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1 – 10 of 36Aying Zhang, Ziyu Xing and Haibao Lu
The purpose of this paper is to study the mechanochemical effect and self-growth mechanism of double-network (DN) gel and to provide a quasiperiodic model for rubber elasticity.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the mechanochemical effect and self-growth mechanism of double-network (DN) gel and to provide a quasiperiodic model for rubber elasticity.
Design/methodology/approach
The chemical reaction kinetics is used to identify the mechanochemical transition probability of host brittle network and to explore the mechanical behavior of endosymbiont ductile network. A quasiperiodic model is proposed to characterize the cooperative coupling of host–endosymbiont networks using the Penrose tiling of a 2 × 2 matrix. Moreover, a free-energy model is formulated to explore the constitutive stress–strain relationship for the DN gel based on the rubber elasticity theory and Gent model.
Findings
In this study, a quasiperiodic graph model has been developed to describe the cooperative interaction between brittle and ductile networks, which undergo the mechanochemical coupling and mechanical stretching behaviors, respectively. The quasiperiodic Penrose tiling determines the mechanochemistry and self-growth effect of DNs.
Originality/value
It is expected to formulate a quasiperiodic graph model of host–guest interaction between two networks to explore the working principle of mechanical and self-growing behavior in DN hydrogels, undergoing complex mechanochemical effect. The effectiveness of the proposed model is verified using both finite element analysis and experimental results of DN gels reported in literature.
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How prospective or emerging technologies can be supported through government-funded research projects has gradually received global attention. However, previous studies have…
Abstract
Purpose
How prospective or emerging technologies can be supported through government-funded research projects has gradually received global attention. However, previous studies have primarily focused on the effects of government funding on subsequent technological development, the overall economy or social welfare of a country or corporate research and development (R&D) activities. These studies have not examined the technology distribution and development trends of government-funded research from a comprehensive technology perspective. In addition, previous measurements of the influence of government-funded R&D projects faced the difficulty of transferring the research achievements of government-funded research to the commercial market.
Design/methodology/approach
Patents can provide a preliminary understanding of the collaboration, development focus and status of market technologies. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to examine the development directions of patented technologies engendered from government-funded research projects. Analyzing the network of government-funded patented technologies helped identify the current status and location of specific technologies in a patent network as well as the hotspot technologies in government-funded research projects that correspond to the market.
Findings
The results of this study indicated that the technologies obtaining government-funded patents mainly consist of advanced materials and semiconductors and that the technological focus has shifted over the years. Nanotechnology, pharmaceutical technology and sanitary technology have gradually become the technologies receiving most of government-funded patents. The trend of development of these technologies also corresponds to the emerging technologies advocated by countries worldwide in recent years.
Originality/value
This study provided a comprehensive verification of the government-funded patented technologies from a macro perspective by identifying key technologies using technology network analysis. The findings of this study can serve as a reference for the allocation of governmental R&D resources and the promotion of novel technologies in the private sector.
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Alexander Kramer, Philipp Veit, Dominik K. Kanbach, Stephan Stubner and Thomas K. Maran
The purpose of this article is to develop an integrative framework of accelerator design to answer the question of what activities accelerators perform and how they function…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to develop an integrative framework of accelerator design to answer the question of what activities accelerators perform and how they function within a structured framework. Research on the functioning of accelerators as a mechanism for startup engagement produced multiple empirical results. However, the comparability of relevant research is strongly limited, currently hindering theoretical developments. Existing accelerator design models often differ and only partially overlap, which leaves extant literature with a fragmented and discordant conceptual understanding.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a meta-synthesis method using qualitative analysis of 36 accelerator design articles, an integrative framework is developed. After identification of relevant literature, a renowned method for extracting, coding and synthesizing data on individual and cross-study level is applied to identify accelerator design constructs. Eventually, identified accelerator design constructs are integrated into a framework resting on the activity system lens of business model design.
Findings
The article reconciles fragmented knowledge on accelerator design and shows how accelerator design can be holistically conceptualized by 32 key activities clustered in eight design dimensions. The framework is complemented by an initial guideline for measurement. The findings further highlight formerly disregarded aspects of governance and community formation from a processual and structural perspective.
Originality/value
This article is the first to present a comprehensive picture of accelerator design integrating multiple empirical findings of prior research into a single coherent framework. This framework offers a shared foundation for future research exploring the delineations, functioning and impact of accelerators. From a practical perspective, the article provides managers of accelerators a guide to design, review and improve programs according to their value creation goals.
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Jingjing Lin, Jiayin Qin, Thomas Lyons, Hiroko Nakajima, Satoshi Kawakatsu and Tomoki Sekiguchi
The research effort on entrepreneurship education has been mainly for the higher education settings and on the individual level of analysis. On the contrary, this research urges…
Abstract
Purpose
The research effort on entrepreneurship education has been mainly for the higher education settings and on the individual level of analysis. On the contrary, this research urges scholars to expedite attention to the secondary education settings, especially in the emerging economies in Asia and Africa. This paper aims to reveal the existing landscape of literature development on the topic and promote ecological approaches of constructing entrepreneurship education programs in schools. It advocates the “incubator” role of schools for students and the necessity of establishing socially embedded entrepreneurship education as the playground for future entrepreneurs.
Design/methodology/approach
This study followed the systematic literature review as its research design. It obtained 1,555 publications from six academic databases and 60 more publications from expert consulting and backward snowballing technique. Data screening resulted in a total of 101 relevant publications with the upper secondary education as their research context. The qualitative integrative synthesis method was then applied to integrate research evidence to the five circles of systems according to Urie Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory.
Findings
This study contributes to the entrepreneurship education and youth career development literature, especially in the developing countries. Results discovered that entrepreneurship education programs, when interacting with ecological systems, resulted in training success. The most frequently studied systems were microsystems; here, there was a dominant focus on program-level reporting and analyzing. There was less focus on other systems such as mesosystems, exosystems or macrosystems. Moreover, only one study was associated with chronosystems, suggesting a significant research gap regarding the longitudinal studies. However, this review validated the different approaches to delivering entrepreneurship education in emerging and developed economies.
Research limitations/implications
One limitation of this research lies in the methodology. The inclusion criteria limited the studies to the context of upper secondary education and excluded those of secondary education in general. The sampling method limited the power of this research to analyze and discuss policy-level studies because policies most likely embrace the whole secondary education level as its target. Another limitation is associated with the lack of experimental studies in assessing the comparative advantages of following the ecological approach when constructing entrepreneurship education. It, therefore, remains an undiscussed matter within this study regarding whether following the ecological approach means empirically a better educational choice or not.
Practical implications
This study discusses the implications for policymakers, especially in emerging economies, and suggests that awareness, attention and funding are needed to empower youth entrepreneurship education from an ecological systems view.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is one of few studies that use the ecological systems theory in the context of entrepreneurship education with the purpose of focusing on environment-level analysis instead of individual-level analysis. Through the systematic literature review, this study proposes an ecological approach to comprehend, guide, evaluate and improve the design and implementation of entrepreneurship education programs in schools based on well-articulated research evidence. The research can inform both researchers and educators by offering a holistic perspective to observe and evaluate entrepreneurship education programs and their levels of social connectedness.
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Advocacy for child participation has been enhanced by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (1989). The UNCRC as a legislative mechanism for countries…
Abstract
Advocacy for child participation has been enhanced by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (1989). The UNCRC as a legislative mechanism for countries to implement children's rights to participation is not without problems as argued by many. Children's agency is crucial in enhancing their participation but agency itself cannot guarantee participation as child participation is relational and intersects with the institutional, social, cultural, economic and political landscapes. This is greatly reflected during the coronavirus pandemic when children have played a big part in tackling the national and global crises by showing their resilience, sympathy and willingness in fitting into the unprecedented ways of life and schooling.
This chapter uses a reflective case study to explore the intersection between agency of children and factors that facilitate and also challenge children's participation in homeschooling practices during the COVID-19 pandemic in England. The reflective case study reveals that agency of young children's participation in homeschooling was constrained by the pandemic, which also triggered off possibilities for children alongside family members to interpret learning differently and translate homeschooling practices via creative engagement with learning resources and pedagogical approaches. The reflective case study also tells a family narrative about children's participation in homeschooling during the COVID-19 pandemic as a journey with a prime focus on holistic learning and well-being by addressing the key role of play, friendship and connection with nature.
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Value-added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) is extensively used as a measure of intellectual capital (IC), but it is criticized for not capturing the totality of IC. Therefore…
Abstract
Purpose
Value-added intellectual coefficient (VAIC) is extensively used as a measure of intellectual capital (IC), but it is criticized for not capturing the totality of IC. Therefore, this study aims to analyse critiques of the original VAIC and proposes a modified VAIC by adding missing IC components and adjusting for exogenous factors. The study uses a modified VAIC model to investigate the relationship between IC, firm performance (FP) and market value (MV) for US non-financial firms.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employed fundamental data of US non-financial firms listed on the NYSE and NASDAQ from 1980 to 2019. A final sample consisted of 6,019 firms and 62,686 firm-year observations.
Findings
The results provide a significant positive effect of aggregate and components of modified VAIC on FP and MV. Moreover, results validate the modified VAIC model and find that the modified VAIC explains changes in shareholders' MV. In addition, findings indicate that modified VAIC serves as an additional intangible factor to explain firms' capital structure decisions.
Practical implications
The findings have important implications for management, owners, researchers and investors.
Originality/value
The modified VAIC model differs from the original VAIC model in four ways: first, it corrects the measurement of structural capital efficiency (SCE) following the accounting principle. Second, it replaces SCE with innovation capital efficiency (InVCE) and relational capital efficiency (RCE) to account for missing components of information of structural capital (SC). Third, the modified VAIC model adjusts for exogenous factors like business cycles and cross-industry variations. Finally, with the addition of InVCE and RCE as components of SCE, innovation capital (InVC) and relational capital (RC) are added to the calculation of value-added (VA) as components of IC.
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Gerry Edgar, Amirali Kharazmi, Sedigheh Behzadi and Omid Ali Kharazmi
This research is an empirical study that addresses whether knowledge resources impact on, or do not impact on, innovation development and if this impact is mediated by dynamic…
Abstract
Purpose
This research is an empirical study that addresses whether knowledge resources impact on, or do not impact on, innovation development and if this impact is mediated by dynamic capabilities in the medical tourism sector in Mashhad city, Iran.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative research methodology was applied and questionnaires were used for data collection in this study. A total of 108 questionnaires were collected of which 102 questionnaires were valid. Data were analyzed using structural equation modelling technique.
Findings
Empirical evidence obtained from the study reveals that the dynamic capability of learning plays a significant role in transforming knowledge resources into innovation in the medical tourism sector. The mediating role of coordinating capability in the relationship between explicit and tacit knowledge and innovation is considerable and it influences human capital, as well. Sensing capability also exhibits some degree of a mediating role; however, integrating capability is not influential and its role in transforming explicit knowledge to innovation is rejected.
Originality/value
Most studies on innovation in medical tourism focused on market and its typology, and neglected the role of knowledge resources and dynamic capabilities. The current study bridges this gap and thus contributes to the scientific literature.
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Mariam Anil Ciby and Shikha Sahai
COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of home-based teleworking globally. Coupled with this, there are rising concerns about workplace cyberbullying. However, less…
Abstract
Purpose
COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of home-based teleworking globally. Coupled with this, there are rising concerns about workplace cyberbullying. However, less studies have explored workplace cyberbullying in non-western countries. The purpose of the current study is to examine whether workplace cyberbullying affects employees' intention to stay and to find out the mechanisms underlying the relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected among Indian home-based teleworkers. Data were analysed using SmartPLS and SPSS-PROCESS macro.
Findings
Results show that workplace cyberbullying negatively impacts intention to stay and affective commitment acts as a mediator between this link. The results also reveal that workplace social capital moderates the negative effects of workplace cyberbullying on affective commitment. The results further confirm that workplace social capital moderated the indirect impact of workplace cyberbullying on intention to stay via affective commitment.
Practical implications
This study highlights the potential of leveraging workplace social capital in order to reduce the negative effects of workplace cyberbullying.
Originality/value
These findings can complement the previous studies on the impact of negative work events on affective commitment and intention to stay as well as extend researchers' understanding of the underlying mechanism between workplace cyberbullying and intention to stay. Furthermore, this research explains how employees can utilise social resources from workplace social capital to mitigate the negative outcomes of workplace cyberbullying.
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Elham Sahami, Ali Safari, Reza Ansari and Ali Shaemi Barzoki
In this study, an open innovation (OI) model was designed in which the organization’s human resource systems comprise the main core. To identify the various dimensions of the…
Abstract
Purpose
In this study, an open innovation (OI) model was designed in which the organization’s human resource systems comprise the main core. To identify the various dimensions of the model, this study aims to investigate how and under what conditions the organizations update and upgrade their knowledge and experiences in the human capital (HC) systems domain within the OI framework and in line with sharing them with other organizations.
Design/methodology/approach
In this qualitative study, the data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews and analyzed through grounded theory, which led to the extraction of the final model.
Findings
The implementation of the HC-based OI helps upgrade knowledge in the organization and industry knowledge, create win-win relationships and increase the interaction capital, power and credit of the organization.
Originality/value
In this study, HC systems have been regarded as the core of the OI model (rather than an intervening factor in OI). This is the main innovative aspect of the current study. In addition, the special attention paid to the inside-out approach to OI and the examination of the human and social aspects of inter-organizational knowledge sharing – particularly in the light of the fact that the study was carried out in a developing country – are the other innovative aspects of this study.
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Vinh Sum Chau and Thunjira Nacharoenkul
This article reviews the practice of horenso (a mnemonic for hokoku/reporting, renraku/informing and sodan/consulting) – an under-documented Japanese communication methodology …
Abstract
Purpose
This article reviews the practice of horenso (a mnemonic for hokoku/reporting, renraku/informing and sodan/consulting) – an under-documented Japanese communication methodology – at a Japanese-owned subsidiary in Thailand. It draws on a number of cultural theories to explore how horenso was influenced by the non-biculturality of individuals at a multinational corporation.
Design/methodology/approach
This article draws on first-hand interviews with staff of varying responsibilities at a multinational electronic components manufacturer, Spin-eTech (a pseudonym) to understand how horenso has been utilized and perceived at this Japanese-owned subsidiary in Thailand differently from its original form and traditional use at its headquarters in Japan. This was a targeted case that captured the real time communication difficulties at the workplace.
Findings
The themes of horenso's rationale, motivation, style of communication, use for problem solving, information reporting, relation to superiority and culture of communication emerged as prominent differences for how horenso was practiced at the Thai subsidiary.
Originality/value
Using the emic perspective of cultural understanding, insights are offered into the impact of non-biculturality within the Asia Pacific region on the practice of horenso to extant knowledge on the under-explored “eastern vs eastern” cultural differences.
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