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Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 February 2024

Noel Scott and Ana Claudia Campos

Authenticity has been studied from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, leading to a rich but confused literature. This study, a review, aims to compare the psychology and…

Abstract

Purpose

Authenticity has been studied from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, leading to a rich but confused literature. This study, a review, aims to compare the psychology and sociology/tourism definitions of authenticity to clarify the concept. From a psychological perspective, authenticity is a mental appraisal of an object or experience as valued leading to feelings and summative judgements (such as satisfaction or perceived value). In objective authenticity, a person values the object due to belief in an expert’s opinion, constructive authenticity relies on socially constructed values, while existential authenticity is based on one’s self-identity. The resultant achievement of a valued goal, such as seeing a valued object, leads to feelings of pleasure. Sociological definitions are similar but based on different theoretical antecedent causes of constructed and existential authenticity. The paper further discusses the use of theory in tourism and the project to develop tourism as a discipline. This project is considered unlikely to be successful and in turn, as argued, it is more useful to apply theory from other disciplines in a multidisciplinary manner. The results emphasise that it is necessary for tourism researchers to understand the origins and development of the concepts they use and their various definitions.

Details

Tourism Critiques: Practice and Theory, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2633-1225

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 4 December 2017

Benjamin Fuchs

Poverty transitions can be explained by two opposing theories: the traditional sociological approach that focusses on social stratification and individualisation theory, which…

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Abstract

Purpose

Poverty transitions can be explained by two opposing theories: the traditional sociological approach that focusses on social stratification and individualisation theory, which emphasises on life course risks for all strata. Both perspectives have been investigated extensively for income poverty while neglecting other important poverty indicators, such as deprivation or the receipt of social assistance. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the latter to investigate the impact of social stratification (e.g. social class), life course risks (e.g. health problems), and their interactions on the probability of social assistance entry for Germany.

Design/methodology/approach

The analysis utilises survey data containing a sample of first-time social assistance entrants and a sample of the residential population. Applying case-control methodology, logistic regression is conducted to model the impact of social stratification determinants, life course risks, and their interactions on the probability of social assistance entry.

Findings

Social stratification determinants, particularly social class, have a significant effect. However, their effect is weaker than the effect of life course risks. Contrary to the prediction of individualisation theory, the poverty-triggering impact of life course risks varies substantially by social stratum. The combination of both theories yields high predictive power.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to comprehensively test social stratification and individualisation theory with respect to social assistance receipt as a poverty indicator. It is the first paper that investigates the entire population at risk of social assistance entry in Germany.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 37 no. 13/14
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 10 June 2020

Md Mamunur Rashid, Md Mohobbot Ali and Dewan Mahboob Hossain

The purpose of this study is to present a review of the literature on strategic management accounting (SMA). Specifically, it focuses on the trend of SMA research since the…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to present a review of the literature on strategic management accounting (SMA). Specifically, it focuses on the trend of SMA research since the publication of Langfield-Smith’s (2008) influential paper “Strategic management accounting: how far have we come in 25 years?” which raised the question of relevance of further SMA research.

Design/methodology/approach

The study reviewed articles published on SMA as a whole (comprising a set of advanced management accounting techniques) and its specific techniques for the period of 2008 to 2019 in 23 leading accounting journals.

Findings

The review finds that research on SMA has focused on the contingencies influencing the adoption and implementation of SMA techniques and the effects of such adoption on various aspects of firm and employee performance. The renovation and modification of existing practices in attempt to match with the organizational context has also attracted the attention of several SMA scholars. In addition, a noticeable shift to the strategic management theory and case study method was observed during the study period.

Originality/value

The study focuses on the trend of SMA research in an attempt to revisit the relevance of further research in this arena, particularly as a response to the criticism raised by Langfield-Smith (2008).

Details

PSU Research Review, vol. 4 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2399-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 18 March 2024

Jessica Edlom and Per Skålén

In this study, we applied the strategy-as-practice (SAP) framework to analyse strategic communication practices. SAP implies approaching strategy as something that organisational…

Abstract

Purpose

In this study, we applied the strategy-as-practice (SAP) framework to analyse strategic communication practices. SAP implies approaching strategy as something that organisational members do and is useful for understanding the tensions between emergence and formalisation and between planning and improvisation that characterise the everyday communication work of communication practitioners.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on an ethnographic study of a record company and on qualitative interviews with various actors from the music industry.

Findings

Tensions exist between the emergence of inputs from active consumers that require flexibility and attempts to strategically formalise and continuously adapt plans and encourage consumers to act in anticipated ways. The findings revealed five strategic communication practices—meetings, working in the office, gathering and analysing consumer engagement and related data, collaboration and storytelling—that practitioners used to conduct strategic communication and navigate the tensions.

Originality/value

The study contributes to understanding the role of strategic communication practices in contemporary organisations and how practitioners manage the tensions within them. The study shows that an SAP approach can account for improvisation and emergence, as well as planning and formalisation. It also shows how SAP resonates with emergent and agile strategic communication frameworks.

Details

Journal of Communication Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-254X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 27 October 2023

Ilkka Tapani Ojansivu

This study aims to explore what characteristics contribute to the definition of relevance in business-to-business (B2B) marketing research and how/why different strands of B2B…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to explore what characteristics contribute to the definition of relevance in business-to-business (B2B) marketing research and how/why different strands of B2B marketing maintain or lose their relevance.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is conceptual. It adopts a performative-phenomenal standpoint for B2B marketing research and approaches relevance through the concept of episteme, which is considered pivotal for understanding this phenomenon.

Findings

This study proposes four axioms that define the characteristics of relevance in B2B marketing research and discusses their implications for scholars and practitioners. Consequently, an action plan for revitalizing B2B marketing research is developed, comprising learning and temporal dimensions, resulting in nine different relevance types.

Research limitations/implications

The central argument put forward in this study is that different research strands of B2B marketing have deeply rooted epistemic underpinnings that influence their interpretation of relevance. Consequently, fostering dialogue between practitioners and scholars is considered necessary to sustain relevance in B2B marketing research. B2B scholars are urged to think beyond their subspecialized silos and acknowledge how the business environment and the various strands of B2B marketing congruently shape B2B marketing relevance, while also embracing research methods that bring them closer to business practice.

Practical implications

Marketing practitioners and academics continue to drift apart. This study puts forward three recommendations to bring marketing academics and practitioners closer together.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the B2B marketing literature by grappling with the theory-praxis gap and critically exploring what constitutes relevance in B2B marketing research.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 15 June 2020

Tomi Oinas, Petri Ruuskanen, Mari Hakala and Timo Anttila

In this study, the authors examine whether social capital embedded in individuals' social networks is connected to employees' long-term income development in Finland.

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Abstract

Purpose

In this study, the authors examine whether social capital embedded in individuals' social networks is connected to employees' long-term income development in Finland.

Design/methodology/approach

Analyses are based on 25–35-year-old employees from the Finnish Living Conditions Survey of 1994 combined with register data on earned incomes from 1995 to 2016. The authors used questions addressing the frequency of meeting parents or siblings, spending free time with co-workers and participation in associational, civic or other societal activities as measures of the extent of network capital. Ordered logistic model was used to examine whether the size and composition of social networks differ by gender and socio-economic status. Linear growth curve models were employed to estimate the effect of social capital on long-term income development.

Findings

Results indicate minor differences in network composition according to gender, but large differences between socio-economic groups. The authors found that income development was faster for those who participated in civic activities occasionally or who met their relatives or co-workers on a monthly basis, that is, for the “middle group”.

Research limitations/implications

Results are generalizable only to Finnish or Nordic welfare state context. The authors’ measures of social capital come from cross-sectional survey. Thus, the authors are not able to address the stability or accumulation of social capital during life course. This restriction will probably cause the authors’ analysis to underestimate the true effect of social capital on earned incomes.

Practical implications

Moderate-level investments to network capital seem to be the most beneficial with regard to the long-term income development.

Social implications

The study results give support to the idea that social capital can be transformed into economic capital. The results also imply that in economic terms it is important to balance diverse forms of social capital. At the policy level, a special emphasis should be directed to employees with low-socio-economic position. These people are especially vulnerable as their low level of income is combined with network composition that hinders their further income development.

Originality/value

The combined survey and register data give unique insight on how the social capital embedded in individuals' social networks is connected with long-term income development.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 40 no. 11/12
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 14 September 2023

Gunter Bombaerts

The purpose of this article is to summarize three Luhmannian critiques on morality, illustrate new roles for morality and add constructive interpretations.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to summarize three Luhmannian critiques on morality, illustrate new roles for morality and add constructive interpretations.

Design/methodology/approach

Luhmann has recently been described as downright negative toward morality, resulting in a refusal to use ethics as a sociologist, thus leading to a limited use of his theory in moral issues. A constructive interpretation could support a more functional use of morality in social system theory.

Findings

First, Luhmann signals that morality can no longer fulfill its integrative function in society but also that society has recourse to moral sensitivity. Second, Luhmann describes how anxiety is crucial in modern morality and indicates which role risk and danger could play. The author builds further on this and proposes the concept of “social system attention” that can provide answers to individual and organizational anxiety. The author proposes that institutionalized socialization can support an integrative morality. Third, Luhmann states that ethics today is nothing more than a utopia but also that the interdiction of moral self-exemption is an essential element. The author adds that a relational ontology for social systems theory can avoid ethics as utopia.

Practical implications

This article is a programmatic plea to further elaborate morality from a system theory perspective in which meaning is relationally positioned.

Originality/value

This article could potentially provide a more functional application of morality in social systems, thus leading to improvements of attempts of ethical decision-making. The originality of the approach lies in the interpretation of basic assumptions of Luhmann social system theory that are not core to his theory.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 52 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 6 October 2021

Raul Beal Partyka

The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how agency theory has been used to address the dynamics involved in supply chain management. It is also dedicated to suggesting an…

5935

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how agency theory has been used to address the dynamics involved in supply chain management. It is also dedicated to suggesting an agenda for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

We performed an integrative literature review, based on the process detailed by Botelho et al. (2011), with search filters. The articles were obtained from the Scopus and Web of Science databases using the keywords “supply chain” and “agency theory”, with a subsequent analytical filter for “management”. The search initially identified 205 articles. After two screenings, 56 articles were selected for analysis.

Findings

Despite attempts to infer the importance of research on agency theory in supply chain management, its application to the discipline is scarce. Clearly, agency theory provides valuable insights into the relationships in the supply chain. In the studies analyzed, the dynamics of performance, risk, sustainability, dyadic and inter-firm relationships, and supplier management are predominant.

Originality/value

When considering unwanted behaviors throughout the supply chain, agency theory fills the explanatory gaps for these facts. It also proves to be a useful tool to answer mainly the dilemmas of underlying theories, such as transaction cost theory, resource-based view and network theory. Rare are the studies that examine the current state of the application of agency theory in the supply chain literature in the management field.

Details

Revista de Gestão, vol. 29 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1809-2276

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 6 November 2023

Albert James Mills, Päivi Eriksson, Eeva Aromaa and Outi-Maaria Palo-Oja

The purpose of this article is to address research gaps relating to agency and institutionalism in new institutional theory (NIT) and institutional work (IW) and use the critical…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this article is to address research gaps relating to agency and institutionalism in new institutional theory (NIT) and institutional work (IW) and use the critical sensemaking (CSM) approach to bridge the debates around agency, especially on issues of language and discourse, actor network theory (ANT) and history.

Design/methodology/approach

A conceptual analysis of the literature is performed to discuss issues of agency in IW and CSM in organizations, and examples of empirical studies are used to illustrate connectivity, contrast and fusion.

Findings

The analysis illustrates points of distance (rather than disconnect), but most importantly, connectivity and the potential for further developments between the literature on IW and CSM.

Social implications

Discussion around new possibilities to focus on agency has the potential to contribute to humanist thinking about the (agentic) character of organizations and the potential for social change.

Originality/value

The article contributes to the discussion of agency in the organization through a starting point (i.e. CSM) outside of NIT.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 36 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 May 2021

Byung-Gak Son, Sangho Chae and Canan Kocabasoglu-Hillmer

Catastrophic supply chain disruptions can significantly damage the operational and financial performance of firms. While a growing body of literature on supply network structures…

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Abstract

Purpose

Catastrophic supply chain disruptions can significantly damage the operational and financial performance of firms. While a growing body of literature on supply network structures has studied what influences supply networks' vulnerability to supply chain disruptions and capability to recover from them, it remains unclear how supply network structures change after major supply chain disruptions. We aim to provide an understanding of how these changes occur.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a natural experiment approach and supply network data from Factset, this study investigates how firms' supply network structures change after experiencing the catastrophic supply chain disruptions caused by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan. We capture post-earthquake supply network changes using the measures of degree centrality and ego network density.

Findings

The results of the analysis suggest that compared to unaffected firms, the affected firms experience changes in their supply network structures tending toward lower complexity measured by in-degree centrality, out-degree centrality and ego network density.

Originality/value

This study contributes to social network theory and the complex adaptive supply network literature by providing empirical evidence of structural changes in supply networks after catastrophic supply chain disruptions. A managerial contribution is made by providing a reflection on why these changes might be occurring and alert firms to the challenges of managing complexity in their supply networks.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 41 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

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