The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of information technology in reducing corruption in China. Meanwhile this paper explores whether electronic monitoring…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of information technology in reducing corruption in China. Meanwhile this paper explores whether electronic monitoring systems (EMS) can be evaluated in terms of the DeLone and McLean information systems (IS) success model.
Design/methodology/approach
The status of the EMS in five cities is first proposed, and then a model of e-government system success is designed to evaluate the EMS. Data are obtained from 387 civil servants in the supervision agencies. Then the effectiveness of EMS in reducing corruption is deeply assessed, and the DeLone and McLean IS success model is validated.
Findings
The findings show that the application of EMS has a positive effect on reducing corruption. IT thus has the potential to reduce corruption, but the institution and the people are more important.
Originality/value
Although many theories about reducing corruption have been proposed, the EMS application in reducing corruption has seldom been addressed. This study is the first, to the author's knowledge, to examine EMS and corruption reduction from the point of view of the IS success model.
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Dongxiao Niu, Zongyun Song, Meng Wang and Xinli Xiao
The aim of this paper is to review the current situation and existing problem, establish investment benefits evaluation indicator system and introduce synthetic approach degree…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to review the current situation and existing problem, establish investment benefits evaluation indicator system and introduce synthetic approach degree containing Hamming approach degree, Euclid approach degree and gray correlation degree to improve the shortage of Euclidean distance in traditional TOPSIS method, and the evaluation result is strengthened by multiplication rule. This paper aims to solve the distribution network investment decision-making problem and construct a comprehensive distribution network investment benefit indicator system, which is more suitable for China distribution network characteristics.
Design/methodology/approach
This study develops improved TOPSIS methods for decision maker in the power distribution network market and uses an example to prove its effectiveness and superiority in practice which can realize the combination of theory and practice.
Findings
The research shows that the investment evaluation indicator system built in present paper covers more investment benefit influencing factors (such as qualified rate of trunk cross-section, pass rate of N-1 lines), and the evaluation result obtained by improved TOPSIS method is more efficient and persuasive.
Originality/value
The study can help investors evaluate distribution network project more efficient, and make contribution to the choice of distribution cases with similar investment benefits.
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Xinli Li, Jun Cheng, Shouyi Wan and Zhenyang Zhao
This study aims to investigate the impact of institutional fragility on the innovation investments of enterprises by analyzing the moderating effect of government subsidies and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the impact of institutional fragility on the innovation investments of enterprises by analyzing the moderating effect of government subsidies and the integration of industry and finance.
Design/methodology/approach
Multiple regression analysis was used on 10,838 samples of 2,356 listed companies in China for the period 2007–2017, to empirically test the influence of institutional fragility on innovation investment. Moreover, Heckman’s two-stage approach was used for the robustness of the regression results.
Findings
The results show that the relationship between institutional fragility and innovation investment is an inverted U-shaped; government subsidies negatively moderate the relationship between institutional fragility and innovation investment, while the integration of industry and finance positively moderates them. Further analysis shows that the relationship between institutional fragility and innovation investment is more significant for high-tech enterprises. Similarly, the relationship between institutional fragility and innovation output also presents an inverted U-shape, which mainly affects enterprises’ breakthrough innovation output, but has no substantial impact on the incremental innovation output.
Originality/value
The conclusions provide new ideas for guiding the government’s reform, promoting the integration of industry and finance and promoting enterprise innovation.
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Qiuling Gao, Zijie Li and Xinli Huang
Based on the strategy tripod perspective, this study aims to address how emerging economy multinational enterprises (EMNEs) make a strategic decision of choosing a foreign…
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the strategy tripod perspective, this study aims to address how emerging economy multinational enterprises (EMNEs) make a strategic decision of choosing a foreign location for their strategic asset seeking and under what mechanism EMNEs make foreign direct investment (FDI) location choice.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper first reviews the literature on strategy tripod and strategic asset seeking strategy of EMNEs. Then, six cases of Chinese multinational enterprises operating in manufacturing industry have been introduced, emphasizing on interactions within three dimensions of strategy tripod framework, namely, resource-based dimension, industry-based dimension and institution-based dimension. By triangulating with multiple sources of archival and interview data, this paper identified a conceptual model presenting location choice mechanisms.
Findings
Based on a comparative multi-case study, four mechanisms of EMNEs’ location choice when seek strategic asset by FDI within a strategy tripod framework have been revealed. Specifically, EMNEs make their strategic decision of choosing a foreign location for their strategic asset seeking under mechanisms of seeking complementary resources based on industry characteristics; echoing with institutional dimension of home country when exploitation of resource; matching institutional dimension of host country when consider industry fitness; and institutional leveraging combined with understanding of resource and industry dimensions inside strategy tripod.
Originality/value
The findings shed novel insights into the mechanisms under which EMNEs choose their location for strategic asset-seeking FDI. It also broadens the strategy tripod framework by looking deeper into the characteristics of each dimension within a new research context of EMNEs’ FDI location choice.
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Adnan Aldholay, Osama Isaac, Zaini Abdullah, Rasheed Abdulsalam and Ahmed Hamoud Al-Shibami
While many researchers have investigated the adoption and usage of online learning in different settings, one area that has yet to be examined thoroughly, particularly in the…
Abstract
Purpose
While many researchers have investigated the adoption and usage of online learning in different settings, one area that has yet to be examined thoroughly, particularly in the context of online learning in Yemen, is the self-efficacy role. The purpose of this paper is to extend the Delone and McLean information system success model by incorporating a self-efficacy construct as an antecedent to user satisfaction and actual usage to predict student performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Questionnaire survey method was used to collect primary data from 448 students in nine public universities in Yemen. The six constructs in the proposed model were measured using existing scales. The data analysed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling via AMOS.
Findings
Three main results were revealed, namely that overall quality (system, information and service quality) and self-efficacy have a positive impact on user satisfaction and actual usage; that actual usage significantly predicts user satisfaction; and that both user satisfaction and actual usage have a positive impact on student performance.
Research limitations/implications
First as the study population were students from nine public universities, it excluded academics and administrative staff. Second, the study depends on self-reported measures to test the proposed research model. This is because getting objective data about the performance was not probable due to the issue of privacy.
Practical implications
The findings of this study can be a guideline for Yemeni higher education institutions to develop efficient and effective plans to improve the performance of education institutions, and train and develop student ability to use online learning. Additionally, it highlights the areas that university management needs to concentrate on, namely information systems (IS) tools that will contribute to higher student enrolment, address the lack of infrastructure and improve the quality of education outcomes, things which represent Yemen’s main challenges in the higher education sector.
Originality/value
This paper adds to the existing literature of IS by combining overall quality, self-efficacy, actual usage and user satisfaction to predict performance impact of online learning among students in nine public universities in Yemen. Furthermore, the predictive power of the proposed model has a higher ability to explain and predict performance impact compared to those obtained from some of the previous studies.
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Danqing Fang, Chengjin Wu, Yansong Tan, Xin Li, Lilan Gao, Chunqiu Zhang and Bingjie Zhao
The paper aims to study the effect of sintering temperature on the microstructure, shear strength and ratcheting fatigue life of nanosilver sintered lap shear joint. In addition…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to study the effect of sintering temperature on the microstructure, shear strength and ratcheting fatigue life of nanosilver sintered lap shear joint. In addition, the Gerber model is used to predict the ratcheting fatigue lives of nanosilver sintered lap shear joints at different sintering temperatures.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, the nanosilver sintered lap shear joints were prepared at three sintering temperatures of 250 °C, 280 °C and 310 °C. The bonding quality was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope and shear tests, and the long-term reliability was studied by conducting ratcheting fatigue tests. In addition, three modified models based on Basquin equation were used to predict the ratcheting fatigue life of nanosilver sintered lap shear joint and their accuracies were evaluated.
Findings
When the sintering temperature is 250°C, the nanosilver sintered lap shear joint shows the porosity of 22.9 ± 1.6 %, and the shear strength of 22.3 ± 2.4 MPa. Raising the sintering temperature enhances silver crystallite size, strengthens sintering necks, thus improves shear strength and ratcheting fatigue life in joints. In addition, the ratcheting fatigue lives of the joints sintered at different temperatures are effectively predicted by three equivalent force models, and the Gerber model shows the highest life prediction accuracy.
Research limitations/implications
The sintered silver bondline is suffering a complex stress state. The study only takes the shear stress into consideration. The tensile stress and the combination of shear stress and tensile stress can to be considered in the future study.
Practical implications
The paper provides the experimental and theoretical support for robust bonding and long-term reliability of sintered silver structure.
Social implications
The introduced model can predict the ratcheting fatigue lives of the joints sintered at different temperatures, which shows a potential in engineering applications.
Originality/value
The study revealed the relationship between the sintering temperature and the microstructure, the shear strength and the ratcheting fatigue life of the joint. In addition, the Gerber model can predict the ratcheting fatigue life accurately at different sintering temperatures.
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Mian Wang and Yajing Feng
Special education in China has lagged behind regular education for many years, however, the past few decades, the government has made considerable efforts to develop and improve…
Abstract
Special education in China has lagged behind regular education for many years, however, the past few decades, the government has made considerable efforts to develop and improve the special education system. While the citizens of China have had a generic moral interest in disability since ancient times, the development of special education schools did not occur until American and European missionaries started schools for the visually and hearing impaired in the 19th century. The next major influence in the development of the special education system occurred with China’s Cultural Revolution in 1978. Interestingly, there is not any exclusive legislation on special education but in the 1980s, the government started Learning in Regular Classrooms (LRC), which is China’s version of inclusion. LRC has progressed rapidly the past two decades; however, the quality of instruction is low due to a lack of specialists, a shortage of personnel, inadequate funding, and limited technology as well as other barriers that are delineated in the chapter. The chapter emphasizes the government’s recent efforts in in-service teacher training, the preparation of preservice teachers, working with families, developing community rehabilitation training programs, and implementing evidence-based practices. Special education in China today is at a good place but it has quite a way from the ideal situation.
Liguo Xu, Pinging Fu and Youmin Xi
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the indigenous concept of suzhi at individual and organizational levels, and identify its dimensions for human resource management…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the indigenous concept of suzhi at individual and organizational levels, and identify its dimensions for human resource management (HRM) research and practice in China.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a comprehensive review of suzhi literature, Chinese cultural and historical literature, as well as Western mainstream HRM research, a multidimensional suzhi framework is conceptualized.
Findings
As an indigenous expression, suzhi can be and has been adopted for Chinese HRM research and practice. As a multidimensional construct, one’s cognitive suzhi is jointly determined by corresponding moral suzhi, wenhua (knowledge-based) suzhi and zhuanye (professional) suzhi. Cognitive suzhi, in turn, determines one’s behavioral suzhi that drives employees to enhance organizational performance, and this relationship is moderated by psychological suzhi.
Research limitations/implications
The proposed framework provides new insight for Chinese indigenous management research, particularly in developing suzhi measurement for different dimensions. It also informs HRM practices in recruiting, selection, performance analysis and employee career development.
Originality/value
The complexity of suzhi dimensions from an organizational HRM perspective is analyzed. The resulting suzhi framework offers new insight for HRM research and practices in China.
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Osama Isaac, Zaini Abdullah, T. Ramayah and Ahmed M. Mutahar
The internet technology becomes an essential tool for individuals, organizations, and nations for growth and prosperity. The purpose of this paper is to integrate the DeLone and…
Abstract
Purpose
The internet technology becomes an essential tool for individuals, organizations, and nations for growth and prosperity. The purpose of this paper is to integrate the DeLone and McLean IS success model with task-technology fit (TTF) to explain the performance impact of Yemeni Government employees.
Design/methodology/approach
Questionnaire survey method was used to collect primary data from 530 internet users among employees within all 30 government ministries-institutions in Yemen. The four constructs in the proposed model were measured using existing scales. The data analysis starts with initial exploratory factor analysis, then confirmatory factor analysis and lastly structural equation modeling via AMOS.
Findings
The results showed that the proposed integrated model fits the data well. Findings of the multivariate analysis demonstrate four main results. First, actual usage has a strong positive impact on user satisfaction, TTF, and performance impact. Second, user satisfaction has a great influence on performance impact. Third, TTF has a strong positive impact on user satisfaction and performance impact. Fourth, both user satisfaction and TTF mediate the relationship between the actual usage and performance impact.
Research limitations/implications
The public sector in Yemen contains three parts: Yemeni prime minister, Yemeni ministries, and government agencies. This study focuses only on the Yemeni employees among Yemeni ministries; hence the results are not necessarily generalizable. Moreover, there are biases when the researcher measures the actual Internet usage variable through asking a participant about their opinion regarding their usage because these are generally found to differ from the true score of system usage.
Practical implications
The findings should be very useful for the Yemeni Government in presenting the importance of information technology effects on individual efficiency and effectiveness. Therefore, the information from these findings should encourage and support the formation of future policy at the organizational level and national level. If the government utilizes these findings by setting up strategies to promote internet usage, this may, in turn, improve professional practice, personal development, and quality of working life.
Originality/value
This paper adds to the existing literature of information systems by combining actual technology usage, user satisfaction, and TTF to predict performance impact within the organizations. Furthermore, this study proposed a second-order model of performance impact in order to increase the power of explaining the output by the model, which contains four first-order constructs: process, knowledge acquisition, communication quality, and decision quality. The predictive power of the proposed model has a higher ability to explain and predict performance impact compared to those obtained from some of the previous studies.