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1 – 10 of over 4000Marisa Sousa, Celina Gonçalves, Rui Biscaia and Maria José Carvalho
This study aims to assess service quality in sport child camps among both participants and parents and its effects on satisfaction and behavioural intentions.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to assess service quality in sport child camps among both participants and parents and its effects on satisfaction and behavioural intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from participants (n = 258) and parents (n = 226) of a sport child camp. A confirmatory factor analysis analysed the psychometric properties of the constructs, and a subsequent structural equation model examined the effects of service quality on satisfaction and behavioural intentions.
Findings
The results indicate a multi-dimensional construct of service quality that influences satisfaction and behavioural intentions differently among parents and participants. For participants, Service Failures and Recovery, Safety and Food influenced satisfaction, while Service Failures and Recovery and Fun influenced Behavioural Intentions. For parents, Management Commitment to Service Quality, Staff, Food and Contact with Physical Environmental influenced satisfaction, while Management Commitment to Service Quality and Staff influenced Behavioural intentions.
Research limitations/implications
Both parents and participants' perceptions of service quality in sport child camps were captured and its effects on satisfaction and behavioural intentions. The study provides sport child camp managers with critical information about service delivery and its outcomes among the two key consumers (participants and parents).
Originality/value
This study offers new ideas to advance knowledge on sport child camps by capturing the perceptions of two key stakeholders and providing useful insights into how different attributes of service quality influence the levels of satisfaction and behavioural intentions among parents and participants.
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Alexander Braun, Arleta Anna Franczukowska, Irina Teufl and Eva Krczal
There is growing interest in the economic impact of workplace physical activity interventions, but the evidence is still lacking — especially in Europe. Although, some evidence on…
Abstract
Purpose
There is growing interest in the economic impact of workplace physical activity interventions, but the evidence is still lacking — especially in Europe. Although, some evidence on the return on investment (ROI) is found in literature, the included studies may not be applicable to the Europe situation. Therefore, the objective of this study was to review current evidence on the economic impact of workplace physical activity interventions in European countries.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review on the economic impact of worksite health promotion programs aiming at increasing physical activity was conducted. Five electronic databases (MEDLINE (Ovid), MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE, NHS-EED and Emerald Insights) were searched for relevant studies published between 2000 and 2020.
Findings
A total of 953 abstracts were screened, and 28 were reviewed, 11 of which met all inclusion criteria. The studies varied substantially in sample size, intervention type, duration and frequency of follow-up measurements, valuation methods and assessed economic outcomes. There is inconclusive evidence for decreasing absenteeism, positive net benefit (NB) and positive ROI. No evidence was found to indicate an effect on self-assessed productivity or job satisfaction.
Originality/value
This study is the first try to take the different working conditions from Europe into consideration. The authors found that working conditions could have some impact on the valuation of absenteeism costs and thereof on the ROI. Further, this study provides insight into how to deploy effective and efficient workplace physical activity interventions, based on a standardized and validated methodology and program scope.
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The highly contagious coronavirus and the rapid spread of COVID-19 disease have generated a global public health crisis, which is being addressed at various local and global…
Abstract
The highly contagious coronavirus and the rapid spread of COVID-19 disease have generated a global public health crisis, which is being addressed at various local and global scales through social distancing measures and guidelines. This is coupled with debates about the nature of living and working patterns through intensive utilisation of information and telecommunication technologies, leading to the social and institutional acceptability of these patterns as the “new normal”. The primary objective of this article is to instigate a discourse about the potential contribution of architecture and urban design and planning in generating knowledge that responds to pressing questions about future considerations of post pandemic architecture and urbanism. Methodologically, the discussion is based on a trans-disciplinary framework, which is utilised for conceptual analysis and is operationalized by identifying and discoursing design and planning implications. The article underscores relevant factors; originates insights for areas where future research will be critically needed, through key areas: a) Issues related to urban dynamics are delineated from the perspective of urban and human geography, urban design and planning, and transportation engineering; b) Questions that pertain to socio-spatial implications and urban space/ urban life dialectics stem from the field of environmental psychology; and c) Deliberations about new environments that accommodate new living/working styles supervene from ethnographical and anthropological perspectives. The article concludes with an outlook that captures key aspects of the needed synergy between architectural and urban education, research, and practice and public health in a post pandemic virtual and global world.
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There is a significant pressure on consulting businesses to produce innovative solutions and to assist their clients in producing innovative solutions for their organizational…
Abstract
Purpose
There is a significant pressure on consulting businesses to produce innovative solutions and to assist their clients in producing innovative solutions for their organizational problems as well. In addition to that challenging need to innovate for survival and competition, as other contemporary firms, consultancies must face the global changes brought by the outbreak of the coronavirus infection since 2019. This qualitative pilot study aimed at exploring the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the approaches to innovation in the consulting industry.
Design/methodology/approach
Triggered from the literature gap on approaches to innovation in consultancies during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, a grounded theory approach was used to generate a theoretical explanation of how the COVID-19 is affecting the strategies and approaches of businesses in harnessing innovation opportunities from the perspectives of four professionals from an information technology (IT) consultancy in the USA.
Findings
The findings of this pilot study showed that organizational leaders' increased responsiveness, a Job-To-Be-Done strategy, organizational support and team adaption are the keys to harvesting dynamic capabilities for better competition, even during global environmental changes.
Practical implications
This implies that managers remain the main actors in a firm's efforts to harvest dynamic capabilities. Innovation strategists, business leaders and policymakers can confidently work together to implement novel and flexible work settings that integrate both social and economic advancements.
Originality/value
Theoretical implications support the sustainable innovation strategy concepts and the Job-To-Be-Done theory. Finally, the substantive theory from this pilot study lays the ground for future research on approaches to innovation in the consulting industry.
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Ahmad Arslan, Ismail Golgeci, Zaheer Khan, Petri Ahokangas and Lauri Haapanen
This paper aims to focus on the influences of the COVID-19 pandemic on business-to-business (B2B) firms’ relationship initiation and customer relationship management in an…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to focus on the influences of the COVID-19 pandemic on business-to-business (B2B) firms’ relationship initiation and customer relationship management in an under-explored and unique context of high-tech industrial microenterprises. The authors analyze the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in the specific context of B2B relationship initiation and customer relationship management dynamics by examining Finnish B2B industrial microenterprises.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses exploratory in-depth case studies undertaken in three Finnish industrial microenterprises to analyze the influences of the COVID-19 pandemic on their new business relationship initiation and relationship management with the current customers.
Findings
The case firms quickly adjusted to the “new normal” and used a number of technological resources, including online meetings and three-dimensional demonstrations, among others. A key reason for this quick adjustment was them being microenterprises. However, despite this, lack of access to customer sites remained a hindrance as their products need to fit certain production processes, which cannot be done without physical visits. Furthermore, the development of trust with new customers, especially those based in emerging markets, was challenging due to the lack of physical meetings and site visits.
Research limitations/implications
The research highlights the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic to B2B relationships and gives an account of the changing dynamics of relationship initiation and customer relationship management amid technological and societal disruptions. It also highlights the continued role of personal relationships and psychical meetings in such relationships. As such, the research informs B2B research that examines the role of personal relationships in B2B marketing.
Practical implications
The study offers industrial microenterprise executives insights into how to face and tackle COVID-19 driven challenges in B2B customer relationship management and how to integrate technological tools in relationship management practices while understanding where face-to-face meetings are indispensable.
Originality/value
The study demonstrates areas in which virtual tools can and cannot be substitutes for conventional means of B2B relationship initiation and customer relationship management across developed and emerging markets. It also highlights the specificities of industrial microenterprises and their business development and customer relationship management dynamics mechanisms, a research area that has been rather ignored by prior studies.
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Minyoung Kwon, Hilde Remøy and Andy Van Den Dobbelsteen
This paper highlights the importance of user satisfaction in office renovation. A user-focussed renovation approach can enhance user satisfaction in offices and their functional…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper highlights the importance of user satisfaction in office renovation. A user-focussed renovation approach can enhance user satisfaction in offices and their functional quality while meeting energy performance goals. The purpose of this paper is to investigate users’ needs and the physical and psychological factors affecting user satisfaction, as input to office renovation projects.
Design/methodology/approach
The selected articles are collected from Scopus, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar. Searching was limited to the main key terms of office, work environment, and user satisfaction and comfort. The important factors were searched through empirical-based international literature mainly. Based hereupon, a guide will be developed for the analysis and evaluation of user satisfaction in office renovations.
Findings
From a comprehensive overview, the findings present ten main factors to increase user satisfaction in office renovation. These are associated with physical and psychological satisfaction and comfort. In addition, the influential factors were categorised into three levels based on needs theories to organise the hierarchy of priorities.
Practical implications
This research adds to the body of knowledge about which factors are important for user satisfaction, based on what previous research has found in that field. This is important to improve the sustainability in use.
Originality/value
User satisfaction is often studied through separate aspects: health and indoor climate vs functionality and productivity. This paper examines overall user satisfaction of workplaces by integrating the perspectives of physical and psychological conditions, and by providing insight into the priority of satisfaction factors.
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When discussing the term “technology-facilitated violence” (TFV) it is often asked: “Is it actually violence?” While international human rights standards, such as the United…
Abstract
When discussing the term “technology-facilitated violence” (TFV) it is often asked: “Is it actually violence?” While international human rights standards, such as the United Nations' Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (United Nations General Assembly, 1979), have long recognized emotional and psychological abuse as forms of violence, including many forms of technology-facilitated abuse (United Nations, 2018), law makers and the general public continue to grapple with the question of whether certain harmful technology-facilitated behaviors are actually forms of violence. This chapter explores this question in two parts. First, it reviews three theoretical concepts of violence and examines how these concepts apply to technology-facilitated behaviors. In doing so, this chapter aims to demonstrate how some harmful technology-facilitated behaviors fit under the greater conceptual umbrella of violence. Second, it examines two recent cases, one from the British Columbia Court of Appeal (BCCA) in Canada and a Romanian case from the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), that received attention for their legal determinations on whether to define harmful technology-facilitated behaviors as forms of violence or not. This chapter concludes with observations on why we should conceptualize certain technology-facilitated behaviors as forms of violence.
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Laura Aragoncillo and Carlos Orus
This paper aims to explore the phenomenon of impulse buying in the fashion industry. The online and offline channels are compared to determine which is perceived as leading to…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the phenomenon of impulse buying in the fashion industry. The online and offline channels are compared to determine which is perceived as leading to more impulsive buying.
Design/methodology/approach
As the result of the literature review, three research questions are proposed and examined through an online self-administered survey with 212 valid responses.
Findings
Results show that the offline channel is slightly more encouraging of impulse buying than the online channel; factors that encourage online impulse buying explain this behaviour to a greater extent than do discouraging factors; social networks can have a big impact on impulse buying.
Research limitations/implications
Findings are limited by the sampling plan, the sample size and the measurement of some of the variables; only one product type is analysed. Further research is needed to confirm that shipping-refund costs and delayed gratification (traditionally, discouraging factors of online buying) encourage online impulse buying; clarify contradictory results regarding the role of online privacy and convenience. This research contributes to the validation of a scale to measure the influence of social media on impulse buying behaviour.
Practical implications
Offline companies can trigger the buying impulse to a greater extent than online retailers. Managers must carefully select social networks to encourage impulse buying, Facebook and Instagram being the most influential; Twitter has the least impact.
Originality/value
This study compares the impulse buying phenomenon in both the physical store and the internet. Moreover, the influence of social networks on impulse buying is also explored.
Objetivo
Este trabajo explora la compra por impulso en el sector de la moda, comparando los canales físico y online para determinar cuál se percibe como más impulsivo.
Diseño/metodología/enfoque
De la revisión de la literatura se extraen tres preguntas de investigación, examinadas a través de una encuesta auto-administrada online con 212 respuestas válidas.
Resultados
Los resultados muestran que: el canal offline es ligeramente percibido como más impulsivo que el online; los factores motivadores de la compra impulsiva online explican mejor este comportamiento que los desmotivadores; las redes sociales pueden tener un gran impacto en la compra impulsiva.
Limitaciones/implicaciones de la investigación
Las limitaciones radican en el plan de muestreo, el tamaño muestral, y la medición de algunas variables; sólo una industria es analizada. Futuras investigaciones deberán: confirmar que los gastos de envío-devolución, así como la gratificación retrasada (tradicionalmente considerados como motivadores de la compra online) pueden motivar la compra impulsiva online; clarificar resultados contradictorios sobre la privacidad y la conveniencia de Internet. Esta investigación contribuye a la validación de un instrumento para medir la influencia de las redes sociales en la compra impulsiva.
Implicaciones para la gestión
Las tiendas físicas pueden estimular la compra por impulso más que los vendedores online. Los gestores deben seleccionar cuidadosamente las redes sociales para favorece la compra por impulso, siendo Facebook e Instagram las más influyentes; Twitter tiene el menor impacto.
Originalidad/valor
Este estudio compara el fenómeno de la compra impulsiva tanto en el canal físico como online, y explora la influencia de las redes sociales en la compra impulsiva.
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Jacopo Santambrogio, Michela Russo, Sergio Terrevazzi, Gianluca Peschi, Massimo Clerici and Marco O. Bertelli
Persons with intellectual disability and/or low-functioning autism spectrum didorder are with high support need (ID/ASD-HSN) are among the people who are most vulnerable to the…
Abstract
Purpose
Persons with intellectual disability and/or low-functioning autism spectrum didorder are with high support need (ID/ASD-HSN) are among the people who are most vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic. The specific vulnerability and the protective factors for persons with ID/LF-ASD attending residential and rehabilitative facilities have however received little attention. This paper aims to describe how two facilities located in the Italian COVID-19 red zone faced the risks associated with the spread of the pandemic and the results they have achieved so far.
Design/methodology/approach
Interventions to contrast the spread of the pandemic and preserve clients’ health conditions have been systematically monitored and recorded since the very beginning of the pandemic.
Findings
26/138 clients had to undergo clinical screening and laboratory tests for COVID-like symptomatology, but only one resulted affected by COVID-19 and survived. Considering that Lombardy had 89,595 cases and 16,262 deaths (January–May 2020), one COVID-19 case/138 clients is a good result. Temporarily limiting physical contacts with friends/family in favor of reducing the burden of risk and adopting a system of prevention/safety strategies directed for persons with ID/LF-ASD attending and their caregivers have been useful measures.
Research limitations/implications
Structured or semi-structured interviews (using professional caregivers as informant) to confirm behavioral and emotional changes in the clients could not be carried out because of lack of time and resources (which were captured by the management of the pandemic) and could be the next goal for our residential facilities to implement the management of epidemic acute phases in a research-oriented view.
Originality/value
This study is a service evaluation report about facing COVID-19 pandemic. Only few such studies are present in medical literature about ID/ASD.
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