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The purpose of this study is to build on previous research in hypermedia by including an investigation of the relationships between navigation tools, path patterns and mental representations with traditional measures of navigation outcomes. We examined the effects of four different spatial layouts on three facets of hypermedia use, performance, path patterns and mental representation, during an information search task. Typically, such measures are evaluated independently. We have sought to reveal what types of information in a navigation tool might mediate links between these three aspects of hypermedia use. The performance measures indicated that providing certain types of spatial information does not enhance speed, accuracy or economy but does enhance recall of page titles. Reference is then made to an earlier analysis on the dataset of path patterns using Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) which indicated that users’ paths reflected the most prominent type of information provided in the navigation tool. The MDS configurations were then compared to the results of a distance‐like ratings task using correlation and regression methods. Only users given explicit spatial cues in the navigation tool exhibited ratings that reflected the paths they had actually taken. Although spatial information may not impact surface performance measures such as speed and economy, spatial information does play a role in influencing where users go and the development of their mental representations of the material in a hyper document.

The behavioral decision-making of digital-self is one of the important research contents of the network of crowd intelligence. The factors and mechanisms that affect decision-making have attracted the attention of many researchers. Among the factors that influence decision-making, the mind of digital-self plays an important role. Exploring the influence mechanism of digital-selfs’ mind on decision-making is helpful to understand the behaviors of the crowd intelligence network and improve the transaction efficiency in the network of CrowdIntell.

In this paper, the authors use behavioral pattern perception layer, multi-aspect perception layer and memory network enhancement layer to adaptively explore the mind of a digital-self and generate the mental representation of a digital-self from three aspects including external behavior, multi-aspect factors of the mind and memory units. The authors use the mental representations to assist behavioral decision-making.

The evaluation in real-world open data sets shows that the proposed method can model the mind and verify the influence of the mind on the behavioral decisions, and its performance is better than the universal baseline methods for modeling user interest.

In general, the authors use the behaviors of the digital-self to mine and explore its mind, which is used to assist the digital-self to make decisions and promote the transaction in the network of CrowdIntell. This work is one of the early attempts, which uses neural networks to model the mental representation of digital-self.

How do cognitive aspects influence the use/non-use of accounting information by the politicians? The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize and theorize the readiness to use and the actual use of accounting information in relation to the human and social agency involved.

Applying cognitive fit theory and social cognitive theory, the authors explain how cognition of accounting information producers and users relates to their tasks and their environment. Analyzing cognitive matching, the authors develop accounting information usefulness as a function of the cognitive match between the accounting information producers and users.

The theoretical findings posit that cognitive fit increases with the degree of matching between the cognition of accounting information producers and the cognition of accounting information users. The theory proposes that enriching and matching the various cognitive factors lead to formation of more aligned mental representations to govern the processes of accounting information production and use as a prerequisite for the accounting information usefulness.

By theorizing human cognition, behavior and learning, the authors seek to contribute to the explanation and prediction of accounting information use. Future research needs to empirically validate and/or further develop the propositions.

Practically, the conceptualization can be used to align individual and collective learning on both sides and to introduce information use audit as an instrument for supporting collective learning.

The theory of accounting information usefulness is the first attempt in public sector accounting literature to explain the relation of production and consumption of accounting information in relation to the cognition of the actors involved.

Effective organisational learning is critical in today’s turbulent business conditions, and for this to occur, an organisation requires an effective means of storing and transferring knowledge and learning between individuals and the organisation as a whole. Reviews two large disparate streams of research, concerning the concepts of mental models and cognitive maps, each of which has been posited as a potential mechanism for the storage and transfer of knowledge within an organisation. Confusion exists between the application of the two terms in studies of organisation, and both concepts suffer from a lack of clarity in their definition. Identifies major similarities and differences, and potential synergies that exist between mental models and cognitive maps, outlines their heuristic value, and identifies how they can be used together to further our understanding of organisational learning.

Mental illness has become an important public health issue in society, and media are the most common sources of information about mental illnesses. Thus, it is important to review research on mental illnesses and media. The purpose of this paper is to provide a narrative review of studies on mental illnesses in the media and identifies important research gaps.

A combination of searching key databases and examining reference lists of selected articles was used to identify relevant articles. In total, 41 empirical studies published in the last 12 years were reviewed.

The review found that substantial research had been done to investigate media portrayals of mental illnesses and the effects of such portrayals might have on the public. Media still portray mental illnesses negatively in general, which contributes to the ongoing mental illness stigmatization. Nonetheless, discussions of mental illnesses in direct-to-consumer advertisements and social media tend to be more objective and informative. These objective portrayals could help improve mental health literacy and reduce stigma. More importantly, media can also reduce the stigma if used strategically. Research has found that entertainment-education programs and web-based media have strong potential in reducing mental illness stigma. Recommendations for future research are also discussed.

Findings can guide future efforts to use media to educate the public about mental illnesses and reduce mental illness stigma.

This study reviews the most recent research on mental illnesses in the media and provides important references on the media representation of mental illnesses, media effects of such representation, and using media to reduce stigma.

The purpose of this paper is to examine consumers’ perception of food safety for vegetables at traditional urban market outlets in a developing country context and test whether curiosity-motivated information acquisition and personal control over choice of stimuli influence consumer involvement, resulting in more differentiated mental models.

The Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET) in standard and modified form was used to develop consumers’ mental models for food safety.

The cognitive content and structure of aggregated consumers’ mental models were identified and mapped. The maps included negative and positive meanings, indicating a need to tackle the hygiene problems prevailing in most traditional markets. ZMET generated a more differentiated map when people were empowered with a camera to collect stimuli.

Using ZMET to understand food safety perceptions avoids consumers being led in their responses, views and feelings about food safety.

Policy, regulatory frameworks and marketing actions by value chain actors in the fresh vegetable subsector should give priority to tackling the hygiene problem prevalent in most traditional markets in developing countries.

This paper provides novel needs-driven theoretical and practical insights into the actual meaning representation of food safety, which actually drives consumer thoughts and behaviour. Making use of a camera in the collection of self-provided images for the ZMET interview led to higher levels of involvement and further differentiation of mental models.

This stud aims to analyze the influence that the enabling and coercive management control systems (MCS) have on the individuals’ mental representations and their commitment to goals, satisfaction with the system and perceived organizational support. Under the lens of the construal level theory (CLT), it is assumed that: individuals exhibit more positive behaviors when the MCS is enabling rather than coercive; the effects of MCS on the behavior of individuals are explained by the way they mentally represent events; and these effects are intensified or mitigated according to the psychological distance.

The predictions were tested in an experiment with 131 undergraduate students, assuming a company that decides to implement a performance measurement system.

The results show that enabling MCS are interpreted more abstractly (high level of construction) and coercive MCS are represented more concretely (low level of construction). Furthermore, enabling systems lead to more positive behaviors (commitment to goals and perceived organizational support) than coercive ones, however, the satisfaction with the MCS is affected by both depending on psychological distance.

The CLT allowed broadening the understanding of the effects of enabling and coercive controls on individuals’ behavior, by assuming that mental representation can explain individuals’ behaviors. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to point out that temporal distance can attenuate the negative effects of coercive MCS on satisfaction with the system.

This paper seeks to contribute to the RBV by focusing on a central construct, the “Keystone step”, within the firms' capability management field. It aims at providing a conceptual framework for top managers to understand the main related issues and steps, and to position their own organizational perspective.

The study explores the associated conceptual and empirical literature, borrowing from a strategic and a cognitive perspective, and defines and characterizes the central construct.

The author identifies a three‐step managerial process to handle capabilities: the Analytical step, the Action step, and the Keystone step. After briefly reviewing the resource‐based view, he suggests definitions and critical dimensions to design a conceptual frame articulated around the Keystone step, within which top managers can position and build their own approach. The critical founding rationale of capability management, rooted in underlying assumptions and beliefs, often implicit, hidden or neglected, increases the odds of blind managerial conceptual foundations. The author's claim focuses on the criticality of the Keystone step and the necessity of introspection to achieve sound strategic and capabilities‐related decisions.

Managers must recognize the importance of the Keystone step, devote resources to understand their own organizational “RBV position”, and acknowledge the mental flexibility to do so. The RBV should shift from an epistemology of “possession” to an epistemology of “embodiment”.

The paper offers an original vision of the capabilities management within the RBV, details out the issues of the current conceptual foundation of that managerial activity, and offers propositions for the Keystone step construct.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine organisational learning (OL) and individual managerial learning and provide a comparative evaluation of the ability of each to generate organisational benefits.

A theoretical model of organisational learning is developed which was then longitudinally tested in four organisations using causal cognitive mapping methods.

The results demonstrate that organisational learning can increase shared managerial understandings that may lead to organisational benefits derived from higher degrees of unified action. However, the study also revealed potentially dysfunctional aspects of organisational learning such as cohesive managerial mental models inhibiting learning and organisational learning can be slower than individual learning.

The research methodology and analysis is innovative and unique in this context. The author recognises the need for further research.

There is benefit for managers in promoting organisational learning; however, care must be taken to recognise when this learning is dysfunctional.

Whilst there have been strong theoretical assertions that OL is crucial for organisational survival and success, this is one of the few longitudinal empirical studies to support these claims. Another contribution is the generation of empirical evidence derived from cognitive methods which have rarely been used in the organisational learning context.

It has been suggested that the medical profession contributes to the stigmatisation of those who experience mental health problems, through ‘iatrogenic’ stigma. This study explores how pharmaceutical companies and their advertising agencies think psychiatrists view people who suffer from mental health problems, as expressed through the design and content of advertisements for neuroleptic medication intended for the psychiatric profession. All pharmaceutical company advertisements appearing in the British Journal of Psychiatry in 1999 were analysed: quantitatively as to drug type, advertisement format and demographic characteristics of subjects portrayed in advertisements, and qualitatively as to content, accompanying text and the theme of the advertisement. Although adverts for neuroleptic drugs constitute a minority of all adverts appearing in the journal in 1999, they are larger than antidepressant adverts, use more pages, and are more likely to portray people suffering from schizophrenia as inactive, socially isolated, and leading empty, meaningless lives. Some of the images resonate with the popular mythology of schizophrenia as ‘other’ and ‘split personality’. From this we conclude that pharmaceutical company advertisements for neuroleptic drugs do indeed present stigmatising images of people suffering from schizophrenia. Editors of medical journals should scrutinise advertisements for potentially stigmatising content. It is time for a debate about the position of glossy advertisements in the pages of medical journals.Declaration of interest: Philip Thomas is co‐chair of the Critical Psychiatry Network and has written extensive critiques of the biomedical model.