Martina Dell'Eva, Consuelo Rubina Nava and Linda Osti
The purpose of this study is to assess the role of animals in creating a satisfactory experience at a natural park by investigating the impact on visitors of the exposure to, or…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to assess the role of animals in creating a satisfactory experience at a natural park by investigating the impact on visitors of the exposure to, or absence of, fauna, towards the visitors’ overall experience.
Design/methodology/approach
The work is based on a quantitative data collection of tourists visiting a nature park. Altogether, 532 valid questionnaires were collected and used for the analysis. A series of factor analyses was conducted on pull and push factors for animal encounters. The resulting factor domains (FDs) were used as independent variables in ordinal logistic regression models to describe customer satisfaction.
Findings
The results of this study show that important FDs characterize the main visitor characteristics. Although human–animal encounters are an important factor for some visitors, the encounters should be encouraged in the most natural manner possible and not in captivity. This brings us to the concept of “Interpretation”, where guides and guided tours can help with the encounters. Information given prior to and during the visit can ensure visitors are aware that animal encounters are subject to nature and cannot be guaranteed.
Originality/value
The presence of areas where a number of animals are in captivity and can be viewed by visitors is an important decision for national parks and protected areas, as animals represent a potential attraction for visitors. Nevertheless, this decision creates an ethical dilemma in relation to the exploitation of animals, exacerbated by recent and increasing pressure on sustainable management. This study provides valuable results for guiding park managers in making reasoned decisions.
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José-María Romero-Rodríguez, María Soledad Ramirez-Montoya, Leonardo David Glasserman-Morales and Magdalena Ramos Navas-Parejo
The aim of this paper was to analyse the creative competence of students before and after a micro-learning experience carried out in a collaborative online international learning…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper was to analyse the creative competence of students before and after a micro-learning experience carried out in a collaborative online international learning (COIL) environment between Spanish and Mexican university students in the field of education and entrepreneurship.
Design/methodology/approach
A single-group quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test measures was adopted. The composition of the group was natural and included a total of 57 students who participated in the COIL experience. The duration was three weeks, where students from both countries were linked together in the development of a micro-learning project. The creativity self-efficacy scale was used as a data collection instrument.
Findings
The micro-learning activities through COIL developed the creative competence of the participating students. In particular, the groups from both universities improved their scores on the creative competence in the post-test compared to the pre-test measure.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations of this study were linked to the sample loss of some cases, as some students did not complete the post-test measure. The main implication of the study was to demonstrate that COIL experiences are suitable for developing certain skills in students, such as creative competence or co-operative work.
Originality/value
COIL experiences break down the barriers of physical space and give students an active role, allowing them to fully develop competences and offering an intercultural perspective, which encourages open-mindedness and understanding of the world.
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Enrique Sánchez-Rivas, Manuel Fernando Ramos Núñez, Magdalena Ramos Navas-Parejo and Juan Carlos De La Cruz-Campos
The aim of this paper is to explore whether the use of an active learning methodology implemented through a mobile phone can help future teachers to develop more effective reading…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to explore whether the use of an active learning methodology implemented through a mobile phone can help future teachers to develop more effective reading promotion activities than those based on traditional learning methodologies.
Design/methodology/approach
A study was conducted based on the comparison of perceptions of two groups of teacher training students. The experimental group was trained in an active methodology to promote reading on mobile phones, whilst the control group was trained in a classical methodology also using the same devices. Variables were observed using a self-administered questionnaire, and the scores obtained were analysed from their descriptive statistics of the comparison of means of Kruskal–Wallis H test.
Findings
The results showed that students perceived significant improvements associated with active learning methodology. The variables with the most remarkable results were those related to better use of the class, participation and satisfaction. However, the ubiquitous variable obtained the fewest differences, maybe because both learning methodologies were applied using mobile devices.
Originality/value
The conclusions of this study clearly suggest that combining active learning methodologies and the use of mobile phones to promote reading could lead to better results than applying traditional learning methodologies. The value of this study paves the way for future research to move forward in the discovery of effective teaching strategies based on active methods and mobile devices.
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Luigi Mersico, Selena Aureli and Eleonora Foschi
This study aims to explore how digital platforms (DPs) contribute to value co-creation in municipal solid waste (MSW) management systems.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to explore how digital platforms (DPs) contribute to value co-creation in municipal solid waste (MSW) management systems.
Design/methodology/approach
The present paper conducts an explorative analysis using single case study methodology. The case in question involves a DPs operating in Italy.
Findings
Empirical analysis shows that DPs help engage citizens in MSW and reduce the fragmentation in waste management systems by fulfilling a brokerage role that connects citizens, municipalities and waste management companies. The development of bidirectional knowledge and resource flow among actors contributes to better waste recycling processes, as well as fosters economic, environmental and social value co-creation in a complex public service.
Research limitations/implications
This research is limited to a single case study within the Italian context, which may influence the generalizability of the findings. Future research could expand the scope to include multiple case studies across different geographical regions.
Practical implications
For practitioners and policymakers, this paper underscores the strategic benefits of adopting DPs in MSW management systems and thereby improving public service delivery.
Social implications
The case analysis highlights that DPs can assist public actors in achieving numerous sustainable development goals by enhancing recycling rates and activating learning mechanisms among citizens.
Originality/value
This study contributes to literature by connecting different fields of research (i.e. waste management and public management) and using network theory to show how DPs can contribute to the economic, environmental and social sustainability of MSW while generating relevant benefits for the actors involved.
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Eugine Tafadzwa Maziriri, Brighton Nyagadza and Tinashe Chuchu
The purpose of the study was to ascertain the influence of innovation conviction, innovation mindset and innovation creed on the performance of women entrepreneurs in South…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study was to ascertain the influence of innovation conviction, innovation mindset and innovation creed on the performance of women entrepreneurs in South African small and medium enterprises and their capacity for innovation. The study also examined how proactive personality and entrepreneurial education moderate the relationship between innovative capability and women entrepreneurs' performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a quantitative research design and administered a questionnaire to collect data from participants. Since there was no sampling frame available, purposive sampling, a non-probability sampling technique, was used to select suitable respondents who were identified as entrepreneurial women. Data were collected from 304 women entrepreneurs in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The data were analyzed using smart partial least squares.
Findings
The findings demonstrated that innovation conviction, innovation mindset and innovation creed have a positive impact on innovation capability. It was also discovered that innovation capability, proactive personality and entrepreneurial education all positively and significantly impact women entrepreneurs' performance. Furthermore, the results showed that entrepreneurial education and proactive personality had a positive and significant moderating effect on the nexus between innovation capability and the performance of women entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
This study will add to the body of knowledge on women's small business management and entrepreneurship in Africa, two topics that are typically ignored by academics in developing nations.
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Regina Lenart-Gansiniec, Wojciech Czakon and Massimiliano Matteo Pellegrini
This study aims to identify context-specific antecedents to schools’ absorptive capacity (AC) and to show how those can enact “a virtuous learning circle.”
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to identify context-specific antecedents to schools’ absorptive capacity (AC) and to show how those can enact “a virtuous learning circle.”
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a mixed method: an exploration based on semi-structured interviews with educational experts; the development of a measurement scale and a partial least squares structural equation modelling to test the impact of the antecedents.
Findings
The results yielded four empirically-grounded antecedents and their measurement scales, namely, prior knowledge, employees’ skills, educational projects and interactions with the environment (Studies one and two). All antecedents are significantly and positively related to AC processes (study three). Using the organizational learning theory perspective, the results have been interpreted as an AC “virtuous learning circle.”
Practical implications
With increasing pressures to adapt, a case of which was the COVID-19 pandemic, schools can greatly benefit from absorbing knowledge flows. This suggests the construction a favourable environment for AC. To this end, the individual (employees’ prior knowledge and skills), organizational (educational projects) and institutional level of managerial action (interactions with the environment) can be effective when create a recursive organizational learning circle. In addition, this study offers an expert-validated measurement scale for self-assessment of a school’s specific contingencies, and thus, for planning of punctual interventions to develop AC.
Originality/value
This study advances the existing body of knowledge management in the educational context by rigorously identifying and validating a scale for measuring the antecedents of AC and developing an interpretive approach to the AC “virtuous circle.”
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Beatriz Ortiz, Mario J. Donate and Fátima Guadamillas
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mediating effect of the identification of valuable external knowledge on the relationship between the development of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the mediating effect of the identification of valuable external knowledge on the relationship between the development of inter-organizational ties (structural social capital) and the acquisition of external knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a sample of 87 firms from Spanish biotechnology and pharmaceutics industries, the authors have tested the proposed mediation hypothesis by applying the partial least squares technique to a structural equations model.
Findings
The study results show that those firms with stronger, more frequent and closer inter-relationships are able to increase the amount of intentionally acquired knowledge, partly due to the greater level of development of their knowledge identification capability. Thus, firms with a higher capability to recognize the value of the knowledge embedded in their inter-organizational networks will be more likely to design better strategies to acquire and integrate such knowledge into their current knowledge bases for either present or future use.
Originality/value
This research contributes to knowledge management and social capital literature by means of the study of two key determinants of knowledge acquisition – structural social capital and knowledge identification capability – and the explanation of their relationships of mutual influence. The paper thus tries to fill this literature gap and connects the relational perspective of social capital with the knowledge-based view from a strategic point of view.
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Daniel Stefan Hain and Roman Jurowetzki
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the changing pattern and characteristics of international financial flows in the emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems of Sub-Saharan…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to shed light on the changing pattern and characteristics of international financial flows in the emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), provide a novel taxonomy to classify and analyze them, and discuss how such investments contribute to competence building and sustainable development.
Design/methodology/approach
In an exploratory study, the authors analyze the characteristics of international venture capital investors and the start-ups receiving funding in Kenya and map their interaction. The authors proceed by developing a novel taxonomy, classifying investors according to their main rationales (for-profit-for-impact), and start-ups according to the locus of needs and markets addressed by the start-up (local-global) and the locus of the start-ups capacity and knowledge (local-global).
Findings
The authors observe a new type of mainly western investors who support innovative ideas in SSA by identifying and investing in domestically developed technical innovations with the potential to address global market needs. The authors find such innovations to be mainly developed at the intersect of global and local knowledge.
Originality/value
The authors shed light on the – up to now – under-researched emerging phenomenon of international high-tech investments in SSA, and develop a novel taxonomy of technology investments in low-income countries, guiding further research on the conditions, impact, practical, and policy implications of this new form of finance flows.
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Canan Mesutoglu, Saskia Stollman and Ines Lopez Arteaga
Few resources exist to incorporate principles of modular approach to course design. This research aimed to help instructors by presenting principles for practical and empirically…
Abstract
Purpose
Few resources exist to incorporate principles of modular approach to course design. This research aimed to help instructors by presenting principles for practical and empirically informed modular course design in engineering education.
Design/methodology/approach
In the first phase, a systematic literature review was completed to identify categories addressing a modular course design. Search and screening procedures resulted in 33 qualifying articles describing the development of a modular course. In the second phase, 6 expert interviews were conducted to elaborate on the identified categories.
Findings
Guided by the interview results and the ADDIE (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, and Evaluate) course design model, the categories were compiled into six design principles. To present the design principles in relation to the guiding principles of modular approach, an overarching conceptual model was developed.
Originality/value
Here, we present our innovation; a foundation for an evidence-based systematic approach to modular course design. Implications have value for supporting flexibility and autonomy in learning.
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Elona Cera, Gentjan Cera and Enis Elezi
Although scholars have been studying human resource management (HRM) and open innovation (OI), yet there is less attention to this relationship in the context of small-and…
Abstract
Purpose
Although scholars have been studying human resource management (HRM) and open innovation (OI), yet there is less attention to this relationship in the context of small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This paper aims to bring some insights about the human side of inbound open innovation (INOI) in SMEs. The goal is to better understand the role of organizational trust (OT) and developmental culture (DC) in the interactions between commitment-based HRM (C-HRM) and INOI.
Design/methodology/approach
The present study employs partial least squares-structural equation modeling to investigate the interrelationships among constructs, utilizing data gathered from a sample of 206 SMEs.
Findings
The study's empirical results indicate that the presence of OT serves as a complementary factor in mediating the relation between C-HRM and INOI. Furthermore, the analysis shows that there exists a moderating influence of DC in the relationship between C-HRM and INOI.
Practical implications
The role of HRM practices is important in developing OT and consequently foster INOI in SMEs. To achieve INOI, SMEs need a DC that induces C-HRM toward an OI approach.
Originality/value
This study adds to the understanding of the interactions between C-HRM practices and INOI in SMEs. The comprehension of the mediating function of OT and the moderating effect of DC serve to enhance the scholarly understanding of the human dimension of OI research.