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Article
Publication date: 1 October 1995

Jacob Thimor and Uri Fidelman

Finds a statistically significant relation between top‐down concept‐mapping and the right cerebral hemisphere, and between bottom‐up concept‐mapping and the right hemisphere…

237

Abstract

Finds a statistically significant relation between top‐down concept‐mapping and the right cerebral hemisphere, and between bottom‐up concept‐mapping and the right hemisphere. Correlates scores on concept‐mapping with scores on hemispheric tests, and compares the scores of the subjects on hemispheric tests with the preferable style of concept‐mapping. Concludes that top‐down concept‐mapping, the right hemisphere, and Frege’s logic are mutually related. Similarly, bottom‐up concept‐mapping, the left hemisphere, and Russell’s logic are mutually related.

Details

Kybernetes, vol. 24 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0368-492X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2020

Osama Mah'd

Educational institutions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are striving for better resource management and finance. The bottom-up budgeting approach plays an important…

Abstract

Purpose

Educational institutions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are striving for better resource management and finance. The bottom-up budgeting approach plays an important role in motivating executives' performance. The main aim of this paper is to discover whether there is a significant difference between bottom-up and a top-down approaches to budgeting in terms of managers' performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Questionnaires were distributed to 453 university executives in 21 MENA educational institutions. The Kruskal–Wallis test was utilized to test the difference between the three groups (bottom-up, top-down and consultative approaches). Further analysis was conducted to test the difference between the two groups using the Mann–Whitney test.

Findings

The results show that there is a significant difference between a bottom-up and top-down approach in terms of managerial performance. The study's findings indicate that the bottom-up approach to budgeting leads to higher performance indicators than a top-down approach to budgeting.

Originality/value

The current study contributes to the research as it increases awareness of budgeting approaches that are used in higher education institutions, specifically in terms of the effect of these differences on executives' performance.

Details

Journal of Public Budgeting, Accounting & Financial Management, vol. 32 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1096-3367

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 January 2022

Muhammad Ali, Mirit K. Grabarski and Alison M. Konrad

This study aims to investigate the impact of women’s representation at one hierarchical level on women’s representation above or below that level. No past research investigated…

1097

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the impact of women’s representation at one hierarchical level on women’s representation above or below that level. No past research investigated these effects in the hospitality and tourism industries. The mixed results of research in other industries and across industries demand tests of curvilinearity and moderators.

Design/methodology/approach

Using annual equality reports, a panel data set for 2010–2019 was created for the hospitality and tourism industries. The sample of 581 organizations had up to 5,810 observations over the 10 years.

Findings

The analyses show the following effects of women’s representation: an inverted U-shape from management to non-management, a U-shape from non-management to management and a U-shape from management to the executive team, with more pronounced effect in small organizations.

Practical implications

To increase the number of female employees, organizations should invest their resources in hiring and retaining female managers until a gender balance is reached while managing any backlash from men. The results suggest that organizations with more than 40% of women non-management employees and 50% of women managers start `experiencing positive bottom-up dynamics. Thus, efforts need to be made to attract and retain a women’s pipeline at the non-management and management levels.

Originality/value

This study delivers pioneering evidence of the top-down and bottom-up phenomena in hospitality and tourism. It refines evidence of such effects found in past research conducted in other industries and across industries.

Details

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 34 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0959-6119

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 15 June 2012

James R. Hollyer

Existing experimental and quasi-experimental results have demonstrated that both anticorruption initiatives that provide information and/or authority to the recipients of…

Abstract

Existing experimental and quasi-experimental results have demonstrated that both anticorruption initiatives that provide information and/or authority to the recipients of government programs – so-called “bottom-up” interventions – and initiatives that rely on government agencies for enforcement – “top-down” interventions – can be effective in some settings. Yet, in other instances, both forms of intervention have been found to be ineffective in combating corruption. These contrasting results strongly suggest that the effectiveness of both “top-downandbottom-up” anticorruption interventions is conditional on other factors. Unfortunately, the existing literature says little regarding the conditions conducive to the success of either forms of intervention. Assessing the conditional effects of anticorruption treatments poses substantial challenges for researchers – particularly for those employing experimental or quasi-experimental approaches. This chapter (1) discusses factors that may condition the effectiveness of both top-down and bottom-up interventions; (2) illustrates the difficulties in assessing these conditional relationships, with particular reference to experimental and quasi-experimental settings; and (3) suggests approaches that might mitigate these problems.

Details

New Advances in Experimental Research on Corruption
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-785-7

Article
Publication date: 20 June 2016

George Christopher Banks, Jeffrey M. Pollack and Anson Seers

Conceptualizations of work coordination historically assumed that work systems are put into place and that these systems shape the ability of workers to accomplish tasks…

2317

Abstract

Purpose

Conceptualizations of work coordination historically assumed that work systems are put into place and that these systems shape the ability of workers to accomplish tasks. Formalization has thus long been invoked as an explanatory mechanism for work coordination. Recent studies have extended interest in emergent implicit and relational coordination, yet their underlying mechanisms of bottom-up coordination have yet to be explicated such that formal top-down coordination can be approached as a complementary mechanism rather than an alternative substitute. The purpose of this paper is to integrate the literatures related to coordination and routines, and extend analysis of bottom-up coordination toward an understanding of how it can be complemented by top-down formalized coordination of routines within organizations. Implications of this work, for both theory and practice, are discussed.

Design/methodology/approach

A conceptual review was conducted.

Findings

By integrating the literatures related to coordination and routines, the authors extend analysis of bottom-up coordination toward an understanding of how it can be complemented by top-down formalized coordination of routines within organizations.

Research limitations/implications

From a theory-based point of view, in the present work, the authors integrated the literatures related to coordination and routines and arrived at the conclusion that bottom-up coordination can be complemented by top-down formalized coordination of routines within organizations.

Practical implications

The authors suggest that there is a need in the contemporary workplace for implicit, relational processes to enable individuals to continuously assess what changes are needed and adapt coordinated routines to accomplish the task at hand. This propensity will continue to increase as technology facilitates even more seamless communication among employees, organizations, and external partners.

Originality/value

For the first time the authors integrate the literatures related to coordination and routines, in order to extend analysis of bottom-up coordination toward an understanding of how it can be complemented by top-down formalized coordination of routines within organizations.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 54 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 April 2024

Lucrezia Sgambaro, Davide Chiaroni, Emanuele Lettieri and Francesco Paolone

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the most recurrent variables characterizing the collaborative relationships of industrial symbiosis (IS) (hereinafter also referred to…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the most recurrent variables characterizing the collaborative relationships of industrial symbiosis (IS) (hereinafter also referred to as “anatomic” variables) established in the attempt to adopt circular economy (CE) by collecting evidence from a rich empirical set of implementation cases in Italy.

Design/methodology/approach

The current literature on IS was reviewed, and a content analysis was performed to identify and define the “anatomic” variables affecting its adoption in the circular economy. We followed a multiple-case study methodology investigating 50 cases of IS in Italy and performed a content analysis of the “anatomic” variables characterizing each case.

Findings

This research proposes the “anatomic” variables (i.e. industrial sectors involved, public actors involvement, governmental support, facilitator involvement and geographical proximity) explaining the cases of IS in the circular economy. Each “anatomic” variable is discussed at length based on the empirical evidence collected, with a particular reference to the impact on the different development strategies (i.e. “bottom-upandtop-down”) in the cases observed.

Originality/value

Current literature on IS focuses on a sub-set of variables characterizing collaboration in IS. This research builds on extant literature to define a new framework of five purposeful “anatomic” variables defining IS in the circular economy. Moreover, we also collect and discuss a broad variety of empirical evidence in what is a still under-investigated context (i.e. Italy).

Details

Management Decision, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 August 2015

Ignasi Capdevila and Matías I. Zarlenga

In recent years, the term “smart city” has attracted a lot of attention from policy makers, business leaders and citizenship in general. Although there is not a unique definition…

4934

Abstract

Purpose

In recent years, the term “smart city” has attracted a lot of attention from policy makers, business leaders and citizenship in general. Although there is not a unique definition of what a smart city is, it is generally accepted that “smart” urban policies refer to local governments’ initiatives that use information and communication technologies in order to increase the quality of life of their inhabitants while contributing to a sustainable development. So far, “smart city” approaches have generally been related to top-down processes of technology diffusion. The purpose of this paper is to present a broader view on “smart” initiatives to analyze both top-down and bottom-up dynamics in a smart city. The authors argue that these two perspectives are complementary and its combination can reinforce the collaboration between different city stakeholders. Top-down and bottom-up initiatives are not opposed forces but, on the contrary, can have a synergistic effect on the innovation capacity of the city. Both perspectives are illustrated by providing examples of different “smart” aspects in the city of Barcelona: smart districts, open collaborative spaces, infrastructures and open data.

Design/methodology/approach

To illustrate the arguments, the authors analyze the case of the city of Barcelona providing examples of top-down and bottom-up initiatives in four different smart city aspects: smart districts, open collaborative spaces, infrastructures and open data. The research method is based on a case study (Yin, 1984). The primary data consisted on interviews to city council representatives as well as managers of local public institutions, like economic development offices, and local organizations like for instance coworking spaces. The authors interviewed also specialists on the innovation history of the city in order to validate the data. In addition, the authors used secondary data such as reports on the 22@, and documentation on the Barcelona innovation policies, as well as doing a compilation of press articles and the online content of the institutional webpages. All together, the authors have followed a data triangulation strategy to seek data validation based on the cross-verification of the analyzed data sources.

Findings

The analysis suggests that the top-down and bottom-up perspectives are complementary and their combination can reinforce the collaboration between different city stakeholders. Top-down and bottom-up initiatives are not opposed forces but, on the contrary, can have a synergistic effect on the innovation capacity of the city. Both perspectives are illustrated by providing examples of different “smart” aspects in the city of Barcelona: smart districts, open collaborative spaces, infrastructures and open data.

Research limitations/implications

Nevertheless, the analysis has its limitations. Even if the authors have emphasized the importance of the bottom-up initiatives, citizens do not have often the resources to act without governmental intervention. This is the case of services that require high-cost infrastructures or regulatory changes. Also, as it usually happens in the case of disruptive technology, it is hard for citizens to understand the possibilities of its use. In these cases, firms and institutions must play an important role in the first phases of the diffusion of innovations, by informing and incentivizing its use. It is also important to note that some of the emerging usages of technology are confronted to legal or regulatory issues. For instance, distributed and shared Wi-Fi networks might be in opposition to economic interests of internet providers, that often difficult its expansion. It is also the case of services of the sharing economy that represent a menace to established institutions (like the tensions between Uber and taxi companies, or Airbnb and hotels). In these cases, city halls like it is the case in Barcelona, tend to respond to these emergent uses of technology by regulating to ensure protection to existing corporate services.

Practical implications

In conclusion, the transformational process that leads a city to become a smart city has to take in consideration the complexity and the plurality of the urban reality. Beyond considering citizens as being users, testers or consumers of technology, local administrations that are able to identify, nourish and integrate the emerging citizens’ initiatives would contribute to the reinforcement of a smart city reality.

Originality/value

The contribution of the paper is to go beyond the generalized technologic discourse around smart cities by adding the layer of the citizens’ initiatives.

Details

Journal of Strategy and Management, vol. 8 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-425X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 April 2019

Ashfaque Hussain Soomro, Imran Khan and Muhammad Younus

The purpose of this paper is to explore EFL reading anxiety of first-year undergraduate engineering students and its effect on their reading performance in a public sector…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore EFL reading anxiety of first-year undergraduate engineering students and its effect on their reading performance in a public sector engineering university in Pakistan. It specifically aims to explore their top-down, bottom-up and classroom EFL reading anxiety.

Design/methodology/approach

Data for the present study were collected from 200 first-year engineering students to explore their reading anxiety. A 20-item questionnaire developed by Zoghi and Alivandivafa (2014) was used to measure students’ EFL reading anxiety, while an IELTS academic reading test was used to measure their reading performance. The data were analyzed through exploratory factorial analysis and multiple regression analysis to determine which type of reading anxiety has a significant effect on students’ reading performance.

Findings

It was found that the bottom-up reading anxiety and the classroom reading anxiety have a significant negative impact on the reading performance of the first-year undergraduate engineering students of a Pakistani university. However, top-down reading anxiety has an insignificant negative impact on the reading performance of university students.

Research limitations/implications

The data for the current study were drawn from one Pakistani public sector engineering university, and all the students were first-year undergraduates. The data were collected through a self-reported questionnaire and IELTS (academic) reading test. Some of the students may be unfamiliar with the IELTS test pattern, so their reading performance might have been affected.

Practical implications

Teachers should adopt such a methodology in their EFL classrooms which helps students reduce their reading anxiety. Reading texts must be selected considering the proficiency level of students, and reading strategies must be explicitly taught to reduce bottom-up and top-down reading anxieties. Teachers should create a positive learning environment in their classroom by encouraging students to make an effort to improve their reading skills in order to deal with classroom reading anxiety. Students must be explained that they should help one another rather than ridiculing each other’s reading mistakes. Differentiated instruction can also be adopted to facilitate weak readers. The teachers can provide additional/out of the class support to weak readers in order to help them deal with reading anxiety.

Originality/value

The EFL reading anxiety among university students in the Pakistani context has received little attention from the researchers. Furthermore, although the impact of EFL reading anxiety on EFL students’ reading performance has been explored previously, the impact of three types of EFL reading anxiety on EFL learners’ reading performance has not been adequately investigated.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 11 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 15 July 2019

Laura Galuppo, Mara Gorli, Benjamin N. Alexander and Giuseppe Scaratti

The purpose of this chapter is to examine how leaders furthered the development of a social enterprise in response to paradoxes. Data on leadership practices were collected…

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to examine how leaders furthered the development of a social enterprise in response to paradoxes. Data on leadership practices were collected through interviews and observations in an Italian Healthcare network over the organization’s first two years. The data indicate that leaders addressed paradoxes in developing several critical resources by using both top-down influence and bottom-up participation. Leaders used top-down practices to further organizational development along a known path when they could leverage technical expertise or a vision to address a source of tension. Bottom-up practices, on the other hand, permitted the discovery of new paths that had not been previously identified. Leaders leveraged such responses where tensions appeared intractable. Implications for managers and organizational development and change practitioners are discussed.

Details

Research in Organizational Change and Development
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78973-554-3

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 11 March 2021

Luiz Guilherme Rodrigues Antunes, Cleber Carvalho de Castro and Andrea Ap da Costa Mineiro

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the performance of incubators in the stages of formation and development of incubated business networks, especially in bottom-up and

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the performance of incubators in the stages of formation and development of incubated business networks, especially in bottom-up and top-down network models.

Design/methodology/approach

The research is defined as qualitative and descriptive, with the application of multiple case studies, in which two networks of incubated businesses were investigated, one being top-down and the other bottom-up, which emerged within the incubation process of two business incubators (CIETEC and INCIT). To make the study operational, 11 semi-structured interviews were carried out and the thematic analysis of content was developed.

Findings

The results pointed out that in the top-down network the incubator performs a new assignment, the network orchestration, which corresponds to the actions of formation, coordination and governance of the group. In the bottom-up network, it was found that the role of the incubator was to expand the value offers usually practiced.

Research limitations/implications

As a limitation of the research, the very limitation of case studies is pointed out that is they do not allow for generalizations.

Practical implications

The research contributes to reflections on the effectiveness of the incubator and sheds light on the complementarity of networks in incubation processes, providing gains for incubators, incubated businesses and society.

Originality/value

The originality of this document is the new role of the incubator, which is orchestration, and its categorization. The results allow us to understand the effects of providing networks and relationships for incubated businesses. In addition, this study broadens the focus of traditional analyses of the incubator–incubated duo to consider the incubator–network–incubated trio.

Details

Innovation & Management Review, vol. 18 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2515-8961

Keywords

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