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1 – 10 of over 24000China’s population is ageing. Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) are an emerging living arrangement of older Chinese. Incorporating social sustainability features into…
Abstract
Purpose
China’s population is ageing. Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) are an emerging living arrangement of older Chinese. Incorporating social sustainability features into CCRCs helps to create age-friendly residential environments for residents. However, it is still unclear what kinds of social sustainability features are incorporated into the residential environments of CCRCs in China. Therefore, this study aims to address this research gap.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative content analysis is adopted to analyse the retrieved business information of representative CCRC developers in China.
Findings
This study revealed 36 social sustainability features in CCRCs, with the top-ranked ones being health care and management, social connection and engagement, high-quality and diverse services and daily life support and assistance. Additionally, a preliminary social sustainability framework of CCRCs was proposed, and this framework includes the five components of care and health, environment and management, service and facility, age-friendly life philosophy and social support and inclusion.
Originality/value
In theory, this research’s findings clarify the meaning of social sustainability within the context of CCRCs, which supports future relevant explorations in the CCRC research community. In practice, these findings enhance stakeholders’ understanding of the social sustainability in CCRCs, which promotes the development of age-friendly living environments for older people in an ageing society.
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Angelos Pantouvakis, Ilias Vlachos and Dionysios Polemis
This study aims to reveal the constituents of seafaring service quality (physical and social environment) and their effects on seafarer employee satisfaction (job satisfaction and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to reveal the constituents of seafaring service quality (physical and social environment) and their effects on seafarer employee satisfaction (job satisfaction and turnover intention) and analyse any differences among seafarer ranks. Literature on service quality has overlooked the transportation sector and seafaring in particular.
Design/methodology/approach
Seafaring service quality is measured by the workplace environment constituted of physical and social environments. Two types of employee (job) satisfaction were explored: overall job satisfaction and turnover intention. This study is based on a unique, large survey based on the Existence-Relatedness-Growth (ERG) needs theory. An exploratory factor analysis revealed four physical environment factors (Ship conditions, Communication facilities, Nautical health and Living conditions) and four social environment factors (Social fit, Team cohesion, Ship company support and Intercultural environment). Multi-group regression analysis assessed the effects of seafaring service quality on employee satisfaction.
Findings
The social environment has stronger effects than the physical environment on job satisfaction but not on employee retention. Team cohesion has strong effects on employee retention, while social fit has stronger effects on overall job performance. Seafarer ranks showed significant variations. The physical environment matters for 2nd engineers' and cadets’ job satisfaction but not for ratings, masters and chief officers. Team cohesion is significant to master, chief officer, engineer and cadet ranks but not for junior officers and ratings. Social fit has stronger effects on overall job performance than employee retention, particularly for ratings, cadets, master, chief officer and chief engineer ranks. Ship company support has the stronger effect on overall job satisfaction among all workplace factors; this is also observed across all ranks.
Research limitations/implications
Motivation theories like the ERG theory can help understand service quality and employee satisfaction in the maritime sector; future studies should examine more behaviour variables/constructs from these theories.
Practical implications
Maritime companies can offer better services to seafarers, who are considered as key workers, by customising their interventions to specific seafarer ranks and developing a supportive culture that improves seafarer well-being.
Originality/value
This study examined the overlooked topic of maritime service quality based on a large-scale survey grounded on ERG theory and reveals how the physical and social environment has different effects on seafarer job satisfaction and retention.
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Jiaji Zhu, Yushi Jiang, Xiaoxuan Wang and Suying Huang
Driven by artificial intelligence technology, chatbots have begun to play an important customer service role in the online retail environment. This study aims to explore how…
Abstract
Purpose
Driven by artificial intelligence technology, chatbots have begun to play an important customer service role in the online retail environment. This study aims to explore how conversational styles improve the interaction experience between consumers and chatbots in different social crowding environments, and the moderating role of product categories is considered.
Design/methodology/approach
Three studies are conducted to understand the influences of conversational styles, social crowding and product categories on consumer acceptance, assessed using situational experiments and questions.
Findings
In a low social crowding environment, consumers prefer chatbots with a social-oriented (vs. task-oriented) conversational style, while in a high social crowding environment, consumers prefer a task-oriented (vs. social-oriented) conversational style, and warmth and competence mediate these effects. The moderating effect of product categories is supported.
Originality/value
This study expands the application of the stereotype content model to improve the interaction experience level between consumers and chatbots in online retail. The findings can provide managerial suggestions for retailers to select a chatbot's conversational style and promote a more continuous interaction between consumers and chatbots.
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Recently, online learning and online environments have become even more important. Students' engagement, fear of missing out and Internet addiction are seen as interrelated…
Abstract
Purpose
Recently, online learning and online environments have become even more important. Students' engagement, fear of missing out and Internet addiction are seen as interrelated components that affect students' online teaching and learning process. In this context, university students' engagement, fear of missing out and Internet addiction in online environments, the relationship among them and students' demographic characteristics, online environment usage status and Internet usage profiles as their predictors are examined in this study.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a relational study and is carried out with 179 university students. Personal information form, student's engagement, fear of missing out and Internet addiction scales were used as data collection tools. Descriptive statistics, t-test, one-way ANOVA, correlation, hierarchical linear multiple regression analysis are used for the analysis.
Findings
According to the results, variables related to students' demographic characteristics, online environment usage status and Internet usage profiles together significantly predict the students' engagement, fear of missing out and Internet addiction in online environments. When students think positively about taking courses online, their engagement increases accordingly and their fear of missing out levels decrease. Increase in student's academic achievement leads to decline in Internet addiction.
Practical implications
In practice, examining the related variables about students in terms of engagement to the learning environment, fear of missing out and Internet addiction could bring a new perspective to studies on problematic use of the Internet and technology such as nomophobia and digital distraction. The results of this study reveal how and which components to be focused on for increasing the university students' engagement, reducing Internet addiction and fear of missing out in online learning environments.
Originality/value
The findings of this study provide a versatile perspective with the variables of student participation, fear of missing out, Internet addiction and their predictors in online learning environments, which are becoming widespread and increasingly important today and shed light on future researches.
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Xiayu Chen, Renee Rui Chen, Shaobo Wei and Robert M. Davison
This study investigates how individuals' self-awareness (specifically, private and public self-awareness) and environment-awareness (perceived expertise, similarity and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates how individuals' self-awareness (specifically, private and public self-awareness) and environment-awareness (perceived expertise, similarity and familiarity) shape herd behavior, encompassing discounting one’s information and imitating others. Drawing from latent state-trait theory, this research aims to discern the impact of these factors on purchase intention and behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
Longitudinal data from 231 users in Xiaohongshu, China’s leading social commerce platform, were collected to test the proposed model and hypotheses.
Findings
The findings from this study show that private self-awareness negatively influences discounting one’s own information and imitating others. Public self-awareness positively affects imitating others, while it does not affect discounting one’s own information. Perceived expertise diminishes discounting one’s own information but does not significantly affect imitating others. Perceived similarity and perceived familiarity are positively related to discounting one’s own information and imitating others. The results confirm different interaction effects between self-awareness and environment-awareness on herd behavior.
Originality/value
First, this contributes back to the latent state-trait theory by expanding the applicability of this theory to explain the phenomenon of herd behavior. Second, this study takes an important step toward theoretical advancement in the extant literature by qualifying that both self- and environment-awareness should be considered to trigger additional effects on herd behavior. Third, this study provides a more enlightened understanding of herd behavior by highlighting the significance of considering the interplay between self- and environment-awareness on herd behavior. Finally, this study also empirically confirms the validity of classifying self-awareness into private and public aspects.
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Elisa Mattarelli, Carlotta Cochis, Fabiola Bertolotti and Paula Ungureanu
This paper investigates how (1) a work environment designed to sustain creativity (i.e. through flexible arrangements and elements of the social-organizational work environment…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper investigates how (1) a work environment designed to sustain creativity (i.e. through flexible arrangements and elements of the social-organizational work environment) and (2) the amount of enacted work interactions among employees, interpreted as facilitators of new idea generation (i.e. outdegree centrality in instrumental networks), differently impact creativity and work–life balance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a quantitative study in a knowledge-intensive multinational company and collected data through a survey on a sample of 207 workers.
Findings
Findings highlight that flexible work arrangements are positively related to increased work–life balance but not to creativity, whereas having access to a social-organizational work environment designed to foster creativity is associated to an increased level of idea generation, but to a reduction in work–life balance. In addition, centrality in instrumental social networks is also associated to a reduction of work–life balance. Findings thus point to a potential trade-off between structures aimed at increasing creativity and initiatives aimed at engendering work–life balance.
Originality/value
The research contributes to the current debate on new organizational practices for innovation and creativity, highlighting their unexpected implications for workers. The research also contributes to the literature on work–life balance by unraveling previously unexplored antecedents, i.e. social networks and the social-organizational work environment designed for creativity.
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Rafael Borim-de-Souza, Eric Ford Travis, Beatriz Lima Zanoni, Pablo Henrique Paschoal Capucho and Jacques Haruo Fukushigue Jan-Chiba
Through Bourdieusian sociology, this study aims to interpret a globalized symbolic environment ward by the States and dominated by organizations through the States’ Nobilities…
Abstract
Purpose
Through Bourdieusian sociology, this study aims to interpret a globalized symbolic environment ward by the States and dominated by organizations through the States’ Nobilities enticing and the Euro-American influences disseminated by the cultural circuit of capitalism in the inculcation and incorporation of a class habitus conniving with this logic of domination.
Design/methodology/approach
This study has developed a theoretical essay based on the contributions of Bourdieusian sociology to discuss and understand the following concepts and their respective relationships: symbolic environment, globalization, organizations, State, State Nobility, Euro-American influences, cultural circuit of capitalism and class habitus.
Findings
The arguments built throughout this theoretical essay recognized how class habitus on environment contributes to organizations establishing themselves as a space that consolidates and replicates the domination logic. As indicated, the State Nobility is an intermediary element between dominant organizations and the State, as dominated.
Practical implications
This theoretical essay signals that less harmful alliances between organizations, the State Nobility and the State could culminate in social, environmental and economic scenarios provided with more inclusion, diversity and preservation.
Social implications
This study presents an in-depth conceptual analysis to hold power structures responsible as direct and indirect drivers of environmental problems, with their different proportions and severity levels, affecting the planet.
Originality/value
This study proposes an alternative lens to debate and question how much the results presented by the contemporary world order compensate (if in any way) the damage that invades and deteriorate environmental assets.
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Vartenie Aramali, George Edward Gibson, Hala Sanboskani and Mounir El Asmar
Earned value management systems (EVMS), also called integrated project and program management systems, have been greatly examined in the literature, which has typically focused on…
Abstract
Purpose
Earned value management systems (EVMS), also called integrated project and program management systems, have been greatly examined in the literature, which has typically focused on their technical aspects rather than social. This study aims to hypothesize that improving both the technical maturity of EVMS and the social environment elements of EVMS applications together will significantly impact project performance outcomes. For the first time, empirical evidence supports a strong relationship between EVMS maturity and environment.
Design/methodology/approach
Data was collected from 35 projects through four workshops, attended by 31 industry practitioners with an average of 19 years of EVMS experience. These experts, representing 23 organizations, provided over 2,800 data points on sociotechnical integration and performance outcomes, covering projects totaling $21.8 billion. Statistical analyses were performed to derive findings on the impact of technical maturity and social environment on project success.
Findings
The results show statistically significant differences in cost growth, compliance, meeting project objectives and business drivers and customer satisfaction, between projects with high EVMS maturity and environment and projects with poor EVMS maturity and environment. Moreover, the technical and social dimensions were found to be significantly correlated.
Originality/value
Key contributions include a novel and tested performance-driven framework to support integrated project management using EVMS. The adoption of this detailed assessment framework by government and industry is driving a paradigm shift in project management of some of the largest and most complex projects in the U.S.; specifically transitioning from a project assessment based upon a binary approach for EVMS technical maturity (i.e. compliant/noncompliant to standards) to a wide-ranging scale (i.e. 0–1,000) across two dimensions.
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Parul Gupta, Fangfang Zhang, Sumedha Chauhan, Sandeep Goyal, Amit Kumar Bhardwaj and Yuvraj Gajpal
This study aims to examine the factors (Stimuli) enhancing perceived utilitarian, social and conditional values (Organisms) of social commerce (s-commerce) platforms and their…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the factors (Stimuli) enhancing perceived utilitarian, social and conditional values (Organisms) of social commerce (s-commerce) platforms and their impact on small and medium enterprises’ (SMEs’) behavioral intention (Response) to adopt s-commerce.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey data were gathered from 304 Indian SMEs using s-commerce platforms. Data were analyzed using SmartPLS 3 software.
Findings
The results indicated that perceived values significantly impact SMEs’ behavioral intention to adopt s-commerce. Among conditional, utilitarian and social values, the conditional value of s-commerce sites was found to be the strongest motivator for SMEs to adopt s-commerce.
Research limitations/implications
This research contributes to the growing literature on s-commerce, explaining how perceived value influences the decision of SMEs to adopt s-commerce platforms.
Practical implications
Among the significant influencers, perceived usefulness and perceived reputation were found to be the most effective triggers that stimulate perceived values of s-commerce sites. The findings draw due attention from policymakers toward environmental cues such as the legal and regulatory environment, which are instrumental in creating the most important perceived value for SMEs, i.e. conditional value.
Originality/value
By employing the inputs from the theory of consumption values and the Stimulus-Organism-Response framework, this original study looked beyond the technology factors and examined the role of perceived values of s-commerce platforms in shaping SMEs’ behavioral intention to adopt.
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Xi Xu, Jing Liu and Jia Hao Liu
Motivating users to self-disclose online is significant to the long-term development of social media. Therefore, research on emotional disclosure, a significant form of…
Abstract
Purpose
Motivating users to self-disclose online is significant to the long-term development of social media. Therefore, research on emotional disclosure, a significant form of self-disclosure, is required. By developing a stimulus-organism-response model, this study aims to investigate the mechanisms by which the social media environment affects users' online emotional disclosure.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper proposes two dimensions of social media environments, the online interpersonal environment (tie strength and network size) and the online information environment (self-reference). They are hypothesized to stimulate users' internal psychological needs (image management and emotional expression) which in turn will influence their emotional disclosure intentions. Using data from 489 users of WeChat Moments, the authors conduct partial least squares analysis to validate the research model.
Findings
The findings show that users' intrinsic psychological needs are stimulated by social media environments, but network size is not correlated with the need for emotional expression. The user's need for emotional expression promotes both positive and negative emotional disclosure intentions. The need for image management has a positive impact on positive emotion disclosure intentions but has a negative impact on negative emotion disclosure intentions.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the understanding of online emotional disclosure. It can also help social media managers create efficient plans to encourage users to create content.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-04-2022-0245.
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