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1 – 10 of over 2000Dandan Qiu, Lei Luo, Songtao Wang, Bengt Ake Sunden and Xinhong Zhang
This study aims to focus on the surface curvature, jet to target spacing and jet Reynolds number effects on the heat transfer and fluid flow characteristics of a slot jet…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to focus on the surface curvature, jet to target spacing and jet Reynolds number effects on the heat transfer and fluid flow characteristics of a slot jet impinging on a confined concave target surface at constant jet to target spacing.
Design/methodology/approach
Numerical simulations are used in this research. Jet to target spacing, H/B is varying from 1.0 to 2.2, B is the slot width. The jet Reynolds number, Rej, varies from 8,000 to 40,000, and the surface curvature, R2/B, varies from 4 to 20. Results of the target surface heat transfer, flow parameters and fluid flow in the concave channel are performed.
Findings
It is found that an obvious backflow occurs near the upper wall. Both the local and averaged Nusselt numbers considered in the defined region respond positively to the Rej. The surface curvature plays a positive role in increasing the averaged Nusselt number for smaller surface curvature (4-15) but affects little as the surface curvature is large enough (> 15). The thermal performance is larger for smaller surface curvature and changes little as the surface curvature is larger than 15. The jet to target spacing shows a negative effect in heat transfer enhancement and thermal performance.
Originality/value
The surface curvature effects are conducted by verifying the concave surface with constant jet size. The flow characteristics are first obtained for the confined impingement cases. Then confined and unconfined slot jet impingements are compared. An ineffective point for surface curvature effects on heat transfer and thermal performance is obtained.
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Kathy Baylis, Murray E. Fulton and Travis Reynolds
To understand the political economy of export restrictions for grain commodities in Vietnam and India.
Abstract
Purpose
To understand the political economy of export restrictions for grain commodities in Vietnam and India.
Methodology/approach
Two theoretical models were developed (one for each country) to analyze government policies for export restrictions in Vietnam and India based on price fluctuations. In Vietnam, there was one choice variable – export tariffs. In India, there were two choice variables – export tariffs and procurements. In both cases, the elite were assumed to maximize expected rents.
Findings
Export restrictions have become an important feature of trade policy in Vietnam and India and are unlikely to be eliminated in the foreseeable future because to do so would be costly both politically and economically to local elites. The impact of food price increases can be particularly large given the importance of loss aversion.
Practical implications
Understanding export restrictions as the outcome of a political-economic calculation is important because it suggests that efforts to limit export restrictions in countries like Vietnam and India are unlikely to be successful.
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The purpose of this paper is to investigate how and why other‐customer misbehavior has a negative influence on customer satisfaction with the service firm.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how and why other‐customer misbehavior has a negative influence on customer satisfaction with the service firm.
Design/methodology/approach
Data for this study were gathered by retrospective experience sampling.
Findings
There are several important findings that can be obtained from the results. First, people consider another customer's failure to be the firm's responsibility when they perceive that the failure is under the firm's volitional control (i.e. controllability attribution). This controllability attribution leads to customer expectations of compensation for recovery from dissatisfaction. Second, stability attributions about other‐customer failures were not found to be significantly related to the firm's responsibility. Third, the severity of the other‐customer failure experience bears no relation to the customer's service recovery expectation, but it is negatively related to satisfaction. Finally, the customer's evaluation of service is not only affected by the other‐customer misbehavior, but also by how employees react to situations when other customers are unruly or potentially disruptive.
Practical implications
Providing employees with the appropriate coping and problem‐solving skills for working with problem customers is a key issue for service providers. More importantly, employees should be trained to help the affected customers, to alleviate any bad feelings caused by the other‐customer's misbehavior.
Originality/value
The paper suggests that employees in a service‐providing firm may need to act as “police officers” to ensure that all their customers behave appropriately.
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Three levels of learning developed by Gregory Bateson in the tradition of second-order cybernetics have in-part been translated in terms of double-loop and triple-loop learning…
Abstract
Purpose
Three levels of learning developed by Gregory Bateson in the tradition of second-order cybernetics have in-part been translated in terms of double-loop and triple-loop learning (TLL), particularly in the tradition of systems thinking. Learning III and TLL have gained less popularity since they deal with less tangible issues regarding virtues of wisdom and justice, respectively. The purpose of this paper is to provide a learning device – the systems thinking in practice (STiP) heuristic – which helps to retrieve the cybernetic concern for wisdom in association with an often forgotten systems concern for real-world power relations.
Design/methodology/approach
Using “conversation” as a metaphor the heuristic is introduced based on three orders of conversation. Drawing on ideas of systemic triangulation, another heuristic device – the systemic triangulator – is used to surface issues of power in the three orders of conversation. Some manifestations in using the STiP heuristic for supporting postgraduate systems learning are demonstrated.
Findings
Some key complementarities between conventionally opaque cybernetic issues of wisdom and systems issues of power are revealed, and used proactively to explore more effective coaching of STiP.
Research limitations/implications
Cybernetics and systems thinking may benefit from being grounded more in understanding, engaging with, and transforming social realities. The heuristics provide practical experiential and meaningful learning through conversation, and more social premium for the study of cybernetics and systems thinking.
Originality/value
The heuristics – STiP, and the systemic triangulator – provides an innovative cyber-systemic space for learning and action.
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Shane R. Jimerson, Aaron Haddock and Jacqueline A. Brown
During the past decade, amid the current context emphasizing educational standards and accountability, the practice of grade retention has increased. The call for an end to social…
Abstract
During the past decade, amid the current context emphasizing educational standards and accountability, the practice of grade retention has increased. The call for an end to social promotion has generated a variety of recommendations and legislation regarding promotion policies. This context has served as a catalyst for numerous debates regarding the use of grade retention and social promotion. In an era emphasizing evidence-based interventions, research indicates that neither grade retention nor social promotion is a successful strategy for improving educational success. Meta-analyses of studies during the past 100 years reveal deleterious outcomes associated with grade retention. Moreover, research also reveals prevention and intervention strategies that are likely to promote the social or academic competence of students at-risk of poor school performance. It is essential that educational professionals are familiar with the research when implementing interventions to promote student success. This chapter provides a brief synthesis of contemporary concerns and empirical studies examining student outcomes associated with grade retention, and also describes alternatives to grade retention. Particular consideration is given to implications for students with learning and behavioral disabilities, and the importance of focusing empirically supported strategies to promote student social and cognitive competence. Overall, educational professionals are encouraged to incorporate evidence-based programs and policies to facilitate the success of all students.
Jiun‐Sheng Chris Lin and Haw‐Yi Liang
Previous research on the relationship between service environments and customer emotions and service outcomes has focused on the physical environment. Among studies exploring the…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous research on the relationship between service environments and customer emotions and service outcomes has focused on the physical environment. Among studies exploring the social environment, the emphasis has been on service employees, ignoring the impact of other customers. Recent research has further called for the need to include displayed emotion within the social environment. Therefore, this study aims to develop and test a more comprehensive model that focuses on the relationship between the social environment (employee displayed emotion and customer climate) and the physical environment (ambient and design factors) and resulting customer emotion and service outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on past research, a theoretical framework was developed to propose the links between social/physical environments and customer emotion/perceptions. Extant research from various academic fields, including environmental psychology, was reviewed, deriving 11 hypotheses. Data collected from fashion apparel retailers, using both observation and customer survey methods, was examined through structural equation modeling (SEM).
Findings
Results show that both social and physical environments have a positive influence on customer emotion and satisfaction, which in turn affect behavioral intentions. The physical environment exhibited more influence on customer emotion and satisfaction than social environment.
Research limitations/implications
This research explains how both social and physical environments affect customer emotion and perceptions. Future research directions are discussed, with an emphasis on incorporating customer characteristics, industry attributes, and cultural variables to better understand the influence of service environments in different service settings.
Practical implications
Social and physical environments influence customer emotional states within the service delivery context, which in turn affect customer service evaluations. Therefore, both social and physical service environments should be emphasized by service firms.
Originality/value
This research represents an early attempt to develop a more comprehensive model explaining how both social and physical environments affect customer emotion and perceptions. This study also represents the first empirical study of service environment research to include employee displayed emotion as part of the social environment.
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Brea L. Perry and Allen J. LeBlanc
Purpose: The goal of Volume 21 of Advances in Medical Sociology, entitled Sexual and Gender Minority Health, is to showcase recent developments and areas for future research…
Abstract
Purpose: The goal of Volume 21 of Advances in Medical Sociology, entitled Sexual and Gender Minority Health, is to showcase recent developments and areas for future research related to the health, well-being, and healthcare experiences of LGBTQA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Transgender, Queer, Asexual, and related communities that do not identify as heterosexual) persons and communities.
Approach: In this introduction to the volume, we trace the historical development of research on sexual and gender minority (SGM) health, discussing how priorities, theories, and evidence have evolved over time. We conclude with brief suggestions for future research and an overview of the articles presented in this volume.
Findings: Research on SGM health has flourished in the past two decades. This trend has occurred in conjunction with a period of intense social, political, and legal discourse about the civil rights of SGM persons, which has increased understanding and recognition of SGM experiences. However, recent advances have often been met with resistance and backlash rooted in enduring social stigma and long histories of discrimination and prejudice that reinforce and maintain health disparities faced by SGM populations.
Value: Our review highlights the need for additional research to understand minority stress processes, risk factors, and resiliency, particularly for those at the intersection of SGM and racial/ethnic or socioeconomic marginality.
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This paper aims to identify Australian consumer segments based on sustainable lifestyles and attitudes towards food waste and model the factors (socio-demographic, attitudinal and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify Australian consumer segments based on sustainable lifestyles and attitudes towards food waste and model the factors (socio-demographic, attitudinal and lifestyle) contributing to different levels of food waste.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a face-to-face survey of 334 respondents. Principal component analysis (PCA) is used to identify consumer segments, and econometric analysis is used to model the factors contributing to different levels of food waste.
Findings
A total of six lifestyle segments are identified: the freshness lovers, the vegetarian and organic food lovers, the recycle/reuse advocates, the waste-conscious consumers, the label-conscious/sensory consumer and the food waste defenders. This research distinguishes between low and medium levels of food waste based on marginal effects analysis. At low levels of food waste, consumers who worry about the food waste cost, making efforts to reduce food waste are less likely to waste food. Affluent consumers, who claim to be waste conscious, have young children and frequently eat outside, are more likely to waste food than others, lying in the medium waste group.
Originality/value
Australia, like many other countries, has high levels of food waste and despite policy efforts, curbing household food waste remains a challenge. In addition, there are limited food waste studies that focus on consumers who practice sustainable lifestyles. The current paper contributes to the market segmentation literature and has several implications for food policy and practice.
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Chau Ngoc Dang and Long Le-Hoai
This study aims to relate knowledge creation factors (KCFs) to construction organizations’ effectiveness, which can be measured by different effectiveness outcomes (EOs).
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to relate knowledge creation factors (KCFs) to construction organizations’ effectiveness, which can be measured by different effectiveness outcomes (EOs).
Design/methodology/approach
Data with regard to KCFs and EOs are collected from construction organizations in Vietnam using a survey questionnaire. Regression analysis is used to relate KCFs to EOs.
Findings
Various lists of specific KCFs that may significantly affect EOs are identified. Furthermore, several key KCFs that could play a vital role in enhancing different EOs are highlighted.
Research limitations/implications
Owing to the use of data collected from construction organizations in Vietnam, the results of this study cannot be directly applied to other types of organization in other countries without using any other extra data.
Practical implications
Based on the results of relating KCFs to different EOs, construction organizations would know which specific KCFs are vital to their organizational effectiveness. Hence, they may enhance different organizational effectiveness aspects by focusing more on such KCFs.
Originality/value
In this study, 16 KCFs and 10 EOs which may be useful for organization-level knowledge management practices in construction are introduced. Furthermore, the specific controllable KCFs vital to different EOs are identified. Hence, construction organizations would establish KCFs-based strategies for their management activities to improve various organizational effectiveness aspects.
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