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This study investigates the effect of auditing industry specialization (AIS) on the relative derivatives use for earnings management.

The sample chosen in this study comprises 30,599 firm-year observations of Chinese public companies from 2005 to 2018. The sample is divided into two time periods (2005–2013 and 2014–2018) according to the year when IFRS 9 was implemented (IFRS 9, first discussed by the International Accounting Standards Board in March 2008, is based on an expected credit loss model for determining new and existing expected credit losses on financial assets. The definition was completed in July 2014 and implemented in 2018). AIS was gauged with respect to audit firms and individual auditors, and measured by market share in number and scale of clients. Linear regression is adopted to test hypotheses. Moreover, two-stage least square model (2SLS) is used to eliminate the concern of possible endogeneity.

When gauged with respect to client scale, the scale-based AIS constrained the level of derivatives use for earnings management in the first period (2005–2013) while increased the level in the second period (2014–2018). The findings sustain for the analysis of audit firms and that of individual auditors, and for different definitions of AIS.

The positive AIS-IN relation after the adoption of IFRS 9 implies the sacrifice audit independence. This could be indebted to the government policy that favors local audit firms to be comparable to international Big 4 audit firms, and therefore results in competition among local auditors/audit firms in securing number rather than quality of clients.

The data of AIS in China are collected using a Python web crawler.

Based on social cognitive theory, this study aims to investigate the influence of perceived overqualification (POQ) on employees’ cyberloafing behavior. The mediating role of moral disengagement and the moderating roles of organizational identification (OID) and organizational decline are further examined.

The authors collected 740 valid questionnaires from participants across multiple organizations. To minimize common method bias (CMB) and enhance the reliability of the findings, data were gathered at two different time points, with a 30-day interval.

POQ positively impacts cyberloafing through the mechanism of moral disengagement. Additionally, the indirect relationship between POQ and cyberloafing via moral disengagement is moderated by OID and organizational decline. Specifically, a higher degree of OID weakens the indirect effect of POQ on cyberloafing, while a higher level of perceived organizational decline strengthens this effect.

While most existing studies on cyberloafing focus on insufficient resources, such as role conflict and workload, the authors propose that surplus personal resources, exemplified by POQ, can also lead to cyberloafing. This research contributes to a broader understanding of antecedents of cyberloafing, highlighting the mechanism of ethical considerations and the interplay between personal qualifications, organizational identification and organizational decline.

This paper aims to provide a new method to study and improve the dynamic characteristics of the four-column resistance strain force sensor through the elastomer structure design and optimization.

Based on the mechanism analysis method, the authors first present a dynamic characteristic model of the four-column resistance strain force sensors’ elastomer. Then, the authors verified and modified the model according to the Solidworks finite element simulation results. Finally, the authors designed and optimized two types of four-column elastomers based on the dynamic characteristic model and verified the improvement of sensor dynamic performance through a hammer knock dynamic experiment.

The Solidworks finite element simulation and hammer knock dynamic experiment results show that the relative error of the model is less than 10%, which confirms the accuracy of the model. The dynamic performance of the sensors based on the model can be improved by more than 30%, which is a great improvement in sensor dynamic performance.

The authors first present a dynamic characteristic model of the four-column elastomer and optimize the four-column sensors successfully based on the mechanism analysis method. And a new method to study and improve the dynamic characteristics of the resistance is provided.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze research trends on “Wearable devices in textile filed” from 2010 to 2023 and determine the important keywords, nations and journals associated with this topic.

Utilizing journal literature on wearable devices from the 2010 to 2023 Web of Science (WoS) database, this study employs VOSviewer, biblioshiny of the R software package and the specialized software CiteSpace to generate knowledge graphs for measuring retrieval outcomes.

The research on wearable devices integrated into textiles between 2010 and 2023 can be divided into three stages: initial slow progress, subsequent rapid advancement and final slow progress, indicating a general rise in the quantity of published material. The terms “fabrication,” “wearable electronics” and “design” are closely linked in this field. China is the most globally networked country in this field, according to the World Collaboration Map. NANO ENERGY ranked first in the number of articles published in journals, with 18 articles and 1,151 citations.

The study identified the present state and research trends in the field of “Wearable devices in textile filed,” offering valuable information for researchers to enhance their understanding of the field’s progress.

Emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippines has undergone the “new normal” transition, creating a strategic recovery effort to reinvigorate the industry. In tourism, these transitions aim to safeguard employees' and guests' health and safety, ensure continuity of business operations, boost tourism confidence leading to satisfaction, and establish a resilient and sustainable tourism industry in the postpandemic era. Hence, this chapter employs a system thinking leveraging a causal loop diagram (CLD) to construct a comprehensive roadmap for Philippine tourism's postpandemic resurgence through the system thinking lens. The CLD visually illustrates the inter-related factors influencing the recovery process, encompassing collaborative engagements, innovations, economic revitalization, and health and safety protocols. By analyzing the causal relationships among these variables, this chapter explicates the dynamic and interconnected nature of the postpandemic recovery leading to the recovery of the Philippine tourism industry, especially in the context of thinking small. Through this chapter, thinking small could involve a shift toward localized solutions and community-focused initiatives that allow them to foster local economies, build resilience, and create a more inclusive and sustainable postpandemic recovery.

This study empirically investigates the impacts of technological innovation and operational efficiency on environmental performance and the moderating effects of environmental orientation.

We develop a conceptual framework based on the Porter Hypothesis. We collect a sample of 850 listed firms in China between 2010 and 2019. The fixed effect model was used to analyse the data.

The empirical findings reveal that technological innovation indirectly enhances environmental performance through operational efficiency and partially mediates this impact. We also find that environmental orientation strengthens the positive impacts of technological innovation and operational efficiency on environmental performance.

This study contributes to the literature by revealing that technological innovation is positively associated with operational efficiency and environmental performance, which suggests that technological innovation can simultaneously enhance business and environmental performance. Hence, this study provides empirical support for the Porter Hypothesis. The results also extend the Porter Hypothesis by revealing how technological innovation affects environmental performance and under what conditions technological innovation has a greater impact on environmental performance.

This paper aims to evaluate the available research to identify the factors contributing to the delays in road construction projects. The primary goals of this study are to determine the critical elements that cause delays in road projects, and to investigate the appropriate corrective actions suggested to lessen the delays in road projects. The study also assesses the theoretical background, methodology, limitations and future research prospects suggested in relevant research works related to causes for delays in road construction.

This study adopted systematic literature review in three steps: collecting relevant literature, descriptive analysis and content analysis. This study used keyword analysis and thematic content analysis on some relevant selected studies. NVivo 12 was used for thematic content analysis utilising description-focused coding, the text was thematically analysed, three other software: MS Excel, VOSviewer and Mendeley were also used for analysis in this study.

The findings revealed that road projects around the world experienced delays and the reasons for delays are many. After the analysis of literature, number of factors causing delays in road projects were identified, which were then divided into seven broad groups using thematic content analysis. The investigation shows that variations in design and inefficient management of project by contractor including inadequate planning and scheduling are the top two factors of delay. The most frequent suggested corrective measure to reduce delay was employing technically competent employees and contractor should conduct thorough survey on his part, rather than just accepting the survey report at face value.

This review paper is addressing the issues related to delays in road construction projects and suggests remedial measure to reduce them. The paper will be useful for researchers, industry professionals, academician and policy makers concerned with the road construction projects. The study conducted the review of selected relevant articles related to causes of delay in road construction projects for qualitative analysis. The research articles using quantitative methods and studies conducted on other types of infrastructure projects were not included; however, findings from this study may be applicable to other construction projects as well.

The findings of this paper are useful in the fields of economy, industry, academia and public policies. The paper thoroughly examined the factors causing delays in highway projects, offering insights for practitioners to identify best practices and mitigation strategies. These findings can guide investment and policy decisions for highway infrastructure projects, promoting a holistic approach to development. Additionally, this paper can help enhance research methods in studies about delays in road infrastructure projects.

The literature review in the paper used a qualitative method. The causes of road project delays, remedial action, context, methodology and theoretical foundation were all examined in this paper.

This study aims to evaluate the thermal performance of sodium alginate (SA) aerogel attached to nano SiO₂ and its radiative cooling effect on firefighting clothing without environmental pollution.

SA/SiO₂ aerogel with refractory heat insulation and enhanced radiative cooling performance was fabricated by freeze-drying method, which can be used in firefighting clothing. The microstructure, chemical composition, thermal stability, and thermal emissivity were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analyzer and infrared emissivity measurement instrument. The radiative cooling effect of aerogel was studied using thermal infrared imager and thermocouple.

When the addition of SiO₂ is 25% of SA, the prepared aerogel has excellent heat insulation and a high radiative cooling effect. Under a clear sky, the temperature of SA/SiO₂ aerogel is 9.4°C lower than that of pure SA aerogel and 22.1°C lower than that of the simulated environment. In addition, aerogel has more exceptional heat insulation effect than other common fabrics in the heat insulation performance test.

SA/SiO₂ aerogel has passive radiative cooling function, which can efficaciously economize global energy, and it is paramount to environment-friendly cooling.

This method could pave the way for high-performance cooling materials designed for firefighting clothing to keep maintain the wearing comfort of firefighters.

SA/SiO₂ aerogel used in firefighting clothing can release heat to the low-temperature outer space in the form of thermal radiation to achieve its own cooling purpose, without additional energy supply.

This study aims to address the degradation and damage of traditional bridge expansion joints by proposing a seamless expansion joint device based on polyurethane elastomer (PUE).

A series of laboratory experiments were conducted to evaluate the performance of PUE, including elasticity recovery, interfacial bonding and hygrothermal aging tests. Indoor model tests were also designed to analyze PUE's performance in actual bridge expansion structures. Based on these evaluations, the design of a seamless PUE expansion joint structure was completed.

The study reveals that PUE achieves optimal interfacial bond strength with PUC at −30°C after 7 h of curing and adhesive application, with a tensile strength of 9.2 MPa. PUE's elongation at break exceeds 3% at −30°C and retains its toughness and tensile strength after hygrothermal aging. When the beam end rotation reaches 0.0144 rad, PUE maintains a linear elastic state. With a groove width of 340 mm, PUE can withstand compressive displacements over 40 mm and tensile displacements up to 60 mm.

The findings highlight the excellent elasticity recovery and toughness characteristics of PUE, demonstrating the significant improvement in durability of the PUE seamless expansion joint structure and the rationality of the groove width calculation method based on the elongation at break of PUE. The broader impact of this study lies in its potential to innovate the design and maintenance strategies of bridge expansion joints.

Aiming at the inefficiency of solving the Sobol index using the traditional mathematical analytical method, a Sobol global sensitivity analysis method is proposed.

In this paper, a support vector regression (SVR) surrogate model is constructed to solve the Sobol index. The optimal combination of SVR hyperparameters is obtained by using the improved beluga whale optimization (IBWO). Meanwhile, in order to solve the problem that Sobol sequences will form correlation regions in high-dimensional space leading to the uneven distribution of sampling points, a scrambled strategy is introduced in the Sobol sensitivity analysis using IBWO-SVR. Thus, the IBWO-SVR-SS sensitivity analysis model is established.

The results of two test functions show that the method further improves the accuracy of the sensitivity analysis. Finally, the first-order Sobol index and second-order Sobol index are solved by the IBWO-SVR-SS method using the metro bogie frame as an engineering example. Through the analysis results, the key design parameters of the frame and the design parameter combinations with more obvious coupling relationships are identified, providing a strong reference for the subsequent analysis and structural optimization.

Sobol sensitivity analysis using the surrogate model method can effectively improve the efficiency of the solution. In addition, IBWO is used for the optimization of the SVR hyperparameters to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the optimization, and finally, the correction of the Sobol sequence through the introduction of the disruption strategy also further improves the accuracy of the sensitivity analysis of Sobol.