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Article
Publication date: 12 July 2013

Maria Tzouriadou, George Barbas, Constantinos Vouyoukas and Eleni Anagnostopoulou

This research study aims to examine: whether preschoolers at risk form a homogenous or a heterogeneous group of high‐risk children; and in case preschoolers form a heterogeneous…

Abstract

Purpose

This research study aims to examine: whether preschoolers at risk form a homogenous or a heterogeneous group of high‐risk children; and in case preschoolers form a heterogeneous group, what are the distinctive characteristics of specific language impairment and mild intellectual disabilities groups in language acquisition and social competence that make differential early intervention necessary.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 143 Greek preschoolers aged 4.5 through 5.5 participated in the study. Among them, according to DTLA‐P:3, 42 with mild intellectual disabilities and 41 with specific language impairments were detected. A total of 60 typically developed children were also detected. Children's categorization to the above groups was verified by the Λ‐α‐T‐ω Language Competence Test Level I, which was used to estimate intra‐individual differences in language competence. To assess peer relations, a peer relation checklist was developed and standardized.

Findings

The findings of this study support the approach of the two distinct groups of high‐risk preschoolers in terms of their language and social characteristics.

Originality/value

Research findings highlight the different educational needs of high‐risk preschoolers, which make necessary the differential use of preschool curricula.

Details

Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, vol. 7 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1282

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 1993

P. DI BARBA, L.D. MARINI and A. SAVINI

The mixed variational formulation in two‐dimensional magnetostatics and the corresponding discretization are presented in a systematic way. The comparison between the mixed finite…

Abstract

The mixed variational formulation in two‐dimensional magnetostatics and the corresponding discretization are presented in a systematic way. The comparison between the mixed finite element approach and the classical one is shown with reference to some case studies; numerical results are reported.

Details

COMPEL - The international journal for computation and mathematics in electrical and electronic engineering, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0332-1649

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2024

Luis Eduardo Brandão Paiva, Lucía Muñoz-Pascual and Jesús Galende

This study aims to investigate the influence of the theory of planned behavior (TPB), innovation and sustainability, through environmental awareness, in the formation of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the influence of the theory of planned behavior (TPB), innovation and sustainability, through environmental awareness, in the formation of entrepreneurial intention (EI).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the alignment between theoretical axes, such as the theory of planned behavior, adaptation–innovation theory and the environmental axis of sustainability, quantitative research was developed with students from Brazilian and Spanish universities. We obtained a sample of 686 university students enrolled in courses related to management in both countries. Data analysis included exploratory factor analysis and logistic regression.

Findings

Our results revealed that the constructs of TPB (personal attitudes and perceived behavioral control) influenced EI, excluding subjective norms. Innovation had an influence on the EI of students from both countries. In Brazilians, valuing change predicts EI, highlighting the importance of flexibility. Conversely, Spaniards emphasize originality, valuing uniqueness and creativity as drivers of EI. Sustainability, via environmental awareness, did not influence EI.

Originality/value

With this study, we aim to encourage policies and practices aimed at higher education institutions globally, to broaden the understanding about the importance of environmental, innovative and social studies and practices aligned with the context of entrepreneurship. The final aim is to enhance social and environmental benefits generated by future entrepreneurs.

Details

Education + Training, vol. 66 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0040-0912

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 3 February 2020

Hochan Jang and Minkyung Park

The purpose of this study is to document how a traditional residential neighborhood, Ihwa village in Seoul, South Korea, is transformed into a tourist attraction and demonstrate…

2226

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to document how a traditional residential neighborhood, Ihwa village in Seoul, South Korea, is transformed into a tourist attraction and demonstrate the complexity of the overtourism phenomenon and the multifaceted conflicts among stakeholders that emerged in the course of urban transformation. Particularly, the study explores how tourism growth, urban transformation and overtourism are intertwined with each other and how the role of social media and media contributed to tourism growth and the transformation of an urban neighborhood.

Design/methodology/approach

The study conducted text analytics (a big data analysis) using personal blogs and news articles. Our data for text analytics was defined to retrieve all news articles and blogs existent in the NAVER portal, the largest Korean portal and search engine, for the period between January 1, 2006, and December 31, 2018. The data was collected using a web crawling program, TEXTOM version 3.0.

Findings

Text analysis of blog entries and news articles suggests that each medium has its unique role and domain to play. While the news media contributed to the initial surge of interest in Ihwa village, genuine growth of tourism in Ihwa village seems to be attributed to social media. Texts that appeared in blogs strongly indicated that people used their blogs to share their trip experiences, which can be subsequently assumed that blogs had an influential role in promoting a small place like Ihwa mural village, while news articles tended to highlight negative or unusual events occurred in Ihwa village. The study also addressed the multifaceted nature of the conflicts that were inherent in the issue of urban regeneration and how those conflicts were developed and manifested in the process of touristification and overtourism in Ihwa village. As touristification can manifest in various forms in different places, the case of Ihwa village demonstrates a unique development of touristification; private tourism companies or tourism agencies did not initiate or intend to cause tourism gentrification. Rather, touristification is a byproduct of urban revitalization through public art and is a result of interplay between the local government’s interest, social media and new tourist demand.

Originality/value

Text analytics using big data have rarely been attempted to understand the role of social media in relation to tourism growth and touristification of an urban tourism place. This study advances the literature by applying big data analysis to user-generated content in blogs. The study also contributes to the deeper understanding of a different developmental pattern of touristification in an urban tourism place as well as the complexity of the overtourism phenomenon and the multifaceted conflicts among stakeholders.

Details

International Journal of Tourism Cities, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-5607

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2019

Maria Gravari-Barbas and Sébastien Jacquot

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mechanisms involved in the progressive integration of marginal and peripheral urban areas, located close to established tourist…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mechanisms involved in the progressive integration of marginal and peripheral urban areas, located close to established tourist destinations, into the visited tourism perimeter, and the interplay of the supporting public and private actors. It focusses on the intertwining processes of commercial gentrification, heritagization and aestheticization of former “ordinary” or marginal areas as tools for and indications of their tourism development. It explores how the metropolitan tourism geography is progressively redesigned.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a comprehensive literature analysis, the Saint-Ouen flea market was selected as the object of study. The methodology is based on extensive in situ observations, a systematic analysis of the press and a corpus of tourist guides and several in-depth interviews with local public and private stakeholders.

Findings

This paper shows that combined public (Parisian urban and tourism stakeholders) and private interests led to the integration in the tourism perimeter of a space that was once on the margins of the tourism and metropolitan area. It highlights the mechanisms of this integration and the link between touristification, gentrification, aestheticization and artification. It was found that private investors and political decision makers regard Saint-Ouen flea market as a major opportunity for tourism and real estate development, which leads to some contradictions regarding heritage protection. Finally, it shows that market traders opposed the evolution of a commercial place into a place of symbolic consumption. At another level, it shows the stakes of tourism diversification in a metropolitan tourism destination that is characterized by overtourism.

Research limitations/implications

More studies are needed to identify not only the potential of flea markets to diversify tourist areas and practices, but also any potential resistance. The consequences on metropolitan tourism can be the subject of additional investigations: can this tourism diversification reduce overtourism in the centre, or is it only a diversification that functions as an additional driver of attractiveness? This research opens new perspectives on the modes of diversification (spatial and experiential) of metropolitan tourism as well as on the role that commercial changes play in these evolutions. It also makes it possible to question the modes of engagement of investors and traders in tourism.

Originality/value

This is an in-depth analysis of the case of Saint-Ouen flea market. The issues raised herein are applicable to similar peripheral urban areas, flea markets especially, that are rarely studied on the tourism-aestheticization-gentrification nexus. The analysis also shows the diversification of places and imaginaries of metropolitan tourism.

Details

International Journal of Tourism Cities, vol. 5 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-5607

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 August 2018

Beatriz García-Juan, Ana B. Escrig-Tena and Vicente Roca-Puig

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of how to raise organizational performance in public sector organizations through human resource management…

1907

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of how to raise organizational performance in public sector organizations through human resource management. Specifically, this paper aims to investigate the link between structural empowerment and organizational performance, and the mediating role of the psychological empowerment of employees.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors apply multilevel structural equation modeling using a sample of 103 local governments’ managers and 461 employees from Spain.

Findings

The results show that structural empowerment is positively associated with organizational performance. Surprisingly, this relationship is not mediated by psychological empowerment, although it is a powerful antecedent of organizational performance.

Originality/value

In the context of new public management, structural empowerment emerges as a useful component of human resource management for improving organizational performance in public sector organizations. Nevertheless, scant research has combined structural empowerment practices and employees’ feelings of empowerment, which would create a global view to shed light on their role to increase organizational performance. Therefore, this paper examines the mediating function of psychological empowerment (individual level) in the structural empowerment–organizational performance link (organizational level) in the context of public sector organizations.

Article
Publication date: 8 November 2019

Innocent Otache, Kadiri Umar, Yakubu Audu and Ugbede Onalo

The purpose of this paper is to employ a longitudinal approach to assess the effects of entrepreneurship education (EE) on students’ entrepreneurial intentions (EIs) through the…

1597

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to employ a longitudinal approach to assess the effects of entrepreneurship education (EE) on students’ entrepreneurial intentions (EIs) through the constructs of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), which include attitudes towards behaviour (ATB), subjective norms (SN) and perceived behavioural control (PBC). Specifically, this study aims to achieve two objectives: first, to determine if students’ ATB, SN, PBC and EIs would increase significantly after their exposure to EE; and second, to establish whether students’ ATB, SN and PBC mediate the relationship between EE and their EIs.

Design/methodology/approach

This longitudinal study employed a one-group pretest-posttest experimental research design. A self-reported questionnaire was administered to a randomly selected sample of 250 National Diploma students from five polytechnics in the North Central part of Nigeria before and after they were exposed to EE. To achieve the objectives of this study, repeated-measures t-test and partial least squares structural equation modelling were performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and SmartPLS, respectively, for data analysis.

Findings

The results of the paired-samples t-test showed that students’ ATB, SN, PBC and EIs increased significantly after their exposure to EE. Also, further data analysis revealed that EE had a significantly positive relationship with students’ ATB, SN, PBC and EIs. Similarly, the results of the structural model indicated that ATB had a significantly positive link with students’ EIs and also mediated the relationship between EE and students’ EIs. SN and PBC had a positive but not statistically significant relationship with students’ EIs and did not mediate the relationship between EE and students’ EIs.

Practical implications

The findings of this study provide interesting implications for EE and entrepreneurship policies in Nigeria. More specifically, the findings provide some practical implications for the Nigerian government and the EE curriculum developers. To achieve greater impact of EE on students’ EIs at the tertiary education level, the Nigerian government should incorporate EE into the curricula at the primary and secondary education levels. Equipping students at the primary and secondary education levels with entrepreneurial knowledge, competencies and skills would enable them to develop a strong entrepreneurial mindset even before they gain admission to tertiary institutions.

Originality/value

It is one of the few studies that have tested empirically both the direct and the indirect effects of EE on students’ EIs in a single study. Thus, it helps to further clarify the links between EE and EIs. Besides, it is among the first studies to adopt a longitudinal approach to assess the effects of EE on students’ EIs through the constructs of the TPB (i.e. ATB, SN and PBC) in the Nigerian context.

Article
Publication date: 11 January 2024

Julia Anamaria Sisu, Andrei Constantin Tirnovanu, Cristina-Claudia Patriche, Marian Nastase and George Cristian Schin

This study explores the enablers of students “entrepreneurial intentions by identifying the factors that raise students” interest in embracing an entrepreneurial career.

Abstract

Purpose

This study explores the enablers of students “entrepreneurial intentions by identifying the factors that raise students” interest in embracing an entrepreneurial career.

Design/methodology/approach

Entrepreneurship education is increasingly attracting attention as a means of fostering entrepreneurial activity and creating a culture of innovation. Developing students' entrepreneurial intentions is critical to promote entrepreneurship. This research is built on a mixed method approach of partial least squares structural equation modelling and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis.

Findings

The factors that influence students ‘entrepreneurial intentions are identified: business incubation programmes, non-reimbursable grants for entrepreneurial students, networking events to promote entrepreneurship, mentoring services, innovation labs for business idea validation and entrepreneurship courses. This knowledge can help develop effective entrepreneurship education programmes. The study also provides actionable insights for educational institutions and policymakers. It underscores the need for innovative educational platforms such as entrepreneurial bootcamps. It also highlights the value of advanced learning environments such as decision theatres to foster a culture of entrepreneurship and innovation.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the body of knowledge on entrepreneurship education. It highlights the need for a multidisciplinary approach to understand the factors that shape students’ entrepreneurial intentions.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 30 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 May 2022

Binh Do, Ninh Nguyen, Hoang Nguyen and Xinru (Angie) Jiang

The rising food demand around the globe goes hand in hand with the rapid development of the agriculture industry. However, this development at the same time has detrimental…

Abstract

Purpose

The rising food demand around the globe goes hand in hand with the rapid development of the agriculture industry. However, this development at the same time has detrimental effects on the natural environment. Hence, promoting ecological strategies in agriculture is essential for environmental sustainability. This study aims to investigate the institutional determinants of ecological strategies adopted by agricultural exporting firms and how these strategies enhance the firms' competitive advantage and financial performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was conducted to collect data from 218 managers of agricultural exporting companies in Vietnam, which is a major exporter of agricultural products. The data were analyzed using different techniques including partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

Findings

The results reveal that market pressure, regulatory pressure and competitive pressure motivate the adoption of ecological strategies among the surveyed agricultural exporting firms. Furthermore, such strategies help these firms obtain competitive advantage, which in turn increases their export financial performance. In addition, larger firms, compared to smaller firms, are more likely to adopt ecological strategies.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature by developing and validating a unique model examining the institutional pressures of ecological strategies and their outcomes in export markets. The study extends current knowledge about ecological exporting strategies for agricultural products, and its findings have several managerial and policy implications for promoting these strategies among agricultural exporting firms in emerging countries like Vietnam.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 125 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 April 2022

Bianca Brandes and Yi-Ling Lai

This study aims to investigate resistance to change and change management through a micro-level interpersonal perspective. Specifically, this paper addresses in what way external…

2233

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate resistance to change and change management through a micro-level interpersonal perspective. Specifically, this paper addresses in what way external change experts, such as coaches, identify distinctive emotional and behavioural indicators of resistance and facilitate individuals to develop positive strengths and motivation to change.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors drew upon critical realism and abductive research methodology to understand connections between coaching intervention and individual change resistance through 21 in-depth interviews with independent coaches listed in coaching associations in Germany.

Findings

This study first re-evaluates the implications of resistance and extends its meaning from negative obstacles into natural emotional responses of individuals and constructive resources for change. In addition, the study results indicate resistance can be distinguished through both explicit behaviours, body language along with implicit emotional reactions, like being tired or making small jokes. Moreover, several micro-level interpersonal approaches for coaches to apply in dealing with resistance, including understanding coachees' cognitive status and working environment, adapting varied communication styles as well as drawing upon coachees' strengths.

Practical implications

The research results offer organisations (e.g. managers and human resource professionals) essential guidelines in micro-level change management strategy by considering external coaching as a valuable option to deal with varied individual, social and contextual factors (e.g. organisational power and politics). From the organisational investment perspective, indicators of resistance and approaches to facilitate coachees' emotional reactions can be served as a preliminary protocol for stakeholders to evaluate the effectiveness of their change management schemes. Moreover, the framework outlined in this research can be considered in the future coaching education and professional development programmes.

Originality/value

Overall, this study demonstrates that external coaching is one of the valuable approaches in responding to individual resistance in organisational change management. The research findings widen existing bipolar paradigms of resistance (either change obstacles or positive resource) into a neutral spectrum that holds an impartial view on emotional reactions to change. Furthermore, individual differences and contextual factors play essential roles in the change process, e.g. coachees' personality, personal experiences, knowledge, interpretations to change process and topics as well as organisational context (e.g. power, hierarchy and culture) need to be considered into change management strategy.

Details

Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 35 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0953-4814

Keywords

1 – 10 of 63