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Mass participation sport events, such as running events, have the potential to foster social capital among event participants. The purpose of this study is to investigate the interrelationships among sport event participation, social capital and various (behavioral, psychological, informational and negative) outcomes.

Following Putnam's social capital approach, a research model was developed and tested using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, based on survey data from 301 runners with varied running histories and event experiences.

Results showed a limited impact of sport event participation on participants' social capital, indicating that the temporary interactions within the event timeframe were insufficient to generate sustainable social capital among event participants. Nevertheless, significant relationships were found between social capital and behavioral, psychological and informational outcomes of social capital, suggesting that social capital can be converted to a range of benefits for participants and the event community.

Event marketers and sponsors should take strategic actions to enhance participants' social experience and cultivate social capital, which may help them gain support from the event community irrespective of past experiences with participation.

This study extends Putnam's social capital framework into mass participation sport event context. As an initial effort to quantitatively test the linkage among event participation, social capital and various outcomes, this study offers empirical insights into the role of sport event participation in generating long-term social benefits for event participants.

The symbolic presentation of products through images in online environments allows consumers to use or experience products only through imagination. Existing literature has demonstrated that providing sensory cues is an effective way to promote imaginative use or experience. However, such an approach seems to have been proposed for product that requires the use of body-related information (e.g. sensory information) for evaluation (high body-involving product). There is less literature on how to facilitate consumers’ imaginative use of product that requires relatively less bodily information (low body-involving product). Considering this, this research proposes a factor that influences the imaginative use of both high and low body-involving products, the character cues in the product image.

In this paper, two studies are conducted to verify the matching effect about presence or absence of character cues with product type (high body-involving vs. low body-involving) in facilitating imaginative use and the downstream effect.

The experimental results indicate that high (low) body-involving product display images are suitable for present (absent) character cues, which can promote the mental imagery of use the product, increase perceived image attractiveness and ultimately increase purchase intentions. The research also verified the influence of distance between the product and the character cues on the above effects.

We expand on the importance of character cues in product display images in an e-commerce environment and enrich the research about imaginative use in online environment.

The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of a non-contact full-field optical measurement technique known as digital image correlation (DIC).

The approach of this review paper is to introduce the research pertaining to DIC. It comprehensively covers crucial facets including its principles, historical development, core challenges, current research status and practical applications. Additionally, it delves into unresolved issues and outlines future research objectives.

The findings of this review encompass essential aspects of DIC, including core issues like the subpixel registration algorithm, camera calibration, measurement of surface deformation in 3D complex structures and applications in ultra-high-temperature settings. Additionally, the review presents the prevailing strategies for addressing these challenges, the most recent advancements in DIC applications across quasi-static, dynamic, ultra-high-temperature, large-scale and micro-scale engineering domains, along with key directions for future research endeavors.

This review holds a substantial value as it furnishes a comprehensive and in-depth introduction to DIC, while also spotlighting its prospective applications.

Purpose of This Chapter: This study examines the relationship of ambidextrous leadership with employee voice behaviour, underscoring the intervening role of employee thriving.

Design / Methodology / Approach: This study proposes a conceptual framework based on an extensive literature review using the conservation of resource theory, social exchange theory, and the broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions.

Findings: This study demonstrates that employee thriving act as an underlying mechanism explaining the relationship between ambidextrous leadership and employee voice behaviour.

Research Limitations: Being a conceptual study, the proposed framework lacks empirical validation.

Practical Implications: Organizations should focus on leaders with flexible behaviours who understand situational necessities to adopt diverse leadership styles and contribute to employee thriving.

Originality: This is one of the first studies to propose the role of ambidextrous leadership in impacting and enhancing change in employee voice through employee thriving at work. By introducing a framework that delves into the unexplored territory of ambidextrous leadership, acting as a catalyst for enhancing employee voice via the lens of employee thriving. This study provides a fresh perspective and adds value to the evolving conversations around employee voice behaviour.

The paper aims to reveal the impact of relationship marketing (RM) practices adopted by companies in emerging markets on their market and financial performance (FP) over a long-term, 13-year perspective.

The research design combines primary empirical data from 229 Russian companies, based on the Contemporary Marketing Practices (CMP) survey, and objective FP data from official statistical databases for 2008–2020 to verify the impact of RM practices on market and FP in the long term.

The research underlines the significant impact of RM practices. It is important to notice that the effect of product development (PD) on marketing performance is mediated by competitor orientation. PD affects market and FP, whose roles vary with the return on assets (ROA).

Research design supplements the subjective survey data with the objective FP data on the ROA to avoid common method bias.

Implementation of RM practices by Russian companies can increase their effectiveness of performance in the long term.

This research shows the positive impact of RM practices on the FP of Russian firms over the past 13 years.

Digitalization is increasingly important for promoting authentic CSR practices. Firms with higher CSR levels motivate their employees to pursue their goals and demonstrate their social responsibility. However, the literature has not adequately examined how firm-level digitalization influences corporate sustainability from a governance perspective. This study aims to fill this gap by exploring how digitalization affects CSR disclosure, a key aspect of sustainability, at the firm level. Furthermore, this study also aims to investigate how governance factors, such as management power, internal control and minority shareholder pressure, moderate this effect.

This study employs a fixed effect model with robust standard errors to analyze how digitalization and CSR disclosure are related and how this relationship is moderated by governance heterogeneity among Chinese A-share companies from 2010 to 2020. The sample consists of 2,339 firms, of which 360 are SOEs and 1,979 are non-SOEs. To ensure robustness, this study has excluded the observations in 2020 to avoid the effects of COVID-19 and used an alternative measure of CSR disclosure based on the HEXUN CSR disclosure index. Furthermore, this study also explores the link in various corporate-level CSR settings.

The regression findings reveal that: First, Chinese A-share firms with higher digitalization levels disclose less CSR information. This finding holds for both SOEs and non-SOEs. Second, stronger management power has a negative moderating effect that weakens the link between digitalization and CSR disclosure, and this effect is mainly driven by SOEs. Third, internal control attenuates the negative association between firm digitalization and CSR disclosure, which is more pronounced in SOEs. Finally, minority shareholders exacerbate the negative relationship between digitalization and CSR disclosure, and this effect is more evident in non-SOEs. These results are robust to excluding the potential COVID effect and using an alternative HEXUN CSR disclosure index measure.

Digitalization and sustainability have been widely discussed at a macro level, but their relationship at a micro level has been largely overlooked. Moreover, there is hardly any evidence on how governance heterogeneity affects this relationship in emerging economies, especially China. This paper addresses these issues by providing empirical evidence on how digital transformation influences CSR disclosure in China, a context where digitalization and CSR are both rapidly evolving. The paper also offers implications for both practitioners and policymakers to design appropriate digital strategies for firm development from diverse business perspectives.

This paper aims to reveal the influence of the presentation of online product information (POPI) on consumer attitudes in the context of online buying digital products.

Two main experimental designs are used to collect data. The ANOVA, t-test and Bootstrap methods are applied to check hypotheses.

Findings of Study 1 indicate that if the POPI is combined with different types of celebrity endorsement (CE) (real vs virtual), the self-brand connection will be changed and further influence consumer attitudes toward digital products. Study 2 verifies the diverse moderating effects of the type of virtual CE. The CRP (central-route presentation) online product information with SVCE (super-realistic-digital virtual CE) can decrease consumer attitudes, while the PRP (peripheral-route presentation) online product information with AVCE (anthropomorphic virtual CE) can enhance consumer attitudes.

E-commerce enterprises should optimize the current layout of POPI by considering diverse matchings between POPI and CE to increase consumer attitudes. Moreover, marketers could make various schemes of POPI considering (virtual) CE and self-brand connection.

Findings contribute to understanding the relationship between POPI and consumer attitudes considering the mediation of self-brand connection and the mediations of virtual/real CE. Additionally, this study bridges the gap between research on virtual CE and business practices.

This study aims to investigate the association of FinTech innovation (FinTechINN) and firm performance (FP) by considering the role of knowledge assets (KA) as a causal mechanism underlying the FinTechINN – FP association.

In this study, the authors consider panel data of 1,049 Chinese A-listed firm and construct a structural model for corporate FinTech innovation, knowledge assets and firm performance while considering endogeneity issues in analyses over the period of 2014–2022. The modified value added intellectual capital (VAIC) and research and development (R&D) expenses are used as a proxy measure for knowledge assets, considering governance and corporate performance measures.

According to the findings of this study FinTech innovation (FinTechINN) has a positive significant effect on firm performance. Particularly; the findings disclose that FinTech innovations has a link with knowledge assets, FinTech innovations indirectly affects firm performance, and the association between FinTech innovation and firm performance is partially mediated by knowledge assets (MVAIC and R&D expenses).

Rooted in the dynamic capability and resource-based view, this study pioneers an empirical exploration of the association of FinTech innovation with firm performance. Moreover, it introduces the novel dimension of knowledge assets (on firm-level), acting as a mediating factor with in this relationship.

Based on resource-based theory and intellectual capital theory, this paper aims to investigate the impact of digital investment on enterprise value and the mediating role of intellectual capital. Additionally, it explores the heterogeneous impacts of digital investment on enterprise value and intellectual capital.

The study utilizes a sample of listed companies in Chinese A-shares from 2013 to 2020. The entropy-weighted method is applied to measure digital investment from two dimensions: scale and increment. Finally, the research hypotheses are tested through multiple regression analysis.

The empirical results demonstrate that digital investment significantly and positively impacts enterprise value. From the channel mechanism test, digital investment can enhance enterprise value by influencing intellectual capital through human, structural and relational capital. Of these, the mediating effect of human capital is the most significant. Moreover, the impacts of digital investment on enterprise value and intellectual capital are related to the industry sectors. In the agricultural sector, digital investment has adverse effects. In the industrial and service sectors, digital investment promotes intellectual capital and enterprise value. However, in the service sector, the impact on relational capital is not significant, and the mediating effect of relational capital does not hold.

This research has a limited potential for generalization due to the lack of standard measurement models for the exploration of digital investment.

The research findings are valuable for assessing the economic effects of digital investment comprehensively and providing essential information for policy formulation and strategy implementation.

This study represents the first attempt to evaluate the relationship between digital investment and enterprise value using the entropy-weighted method. In addition, this study investigates the mediating role of intellectual capital.

The purpose of this paper is to summarize the status and characteristics of rail technology of high-speed railway in China, and point out the development direction of rail technology of high-speed railway.

This study reviews the evolution of high-speed rail standards in China, comparing their chemical composition, mechanical attributes and geometric specifications with EN standards. It delves into the status of rail production technology, shifts in key performance indicators and the quality characteristics of rails. The analysis further examines the interplay between wheels and rails, the implementation of grinding technology and the techniques for inspecting rail service conditions. It encapsulates the salient features of rail operation and maintenance within the high-speed railway ecosystem. The paper concludes with an insightful prognosis of high-speed railway technology development in China.

The rail standards of high-speed railway in China are scientific and advanced, highly operational and in line with international standards. The quality and performance of rail in China have reached the world’s advanced level. The 60N profile guarantees the operation quality of wheel–rail interaction effectively. The rail grinding technology system scientifically guarantees the long-term good service performance of the rail. The rail service state detection technology is scientific and efficient. The rail technology will take “more intelligent” and “higher speed” as the development direction to meet the future needs of high-speed railway in China.

The development direction of rail technology for high-speed railway in China is defined, which will promote the continuous innovation and breakthrough of rail technology.