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1 – 10 of 371Ephraim Zulu, Sambo Lyson Zulu, Mwansa Chabala, Neema Kavishe, Charles Chifunda and Innocent Musonda
While previous studies have highlighted the importance of incorporating environmental sustainability in building designs, there is a paucity of studies that assess the extent to…
Abstract
Purpose
While previous studies have highlighted the importance of incorporating environmental sustainability in building designs, there is a paucity of studies that assess the extent to which design teams in developing countries consider environmental sustainability at the building design stage. Therefore, using Zambia as a case study, this study examined the extent to which infrastructure design teams in a developing country consider environmental sustainability at the design stage.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a qualitative research approach using structured interviews because there are hardly any studies which have explored the extent to which designers incorporate environmental sustainability in infrastructure designs in developing countries. The data is analysed thematically using the ATLAS.ti software.
Findings
The results show that environmental sustainability is not an important design consideration because it is secondary to functional, technical and aesthetic considerations. Environmental considerations are also made in an ad hoc manner and when it is cost-effective for the project. Regulatory requirements pertaining to environmental protection are adhered to without any cost considerations. It was, therefore, theorised that building design teams in developing countries make technical, functional and aesthetic consideration during the infrastructure design stage ahead of environmental considerations.
Originality/value
There is a paucity of studies that have investigated whether building infrastructure designers consider issues of environmental sustainability at the design stage in developing countries. The findings have practical implications on how developing countries can foster environmental sustainability at the design stage and avoid generating a building infrastructure stock that will require environmental resilience adaptation in the future.
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Weihua Wang, Dong Yang and Yaqin Zheng
The purpose of this study is to understand the psychological mechanism that affects consumer trust by focusing on the formation and influence process of psychological contracts…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to understand the psychological mechanism that affects consumer trust by focusing on the formation and influence process of psychological contracts, and taking this opportunity, explore the influence paths of food quality, food safety and service quality on consumer trust in the online food market, and provide theoretical suggestions for building trust in food businesses' consumers.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is based on an empirical investigation and uses partial least square structural equation modeling for analysis. Survey data were collected online from 359 APP users of online food transaction platforms in China.
Findings
Food quality, food safety and service quality influence consumer trust through the mediating effects of relational and transactional psychological contracts. However, the differences between these influencing paths are obvious and shift with changes in the marketing channels.
Practical implications
This study contributes to the body of consumer trust research by exploring online food transactions as an emerging trend in China. Some optimization strategies for food quality, food safety and service quality are provided for enterprises involved in online food transactions.
Originality/value
This is a pioneering study revealing psychological contracts as a missing but significant mediator between consumer trust and its antecedents.
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Agata Mirowska and Tuba Bakici
The purpose of this study is to investigate existing and emerging technology-driven stressors using the transactional model of stress and coping (TMSC).
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate existing and emerging technology-driven stressors using the transactional model of stress and coping (TMSC).
Design/methodology/approach
In-depth semi-structured interviews with 36 professionals were performed to obtain qualitative data to explore emerging techno-stressors. The findings were validated a year into the pandemic with human resource (HR) professionals.
Findings
The authors identify a previously unreported techno-stressor, Techno-Isolation (TIS), which arises from a heavy dependence on information communication technologies for professional social interactions. Additionally, several considerations of interaction characteristics are identified that, based on the platform used, affect the experience of TIS, further expanding the TMSC with the addition of medium-interaction compatibility. The authors present a testable model and discuss implications.
Originality/value
This study identifies three new information communication technology (ICT)-based antecedents leading to a new techno-stressor, as well as the importance of medium-interaction compatibility in the experiences of stressors as strains. The authors discuss how these elements fit with and extend the existing stress literature.
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Michelle Hudson, Heather Leary, Max Longhurst, Joshua Stowers, Tracy Poulsen, Clara Smith and Rebecca L. Sansom
The authors are developing a model for rural science teacher professional development, building teacher expertise and collaboration and creating high-quality science lessons…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors are developing a model for rural science teacher professional development, building teacher expertise and collaboration and creating high-quality science lessons: technology-mediated lesson study (TMLS).
Design/methodology/approach
TMLS provided the means for geographically distributed teachers to collaborate, develop, implement and improve lessons. TMLS uses technology to capture lesson implementation and collaborate on lesson iterations.
Findings
This paper describes the seven steps of the TMLS process with examples, showing how teachers develop their content and pedagogical knowledge while building relationships.
Originality/value
The TMLS approach provides an innovative option for teachers to collaborate across distances and form strong, lasting relationships with others.
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Marianne Thejls Ziegler and Christoph Lütge
This study aims to analyse the differences between professional interaction mediated by video conferencing and direct professional interaction. The research identifies diverging…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyse the differences between professional interaction mediated by video conferencing and direct professional interaction. The research identifies diverging interests of office workers for the purpose of addressing work ethical and business ethical issues of professional collaboration, competition, and power in future hybrid work models.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on 28 qualitative interviews conducted between November 2020 and June 2021, and through the theoretical lens of phenomenology, the study develops explanatory hypotheses conceptualising four basic intentions of professional interaction and their corresponding preferences for video conferences and working on site.
Findings
The four intentions developed on the basis of the interviews are: the need for physical proximity; the challenge of collective creativity; the will to influence; and control of communication. This conceptual framework qualifies a moral ambivalence of professional interaction. The authors identify a connectivity paradox of professional interaction where the personal dimension remains unarticulated for the purpose of maintaining professionality. This tacit human connectivity is intertwined with latent power relations. This plasticity of both connectivity and power in direct interaction can be diminished by transferring the interaction to video conferencing.
Originality/value
The application of phenomenology to a collection of qualitative interviews has enabled the identification of underlying intention structures and the system in which they affect each other. This research identifies conflicts of interests between workers relative to their different self-perceived abilities to persevere in competitive professional interaction. It is therefore able to address consequences of future hybrid work models at an existential and societal level.
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Raewyn Lesley Hills, Deborah Levy and Barbara Plester
Meetings with colleagues are an essential activity in workplace collaboration. The iterative nature of collaborative work demands spaces that team members can access quickly and…
Abstract
Purpose
Meetings with colleagues are an essential activity in workplace collaboration. The iterative nature of collaborative work demands spaces that team members can access quickly and easily. Creating suitable meeting spaces will become more critical if the hybrid work model continues and the workplace environment becomes the hub for face-to-face collaborative time, learning and training. Workspace and fit-out is expensive so it is crucial that the investment in meeting spaces supports employees’ collaboration activities.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper presents a case study of a corporate organisation undertaken in New Zealand to investigate how employees from two business units use their workspace to collaborate within their own team and across other teams in their organisation. The study uses ethnographic techniques, including participant observation and in-depth face-to-face interviews.
Findings
The findings show that the frequency and nature of small group work in collaboration was underestimated in the initial planning of the new workspace. Although participants found the design and fit-out of the formal meeting rooms supportive of collaborative work, the meeting rooms were in high demand, and it was difficult to find a room at short notice. The breakout spaces were confusing because they lacked key design attributes identified by the participants as conducive to small group work. Design shortfalls together with fit-out features perceived as supportive of collaborative work are identified.
Originality/value
The research reports on employees’ perceptions and experiences across two functionally diverse business units, reflecting their different needs and concerns.
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Ulla-Maija Sutinen, Roosa Luukkonen and Elina Närvänen
This study aims to examine adolescents’ social media environment connected to unhealthy food marketing. As social media have become a ubiquitous part of young people’s everyday…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine adolescents’ social media environment connected to unhealthy food marketing. As social media have become a ubiquitous part of young people’s everyday lives, marketers have also shifted their focus to these channels. Literature on this phenomenon is still scarce and often takes a quite narrow view of the role of marketing in social media. Furthermore, the experiences of the adolescents are seldom considered.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a sociocultural approach and netnographic methodology, this study presents findings from a research project conducted in Finland. The data consist of both social media material and focus group interviews with adolescents.
Findings
The findings elaborate on unhealthy food marketing to adolescents in social media from two perspectives: sociocultural representations of unhealthy foods in social media marketing and social media influencers connecting with adolescents.
Originality/value
The study broadens and deepens the current understanding of unhealthy food marketing to adolescents taking place in social media. The study introduces a novel perspective to the topic by looking at it as a sociocultural phenomenon.
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The purpose of this paper is to offer an accessible and interdisciplinary research strategy in organisational ethnography, called action ethnography, that acknowledges key…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to offer an accessible and interdisciplinary research strategy in organisational ethnography, called action ethnography, that acknowledges key concepts from action research and engaged and immersive ethnography. It aims to encourage methodological innovation and an impact turn in ethnographic practice.
Design/methodology/approach
A working definition of “action ethnography” is provided first. Then, to illustrate how an action ethnography can be designed by considering impact from the outset, the author draws on a study she is undertaking with a grassroots human rights monitoring group, based in England, and then discusses advantages and limitations to the approach.
Findings
The author suggests three main tenets to action ethnography that embrace synergies between action research and ethnography: researcher immersion, intervention leading to change and knowledge contributions that are useful to both practitioners and researchers.
Practical implications
This paper provides researchers who align with aspects of both action research and ethnography with an accessible research strategy to employ, and a better understanding of the interplay between the two approaches when justifying their research designs. It also offers an example of designing an action ethnography in practice.
Originality/value
Whereas “traditional” ethnography has emphasised a contribution to theoretical knowledge, less attention has been on a contribution to practice and to those who ethnographers engage with in the field. Action ethnography challenges researchers to consider the impact of their research from the outset during the research design, rather upon reflection after a study is completed.
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Grisna Anggadwita, Dini Turipanam Alamanda and Vanessa Ratten
The existence of a wedding organizer plays an essential role in realizing the dream wedding of the bride and groom and the progression of a family-centred structure. The wedding…
Abstract
Purpose
The existence of a wedding organizer plays an essential role in realizing the dream wedding of the bride and groom and the progression of a family-centred structure. The wedding organizer industry is one of the business sectors that experienced a significant impact during the COVID-19 pandemic due to various policies restricting mobility and interaction. This study aims to answer research questions: What challenges are experienced by wedding organizers in the context of COVID-19? What factors drive entrepreneurial resilience for family business continuity in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic?
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a qualitative research design through semi-structured in-depth interviews with eight wedding organizers in Indonesia with questions centred around the context of the family in the event.
Findings
This study found several challenges faced by wedding organizers, including personal barriers and environmental challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The four drivers of entrepreneurial resilience of wedding organizers in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis include entrepreneurial motivations, entrepreneurial characteristics, firm strategies, and environmental support. These factors create a positive interaction effect for the continuity of the wedding event organizers.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by providing valuable insights into the broader entrepreneurial resilience issue and offering practical recommendations for wedding organizers and other entrepreneurs facing similar challenges. This study has both academic and practical implications in providing event management guidance and future avenues of research in this field.
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Maria Dodaro and Lavinia Bifulco
The purpose of this paper is to explore two financial inclusion measures adopted within the local welfare context of the city of Milan, Italy, examining their functioning and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore two financial inclusion measures adopted within the local welfare context of the city of Milan, Italy, examining their functioning and underpinning representations. The aim is also to understand how such representations take concrete shape in the practices of local actors, and their implications for the opportunities and constraints regarding individuals' effective inclusion. To this end, this paper takes a wide-ranging look at the interplay between the rise of financial inclusion and the individualisation and responsibilisation models informing welfare policies, within the broader context of financialisation processes overall.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws on the sociology of public action approach and provides a qualitative analysis of two case studies, a social microcredit service and a financial education programme, based on direct observation and semi-structured interviews conducted with key policy actors.
Findings
This paper sheds light on the rationale behind two financial inclusion services and illustrates how the instruments involved incorporate and tend to reproduce, individualising logics that reduce the problem of financial exclusion, and the social and economic vulnerability which underlies it, to a matter of personal responsibility, thus fuelling depoliticising tendencies in public action. It also discusses the contradictions underlying financial inclusion instruments, showing how local actors negotiate views and strategies on the problems to be addressed.
Originality/value
The paper makes an original contribution to the field of sociology and social policy by focusing on two under-researched instruments of financial inclusion and improving understanding of the finance-welfare state nexus and of the contradictions underpinning attempts at financial inclusion of the most vulnerable.
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