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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.

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.

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.

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.

Scholars acknowledge that trust relationships between expatriates and host nationals are important; however, previous research has demonstrated that one’s culture affects how individuals define trust, which can influence how trust is developed between expatriates and host nationals. In addition, trust can affect communication between expatriates and host nationals in many ways. Therefore, this study examined how US host nationals and Japanese expatriates conceptualized trust in the workplace as well as how trust affected their daily communication.

A total of 32 participants (16 US Americans and 16 Japanese) working in a multinational manufacturing company participated in semi-structured, individual interviews. A modified version of constant comparative analysis was employed to analyze the data.

Both groups of participants identified competence and skills, teamwork and collaboration, and open/honest communication as defining features of trust in the workplace, although there were some explanations regarding trust that were influenced by participants’ culture. Further, trust between US host nationals and Japanese expatriates affected their communication strategies, such as information flow and mentoring communication.

This study contributes to literature on the relationships between expatriates and host nationals by providing a culturally nuanced understanding of trust in the workplace. Additionally, findings from this study offer practical recommendations for multinational corporations for how to socialize and train their employees to enhance their work experience with one another.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The goal of this study was to assess changes in eating self-efficacy after participating in a brief psychoeducational group intervention, grounded in the cognitive-behavioral model, delivered by dieticians in community-based health facilities.

The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental, pre-post design. A total of 110 program participants took part in the study. They were asked to complete the Eating Self-Efficacy Scale before the start of the intervention, at the end of the intervention, and three months after the intervention ended. Data were analyzed using the Linear Mixed Model.

Participants’ personal sense of control over their eating behaviors significantly increased after they completed the program and continued to increase up to the three-month follow-up. The effect of the intervention remained significant after controlling for differences in age and whether participants had access to other forms of individual support or completed the follow-up during the COVID-19 general lockdown.

By promoting participants’ sense of eating self-efficacy, this intervention could lead to positive dietary changes, which in turn could promote better health and healthy aging.

This community intervention is readily accessible and represents a cost-effective approach to promote healthy eating, reducing the risk of chronic disease and the need for medical care, thereby cutting costs for the healthcare system.

(1) This study addresses a gap in the scientific literature as there was limited published research to date that investigated this intervention. (2) The three-month follow-up made it possible to evaluate whether changes in eating self-efficacy were maintained over time. (3) Potential confounding variables, including age, having access to other forms of individual support and the COVID-19 general lockdown, were taken into account.

The health, well-being and productivity (i.e. WELL) of office building occupants are vulnerable to poor office environments. Therefore, this study aims to identify new features and concepts of office buildings in supporting occupants’ WELL. To achieve that aim, this study: explores new WELL features for office buildings, develops new WELL concepts for office buildings and examines the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on existing WELL building standard (WELL v2) concepts.

The first phase involved ten experts to assign weightage for health, well-being and productivity. In the second phase, 206 questionnaire survey data were collected from office building occupants throughout Malaysia. Exploratory factor analysis established new WELL concepts for office buildings. Partial least-squares structural equation modelling examined the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on the existing WELL v2 concepts.

Two new WELL concepts were developed: “space and services”, consisting of sufficient space, workstation privacy, office layouts, building automation systems, cleanliness and information technology (IT) infrastructure, and “building security”, consisting of security systems and safety at parking lots. Here, “space and services” influences all existing WELL v2 concepts, and “building security” influences the water, nourishment, mind and community concepts of WELL v2.

This study uncovers holistic WELL building concepts to support occupants’ health, well-being and productivity with additional new features and concepts for construction industry policymakers to establish holistic building assessment tools.

Previous studies considered effectuation and causation as alternative decision-making strategies used by entrepreneurs to navigate uncertainty, having various individual- and firm-level antecedents. This study aims to broaden our understanding of individual-level antecedents by examining the role of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) temporal focus in decision-making processes in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Based on a multiple case study research design, the authors empirically analyse 16 Russian SMEs to uncover how the CEO temporal focus relates to the choice of effectuation/causation strategies under uncertainty.

CEOs with past orientation tend to adopt causation, future-oriented CEOs adhere to effectuation, while present-focused CEOs rely on both decision-making strategies (i.e. ambidexterity). Prior crisis-related experience is the underlying mechanism behind the relationship between CEO temporal orientation and effectuation/causation strategies. The authors formulate several propositions that may be tested in future studies in the field.

The contribution of this study consists in uncovering a new individual-level antecedent of effectuation/causation under uncertainty (i.e. CEO temporal focus) and suggesting that prior crisis experience acts as a mechanism underlying this relationship. The authors advance the strategic leadership theory by underscoring the CEO’s role in decision-making processes in SMEs.

This paper investigates the critical role of entrepreneurial computer engineers in driving innovation and accelerating economic growth through the creation of technological businesses. By analyzing their contributions to innovation ecosystems, this paper aims to provide insights into the unique impact these engineers have within the entrepreneurial landscape. The study underscores the need for tailored policies that harness the potential of entrepreneurial computer engineers to achieve macroeconomic objectives amidst ever-changing economic complexities.

To examine the significance of entrepreneurial computer engineers within the innovation ecosystem, this study uses bibliometric analysis with VOS viewer to explore existing literature on engineering and entrepreneurship.

Using bibliometric analysis, the authors reveal a network of interconnected skills such as risk-taking, self-determination and project-based learning, evident in the co-occurrence of keywords.

The entrepreneurial computer engineer plays a central role in steering technical innovation and fostering sustainable economic growth within the field of computer engineering. The authors pinpoint specific skills and strategic pathways crucial for the growth and development of entrepreneurial computer engineers, emphasizing the unique contributions and challenges within this domain.

This paper addresses the under-researched topic of engineering entrepreneurship in relation to innovation, aiming to provide knowledge and insights into the intersection of engineering and entrepreneurship. By examining this nexus, the paper contributes to filling the gap in existing literature and offers valuable perspectives for both academia and industry.

This study attempts to answer how values and holiday preferences were shaped by the pandemic, how travellers view the future of tourism and how they are willing to contribute to potential changes. Furthermore, it examines the impact of socio-structural background factors, basic values and holiday preferences, and pandemic-related factors on the views of post-pandemic tourism.

A longitudinal online survey was conducted in which 155 frequent travellers were interviewed both before and during the pandemic about their values and holiday preferences, attitudes towards travelling during the pandemic, and their prospective views regarding tourism.

The findings revealed that values remained rather stable, but nature experiences, heritage tourism and beach offers gained more relevance when it came to holiday preferences. Concerning travellers’ expectations of future tourism, environmental concern was ranked higher than economic profit. However, those striving for self-direction, stimulation and city tourism offers stated to be less willing to restrict their travel behaviour in the future.

Although our study is just based on a convenience sample, the authors were still able to address notable research gaps. First, because a longitudinal design was selected, it was possible to investigate any potential transitions in basic values and travel style and trace these changes back to the pandemic. Second, thanks to a sophisticated online survey, all concepts could be measured with well-developed scales, which increased the quality of the measurements and led to stable results. Third, young travellers can be considered proponents of future travel styles. Their way of acting and thinking about future tourism could significantly impact the prospective direction of tourism.

This study makes a valuable contribution to changing holiday preferences and provides useful insights for the tourism industry about travellers’ willingness to change their travel behaviour.

Since this study primarily considers human values and socio-structural factors, the findings are of particular interest from a sociological perspective and are also interpreted from this viewpoint.

This study is one of only a few longitudinal studies focusing on holiday preferences and shifting values during COVID-19 and attempting to detect crucial drivers of potential tourism transformations in terms of perceptions from the demand side.

There is a compelling need for developing constructs in management science rather than adapting the constructs that have been developed in other domains. Having emerged in the 1950s, quality of work-life (QWL) measures have proved to be ineffective due to the lack of conceptual clarity and theoretical support. The article analyses the QWL measures highlights their coherence and verifies them for being used in specific contexts.

The study includes three stages to develop a QWL Measurement Scale. Fourteen questions were developed based on QWL concepts. They were validated using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) which split the dimensions into five factors. A survey was conducted on 375 medical residents. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), convergence and validity were tested along the five dimensions.

Results extend the QWL concept and provide theoretical support for the same. Five dimensions were developed to measure QWL namely: pay and benefits, supervision, intra-group relations, working conditions and training.

The study may offer an overview of evaluation strategies to researchers and organizations that aim to improve employee QWL while they enhance its effectiveness through reliable instruments.

The scale developed in this study contributes to the body of QWL literature in the healthcare arena. It may be beneficial to carry out further research in this domain.