Nayanthara De Silva, Rasika Samanmali and Harsha Lal De Silva
Occupational stress among professionals in construction industry is increasing considerably due to faster economic development projects in many developing countries. Reportedly…
Abstract
Purpose
Occupational stress among professionals in construction industry is increasing considerably due to faster economic development projects in many developing countries. Reportedly, construction professionals are the third most affected group after miners and police officers. Hence, the study aims to explore profession-specific occupational stressors, their impact on professional and the prevention strategies in place at an organizational level. The study is further focused to identify specific prevention strategies that can be implemented at the organizational level.
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire-based survey was performed among construction professionals such as project managers, engineers and quantity surveyors involved in large construction projects to identify occupational stress causing factors pertinent to construction professionals, their impact and occupational stress prevention strategies. Stress prevention strategies at primary, secondary and tertiary levels were analyzed to establish the stress prevention framework for large organizations.
Findings
Eleven occupational stress causing factors were identified to be significant in creating negative impact at work. Further, 13 resultant impacts of negative stress were recognized. Three primary prevention strategies, three secondary prevention strategies and a tertiary prevention approach were identified using a factor analysis to manage these occupational stresses at the organizational level.
Originality/value
Impact of occupational stress on construction professionals that may cause poor performance of the industry can be controlled by effectively managing and controlling the negative stresses.
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Nirmali Sivapragasam, Aileen Agüero and Harsha de Silva
This paper aims to explore the extent to which low‐income migrant workers in emerging Asia are aware of and are likely to use mobile phones for remitting money to family members…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the extent to which low‐income migrant workers in emerging Asia are aware of and are likely to use mobile phones for remitting money to family members at home.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were obtained through a survey of 1,500+ local and overseas migrant workers at the bottom of the socio‐economic pyramid and subsequent qualitative research in Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, the Philippines and Thailand.
Findings
Findings reveal that less than a quarter of respondents in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka were aware of such services. However, the Philippines and Thailand reported awareness of levels of over 40 percent. Using a logit model to assess socio‐economic characteristics of those aware of such services (versus those who are not), findings revealed those aware of such services tended to enjoy higher standards of living, in terms of both income and education and ownership of mobile phones and bank accounts. Barriers to use are also explored.
Originality/value
This study is likely one of the first of its kind in attempting to empirically estimate socio‐economic characteristics of those aware of such services versus those who are not. Such findings can, undoubtedly prove useful to operators in deciding how best to market such services, including addressing potential barriers to use, such as perceived ease of use and trust and reliability issues.
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Durga Prasad Venkata Modekurti
Market transactions in large vegetable markets call for transparency with utmost urgency. The reason are that buyers are located at distant places and the volume of sales is very…
Abstract
Purpose
Market transactions in large vegetable markets call for transparency with utmost urgency. The reason are that buyers are located at distant places and the volume of sales is very high. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the development of an automated system in market transactions in order to bring about transparency with concrete evidence available to small and medium farmers who are then able to repose trust in the system by acquiring the right price for the right product. The farmers can also confirm the effectiveness of the system by testing it themselves.
Design/methodology/approach
First, a theoretical framework of marketing procedures of larger vegetable markets has been constructed with tomato as a vegetable of study and the Madanapalle tomato market as a market studied through surveys. Second, methods of functioning in marketing procedures including pricing and auctioning have been modified according to the objective. An android-based application has been used to develop an automated model. Surveys have been conducted to understand the perceptions of farmers in marketing procedures and price determination at the village level, and to test the automated model in the study market.
Findings
Both quantitative as well as qualitative approaches indicate that, the proposed automated model in the modified marketing procedural system is of benefit to all stakeholders in the supply chain.
Research limitations/implications
In model testing, gaps in inputs from a greater number of buyers during auctioning remains a limitation of the study.
Social implications
For sustainable growth of tomatoes or any other vegetables it is essential that the farmers trust the marketing procedural system. This is possible if farmers obtain the right price for their products. Once the automated system is implemented, buyers acquire high-quality goods at desired prices, which further encourages more buyers from other regions to participate in the auctioning/tendering process stimulating an increased demand.
Originality/value
This paper is unique in its pricing function and scores of stakeholders. Pricing function involves the farmers’ input along with the buyers’ inputs whereas scores of these two stakeholders have been obtained through the inputs of commissioning agents.
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Implicating myself in Métis scholar Natalie Clark's question “who are you and why do you care?” (2016, p. 48), this chapter traces the theorization of love in the Human Services…
Abstract
Implicating myself in Métis scholar Natalie Clark's question “who are you and why do you care?” (2016, p. 48), this chapter traces the theorization of love in the Human Services, with a focus on the field of Child and Youth Care. I explore love as an ethical, political, and necessary force in times of ongoing colonial and state violence against Indigenous and racialized peoples (Ferguson & Toye, 2017). I go on to highlight my graduate research as a Child and Youth Care Masters student and educator, grappling with my own settler identity as a diasporic, queer, ciswoman of color, and questioning my complicity as a settler body on stolen Indigenous lands. The chapter includes vital knowledge from my research with Sisters Rising, an Indigenous-led, community-based, participatory study that uses arts-and-land-based ways of knowing to honor and uphold stories, art, and knowledge from Indigenous and racialized young peoples and communities. By tracing the reflections on decolonial love shared through Sisters Rising, I consider ways that racialized settler practitioners might engage a decolonial love ethic in praxis. Calling upon critical feminist, Indigenous, and postcolonial scholarship and brilliance, this chapter invites other settler practitioners, specifically those who identify as racialized or people of color to reckon with the intricacies of our collective complicity in notions of settler purity and apolitical practice (Shotwell, 2016). Throughout the chapter, I highlight conceptual approaches for loving politicized praxis rooted in movements toward social justice, Indigenous sovereignty-building, and decolonization.
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Michael Knoll, Anindo Bhattacharjee and Wim Vandekerckhove
This paper aims to explore how the context in a dynamically developing country affects employee silence in India.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the context in a dynamically developing country affects employee silence in India.
Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative design involving semi-structured interviews with employees and managers from different sectors in the Mumbai and Delhi areas. An abductive approach was used to analyze the data.
Findings
Two types of social mobility concerns – advancement aspiration and fear of social decline – emerged as salient drivers of silence and can be attributed to a volatile job market, social status markers, transferability of qualification, someone’s socio-economic situation and the overall economic situation. Pathways were specified from social mobility concerns to silence tendencies that are motivated by both low approach and high avoidance.
Research limitations/implications
Social mobility as a specific factor in the Indian distal context and as a characteristic of emerging markets can motivate silence while organization-related concepts like job satisfaction or commitment may have less predictive value. Propositions that were derived from the interview study need to be validated by deductive research. Generalizability of Indian findings across other emergent markets needs to be shown.
Originality/value
To the organizational behavior (OB) scholarship on silence, this research contributes by identifying antecedents of silence that are situated beyond the organizational boundaries challenging the dominant role of established factors at the team- and organizational level. To the human resource management/employment relations (HRM/ER) scholarship, this research contributes by theorizing psychological processes that link environmental factors to silence behaviors.
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Suhang Yang, Tangrui Chen and Zhifeng Xu
Recycled aggregate self-compacting concrete (RASCC) has the potential for sustainable resource utilization and has been widely applied. Predicting the compressive strength (CS) of…
Abstract
Purpose
Recycled aggregate self-compacting concrete (RASCC) has the potential for sustainable resource utilization and has been widely applied. Predicting the compressive strength (CS) of RASCC is challenging due to its complex composite nature and nonlinear behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
This study comprehensively evaluated commonly used machine learning (ML) techniques, including artificial neural networks (ANN), random trees (RT), bagging and random forests (RF) for predicting the CS of RASCC. The results indicate that RF and ANN models typically have advantages with higher R2 values, lower root mean square error (RMSE), mean square error (MSE) and mean absolute error (MAE) values.
Findings
The combination of ML and Shapley additive explanation (SHAP) interpretable algorithms provides physical rationality, allowing engineers to adjust the proportion based on parameter analysis to predict and design RASCC. The sensitivity analysis of the ML model indicates that ANN’s interpretation ability is weaker than tree-based algorithms (RT, BG and RF). ML regression technology has high accuracy, good interpretability and great potential for predicting the CS of RASCC.
Originality/value
ML regression technology has high accuracy, good interpretability and great potential for predicting the CS of RASCC.
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Mohammad Imtiaz Hossain, Boon Heng Teh, Mosab I. Tabash, Mohammad Nurul Alam and Tze San Ong
Manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are heading towards smart manufacturing despite growing challenges caused by globalisation and rapid technological…
Abstract
Purpose
Manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are heading towards smart manufacturing despite growing challenges caused by globalisation and rapid technological advancement. These SMEs, particularly textile SMEs of Bangladesh, also face challenges in implementing sustainability and organisational ambidexterity (OA) due to resource constraints and limitations of conventional leadership styles. Adopting paradoxical leadership (PL) and entrepreneurial bricolage (EB) is important to overcome the challenges. However, these dynamics are less explored in academia, especially in the Bangladeshi textile SMEs context. Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of the adoption of smart technologies (ASTs), PL and OA, EB on sustainable performance (SP) of textile SMEs in Bangladesh.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional and primary quantitative survey was conducted. Data from 361 textile SMEs were collected using a structured self-administrated questionnaire and analysed by partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).
Findings
The statistical outcome confirms that ASTs and PL significantly influence SP and OA. OA plays a significant mediating role for PL and is insignificant for ASTs, and EB significantly moderates among ASTs, PL and SP.
Research limitations/implications
As this study is cross-sectional and focussed on a single city (Dhaka, Bangladesh), conducting longitudinal studies and considering other parts of the country can provide exciting findings.
Practical implications
This research provides valuable insights for policymakers, management and textile SMEs in developing and developed countries. By adopting unique and innovative OA, PL and EB approaches, manufacturing SMEs, especially textile companies, can be more sustainable.
Originality/value
This study has a novel, pioneering contribution, as it empirically validates the role of multiple constructs such as AST, PL, OA and EB towards SP in the context of textile SMEs in a developing country like Bangladesh.
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Helena Dória Ribeiro de Andrade Previato and Jorge Herman Behrens
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate anthropometric data, body composition and food intake of teenagers.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate anthropometric data, body composition and food intake of teenagers.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper involves a cross-sectional study with 132 teenagers aged 15 to 19 years old from a public school of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Anthropometric measurements, body composition, food intake and sport practice were obtained. The authors performed Student’s t-test, X2 or Fisher’s exact tests and Pearson’s correlation to evaluate anthropometric variables, nutritional status and sport practice.
Findings
Regarding the nutritional status, 81.8 per cent of the teenagers were of normal weight, 10.6 per cent were overweight and 7.6 per cent were obese. Female teenagers had higher values of body fat analyzed by skinfold thickness, fat mass, fat mass index and body fat percentage, while male had higher lean mass evaluated by fat-free mass and fat-free mass index. For both genders, it was observed that there was low intake of fruits and vegetables and daily intake of sweets, soda, salt snacks and fast food like sandwiches and pizza. Only 54.5 per cent of teenagers reported performing physical exercise and there was association between sedentary lifestyle with higher intake of sweets and soft drink.
Originality/value
This paper summarized several methods to assess nutritional status and body composition of teenagers.
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Neha Dhruv Agarwal and V.V. Ravi Kumar
The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the research which has been done during the past three decades on the topic of green advertising and identify gaps for…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the research which has been done during the past three decades on the topic of green advertising and identify gaps for future research.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology that has been adopted for analysis is two-pronged – the first being a literature review with tabulation of data using excel sheets and bar graphs and the second being a bibliometric review using the software VOSviewer. Both approaches analyze the number of citations, keywords, authors, journals and countries. A database of 113 articles from 1990 to 2020 is generated from Web of Science.
Findings
Major contributors to the topic of green advertising research have been identified. Thematic classification is created to understand the subtopics of green advertising. Under this classification, nine subtopics have been identified. Six core research gaps have been identified for future research in the area of green advertising.
Practical implications
The study helps identify where green advertising research is being conducted, its growth potential and future prospects. This research work will enable the industry to gain new insights into this emerging field of green advertising for incorporating the same in their advertising campaigns in view of growing consumer concerns on environment.
Originality/value
The paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current status of research in green advertising. The paper is unique as it is the only review on the topic of green advertising. Given the increasing trend of going green among consumers, the paper adds tremendous value to the field of green advertising.
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Akram Hernández-Vásquez and Rodrigo Vargas-Fernández
Despite the growing prison population in South America and the high prevalence of infectious diseases, there is limited evidence on the factors associated with self-reported…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite the growing prison population in South America and the high prevalence of infectious diseases, there is limited evidence on the factors associated with self-reported tuberculosis (TB) in this population. This study aims to identify the factors associated with self-reported TB among inmates in all prisons across Ecuador.
Design/methodology/approach
The 2022 Prison Census was used. The presence of TB was self-reported based on the question: Has any doctor diagnosed you with any of the following diseases: Tuberculosis? Prevalence ratios (PR) were obtained using crude and multivariable models along with their 95% confidence intervals (CI) using a generalized linear model with random effect at the prison level to assess the association among the study variables.
Findings
The prevalence of self-reported TB was 4.7%. Socio-demographic factors (prisoners aged between 18 and 29 years and indigenous), clinical factors (human immunodeficiency virus [HIV] infection, diabetes and attempted suicide) and imprisonment characteristics (re-offender, having a medical check-up on admission and being incarcerated for 6 months or more) increased the prevalence of self-reported TB compared with their counterparts.
Originality/value
This study provides a detailed understanding of the factors contributing to the prevalence of self-reported TB in the prison population of Ecuador. The findings highlight the need for strategies focused on TB control through diagnosis and treatment, management of HIV, diabetes and malnutrition, as well as the restructuring of prison facilities. Implementing these measures is crucial for addressing the identified factors and improving inmate health conditions.