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Quality 4.0 is being presented as the new stage of quality development. However, its overlying concept and rationale are still hard to define. To better understand what different authors and studies advocate being Quality 4.0, a systematic literature review was undertaken on the topic. This paper presents the results of such review, providing some avenues for further research on quality management.

The documents for the systematic literature review have been searched on the Scopus database, using the search equation: [TITLE-ABS-KEY (“Quality 4.0”) OR TITLE-ABS-KEY (Quality Management” AND (“Industry 4.0” OR “Fourth Industr*” OR i4.0))]. Documents were filtered by language and by type. Of the 367 documents identified, 146 were submitted to exploratory content analysis.

The analyzed documents essentially provide theoretical discussions on what Quality 4.0 is or should be. Five categories have emerged from the content analysis undertaken: Industry 4.0 and the Rise of a New Approach to Quality; Motivations, Readiness Factors and Barriers to a Quality 4.0 Approach; Digital Quality Management Systems; Combination of Quality Tools and Lean Methodologies and Quality 4.0 Professionals.

It was hard to find studies reporting how quality is actually being managed in organizations that already operate in the Industry 4.0 paradigm. Answers could not be found to questions regarding actual practices, methodologies and tools being used in Quality 4.0 approaches. However, the research undertaken allowed to identify in the literature different ways of conceptualizing and analyzing Quality 4.0, opening up avenues for further research on quality management in the Industry 4.0 era.

This paper offers a broad look at how quality management is changing in response to the affirmation of the Industry 4.0 paradigm.

This study explores the differences and similarities of work value profiles in samples of business students from four countries with markedly different cultures and labor markets.

We used multiple-group latent profile analysis (LPA) to explore the differences and similarities in work value profiles across cultures (n = 317 from Switzerland, n = 313 from Spain, n = 326 from the United States and n = 327 from China).

The latent profiles mostly show similarities across countries: the largest profiles are a want it all and a humble profile with overall high and intermediate levels in all work values. An overall low work value levels profile and one stressing high security and pay emerged in all countries except Switzerland. In the Swiss sample, two unique profiles emerged: the no status and freelancers profiles.

This study has implications for employee attraction, relations and career counseling with culturally diverse populations.

Studies on work values across cultures most often make direct comparisons between samples, which can lead to excessive emphasis on sometimes small differences. By first studying within-culture differences before comparing the results across cultures, we find that there may be more similarities than differences in work values across cultures and that cross-cultural differences may have often been overstated.

Environmental risks (ERs) are critical to any highway construction project (HCP). One of the main contracting parties responsible for ERs is the contractor. Hence, it has been crucial to look into ways to control ERs in HCPs from the contractor’s perspective. This study aims to investigate how ERs can be managed in HCP in Sri Lanka.

A quantitative research approach with three rounds of Delphi was used. Statistical techniques were used to analyse and validate the ERs, the parties to whom the risks were to be allocated, and risk management measures identified from the empirical data collection.

The study reveals the 11 most significant ERs for HCP. Further, the most significant ERs in HCP were mainly found to be the responsibility of contractors in Sri Lanka. Twenty-four most appropriate risk response measures were determined; 13 were found to be common measures that could be used to manage two or more risks, while the remaining 11 were unique to specific risks.

Overall, this research determines the most significant ERs in HCP, the best risk allocation among the parties and appropriate risk-handling strategies and measures for each significant ERs. Additionally, the study addresses the demand for ERs management in HCP.

The purpose of this study is to nutritionally evaluate dams exposed to caloric restriction or cafeteria diets during the lactation period.

Twenty-four female Wistar rats (n = 8/group) and their respective litters received during lactation: Control (CTRL) – received standard chow; Caloric restriction (CR) – received 50% of the ratio of the CTRL group; Cafeteria diet (CAF) – received cafeteria diet. Weighing of the mother rats and their respective litters occurred weekly and the diets were daily. At weaning, levels of glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and triglycerides were evaluated. Abdominal adipose tissue was removed and weighed. Liver tissue was removed to determine the lipid profile.

CR dams showed lower food (p < 0.01), caloric (p < 0.01) and all macronutrients (p < 0.01) intake. This group also observed intense weight loss (p < 0.01), in addition to low litter weight (p < 0.01). CAF dams had higher caloric intake (p < 0.05) and increased consumption of lipids (p < 0.01). The CAF group also reported greater accumulation of abdominal adipose tissue (p = 0.01), elevated levels of LDL (p < 0.01) and hepatic lipids (p < 0.01), as well as a litter with higher weaning weight (p < 0.01).

Few studies have evaluated the effects of different models of malnutrition focusing on dams. CR dams showed severe weight loss, which may have caused their pups to be underweight. On the other hand, the CAF diet during lactation led to a higher consumption of lipids and accumulation of adipose tissue, which generated a high weight of the litter.

The accuracy and reliability of upper limb motion assessment have received great attention in the field of rehabilitation. Grasping test is widely carried out for motion assessment, which requires patients to grasp objects and move them to target place. The traditional assessments test the upper limb motion ability by therapists, which mainly relies on experience and lacks quantitative indicators. This paper aims to propose a deep learning method based on the vision system of our upper limb rehabilitation robot to recognize the motion trajectory of rehabilitation target objects automatically and quantitatively assess the upper limb motion in the grasping test.

To begin with, an SRF network is designed to recognize rehabilitation target objects grasped in assessment tests. Moreover, the upper limb motion trajectory is calculated through the motion of objects’ central positions. After that, a GAE network is designed to analyze the motion trajectory which reflects the motion of upper limb. Finally, based on the upper limb rehabilitation exoskeleton platform, the upper limb motion assessment tests are carried out to show the accuracy of both object recognition of SRF network and motion assessment of GAE network. The results including object recognition, trajectory calculation and deviation assessment are given with details.

The performance of the proposed networks is validated by experiments that are developed on the upper limb rehabilitation robot. It is implemented by recognizing rehabilitation target objects, calculating the motion trajectory and grading the upper limb motion performance. It illustrates that the networks, including both object recognition and trajectory evaluation, can grade the upper limb motion functionn accurately, where the accuracy is above 95.0% in different grasping tests.

A novel assessment method of upper limb motion is proposed and verified. According to the experimental results, the accuracy can be remarkably enhanced, and the stability of the results can be improved, which provide more quantitative indicators for further application of upper limb motion assessment.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which appeared in China in late 2019, has affected the world psychologically, socially and economically in 2020. Tourism is one of the areas where the effects of COVID-19 have been felt most clearly. The study aims to determine the effect of negative problem orientation (NPO) and perceived risk related to the COVID-19 pandemic on travel and destination visit intention.

This study employed a convenience and probabilistic sampling method for collecting data from 531 respondents using an online questionnaire. Partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used for testing research model.

According to the findings, NPO and perceived risk related to the pandemic were found to have direct and indirect effects on the travel behavior of tourists. The results of this research provide theoretical and practical implications for hospitality and travel businesses on topics such as the psychological effects of the pandemic and the travel behaviors of tourists.

It is estimated that the pandemic will also affect tourist behavior due to its effects on human psychology. For this reason, a study conducted in the context of tourist behavior theories is expected to contribute to the literature, managers and future of the tourism.

In today’s global and competitive e-commerce market spaces, social media influencers (SMIs) exert substantial influence on consumer behavior. This study aims to examine how electronic word of mouth (e-WOM), Instagram usage and the credibility of SMIs shape the dynamics of consumer purchase behavior (PB).

Information was gathered from 498 users in Ghana through judgmental sampling using SmartPLS 4.

The findings revealed that influencers’ credibility has a substantial impact on their followers’ parasocial interactions. As a promotional tool, Instagram plays a significant role in how followers perceive the credibility of influencers by modifying the associations between parasocial connections, e-WOM and consumer PB.

The findings offer valuable information for marketing professionals looking to improve their advertising efforts by collaborating with influencers, along with unique perspectives on influencer dynamics in a diverse socioeconomic context, extending beyond conventional boundaries.

Through an examination of the complex mechanisms underlying social media influencer advertisements on an e-commerce platform, namely, Instagram, this research uncovered the essence of customer behavior in the digital era, including the human need for connection, authenticity and trust, thus contributing to the literature empirical data from Africa, a region often overlooked in academic studies.

在当今全球化且竞争激烈的电子商务市场中, 社交媒体影响者对消费者行为有着重要的影响。本研究旨在探讨网络口碑、Instagram使用以及社交媒体影响者的可信度如何塑造消费者购买行为的动态变化。

使用SmartPLS 4, 通过判断抽样收集了来自加纳的 498 位用户信息。

研究表明, 影响者的可信度对其粉丝的准社会互动有着显著影响。作为一种推广工具, Instagram通过影响准社会联系、网络口碑和消费者购买行为之间的关系, 在粉丝感知影响者可信度方面发挥着重要作用。

本研究通过深入剖析社交媒体影响者在Instagram等电子商务平台上进行广告活动的复杂机制, 揭示了数字时代消费者行为的本质, 其中包括人们对联系、真实性和信任的需求。此外, 研究还提供了经常被学术界忽视的非洲地区的实证数据。

研究结果为希望通过与影响者合作来提升广告效果的营销专业人士提供了宝贵的信息。本文超越传统界限, 从不同的社会经济背景下提供了影响者动态的独特视角。

En un mercado tan global y competitivo como el del comercio electrónico actual, los influencers en redes sociales ejercen una influencia sustancial en el comportamiento del consumidor. Este estudio examina cómo el boca a boca electrónico, el uso de Instagram y la credibilidad de los influencers en redes sociales dan forma a la dinámica del comportamiento de compra del consumidor.

Se recogió información de 498 usuarios en Ghana mediante muestreo de conveniencia y se testó el modelo utilizando SmartPLS 4.

Los resultados revelaron que la credibilidad de los influencers tiene un impacto sustancial en las interacciones parasociales con sus seguidores. Como herramienta promocional, Instagram juega un papel significativo en la percepción de los seguidores sobre la credibilidad de los influencers, modificando las asociaciones entre las conexiones parasociales, el boca a boca electrónico y, finalmente, el comportamiento de compra del consumidor.

A través del estudio de los complejos mecanismos que subjacen en los anuncios y publicaciones de los influencers en Instagram, esta investigación desveló la esencia del comportamiento del cliente en la era digital, incluyendo la necesidad de conexión humana la conexión, la autenticidad y la confianza, contribuyendo así a la literatura con datos empíricos de África, una región a menudo pasada por alto en estudios académicos.

Los resultados ofrecen información valiosa para los profesionales del marketing que buscan mejorar sus esfuerzos publicitarios colaborando con influencers, junto con perspectivas únicas sobre la dinámica de éstos en un contexto socioeconómico diverso, más allá de los límites convencionales.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of firms’ features on innovation performance in Industry 4.0, focusing on the concepts of breadth and depth of openness in the innovation process.

Using data gathered from 96 firms active in Industry 4.0 (I4.0) in Italy, a Poisson regression analysis is conducted to investigate the relationship between the openness of firms’ innovation processes at the level of knowledge sources and their innovation performance in I4.0.

The results highlight the relationship between the level of openness and innovative performance in I4.0. In particular, the breadth of the openness of the innovation process of enterprises is curvilinearly related to innovation in I4.0, taking an inverted U-shape.

Managers of firms operating in I4.0 should consider openness as a strategic response to the knowledge requirements and risks associated with the innovation process in complex technologies.

Through the questionnaires administered mainly to highly qualified individuals, an original and unique database has been created with information on the openness of the innovative process and the innovation performances in I4.0.

This study examines the test's predictive validity of English language performance and compares test constructs to identify the most effective predictors of English language performance.

Data were collected and analysed from test scores of students enrolled in the foundation year (N = 84) and level 2 (N = 127) in the faculty of English at a Saudi university using correlation and regression tests.

The findings revealed that the General Aptitude Test (GAT) is effective in predicting English performance for students in level 2 and that the error detection task is the most effective predictor of performance in English reading.

The study provides support for the validity of the GAT as a university admission requirement for English language courses in the Arabic-speaking world.

This study examines the GAT's power using a fine-grained approach by deriving scores from its breakdown constructs to predict the performance of English skills at the university level.

This study aims to find whether sukuk (Islamic bonds) possess a safe haven property for investors or not.

To analyze this statement, the study used data from MSCI World conventional and MSCI World Islamic indices from August 17, 2012 to June 8, 2022. The study used the generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity (GARCH) variance technique, the most common technique used in stock data analysis.

The results dictate the absence of sukuk as a safe haven for investors as both the conventional and Islamic markets show decoupling behavior. The study finds concrete evidence of a strong association between the debt-based bond market and the Islamic sukuk market. As these markets mostly like to move in a parallel direction, a recession in a conventional bond market likely means a recession in the Islamic sukuk market.

This study is unique in incorporating the MSCI World Islamic Index and other Islamic indices of several Muslim countries, which was absent in previous research. Second, this study is unique because it adds a separate regression for the COVID era to show whether the movement of indices changed during regression.