bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Tasting green: an experimental design for investigating consumer perception of organic wine
Authors: Wiedmann Klaus-Peter , Hennigs Nadine , Henrik Behrens Stefan , Klarmann Christiane 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– There is empirical evidence that the image of organic products has a stronger effect on consumer perception than the intrinsic characteristics. Against this background, the aim of this paper is twofold; first, to ascertain if the stimulus “organic food”, placed by storytelling, influences the perception of wine. Based on this, the study tries to discover wherein a positive perception of organic wine might be reflected (e.g. willingness to pay premium prices, better taste perception).

Design/methodology/approach
– Focusing on the consumer perception and evaluation of conventional versus organic wine, it was decided to use an experimental design with a blind taste test procedure. The prediction was that subjects would rank a wine described as organic higher than a conventional wine – even if there is no objective difference. Consumer perceptions and attitudes toward the wines were assessed using a questionnaire including wine preference, buying and recommendation intention, and willingness to pay. Besides, consumer wine knowledge and consumer personal environmental orientation were measured as individual constructs.

Findings
– In accordance with existing research insights, consumers tend to prefer organic products over conventional ones. In this context, the experiment shows that adding information on the product's process during a blind test leads consumers to increase their ratings in favour of the “organic wine”. Interesting is that consumers even give a better rating for “conventional wine” just described as being “organic”, indicating that the appearance and taste are perceived to be better, and the price intention is higher – thus, a pure signalling effect is achieved.

Originality/value
– The key finding of the study was that even if they tasted the identical product, the respondents ascribe a significantly better taste to the organic-labelled wine compared to the conventional alternative. Besides, the willingness to recommend the organic wine and the willingness to pay differed significantly from the evaluation of the red wine presented as “conventional”. Moreover, regardless of their knowledge and attitude towards organic products in general, all respondents rated the so-called organic wine higher in all given attributes.
Adoption of quality management practices
Authors: Moges Belay Alemu , Moges Kasie Fentahun , Helo Petri , Takala Josu , J. Powell Daryl 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between quality management practice and labor productivity in labor-intensive manufacturing companies in a developing nation and benchmark with the world average.

Design/methodology/approach
– Primary and secondary data were collected from 34 selected companies. The primary data were obtained using a questionnaire survey to determine the quality management adoption level of each company using the European Business Excellence Model. Secondary data also collected in order to compute labor productivity of each organization and benchmark with international norms.

Findings
– In this research, labor productivity is measured by revenues per employee and total assets per employee and found that adopting quality management has strong relationships with revenue per employee unlike total asset per employee that is weakly related.

Originality/value
– Several authors suggest a positive relationship between adoption quality management principles and productivity in large organizations located in developed countries. However, this paper particularly focuses on labor productivity of labor-intensive companies.
Benchmarking the performance indicators of Indian Railway container business using data envelopment analysis
Authors: Bhanot Neeraj , Singh Harwinder 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– Indian Railways being sole government organization for infrastructure, operations and regulatory functions entered for competition in the container segment in January 2006 through private-public participation for customer-centric competitiveness to break monopolistic control of Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) introducing limited licensing policy. The purpose of this research work is to carry out benchmarking the performance indicators in Indian Railway container business and select private players.

Design/methodology/approach
– A case study has been conducted employing data envelopment analysis (DEA) methodology on secondary data of container terminals of CONCOR, Adani and Gateway logistics. Data from the year 1995-1996 till 2010-2011 have been used for performance evaluation within CONCOR itself and comparative analysis for all three organizations from 2005-2006 till 2010-2011.

Findings
– The exercise identified efficiency trends fluctuating between 87.5 and 100 percent within CONCOR owing to haphazard infrastructure developed while comparison with private players showed 38.31-77.59 percent efficiency fluctuation concurrent to licensing policy norms.

Research limitations/implications
– The reliability of data provided by the selected operators for needful research is merely on the information and available sources.

Originality/value
– The study enables the reader to gain some valuable insights from a managerial perspective by the use of DEA methodologies so as to formulate strategies to foster better performance.
Environmental tests of embedded thin- and thick-film resistors in comparison to chip resistors
Authors: Steplewski Wojciech , Dziedzic Andrzej , Borecki Janusz , Koziol Grazyna , Serzysko Tomasz 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of parameters of embedded resistive elements manufacturing process as well as the influence of environmental factors on their electrical resistance. The investigations were made in comparison to the similar constructions of discrete chip resistors assembled to standard printed circuit boards (PCBs).

Design/methodology/approach
– The investigations were based on the thin-film resistors made of NiP alloy, thick-film resistors made of carbon or carbon-silver inks as well as chip resistors in 0402 and 0603 packages. The polymer thick-film resistive films were screen-printed on the several types finishing materials of contact terminations such as copper, silver, and gold. To determine the sensitivity of embedded resistors versus standard assembled chip resistors on environmental exposure, the climatic chamber was used. The measurements of resistance were carried out periodically during the tests, and after the exposure cycles.

Findings
– The results show that the change of electrical resistance of embedded resistors, in dependence of construction and base material, is different and mainly not exceed the range of 3 per cent. The achieved results in reference to thin-film resistors are comparable with results for standard chip resistors. However, the results that were obtained for thick-film resistors with Ag and Ni/Au contacts are similar. It was not found the big differences between resistors with and without conformal coating.

Research limitations/implications
– The studies show that embedded resistors can be used interchangeably with chip resistors. It allows to save the area on the surface of PCB, occupied by these passive elements, for assembly of active elements (ICs) and thus enable to miniaturization of electronic devices. But embedding of passive elements into PCB requires to tackle the effect of each forming process steps on the operational properties.

Originality/value
– The technique of passive elements embedding into PCB is generally known; however, there are no detailed reports on the impact of individual process steps and environmental conditions on the stability of their electrical resistance. The studies allow to understand the importance of each factor process and the mechanisms of operational properties changes depending on the used materials.
Covered solution for a grey linear program based on a general formula for the inverse of a grey matrix
Authors: Li Qiao-Xing , Liu Sifeng , Wang Nai-Ang 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– This paper attempts to establish the general formula for computing the inverse of grey matrix, and the results are applied to solve grey linear programming. The inverse of a grey matrix and grey linear programming plays an important role in establishing a grey computational system.

Design/methodology/approach
– Starting from the fact that missing information often appears in complex systems, and therefore that true values of elements are uncertain when the authors construct a matrix, as well as calculate its inverse. However, the authors can get their ranges, which are called the number-covered sets, by using grey computational rules. How to get the matrix-covered set of inverse grey matrix became a typical approach. In this paper, grey linear programming was explained in detail, for the point of grey meaning and the methodology to calculate the inverse grey matrix can successfully solve grey linear programming.

Findings
– The results show that the ranges of grey value of inverse grey matrix and grey linear programming can be obtained by using the computational rules.

Practical implications
– Because the matrix and the linear programming have been widely used in many fields such as system controlling, economic analysis and social management, and the missing information is a general phenomenon for complex systems, grey matrix and grey linear programming may have great potential application in real world. The methodology realizes the feasibility to control the complex system under uncertain situations.

Originality/value
– The paper successfully obtained the ranges of uncertain inverse matrix and linear programming by using grey system theory, when the elements of matrix and the coefficients of linear programming are intervals and the results enrich the contents of grey mathematics.
Grey evaluation empirical study based on center-point triangular whitenization weight function of Jiangsu Province industrial technology innovation strategy alliance
Authors: Zhang Yu , Ni Jie , Liu Jian , Jian Li-rong 
Published: January 2014

Purpose– This paper aims to investigate the performance of Jiangsu Province industrial technology innovation strategy alliance.Design/methodology/approach– Through a preliminary investigation of 30 Jiangsu industrial technology innovation strategic alliances, this paper analyzed the status and extracted 18 alliances to conduct an in-depth investigation. By grey evaluation method based on center-point triangular whitenization weight function, the paper classified and analyzed alliances.Findings– The results show that university or research institutions-oriented alliance perform better, but the government/enterprise-oriented alliance perform diverse, and majority is rated “general”.Originality/value– The paper succeeds in clustering analysis to Jiangsu Province industrial technology innovation strategy alliance with insufficient data. And according to the result of clustering, it analyzes the causes, which provide value information for the sustainable development of Jiangsu Province industrial technology innovation strategy alliance.
Approaches to supervising work-based learning students’ workplace research
Authors: Talbot Jon , Lilley Andy 
Published: January 2014

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to outline a small research project designed to explore the practices of the UK work-based learning (WBL) tutors in facilitating formal research projects in the workplace.Design/methodology/approach– Data were collected using a short questionnaire to practitioners administered electronically and a daylong workshop where issues were discussed in greater depth by participating tutors.Findings– The main findings are that there is a degree of agreement by WBL tutors about the distinctiveness of WBL research projects; that although there is increasing use of technology to support delivery only one institution is using e-learning as the principal means of delivery; emphasis is upon a relatively small number of techniques and there is a strong preference for qualitative over quantitative methods.Research limitations/implications– The main limitation of the study is the relatively small number of active participants. However, this is the only study of its kind and the results offer insights into an important element of pedagogic practice in WBL.Practical implications– The project enabled the identification of common approaches and facilitated discussion of problems shared by WBL tutors across the field. There appears to be a consensus that situated investigation exists within a different contextual framework to traditional academic dissertation projects and that the focus is therefore necessarily on generating data as the basis for active problem solving.Originality/value– This is the only empirical study of practice in respect of facilitating research projects on WBL programmes in higher education.
Professional artefacts: embodying ideas in work-based learning
Authors: Nottingham Paula , Akinleye Adesola 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to present and examine the addition of a “professional artefact” to the course requirements for the BA Honours Professional Practice (BAPP) (Arts) programme at Middlesex University.

Design/methodology/approach
– This paper takes a case study approach using reflection, indicative theories and consideration of student work to evaluate the introduction of the “professional artefact” into the BAPP (Arts) curriculum. Following pragmatist and phenomenological descriptions of the lived experience as embodied (Dewey et al., 1989; Merleau-Ponty, 2002) and using learning models based on experience in the workplace (Boud and Garrick, 1999), the paper's methodology takes the work-based principle of “experience as knowledge” to examine the impact of the professional artefact on students learning.

Findings
– The professional artefact has proven to be a useful way for the learners on the course to reflect on the purpose of their own study and the ways in which work-based learning can be incorporated into their practice through embodied “ideas”.

Practical implications
– The paper suggests that the inclusion of a professional artefact to the curriculum provides a flexible means for bridging academic and workplace learning. The inclusion of the professional artefact could be recommended as a strategy for other work-based learning programmes.

Originality/value
– The added value for professional practice is that the professional artefact provides a flexible and creative means of communication for emerging and establishing workplace professionals.
Guidelines for supporting placement learning via video communications technologies
Authors: Taylor Teri 
Published: January 2014

Purpose– Current drivers in higher education have led to the questioning of traditional placement support methods. Within many programmes, students undertaking practice-based learning experience structured, one-to-one support from an academic in the placement location. With the financial and environmental implications of this practice, the potential for using video-based communications as a replacement for face-to-face dialogue was explored. The paper aims to discuss the above issues.Design/methodology/approach– Three phases of an action research cycle were undertaken; working with students to explore the logistics of implementation, fitness for purpose of the medium and fundamental differences between video and face-to-face dialogue.Findings– The results from the three phases demonstrated the complexity of video-based communications for placement support. In conclusion, widespread implementation of this medium requires greater consideration and understanding of a wide range of theoretical stand points, and an emphasis on the principles of individualised learning. However, the tensions between individual learning need and mass-delivered curriculum are recognised.Originality/value– Requests for practical guidance on the implementation of this technology in this context, have directed the development of guidelines underpinned by the findings from this study. Whilst undertaken primarily within physiotherapy, placement-based learning is common to a wide range of subjects. In addition, with increases in international student numbers, support from a distance may necessitate the use of video-based communications. The developed guidelines are not prescriptive, but aim to provide a starting point for both the uninitiated and those moving from personal use of technology to application in academia.
Determinants for innovation implementation at SME and inter SME levels within peripheral regions
Authors: McAdam Rodney , Reid Renee , Shevlin Mark 
Published: January 2014

Purpose– Innovation efforts of small- or medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in peripheral regions are limited both by innate resource limitations and by location factors such as excessive distance from key markets and higher cost bases for new technology. However, the emergence of the knowledge economy may enable leveraging of knowledge to address such innate limitations. The aim of this study is to twofold. First, the study explores how SMEs in peripheral areas, i.e. challenging regions, seek to implement innovation from a path perspective by examining the contributions from antecedent and mediator variables or constructs, including knowledge-based factors identified in the literature, using a cross-sectional survey of SMEs at firm level. Second, to further examine how these path model constructs and relationships contribute in a causal manner to innovation implementation at an activity level of analysis based on knowledge-based view and dynamic capability theory, using a case study analysis.Design/methodology/approach– A sequential mixed method approach is used. In relation to the first aim a hypothetical path model is tested using structured equation modelling techniques based on a cross-sectional survey of SMEs in peripheral regions (n=604). For the second aim, to further examine how the path model constructs and relationships contribute to innovation implementation in a causal manner at an activity level of analysis, an explanatory case-based approach is used based on dynamic capability theory.Findings– The findings show that at a firm level knowledge factors influence innovation implementation as mediating factors through knowledge acquisition and assimilation which is consistent with potential absorptive capacity, and knowledge sharing linkages. Antecedent factors of lifecycle, leadership, culture and historical propensity to innovation were found to interact with the mediating variables of knowledge acquisition and assimilation, TQM/business improvement and knowledge sharing linkages (external), to produce a range of innovation outputs, including knowledge transformation and sales of new products and services from innovation activities. Based on the case study findings the underlying knowledge-based dynamic capabilities which contribute to the relationships within the path model were identified and further research agendas established.Originality/value– There is a relative paucity of studies on innovation implementation within SMEs in peripheral regions using a knowledge-based perspective at firm level, as opposed to regional level (e.g. regional innovation studies). In this context unique resource limitations and the contribution of knowledge-based factors need to be addressed. This study seeks to compliment regional level studies by making a contribution at both a cross-sectional SME or firm level and at an activity level of analysis in this area and to identify areas for further research.
Unveiling the growth process: entrepreneurial growth and the use of external resources
Authors: Furlan Andrea , Grandinetti Roberto , Paggiaro Adriano 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– Business research and entrepreneurship literature typically examines external resources as input or output of entrepreneurial (or high) growth. The purpose of this paper is to combine these two perspectives in describing and modeling high growth.

Design/methodology/approach
– The study tests the hypotheses on a sample of medium-sized, established manufacturing firms using structural equation modeling.

Findings
– Results provide original contributions to the business research on firm growth and entrepreneurship. They are consistent with studies advocating the importance of adopting a process perspective when studying business growth to probe the causal mechanisms behind growth.

Research limitations/implications
– Being quantitative, this study does not address the dynamic interdependencies between proprietary and hybrid growth. However, the literature on entrepreneurship would benefit from qualitative studies that explore how successful and sustainable growth processes combine the two modes of growth.

Originality/value
– Findings partially discard the input and output approach in favor of a vision of entrepreneurial growth as a process that unfolds over time with the development of external relationships. Only the process of collaboration, a core competence of entrepreneurial firms, reduces information asymmetries and agency problems, thus turning the corresponding inter-organizational relationships into formidable feeders of firm growth. Entrepreneurial growth is in fact a process that needs external relationships in order to flourish over time.
The changing demands of academic life in Ireland
Authors: Dowling-Hetherington Linda 
Published: January 2014

Purpose
– The consequences of institutional change for faculty is an under-researched aspect of the higher education (HE) sector in Ireland. The purpose of this paper is to report on the changing demands of academic life in Ireland.

Design/methodology/approach
– A case study of the School of Business at the largest university in Ireland, University College Dublin, set out to determine the extent to which HE change is impacting on faculty. The research, involving 28 interviews with faculty and manager-academics, covered the five-year period since the appointment of a new President in 2004.

Findings
– The research provides evidence of an increasing focus on more explicit research output requirements; the growth of routine administration and teaching and learning compliance requirements; and the greater intensification of work and working hours.

Research limitations/implications
– While the university was at the forefront in implementing large-scale institutional change in Ireland, further research is needed to explore the issues raised in this paper in the context of other schools and the remaining six Irish universities.

Originality/value
– Few empirical research studies have been conducted in Ireland on how institutional change is impacting on the working lives of faculty. This paper serves to shine a light, for the first time, on the perspectives of faculty regarding the changing demands of academic life in Ireland.