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1 – 10 of 333Nitish Nigam, Debabrata Samanta and Sibananda Senapati
Electric Vehicles (EVs), owing to their low carbon emissions, have gained immense importance in achieving net-zero emissions by 2070. They have also appeared as viable substitute…
Abstract
Purpose
Electric Vehicles (EVs), owing to their low carbon emissions, have gained immense importance in achieving net-zero emissions by 2070. They have also appeared as viable substitute to conventional vehicles. Aligning with global initiatives, India has created a favourable ecosystem and has implemented several policies since 2011 to achieve its target. Consequently, the market share of EVs has surged, both globally and in India, over the past decade. Taking this into account, this study aims to identify the factors that influence EVs in a developing economy using the context of India.
Design/methodology/approach
This study identified important determinants of EV adoption from global literature and employed a multiple linear regression model (MLRM) using the ordinary least squares (OLS) technique. Secondary data were utilised to identify determinants in the Indian context, sourced from the Ministry, NITI Aayog, AQI, the Lok Sabha Question, and the Economic Survey of India.
Findings
This study found that the number of charging stations and local pollution levels significantly influence EV adoption in India. The insignificance of the other variables may be due to the emerging state of the Indian EV market.
Originality/value
This study adds to the growing body of literature on EV adoption in developing economies by analysing the factors that impact its adoption using regional data. In addition, this study provides a unique perspective on a developing economy and advocates a comprehensive policy for EV adoption that reflects long-term sustainability.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-06-2023-0479.
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Arnab Kundu, Jitendranath Gorai and Gavisiddappa R. Angadi
The aim of this study was the development and validation (D&V) of an assessment tool to measure administrators' attitudes towards the ‘Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Program…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this study was the development and validation (D&V) of an assessment tool to measure administrators' attitudes towards the ‘Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Program (AEDP)’ in higher education institutions (HEIs).
Design/methodology/approach
A rigorous empirical method was followed encompassing four D&V phases: literature review, theoretical or face validation, validation with possible respondents or semantic validation and statistical validation. A pilot study was conducted among 150 randomly selected administrators from 50 different HEIs in India. The collected data were analyzed for statistical validation using exploratory factor analysis followed by confirmatory factor analysis.
Findings
The final version of the 21-item three-dimensional scale was found effective having significant degrees of reliability and validity. Exploratory factor analysis endorsed the factor extractions and data adequacy. The average variance extracted (AVE) for the three constructs (0.59, 0.70 and 0.66, respectively) were higher than the threshold value of 0.5, authorizing the convergent validity. The Cronbach alpha values (0.79, 0.81 and 0.77) were higher than the threshold value of 0.70, endorsing factors as reliable. Confirmatory factor analysis ascertained the multi-dimensionality of the scale and model fit having passable convergent validity. Discriminant validity (DV) was determined using the Fornell-Larcker criterion.
Research limitations/implications
The newly developed “Administrators’ Attitude towards AEDP Scale” will serve as a valid psychometric tool for future research accosting AEDP implementation. It could be administered as an electronic tool as well, subject to potential adjustments reducing the identified ceiling effects and floor effects.
Originality/value
The scale is a unique addition to the allied literature based on an original empirical survey finding conducted in India.
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Chandrasekaran Nagarajan, Indira A. and Ramasubramaniam M.
This study aims to analyse the structure of the Indian vaccine supply chain (SC) during the Covid-19 crisis and explore the underlying challenges at each stage in the network. It…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyse the structure of the Indian vaccine supply chain (SC) during the Covid-19 crisis and explore the underlying challenges at each stage in the network. It also brings out the difference in performance of various constituent states.
Design/methodology/approach
This study relied on both primary and secondary data for the analyses. For the primary data, the study gathered experts’ opinions to validate the authors’ inferences. For the secondary data, it relies on government data provided in websites.
Findings
Based on the quartile analysis and cluster analysis of the secondary data, the authors find that the constituent states responded differently during the first and second waves. This was due to the differences in SC characteristics attributed to varied demographics and administrative efficiency.
Research limitations/implications
This paper’s analyses is primarily limited to secondary information and inferences are based on them. The study has important implications for implementing the large-scale vaccination drives by government and constituent states for better coordination and last-mile delivery.
Originality/value
The contribution is unique in studying the performance of constituent states using statistical techniques, with secondary data from authentic sources. It is also unique in combining this observation with validation from experts.
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Fay Rhianna Claybrook, Darren John Southee and Mazher Mohammed
Cushioning is a useful material property applicable for a range of applications from medical devices to personal protective equipment. The current ability to apply cushioning in a…
Abstract
Purpose
Cushioning is a useful material property applicable for a range of applications from medical devices to personal protective equipment. The current ability to apply cushioning in a product context is limited by the appropriateness of available materials, with polyurethane foams being the current gold standard material. The purpose of this study is to investigate additively manufactured flexible printing of scaffold structures as an alternative.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, this study investigates triply periodic minimal surface (TPMS) structures, including Gyroid, Diamond and Schwarz P formed in thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), as a possible alternative. Each TPMS structure was fabricated using material extrusion additive manufacturing and evaluated to ASTM mechanical testing standard for polymers. This study focuses attention to TPMS structures fabricated for a fixed unit cell size of 10 mm and examine the compressive properties for changes in the scaffold porosity for samples fabricated in TPU with a shore hardness of 63A and 90A.
Findings
It was discovered that for increased porosity there was a measured reduction in the load required to deform the scaffold. Additionally, a complex relationship between the shore hardness and the stiffness of a structure. It was highlighted that through the adjustment of porosity, the compressive strength required to deform the scaffolds to a point of densification could be controlled and predicted with high repeatability.
Originality/value
The results indicate the ability to tailor the scaffold design parameters using both 63A and 90A TPU material, to mimic the loading properties of common polyurethane foams. The use of these structures indicates a next generation of tailored cushioning using additive manufacturing techniques by tailoring both geometry and porosity to loading and compressive strengths.
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Ramya Ravi and Manthan D. Janodia
Protection of intellectual property (IP) is important to leverage its commercial potential. This study aims to examine and comprehend the level of understanding of intellectual…
Abstract
Purpose
Protection of intellectual property (IP) is important to leverage its commercial potential. This study aims to examine and comprehend the level of understanding of intellectual property rights (IPR) among Indian academics. The study covers three main aspects – awareness level of IP among Indian academics, comprehending if the current state of knowledge about IP is useful for commercialization and whether the current knowledge of IP activities among Indian academics is sufficient to support their professional career and generate revenues from their inventions.
Design/methodology/approach
A structured methodology was contemplated and applied. A cross-sectional study with a convenience sampling method was adopted. The duration of the study was six months from March to August 2021. A total of 500 Indian academics were approached, of which 116 responded with a response rate of 23.4%. A structured questionnaire was administered to the participants to understand their level of knowledge about IP. Furthermore, the data analysis was performed based on descriptive analysis.
Findings
The study findings revealed that the awareness among the participants about IP was minimal. The underlying reasons could be academics did not focus on generating IP through novel research, awareness of basic knowledge about IP was considerably low and inadequate to support their professional career, primary focus was on which publications are considered as one of the important criteria for performance management, national policies do not encourage collaborative research between university and industry that may lead to potential IP generation and the Indian academic set-up expects multitasking by its faculty members.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is an original contribution, based on the study carried out by the authors to understand the awareness of IP activities among Indian academics.
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Lina Gharaibeh, Sandra Matarneh, Kristina Eriksson and Björn Lantz
This study aims to present a state-of-the-art review of building information modelling (BIM) in the Swedish construction practice with a focus on wood construction. It focuses on…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to present a state-of-the-art review of building information modelling (BIM) in the Swedish construction practice with a focus on wood construction. It focuses on examining the extent, maturity and actual practices of BIM in the Swedish wood construction industry, by analysing practitioners’ perspectives on the current state of BIM and its perceived benefits.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative approach was selected, given the study’s exploratory character. Initially, an extensive review was undertaken to examine the current state of BIM utilisation and its associated advantages within the construction industry. Subsequently, empirical data were acquired through semi-structured interviews featuring open-ended questions, aimed at comprehensively assessing the prevailing extent of BIM integration within the Swedish wood construction sector.
Findings
The research concluded that the wood construction industry in Sweden is shifting towards BIM on different levels, where in some cases, the level of implementation is still modest. It should be emphasised that the wood construction industry in Sweden is not realising the full potential of BIM. The industry is still using a combination of BIM and traditional methods, thus, limiting the benefits that full BIM implementation could offer the industry.
Originality/value
This study provided empirical evidence on the current perceptions and state of practice of the Swedish wood construction industry regarding BIM maturity.
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Signe Skov and Søren Smedegaard Bengtsen
In Denmark, there has been, over decades, an intensified political focus on how humanities research and doctoral education contribute to society. In this vein, the notion of…
Abstract
Purpose
In Denmark, there has been, over decades, an intensified political focus on how humanities research and doctoral education contribute to society. In this vein, the notion of impact has become a central part of the academic language, often associated with terms like use, effects and outputs, stemming from neoliberal ideologies. The purpose of this paper is to explore how humanities academics are living with the impact agenda, as both experienced researchers and as doctoral supervisors educating the next generation of researchers in this post-pandemic era. Specifically, the authors are interested in the supervisor-researcher relationship, that is, the relationship between how the supervisors navigate the impact agenda as researchers and then the way they tell their doctoral students to do likewise.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors have studied how the impact agenda is accommodated by humanities academics through a series of qualitative interviews with humanities researchers and humanities PhD supervisors, encompassing questions of how they are living with the expectation of impact and how it is embedded in their university and departmental context.
Findings
The study shows that there is no link between how the supervisors navigate the impact agenda in relation to their own research work and then the way they tell their doctoral students to approach it. Within the space of their own research, the supervisors engage in resistance practices towards the impact agenda in terms of minimal compliance, rejection or resignation, whereas in the space of supervision, the impact agenda is re-inscribed to embody other understandings. The supervisors want to protect their students from this agenda, especially in the knowledge that many of them are not going to stay in academia due to limited researcher career possibilities. Furthermore, the paper reveals a new understanding of the impact agenda as having a relational quality, and in two ways. One is through a positional struggle, the reshaping of power relations, between universities (or academics) and society (or the state and the market); the other is as a phenomenon very much lived among academics themselves, including between supervisors and their doctoral students within the institutional context.
Originality/value
This study opens up the impact agenda, showing what it means to be a humanities academic living with the effects of the impact agenda and trying to navigate this. The study is mapping and tracking out the many different meanings and variations of impact in all its volatility for academics concerned about it. In current, post-pandemic times, when manifold expectations are directed towards research and doctoral education, it is important to know more about how these expectations affect and are dealt with by those who are expected to commit to them.
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Shan Gao, Bin Wang, Xinjie Yao and Quan Yuan
This paper aims to characterize the surface film formed on Alloys 800 and 690 in chloride and thiosulfate-containing solution at 300°C.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to characterize the surface film formed on Alloys 800 and 690 in chloride and thiosulfate-containing solution at 300°C.
Design/methodology/approach
Alloy 800 and 690 were immersed in chloride and thiosulfate-containing solution at 300°C up to five days, and then the surface film was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometers (EDX).
Findings
Through static immersion experiments in a high-temperature and high-pressure water environment, the alloy samples covered by surface film after five days of immersion were obtained. The morphology of the surface film was characterized at both horizontal and cross-sectional scales using SEM and focused ion beam-TEM techniques. It was observed that due to the influence of the quartz lining, the surface film primarily exhibited a bilayered structure. The first layer contained a significant amount of SiO2, with a higher content of metal hydroxides compared to metal oxides. The second layer was predominantly composed of Fe, Ni and Cr, with a higher content of metal oxides compared to metal hydroxides.
Originality/value
The results showed that the materials of the lining of the autoclave could significantly influence the film composition of the tested material, which should be paid attention when analyzing the corrosion mechanism at high temperature.
Narayanage Jayantha Dewasiri, Salwathura Acharige Menu Jayamini Salwathura, Mananage Shanika Hansini Rathnasiri, Simbiya Hevage Madu Lakmini Walakumbura, Jathun Dahanayaka Kaushalyani Ruwandika, Yasangi Anuradha Iddagoda and Kiran Sood
Purpose: This chapter investigates the moderating impact of personality and demographic factors on the association between work–life balance (WLB) and the well-being (WB) of…
Abstract
Purpose: This chapter investigates the moderating impact of personality and demographic factors on the association between work–life balance (WLB) and the well-being (WB) of Ayurveda doctors in Sri Lanka.
Need for the Study: WB is necessary for everyone’s life. Individuals must meet proper WLB between their private and career life scenarios. On the other hand, employee WB and WLB are considered under the sustainable development goals. Hence, it is required to investigate the effect of WLB on WB.
Methodology: This quantitative, cross-sectional study was conducted with minimal researcher interference. The primary data were collected using structured questionnaires from Ayurvedic Doctors in Sri Lanka. The correlation, regression, and hierarchical regression analyses with multivariate assumptions were conducted using SPSS.
Findings: The findings reveal a robust positive association between the WLB and WB, indicating the same association between the WLB and personality. Moreover, there is a strong positive association between personality and WB. The results of the moderator analysis presented that there is a marginal moderator impact from the personality towards the association between WLB and WB.
Practical Implications: Ayurveda Practitioners and policymakers can use the generated knowledge in decision-making. The results of this study can be used as a reference by all industrial practitioners to improve their business practices. They can do this by raising employee WLB to enhance WB, which will help them keep the best employees within the company.
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Danielle LaGree, Katie Olsen, Alec Tefertiller and Rosalynn Vasquez
Motivated by the organizational challenge coined the great discontent, employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, see minimal opportunities for growth and are actively searching…
Abstract
Purpose
Motivated by the organizational challenge coined the great discontent, employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, see minimal opportunities for growth and are actively searching for new roles. This research aims to take a novel approach to internal communication strategy by introducing employability culture and leadership empowerment as mechanisms for supporting employees' career growth and additional positive workplace outcomes.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey was designed and administered in the United States. The final sample size includes 425 full-time employees working in a variety of roles, industries and work arrangements.
Findings
Findings point to the inherent need for revised internal communication strategy that goes beyond managing and disseminating information. Organizations must develop cultures and their leaders in ways that empower employees and help them understand the meaning of their work. Employability culture, or an organization's support for developing employees' adaptive skills as work roles change, positively predicted employees' perceptions of their career growth opportunities at their current place of employment, employee loyalty and engagement, and job satisfaction. Leadership empowerment behaviors also positively predicted all previously listed workplace variables. These perceptions as influenced by work arrangement (onsite, hybrid, fully remote) and younger versus older generations were also analyzed.
Originality/value
Research findings offer new strategies for internal communications. Internal communication teams can partner alongside executive leadership to develop a culture that helps employees envision how their skills and expertise translates to different areas of the organization, empowering them to find meaning in their work, and be driven to support organizational growth.
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