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1 – 10 of 346Darwina Arshad, Ian R. Hodgkinson, Paul Hughes, Munirah Khamarudin, Muhammad Zulqarnain Arshad and Adibah Bari
The direct selling model adopted in the beauty and cosmetics industry puts female consumer entrepreneurs at the heart of the business model. A neglected phenomenon in female…
Abstract
Purpose
The direct selling model adopted in the beauty and cosmetics industry puts female consumer entrepreneurs at the heart of the business model. A neglected phenomenon in female entrepreneurship, this study aims to focus on female sales agents’ capabilities that are linked to sales performance and examine which capabilities might be shaped and enhanced through coaching and training in an emerging economy context.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey data were generated from a sample of 249 female sales agents who agreed to participate in a coaching and training programme run by a focal firm. Data were collected in two phases to investigate the capabilities linked to sales performance pre-intervention and the impact of coaching and training on the relationships between the capabilities and sales performance post-intervention. The time-lag data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling.
Findings
For female sales agents, self-efficacy and sales experience have a significant positive effect on adaptive sales performance both before and after the coaching and training intervention. In contrast, intellectual capital and self-motivation had a non-significant relationship with sales performance before the intervention. However, after the intervention, the relationship between these variables became positive and significant.
Originality/value
The study demonstrates the effects of pre- and post-coaching and training on female consumer entrepreneurs’ capabilities and the links to sales performance. These findings add critical empirical knowledge on how female consumer entrepreneurship may be developed and the role of entrepreneurship for female empowerment in the Asian context. Collectively, the findings bring to the fore the female sphere in consumer entrepreneurship research in emerging economies.
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Yi-Ying Chang, Feng-Yi Chiang, Qilin Hu, Ian Hodgkinson, Paul Hughes and Che-Yuan Chang
Participative leadership's influence on employee task performance has garnered significant attention in a rapidly evolving organizational landscape. This study explores the…
Abstract
Purpose
Participative leadership's influence on employee task performance has garnered significant attention in a rapidly evolving organizational landscape. This study explores the multilevel dynamics of participative leadership congruence between unit managers and direct supervisors and its effects on employee task performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on two longitudinal studies based on the firms randomly selected from the Taiwan Economic Journal (TEJ) database, the research observes the mediating role of Person-Unit fit and the moderating influence of Unit-Member Exchange in the participative leadership-performance relationship.
Findings
The findings reveal how participative leadership congruence enhances person-unit fit, which in turn benefits employee task performance. Unit-member exchange plays a critical role in augmenting the participative leadership congruence? Person-unit fit? Employee task performance relationship.
Originality/value
The study extends leadership literature by highlighting the significance of leadership alignment across levels and the interplay between psychological and social factors in improving employee performance.
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Leona Wiegmann, Annemarie Conrath-Hargreaves, Zhengqi Guo, Matthew Hall, Ralph Kober, Richard Pucci, Paul J. Thambar and Tirukumar Thiagarajah
The use of interviews for data collection is prevalent in qualitative accounting research. This paper examines vignettes – sketches of hypothetical scenarios – as a promising…
Abstract
Purpose
The use of interviews for data collection is prevalent in qualitative accounting research. This paper examines vignettes – sketches of hypothetical scenarios – as a promising complementary way to conduct interviews in qualitative accounting research.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on our experiences designing and using vignettes in five separate qualitative accounting studies, which collectively involve over 200 interviews with various participants. It discusses the opportunities the use of vignettes in interviews offers to qualitative accounting research, as well as the challenges associated with designing and using vignettes. The paper also reflects on fellow researchers’ varied reactions during seminars, workshops, and the journal review process.
Findings
Vignettes emerge as a productive and engaging complementary way for accounting researchers to obtain additional insights and perspectives not usually accessible in semi-structured interviews. The paper also provides practical insights into developing, using and publishing qualitative accounting studies using vignettes, contributing an additional behind-the-scenes view of using qualitative research methods.
Originality/value
The aim of this paper is to increase awareness of vignettes as a complement to the standard qualitative accounting interview. It provides guidance on how vignettes might be used productively for studying rare, new, emerging, complex, or multi-period real-world accounting phenomena. It also discusses how vignettes can promote transparency, honesty, and a greater level of detail in participants’ responses, as well as facilitate the involvement of lay people in accounting studies.
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Luiza Gonçalves Ferreira Nicolau, Juliana Maria Magalhães Christino, Érico Aurélio Abreu Cardozo and Frederico Leocádio Ferreira
Sustainable fashion encompasses principles of ethical production, fair trade, and the use of organic materials. This study explores the antecedents influencing behavioural…
Abstract
Purpose
Sustainable fashion encompasses principles of ethical production, fair trade, and the use of organic materials. This study explores the antecedents influencing behavioural intentions to purchase sustainable fashion among Brazilian fashion consumers, utilising the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) as a framework and examining the role of Eco-shame.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey involving 378 respondents was conducted, and structural equation modelling was applied to analyse the data.
Findings
The study revealed that Perceived Behavioural Control, Attitude, and Eco-shame significantly influenced Behavioural Purchase Intention toward sustainable fashion products. In contrast to prior research, Subjective Norms did not demonstrate a substantial influence on Behavioural Purchase Intentions.
Research limitations/implications
Enhancing the generalizability of findings necessitates expanding the sample size and employing a probability sampling method for future research endeavours.
Practical implications
In the realm of sustainable fashion consumption, it is imperative to understand consumer behaviour shifts, particularly amid the prevalence of fast fashion. This research aims to bridge this knowledge gap and underscore consumers’ motivations for selecting sustainable fashion products.
Originality/value
This study makes a theoretical contribution by introducing Eco-shame as an extension of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to evaluate Behavioural Purchase Intentions toward Sustainable Fashion Products, an innovation that has been absent from prior literature.
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The leadership of schools in England is increasingly complex due, in part, to the role of the politics of education in setting the agenda for schools. This agenda is becoming…
Abstract
The leadership of schools in England is increasingly complex due, in part, to the role of the politics of education in setting the agenda for schools. This agenda is becoming increasingly problematised due to the absence of clear policy accompanied by various interpretations and assemblages of ideology, promulgated by those in power. Populist agendas operate. In this apparent crisis of truth-telling, where truth as politically constituted is factual and axiomatic, school leaders in ever-increasing dark times, are having to navigate knowledge in what constitutes the truth and, in some cases, resort to ways to expose untruths through action. Using Arendtian thinking to illumine how two leaders lead schools through their labour and work in actively seeking truth enables thinking about the present issues issues of lying in politics and how school leaders must both understand this and expose lying in politics through truth-seeking. In doing so these two leaders adapt, translate and actively work not only to gain clarity but to actively seek truth where they become truth-tellers of a different truth.
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Rasha Kassem and Fotios Mitsakis
This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of academic and professional Higher Education (HE) staff in the UK.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of academic and professional Higher Education (HE) staff in the UK.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-method survey questionnaire was sent to almost 300 UK HE staff to secure qualitative and quantitative data to enable data triangulation.
Findings
The study found an adverse impact on academic and professional staff's mental health and wellbeing, further resulting in stress and anxiety. Several reasons for the increased stress and anxiety levels were identified, but social isolation and the increased workload were the most commonly reported. The most affected groups by the pandemic were females, younger staff, full-timers and those with disabilities or caring responsibilities.
Practical implications
This study offers a range of strategies to support staff's mental health and wellbeing; as such, it is of great interest to policymakers to inform their decisions of similar crisis events in the future. It also addresses some of the COVID-19 areas of research interest for the UK parliament.
Originality/value
The study's originality derives from exploring the pandemic's impact on UK HE staff's mental health and wellbeing by including professional staff's experiences alongside those of academics. It also expands the scant evidence concerning the pandemic's impact on HE staff in the UK.
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In family firms, growth is intricately linked not only to strategic business decisions but also to the dynamics of generational involvement and entrepreneurial orientation (EO)…
Abstract
In family firms, growth is intricately linked not only to strategic business decisions but also to the dynamics of generational involvement and entrepreneurial orientation (EO). While previous research has explored the connection between family firm growth and EO, it often overlooks the moderating role that generational involvement could play in this relationship. To address this gap in the literature and investigate its potential impact, this study aims to examine how generational involvement shapes the effects of EO on growth. Based on a quantitative study involving 150 Tunisian family firms and employing a questionnaire-based approach along with structural equation modeling using SPSS 22 and AMOS software, the findings reveal that not all dimensions of EO equally contribute to growth. Specifically, proactiveness, competitive aggressiveness, and autonomy influence growth directly and in the presence of generational involvement as moderators. The effectiveness of these dimensions in driving growth is contingent upon the active and collaborative participation of diverse family generations in the entrepreneurial activities of the family firm. This research pinpoints the importance of family firms that wish to ensure long-term EO when multiple generations are involved. It also reaffirms the importance of these notions within family firms for sustaining long-term EO. Furthermore, this study advocates for additional empirical research on the potential role of generational involvement in establishing professionalization and family governance mechanisms. It seeks to explore their impact on the sustainability of entrepreneurial family firms.
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Maryam Saeidi, Mahsa Delshad Siyahkali, Hossein Moradinasab and Gholamhossein Naseri
This study aims to explore how users’ movement is influenced by different hospital ward layouts, by using space syntax theory. This study also compared four circulation patterns…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore how users’ movement is influenced by different hospital ward layouts, by using space syntax theory. This study also compared four circulation patterns to find the best one for the study goal.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used both qualitative and quantitative methods to study how users’ wayfinding in hospitals depends on various indicators and factors. The study used Depth Map software to do case studies and then analyzed the indicators from theoretical foundations and used the Pearson Test to check the correlation between indicators. This study also looked at Iran’s Ministry of Health standards for ward layouts. Finally, the results obtained from the research data were compared to achieve a suitable model based on the research objectives.
Findings
The linear-patterned plan was the best for easy wayfinding and accessibility among four patterns. The optimal hospital circulation patterns can improve wayfinding and reduce wayfinding problems and user movement.
Originality/value
By pioneering space syntax in hospital research, this study unveils the novel interaction between path architecture and user movement. It gives new insights into current trends, helping architects, administrators and policymakers improve health-care design, efficiency and patient experience.
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Todd Morgan, Wesley Friske, Marko Kohtamäki and Paul Mills
This paper aims to examine how customer participation in new service development (NSD) and customer relationship management (CRM) technology can improve the NSD performance of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine how customer participation in new service development (NSD) and customer relationship management (CRM) technology can improve the NSD performance of manufacturing firms. Additionally, the paper examines CRM technology usage to understand how it impacts new service performance both individually and jointly with customer participation in NSD.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is a survey of 216 manufacturing managers who are overseeing the development of new services at their organizations. For the analysis, structural equation modeling is used with Amos 22.0. Measures of all latent variables in the analysis pass the traditional tests for reliability, convergent validity and discriminant validity. Furthermore, the results of a common latent factor test for common method variance and Harman’s one-factor test indicate that common method bias is not a source of endogeneity in the model.
Findings
Customer participation has a positive effect on NSD performance. CRM technology usage also has a positive effect on NSD performance. The effect of customer participation on NSD performance is enhanced by CRM technology. The results of a post hoc analysis suggest that the usage of CRM technology has the most benefit for managing the technical aspects of customer participation.
Research limitations/implications
This study has methodological limitations that may impact the generalizability of results. For instance, it is based on cross-sectional self-reported survey data, which is more subjective than longitudinal secondary data. Survey research lacks the depth and nuance of qualitative research designs, which are commonly employed to study NSD. In addition, this study focuses on large US manufacturing firms. The authors do not include small firms or international organizations in the sample. Despite these limitations, they believe the findings can provide significant contributions to the NSD literature.
Practical implications
Although prior research has shown that customer participation and CRM technology can individually influence new product development (NPD) performance, the results indicate they are equally effective factors in the development of new services. Furthermore, the authors show that customer participation can be enhanced via the use of CRM technologies. The interaction is more pronounced within the technical aspects of NSD.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the NSD literature, and it also has implications for managers leading NSD efforts in traditional tangible-product industries. The findings provide additional evidence that customer participation is an effective NSD strategy for manufacturing firms (Morgan et al., 2019). Furthermore, CRM technology is integral to NSD performance. CRM technology not only has a direct effect on NSD performance, but the interaction term of customer participation by CRM technology also has a positive effect on NSD performance.
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