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1 – 10 of 21Sha Zhou, Yaqin Su, Muhammad Aamir Shahzad and Zhengchi Liu
The integration of social media and e-commerce has resulted in a rising phenomenon among individual content providers (ICPs), who used to offer free content, to provide consumers…
Abstract
Purpose
The integration of social media and e-commerce has resulted in a rising phenomenon among individual content providers (ICPs), who used to offer free content, to provide consumers with paid content, such as online courses, Q&As or consultations. Despite the prevalence of ICPs’ content monetization, empirical research has rarely studied its underlying mechanism. This paper examines how the characteristics of free content contributed by ICPs on social media platforms influence their paid content sales, focusing on the perspective of human brand.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical setting is an online knowledge exchange platform, where users are allowed to provide free content (e.g. answers) on the social media platform and launch paid content (e.g. lectures) on the e-commerce platform. A machine learning technique is employed to construct measures for the characteristics of free content, and fixed-effects estimation is presented to confirm which factors have a significant influence on the sales of paid content.
Findings
The empirical results show that the quality, diversity and expertness of free content have a significant positive impact on the sales of the ICP-paid content, with the brand popularity of ICP playing a mediating role.
Originality/value
This study is the first attempt to demystify the relationship between content contribution and ICPs’ content monetization from the perspective of human brand. The findings validate the effectiveness of the “Selling by Contribution” strategy and provide valuable insights for ICPs and social media platforms.
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Yuanwen Han, Jiang Shen, Xuwei Zhu, Bang An and Xueying Bao
This study aims to develop an interface management risk interaction modeling and analysis methodology applicable to complex systems in high-speed rail construction projects…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to develop an interface management risk interaction modeling and analysis methodology applicable to complex systems in high-speed rail construction projects, reveal the interaction mechanism of interface management risk and provide theoretical support for project managers to develop appropriate interface management risk response strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper introduces the association rule mining technique to improve the complex network modeling method. Taking China as an example, based on the stakeholder perspective, the risk factors and significant accident types of interface management of high-speed rail construction projects are systematically identified, and a database is established. Then, the Apriori algorithm is used to mine and analyze the strong association rules among the factors in the database, construct the complex network, and analyze its topological characteristics to reveal the interaction mechanism of the interface management risk of high-speed rail construction projects.
Findings
The results show that the network is both scale-free and small-world, implying that construction accidents are not random events but rather the result of strong interactions between numerous interface management risks. Contractors, technical interfaces, mechanical equipment, and environmental factors are the primary direct causal factors of accidents, while owners and designers are essential indirect causal factors. The global importance of stakeholders such as owners, designers, and supervisors rises significantly after considering the indirect correlations between factors. This theoretically explains the need to consider the interactions between interface management risks.
Originality/value
The interaction mechanism between interface management risks is unclear, which is an essential factor influencing the decision of risk response measures. This study proposes a new methodology for analyzing interface management risk response strategies that incorporate quantitative analysis methods and considers the interaction of interface management risks.
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This article aims to clarify the impact of stock market liberalization on corporate green technology innovation, analyze its mechanism from the perspectives of financing…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to clarify the impact of stock market liberalization on corporate green technology innovation, analyze its mechanism from the perspectives of financing constraints and environmental management level and explore heterogeneity.
Design/methodology/approach
Using the panel data of Chinese enterprises from 2010 to 2020, this article adopts the multi-point difference-in-difference (DID) method to test the impact of stock market liberalization on enterprise green technology innovation and its conduction pathway.
Findings
The outcomes demonstrate that stock market liberalization contributes to the furthering of green technology innovation. The heterogeneity test reveals that this promotion is more pronounced for private companies, small-scale companies and companies with high information transparency. The mediating effect test shows that stock market liberalization boosts green technology innovation by alleviating corporate financing constraints and improving corporate environmental management.
Originality/value
This article elucidates the impact path of stock market liberalization on corporate green innovation based on alleviating corporate financing constraints and improving corporate environmental management levels. From the perspective of corporate green technology innovation, this article provides evidence from emerging market countries for the economic effects of capital market opening, which helps to further improve the level of green innovation.
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This paper aims to promote the higher quality development of high-tech enterprises in China. While science and technology have greatly promoted human civilization, resources have…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to promote the higher quality development of high-tech enterprises in China. While science and technology have greatly promoted human civilization, resources have been excessively consumed and the environment has been sharply polluted. Therefore, it is particularly important for current enterprises to make use of scientific and technological innovation to maximize the benefits of mankind, minimize the loss of nature, and promote the sustainable development of our country.
Design/methodology/approach
By using DEA-Banker-Charnes-Cooper (BCC) model and DEA-Malmquist model, this paper comprehensively examines the innovation efficiency of high-tech enterprises from both static and dynamic perspectives, and conducts a provincial comparative study with the panel data of ten representative provinces from 2011 to 2020.
Findings
The research findings are as follows: the rapid number increase of high-tech enterprises in most provinces (cities) is accompanied by an ineffective input–output efficiency; the quality of high-tech enterprises needs to comprehensively examine both input–output efficiency and total factor productivity; and there is not a positive correlation between element investment and innovation performance.
Research limitations/implications
Because the DEA model used in this paper assumes that the improvement direction of invalid units is to ensure that the input ratio of various production factors remains unchanged but sometimes the proportion of scientific and technological activities personnel and the total research and development investment is not constant. In the future, the nonradial DEA model can be considered for further research. Due to historical data statistics, more provinces, cities and longer panel data are difficult to obtain. The samples studied in this paper mainly refer to the provinces and cities that ranked first in the number of national high-tech enterprises in 2020. Limited by the number of samples, DEA analysis failed to select more input and output indicators. In the future, with the accumulation of statistical data, the existing efficiency analysis will be further optimized.
Originality/value
Aiming at the misunderstanding of emphasizing quantity and neglecting quality in the cultivation of high-tech enterprises, this paper comprehensively uses DEA-BCC model and DEA Malmquist index decomposition method to make a comprehensive comparative study on the development of high-tech enterprises in ten representative provinces (cities) from two aspects of static efficiency evaluation and dynamic efficiency evaluation.
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Yichen Zhou and Lisa Gao
This study aims to examine how consumers’ propensity to purchase imported wines is influenced by their attitudes and perceptions toward the countries of origin (COO) of those…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine how consumers’ propensity to purchase imported wines is influenced by their attitudes and perceptions toward the countries of origin (COO) of those wines.
Design/methodology/approach
The questionnaires were distributed online and 298 valid completed questionnaires were received. This study measured the perception of the wines’ countries of origin by adopting two independent dimensions of competence and warmth in the stereotype content model.
Findings
The results show a relationship between the purchase intention and the perception of the country of origin of the wine. Furthermore, the perceived image of the country of origin impacts the brand image of the wine and the quality of wine from its country of origin.
Research limitations/implications
This study’s questionnaire was distributed online. Future research would benefit from in-depth qualitative investigation and a wider range of sample sizes across countries.
Practical implications
The results of this study guide imported wine companies in product marketing design and advertising. By promoting the countries of origin of premium wines to target consumers, trust in the quality of imported wine can be improved, thereby increasing consumers’ purchase intention.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the understanding of consumer perception of the country of origin in the context of wine marketing. It provides valuable implications for wine companies’ marketing positioning and strategy, benefiting wine marketers, distributors and importers.
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Yi He, Zhanyu Wang, Sha Liu and Xinle Du
As China’s e-commerce and cross-border e-commerce rapidly develop, the cross-border e-commerce supply chain exhibits characteristics of globalized development scale, collaborative…
Abstract
Purpose
As China’s e-commerce and cross-border e-commerce rapidly develop, the cross-border e-commerce supply chain exhibits characteristics of globalized development scale, collaborative multiparty participation, streamlined management processes, digitalized production and trade and flexible strategic choices. It tends toward data-driven intelligence, interoperable information collaboration, personalized order responses, sustainable supply chain management and secure blockchain technology. These characteristics and trends provide critical references for businesses, governments and investors.
Design/methodology/approach
In response to issues such as inconsistent legal regulations, imbalanced logistics and transportation, imperfect payment settlements and opaque supply chains.
Findings
It is recommended to take measures to strengthen cooperation and communication, optimize logistics, reduce customs clearance difficulties, reinforce safeguard measures and promote sustainable development, collectively fostering the healthy growth of cross-border e-commerce.
Originality/value
With the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce, green and low-carbon initiatives have become a significant trend in this sector. The cross-border e-commerce supply chain refers to the mechanism that reduces environmental impacts and enhances resource efficiency from manufacturers to consumers. It primarily involves manufacturers, e-commerce platforms, logistics companies and payment and settlement processes. The cross-border e-commerce supply chain is gradually becoming a highlight in China’s foreign trade, supporting the concept of “buying globally and selling globally” and connecting the “world’s factory” with the “world’s market.”
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Weihua Wang, Dong Yang and Yaqin Zheng
The purpose of this study is to understand the psychological mechanism that affects consumer trust by focusing on the formation and influence process of psychological contracts…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to understand the psychological mechanism that affects consumer trust by focusing on the formation and influence process of psychological contracts, and taking this opportunity, explore the influence paths of food quality, food safety and service quality on consumer trust in the online food market, and provide theoretical suggestions for building trust in food businesses' consumers.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is based on an empirical investigation and uses partial least square structural equation modeling for analysis. Survey data were collected online from 359 APP users of online food transaction platforms in China.
Findings
Food quality, food safety and service quality influence consumer trust through the mediating effects of relational and transactional psychological contracts. However, the differences between these influencing paths are obvious and shift with changes in the marketing channels.
Practical implications
This study contributes to the body of consumer trust research by exploring online food transactions as an emerging trend in China. Some optimization strategies for food quality, food safety and service quality are provided for enterprises involved in online food transactions.
Originality/value
This is a pioneering study revealing psychological contracts as a missing but significant mediator between consumer trust and its antecedents.
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Naseer Abbas Khan, Waseem Bahadur, Muhammad Ramzan and Natalya Pravdina
The aim of this study is to look into the associations, both direct and indirect, between a leader empowering behavior and employee turnover intention. Additionally, this study…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study is to look into the associations, both direct and indirect, between a leader empowering behavior and employee turnover intention. Additionally, this study examines the mediating effects of work–family conflict (WFC) and work–family spillover (WFS) in the association between a leader empowering behavior and employee turnover intention. This study also explored how perceived peer support (PPS) may have a moderating effect on these associations.
Design/methodology/approach
A time-lag approach was used in this study to collect data from the 228 participants that made up the sample. Both front-desk employees and their immediate supervisors were included in this sample, which came from diverse tourism enterprises in central China. The research design included two independent time waves that were separated by two months, making it easier to examine the way the variables of interest changed throughout that time.
Findings
The results showed that there is a significant impact of leadership behaviors on WFS, WFC and employee turnover intention. This study showed a significant mediating effect of WFS, however, the influence of WFC as a mediator was not statistically significant. Furthermore, the results suggested that PPS significantly moderated the association between leader empowering behavior and WFS. The findings revealed that the mediating effect of WFS in the association between leader empowering behavior and employee turnover intention.
Originality/value
This study advances knowledge of the impacts of leadership empowering behavior on employee turnover intention through the use of a moderated mediation analysis. Based on the leader member exchange, it offers a distinctive perspective on leadership empowering behaviors to maintain a work–family balance in tourism.
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Sergio de la Rosa, Pedro F. Mayuet, Cátia S. Silva, Álvaro M. Sampaio and Lucía Rodríguez-Parada
This papers aims to study lattice structures in terms of geometric variables, manufacturing variables and material-based variants and their correlation with compressive behaviour…
Abstract
Purpose
This papers aims to study lattice structures in terms of geometric variables, manufacturing variables and material-based variants and their correlation with compressive behaviour for their application in a methodology for the design and development of personalized elastic therapeutic products.
Design/methodology/approach
Lattice samples were designed and manufactured using extrusion-based additive manufacturing technologies. Mechanical tests were carried out on lattice samples for elasticity characterization purposes. The relationships between sample stiffness and key geometric and manufacturing variables were subsequently used in the case study on the design of a pressure cushion model for validation purposes. Differentiated areas were established according to patient’s pressure map to subsequently make a correlation between the patient’s pressure needs and lattice samples stiffness.
Findings
A substantial and wide variation in lattice compressive behaviour was found depending on the key study variables. The proposed methodology made it possible to efficiently identify and adjust the pressure of the different areas of the product to adapt them to the elastic needs of the patient. In this sense, the characterization lattice samples turned out to provide an effective and flexible response to the pressure requirements.
Originality/value
This study provides a generalized foundation of lattice structural design and adjustable stiffness in application of pressure cushions, which can be equally applied to other designs with similar purposes. The relevance and contribution of this work lie in the proposed methodology for the design of personalized therapeutic products based on the use of individual lattice structures that function as independent customizable cells.
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Md Zillur Rahman, Farid Ullah and Piers Thompson
Previous studies have shown how the nature of businesses and the strategies pursued by their owners are affected by the personality traits of their owners. These personality…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous studies have shown how the nature of businesses and the strategies pursued by their owners are affected by the personality traits of their owners. These personality traits can be formed in the early stages of life due to experiences and the surrounding context, where religion is a particularly important aspect of this context. This study aims to explore how religion affects entrepreneurial activities through the personality traits created.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses interviews with 43 Muslim entrepreneurs in Scotland to examine the role played by religion. This ensures that the national institutional context is kept consistent but also allows an in-depth examination of relationships, which are likely to be interlinked and recursive.
Findings
The traits created influence the nature of the entrepreneurial activities undertaken with the potential to harm and support the entrepreneurial endeavours. It is the combination of personality traits that are formed which have the greatest effect. As such, it is found that Muslim entrepreneurs display less openness and creativity associated with new ideas, but this does not reflect risk aversion rather hard work in itself is valued, and patience combined with an external locus of control mean entrepreneurial behaviours are not altered to boost poorly performing business activities.
Originality/value
For Muslim entrepreneurs in Scotland, their traits explain why growth may not be a foremost consideration of these entrepreneurs rather they may value hard work and meeting the ideals of formal and informal institutions associated with religion. For those seeking to support minority groups through the promotion of entrepreneurship, either they must seek to overcome these ingrained traits or alter support to complement the different objectives held by Muslim entrepreneurs.
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