Jingyun Zhang, Sharon E. Beatty and David Mothersbaugh
This paper aims to explore the different forms of other customers' influence in various service settings.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the different forms of other customers' influence in various service settings.
Design/methodology/approach
The critical incident technique (CIT) method was used to collect and analyze the data. A total of 142 critical incidents involving other customers' influence in services were collected.
Findings
Based on CIT analysis, nine types of other customers' influence involving positive and negative, direct and indirect customer‐to‐customer interactions emerge. In addition, the researchers find that the degree of other customers' influence varies for different service settings.
Research limitations/implications
Methodologically, there are a number of limitations of the CIT method used in this research. The paper suggests ways to overcome these limitations. Moreover, findings of this research suggest a number of additional directions for future research.
Practical implications
This research suggests the importance of proactively managing customer‐to‐customer interactions during a service encounter experience.
Originality/value
This paper builds on previous research and provides empirically based analysis of the different forms of other customers' influence across service settings.
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Elif Karaosmanoğlu, Ayşe Banu Elmadağ Baş and Jingyun (Kay) Zhang
By drawing on theories of social identity, attraction, social comparison and consumer identification, this research seeks to examine how consumers' perceptions of other customers…
Abstract
Purpose
By drawing on theories of social identity, attraction, social comparison and consumer identification, this research seeks to examine how consumers' perceptions of other customers of an organisation (the other customer effect) may have an influence on corporate image and consumer‐company identification. This study aims to test a model integrating these constructs in two contexts, i.e. products and services. It also seeks to investigate the attitudinal and behavioural consequences of a favourable corporate image in order to provide more insights to the argument that a corporate marketing approach helps to enhance marketing performance.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey of a convenience sample of 383 adult consumers is conducted. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) is employed in order to test the proposed model. An alternative model is examined both in products and in services contexts.
Findings
The results indicate that perceptions about other customers influence customers' affective and behavioural reactions towards a company for both products and services. This finding suggests that corporate‐level marketing activities aiming to increase interaction among consumers lead to favourable corporate image and higher consumer‐company identification and hence desirable marketing outcomes. Furthermore, results show that for services the other customer effect is more prominent than for product offerings.
Originality/value
This study extends the concept of other customer effect to the context of corporate image and consumer‐company identification studies. It provides evidence that shifting towards corporate‐level marketing gives organisations another avenue for gaining a distinct position in the minds of consumers. Furthermore, by addressing both service and product contexts, it shows that other customer effect may exist beyond services studies.
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Catherine Demangeot, Amanda J. Broderick and C. Samuel Craig
The aim of the paper is to shed light on the use of chitosans and chitooligosaccharides as biopreservatives in various foods animal. Foods of animal and aquatic origin (milk…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of the paper is to shed light on the use of chitosans and chitooligosaccharides as biopreservatives in various foods animal. Foods of animal and aquatic origin (milk, meat, fish, eggs, sea foods, etc) become contaminated with a wide range of microorganisms (bacteria, molds and yeasts) during harvesting, transporting, processing, handling and storage operations. Due to the perishable nature of these foods, their preservation is of utmost importance. Though many synthetic chemicals are available, yet their use is quite restricted due to their hazardous effects on human health.
Design/methodology/approach
Within the domain of food industry, traditionally chitosan is used for biopreservation of foods, which is well known for its nutritional and medicinal properties in human nutrition. However, chitooligosaccharides also possess a number of nutraceutical and health promoting properties in addition to their preservative effect and shelf-life extension of foods. In this study, the comparative effects of both chitosan and chitooligosaccharides on preservation of foods of animal and aquatic origin have been summarized.
Findings
Though chitosan has been extensively studied in various foods, yet the use of chitooligosaccharides has been relatively less explored. Chitooligosaccharides are bioactive molecules generated from chitosan and have several advantages over the traditional use of chitosan both in food products and on human health. But unfortunately, little or no literature is available on the use of chitooligosaccharides for preservation of some of the foods of animal origin. Notable examples in this category include cheese, beef, pork, chicken, fish, sea foods, etc.
Originality/value
This paper focuses on the effects of chitosans and chitooligosaccharides on the processing and storage quality of foods of animal and aquatic origin, which offers a promising future for the development of functional foods.
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This paper aims to identify the impact of economic integration on trade competitiveness and demonstrate its effects on trade and investment performance of member nations.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify the impact of economic integration on trade competitiveness and demonstrate its effects on trade and investment performance of member nations.
Design/methodology/approach
The study compiles some price indices to provide a systematic assessment of competitiveness in the BRICS region. The panel regression framework estimates the impact of integration on trade competitiveness and the external sector performance of BRICS nations.
Findings
The findings of the research highlight the prospects for strong, closer and sustained integration in BRICS and, more importantly, the contribution of competitiveness to FDI receipts and export growth.
Research limitations/implications
The assessment of exports and investment experiences of BRICS nations, particularly China and India, provides further evidence in support of the logical design and strategic use of their foreign trade policies.
Originality/value
The economic partnership that wants to sustain this high road to global economic space needs strategic orientations to promote their partnership in other interest areas to make the cooperation more competitive in price terms.
Tamoor Khan, Jiangtao Qiu, Ameen Banjar, Riad Alharbey, Ahmed Omar Alzahrani and Rashid Mehmood
The purpose of this paper is to assess the impacts on production of five fruit crops from 1961 to 2018 of energy use, CO2 emissions, farming areas and the labor force in China.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the impacts on production of five fruit crops from 1961 to 2018 of energy use, CO2 emissions, farming areas and the labor force in China.
Design/methodology/approach
This analysis applied the autoregressive distributed lag-bound testing (ARDL) approach, Granger causality method and Johansen co-integration test to predict long-term co-integration and relation between variables. Four machine learning methods are used for prediction of the accuracy of climate effect on fruit production.
Findings
The Johansen test findings have shown that the fruit crop growth, energy use, CO2 emissions, harvested land and labor force have a long-term co-integration relation. The outcome of the long-term use of CO2 emission and rural population has a negative influence on fruit crops. The energy consumption, harvested area, total fruit yield and agriculture labor force have a positive influence on six fruit crops. The long-run relationships reveal that a 1% increase in rural population and CO2 will decrease fruit crop production by −0.59 and −1.97. The energy consumption, fruit harvested area, total fruit yield and agriculture labor force will increase fruit crop production by 0.17%, 1.52%, 1.80% and 4.33%, respectively. Furthermore, uni-directional causality is correlated with the growth of fruit crops and energy consumption. Also, the results indicate that the bi-directional causality impact varies from CO2 emissions to agricultural areas to fruit crops.
Originality/value
This study also fills the literature gap in implementing ARDL for agricultural fruits of China, used machine learning methods to examine the impact of climate change and to explore this important issue.
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Indranil Banik, Arup Kumar Nandi and Bittagopal Mondal
The paper aims to identify a suitable generic brake force distribution ratio (β) corresponding to optimal brake design attributes in a diminutive driving range, where road…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to identify a suitable generic brake force distribution ratio (β) corresponding to optimal brake design attributes in a diminutive driving range, where road conditions do not exhibit excessive variations. This will intend for an appropriate allocation of brake force distribution (BFD) to provide dynamic stability to the vehicle during braking.
Design/methodology/approach
Two techniques are presented (with and without wheel slip) to satisfy both brake stability and performance while accommodating variations in load sharing and road friction coefficient. Based on parametric optimization of the design variables of hydraulic brake using evolutionary algorithm, taking into account both the laden and unladen circumstances simultaneously, this research develops an improved model for computing and simulating the BFD applied to commercial and passenger vehicles.
Findings
The optimal parameter values defining the braking system have been identified, resulting in effective β = 0.695 which enhances the brake forces at respective axles. Nominal slip of 3.42% is achieved with maximum deceleration of 5.72 m/s2 maintaining directional stability during braking. The results obtained from both the methodologies are juxtaposed and assessed governing the vehicle stability in straight line motion to prevent wheel lock.
Originality/value
Optimization results establish the practicality, efficacy and applicability of the proposed approaches. The findings provide valuable insights for the design and optimization of hydraulic drum brake systems in modern automobiles, which can lead to safer and more efficient braking systems.