Paola De Bernardi, Alberto Bertello, Francesco Venuti and Enrico Foscolo
Alternative food networks (AFNs) have recently emerged in the food landscape as new ways of food production, distribution and consumption which are alternatives to the traditional…
Abstract
Purpose
Alternative food networks (AFNs) have recently emerged in the food landscape as new ways of food production, distribution and consumption which are alternatives to the traditional food system. Drawing on the tragedy of the commons, this paper aims to test the role played by social capital and transparency in reducing customer's lethargy and thus enhancing AFN performance in terms of frequency and quantity of purchases made by customers.
Design/methodology/approach
An ordered probit model was used to analyse data from a strong database of 2,115 Italian AFN customers. Given the novelty of the topic, the quantitative survey was anticipated by a preliminary qualitative study based on in-depth interviews, focus groups and participant observation.
Findings
Customers play an active role in AFN communities, co-creating value together with the other actors of the network. The two independent variables tested in this model, social capital and transparency, positively and significantly affect customers' quantity and frequency of purchases within AFNs, reducing the occurrence of the tragedy of commons.
Originality/value
To the authors' knowledge, this study represents one of the first attempts to measure, through a quantitative method, the effect of performance drivers (i.e. social capital and transparency) on AFN performance. Theoretical, managerial and policy implications will be thoroughly presented and discussed along the paper.
Details
Keywords
Sandro Brunelli, Camilla Falivena, Chiara Carlino and Francesco Venuti
The increasing responsibility of organisations towards society and the environment has inverted the relationship between accounting and accountability, leading to…
Abstract
Purpose
The increasing responsibility of organisations towards society and the environment has inverted the relationship between accounting and accountability, leading to accountability-based accounting systems. This study aims to explore the debate on accountability for climate change within the integrating thinking (IT) perspective. Ascertaining the most significant trends in the debate around purposes and performance that characterise climate mitigation engagement and their connections, the study would explore if and to what extent organisations are tackling climate actions.
Design/methodology/approach
A narrative review of the extensive academic literature developed from the Kyoto Protocol to date was performed. After selecting a representative sample, papers were analysed with the support of a new analytical framework that involves three dimensions – answerability, enforcement and outcome – and governance schemes that emerge from the involvement of the private and public sector and civil society. With the support of NVivo software, themes arisen were analysed and coded. Key items were labelled, creating specific nodes and synthesised into the proposed framework.
Findings
A “silo approach” largely characterises the debate on accountability for climate change. The most significant reasons behind the shortcomings of extant climate actions may be retrieved firstly in the weakness of the motivations that guide organisations to operate in a climate-friendly way.
Social implications
This study underlines the need for a 360° integrated approach for strategically tackling climate actions.
Originality/value
This study would represent a further step towards an integrated approach for studying organisations behaviours in the “climate war”, embracing the connectivity between purposes and outcomes, capitals and the relationships amongst the various stakeholders.
Details
Keywords
Said Elbanna and Loreta Armstrong
This article aims to explore the advantages of integrating a new generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology in education. It investigates the use of ChatGPT in…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to explore the advantages of integrating a new generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology in education. It investigates the use of ChatGPT in personalized learning, assessment and content creation and examines ways to manage its limitations and some ethical considerations. The purpose is to stimulate discussion on the effective application of ChatGPT as a tool for learning and skill development while remaining mindful of the ethical issues involved.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology in this article includes four steps: a literature search, screening and selection, analysis and synthesis. The literature was thoroughly screened and selected on the basis of its relevance to the research question, before selected material were carefully read and analyzed. The insights gained from this analysis were then synthesized to identify key considerations in integrating ChatGPT in education.
Findings
The study concludes that ChatGPT can be effectively integrated into education to automate routine tasks and enhance the learning experience for students, ultimately increasing productivity and efficiency and fostering adaptive learning. However, the limitations of ChatGPT, even when updated, must be borne in mind, including factual inconsistencies, potential bias promotion, lack of in-depth understanding and safety concerns. The study nevertheless highlights the benefits of responsibly integrating ChatGPT within the field of education.
Practical implications
This study has practical implications for educators and policymakers who are interested in the integration of AI technology in education. The study provides insights of using ChatGPT in education.
Originality/value
This article contributes to the existing literature by specifically examining the advantages of integrating ChatGPT in higher education and offering recommendations for its responsible use. Moreover, the article emphasizes ethical considerations in the context of ChatGPT integration.
Details
Keywords
Paola Pontieri, Francesco Saverio Mennini, Domitilla Magni, Fabio Fiano, Veronica Scuotto, Armando Papa, Mariarosaria Aletta and Luigi Del Giudice
The paper provides a new definition of healthy and functional food considering the case of sorghum, which is dealing with environmental challenges, calling for exploration of…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper provides a new definition of healthy and functional food considering the case of sorghum, which is dealing with environmental challenges, calling for exploration of eco-conscious consumers' behavior in the free-from food innovative market.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis, this article offers a deep and broad outlook on a sustainable open innovations approach for agri-food systems. The bibliometric analysis includes a total of 198 scientific papers, deeply analyzed through Bibliometrix package.
Findings
Results show increasing academic interest in sustainable innovations for the agri-food system, where the relevance of the food-grade sorghum is noticed. An open innovation approach is called for to deal with environmental challenges.
Originality/value
Theoretically, the research offers a new definition of healthy and functional food in line with current environmental challenges. It also provides a deep literature review on eco-conscious consumers and food-grade sorghum as functional food in the context of the free-from food market.
Details
Keywords
Paola Cardamone, Concetta Carnevale and Francesco Giunta
This paper aims to test whether the publication of a social report provides information about the firm's market value. Its intention is to understand if investors believe the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to test whether the publication of a social report provides information about the firm's market value. Its intention is to understand if investors believe the social report has a role equal to that traditionally attributed to accounting variables, i.e., whether the social report is value‐relevant in assessing a firm's market value.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is deductive. It tests two main hypotheses: first, the social report is value relevant because it explains firm value; second, the social report influences the value‐relevance of accounting variables. The study applies the value‐relevance analysis on a sample of 178 Italian companies listed on the Milan Stock Exchange.
Findings
The estimates show a significant negative correlation between the publication of a social report and the stock price. Furthermore, book value per share accounting information is more relevant for the companies that publish a social report, whereas the relevance of earnings per share does not change for these companies.
Originality/value
This paper increases the understanding of the value that markets assign to the social report. It contributes to enriching the literature on the value‐relevance analysis applied to non‐financial variables and to social report in particular.
Details
Keywords
Marc R.H. Roedenbeck and Manfred Lieb
This paper aims to investigate how a small business is able to continually use entrepreneurial financial sources (i.e. crowdfunding) within and after a successful transformation…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate how a small business is able to continually use entrepreneurial financial sources (i.e. crowdfunding) within and after a successful transformation from an entrepreneur. It additionally investigates how a market incumbent is able to successfully join the market of entrepreneurial financial resources.
Design/methodology/approach
Therefore, a comparative case study using qualitative and quantitative data as well as triangulation technique is conducted within the international board game (or tabletop) market at the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter. The US company CMON, which has developed from an entrepreneur to a small business and beyond, is compared with the German incumbent Pegasus. Based on an analysis of a set of key performance indicators suggested in the literature, qualitative and quantitative variables are deductively derived to measure their impact on the financial goal achievement, thereby showing their impact on the goal achievement. During the analysis, additional variables are identified inductively.
Findings
As a result, several qualitative components are found to be crucial, including oral storytelling and computer animated videos/images, a perfect multilingual product language, prototyped components, an active community and a depth and regularity in campaign updates. In quantitative terms, important components include having more product images than longer project descriptions, more optional buys than different but fixed project rewards, a big social network (on Twitter and Facebook), and the number of updates.
Research limitations/implications
Based upon the data and findings, this study invites for more research, especially in conducting a larger scale quantitative analysis using the developed framework to compare more cases within a branch, cases across branches and cases with different background stories.
Practical implications
But to successfully run a crowdfunding campaign, entrepreneurs and incumbents can use the provided measures as a first design- and decision-roadmap, as well as copying the new business strategy of continually practicing crowdfunding for new products.
Originality/value
Despite its limits, this paper offers the first in-depth qualitative and quantitative crowdfunding case study showing on the one hand a new business strategy about crowdfunding as well as providing a structured measure to compare crowdfunding project performance.