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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 September 2021

Andres Felipe Cortes and Younggeun Lee

This research note discusses three essential and practical questions related to social entrepreneurship and social activities in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): What…

2922

Abstract

Purpose

This research note discusses three essential and practical questions related to social entrepreneurship and social activities in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): What motivates SMEs to undertake social activities? What are the obstacles faced by SMEs when undertaking social activities? What are the types of social activities that SMEs undertake? The article presents preliminary answers and provides research suggestions related to these questions.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors search and review articles that study social entrepreneurship and social activities of SMEs and synthesize their findings based on the three main topics of interest.

Findings

The authors synthesized findings based on their three motivating topics: motivation, obstacles and types. They extracted three primary motivations of SMEs for social activities: (1) demands and expectations from external stakeholders, (2) nonpecuniary incentives that stem from organizational values and culture and (3) anticipation of improving relevant organizational outcomes. The authors extracted two obstacles for social initiatives: (1) limited resources and knowledge and (2) lack of perceived benefits or incentives. Finally, the authors extracted two types of social activities: (1) activities that address social and ethical issues and (2) activities that address environmental concerns.

Originality/value

Pressing concerns in society have pushed numerous entrepreneurs and small business managers to create and manage businesses that aim to alleviate social and environmental problems. Accordingly, researchers have devoted some attention to how SMEs get increasingly involved with social activities and initiatives (i.e. addressing social and environmental challenges through their firms). The authors highlight existing findings and propose future research opportunities based on our three essential and motivating questions.

Details

New England Journal of Entrepreneurship, vol. 24 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2574-8904

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 22 February 2024

Elena Cavagnaro

Tourism recovery after the pandemic has failed to take the path leading to sensitivity and humaneness at destination level. This chapter argues that to open this path, we need to…

Abstract

Tourism recovery after the pandemic has failed to take the path leading to sensitivity and humaneness at destination level. This chapter argues that to open this path, we need to confront the belief that tourists are self-centred, fun-driven and cheating individuals. This view on tourists and more generally human beings is central to the neoliberal understanding of consumers. It has moreover taken a strong grasp on the mind of economists, politicians, academics and the public at large.

To counteract this idea, I call upon Aristotle's discussion of friendship. In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle distinguishes between three forms of friendship: of utility, of pleasure, and of goodwill. Utility implies a relationship where people befriend each other in virtue of some good or service that they get or expect to get from each other. Friendships of utility, therefore, imply reciprocation. Friendships of pleasure can also be understood as a form of reciprocal altruism. However, friendships of goodwill are different because they are felt for others for their own sake and not in expectation of a favour in return. Friendships of goodwill include therefore others who may not be able to reciprocate, such as tourists staying only a short time at a destination. Looking through the lens of friendships of goodwill, one could argue that all tourists, including short-stay visitors, will be friendly and caring towards their hosts.

This chapter explores the soundness of friendships of goodwill in the light of more recent research on human nature. It also discusses its implications for our understanding of human beings, the relationship between hosts and guests, and ultimately the opportunity to steer tourism along a more sensitive, human and sustainable path.

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 15 March 2022

Kaisa Pekkala, Tommi Auvinen, Pasi Sajasalo and Chiara Valentini

This study focuses on managers' perceptions of employees' communicative role in social media, and explores the changes in the contractual nature of employment relations in…

3147

Abstract

Purpose

This study focuses on managers' perceptions of employees' communicative role in social media, and explores the changes in the contractual nature of employment relations in mediatized workplaces in which the boundaries of professional and private life are becoming more fluid.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative approach was employed to explore this relatively new phenomenon. The data, comprising 24 interviews with managers responsible for corporate communication and human resources in knowledge-intensive organizations, was thematically analysed.

Findings

The analysis shows that employees' work-related social media use creates new types of exchanges and dependencies between an organization and individual employees, which relate to employees' representation, knowledge and networks.

Originality/value

The study is among the first to examine the exchanges and dependencies in an employment relationship that emerge from increased use of social media for professional purposes.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 44 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 59 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 May 2022

Tiina Saari and Tuija Koivunen

This study aims to analyse the role of tacit knowledge in fulfilling employees’ side of the psychological contract in blue-collar work.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to analyse the role of tacit knowledge in fulfilling employees’ side of the psychological contract in blue-collar work.

Design/methodology/approach

The research questions are as follows: How is tacit knowledge acquired in blue-collar work and how do blue-collar workers use tacit knowledge to fulfil their obligations within the psychological contract? This qualitative study comprising 30 interviews uses theory-led content analysis.

Findings

Blue-collar workers need time and experience to acquire tacit knowledge. An important aspect of tacit knowledge is knowing the ways in which the work is best done in practice and seeking better ways of doing the job. Workers use their tacit knowledge to perform their work well and efficiently, even in problematic situations, and to improve their work to fulfil their side of the psychological contract.

Practical implications

Organisations should see the value of the tacit knowledge blue-collar workers possess and develop actions that involve the workers in sharing their tacit knowledge and also in planning the actions related to this knowledge sharing.

Originality/value

This study adds to the limited body of studies on the relationship between tacit knowledge and the psychological contract.

Details

International Journal of Organizational Analysis, vol. 30 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1934-8835

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 November 2023

Stephen Oduro, Alessandro De Nisco and Luca Petruzzellis

This study aims to draw on cue utilization and irradiation theories to: determine the extent to which country-of-origin image and its sub-dimensions exert an aggregate and…

1939

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to draw on cue utilization and irradiation theories to: determine the extent to which country-of-origin image and its sub-dimensions exert an aggregate and relative influence on consumer brand evaluations; and identify the contextual and methodological factors that account for between-study variance in the focal relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

A random-effects model was used to examine 166 empirical articles encompassing 499,563 observations, and 282 effect sizes from 1984 to 2020 using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software.

Findings

Results show that country-of-origin image has a positive, moderate effect on consumer brand evaluations. Moreover, findings reveal that each dimension of country-of-origin image – general country image, general product country image, specific product country image and partitioned country image – significantly influences consumer brand evaluation, but the effect of general product country image is the largest. What’s more, the aggregate impacts of country-of-origin image on consumer brand evaluation – brand commitment, brand-specific associations and general brand impressions – show that the effect on brand commitment is the largest. Finally, findings show that contextual factors (brand source, product sector, culture [individualism vs collectivism], brand origin continents and respondents’ continent) and methodological factors (cues, sampling unit, publication year and sample size) significantly account for between-study variance.

Originality/value

This study provides the first meta-analytic review of the relationship between country-of-origin image and consumer brand evaluation to help clarify mixed findings and balance out the literature, which has only seen quantitative reviews on product evaluation and purchase decisions.

Details

Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 33 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1061-0421

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 26 November 2021

Keith Leverett Warren, Nathan Doogan, Uwe Wernekinck and Fiona Claire Doherty

While recent years have seen a number of studies of social networks in therapeutic communities (TCs) and other residential settings, these have primarily focused on male…

Abstract

Purpose

While recent years have seen a number of studies of social networks in therapeutic communities (TCs) and other residential settings, these have primarily focused on male residents. This paper aims to conduct a longitudinal social network analysis of interpersonal interactions in a TC for women.

Design/methodology/approach

The data consists of a longitudinal directed social network of instances of feedback between 56 residents of a 16 bed TC for women over a period of 611 days. Mean age of the participants was 33.1 years, mean length of stay was 133.9 days and 91% of the participants were female. Feedback consisted of written affirmations for prosocial behavior and written corrections for contravening TC norms. Data was analyzed using a latent factor longitudinal social network model.

Findings

Residents react to peer intervention in complex ways. Residents reciprocated affirmations (B = 0.14, 95% confidence interval = 0.10, 0.18) and corrections (B = 0.20, 95% CI = 0.13, 0.25). Controlling for reciprocity, participants who received affirmations were more likely to affirm and correct peers (B = 0.10, 95% CI = 0.06, 0.15; B = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.10, 0.23), suggesting that the encouragement offered by affirmations leads to increased activity. Homophily by admission time occurred in both affirmations and corrections (B = 0.23, 95% CI = 0.10, 0.37; B = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.29, 0.74).

Originality/value

While affirmations and corrections serve as vehicles for behavioral reinforcement and social learning, they also allow residents to interact in ways that strengthen social bonds.

Details

Therapeutic Communities: The International Journal of Therapeutic Communities, vol. 42 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0964-1866

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 18 July 2022

Klaas Stek

Industry 4.0 or the Fourth Industrial Revolution is characterized by robotic process automation and machine-to-machine communications. Since computers, machines, and robots share…

Abstract

Industry 4.0 or the Fourth Industrial Revolution is characterized by robotic process automation and machine-to-machine communications. Since computers, machines, and robots share information and knowledge more swiftly and effectively than humans, the question is what human beings' role could be in the era of the Internet-of-Thing. The answer would be beneficial to institutions for higher education to anticipate. The literature reveals a gap between the intended learning outcomes in higher education institutions and the needs of employers in Industry 4.0. Evidence is shown that higher education mainly focused on knowledge (know-what) and theory-based (know-why) intended learning outcomes. However, competent professionals require knowledge (know-what), understanding of the theory (know-why), professional (know-how) and interpersonal skills (know-how and know-who), and need intrapersonal traits such as creativeness, persistence, a result-driven attitude et cetera. Therefore, intended learning outcomes in higher education should also develop interpersonal skills and intrapersonal characteristics. Yet, personality development is a personal effort vital for contemporary challenges. The history of the preceding industrial revolutions showed the drawbacks of personality and character education; politicians have abused it to control societies in the 19th and 20th centuries. In the discussion section, the institutions for higher education are alerted that the societal challenges of the twenty-first century could lead to a form of personality education that is not in the student's interest and would violate Isaiah Berlin's philosophical concept of ‘positive freedom’.

Details

Smart Industry – Better Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80117-715-3

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 28 May 2021

Jeongsoo Han and Mina Jun

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the characteristic of mobile devices, particularly high accessibility, influences a consumer's intention to post an online review…

1258

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how the characteristic of mobile devices, particularly high accessibility, influences a consumer's intention to post an online review depending on the valence of consumption experiences.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper employs a between-subject design of experimental study based on different scenarios with 378 participants. A pretest is conducted to confirm that participants perceive the experimental scenarios as intended prior to proceeding with the main experimental study.

Findings

The authors’ experimental analysis shows that the intention to post a review of extreme positive and negative experiences is significantly higher when the level of accessibility for review-posting is high. By contrast, the intention to post a review of neutral consumption experiences is neither higher nor lower regardless of the level of accessibility.

Originality/value

The findings of this paper contribute to a better understanding of online reviews by demonstrating how high accessibility for review-posting have differential influences on the intentions to post online reviews depending on the valence of consumer experiences. The findings provide important theoretical and managerial implications.

研究目的

本文旨在探討移動設備的特徵,特別是其高可及性,如何因應消費者的消費體驗效價影響他們在網上發佈評論的意慾。

研究設計/方法/理念

:本文採用實驗研究的被試間設計,基於不同情景,並涵蓋378名參與者。研究人員在主要的實驗研究前進行了預先測試、以確認參與者對實驗情景的理解是和預期的一樣。

研究結果

我們的實驗分析顯示、當發佈評論的可及性水平是高的時候,消費者發佈關於他們極良好或極負面的消費體驗的評論意慾會顯著提升。相比之下、他們發佈中性消費體驗的意慾則不會因可及性的水平而有所增減。

研究的原創性/價值

本文的研究結果有助我們更了解網上的評論,這是由於研究結果顯示了消費者在網上發佈評論的意慾如何因應其消費體驗效價、受發佈評論的高可及性水平影響。這研究結果在理論及管理方面具有重要的意義。

Details

European Journal of Management and Business Economics, vol. 30 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2444-8451

Keywords

Content available
Book part
Publication date: 5 April 2004

Abstract

Details

Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-76231-040-1

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