Search results

This study aims to systematically review the health risk assessment of the concentration of heavy metals in Pistacia species globally.

The authors systematically searched PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus and Google Scholar to identify all articles published between 1 January 2002 and 20 August 2022. A total of 33 studies met the authors’ inclusion criteria, and their data were extracted. Additionally, the potential risk to human health was assessed by calculating the target hazard quotient and hazard index for both child and adult consumers.

The estimated daily intake for heavy metals in the included studies ranged from 9.72 × 10^–9 to 7.35 (mg/day) in the following order: zinc (Zn) > mercury (Hg) > iron (Fe) > lead (Pb) > copper (Cu) > aluminum (Al) > nickel (Ni) > chromium (Cr) > manganese (Mn) > cadmium (Cd) > arsenic (As) > selenium (Se) > cobalt (Co). Among the studies that investigated heavy metals in Pistacia species around the world, the non-carcinogenic risk for all species of Pistacia was determined to be less than 1, except for Pb and Hg in Pistacia lentiscus.

The soil near the industrial area contained excessive amounts of heavy metals, which led to the transfer of heavy metals to plants. Owing to the insufficiency of the number of studies that examined heavy metals in Pistacia species, further monitoring and investigations were recommended.

This paper aims to assess how digital knowledge management affects technostress in workers and how that influences the organization’s sustainability. The study applied an in-depth literature review of the following concepts and dimensions, digital knowledge management (acquisition, sharing and application), technostress (techno overload, invasion, complexity, insecurity and uncertainty) and sustainability (economic, social and environmental).

After completing the literature review, an online questionnaire was developed and disseminated through social networks. The questionnaire had four sections: classification of the respondent, questions related to knowledge management, technostress and sustainability. The final sample comprises 454 responses. First, a descriptive analysis of the sample was carried out, and second, a structural equation model by the partial least squares–structural equation modeling method was conducted.

The results show that there is a direct and positive relationship between knowledge management and technostress. This finding means that a higher level of knowledge management of firms causes a greater level of technostress among employees. The close relationship between knowledge management and the firms’ sustainability has also been confirmed. The study results have shown that gender does not have a moderating effect on the relationships reported, as there are no significant differences.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to look at digital knowledge management, assessing both the levels of employee technostress and the sustainability achieved by their organizations. Thus, this study could serve as a basis for future research. In addition, it contributes to the scarce academic literature on technostress and digital knowledge management levels.

Assessing the impacts generated by tourism has become an essential element for the industry’s sustainability. The increasing intensity of the impacts and the need to evaluate them from a resident’s perspective calls for new approaches to assist tourism management. This paper aims to advance from the pressure-state-response framework (PSR) to measure the tourism impacts in urban destinations with a holistic model called PSR-ti.

A multiple linear regression method was adopted to apply the PSR-ti model in the city of Madrid, estimating the relationship between the pressure (objective) and state (subjective) variables. Local statistical yearbook data was used to construct the pressure variables. Regarding the state variables, a survey was designed to assess residents’ perceptions of tourism. A total of 652 responses were obtained.

The results obtained from the study of pressure indicators unveil that these indicators can support decision-making processes as an underused management tool. This work represents a step forward in considering the transversality of tourism concerning urban planning, the development of equipment and infrastructures or activities such as commerce and culture for the analysis of the state indicators; the results obtained determine the need to periodically evaluate the perception of residents on the impacts of tourism, given its crucial role in the sustainability of the destination.

The PSR-ti model offers a holistic vision, including objective and subjective indicators in the model, which enhances the appraisal of the impacts of tourism by identifying pressure and state factors as a starting point for possible responses by the decision makers of the tourist destination.

The purpose of this study is to examine the corporate governance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through a systematic literature review.

The review was conducted by analyzing 19 published studies in the field, leading to the identification of 14 journals and 40 authors. The relationship between corporate governance mechanisms and various aspects of SMEs’ performance was analyzed. The characteristics of corporate governance were classified into five categories: board, ownership, CEO, audit and age.

The review found a direct relationship between corporate governance mechanisms and various aspects of SMEs’ performance, including innovation, internationalization, auditing and risk of failure. The study also highlights the need for future research to adopt a behavioral perspective, to shift focus from identifying responsibilities to examining governance processes and to use nonlinear models and qualitative methods to effectively analyze the interrelated nature of the phenomena under study.

The limitations of the review include the limited number of studies available for analysis, as well as the fact that most of the empirical research was based on evidence from European countries, with only a few papers focusing on other countries, such as the USA, China and Ghana.

The results of this review provide valuable insights for researchers and practitioners in the field of corporate governance in SMEs. The findings provide a foundational basis for further research in the area and highlight the need for future studies to adopt a behavioral perspective and use nonlinear models and qualitative methods.

This study investigates the relationship between board gender diversity (BGD) and the time to Initial Public Offering (IPO), which stands as an entrepreneurially risky choice, particularly challenging in family firms. We also investigate the moderating role of family ownership dispersion (FOD).

We draw on an integrated theoretical framework bringing together the upper echelons theory and the socio-emotional wealth (SEW) perspective and on hand-collected data on a sample of Italian family IPOs that occurred in the period 2000–2020. We employ ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and alternative model estimations to test our hypotheses.

BGD positively affects the time to IPO, thus, it increases the time required to go public. FOD negatively moderates this relationship. Our findings remain robust with different measures for BGD, FOD, and family business definition as well as with different econometric models.

The article develops literature on family firms and IPO and it enriches the academic debate about gender and IPOs in family firms. It adds to studies addressing the determinants of the time to IPO by incorporating gender diversity and the FOD into the discussion. Finally, it contributes to research on women and outcomes in family firms.

This research aims to apply the contingency approach to explore the effectiveness of the improvisational behavior of salespeople on their sales performance by considering the moderating role of functional customer orientation.

Survey data were obtained from a sample of 227 salespeople in Bangkok, Thailand. The data analysis was implemented by partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The overall results indicate that the association between improvisational behavior and sales performance is significantly contingent on the level of functional customer orientation that salespeople exhibit. For salespeople with high functional customer orientation, improvisational behavior clearly shows a positive association with sales performance. In contrast, for salespeople with low functional customer orientation, improvisational behavior appears to have a negative association with sales performance.

This research broadens the knowledge in the literature by showing that improvisational behavior of salespeople needs to be combined with functional customer orientation to yield a benefit to their sales performance.

This paper aims to explore the effect of female’s presence in corporate governance structures to reduce agency conflicts, using a quantile regression approach.

The research investigates the relationship between company performance and boardroom gender diversity using quantile regression methods. The study uses annual data of 111 companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange from 2010 to 2020.

The study reveals that women on the board impact firm return on assets and enterprise value, varying across performance distribution. This contrasts fixed effect findings but aligns with two-stage least squares. However, quantile regression indicates that female executives and independent non-executive directors have notably negative impacts in high and low-performing companies, highlighting non-uniformity in the board gender diversity effect compared with previous assumptions.

The empirical findings suggest that companies with no women directors on the board are generally more likely to experience a decrease in performance and enterprise value relative to companies with women directors on the board. As recommended through the King Code of Corporate Governance, it is thus valuable to companies to ensure gender diversity on the board of directors.

The research confirms through rigorous statistical analyses that corporate governance policies, principles and guidelines should include gender diversity as a requirement for a board of directors.

This study aims to investigate the causal relationships within an experimental culture of improvisation capability and firm performance, following the logic of “culture-capability-performance” and building on informal institution theory and dynamic capability theory.

Data was mainly collected via on-site questionnaires from firm managers, and 196 valid questionnaires were analyzed using structural equation modeling to test the relationship among experimental culture, improvisation capability and firms’ performance.

Trust and support had a positive impact on firm spontaneity, while the effect of action promotion and error tolerance was not significant. Action promotion, trust and support demonstrate substantial positive effects on the creativity of a firm. Both dimensions of improvisation capability positively and significantly influence a firm’s performance.

The research respondents were firm managers. Cross-sectional data were used to analyze the model, which may cause common method variance. The research context was limited to China, and the generalizability of the results needs to be considered.

Firms can cultivate a culture of trust and support to enhance their spontaneity and improvisation capability. They can encourage cross-departmental communication, empower employees with autonomy in decision-making, provide appropriate resource support for employees’ decisions and use praise and reward incentives to spur further innovation achievements.

This study addresses the gaps in a firm’s improvisation capability within a Chinese market context by theoretically and empirically examining the role of experimental culture and assessing the relationship among each of the dimensions of improvisation capability in relation to firm performance identified in this study.

In today’s dynamic business environment, it’s crucial for companies to employ robust strategies and decision-making tools to remain competitive. This chapter explains the key comprehensive policies that can be applied by any company to maximise the effectiveness of the APPNIE framework. These policies include the following key elements for effective use of the APPNIE model: appointing an APPNIE manager responsible for maintaining and updating the model, collaborating with top executives, and formulating action plans; raising awareness of the APPNIE manager’s role across the organisation to encourage sharing valuable information (establishing clear procedures and channels for data collection); encouraging the communication of valuable data by offering recognition or rewards, ensuring a steady flow of filtered information; monitoring the eight quadrants using qualitative and quantitative data for up-to-date assessments of key APPNIE’s factors; organising regular meetings between APPNIE managers and directors from different functions to share perspectives, discuss action plans, and address challenges and opportunities. The chapter shows that by adopting these practices, companies can navigate ‘complexity’, make informed decisions, and enhance their overall success and competitiveness in the market.