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1 – 10 of 16Joshua J. Davis and Michael L. Birzer
The study examined rural police culture in one Kansas police agency.
Abstract
Purpose
The study examined rural police culture in one Kansas police agency.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a qualitative ethnographic approach using in-depth interviews and non-participant observations to construct and interpret the culture of rural police through the lens of officers working in one rural police agency.
Findings
Five themes were found that described the complexities rural police officers face at this research site, including the law being at the center of officers’ actions, the nature of crime, officers serving as jack of all trades, community relationships and enforcement of crimes by teenagers, and how outside pressures from the community and increased concern for citizens' safety affect officers' daily lived experiences.
Originality/value
There is a dearth of scholarly literature addressing rural and small-town policing. This study is the first known qualitative study to be conducted on rural Kansas police, allowing a snapshot of the workings of rural Kansas police.
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Sean Bradley Power and Niamh M. Brennan
Annual general meetings have been variously described as dull rituals for accountability versus entertaining theatre at the expense of accountability. The research analyses…
Abstract
Purpose
Annual general meetings have been variously described as dull rituals for accountability versus entertaining theatre at the expense of accountability. The research analyses director and shareholder participation and dialogic interactions at annual and extraordinary general meetings of Cecil Rhodes' British South Africa Company (BSAC). The BSAC was incorporated under a royal charter in 1889 in return for power to exploit a huge territory, Rhodesia/now Zimbabwe. The BSAC's administration ceased in 1924/25. Thus, the BSAC had a dual mandate as a private for-profit listed company and to occupy and develop the territories on behalf of the British government.
Design/methodology/approach
The article analyses 29 BSAC general meeting minutes, comprising 25 full sets of verbatim minutes between 1895 and 1925. The study adopts manual content analysis. First, the research adopts conversational analysis to analyse director and shareholder turn-taking and moves by approving and dissenting shareholders. Second, the study identifies and analyses incidents of shareholder sentiment from the shareholder turns/moves. Finally, the article assesses how shareholder sentiment changed throughout the period and whether the BSAC's share price reflected the shareholder sentiment.
Findings
The BSAC's general meetings were associated with the greater colonial project of building the British Empire. The authors find almost 1,500 incidents of shareholder sentiment. Directors and shareholders take roughly an equal number of turns (excluding shareholder sentiment). Ritual and ceremony dominate director and shareholder turns and moves, while accountability to shareholders was minimal. The BSAC share price spiked in the early years of the project, waning after that. Shareholder sentiment, both positive and negative, reflect the share price behaviour.
Originality/value
A unique database of verbatim general meeting minutes records shareholders' reactions to what they heard in the form of sounding off through cheering, “hear, hears,” laughter and applause (i.e. shareholder sentiment).
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Shiqin Zeng, Frederick Chung and Baabak Ashuri
Completing Right-of-Way (ROW) acquisition process on schedule is critical to avoid delays and cost overruns on transportation projects. However, transportation agencies face…
Abstract
Purpose
Completing Right-of-Way (ROW) acquisition process on schedule is critical to avoid delays and cost overruns on transportation projects. However, transportation agencies face challenges in accurately forecasting ROW acquisition timelines in the early stage of projects due to complex nature of acquisition process and limited design information. There is a need of improving accuracy of estimating ROW acquisition duration during the early phase of project development and quantitatively identifying risk factors affecting the duration.
Design/methodology/approach
The quantitative research methodology used to develop the forecasting model includes an ensemble algorithm based on decision tree and adaptive boosting techniques. A dataset of Georgia Department of Transportation projects held from 2010 to 2019 is utilized to demonstrate building the forecasting model. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis is performed to identify critical drivers of ROW acquisition durations.
Findings
The forecasting model developed in this research achieves a high accuracy to predict ROW durations by explaining 74% of the variance in ROW acquisition durations using project features, which is outperforming single regression tree, multiple linear regression and support vector machine. Moreover, number of parcels, average cost estimation per parcel, length of projects, number of condemnations, number of relocations and type of work are found to be influential factors as drivers of ROW acquisition duration.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the state of knowledge in estimating ROW acquisition timeline through (1) developing a novel machine learning model to accurately estimate ROW acquisition timelines, and (2) identifying drivers (i.e. risk factors) of ROW acquisition durations. The findings of this research will provide transportation agencies with insights on how to improve practices in scheduling ROW acquisition process.
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Dat Van Truong, Song Thanh Quynh Le and Huong Mai Bui
Kapok was well-known for its oleophilic properties, but its mechanical properties and morphology impeded it from forming suitable absorbent materials. This study aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
Kapok was well-known for its oleophilic properties, but its mechanical properties and morphology impeded it from forming suitable absorbent materials. This study aims to demonstrate the process of creating an oil-absorbent web from a blend of treated kapok and polypropylene fibers.
Design/methodology/approach
Kapok fibers were separated from dried fruits, then the wax was removed with an HCl solution at different concentrations. The morphological and structural changes of these fibers were investigated using scanning electron microscopy images. The blending ratios of kapok and polypropylene fibers were 60/40, 70/30 and 80/20, respectively. The fiber blends were fed to a laboratory carding machine to form a web and then consolidated using the heat press technique. The absorption behavior of the formed web was evaluated regarding oil absorption capacity and oil retention capacity according to ASTM 726.
Findings
The results showed that the HCl concentration of 1.0% (wt%) gave the highest wax removal efficiency without damaging the kapok fibers. This study found that oil absorbency is influenced by the fiber blending ratio, web tensile strength and elongation, porosity, oil type and environmental conditions. The oil-absorbency of the web can be re-used for at least 20 cycles.
Research limitations/implications
This study only looked at three types of oils: diesel, kerosene and vegetable oils.
Practical implications
When the problem of oil spills in rivers and seas is growing and causing serious environmental and economic consequences, using physical methods to recover oil spills is the most effective solution.
Originality/value
This research adds to the possibility of using kapok fiber in the form of a web of non-woven fabric for practical purposes.
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Abhigyan Sarkar, Juhi Gahlot Sarkar, Kokil Jain and Isha Sharma
This research is conducted in the context of beauty salons in India, to investigate how enhanced perceived acceptance in interpersonal relationships through consuming beauty salon…
Abstract
Purpose
This research is conducted in the context of beauty salons in India, to investigate how enhanced perceived acceptance in interpersonal relationships through consuming beauty salon services can generate narcissistic brand love among consumers via the mediation of brand happiness. It also investigates the moderating impact of consumer's anxious interpersonal attachment style and cynicism on the relationship between perceived salon brand-interpersonal acceptance goal congruence and salon brand happiness.
Design/methodology/approach
To test the hypothesized relationships, a survey was conducted among 225 regular consumers of beauty salon brands. The data were analyzed using Hayes' (2017) process macro in SPSS.
Findings
The results suggest that perceived goal congruence between beauty salon brand-interpersonal acceptance positively influences brand happiness, which in turn predicts consumer's narcissistic brand love. Consumer's anxious interpersonal attachment style positively moderates the effect of brand-interpersonal acceptance goal congruence on brand happiness, while cynicism negatively moderates the path.
Originality/value
Value of the study lies in extending interpersonal acceptance and rejection (IPAR) theory to the domain of consumer–salon brand relationship, to posit that if salon brands satisfy consumers' interpersonal acceptance goals, there is a potential for such happy consumers to love the salon brand, albeit narcissistically.
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Savino Santovito, Raffaele Campo, Pierfelice Rosato and Long Dai Khuc
The aim of this manuscript is to study the current scientific literature on food marketing and religion, by giving an overview of current knowledge and the possible future…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this manuscript is to study the current scientific literature on food marketing and religion, by giving an overview of current knowledge and the possible future research opportunities once found the gaps.
Design/methodology/approach
This a classic literature review carried on by considering marketing, consumer behaviour and management journals as well as religion-focused ones.
Findings
Current literature highlights how faith impacts on food marketing and religious consumers choices (and not only). Most of the papers focus on Islam. Considering the globalised economy, the authors’ findings highlight also the relevance of religious certifications for less/not religious people, because of certified food is considered safe and healthy.
Originality/value
The paper joins and reviews two research fields whose connection is growing, so it is relevant to know the current status of scientific literature, which is updated compared to recent literature.
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