Michael Newby and Laura D. Marcoulides
The purpose of this paper is to model the relationship between student performance, student attitudes, and computer laboratory environments.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to model the relationship between student performance, student attitudes, and computer laboratory environments.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 234 college students enrolled in courses that involved the use of a computer to solve problems and provided the laboratory experience by means of formal closed laboratory classes. The a priori proposed model that student performance can be explained by perceptions of the computer laboratory environment and attitudes towards computer was tested using structural equation modeling.
Findings
The proposed model was determined to fit the data reasonably well. These results indicate that student performance scores can be explained by perceptions of the computer laboratory environment and attitudes toward computers.
Originality/value
The theoretical and practical implications of the model concerning student performance within the framework of educational management are discussed.
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Andrea Mastrorilli, Ferdinando Paolo Santarpia and Laura Borgogni
Team-based work is increasing within organizations nowadays. Despite calls for differentiation between individual and team levels of analysis, research on leadership effects at…
Abstract
Purpose
Team-based work is increasing within organizations nowadays. Despite calls for differentiation between individual and team levels of analysis, research on leadership effects at multiple levels is still limited. By integrating the Conservation of Resources and Social Cognitive theories, this paper aims to analyze the relationships between coaching leadership, team collective efficacy and individual exhaustion via multilevel modeling.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper opted for an exploratory study testing a 2-2-1 multilevel mediational model, positing team collective efficacy as a key factor in mediating the relationship between coaching leadership at the team level and exhaustion at the individual level. The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 311 employees, nested in 72 teams (Msize = 5.70, SDsize = 2.82 team members) of a large Italian company that provides financial services.
Findings
Results supported the positive association between coaching leadership and team collective efficacy, which, in turn, was negatively associated with team members’ average score in exhaustion and fully mediated the effect of coaching leadership on exhaustion, even controlling for team design features (i.e. task interdependence and team virtuality). The association between coaching leadership and exhaustion was only indirect, explained by team collective efficacy.
Research limitations/implications
Because of the self-report nature of the measures and the cross-sectional nature of the data, this research results might raise problems of variance in common methods and not allow causal conclusions to be drawn. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.
Practical implications
This paper includes several practical implications for enhancing group efficacy beliefs, which have an impact on individual well-being within the team.
Originality/value
This paper addresses the lack of empirical findings on the multilevel nature of the relationship between coaching-based leadership, collective team effectiveness and individual exhaustion.
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Joshua M. Davis, Lorraine S. Lee and Mun Y. Yi
Past research recognizes the important influence of individual beliefs on technology acceptance and use. This line of research has also identified a variety of factors that drive…
Abstract
Past research recognizes the important influence of individual beliefs on technology acceptance and use. This line of research has also identified a variety of factors that drive the formation of these beliefs. One category of variables that has received less attention in this research stream consists of individual preferences, in particular time‐use preferences. In the current study we address the gap in the technology acceptance literature by introducing and empirically testing a new construct labeled computer polychronicity, which captures individuals’ time‐use preferences regarding information technology. A new measure of computer polychronicity is developed and subsequently tested using partial least squares estimation. Computer polychronicity is then theorized as a key driver of perceived usefulness, linking computer anxiety and computer playfulness to perceived usefulness. Overall, the results of model testing support the notion that preferences play an important role in the formation of technology‐related beliefs.
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Lanlan Cao, Xin Liu, Laura Trinchera and Mourad Touzani
This study explores key dimensions of mobile commerce activities (MCAs), evaluates their impact on firm performance and examines the role of mobile commerce performance as a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explores key dimensions of mobile commerce activities (MCAs), evaluates their impact on firm performance and examines the role of mobile commerce performance as a mediator and the role of industry competitive intensity as a moderator.
Design/methodology/approach
The qualitative research identified 21 principal retailers’ MCAs. A survey involving 172 retail executives was then conducted to examine the structure of MCAs and their impacts on firm performance.
Findings
Our findings reveal that the MCAs comprise four dimensions: guidance, connection, in-store conversion and relation. These dimensions jointly impact firm performance through mobile commerce performance, moderated by industry competition.
Research limitations/implications
This study provides a foundational understanding of MCAs. Future research should continue to explore how these dimensions interact.
Practical implications
Retailers can enhance their management of MCA investments by focussing on four key areas: guidance, contact, in-store conversion and relation. By customizing activities and prioritizing those that strengthen customer relationship management within one area, retailers can effectively align their MCA strategies with their specific business context.
Originality/value
The study’s originality lies in identifying and empirically testing the dimensionality of MCAs, emphasizing the role of customer-centric mobile performance and expanding the understanding of MCA value creation.
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Eva M. García-Granero, Laura Piedra-Muñoz, Emilio Galdeano-Gómez and Yolanda Sorroche-del-Rey
This study aims to propose a comprehensive framework for assessing circular economy (CE) performance in the agri-food sector. It identifies those indicators that should be used to…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to propose a comprehensive framework for assessing circular economy (CE) performance in the agri-food sector. It identifies those indicators that should be used to measure circularity regarding CE strategies, applies them at a microeconomic level and examines the impact of key business determinants (financial, internalization, knowledge, awareness and digitalization).
Design/methodology/approach
A literature review was conducted with a focus on CE strategies and related indicators. The framework obtained is applied on a Spanish agri-food sector survey to provide an empirical CE analysis at firm level. A partial least squares based-structural equation modelling method is applied.
Findings
The research suggests a set of circularity indicators to assess CE strategies at micro level. The findings reveal the heterogeneity of CE sub-indicators related to narrowing, slowing, closing and regenerating strategies. It also highlights the strong effects that the drivers tested have on CE, especially awareness and knowledge.
Practical implications
This study provides a framework that can guide public policies and business decisions in sectors with significant environmental impacts. It provides a conceptual framework that explains which CE indicators should be considered by governments and regulators when developing policies that seek to promote circular strategies.
Social implications
In the case of companies, the results show that acquiring more environmental awareness and knowledge is essential for promoting more sustainable work habits that enhance CE.
Originality/value
The paper offers a novel contribution to the CE literature by introducing a multidimensional indicator framework comprehensively applied to the agri-food sector, integrating miscellaneous pillars of circular strategies and business determinants.
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The purpose of this study is to measure the perception and the behavioural intention of web-users who interact with a virtual agent on a web site. The author wants to measure the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to measure the perception and the behavioural intention of web-users who interact with a virtual agent on a web site. The author wants to measure the added value of this technology in terms of providing e-service and measure web-users' desire to have a concrete experience with a firm after experiencing its web site.
Design/methodology/approach
The author integrated a virtual agent on a restaurant's web site and conducted an online survey. The author asked respondents to interact with the virtual agent and then fill in the questionnaire. The author used the expanded version of the technology acceptance model (TAM) for measuring the intention of potential customers to accept a new technology and for evaluating the characteristics of the virtual agent. In order to measure the e-service quality, the author adapted items of WebQual to restaurant industry. As the author had several latent variables, the author used partial least squares (PLS), a variance-based structural equation modeling method.
Findings
Results show that the utilitarian and hedonic values of the virtual agent increase significantly the desire of potential clients to experiment the restaurant. Hedonic value seems to play a major role. This is a crucial factor for restaurant and hotel industries which can be considered as hedonic industries.
Practical implications
This research can help firms to manage relationships with current and potential clients through their web site. The nature of the company plays an important role in the success of the virtual agent's implementation. Even if in the case the author applied the virtual agent to a hedonic industry, a lot of companies in other sectors can benefit from having a virtual agent, especially if the company in question is service-oriented (e.g. bank, airline, etc.).
Originality/value
According to the author's knowledge, virtual agents have never been applied to restaurant/hotel industries before. The results of this research significantly advanced the understanding of the impact of virtual agents, especially in the hospitality industry. Moreover, the author applied the TAM to the characteristics of virtual agent, which is very new for the academic world. Finally, the framework the author presented in this research could be used as a basis of measurement of virtual agent effectiveness.
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C. Bryan Foltz and Laura Foltz
Internet of Things (IoT) presents new privacy dilemmas. While IoT is becoming more common, a model to understand privacy concerns has not been established. The purpose of this…
Abstract
Purpose
Internet of Things (IoT) presents new privacy dilemmas. While IoT is becoming more common, a model to understand privacy concerns has not been established. The purpose of this paper is to examine an existing privacy model, the mobile users’ information privacy concerns (MUIPC), in the context of IoT.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was distributed via email to 1,257 undergraduate students enrolled in a Carnegie Master’s level university in the mid-south; 192 students completed the survey, a response rate of 15.3%. SmartPLS, a structural equation modeling software, was used to evaluate the measurement model and to examine the relationships.
Findings
All relationships were significant at the 0.05 level indicating that the MUIPC model does appear to apply to IoT.
Research limitations/implications
A convenience sample was used and the response rate was low and, therefore, may not be generalizable to another population.
Originality/value
This research demonstrates the MUIPC is indeed applicable to privacy research within IoT, thus opening another avenue for future research and confirms the influence of information privacy upon intention within the IoT realm.
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Mariella Miraglia, Guido Alessandri and Laura Borgogni
Previous literature has recognized the variability of job performance, calling attention to the inter-individual differences in performance change. Building on Murphy’s (1989…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous literature has recognized the variability of job performance, calling attention to the inter-individual differences in performance change. Building on Murphy’s (1989) theoretical model of performance, the purpose of this paper is to verify the existence of two distinct classes of performance, reflecting stable and increasing trends, and to investigate which personal conditions prompt the inclusion of individuals in one class rather than the other.
Design/methodology/approach
Overall job performance was obtained from supervisory ratings for four consecutive years for 410 professionals of a large Italian company going through significant reorganization. Objective data were merged with employees’ organizational tenure and self-efficacy. Growth Mixture Modeling was used.
Findings
Two main groups were identified: the first one started at higher levels of performance and showed a stable trajectory over time (stable class); the second group started at lower levels and reported an increasing trajectory (increasing class). Employees’ with stronger efficacy beliefs and lower tenure were more likely to belong to the stable class.
Originality/value
Through a powerful longitudinal database, the nature, the structure and the inter-individual differences in job performance over time are clarified. The study extends Murphy’s (1989) model, showing how transition stages in job performance may occur also as a result of organizational transformation. Moreover, it demonstrates the essential role of self-efficacy in maintaining high performance levels over time.
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Laura Helena Hartmann, Sina Nitzko and Achim Spiller
An observable shift in food consumption motives for some German consumer segments has created new market potentials for high-priced food items. The purpose of this paper is to…
Abstract
Purpose
An observable shift in food consumption motives for some German consumer segments has created new market potentials for high-priced food items. The purpose of this paper is to empirically show whether and to what extent financial, functional, individual and social dimensions as well as sustainability and authenticity contribute to consumers’ perception of the luxury value of food.
Design/methodology/approach
The effects of seven exploratory value dimensions on a perceived luxury value for foods were measured using a partial least squares structural equation analysis of a database generated by a survey done on 936 German consumers in summer 2014.
Findings
Luxury food was found to serve as a suitable setting to investigate both old and new motives for luxury consumption. The analyses revealed that all factors contribute significantly to luxury value, with functional and individual luxury facets having the strongest effects. Practical and methodological implications can be derived from the results.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations are due to the applied methodology.
Practical implications
The definitional dimensions of a luxury food value correspond to those for a general luxury good. The significance of two new luxury values, sustainability and authenticity, was confirmed for luxury food. The functional and individual luxury values were found to be the most significant. This supports the previously postulated change in motives for luxury consumption and also mirrors the new emphasis on quality and self-identity in the German food sector. These findings can be utilised in practical food marketing.
Originality/value
Although there are major similarities between food and luxury good consumption patterns, how luxury can be defined in the context of food had not been previously investigated empirically. This paper is the first to study the factors that contribute to the luxury value of food.
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The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the author’s decade-long tenure as the Editor of the European Journal of Marketing (EJM). The paper presents his thoughts on the past 10…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the author’s decade-long tenure as the Editor of the European Journal of Marketing (EJM). The paper presents his thoughts on the past 10 years of marketing scholarship, his views on future directions and some advice for those looking to publish their research in academic journals.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper takes a reflective, discursive approach, and also reviews a wide range of topics relevant to marketing researchers.
Findings
The author finds that EJM has grown substantially on many levels in the past decade. He also finds that there are some concerns around marketing research, and social scientific scholarship in general, that marketing scholars may wish to consider and take into account in their ongoing work.
Research limitations/implications
The paper is partly a personal view, and does not rely on any empirical research. However, the views espoused are justified by theoretical review and conceptual argument.
Practical implications
The implications of this paper are relevant to marketing scholars, journal reviewers, readers of research, as well as those who manage scholarship (e.g. university administrators). The author suggests a number of directions that the research, publication and reward process could move in to improve practice.
Originality/value
The paper brings together a large number of different views and concepts relevant to further development of marketing research, and provides original summaries and extensions.