Stanislav Mahula, Evrim Tan, Joep Crompvoets and Paul Timmers
This article investigates decision-makers’ motivations in public sector organisations (PSOs) for pursuing blockchain technology (BCT) projects in government settings. The research…
Abstract
Purpose
This article investigates decision-makers’ motivations in public sector organisations (PSOs) for pursuing blockchain technology (BCT) projects in government settings. The research sheds light on the underlying motivations that drive decision-makers to pursue BCT despite its inherent complexity and uncertainty.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employs a grounded theory approach to explore the motivational factors influencing PSO decision-makers. It integrates theoretical perspectives from public innovation, public administration and technology adoption scholarship to link these motivational elements to academic debates within public management literature. The empirical insights are derived from semi-structured interviews with representatives involved in BCT initiatives.
Findings
In the pre-adoption stage, decision-makers are motivated to engage with blockchain for future services if there are knowledgeable stakeholders with relevant experience, a well-justified business case, sufficient resources and a supportive organisational environment free from undue pressure for immediate results. Conversely, uncertain project continuity, limited existing legislation and the PSOs’ internal regulations are seen as demotivators to engage with BCT.
Research limitations/implications
The findings call for further research to examine the extent to which the identified (de)motivators interact with managerial decisions, such as delegate control or governance design, in the actual implementation processes.
Originality/value
By combining theoretical insights with empirical data, this study offers a unique perspective on how organisations approach new technologies while also underscoring the need to consider unique aspects of BCT in the public sector setting, such as its governance and control, infrastructural and legal changes and the necessary skills.
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Abdullah Altun, Taner Turan and Halit Yanikkaya
The study evaluates the effects of GVC participation on firm productivity and profitability. Hence this study aims to find evidence whether there is a clear difference between the…
Abstract
Purpose
The study evaluates the effects of GVC participation on firm productivity and profitability. Hence this study aims to find evidence whether there is a clear difference between the productivity and profitability effects of simple and complex backward and forward participations for Turkish firms.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors employ a firm level data from the Türkiye's both first and second top 500 industrial enterprises from 1993 to 2019. In addition, the authors calculate country-sector level both backward and forward GVC participation indices with their simple and complex sub-indices for each year from 1990 to 2015 from the Full Eora data of the Eora Global Supply Chain Database. The authors estimate the model with OLS and fixed effects. To understand the role of the 2008 global crisis, the authors also undertake estimations for the pre-crisis and post-crisis. The authors also divide the data by R&D intensity of sectors.
Findings
While backward GVC participation lowers both labor productivity and profitability growth, forward GVC participation promotes both. Moreover, simple and complex backward participation have similarly negative effects on productivity and profitability growth, simple and complex forward participation have the completely opposite effects though. The authors then provide substantial evidence for the differing effects of participation on productivity and profitability growth between pre-crisis and post-crisis periods. Interestingly, backward participation has a negative impact for both hi-tech and low-tech firms while forward participation boosts the productivity growth only for low-tech firms, probably due to the relatively more upstream position of low-tech firms.
Originality/value
To the best of the knowledge, no previous study has yet examined the profitability effects of GVC for firms. Second, in addition to overall backward and forward GVC participation rates, the authors also calculate and utilize simple and complex GVC measures in the estimations. Third, to reveal whether the global financial crisis leads to a shift in the productivity and profitability effects of GVCs, the authors separately run the regressions for the pre- and post-crisis periods. Fourth, the authors then investigate the argument that hi-tech sectors/firms could benefit more from joining GVCs compared to firms in low-tech technology sectors.
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Ghanshyam Pandey, Surbhi Bansal and Shruti Mohapatra
The purpose of this paper is to examine the market integration and direction of causality of wholesale and retail prices for the chickpea legume in major chickpea markets in India.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the market integration and direction of causality of wholesale and retail prices for the chickpea legume in major chickpea markets in India.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the authors employ the Johansen co-integration test, Granger causality test, vector autoregression (VAR), and vector error correction model (VECM) to examine the integration of markets. The authors use monthly wholesale and retail price data of the chickpea crop from select markets in India spanning January 2003–December 2020.
Findings
The results of this study strongly confirm the co-integration and interdependency of the selected chickpea markets in India. However, the speed of adjustment of prices in the wholesale market is weakest in Bikaner, followed by Daryapur and Narsinghpur; it is relatively moderate in Gulbarga. In contrast, the speed of adjustment is negative for Bhopal and Delhi, weak for Nasik, and moderate for retail market prices in Bangalore. The results of the causality test show that the Narsinghpur, Daryapur, and Gulbarga markets are the most influential, with bidirectional relations in the case of wholesale market prices. Meanwhile, the Bangalore market is the most connected and effective retail market among the selected retail markets. It has bidirectional price transmission with two other markets, i.e. Bhopal and Nasik.
Research limitations/implications
This paper calls for forthcoming studies to investigate the impact of external and internal factors, such as market infrastructure; government policy regarding self-reliant production; product physical characteristics; and rate of utilization indicating market integration. They should also focus on strengthening information technology for the regular flow of market information to help farmers increase their incomes.
Originality/value
Very few studies have explored market efficiency and direction of causality using both linear and nonlinear techniques for wholesale and retail prices of chickpea in India.
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Sumanjeet Singh, Dhani Shanker Chaubey, Rohit Raj, Vimal Kumar, Minakshi Paliwal and Seema Mahlawat
This study explores the intricate relationship between social media communication, consumer attitude and purchase intention within the context of lifestyle category products. With…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explores the intricate relationship between social media communication, consumer attitude and purchase intention within the context of lifestyle category products. With the rapid proliferation of social media platforms, businesses have turned to these platforms to connect with consumers and influence their purchasing decisions. This study aims to provide an in-depth analysis of how social media communication strategies impact consumer attitudes and, in turn, influence purchase intentions.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employs partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to analyze the data collected from a sample of consumers.
Findings
The results of this study present that lack of visibility (LV), low-efficiency levels (LEL) and unpredictable elements (UE) are ranked as the top three major risk hurdles whereas real-time information on a package’s location (LV1), putting a GPS tracking system to track last-mile journey (OT3) and users wants on time location of their package (LV2) are ranked as top three most significant criteria affecting the practices of modern last-mile logistics in e-commerce businesses.
Research limitations/implications
The results of this study contribute to our understanding of how social media influences consumer behavior in the lifestyle product sector, shedding light on the underlying mechanisms that drive consumer purchasing decisions.
Originality/value
By constructing and testing experimentally a research model that reveals a thorough analysis of pertinent literature and identifies multiple important elements influencing consumer behavior in the lifestyle category, this paper adds to the body of knowledge on marketing. Practical ramifications for lifestyle firms are examined, along with suggestions for improving their social media tactics, in light of the findings.