Search results

The aim of this case study was to investigate the extent of word‐of‐mouth influence amongst international students at a New Zealand tertiary institution and to review the literature for a valid and reliable conceptualisation and measurement of word‐of‐mouth.

Literature suggests that opinion‐leading and seeking scales form a valid and reliable conceptualisation and measurement of word‐of‐mouth. Using these scales, a comparison was made between international students and two groups employing the t‐test, domestic students and decision‐makers for online learning management systems. Analysis of variance was employed to investigate differences in word‐of‐mouth between students of different nationalities.

Indian students were more likely to give advice, but less likely to seek it, than Chinese students. Also, contrary to expectations, word‐of‐mouth influence was not higher for international than domestic students.

Future research should investigate the relationship between word‐of‐mouth and actual consumption decisions made by students. In addition, a random sample should be conducted with a wider sample frame of institutions so that findings can be generalised.

This study forms a foundation for future research investigating whether and how to harness the potential of word‐of‐mouth amongst different nationalities. For example, internet social networking tools could harness Indian students’ higher propensity to give advice and Chinese students’ higher propensity to seek it.

The development and refinement of opinion leadership scales over time is reviewed to suggest valid and reliable scales which can be adapted to specific contexts.

This paper aims to analyse how learning levels differ within and between degrees and diplomas with specific application to the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business, which are delivered at a New Zealand polytechnic.

A literature review and content analysis of National Qualifications Frameworks was conducted to analyse how learning levels differ within and between degrees and diplomas with specific application to the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business which are offered at a New Zealand polytechnic.

A literature review and content analysis of National Qualifications Frameworks reveals that learning levels are differentiated by level of complexity, degree of abstraction, depth in a major subject, research competency, learner autonomy and responsibility, relative demand placed on students and increasing complexity and unpredictability of operational context. This analysis failed to find any difference in learning level between Bachelor of Applied Business Studies and New Zealand Diploma of Business papers nominally at the same level on the New Zealand National Qualifications Framework. The degree comprises a portion of papers at a higher learning level than the diploma and it is at this level that the difference is realised.

Future research should investigate learning level differences between disciplines, qualifications and institutions.

This paper provides a framework on which to base course design, delivery and assessment of the Bachelor of Applied Business Studies degree and the New Zealand Diploma of Business and credit transfer between them.

This case study addresses the increasingly important issue of the compatibility of learning levels between different qualifications. As many economies acknowledge the necessity for increasingly skilled workforces, credit transfer to enable seamless transfer between qualifications is becoming a focus in seeking to facilitate lifelong learning. There are few studies that focus on National Qualifications level descriptors and the implications for different qualification types.

This lesson uses Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto to introduce students to a true story of a Catholic, Polish social worker who saved the lives of thousands of Jewish children during World War II by relocating them. Students are asked to consider Irena’s actions and her motives. Students then are introduced to the Kindertransport, a series of rescue missions of Jewish children from Nazi Germany, by reading the stories of children who were involved in the event. To help students understand the relocation of children during World War II was not an isolated incident in history, students examine the Pedro Pan Airlift of 1959-1960 in order to compare and contrast the event to the Kindertransport of World War II.

Analogies between internal and external service quality suggest that internal quality can be assessed without too much regard to differences between organizational customers and fee‐paying customers. Research into organizational networks, however, indicates the importance of environmental and atmospheric factors in exchange activities. In this paper we explore the gaps in service quality arising from the conflict between departmental and organizational loyalties. Using methods derived from the external model of service quality put forward by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and Berry, we consider the value of internal research into service quality and suggest that organizational power struggles and lack of communication lead to misunderstandings about the priorities and resources available for internal service exchanges. The greater empathy generated among the participating departments suggests that improvement can occur when there is closer interaction between “warring” but nevertheless dependent departments. Balanced against this is an overarching need for organizational goals to take precedence and for limited resources to be allocated according to the ultimate needs of the external customer.

The purpose of this paper is to consider Alan Turing's philosophical paper on “Computing machinery and intelligence”, in which he defined the “imitation game”, now usually known as the Turing test.

The paper shows that Turing's paper contained more than the test; it contained a wide survey of what a computer could do and its relation to human thought.

This paper discusses how Turing's paper represented the outcome of many years in which Turing has both developed the concept and the design of the digital computer, and considered how its action could be related to human thought.

Analysis of Turing's paper provides an understanding and appreciation of Turing's contributions and the significance of the Turing test.

Men make war; women make peace. Men make war; women make children. Men make war because women make children. Because men make war, women make children. Women make peace because they make children.

Digital transformation holds promise for addressing one of the biggest challenges in health care – misdiagnosis. About 30 per cent of health spending in 2009, i.e. roughly $750bn, was wasted on unnecessary services, excessive administrative costs, fraud and other problems. Moreover, inefficiencies cause needless suffering, states the Institute of Medicine. Leveraging emerging digital technologies in this sector stands to save thousands of lives and billions of dollars. Digital technology is being applied to this field owing to the great demand for a solution. Misdiagnosis is causing a major hemorrhaging hundreds of billions of dollars in the health industry – an estimated 10-20 per cent of cases are misdiagnosed, sometimes resulting in death or permanent disability, according to studies cited by the National Center for Policy Analysis. Additionally, experts believe as many as 31 per cent of all breast cancer cases are misdiagnosed, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, and 90,000 women are misdiagnosed with invasive breast cancer, according to Susan G. Komen.

Digital technology is being applied to this field owing to the great demand for a solution. Misdiagnosis is causing a major hemorrhaging hundreds of billions of dollars in the health industry – an estimated 10-20 percent of cases are misdiagnosed, sometimes resulting in death or permanent disability, according to studies cited by the National Center for Policy Analysis. Additionally, experts believe as many as 31 percent of all breast cancer cases are misdiagnosed, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, and 90,000 women are misdiagnosed with invasive breast cancer, according to Susan G. Komen.

Advance Medical’s experience is that 39 per cent of a self-selecting group of medical advocacy seekers are misdiagnosed. Directly related to this challenge, a major battleground where the war on escalating healthcare costs is being fought is in the space of utilization management tools, which help ensure insurers are paying for the right care. These tools depend on the doctor making the right diagnosis and that the treatment matches the diagnosis. But these tools are broken. Instead of checking accuracy of diagnosis (e.g. the right test was done and interpreted accurately), they are at best checking to see if the “box was checked” for any testing being done. The solution is to not only to ensure that the diagnosis is correct by having it reviewed independently but also to use technology to aid diagnosis and the physician’s overall job. Using tools such as patient portals and data management technology can aid doctors to not burn out from sorting through data but rather using healthcare technology to reduce physician exhaustion and thus misdiagnosis.

New and old tools hold promise for addressing one of the costliest and most able-to-be-impacted challenges in health care – misdiagnosis. Because of misdiagnosis, the health industry is hemorrhaging hundreds of billions of dollars and causing patients undue stress and negative medical impact. Not only does misdiagnosis have a strong effect on the economy and the solvency of the US health care system, it also has a profound effect on the people who are being misdiagnosed, as well as their families and loved ones.

Much of the negotiation literature involves two parties that are each assumed to behave in a unitary manner, although a growing body of knowledge considers more complex negotiations. Examples of the latter include two parties where one or both parties do not behave in a unitary manner, multiple parties on one or both sides, parties on multiple sides and parties engaged in separate but linked negotiations. Greater degrees of complexity distinguish these negotiations from negotiations with two unitary parties.