Search results

In this chapter, we explore whether various true, endogenous social cycle theories share common patterns and characteristics.

We examine a number of prominent social theories describing cyclical patterns, and attempt to abstract an ideal type common to all of them, based on the idea of two populations disrupting each other and adjusting to the other’s disruptions.

At the core of such theories we typically find a variation of a two-population model. In these theories, cycles emerge when one of the populations seems to disrupt the other population’s plans, leading to recurring adjustments and disruptions that constitute the cycle.

Finding such commonalities in the world of theories can be useful for several reasons. For one thing, noticing that two theories share certain traits may help us understand each of them better. Furthermore, we show that agent-based modelers using modern object-oriented programming techniques can benefit from finding common patterns in theories.

This paper aims to study the factors influencing online social network (OSN) information diffusion under different themes helps to understand information diffusion in general.

This study collects data from the Web of Science, use the strategic consulting intelligent support system for word frequency analysis and use keyword clustering to classify themes, then research information themes as influencing factors of OSN information diffusion.

Five themes of “natural disaster”, “political event”, “product marketing”, “sport and entertainment” and “health-disease” have been identified. It is found that the research objects, research methods and research theories used by scholars under different themes have different focuses, and the factors affecting information diffusion are different.

The limitation of this paper is that it only focuses on five typical themes, and there may be more themes.

The research helps other scholars to conduct in-depth research on the diffusion of OSN information under different topics and focus on the content of the research on OSN information diffusion under different topics.

The research helps other scholars to conduct in-depth research on the diffusion of social network information under different topics, so as to better understand and predict the law of information diffusion.

The research summarizes the research on information diffusion in OSNs from the theme level and analyses the key points and theories and further enriches the research system on information diffusion in OSNs.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how social networks evolve as small business enterprises transition across the organizational lifecycle. It aims to give attention to how social identities of small business owners impact social networks and whether social networks improve organizational performance in small firms.

A sample of small to medium‐sized enterprise (SME) owners employing less than 500 employees was drawn from the local directory of businesses in two Indian cities. A total of 297 SME owners participated in the study, for a response rate of 85.6 percent.

The findings show that social networks for small businesses change as firms transition from startup to growth and beyond. Personal networks were most important during startup, with other social networks growing in contact frequency and importance over time. The findings also show that small business owners can be classified along network preferences and that social networks lead superior performance.

The study focused on a limited set of performance indices. Future research should assess a wider set of organizational metrics and should investigate granular aspects of transitional networks.

The findings suggest that small business owners cannot adhere to the status quo and must instead be willing to change business practices as their organizations evolve across the organizational lifecycle.

The study provides evidence that small business owners use different types of social networks and that the range and value of the strategic advice that they receive differ as their organization unfolds over time. The research contributes to the literature by showing that social networks and entrepreneurial learning practices are not static, and instead must be viewed in terms of dynamic decision making needs and processes.

Emotions, understood as evolving mental states, are pivotal in shaping individuals“' decision-making, especially in ambiguous information evaluation, probability estimation of events, and causality analysis. Public–private partnership (PPP) projects represent a confluence of “economic–environmental–social” dimensions, wherein stakeholder behavior follows the sequential progression of “cognition–emotion–action.” Consequently, comprehending the effects of emotional shifts on stakeholder's decision-making processes is vital to fostering the sustainability of PPP projects.

The paper utilizes rank-dependent expected utility and evolutionary game theory to systematically examine the influence of emotional factors on stakeholders' behavior and decision-making processes within PPP projects. The paper integrates three emotional state functions—optimism, pessimism and rationality—into the PPP framework, highlighting the intricate interactions among the government, private sector, surrounding public and the media. Furthermore, the paper amalgamates the evolutionary pathways of environmental rights incidents with the media's role. Through equilibrium analysis and numerical simulation, the paper delves into the diverse interplay of emotions across different phases of the environmental rights incident, assessing the impact of these emotions on the evolutionary game's equilibrium results.

Emotions significantly influence the microlevel decisions of PPP stakeholders, adapting continually based on event dynamics and media influences. When the private sector demonstrates optimism and the surrounding public leans toward rationality or pessimism, the likelihood of the private sector engaging in speculative behavior escalates, while the surrounding public refrains from adopting a supervisory strategy. Conversely, when the private sector is pessimistic and the public is optimistic, the system fails to evolve a stable strategy. However, when government regulation intensifies, the private sector opts for a nonspeculative strategy, and the surrounding public adopts a supervisory strategy. Under these conditions, the system attains a relatively optimal state of equilibrium.

The paper develops a game model to examine the evolutionary dynamics between the surrounding public and private sectors concerning environmental rights protection in waste incineration PPP projects. It illuminates the nature of the conflicting interests among project participants, delves into the impact of emotional factors on their decision-making processes and offers crucial perspectives for the governance of such partnerships. Furthermore, this paper provides substantive recommendations for emotional oversight to enhance governance efficacy.

The field of scientific research on small and medium-sized family businesses has been growing exponentially and the aim of this paper is to systematize the body of knowledge to develop an agenda for the future.

Adopting comparative bibliometric analyses on 155 articles (from 1989 until 2018) the authors provide a systematic assessment of the scientific research about small family firms, unveiling the structure and evolution of the field. Bibliographic coupling, co-citation analysis and co-occurrence analysis are adopted to identify the most influential studies and themes.

Four clusters of research are reviewed: succession in family SMEs, performances of family SMEs, internationalization of family SMEs and organizational culture of family SMEs.

This paper contributes to the field of family SMEs by providing a systematic analysis of the scientific knowledge. Reviewing those clusters allows to providing avenues and reflections for future research and further practice.

The below-average innovative capacity of the tourism sector raises the question on the potentials of digital business ecosystems (DBEs) to overcome these shortages at a destination level – especially within a smart city environment. Using the example of the German Capital Berlin, this article aims to discuss both the possibilities and inhibitors of innovative knowledge-creation by building scenarios on one specific design option: the integration of digital deep learning (DL) functionalities and traditional organizational learning (OL) processes.

Using the qualitative GABEK-method, major characteristics of a DBE as resource-, platform- and innovation systems are analyzed toward their interactions with the construction of basic action models (as the basic building blocks of knowledge).

Against the background of the research findings, two scenarios are discussed for future evolution of the Berlin DBE, one building on cultural emulation as a trigger for optimized DL functionalities and one following the idea of cultural engineering supported by DL functionalities. Both scenarios focus specifically on the identified systemic inhibitors of innovative capabilities.

While this study highlights the potential of the GABEK method to analyze mental models, separation of explicit and latent models still remains challenging – so does the reconstruction of higher order mental models which require a combined take on interview techniques in the future.

The resulting scenarios innovatively combine concepts from OL theory with the concept of DBE, thus indicating possible pathways into a tourism future where the limitations of human learning capacities could be compensated through the targeted support of general artificial intelligence (AI).

Online social network (OSN) users have a high propensity to malware threats due to the trust and persuasive factors that underpin OSN models. The escalation of social engineering malware encourages a growing demand for end-user security awareness measures. The purpose of this paper is to take the theoretical cybersecurity awareness model TTAT-MIP and test its feasibility via a Facebook app, namely social network criminal (SNC).

The research employs a mixed-methods approach to evaluate the SNC app. A system usability scale measures the usability of SNC. Paired samples t-tests were administered to 40 participants to measure security awareness – before and after the intervention. Finally, 20 semi-structured interviews were deployed to obtain qualitative data about the usefulness of the App itself.

Results validate the effectiveness of OSN apps utilising a TTAT-MIP model – specifically the mass interpersonal persuasion (MIP) attributes. Using TTAT-MIP as a guidance, practitioners can develop security awareness systems that better leverage the intra-relationship model of OSNs.

The primary limitation of this study is the experimental settings. Although the results testing the TTAT-MIP Facebook app are promising, these were set under experimental conditions.

SNC enable persuasive security behaviour amongst employees and avoid potential malware threats. SNC support consistent security awareness practices by the regular identification of new threats which may inspire the creation of new security awareness videos.

The structure of OSNs is making it easier for malicious users to carry out their activities without the possibility of detection. By building a security awareness programme using the TTAT-MIP model, organisations can proactively manage security awareness.

Many security systems are cumbersome, inconsistent and non-specific. The outcome of this research provides organisations and security practitioners with a framework for designing and developing proactive and tailored security awareness systems.

In recent years, mandatory rules and regulations were issued to stress the importance of increasing gender diversity in companies, assuming that gender diversity would enhance financial performance. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to review recent research concerning board gender diversity and its impact on financial performance for the period of 2002 to 2022.

Using the Web of Science and Scopus databases, 152 studies were analyzed, out of 91 high-impact journals. The analysis focuses on discussing the moderating, mediating and controlling variables and exploring the theories and theoretical foundations that are most prevalent in the literature.

The findings indicated an incompatibility between the results of the studies on the impact of gender diversity on financial performance. In addition, results showed the majority of studies focused on discussing the controlling variables associated with the company compared to the variables related to employees or the surrounding environment. On the other hand, the results also showed widespread use of the theoretical basis with the development of new theories in the recent period in parallel with the increase in the literature.

The results of this study help to reconcile the findings of the different and conflicting literature by presenting the perception that the efficacy of the positive impact of gender diversity on financial performance is related to several organizational and environmental factors that companies have to consider.

Nobody concerned with political economy can neglect the history of economic doctrines. Structural changes in the economy and society influence economic thinking and, conversely, innovative thought structures and attitudes have almost always forced economic institutions and modes of behaviour to adjust. We learn from the history of economic doctrines how a particular theory emerged and whether, and in which environment, it could take root. We can see how a school evolves out of a common methodological perception and similar techniques of analysis, and how it has to establish itself. The interaction between unresolved problems on the one hand, and the search for better solutions or explanations on the other, leads to a change in paradigma and to the formation of new lines of reasoning. As long as the real world is subject to progress and change scientific search for explanation must out of necessity continue.