Lihan Zhang, Bo Liu, Tianhuan Ding, Sujuan Zhang and Yongcheng Fu
Conflicts frequently occur in construction projects. Matching appropriate contractual and relational governance with conflict features to promote cooperation and thus minimize the…
Abstract
Purpose
Conflicts frequently occur in construction projects. Matching appropriate contractual and relational governance with conflict features to promote cooperation and thus minimize the negative influences of conflict is an issue that deserves attention. Our study classifies conflict types into task, process and relationship conflict and defines their combinations as conflict profiles. By conceptualizing contractual governance as the complexity of contract provisions and the strictness of contract enforcement and relational governance as trust, our study aims to explore the configurational impacts of conflict profiles and these governance mechanisms on parties’ cooperative behaviors.
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire survey was conducted, and 238 valid questionnaires were received. Fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis was performed.
Findings
Four configurations produce cooperative behaviors. The combined use of detailed contracts, rigid enforcement and high trust enhances cooperation and such a governance arrangement is not subject to any conflict profile. A relatively low level of conflict requires detailed contracts and high levels of trust. For the conflict profile characterized by high task and process conflict and low relationship conflict, parties can select contractual governance-dominant or relational governance-dominant approaches.
Originality/value
Theoretically, our study reveals the matching relationships between conflict profiles and governance mechanisms, enriching the research on conflict profiles in construction projects and the interrelation between contractual and relational governance. Practically, the findings provide project managers guidance for conflict management and selecting governance mechanisms.
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Tao Li, Jiajun Shu, Yue Li, Yanlong Wang and Bo Liu
This study aims to provide a reference basis for waterproofing for the long-term safe operation of shield tunnels. Shielding subways in the long-term operation of tunnel tube…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to provide a reference basis for waterproofing for the long-term safe operation of shield tunnels. Shielding subways in the long-term operation of tunnel tube seams leads to opening, dislocation and other issues, which in turn cause the tube sealing gasket to break and ultimately cause water seepage, and the existing symmetrical sealing gasket arrangement cannot meet the waterproofing requirements of the tunnel structure.
Design/methodology/approach
First, we carry out an indoor “one-seam” hydrostatic test to quantitatively determine the waterproofing performance of symmetric and four asymmetric arrangements of gaskets. And the arrangement with the best stability and waterproofing performance is selected. Second, we establish a three-dimensional numerical seepage model for the waterproof failure of gaskets with different arrangements, which mechanistically explains the whole course of the gradual failure of the waterproof performance of gaskets with the wedging of water. Finally, we compare and analyze the experimental results with the numerical results to verify the reliability of the different analysis methods.
Findings
The results of the research show that the gasket will undergo four stages: the initial stage, deformation stage, wedging stage, and breakthrough stage during the continuous wedging process of the water body. Compared with the symmetric arrangement of the gasket, the asymmetric arrangement of the effective contact part of the gasket stress wave peaks and troughs is smaller, the deformation stage of the ability to resist the deformation of the water pressure is stronger, and the role of the water pressure between the two sealing gaskets of the stress path is less likely to be damaged.
Research limitations/implications
The current test can't fully reproduce real engineering site conditions as it ignores factors like temperature, time and aging during waterproofing tests and lacks tests based on actual application. Only one – seam test is done, lacking research on other seams. The current seepage model has difficulty reflecting some details and needs refinement.
Practical implications
The study focuses on the tube sheet joint problem in underground tunnels and proposes four asymmetric gasket arrangements, which are tested and analysed using a variety of methods. The results show that the asymmetric arrangement has a slower decline in waterproofing capacity and better stability, providing a new method and basis for solving tunnel waterproofing problems.
Originality/value
The study focuses on the tube sheet joint problem in underground tunnels and proposes four asymmetric gasket arrangements, which are tested and analysed using a variety of methods. The results show that the asymmetric arrangement has a slower decline in waterproofing capacity and better stability, providing a new method and basis for solving tunnel waterproofing problems.
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Sophie Ghvanidze, Bárbara Franco Lucas, Thomas A. Brunner and Jon Henrich Hanf
Wine consumption is declining, while cannabis use among young adults in Germany has surged. With new laws partially legalising recreational cannabis, advocates claim it could…
Abstract
Purpose
Wine consumption is declining, while cannabis use among young adults in Germany has surged. With new laws partially legalising recreational cannabis, advocates claim it could replace alcohol, offering health benefits and cost savings. However, concerns remain that cannabis might increase alcohol consumption and associated health risks. Despite recognition of both substitute and complementary relationships between cannabis and alcohol, data on the cannabis–wine relationship is scarce. This study aims to understand the motivations behind wine and cannabis consumption, segment wine drinkers by those motives, profile wine drinkers who also consume cannabis and determine whether wine and cannabis act as substitutes or complements across distinct consumer groups.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted an online survey using random sampling and used cluster analysis to identify consumer segments based on motivations for wine consumption. Exploring various variables, including consumption motives, behavioural patterns and socio-demographics, the authors also examined cannabis consumption among wine drinkers.
Findings
This study surveyed 523 German wine drinkers aged 20–60 years, including 215 cannabis users. Four consumer segments emerged: “adaptive conformists”, “expansive strategists”, “self-conscious hedonists” and “ambivalent drinkers.” Three segments preferred wine for social and enhancing effects. “Adaptive conformists”, the group with the most cannabis users, sought negative reinforcement like conformity or coping. The “adaptive conformists” and “expansive strategists” show the tendencies of a complementary cannabis–wine relationship.
Originality/value
This study pioneers the use of the Marijuana Motives Measure scales, developed by Simons et al. (1998), within the motivational framework by Cox and Klinger (1988) and Cooper et al. (2015), for wine drinkers. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is also the first to categorise wine drinkers into segments based on MMM scales for both wine and cannabis and segment wine consumers using cannabis.
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Yingbo Gao, Bo Yan, Hanxu Yang, Mao Deng, Zhongbin Lv, Bo Zhang and Guanghui Liu
A transmission tower usually experiences bolt loosening under long-term alternating cyclic load, which may lead to collapse of the tower in extreme operating conditions. The paper…
Abstract
Purpose
A transmission tower usually experiences bolt loosening under long-term alternating cyclic load, which may lead to collapse of the tower in extreme operating conditions. The paper aims to propose a data-driven identification method for bolt looseness of complicated tower structures based on reduced-order models and numerical simulations to perceive and evaluate the health state of a tower in operation.
Design/methodology/approach
The equivalent stiffnesses of three types of bolt joints under various loosening scenarios are numerically determined by three-dimensional finite element (FE) simulations. The order of the FE model of a tower structure with bolt loosening is reduced by means of the component modal synthesis method, and the dynamic responses of the reducer-order model under calibration loads are simulated and used to create the dataset. An identification model for bolt looseness of the tower structure based on convolutional neural networks driven by the acceleration sensors is constructed.
Findings
An identification model for bolt looseness of the tower structure based on convolutional neural networks driven by the acceleration sensors is constructed and the applicability of the model is investigated. It is shown that the proposed method has a high identification accuracy and strong robustness to data noise and data missing. Meanwhile, the method is less dependent on the number and location of sensors and is easier to apply in real transmission lines.
Originality/value
This paper proposes a data-driven identification method for bolt looseness of a complicated tower structure based on reduced-order models and numerical simulations. Non-linear relationships between equivalent stiffness of bolted joints and bolt preload depicting looseness are obtained and reduced-order model of tower structure with bolt looseness is established. Finally, this paper investigates applicability of identification model for bolt looseness.
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Guanghui Ye, Songye Li, Lanqi Wu, Jinyu Wei, Chuan Wu, Yujie Wang, Jiarong Li, Bo Liang and Shuyan Liu
Community question answering (CQA) platforms play a significant role in knowledge dissemination and information retrieval. Expert recommendation can assist users by helping them…
Abstract
Purpose
Community question answering (CQA) platforms play a significant role in knowledge dissemination and information retrieval. Expert recommendation can assist users by helping them find valuable answers efficiently. Existing works mainly use content and user behavioural features for expert recommendation, and fail to effectively leverage the correlation across multi-dimensional features.
Design/methodology/approach
To address the above issue, this work proposes a multi-dimensional feature fusion-based method for expert recommendation, aiming to integrate features of question–answerer pairs from three dimensions, including network features, content features and user behaviour features. Specifically, network features are extracted by first learning user and tag representations using network representation learning methods and then calculating questioner–answerer similarities and answerer–tag similarities. Secondly, content features are extracted from textual contents of questions and answerer generated contents using text representation models. Thirdly, user behaviour features are extracted from user actions observed in CQA platforms, such as following and likes. Finally, given a question–answerer pair, the three dimensional features are fused and used to predict the probability of the candidate expert answering the given question.
Findings
The proposed method is evaluated on a data set collected from a publicly available CQA platform. Results show that the proposed method is effective compared with baseline methods. Ablation study shows that network features is the most important dimensional features among all three dimensional features.
Practical implications
This work identifies three dimensional features for expert recommendation in CQA platforms and conducts a comprehensive investigation into the importance of features for the performance of expert recommendation. The results suggest that network features are the most important features among three-dimensional features, which indicates that the performance of expert recommendation in CQA platforms is likely to get improved by further mining network features using advanced techniques, such as graph neural networks. One broader implication is that it is always important to include multi-dimensional features for expert recommendation and conduct systematic investigation to identify the most important features for finding directions for improvement.
Originality/value
This work proposes three-dimensional features given that existing works mostly focus on one or two-dimensional features and demonstrate the effectiveness of the newly proposed features.
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Paulo Duarte, Susana Silva and Maria Joana Carvalho
This paper aims to investigate the factors influencing men’s purchase intentions for skincare products, particularly focusing on the evolving attitudes toward masculinity…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the factors influencing men’s purchase intentions for skincare products, particularly focusing on the evolving attitudes toward masculinity, grooming and self-care. The study seeks to identify dimensions such as self-image, health concerns, masculinity and perceptions regarding skincare, along with the impact of social media use on men’s skincare purchase intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
The research uses an online questionnaire to gather data from 178 valid responses. The collected data is analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling.
Findings
The results reveal that men’s skin health concerns significantly impact their purchase intention for skincare products. Self-image concerns and perceptions regarding skincare also emerge as influential determinants in shaping men’s purchasing decisions. Conversely, health concerns and social media platform use do not directly influence skincare purchase intention. Notably, self-image completely mediates the relationship between men’s social media usage and their intention to purchase skincare products.
Research limitations/implications
The data is based on responses from an online questionnaire, which may introduce biases. In addition, the research focuses on specific personal variables and social media use, potentially overlooking other influential factors.
Practical implications
By recognizing the importance of men’s skin health concerns, self-image and perceptions regarding skincare, cosmetic companies can tailor marketing strategies to effectively target key dimensions to enhance sales of skincare products among men.
Social implications
In a broader societal context, this research contributes to the ongoing evolution of attitudes. By identifying influential factors in men’s skincare purchase intention, the study sheds light on changing societal norms and perceptions. Acknowledging these shifts can lead to a more inclusive understanding of masculinity and contribute to breaking traditional stereotypes related to men’s grooming practices.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the understanding of men’s skincare purchase intention by exploring dimensions such as self-image, health concerns, masculinity and perceptions regarding skincare, in conjunction with the impact of social media use. The findings provide valuable insights, expanding on previous studies on men’s attitudes toward skincare products. The identification of self-image as a complete mediator is a novel contribution.
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Wei Liu, Kaiying Guo and Bo Wendy Gao
The conventional customer lifecycle fails to acknowledge the “sleeping” stage between regular patronage and churn, particularly prevalent in the hospitality industry. This study…
Abstract
Purpose
The conventional customer lifecycle fails to acknowledge the “sleeping” stage between regular patronage and churn, particularly prevalent in the hospitality industry. This study constructs an awakening model to regain “sleeping” guests.
Design/methodology/approach
342 questionnaires from Macau using partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) were analyzed. The model was compared across different membership levels through multigroup analysis.
Findings
The results indicate that the point policy can awaken “sleeping” guests by influencing their perceived value, regret, and integrated satisfaction with a shorter “sleeping” period. Two path coefficients showed significant differences among basic and elite members.
Practical implications
Companies with loyalty programs should implement a transitional period before resetting points, leveraging altruistic point policies to awaken “sleeping” guests via direct communication. This strategy mitigates the negative impact of finite point expiration policies, enhancing customer re-engagement and point utilization.
Originality/value
Our study focuses on a crucial facet of hotel marketing—customer regain strategies. By identifying customer segments who have not revisited the hotel group for more than twelve months, we confirm the concept of “sleeping” guests. This term offers a nuanced perspective, distinguishing “sleeping” guests from generic lost customers. The “sleeping” guest segment provides valuable insights for enhancing targeted and effective marketing activities in the highly competitive hotel industry.
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Dawu Shu, Shaolei Cao, Yan Zhang, Wanxin Li, Bo Han, Fangfang An and Ruining Liu
This paper aims to find a suitable solution to degrade the C.I. Reactive Red 24 (RR24) dyeing wastewater by using sodium persulphate to recycle water and inorganic salts.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to find a suitable solution to degrade the C.I. Reactive Red 24 (RR24) dyeing wastewater by using sodium persulphate to recycle water and inorganic salts.
Design/methodology/approach
The effects of temperature, the concentration of inorganic salts and Na2CO3 and the initial pH value on the degradation of RR24 were studied. Furthermore, the relationship between free radicals and RR24 degradation effect was investigated. Microscopic routes and mechanisms of dye degradation were further confirmed by testing the degradation karyoplasmic ratio of the product. The feasibility of the one-bath cyclic dyeing in the recycled dyeing wastewater was confirmed through the properties of dye utilization and color parameters.
Findings
The appropriate conditions were 0.3 g/L of sodium persulphate and treatment at 95°C for 30 min, which resulted in a decolorization rate of 98.4% for the dyeing wastewater. Acidic conditions are conducive to rapid degradation of dyes, while ·OH or SO4−· have a destructive effect on dyes under alkaline conditions. In the early stage of degradation, ·OH played a major role in the degradation of dyes. For sustainable cyclic dyeing of RR24, inorganic salts were reused in this dyeing process and dye uptake increased with the times of cycles. After the fixation, some Na2CO3 may be converted to other salts, thereby increasing the dye uptake in subsequent cyclic staining. However, it has little impact on the dye exhaustion rate and color parameters of dyed fabrics.
Originality/value
The recommended technology not only reduces the quantity of dyeing wastewater but also enables the recycling of inorganic salts and water, which meets the requirements of sustainable development and clean production.
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Xusen Cheng, Yue Xu, Bo Yang and Yu Liu
The emergence of live streaming commerce has injected promising impetus into rural development and attracted many rural streamers. This study aims to explore the influencing…
Abstract
Purpose
The emergence of live streaming commerce has injected promising impetus into rural development and attracted many rural streamers. This study aims to explore the influencing factors of rural streamers’ engagement intentions to help promote the sustainable development of rural live streaming commerce.
Design/methodology/approach
Grounded in the extended valence framework, this research employs a mixed-methods approach encompassing both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. In the qualitative phase, the authors conduct in-depth interviews with 15 rural streamers, employing data coding techniques to uncover underlying factors. Subsequently, in the quantitative phase, the authors analyze survey data from 282 rural streamers, subjecting hypotheses to validation through structural equation modeling.
Findings
The findings derived from the analysis of both interviews and questionnaires reveal that several platform qualities, including platform rural-aiding support, perceived effectiveness of dispute resolution, perceived interactivity and platform reputation, have a positive effect on trust in the platform and validate the extended valence framework in understanding rural streamers’ live streaming intention. In addition, ties with customers have a moderating effect. Specifically, the stronger the ties with customers, the stronger the positive effect of perceived benefits and the weaker the positive effect of trust in the platform on live streaming intention will be.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the rural live streaming commerce literature and trust research from the sellers’ perspective and provides practical implications for policymakers and live streaming platform managers on enhancing rural streamers’ participation.
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Hong-Bo Jiang, Zou-Yang Fan, Jin-Long Wang, Shih-Hao Liu and Wen-Jing Lin
This study adopts the elaboration likelihood model and configuration perspectives to explore the internal mechanisms underlying the influence of live streaming on consumer trust…
Abstract
Purpose
This study adopts the elaboration likelihood model and configuration perspectives to explore the internal mechanisms underlying the influence of live streaming on consumer trust building and purchase intention.
Design/methodology/approach
This study invited 757 experienced live streaming e-commerce users from Chinese platforms such as TikTok and RED, who participated in survey by filling questionnaires collected online. The research employed a mixed-method approach using SEM and fsQCA. SEM was utilized to analyze quantitative data to determine the direct and mediated relationships within product trust, while fsQCA served as a complement to identify the combinations of conditions that enhance product trust.
Findings
The findings reveal three important insights. Firstly, in the context of live streaming e-commerce, both product characteristics and streamer characteristics significantly influence consumers' trust in products. The para-social interaction plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between streamer characteristics and product trust. Secondly, four distinct paths are identified that contribute to enhancing product trust in live streaming e-commerce. Thirdly, PSI emerging as a core condition across all four paths, underscores the importance for merchants to foster positive social interactions with consumers beyond the live streaming environment.
Originality/value
This study enhances understanding of the dynamic live streaming e-commerce industry, offering insights into consumer behavior and practical guidance for merchants seeking to build engaged, trustworthy customer relationships.