
Drawing an inference from institutional theory and dynamic capabilities view, this study empirically examined the impact of three institutional dimensions (regulative, normative…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing an inference from institutional theory and dynamic capabilities view, this study empirically examined the impact of three institutional dimensions (regulative, normative and cognitive) and green entrepreneurial orientation (GEO) on a business firm’s performance. In addition, the moderating effect of dynamic capabilities on the relationship between GEO and firm performance was also explored.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected from 527 information technology (IT) firms in Pakistan using paper–pencil questionnaires, and the hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings showed that the regulative and normative institutional dimensions enhance GEO and firm performance in the selected developing country. However, the cognitive institutional dimension fails to report any substantial influence on GEO and firm performance. The findings raised concerns about lower individual accountability as well as the promotion of green practices and firm performance. In addition, dynamic capabilities positively moderate the GEO influence on firm performance.
Originality/value
With the interplay of institutional dimensions, GEO (as mediator) and dynamic capabilities (as moderator), this study developed and tested a unique framework to understand their influence on firm performance. Specifically, we extended the literature by giving evidence that among the three institutional dimensions, only regulative and normative are considered more important because of their direct and indirect (through GEO) positive effect on firm performance. In contrast, the cognitive institutional dimension failed to report any significant direct or indirect impact on firm performance in our study.
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Elin K. Funck, Kirsi-Mari Kallio and Tomi J. Kallio
This paper aims to investigate the process by which performative technologies (PTs), in this case accreditation work in a business school, take form and how humans engage in…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the process by which performative technologies (PTs), in this case accreditation work in a business school, take form and how humans engage in making up such practices. It studies how academics come to accept and even identify with the quantitative representations of themselves in a translation process.
Design/methodology/approach
The research involved a longitudinal, self-ethnographic case study that followed the accreditation process of one Nordic business school from 2015 to 2021.
Findings
The findings show how the PT pushed for different engagements in various phases of the translation process. Early in the translation process, the PT promoted engagement because of self-realization and the ability for academics to proactively influence the prospective competitive milieu. However, as academic qualities became fabricated into numbers, the PT was able to request compliance, but also to induce self-reflection and self-discipline by forcing academics to compare themselves to set qualities and measures.
Originality/value
The paper advances the field by linking five phases of the translation process, problematization, fabrication, materialization, commensuration and stabilization, to a discussion of why academics come to accept and identify with the quantitative representations of themselves. The results highlight that the materialization phase appears to be the critical point at which calculative practices become persuasive and start influencing academics’ thoughts and actions.
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Arpita Anshu Mehrotra, Debashish Sengupta, Charbel M. El Khoury and Farah Arkadan
Understanding behavior toward sustainable consumption remains among the most challenging contemporary topics and requires continual investigation. The aim of this paper is to…
Abstract
Purpose
Understanding behavior toward sustainable consumption remains among the most challenging contemporary topics and requires continual investigation. The aim of this paper is to explore young Bahraini women’s level of awareness of sustainable consumption while also considering their attitudes, motivations and behavior as key elements in the study.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative approach was used to collect the data. More specifically, 46 semi-structured interviews with young Bahraini women took place and the results were produced using thematic analysis.
Findings
Results reveal that consumers’ awareness levels toward sustainable consumption have been growing but awareness remains variable among consumers. In turn, motivation toward supporting sustainability is more associated with environmental reasons than cultural or economic ones. The attitude toward sustainable consumption is generally positive among young consumers. Moreover, sustainable consumption has been found to be present through various means in the purchase decisions of young Bahraini women.
Originality/value
This study exclusively explores the awareness levels of young Bahraini women regarding sustainable consumption with a focus on the elements of the behavioral process, namely, “awareness, attitude, motivation, and behavior”, as central research pillars.
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Melanie M. Lazarus and Joseph P. Nalepka
The results of the COVID-19 pandemic rendered the traditional work environment model obsolete for the United States Air Force, resulting in the need to create a new hybrid work…
Abstract
Purpose
The results of the COVID-19 pandemic rendered the traditional work environment model obsolete for the United States Air Force, resulting in the need to create a new hybrid work model that fits unique employee needs in a complex organization. This practitioner article discusses how the 711th Human Performance Wing (711 HPW) built the Mission-Focused Agile Work Environment (MFAWE) using a combination of human and mission-focused strategies to ensure a more flexible work environment without compromising excellence or its employees' well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
Using an action research approach, data was collected by 77 diverse stakeholders in six working groups. Five perspectives were examined – employee, operations, infrastructure, leadership and mission – using a combination of literature and policy reviews, interviews, surveys and personal experiences to deliver recommendations to leadership for implementation.
Findings
The MFAWE addressed hybrid work transition requirements, including employee guidance, permanent workspace guidelines and facilities. Lessons learned from implementation included the need for a change management and communication strategy. An employee playbook was found to be an effective modality for information sharing but not for policy enforcement. Employee preference for permanent space regardless of time on site due to sanitation and mental health concerns was also discovered.
Originality/value
This article showcases how a large, complex organization built a new hybrid work model using employee-inclusive practices, filling a gap in the literature. This project also uncovered complex interdependencies when transitioning to a hybrid work model, including employee preferences.
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Agana Parameswaran, K.A.T.O. Ranadewa and Akila Pramodh Rathnasinghe
The proliferation of lean principles in the construction industry is offset by the enduring uncertainty among industry stakeholders regarding their respective roles in lean…
Abstract
Purpose
The proliferation of lean principles in the construction industry is offset by the enduring uncertainty among industry stakeholders regarding their respective roles in lean implementation. This uncertainty is further compounded by the scarcity of empirical investigations in this area. Consequently, this study undertakes the task of bridging this knowledge gap by identifying the critical roles of lean learners and their indispensable contributions to achieving successful lean implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative exploratory approach informed by an interpretivism perspective was adopted. The case study strategy was employed to gather data from three contracting organisations that had implemented lean practices. Empirical data was collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with fifteen industry experts and complemented by document reviews. To analyse the data, a code-based content analysis approach was employed using NVivo software, while Power BI software was utilised to develop a comprehensive force-directed graph visualisation.
Findings
The research findings substantiated nine lean learners and unveiled a set of seventy-three roles associated with them. The force-directed graph facilitated the identification of lean learners and their connections to the emerged roles. Notably, the graph highlighted the pivotal role played by project managers and internal lean trainers in ensuring the success of lean implementation, surpassing the contributions of other lean learners.
Originality/value
The implications of findings extend to industry professionals seeking to establish a robust lean learning framework to expedite lean implementation within the construction sector. This study not only provides a comprehensive definition of lean learners’ roles but also transcends specific construction types, making it a significant catalyst for global impact.
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As Ratnam makes clear, a cultural–historical perspective on teacher/faculty excessive entitlement is indispensable if we are to use this concept to work with, rather than…
Abstract
As Ratnam makes clear, a cultural–historical perspective on teacher/faculty excessive entitlement is indispensable if we are to use this concept to work with, rather than undermine, education practitioners. In this chapter, a networked relational model of activity is proposed as a tool for understanding excessive entitlement from a cultural–historical activity theory (CHAT) perspective, so that the transformative potential of both entitlement and the modeling of it may be harnessed. The networked relational model, which represents CHAT activity systems as a hand-draw or painted network of relationships between actors and artifacts, allows its creators, in their capacity as researchers or academics, to use it as an imaginative artifact in the Wartofskian sense. That is, by representing activity systems of academic performance as networks of interacting entities, the emergence of excessive entitlement can be traced to, and perhaps mitigated through the relationships that they represent. In this regard, the why, what, and how artifacts proposed by Engeström are taken up as useful means for enhancing the functioning of the networked relational model not just as a tool for analyses of entitlement but also a means for envisioning alternative countercultures into being.
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Malwela Joseph Lebea, Justus Ngala Agumba and Oluseyi Julius Adebowale
The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for people of all ages underscores the vital role of public healthcare…
Abstract
Purpose
The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for people of all ages underscores the vital role of public healthcare facilities (PHFs) in delivering essential healthcare services. However, these facilities often suffer from inadequate maintenance, exacerbated by the insufficient implementation of maintenance strategies. Recognizing the importance of PHFs in enhancing healthcare services, this paper investigates the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) in the maintenance strategies of PHFs in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
Through semi-structured interviews with nineteen purposively selected maintenance personnel from the Limpopo Department of Health (DoH), this study identified and analyzed the CSFs to enhance maintenance operations in PHFs. Thematic content analysis was employed to derive key insights from the collected data.
Findings
The study's findings highlight adequate maintenance planning and effective leadership as the two overarching CSFs in the maintenance of PHFs. These factors play a pivotal role in addressing challenges that hinder the current maintenance team from meeting maintenance requirements to the satisfaction of both staff and patients within PHFs.
Originality/value
The study offers valuable insights for policymakers to improve the effectiveness of maintenance operations in PHFs. By addressing the identified CSFs, policymakers can enhance maintenance operations in PHFs, positively impacting healthcare service delivery and the well-being of both staff and patients.
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Anil K. Narayan and Marianne Oru
This study aims to investigate accounting practices within a non-Western (Indigenous) context and provide insights into alternative accounting approaches and perspectives.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate accounting practices within a non-Western (Indigenous) context and provide insights into alternative accounting approaches and perspectives.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopts an interpretive research approach to gain an in-depth insight into the functioning of accounting in Solomon Islands’ unique cultural and social-political context. In-depth interviews were conducted to gain insights into the perceptions and meanings held by participants concerning Western accounting practices and their limitations.
Findings
The findings provide unique insights into different interpretations of accounting and accountability through two distinct cultural lenses – Western and non-Western. The complementary and rival explanations on what accounting and accountability are doing and what accounting and accountability should be doing will help close the gap in knowledge and contribute to shaping a better world for Indigenous people.
Practical implications
Implications for practice involve fostering collaborative efforts among individuals, communities, leaders and institutions to harness cultural strengths through accounting. Additionally, continuous capacity building and education are essential to develop accounting skills, enhance financial literacy, promote professional expertise and build a pool of skilled accountants with local knowledge to support Indigenous communities.
Originality/value
This study is original and provides novel insights supporting the need for accounting to recognise the importance of Indigenous perspectives, adapt to cultural sensitivity and integrate cultural norms and values into accounting practices to make an impact and achieve greater social and moral accountability.
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