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1 – 10 of 338Maarten B. Eppinga, Jenny Lozano-Cosme, Tobia de Scisciolo, Patrick Arens, Maria J. Santos and Eric N. Mijts
Despite increasing efforts to incorporate sustainability in curricula and practices of institutions of higher education, effective implementation remains challenging. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite increasing efforts to incorporate sustainability in curricula and practices of institutions of higher education, effective implementation remains challenging. The purpose of this study is to present an approach to incorporate sustainability into a practice-oriented research skills course, which was implemented at a small island state university in the Caribbean.
Design/methodology/approach
First-year university students followed a four-week course module, starting with the introduction of the sustainable development goals, and culminating in a symposium in which the students present the findings of their research projects to the campus community. Pre-course module and post-course module surveys measured the students’ knowledge and perceptions regarding sustainability. These survey results were also compared with the result of a similar survey held for the university’s employees.
Findings
The survey results suggested that following the course module increased students’ knowledge about sustainable development, as well as their support for the university campus and its community putting more emphasis on teaching, practicing and encouraging sustainability. Interestingly, university employees scored significantly higher on the latter component than students, suggesting that in this case a lack of interest of the staff is not a barrier toward a sustainable campus.
Originality/value
The presented course module offers a novel and low-cost approach to introducing sustainability into a broad range of academic curricula, specifically tailored to the needs of institutes of higher education in small island states. The survey results suggest that this type of education may not only ensure reaching academic goals but also increase students’ interest in sustainable development within their local environment.
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Mollie Chapman, Maarten B. Eppinga, Tobia de Scisciolo and Eric N. Mijts
Universities of Small Island States (SIS) have the potential to fulfill a crucial role in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) but also face barriers to local…
Abstract
Purpose
Universities of Small Island States (SIS) have the potential to fulfill a crucial role in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) but also face barriers to local capacity building. The University of Aruba partly addresses these challenges through the development of The Academic Foundation Year (AFY), a one-year pre-university program aiming to optimally equip students for higher education. This study aims to assess to what extent the program can foster the local embeddedness of the students in ecology, culture and history and an understanding of opportunities and challenges for sustainable development in SIS.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors provide examples of how the program incorporates education for sustainable development and how it emphasizes experiential learning. In addition, quantitative survey data and qualitative analysis of focus group meetings are used to reflect on the program’s achievements and its potential for further development.
Findings
The survey results suggest that AFY courses not only increase knowledge but also change students’ perceptions regarding sustainability. Indeed, key impacts emerging from the student focus group related to both academic preparation and engagement with sustainability. Reflections by teachers emphasized the importance of experiential learning, an expansive view of the SDGs and preparing students as citizens.
Originality/value
This study highlights that the program could provide a starting point for the development of similar initiatives in other SIS, the common basis being the fostering of sustainability literacy and social adoption of the SDGs.
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To study the risks, and benefits, to companies or introducing new products to the market.
Abstract
Purpose
To study the risks, and benefits, to companies or introducing new products to the market.
Design/methodology/approach
This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the findings in context.
Findings
Ahn‐Sook Hwang describes Korean cosmetic company AmorePacific's integrated approach to innovative technology, marketing and management to win market share against domestic and global competition. Patrick Barwise and Seán Meehan say, as products and services become more and more alike, customers aren't looking for “something different”, but something which works well. Anurag Sharma and Nelson Lacey study the new product development process of the US pharmaceutical industry to determine whether or not a steady stream of new product innovations has a beneficial effect on firm performance.
Originality/value
Prompts organizations to ask themselves why they are introducing new products. Introduces the argument that striving to “be better” may be an alternative to a constant search for new products.
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This study aims to gain a new perspective on auditing by measuring investors’ fraud perception and to reveal the necessity of increasing individuals’ fraud perception by…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to gain a new perspective on auditing by measuring investors’ fraud perception and to reveal the necessity of increasing individuals’ fraud perception by determining the effect of fraud perception on the intention to invest in crypto assets from the investor’s perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
As part of this quantitative research, a survey was conducted on individuals residing in Türkiye and aged 18 years and above through a convenience sampling method. A total of 446 participants were included in the study. The data collected was analyzed using the partial least squares-variance based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method using the SmartPLS program.
Findings
Fraud perception causes individuals to be more risk-averse and reduces their intention to invest in crypto assets. At the same time, it has been observed that risk-averse individuals have lower intention to invest in crypto assets. According to the results of the mediating effect analysis, risk aversion behavior partially mediates between the fraud perception and the intention to invest in crypto assets. Among the emotions, only fear increases risk aversion behavior. Among the personality traits, extroversion and openness to experience personality traits reduce risk aversion behavior, whereas neuroticism personality traits increase the intention to invest in crypto assets.
Originality/value
In an environment where traditional auditing activities are insufficient, increasing investors’ perceptions of fraud can reduce fraud-related losses. In this context, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, the present study might be among the first to investigate the impact of individuals’ perceptions of fraud on their investment intentions in crypto assets.
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A somewhat common view of social movements is that they are somehow associated with the vanguard, or that they are at least leading the way to new possibilities on what are…
Abstract
A somewhat common view of social movements is that they are somehow associated with the vanguard, or that they are at least leading the way to new possibilities on what are frequently considered to be cutting edge issues, that is, topics that few others are currently concerned with or informed about in meaningful ways. This has often been the case historically, and when it is, it is also one of the reasons why social movements are so exciting to study and have attracted such sustained social scientific attention. Sometimes this added scholarly attention to the movement and its issues is another salient variable in pushing forward the social and political change that the movement is aiming for. But social movements are not always on the cutting edge; indeed, sometimes they aren’t close to it. Social movements frequently only mirror concerns, processes, or patterns that are swirling about or even dominating the society of which the movement is a part. In this sense social movements are reflectors and followers just as much as they may be leaders. Yet even this view is too simplistic since it is also true that social movements may lag behind – only adopting practices and processes long after they are already well established in other sectors of the society.
Selim Aren and Hatice Nayman Hamamci
This paper aims to examine the effects of subjective and financial literacy, big five personality traits and emotions (fear, anger, hope and sadness) on risk aversion, risky…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the effects of subjective and financial literacy, big five personality traits and emotions (fear, anger, hope and sadness) on risk aversion, risky investment intention and investment choices were investigated. Interactions of these three variables (risk aversion, risky investment intention and investment choices) were also examined.
Design/methodology/approach
For this purpose, in January-February 2019, collected data on 446 subjects from Turkey using the internet (341) and face-to-face (105) survey instruments. The authors exploited IBM SPSS Statistics for analysis. ANOVA, t-test and discriminant analysis were performed.
Findings
As a result of the analyzes, two personality traits (neuroticism and openness) and two emotions (fear and sadness) were determined as predictors of risk aversion. For risky investment intention, risk aversion, two personality traits (neuroticism and openness) and one of the same and other one different two emotions (fear and anger) were found.
Originality/value
Investment choices can be estimated by objective financial literature, risk aversion and risky investment intention. In addition, individuals’ risk averse or risk taking characteristics differ according to their level of sadness with agreeableness, conscientiousness and neuroticism personality traits. Similarly, have a risky investment intention or have not risky investment intention also differs according to sadness emotions with conscientiousness and openness. Finally, the choice of stocks or bank deposits varies according to subjective financial literacy and extraversion personality trait.
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Lisa J. Aren, Susan J. Webreck and Mark Patrick
Although library costs continue to rise in respect to staff, materials, and general operating expenses, the budgets needed to maintain the expected level of services are not…
Abstract
Although library costs continue to rise in respect to staff, materials, and general operating expenses, the budgets needed to maintain the expected level of services are not keeping pace. And, in spite of a surge in interest in computing unit costs for budget justification, resource distribution, cost comparison, and forecasting, relatively few organizations have implemented full‐scale cost analyses.
Zeynep Aksehirli, Yakov Bart, Kwong Chan and Koen Pauwels
Seán Kerins and Kirrily Jordan
The historian Patrick Wolfe reminds us that the settler colonial logic of eliminating native societies to gain unrestricted access to their territory is not a phenomenon confined…
Abstract
The historian Patrick Wolfe reminds us that the settler colonial logic of eliminating native societies to gain unrestricted access to their territory is not a phenomenon confined to the distant past. As Wolfe (2006, p. 388) writes, “settler colonizers come to stay: invasion is a structure not an event.” In the Gulf of Carpentaria region in Australia’s Northern Territory this settler colonial “logic of elimination” continues through mining projects that extract capital for transnational corporations while contaminating Indigenous land, overriding Indigenous law and custom and undermining Indigenous livelihoods. However, some Garawa, Gudanji, Marra, and Yanyuwa peoples are using creative ways to fight back, exhibiting “story paintings” to show how their people experience the destructive impacts of mining. We cannot know yet the full impact of this creative activism. But their body of work suggests it has the potential to challenge colonial institutions from below, inspiring growing networks of resistance and a collective meaning-making through storytelling that is led by Indigenous peoples on behalf of the living world.
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Translating motivational research to classroom instruction may be so difficult because the two enterprises of psychological research and teaching are inherently different in goals…
Abstract
Translating motivational research to classroom instruction may be so difficult because the two enterprises of psychological research and teaching are inherently different in goals and assumptions. Whereas psychological theory is meant to be broad and generalizable, educational practice must attend to individual and situational differences. For instance, a great deal of research suggests that mastery goal structures are related to desirable beliefs and behaviors. However, knowing that this is so does not help teachers know how to foster mastery goals in their classrooms and whether or how practices might vary given differences among students, developmental levels, and content areas. As Patrick (2004) noted, the theoretical notion of mastery goal structure as it is currently conceptualized was not developed in classrooms and does not address how a mastery goal structure is either manifested or communicated to students. Although it makes theoretical sense to provide “appropriate challenge” to students, how a teacher adapts that principle to students with a range of abilities and attitudes, from challenge seekers to avoiders, is not obvious. Research can provide only a general theoretical heuristic for understanding tendencies and does not necessarily explain individuals' behavior over time (Turner & Patrick, 2004). For motivational research to be meaningful and useful to educators, it needs to help them interpret student behavior as specific responses to specific sets of circumstances. Pajares (2007) expressed this well when he noted:Research findings … drawn from educational psychology broadly, and motivation theory and research in particular are bounded by a host of situated, cultural factors that must be attended to if the constructs themselves are to have any, as William James (1907/1975) termed it, practical, or cash, value. (p. 30)Therefore, in its present form, theory may not appear useful to teachers because of its seeming lack of specificity. These issues apply to all current theories of motivation.