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1 – 10 of 34Mehdi Zaferanieh, Mahmood Sadra and Toktam Basirat
This paper aims to propose a bi-level mixed integer linear location-allocation problem. The upper-level objective function is dedicated to minimizing the total distances covered…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to propose a bi-level mixed integer linear location-allocation problem. The upper-level objective function is dedicated to minimizing the total distances covered by customers to meet the p-selected facilities and the fixed cost values for establishing these facilities. While in the lower level, a customer preference function evaluates the priority of customers in selecting facilities.
Design/methodology/approach
The solution approach to the proposed model uses the Karush–Kuhn–Tucker (KKT) optimality conditions to the lower-level problem where a set of p-selected facilities are introduced as the selection of the upper-level decision maker. The bi-level model reduces to a single-level model with some added binary variables.
Findings
Sensitivity analysis of the proposed bi-level model concerning variations of such different parameters as customers’ preferences and the number of selected facilities have been provided, using some numerical examples. Also, locating a recreational facility in Mazandaran province, Iran, has been provided to evaluate the reliability of the proposed model and efficiency of the solution approach, as well.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is original and its findings are not available elsewhere.
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This article shows how different data sources can be combined to learn about the evolution of gender norms over time. First, data on job advertisements from 1950 up to 2020 reveal…
Abstract
This article shows how different data sources can be combined to learn about the evolution of gender norms over time. First, data on job advertisements from 1950 up to 2020 reveal that there was a significant change among Swiss employers' stated preferences regarding their prospective employees' gender. More specifically, the proportion of gender-neutral job posts increased from five to almost 95% within the observation period. To further corroborate and contextualize this finding, I complement it with time series on the relative frequency of several specific queries, such as equality between men and women, from Google's German language book corpus. These additional series are broadly consistent with the evolution of the share of gender-neutral job posts. However, it also appears that there are two distinct narratives, one concerned with the personal sphere, identity, and intimate relationships, the other with the political and public realm. Interestingly, the narrative on personal relations set off considerably earlier than the change in the proportion of gender-neutral job ads. Overall, the evidence from the different data series shows that gender norms have changed substantively, yet in a complex manner, over the past decades.
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Abeer Aldawsari, Mai Alshareef, Abdulmajeed Albalawi and Abeer Bajandouh
Sivasankaran Sivanandam, Chandrapushpam Thangaraj and M. Bhuvaneswari
This study aims to present the consequences of activation energy and the chemical reactions on the unsteady MHD squeezing flow of an incompressible ternary hybrid nanofluid (THN…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to present the consequences of activation energy and the chemical reactions on the unsteady MHD squeezing flow of an incompressible ternary hybrid nanofluid (THN) comprising magnetite (FE3O4), multiwalled carbon nano-tubes (MWCNT) and copper (Cu) along with water (H2O) as the base fluid. This investigation is performed within the framework of two moving parallel plates under the influence of magnetic field and viscous dissipation.
Design/methodology/approach
Due to the complementary benefits of nanoparticles, THN is used to augment the heat transmit fluid’s efficacy. The flow situation is expressed as a system of dimensionless, nonlinear partial differential equations, which are reduced to a set of nonlinear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) by suitable similarity substitutions. These transformed ODEs are then solved through a semianalytical technique called differential transform method (DTM). The effects of several changing physical parameters on the flow, temperature, concentration and the substantial measures of interest have been deliberated through graphs. This study verifies the reliability of the results by performing a comparison analysis with prior researches.
Findings
The enhanced activation energy results in improved concentration distribution and declined Sherwood number. Enhancement in chemical reaction parameter causes disparities in concentration of the ternary nanofluid. When the Hartmann number is zero, value of skin friction is high, but Nusselt and Sherwood numbers values are small. Rising nanoparticles concentrations correspond to a boost in overall thermal conductivity, causing reduced temperature profile.
Research limitations/implications
Due to its firm and simple nature, its implications are in various fields like chemical industry and medical industry for designing practical problems into mathematical models and experimental analysis.
Practical implications
Deployment of the squeezed flow of ternary nanofluid with activation energy has significant consideration in nuclear reactors, vehicles, manufacturing facilities and engineering environments.
Social implications
This study would be contributing significantly in the field of medical technology for treating cancer through hyperthermia treatment, and in industrial processes like water desalination and purification.
Originality/value
In this problem, a semianalytical approach called DTM is adopted to explore the consequences of activation energy and chemical reactions on the squeezing flow of ternary nanofluid.
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The closure of schools and nurseries during the COVID-19 lockdowns triggered the re-insourcing of childcare to the home, sparking extensive public debate and academic research on…
Abstract
The closure of schools and nurseries during the COVID-19 lockdowns triggered the re-insourcing of childcare to the home, sparking extensive public debate and academic research on the pandemic's potential impact on gender equality (see, for example, Burgess and Goldman, 2021; Vandecasteele et al. 2022). My PhD research, which explores parents' decision-making influences when planning care during their child's first year in the UK context, coincided with COVID-19. The coinciding of my data collection with COVID-19 (seven online discussions with a total of 36 participants and 12 follow up interviews, 10 which include partners) created microcosms in which wider public debates were echoed. My research draws on the Capability Approach (CA) (Sen, 2009) to conceptualise parents' capabilities to share leave as they aspire to and employs dialogical narrative analysis (DNA) (Riessman, 2008) to explore how gendered parenting norms are constitutive of parents’ care capabilities. In this chapter, I draw on feminist ethics of care to explore the disruption of gendered parenting norms, in the COVID-19 context, within parents' decision-making and a possible ‘reimagining’ of the value attributed to care (Ozkazanc-Pan and Pullen, 2021; Tronto, 2017). My findings support anticipation of what the promise of greater flexibility could bring as a result of increased visibility of caregiving during COVID-19. However, I also find evidence which supports the caution previously recommended of the need to reflect on work cultures and the predominance of masculine ideal worker norms in the UK (Chung et al. 2021).
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This study aims to examine the predictors of the managers’ work performance under the risk-as-feelings hypothesis during the Covid-19 pandemic in four European countries…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the predictors of the managers’ work performance under the risk-as-feelings hypothesis during the Covid-19 pandemic in four European countries. Specifically, it aims to investigate the impact of risk-related job stressors and behavioral and emotional reactivities on non-managers and managers performance in risky circumstances.
Design/methodology/approach
The author assessed simultaneously the effects of occupational health risk perception and the resulting feelings and emotional state such irritability and commitment change, the effects of income and others organizational and personal variables as performance stressors. The author used a sample of 652 employees divided on two groups (71% non-managers and 23% managers). Data are obtained from the dataset in Prochazka et al., (2020) collected using online survey delivered to employees employed in their companies for a minimum of five months in the period between Mai and June 2020.
Findings
The results confirm the risk-as-feelings hypothesis and show significant effect of occupational health risk perception and associated emotional responses (irritability and commitment) on the work performance for non-managers’ group. However, for managers’ group the main determinant of work performance is the organizational commitment as explained by the job-demands-resources-model (JDRM).
Originality/value
The originality of this study is to employ the risk-as-feelings hypothesis (Loewenstein et al., 2001) in a management research question such as job performance predictors. Thus, this study contributes to the literature on job performance in two significant ways. First, it examines the risk-related job’s stressors as determinants of managers and non-managers performance under the risk-as-feelings hypothesis. Second, it tests the importance of functional differences as an approach to better investigate the framework of the JDRM (Bakker and Demerouti, 2017).
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Jashim Uddin Ahmed, Asma Ahmed, Mohammad Osman Gani and Sarika Iqbal
Among the major industries in Costa Rica, agriculture has contributed significantly to the country's economy. Felipe Vargas established ‘Varcli Pinares’ 11 years ago to produce…
Abstract
Among the major industries in Costa Rica, agriculture has contributed significantly to the country's economy. Felipe Vargas established ‘Varcli Pinares’ 11 years ago to produce good quality bananas through sustainable operations of natural systems. This case study explores the complex dynamics surrounding the Varcli Pinares agricultural farming, aiming to shed light on its multifaceted nature and provide insights into its outcomes. The company invests in circular economy by executing decarbonisation through capture of CO2 wastes and protection of forests. The business pioneered in reducing water consumption and implementing solar energy usage in banana production through innovative tools and technologies while engaging in no-herbicide practices. The unique, sustainable packaging created through waste makes a visual impact and guides customers to online platforms. The company adheres to sustainable practices while impacting the community positively. However, as a small business maintaining sustainable practices throughout the entire supply chain and competing with big companies is difficult for Varcli Pinares. Nevertheless, the company believes its simplicity and adaptability will help it thrive in the competitive industry. Through a rigorous and systematic approach, the case study aims to contribute to the existing body of knowledge in sustainable agricultural farming and provide valuable insights for practitioners and stakeholders alike.
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This introductory chapter provides the context for this edited collection: Care and Coronavirus: Perspectives on Children, Youth and Families which aims to understand care in the…
Abstract
This introductory chapter provides the context for this edited collection: Care and Coronavirus: Perspectives on Children, Youth and Families which aims to understand care in the context of COVID-19, the practices, experiences and potential futures of it for children, young people and families. In this chapter, the authors begin by exploring COVID-19 and its implications for children, young people and families. This includes a consideration of how particular discourses of childhood and youth often led to the marginalisation of children in care policy and practice during the lockdown periods. The authors then discuss interdisciplinary literature on care to identify directions in policy, practice and research, drawing attention to the political nature of care and the need for scholars of childhood, youth and family to engage with these critical and political approaches to care. The authors argue that developments in the field of Childhood Studies can be brought into productive dialogue with care to forge new ways of thinking through care and childhood. The final part of the chapter provides an overview of the ensuing chapters and concludes with the implications of this work for future research, policy and practice. The authors argue that COVID-19 heightened the attention paid to care and the ways in which care is vital for the maintenance of ourselves and the world around us, while also cautioning about the inequalities and the commodification of care that was revealed in these times. The authors end with a call for reflection on the failures and successes of caring during the pandemic and in its aftermath so we might plan a more caring, hopeful future.
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Given its ability to improve user interaction and labor productivity, ease human workloads and cut maintenance costs, public sectors are using AI-based robotic technology (AI-RT…
Abstract
Purpose
Given its ability to improve user interaction and labor productivity, ease human workloads and cut maintenance costs, public sectors are using AI-based robotic technology (AI-RT) at an accelerated rate. There is, however, little knowledge about the variables affecting citizens' participation when services backed by AI-RT are offered. In order to better understand the elements that influence AI-RT citizens' involvement and the moderating function of trusts in governmental organizations, this article draws on ideas from the Consumer Value Theory.
Design/methodology/approach
Out of 500 survey forms that were distributed to Indonesian people who had experience in using AI-RT devices in public service hall (e.g. airport’s Auto Gate), 367 returned the completed feedbacks. Data analysis used a step-by-step hierarchical moderated regression examination using SPSS 24 version.
Findings
Citizens’ involvement is positively correlated with esthetics and customization and adversely correlated with period expended using the AI-RT. Additionally, the findings imply that citizens who have greater levels of faith in governmental institutions are more likely to benefit favorably from the customization and esthetics of AI-RT.
Practical implications
The AI-RT must be capable of customizing the distribution of the appropriate materials to the appropriate individual at the appropriate moment, and public managers should guarantee that it is esthetically pleasing. Additionally, they ought to place a high priority on winning the trust of the populace in order to increase citizens’ involvement.
Originality/value
This paper was among the initial efforts that discover the determinants of citizens’ involvement in the AI-RT and the moderating effect of trusts in governmental organizations on the links between predictors and predicted variable, especially in an emerging country such as Indonesia.
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Simona Cătălina Ştefan, Ion Popa, Ana Alexandra Olariu, Ştefan Cătălin Popa and Cătălina-Florentina Popa
The current study has a two-fold purpose. Firstly, it aims to analyze the extent to which knowledge management (KM) affects the performance of individuals (task and contextual) on…
Abstract
Purpose
The current study has a two-fold purpose. Firstly, it aims to analyze the extent to which knowledge management (KM) affects the performance of individuals (task and contextual) on the one hand and that of organizations (product or service, perceived and financial) on the other hand. Secondly, it proposes to investigate the mediating effect of motivation and innovation in the relationship between KM and individual and organizational performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed in this study, with mediation analysis performed using advanced PLS-SEM techniques. A total of 1,284 respondents from organizations in both the public and private sectors were included in the sample.
Findings
The findings emphasize that KM has a more significant direct effect on individual performance compared to organizational performance. Concurrently, in terms of indirect influence, it is found that KM, through motivation and innovation, has a positive and significant effect on both individual and organizational performances, with a higher influence on the organizational one.
Originality/value
The originality of the work can be noted in designing two different structural models to represent the proposed relationships at the individual and organizational levels. These findings could provide organizational decision makers with empirical evidence, helping them (1) internalize the significance of the KM process in organizations as well as its subsequent effects on individual and organizational performance and (2) identify factors that mediate variable relationships.
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