bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Stressor effects of negative online reviews on anger and burnout in the restaurant industry
Authors: Weber Karin , Bradley Graham L. , Sparks Beverley
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Owners, managers and employees may be criticized personally and professionally by consumers in online reviews, and may suffer emotional and burnout consequences. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of customer-generated negative online reviews on hospitality employees.

Design/methodology/approach

This research analyzed the effects of traditional face-to-face customer-related social stressors, as well as a newly added negative online review (NOR) stressor, on anger and burnout in a sample of 418 US hospitality workers.

Findings

Structural equation modeling revealed that, after taking into account the contribution of customer-related social stressors, receipt of NORs predicts anger and anger mediates the relationships between NOR-receipt and two indices of burnout.

Practical implications

This research extends our understanding of social stressors that apply to workers in the hospitality industry. It offers strategies for managing the threats and optimizing the opportunities, provided by negative online reviews.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first studies that provide evidence of the personal impact of NORs on hospitality industry employees, thereby extending our understanding of social stressors that apply to workers in this industry.
Effect of restaurant manager emotional intelligence and support on front-of-house employees’ job satisfaction
Authors: Han Su Jin , Kim Woo Gon , Kang Sora
Published: October 2017

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the influence of restaurant manager’s emotional intelligence (EI) and manager support on service employees’ attitudes and performance by applying affective event theory.

Design/methodology/approach

The multi-level research approach incorporates three different levels of analysis: employees’ job satisfaction and service performance; manager’s EI and support; and) restaurant unit level service under pressure. Data were collected from wait staff employed in full-service restaurants in the southeastern region of the USA. This research uses the hierarchical linear model to process the survey data.

Findings

The findings indicate that manager EI and support have a significant impact on employees’ job satisfaction, and further leads to high levels of service performance. The moderating effect of service under pressure between leader’s EI and employees’ job satisfaction is not statistically significant.

Practical implications

Results suggest practical management implications to restaurant managers and frontline service employees. This study’s research findings imply management training and development programs should help managers regulate their own and better understand service employees’ emotions. Findings further highlight the important role manager support has upon employee’s job satisfaction and frontline service performance.

Originality/value

The present study offers a comprehensive perspective to better understand the variation of employees’ job satisfaction that arises from three different sources: between individuals, between teams and between restaurants. The findings also provide new insight into EI scale development.
Shaping and enhancing airport lounge experiences
Authors: Lee Sanghyeop , Chua Bee-Lia , Kim Hyeon-Cheol , Han Heesup
Published: October 2017

Purpose

In consideration of the lack of research regarding airline lounge customers’ behavior, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among brand personality, self-congruity, functional congruity, positive emotion, customer satisfaction and revisit intentions in airline lounges.

Design/methodology/approach

On the basis of theoretical associations among study constructs, a conceptual model was proposed and tested using the data collected from airline lounge patrons through an online survey.

Findings

The empirical results showed that brand personality was positively related to self-congruity. Self-congruity was significantly associated with positive emotions and functional congruity. In addition, functional congruity was significantly associated with positive emotions. This result also indicated that positive emotion significantly influenced customer satisfaction. The mediation tests showed that both self-congruity and functional congruity significantly affected customer satisfaction through positive emotion. Customer satisfaction was a significant predictor of revisit intentions within the context of airline lounges.

Practical implications

Overall, these results help airline lounge operators understand lounge travelers who become more demanding with regard to brand personality, self-congruity and functional congruity.

Originality/value

This research was the first to test the effectiveness of image congruity theory in the domain of airline lounges. Our findings contribute to the body of knowledge on customer behaviors in airline lounges and image congruity.
Practices and roles of Irish occupational therapists’ with adults with intellectual disabilities who access supported employment services
Authors: Hynes Patrick Joseph , Harb Alia
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Work is good for one’s health and well-being. Work for people with disabilities should be encouraged because it is therapeutic and improves participation in the society, leading to better health outcomes. It develops interpersonal relationships and enhances life quality. Work is an aspiration for many people with intellectual disability. Within research literature, there appears to be a lack of research into the experience of occupational therapists in Ireland who refer adults with intellectual disabilities to supported employment services. The purpose of this paper was to explore the experience of Irish occupational therapists who refer adults with intellectual disabilities to supported employment services.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with four occupational therapists recruited through the Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland (AOTI). Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Findings

Themes that emerged were as follows: occupational therapy participants did not directly refer adults to supported employment but received referrals; occupational therapy roles included assessments, task analysis and development of client’s skills are major components of current practice; pragmatics involved factors that facilitate and challenge; and future roles.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to occupational therapy practice knowledge by providing a perspective on supported employment in Ireland. Occupational therapists should continue to work in the area of supported employment to support social inclusion and enable participation. Further research with occupational therapists working in this field is required to inform practice.
The relationship between attitudes in Poland towards the decommodified welfare state with those on the communist economy and transition to a market economy
Authors: John Rae Gavin
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is threefold: to examine social opinions in Poland towards the decommodified ideal type of welfare state, as developed by Esping-Andersen; to look at the extent to which this is correlated with opinions towards aspects of the Communist economy and the transition from this system; and to show how opinions on decommodification and the Communist economy and transition are multi-faceted and reflect differing socio-economic interests.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on data obtained from a questionnaire asked to a random sample of 1,001 respondents in Poland. A factor analysis of questions related to the topic is carried out and then bivariate correlation and multivariate regression analyses are performed to test the relationship between attitudes towards decommodification and the (post) Communist economy.

Findings

It is discovered that the opinions of Polish society are close to many aspects of the decommodified welfare model, although these are not homogenous. There is a significant correlation between opinions towards the Communist economy and transition with the decommodified welfare state, although this weakens when the respondents are asked about more specific issues of welfare that most directly relate to their everyday lives.

Originality/value

The paper uses high quality data from an original data source, to both examine opinions on the welfare system and the Communist economy and transition. This allows us to better understand opinions towards the welfare state in Poland and understand how the historical legacy of Communism influences these opinions.
Sunset for the American Dream
Authors: Taylor Kenneth Bruce
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present and explore the deleterious socioeconomic consequence of six interrelated trends upon the sustainability of the personal portion of America’s social contract.

Design/methodology/approach

Neoclassical economic growth theory is used to frame the discussion of the trends in significant variables. This paper is a general review and draws on widely available data and academic insights of scholars.

Findings

This detailed examination leads to rejection of ergodicity and concludes that the existing social contract is unrealizable and unsustainable in present form for all but a shrinking minority of citizens.

Research limitations/implications

The conclusion is robust but tentative since the trends reviewed are not fixed and may deviate from existing trend lines given undetermined government policies and unforeseeable technological developments.

Originality/value

The paper examines the origins and implications of six adverse systemic trends, highlighting the fact that existing policy prescriptions lack understanding of – and/or scale to comprehensively address – a growing existential threat to the Liberal Tradition’s entrenched social contract.
A difficulty in Arrow’s impossibility theorem
Authors: Qudrat-I Elahi Khandakar
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it evaluates the impossibility proposition, called the “Arrow impossibility theorem” (AIT), which is widely attributed to Arrow’s social choice theory. This theorem denies the possibility of arriving at any collective majority resolution in any group voting system if the social choice function must satisfy “certain natural conditions”. Second, it intends to show the reasons behind the proliferation of this impossibility impression.

Design/methodology/approach

Theoretical and philosophical.

Findings

Arrow’s mathematical model does not seem to suggest or support his impossibility thesis. He has considered only one voting outcome, well known by the phrase “the Condorcet paradox”. However, other voting results are equally likely from his model, which might suggest unambiguous majority choice. This logical dilemma has been created by Arrow’s excessive dependence on the language of mathematics and symbolic logic.

Research limitations/implications

The languages of mathematics and symbolic logic – numbers, letters and signs – have definite advantages in scientific argumentation and reasoning. These numbers and letters being invented however do not have any behavioural characteristics, which suggests that conclusions drawn from the model merely reflect the author’s opinions. The AIT is a good example of this logical dilemma.

Social implications

The modern social choice theory, which is founded on the AIT, seems to be an academic assault to the system of democratic governance that is dominating current global village. By highlighting weaknesses in the AIT, this paper attempts to discredit this intellectual omission.

Originality/value

The paper offers a counter example to show that the impossibility of social choice is not necessarily implied by the Arrow’s model. Second, it uses Locke’s theory of human understanding to explain why the concerned social scientists are missing this point. This approach is probably entirely novel in this area of research.
Economic growth and the development of banking and insurance sector in the post-liberalized India
Authors: Kaushal Shrutikeerti , Ghosh Amlan
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The importance of banking and insurance, as an important part of the financial system, has been well accepted in the growth literature. Acting as financial intermediaries they perform important functions that may contribute in economic growth. Addressing this issue, the purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth in India in the post-liberalized era when the private sector was allowed to operate banking and insurance business.

Design/methodology/approach

In order to find the long-run and short-run relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth, the study uses the VAR-vector error correction model (VECM) along with Granger causality test to explore any causal relationship.

Findings

The results indicate that there is the long-term relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth and the causality results show a bi-directional relationship between insurance activity and economic growth; however, banking is not granger cause of insurance or economic growth rather it is economic growth that cause banking development.

Research limitations/implications

The only limitation to the study is the non-availability of monthly figures of GDP. The study therefore, as suggested by RBI, uses monthly data set of Index of Industrial Production to measure economic growth.

Practical implications

The findings of the study give policy directions to the policymakers to make strategies that are conducive toward boosting development in insurance in order to achieve the targeted economic growth.

Originality/value

This work is the first attempt to study the conjoint relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth on the Indian economy after the reforms were initiated in the financial sector.
Church attendance, faith and the allocation of time: evidence from Australia
Authors: Kortt Michael A. , Steen Todd , Sinnewe Elisabeth
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of church attendance and the formation of “religious human capital” using a Becker-inspired allocation-of-time framework.

Design/methodology/approach

Data derived from three waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey were used to estimate a reduced-form two-equation system where the endogenous variables were frequency of attendance at religious services and intensity of faith.

Findings

The results indicate that while the hourly wage rate accounts for some of the variation in the attendance and faith regressions (i.e. higher wages lead to lower levels of attendance and faith), “allocation of time” variables like working long hours also influence these dimensions. The findings also suggest that the decision to attend or not or to have any faith at all is generally independent from economic factors. However, once the decision to attend or to have faith is made, an individual’s wage influences the degree of attendance or faith to a significant level.

Originality/value

The study contributes to this embryonic body of empirical literature by providing – to the best of the authors’ knowledge – the first results for Australia.
Creative economy assessment: a case study of Kish Island
Authors: Lafzi Ghazi Elham , Goede Miguel
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the case of Kish, which is a small island off the coast of Iran, using the creative indicators of a creative economy.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the extant literature, a set of performance measures and factors are identified for the creative economy. This set is mainly based on Florida’s theory on the creative class. The case of Kish Island is evaluated based on these indicators, and after analysis, conclusions are drawn.

Findings

Kish Island, with its numerous tourist attractions, shows remarkable creative industries that highlight the presence of the creative class and the development of a creative economy in this area.

Originality/value

The paper illustrates the model of a creative economy assessment for the small Kish Island and finally provides a good understanding of the concept of the creative economy as a key element of the creative city.
Distributional impact of public expenditure on human development in Nigeria
Authors: Edeme Richardson Kojo , Nkalu Chigozie Nelson , Ifelunini Innocent A.
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop and apply a distributional impact assessment methodology to empirically analyze distributional impact of public expenditure on human development using data from 20 states in Nigeria. For robustness of the analysis, expenditure on education, health, agriculture, rural development, energy, housing, environmental protection and portable water resources are employed as predictors of human development. The result reveals that expenditure on education, health, agriculture, rural development and water resources has positive marginal impact on human development. In contrast, the marginal impact of energy, housing and environmental protection is negative. Among the sectors, education, health, agriculture, rural development and water resources expenditure has positive marginal impact while energy, housing and environmental protection have decreasing marginal impact on human development.

Design/methodology/approach

Panel approach.

Findings

The result reveals that expenditure on education, health, agriculture, rural development and water resources has positive marginal impact on human development.

Originality/value

A panel approach is used to investigate whether expenditure on education, health, agriculture, rural development and water resources has positive marginal impact on human development.
Can trade liberalisation bring benefits to the war-affected regions and create economic stability in post-war Sri Lanka?
Authors: Naranpanawa Athula , Bandara Jayatilleke
Published: October 2017

Purpose

There is a large body of literature on the link between trade liberalisation, growth and poverty. However, less attention has been paid to the relationship between trade and regional disparities. The purpose of this paper is to identify and quantify the regional impacts of trade liberalisation, particularly in the war-affected regions and to understand to what extent trade reforms can contribute to the post-war recovery process and long-term economic and political stability in Sri Lanka.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors developed a single country multi-regional computable general equilibrium (CGE) model for the Sri Lankan economy to meet the need for a detailed country study as emphasised in the recent literature.

Findings

Both short-run and long-run results suggest that all regions including war-affected regions in the country gain from trade liberalisation, although gains are uneven across regions. Furthermore, the results suggest that war-affected regions gain more relative to some other regions in the long run.

Originality/value

According to the best of the authors’ knowledge within country regional impact of trade liberalisation using a multi-regional CGE model has never been attempted for Sri Lanka. The results of this study, even though based on Sri Lankan data, will be relevant to other developing countries engulfed in internal conflicts with regional economic disparities.
Age and the pursuit of happiness among immigrants
Authors: Siemers Sarinda Taengnoi , Robson Denise
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how various factors, particularly ones associated with ability to assimilate to a new country such as social capital and human capital, may affect the happiness of immigrants in different age groups.

Design/methodology/approach

The study utilizes the New Immigrant Survey 2003, which is a nationally representative survey of immigrants who became permanent US residents, to produce four separate ordered logit regressions, each for a different age group, 18-34, 35-49, 50-59, and 60 and older.

Findings

The empirical results indicate that employment is important to happiness among young immigrants (age 18-34). For middle-aged immigrants happiness is strongly related to family life (i.e. being married, having children), human capital, and wealth. For older immigrants (age 60 and over) happiness is significantly linked to social capital (i.e. involvement in religious institutions, communication ties to friends and family).

Practical implications

Understanding factors associated with the happiness of immigrants can help communities to undertake appropriate support and services for different age groups.

Originality/value

The study differentiates what contributes to the happiness of immigrants in different age groups. Most studies only include a binary categorical variable for age groups and do not employ a fully differentiated analysis for age. The study also explores how social capital relates to happiness. Studies of happiness among immigrants mostly omit any role of social capital variable.
Who benefits from the high-price segment in commodity markets?
Authors: Mann Stefan , Ritzel Christian
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Vegetable oils are usually considered commodities. The purpose of this paper is to use disaggregated import data from Switzerland to show two phenomena. The first is that a growing high-price segment exists in these markets; the second is that least developed countries (LDC) are usually excluded from the benefits of this niche.

Design/methodology/approach

A detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis for coconut oil is carried out, using fixed effects regressions for the quantitative part and objective hermeneutics for the qualitative part.

Findings

The analysis indicates that prices depend on the quantity imported and on the country of origin and that entrepreneurs outside the LDC attempt to create new niche markets, whereas actors in the bulk markets tend to ignore these niches and to continue relying on LDC.

Social implications

Bulk markets may continue to exist, but the importance of niches is certainly increasing and should be extended to LDC.

Originality/value

It could be shown which market dynamics exist and which of them leave LDC behind.
The role of moral transaction mode for sustainability of banking business
Authors: Aliyu Sirajo , Yusof Rosylin Mohd , Naiimi Nasri
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose the use of Islamic moral transaction mode as a moderator in sustainable Islamic microfinance banks (IMFBs) business model.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper highlighted the major issues of microfinance banks in Nigeria and presented an integrated model that will suffice the long-term survival of the institution. Moreover, regression analysis is also employed to examine the impacts of financial outreach on the Nigerian economic growth.

Findings

The authors find that Islamic moral transaction mode will moderate the sustainable Islamic banking business which can influence the sustenance of IMFBs and the well-being of the society through financial outreach.

Research limitations/implications

The paper has empirically tested the impact of financial outreach on growth, and suggested future studies to investigate the existing relationships among the proposed model components. Therefore, further studies have the opportunity to develop measurements that will guide in testing the model, as well as strengthening its components.

Practical implications

Implementing this model will enhance the sustainability of IMFBs and socio-economic well-being of the society through financial outreach. Consequently, this study also suggests other policy measures that will improve the sustenance of IMFBs and the society as a whole.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the existing literature of microfinance banks by linking the components of the sustainable business model to primary evidence of Sharia coupled with an in-depth link to generosity.
Motivations, income determinants and livelihood vulnerability of female teenage head porters in Kasoa, Ghana
Authors: Otieku Evans , Ackah Charles Godfred , Forkuor David
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide statistical and empirical evidence on the motivations, income determinants and livelihood vulnerabilities of female teenage head porters. The paper draws from the motivational theory and the livelihood vulnerability approach to assess the motivations, livelihood vulnerabilities and income determinants of female teenage head porters in Kasoa, Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

The mixed methods data collection instruments were used to collect primary data from 200 randomly sampled female teenage head porters in Kasoa. It includes both close and open-ended questionnaires, one case study and personal observation.

Findings

Based on the estimation, the study found that household poverty, unemployment, desire for regular income and quest for personal independence were significant motivational factors drawing teenage girls into head porting. Also, age of respondents and years of experience in the occupation were the significant determinants of income of respondents. Exposure to frequent malaria, stress and physical pains were common livelihood risk factors faced by the respondents. Majority of them were from the northern region of Ghana and less than 20 percent of them had formal education.

Practical implications

The paper proposed for extensive implementation of robust macroeconomic and specific social protection interventions to enhance equal job and income opportunities as well as to protect the vulnerable.

Originality/value

The study provides statistical and empirical results different from other related studies (Opare, 2003; Awumbila, 2007; Baah-Ennumh et al., 2012; Akanle and Chioma, 2013).
Deferred repair of inconsistencies resulting from retroactive updates of temporal XML currency data
Authors: Hamrouni Hind , Grandi Fabio , Brahmia Zouhaier
Published: October 2017

Purpose

A temporal XML database could become an inconsistent model of the represented reality after a retroactive update. Such an inconsistency state must be repaired by performing corrective actions (e.g. payment of arrears after a retroactive salary increase) either immediately (i.e. at inconsistency detection time) or in a deferred manner, at one or several chosen repair times according to application requirements. The purpose of this work is to deal with deferred and multi-step repair of detected data inconsistencies.

Design/methodology/approach

A general approach for deferred and stepwise repair of inconsistencies that result from retroactive updates of currency data (e.g. the salary of an employee) in a valid-time or bitemporal XML database is proposed. The approach separates the inconsistency repairs from the inconsistency detection phase and deals with the execution of corrective actions, which also take into account enterprise’s business rules that define some relationships between data.

Findings

Algorithms, methods and support data structures for deferred and multi-step inconsistency repair of currency data are presented. The feasibility of the approach has been shown through the development and testing of a system prototype, named Deferred-Repair Manager.

Originality/value

The proposed approach implements a new general and flexible strategy for repairing detected inconsistencies in a deferred manner and possibly in multiple steps, according to varying user’s requirements and to specifications which are customary in the real world.
Detecting and presenting welcome-news for tourists from user reviews
Authors: Nadamoto Akiyo , Sakai Keigo
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Recently, people usually use the internet to obtain travel information, when they plan their travel. They especially want to obtain sightseeing spot information from reviews, but there are huge amounts of reviews of sightseeing spots. Users therefore cannot obtain important information from the reviews easily. As described herein, this paper aims to propose a system that automatically extracts and presents welcome news for sightseeing spots from reviews. This proposed Welcome-news is a “useful information” and “unexpected information” related to travel.

Design/methodology/approach

The flow for extracting Welcome-news from reviews is simple: A user inputs a sightseeing spot about which to get information; the system obtains reviews of the sightseeing spot and divides each sentence into reviews; the system extracts sentences including Welcome-news keyword(s), and the sentences become useful information; the system extracts unexpected information from useful information based on clustering, and it becomes Welcome-news; and the system presents all Welcome-news to the user.

Findings

This paper reports three findings: extraction of useful information for sightseeing spots based on Welcome-news keywords extracted by our experiment and using support vector machine (SVM); extraction of unexpected information for sightseeing spots by clustering; and automatic presentation of Welcome-news.

Originality/value

Numerous studies have extracted information from reviews based on some keywords. This proposed extraction of Welcome-news for travel not only uses keywords but also clusters based on topics. Furthermore, the proposed keywords include general keywords and unique keywords. The former appears for all kinds of sightseeing spots. The latter appears only for sightseeing spot. The authors extracted general keywords manually, and unique keywords using SVM.
Twitter user growth analysis based on diversities in posting activities
Authors: Yamamoto Shuhei , Wakabayashi Kei , Satoh Tetsuji , Nozaki Yuri , Kando Noriko
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to clarify the characteristics of growth users over a long time to strategically collect a large amount of specific users’ tweets. Twitter reflects events and trends in users’ real lives because many of them post tweets related to their experiences. Many studies have succeeded in detecting events along with real-life information from a large amount of tweets by assuming users as social sensors. To collect a large amount of tweets based on specific users for successful Twitter studies, the authors have to know the characteristics of users who are active over long periods of time.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors explore the status of users who were active in 2012, and classify users into three statuses of Dead, Lock and Alive. Based on the differences between the numbers of tweets in 2012 and 2016, the authors further classify Alive users into three types of Eraser, Slumber and Growth. The authors analyze the characteristic feature values observed in each user behavior and provide interesting findings with each status/type based on Gaussian mixture model clustering and point-wise mutual information.

Findings

From their sophisticated experimental evaluations, the authors found that active users more easily dropped out than inactive users, and users who engaged in reciprocal communications often became Growth type. Also, the authors found that active users and users who were not retweeted by other users often became Eraser type. The authors’ proposed methods effectively predicted Growth/Eraser-type users compared with the logistic regression model. From these results, the authors clarified the effectiveness of five feature values per active hour to detect intended Twitter user growth for strategically collecting a large amount of tweets.

Originality/value

The authors focus on user growth prediction. To appropriately estimate users who have potential for growth, they collect a large amount of users and explore their status and growth after three years. The research quantitatively clarifies the characteristics of growth users by clustering using robust feature values and provides interesting findings obtained by analysis. After that, the authors propose an effective prediction method for growth users and evaluate the effectiveness of their proposed method.
Dynamic SAX parameter estimation for time series
Authors: Zan Chaw Thet , Yamana Hayato
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The paper aims to estimate the segment size and alphabet size of Symbolic Aggregate approXimation (SAX). In SAX, time series data are divided into a set of equal-sized segments. Each segment is represented by its mean value and mapped with an alphabet, where the number of adopted symbols is called alphabet size. Both parameters control data compression ratio and accuracy of time series mining tasks. Besides, optimal parameters selection highly depends on different application and data sets. In fact, these parameters are iteratively selected by analyzing entire data sets, which limits handling of the huge amount of time series and reduces the applicability of SAX.

Design/methodology/approach

The segment size is estimated based on Shannon sampling theorem (autoSAXSD_S) and adaptive hierarchical segmentation (autoSAXSD_M). As for the alphabet size, it is focused on how mean values of all the segments are distributed. The small number of alphabet size is set for large distribution to easily distinguish the difference among segments.

Findings

Experimental evaluation using University of California Riverside (UCR) data sets shows that the proposed schemes are able to select the parameters well with high classification accuracy and show comparable efficiency in comparison with state-of-the-art methods, SAX and auto_iSAX.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper is the way to find out the optimal parameters of SAX using the proposed estimation schemes. The first parameter segment size is automatically estimated on two approaches and the second parameter alphabet size is estimated on the most frequent average (mean) value among segments.
Investigating the post-adoption stage of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony diffusion
Authors: Shih Ying-Wei , Wu Ya-Ling , Wang Yi-Shun , Chen Chiung-Liang
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the post-adoption stage of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony diffusion, examining usage behavior based on Shih and Venkatesh’s use-diffusion (UD) model.

Design/methodology/approach

The research model incorporates technology sophistication, complementary technologies, personal innovativeness, self-efficacy, trust propensity, media exposure, subjective norms, and word-of-mouth (WOM) referrals as UD determinants; rate of use and variety of use as usage variables; intense use, specialized use, nonspecialized use, and limited use as UD patterns; and satisfaction and intention to use future-related technologies as UD outcomes. Data used to test the research model were collected using a web-based online questionnaire form; 360 valid responses were obtained. Partial least squares, multinomial logistic regression, and analysis of variance were used to analyze data.

Findings

The results reveal that variety of use, self-efficacy, propensity to trust, media exposure, subjective norms, and WOM referrals increase rate of use, while complementary technologies, personal innovativeness, self-efficacy, media exposure, and subjective norms widen variety of use; variety of use is essential in predicting UD outcomes; when choosing limited use as the reference category, more than half of the UD determinants are capable of predicting UD patterns; and generally, intense users are more satisfied with VoIP telephony, while limited users have less intention to use future-related technologies.

Originality/value

The present study focuses on the post-adoption stage, thereby extending the frontiers of research on the diffusion of VoIP telephony. Academics can obtain some evidence of the explanatory power of the UD model in the context of VoIP telephony use, and practitioners can obtain fresh insights into the dynamics of VoIP telephony usage behavior.
An extended conceptual framework to understand information and communication technology-enabled socio-economic development at community level in Bangladesh
Authors: Ashraf Mahfuz , Grunfeld Helena , Hoque Md. Rakibul , Alam Khorshed
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have received much attention as a tool for development for several decades. One way in which ICTs were introduced in developing countries, particularly prior to the advent of smartphones, was through shared access and information centres. Many of these were established as pilots, but were unable to operate without external funding and were often declared failures. And some of them probably were, particularly those that focussed exclusively on ICT as a technology, rather than on how the centres could contribute to improving livelihoods. The purpose of this paper is to explore how some centres, namely “Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) Gonokendra” in three villages of Bangladesh, influenced socio-economic development.

Design/methodology/approach

This study was informed by the Heeks and Molla’s extended information chain model and Sen’s “development as freedom”. The field study was undertaken in three BRAC Gonokendras located in different villages in rural Bangladesh.

Findings

While the authors found that the centres contributed to socio-economic development, this contribution was limited by social constraints, hindering the well-being of individuals and families. Addressing social constraints thus remains a challenge in order for ICTs to contribute to development.

Originality/value

The extended framework to investigate ICT-led socio-economic development implies that ICT as a catalyst can promote development at micro/community level only by simultaneously addressing social constraints.
Exploring and expanding students’ success in software testing
Authors: Mishra Deepti , Ostrovska Sofiya , Hacaloglu Tuna
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Testing is one of the indispensable activities in software development and is being adopted as an independent course by software engineering (SE) departments at universities worldwide. The purpose of this paper is to carry out an investigation of the performance of learners about testing, given the tendencies in the industry and motivation caused by the unavailability of similar studies in software testing field.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is based on the data collected over three years (between 2012 and 2014) from students taking the software testing course. The course is included in the second year of undergraduate curriculum for the bachelor of engineering (SE).

Findings

It has been observed that, from the performance perspective, automated testing outperforms structural and functional testing techniques, and that a strong correlation exists among these three approaches. Moreover, a strong programming background does help toward further success in structural and automated testing, but has no effect on functional testing. The results of different teaching styles within the course are also presented together with an analysis exploring the relationship between students’ gender and success in the software testing course, revealing that there is no difference in terms of performance between male and female students in the course. Moreover, it is advisable to introduce teaching concepts one at a time because students find it difficult to grasp the ideas otherwise.

Research limitations/implications

These findings are based on the analysis conducted using three years of data collected while teaching a course in testing. Obviously, there are some limitations to this study. For example, student’s strength in programming is calculated using the score of C programming courses taken in previous year/semester. Such scores may not reflect their current level of programming knowledge. Furthermore, attempt was made to ensure that the exercises given for different testing techniques have similar difficulty level to guarantee that the difference in success between these testing techniques is due to the inherent complexity of the technique itself and not because of different exercises. Still, there is small probability that a certain degree of change in success may be due to the difference in the difficulty levels of the exercises. As such, it is obviously premature to consider the present results as final since there is a lack of similar type of studies, with which the authors can compare the results. Therefore, more work needs to be done in different settings to draw sound conclusions in this respect.

Originality/value

Although there are few studies (see e.g. Chan et al., 2005; Garousi and Zhi, 2013; Ng et al., 2004) exploring the preference of testers over distinct software testing techniques in the industry, there appears to be no paper comparing the preferences and performances of learners in terms of different testing techniques.
The development and validation of a two-staged adoption model of RFID technology in livestock businesses
Authors: Hossain Mohammad Alamgir , Standing Craig , Chan Caroline
Published: October 2017

Purpose

Grounded on the technology-organization-environment (TOE) framework, the purpose of this paper is to develop a two-stage model of radio frequency identification (RFID) adoption in livestock businesses. RFID adoption is divided into two stages, acceptance and extension. It is argued that RFID adoption in livestock businesses is influenced by technological (interoperability, technology readiness), organizational (readiness, market scope), and environmental (competitive market pressure, data inconsistency) factors.

Design/methodology/approach

From a qualitative field study, along with the support of existing literature, the authors developed a research model, which was then validated with survey data of 318 livestock businesses in Australia. Data analysis used partial least squares structural equation modeling.

Findings

Empirical results showed that interoperability, organizational readiness, and competitive market pressure, and data inconsistency significantly influence acceptance of RFID technology in livestock businesses. In addition, the extended use of RFID is determined mainly by interoperability, technology readiness, organizational market scope, and data inconsistency. The results suggested differential effect of data inconsistency– it had a negative influence on RFID acceptance but a positive impact on the extent of its use.

Originality/value

This is one of the first studies to examine RFID adoption as a two-stage process. The theoretical basis was based on TOE framework and the factors were developed from a field study. The results of this study will provide insights for different livestock industry including technologists, farm managers, and market players.
Let’s meet offline
Authors: French Aaron M.
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore new trends in social networking such as social tourism and determine motivations resulting in visiting others when traveling. A research model is created based on mixed-methods research approach to identify motivations that influence use and factors that result in the willingness to meet others through the social networking tourism (SNT) site.

Design/methodology/approach

The current research implements a mixed-methods approach using qualitative data from a questionnaire to identify motivations that were implemented in a theoretical model tested empirically using survey data. The qualitative study consisted of 11 social tourism users followed by a quantitative study using a survey that was administered to 793 social tourism users.

Findings

The results of the qualitative study identified networking, curiosity, understanding, and economic benefits as motivations for using social tourism sites. Based on validity and reliability testing, the final research model included only the motivations for networking and economic benefits. The survey results showed that trust, attitude, and use were significant antecedents to the dependent variable willingness to meet with networking and economic benefits as antecedents to attitude and use.

Research limitations/implications

This is an exploratory study so there are several limitations. First, while two motivations were ultimately identified, it is possible that other motivations should be explored. Trust is also a limitation in the current research that identifies trust as an antecedent to the willingness construct without researching factors that influence trust. Further research should be conducted to expand on the current research.

Originality/value

While there has been significant research conducted in the area of social networking, niche areas and special purpose social networks remain unexplored. The current research explores the niche area of SNT to develop a model identifying motivations for use and also creates a new construct identified as behavioral willingness to perform an action when risk is involved. Willingness to meet others through the site and its antecedents were evaluated in the current research.
Branding in a multichannel retail environment
Authors: Rezaei Sajad , Valaei Naser
Published: October 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the structural relationship between online brand equity, brand experience, brand attitude, and brand attachment while considering the moderating effect of store type (online stores vs app stores) and product type.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 459 completed online questionnaires were collected from experienced online (n=254) and app shoppers (n=205) to empirically test the proposed model. Partial least squares path modeling approach, a variance-based structural equation modeling, was performed to evaluate the measurement and the structural model.

Findings

The study’s empirical investigation validates the proposed model and implies that online brand equity, brand experience, and brand attitude explain 66 percent of variances in brand attachment. Partial least square-multi group analysis reveals that the type of store and product type are moderators to all the proposed relationships except the hypothesis on the relationship between online brand equity and brand attachment.

Originality/value

With the tremendous advancement of information technology that enables firms to deploy multichannel strategy in their core business activities, the role of brand in a multichannel retail environment has been ignored. This study is among several attempts to examine the role of brand among consumers experienced with online and app stores. The practical implications and limitation are discussed.