Search results

1 – 10 of over 5000
Article
Publication date: 12 December 2023

Sidsel Lond Grosen and Kasper Edwards

The aim of this paper is to explore how the involvement of workplace teams in experimenting with changes in their work practices through short, time-boxed, experiments (STBEs) can…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to explore how the involvement of workplace teams in experimenting with changes in their work practices through short, time-boxed, experiments (STBEs) can support organizational learning. It is explored how staffs’ experiences with experimental practices give rise to shared knowledge and how this is supported by the design of the STBE-procedure. Also explored is how the STBEs support knowledge retainment.

Design/methodology/approach

The study builds on the authors’ participation in a research and development project across seven financial enterprises in Denmark. Qualitative material was developed as part of the experiments. Theoretically emphasizing experience, knowledge creation through dialogue and knowledge retention, the material was analyzed, focusing on participants’ experiences and interactions, as well as on procedures.

Findings

The STBEs occasioned direct experience with new work practices for managers and employees. Supported by the STBE-procedure, these experiences generated new knowledge individually, collectively and on an organizational level. The procedure also created routines that can underpin the retainment of the new practices and knowledge related to incorporating it in the organization.

Research limitations/implications

The study implicates experience with changes in work practices to be understood as predominantly mindful in opposition to simple, even when the changes appear to be simple.

Practical implications

The STBEs are applicable when working with organizational learning related to new work practices. Procedures supporting dialogue and mindful processes appear to be advantageous in relation to learning from experiments.

Originality/value

Based on an original research and development project and unique qualitative material, the study adds to discussions on how to best conduct and learn from experiments in organizations.

Details

Journal of Workplace Learning, vol. 36 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1366-5626

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 January 2024

Amanda Bille

The purpose of this paper is to show the benefits of bridging the gap between supply chain management (SCM) and political philosophy to challenge the underlying assumptions about…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to show the benefits of bridging the gap between supply chain management (SCM) and political philosophy to challenge the underlying assumptions about SCM concepts and open doors to novel theory building.

Design/methodology/approach

A thought experiment is conducted to illustrate how the two philosophers Niccolò Machiavelli and Jürgen Habermas would tackle sustainability issues in coffee supply chains from a research perspective. The thought experiment is carried out using data from 30 semi-structured interviews with actors from the coffee industry. Supplementing the thought experiment with empirical insights allows for a deeper understanding of supply chain dynamics and how these are impacted by the application of the philosophical viewpoints.

Findings

The research stresses the importance of SCM scholars being aware of the underlying assumptions of their research, as these have a remarkable impact on theory building. A combination of empirical insights and philosophical understandings makes it possible to reflect on the underlying concepts of SCM, providing suggestions for reimagining SCM.

Originality/value

The contribution of the research is twofold. First, the paper presents an original view on SCM, as the thought experiment is introduced as an approach to better understand SCM concepts. By challenging the underlying assumptions with political philosophy, researchers will be better equipped to address grand challenges in the twenty-first century. Second, this is exemplified by the case study of the coffee supply chain, which provides the reader with insight into the dynamics of supply chains with prevalent power differences.

Details

The International Journal of Logistics Management, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-4093

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 May 2023

Wumei Liu

In daily marketing practices, when launching and promoting new products, marketers often induce consumers’ awe of nature via exposing consumers to beautiful natural scenes. Does…

Abstract

Purpose

In daily marketing practices, when launching and promoting new products, marketers often induce consumers’ awe of nature via exposing consumers to beautiful natural scenes. Does this marketing practice really facilitate consumers’ subsequent new product choice? Existing awe research and new product research have not examined this issue yet. The purpose of this study is to study whether the marketing practice of awe induction faciliates consumers' new product choice.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper examines the double-edged sword effect of different types of awe on consumers’ adoption of new products. The authors conducted five experiments using various product categories (soft drinks, juices, cookies and watches), various many sources of sample types (college student samples and adult samples) and various manipulation of awe. The authors also focused on both new products with incongruent visual appearance (Experiment 1a, Experiment 1c, Experiment 2 and Experiment 3) and new products with incongruent conceptual attributes (Experiment 1b) to enhance the rigor of the experiments and the generalizability of the conclusions.

Findings

The authors find that when consumers perceive awe of threatening natural phenomena, they decrease their choice of moderately incongruent new products (positive effect), while when consumers perceive awe of beautiful natural phenomena, they increase their choice of moderately incongruent new products (negative effect). Also, this paper finds that the emergence of the positive of the double-edged sword effect is driven by the sequential mediation of the need for accommodation and openness to new experiences, while the emergence of the negative of the double-edged sword effect is driven by the uncertainty reduction motive.

Research limitations/implications

This research has important theoretical implications. First, this paper advances existing awe research by reconciling the inconsistent findings in existing awe research by categorizing awe of nature. Second, this paper advances existing research on new products and moderate incongruity effects by exploring when the moderate incongruity effect exists and when it reverses in the new products field through the classification of awe of nature.

Practical implications

This study has rich implications for marketing management. First, marketers can facilitate consumers’ adoption of moderate incongruent new product via priming consumers’ awe of beautiful nature. Second, this paper suggests that marketers and brand managers should carefully choose the timing of new product launches to avoid inducing consumer awe of threatening nature (e.g. immediately after a severe natural disaster). Finally, the results of Experiment 3 in this paper suggest that when marketers want to launch new products with moderate incongruity, they need to target consumers with high cognitive flexibility.

Social implications

This paper discusses how different types of awe affect consumers’ attitudes and choice of moderately new products. This research question has its social value in helping marketers, companies, consumers and society know the power of awe of nature on the behaviors and decision-making.

Originality/value

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper is among the first ones to examine the double-edged sword effect of different types of awe of nature on consumers’ new product adoption.

Details

Nankai Business Review International, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8749

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 March 2024

Claire K. Wan and Mingchang Chih

We argue that a fundamental issue regarding how to search and how to switch between different cognitive modes lies in the decision rules that influence the dynamics of learning…

Abstract

Purpose

We argue that a fundamental issue regarding how to search and how to switch between different cognitive modes lies in the decision rules that influence the dynamics of learning and exploration. We examine the search logics underlying these decision rules and propose conceptual prompts that can be applied mentally or computationally to aid managers’ decision-making.

Design/methodology/approach

By applying Multi-Armed Bandit (MAB) modeling to simulate agents’ interaction with dynamic environments, we compared the patterns and performance of selected MAB algorithms under different configurations of environmental conditions.

Findings

We develop three conceptual prompts. First, the simple heuristic-based exploration strategy works well in conditions of low environmental variability and few alternatives. Second, an exploration strategy that combines simple and de-biasing heuristics is suitable for most dynamic and complex decision environments. Third, the uncertainty-based exploration strategy is more applicable in the condition of high environmental unpredictability as it can more effectively recognize deviated patterns.

Research limitations/implications

This study contributes to emerging research on using algorithms to develop novel concepts and combining heuristics and algorithmic intelligence in strategic decision-making.

Practical implications

This study offers insights that there are different possibilities for exploration strategies for managers to apply conceptually and that the adaptability of cognitive-distant search may be underestimated in turbulent environments.

Originality/value

Drawing on insights from machine learning and cognitive psychology research, we demonstrate the fitness of different exploration strategies in different dynamic environmental configurations by comparing the different search logics that underlie the three MAB algorithms.

Details

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

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 8 February 2023

Edoardo Ramalli and Barbara Pernici

Experiments are the backbone of the development process of data-driven predictive models for scientific applications. The quality of the experiments directly impacts the model…

Abstract

Purpose

Experiments are the backbone of the development process of data-driven predictive models for scientific applications. The quality of the experiments directly impacts the model performance. Uncertainty inherently affects experiment measurements and is often missing in the available data sets due to its estimation cost. For similar reasons, experiments are very few compared to other data sources. Discarding experiments based on the missing uncertainty values would preclude the development of predictive models. Data profiling techniques are fundamental to assess data quality, but some data quality dimensions are challenging to evaluate without knowing the uncertainty. In this context, this paper aims to predict the missing uncertainty of the experiments.

Design/methodology/approach

This work presents a methodology to forecast the experiments’ missing uncertainty, given a data set and its ontological description. The approach is based on knowledge graph embeddings and leverages the task of link prediction over a knowledge graph representation of the experiments database. The validity of the methodology is first tested in multiple conditions using synthetic data and then applied to a large data set of experiments in the chemical kinetic domain as a case study.

Findings

The analysis results of different test case scenarios suggest that knowledge graph embedding can be used to predict the missing uncertainty of the experiments when there is a hidden relationship between the experiment metadata and the uncertainty values. The link prediction task is also resilient to random noise in the relationship. The knowledge graph embedding outperforms the baseline results if the uncertainty depends upon multiple metadata.

Originality/value

The employment of knowledge graph embedding to predict the missing experimental uncertainty is a novel alternative to the current and more costly techniques in the literature. Such contribution permits a better data quality profiling of scientific repositories and improves the development process of data-driven models based on scientific experiments.

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 9 February 2024

Thomas Koerber and Holger Schiele

This study aims to examine decision factors for global sourcing, differentiated into transcontinental and continental sourcing to obtain insight into locational aspects of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine decision factors for global sourcing, differentiated into transcontinental and continental sourcing to obtain insight into locational aspects of sourcing decisions and global trends. This study analyzed various country perceptions to reveal their influence on sourcing decisions. The country of origin (COO) theory explains why certain country perceptions and images influence purchasing experts in their selection of suppliers.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a two-study approach. In Study 1, the authors conducted discrete choice card experiments with 71 purchasing experts located in Europe and the USA to examine the importance of essential decision factors for global sourcing. Given the clear evidence that location is a factor in sourcing decisions, in Study 2 the authors investigated purchasers’ perceptions and images of countries, adding country ranking experiments on various perceived characteristics such as quality, price and technology.

Findings

Study 1 provides evidence that the purchasers’ personal relationship with the supplier plays a decisive role in the supplier selection process. While product quality and location impact sourcing decisions, the attraction of the buying company and cultural barriers are less significant. Interestingly, however, these factors seem as important as price to respondents. This implies that a strong relationship with suppliers and good quality products are essential aspects of a reliable and robust supply chain in the post-COVID-19 era. Examining the locational aspect in detail, Study 2 linked the choice card experiments with country ranking experiments. In this study, the authors found that purchasing experts consider that transcontinental countries such as Japan and China offer significant advantages in terms of price and technology. China has enhanced its quality, which is recognizable in the country ranking experiments. Therefore, decisions on global sourcing are not just based on such high-impact factors as price and availability; country perceptions are also influential. Additionally, the significance of the locational aspect could be linked to certain country images of transcontinental suppliers, as the COO theory describes.

Originality/value

The new approach divides global sourcing into transcontinental and European sourcing to evaluate special decision factors and link these factors to the locational aspect of sourcing decisions. To deepen the clear evidence for the locational aspect and investigate the possible influence of country perceptions, the authors applied the COO theory. This approach enabled authors to show the strong influence of country perception on purchasing departments, which is represented by the locational effect. Hence, the success of transcontinental countries relies not only on factors such as their availability but also on the purchasers’ positive perceptions of these countries in terms of technology and price.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 39 no. 13
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 November 2023

Jiehong Zhou, Fei Han, Xiaoyu Han and Zhen Yan

The paper proposes a research method to verify the perception bias of consumers on the freshness preservation effects of vacuum packaging (VP) and modified atmosphere packaging…

Abstract

Purpose

The paper proposes a research method to verify the perception bias of consumers on the freshness preservation effects of vacuum packaging (VP) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) chilled pork packages, the influence of “sensory experience” on correcting consumers' perception bias of packaging performance and willingness-to-pay (WTP) enhancement channels.

Design/methodology/approach

Using data from 458 and 188 participants who completed the contingent valuation method (CVM) and auction experiment, respectively, the study aimed to uncover consumers' packing quality perception bias and WTP, and investigated the societal factors that contribute to variations in WTP.

Findings

The CVM experiment revealed that although consumers' high perception bias rate toward MAP to maintain freshness, as compared to lab test results, came along with low WTP premium to cost rate with sensory experience in the auction experiment, the proportion of consumers with quality perception bias decreased from 49.85% to 34.46%, while the WTP premium to cost rate for MAP increased largely by 36.7%. Perceptive embedding has a positive effect on chilled pork packaging WTP, while normative embedding decreases WTP.

Originality/value

The findings emphasize the need of public policies to promote positive consumption attitudes, while whittling the negative consumption norms, to increase the WTP for packaged child pork and promote the chilled pork market formation.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 126 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 April 2024

Hesham Mohsen Hussein Omar, Mohamed Fawzy Aly Mohamed and Said Megahed

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the process of fused filament fabrication (FFF) of a compliant gripper (CG) using thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material. The paper…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the process of fused filament fabrication (FFF) of a compliant gripper (CG) using thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material. The paper studies the applicability of different CG designs and the efficiency of some design parameters.

Design/methodology/approach

After reviewing a number of different papers, two designs were selected for a number of exploratory experiments. Using design of experiments (DOE) techniques to identify important design parameters. Finally, the efficiency of the parts was investigated.

Findings

The research finds that a simpler design sacrifices some effectiveness in exchange for a remarkable decrease in production cost. Decreasing infill percentage of previous designs and 3D printing them, out of TPU, experimenting with different parameters yields functional products. Moreover, the paper identified some key parameters for further optimization attempts of such prototypes.

Research limitations/implications

The cost of conducting FFF experiments for TPU increases dramatically with product size, number of parameters studied and the number of experiments. Therefore, all three of these factors had to be kept at a minimum. Further confirmatory experiments encouraged.

Originality/value

This paper addresses an identified need to investigate applications of FFF and TPU in manufacturing functional efficient flexible mechanisms, grippers specifically. While most research focused on designing for increased performance, some research lacks discussion on design philosophy, as well as manufacturing issues. As the needs for flexible grippers vary from high-performance grippers to lower performance grippers created for specific functions/conditions, some effectiveness can be sacrificed to reduce cost, reduce complexity and improve applicability in different robotic assemblies and environments.

Details

Industrial Robot: the international journal of robotics research and application, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 April 2024

Claire Heeryung Kim and Da Hee Han

This paper aims to investigate a condition under which identity salience effects are weakened. By examining how identity salience influences individuals’ product judgment in a…

21

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate a condition under which identity salience effects are weakened. By examining how identity salience influences individuals’ product judgment in a domain of trade-offs, the current research demonstrates that the utilitarian value of a product is an important determinant of the effectiveness of identity salience on product judgment.

Design/methodology/approach

This research consists of two experiments. In Experiment 1, the authors examined whether identity salience effects were mitigated when the level of the perceived utilitarian value of an identity-incongruent product was greater than that of an identity-congruent product. In Experiment 2, the authors examined the effectiveness of internal attribution as a moderator that strengthens identity salience effects when the perceived utilitarian value of an identity-incongruent (vs. identity-congruent) product is higher.

Findings

In Experiment 1, the authors show that when the utilitarian value of a product with an attribute congruent (vs. incongruent) with one’s salient identity is lower, individuals do not show a greater preference for the identity-congruent (vs. identity-incongruent) product, mitigating the identity salience effects. Experiment 2 demonstrates that when individuals with a salient identity attribute a decision outcome to the self, they display a greater preference for the identity-congruent product even when its utilitarian value is lower compared to that of the identity-incongruent product.

Research limitations/implications

The research contributes to previous research examining conditions under which identity salience effects are weakened [e.g. social influence by others (Bolton and Reed, 2004); self-affirmation (Cohen et al., 2007)] by exploring the role of the utilitarian value of a product, which has not been examined yet in prior research. Also, by doing so, the current research adds to the literature on identity salience in a domain of trade-offs (Benjamin et al., 2010; Shaddy et al., 2020, 2021). Finally, this research reveals that when a decision outcome is attributed to the self, identity salience effects become greater. By finding a novel determinant of identity salience effects (i.e. internal attribution), the present research contributes to the literature that has examined factors that amplify identity salience effects [e.g. cultural relevance (Chattaraman et al., 2009); social distinctiveness (Forehand et al., 2002); different types of groups (White and Dahl, 2007)].

Practical implications

The findings provide managerial insights on identity-based marketing by showing a condition under which identity-based marketing does not work [i.e. when the utilitarian value of an identity-congruent (vs. identity-incongruent) product is lower] and how to enhance the effectiveness of identity-based marketing by using internal attribution.

Originality/value

By exploring the role of utilitarian value, not yet examined in prior research, the present research adds to the knowledge of the conditions under which identity salience effects are weakened. Furthermore, by finding a novel determinant of identity salience effects (i.e. internal attribution), the research contributes to the literature on factors that amplify identity salience effects.

Details

European Journal of Marketing, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0309-0566

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 August 2023

Kirk Luther, Zak Keeping, Brent Snook, Hannah de Almeida, Weyam Fahmy, Alexia Smith and Tianshuang Han

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature on information elicitation. The authors investigated the impact of social influence strategies on eyewitness recall…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the literature on information elicitation. The authors investigated the impact of social influence strategies on eyewitness recall performance. Specifically, the authors examined the effect of social influence techniques (Cialdini, 2007) on recall performance (Experiment 1) and conducted a follow-up experiment to examine the incremental effect of social proof on the report everything cognitive interview mnemonic (Experiment 2).

Design/methodology/approach

Participants watched a video depicting vandalism (Experiment 1: N = 174) or a verbal altercation (Experiment 2: N = 128) and were asked to recall the witnessed event. Experiment 1: Participants were assigned randomly to one of six conditions: control (open-ended prompt), engage and explain (interview ground rules), consistency (signing an agreement to work diligently), reciprocity (given water and food), authority (told of interviewer’s training) and social proof (shown transcript from an exemplar participant). Experiment 2: The authors used a 2 (social proof: present, absent) × 2 (report everything: present, absent) between-participants design.

Findings

Across both experiments, participants exposed to the social proof tactic (i.e. compared to a model exemplar) spoke longer and recalled more correct details than participants not exposed to the social proof tactic. In Experiment 2, participants interviewed with the report everything mnemonic also spoke longer, recalled more correct details, more incorrect details and provided slightly more confabulations than those not interviewed with the report everything mnemonic.

Originality/value

The findings have practical value for police investigators and other professionals who conduct interviews (e.g. military personnel, doctors obtaining information from patients). Interviewers can incorporate social proof in their interviewing practices to help increase the amount and accuracy of information obtained.

Details

Journal of Criminal Psychology, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2009-3829

Keywords

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