Matt Conner and Melissa Browne
The purpose of this paper is to investigate three tools based on principles of information visualization and measure their impact on undergraduates' abilities to generate keywords…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate three tools based on principles of information visualization and measure their impact on undergraduates' abilities to generate keywords for database research.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 50 undergraduate students were randomly assigned to a condition (Control, Keyword Matrix, Wonder Wheel, Visual Search) and instructed to find relevant article citations on unfamiliar topics in EBSCO's Academic Search Complete. All students completed a pre‐test to provide baseline data. Control subjects performed one additional search. Students in the experimental conditions were introduced to the relevant information visualization strategy, employed it to identify keywords for two post‐test searches, and provided a written assessment of its impact. Audio and screen captures from search sessions were recorded, transcribed and analyzed.
Findings
Brainstorming Behavior: Wonder Wheel subjects spent significantly more time brainstorming search terms than those relying on the Keyword Matrix. Search Behavior: Visual Search subjects utilized significantly more search concepts and attempted more searches. Evaluation: Students expressed satisfaction with all three tools tested; however, a subset of Visual Search subjects verbalized frustration as they searched. The Visual Search produced desirable student search behaviors.
Research limitations/implications
The study sample was limited (50 undergraduates from a single institution) and student searches were not motivated by authentic information needs.
Originality/value
This study offers insight into how information visualization tools can be leveraged to improve undergraduate search behavior. The findings have practical implications for teaching librarians and course instructors.
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Jennifer Rosenfeld and Raida Gatten
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue of Reference Services Review entitled “LOEX‐of‐the‐West 2012: creative landscapes in southern California”.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the special issue of Reference Services Review entitled “LOEX‐of‐the‐West 2012: creative landscapes in southern California”.
Design/methodology/approach
Over 160 librarians from across the USA and Canada attended the biennial LOEX‐of‐the‐West (LOTW) conference on the campus of Woodbury University in Burbank, California from June 6‐8, 2012. LOTW strives for an atmosphere in which speakers can share innovative ideas and open a dialog with other librarians.
Findings
Traditionally, after each LOEX‐of‐the‐West (LOTW) conference a number of papers based on session presentations are submitted to Reference Services Review (RSR) for publication. Building on their work at the 2012 preconference, Editors of RSR, Ms Eleanor Mitchell and Ms Sarah Barbara Watstein, have worked closely with presenters to transform their talks to published papers. After going through a double blind peer review process, seven papers have been selected for publication in this issue.
Originality/value
The authors/Guest Editors are excited to share these papers in this special LOEX‐of‐the‐West issue of Reference Services Review. It is indeed just as the conference theme stated “Information Literacy for all Terrains”.
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Arun Jose and PrasannaVenkatesan Shanmugam
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the significant supply chain issues in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) food industry. The objectives are to identify the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the significant supply chain issues in the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) food industry. The objectives are to identify the major themes and the dynamic evolution of SME food supply chain (FSC) issues, the current research trends, the different modelling approaches used in SME FSC, and the most addressed SME food sector.
Design/methodology/approach
In all, 3,733 published articles from 2002 to 2018 in the Clarivate Analytics Web of Science database were collected, from which 1,091 articles were shortlisted for the review. The authors used bibliographic coupling combined with co-word analysis to identify the historical relations of the research themes that emerged during the periods 2002–2014 and 2002–2018.
Findings
This research identified five major research themes such as production and distribution in alternative food networks, relationship, safety and standards in the FSC, greenhouse gas (GHG) emission impact of the farm food system, traceability and product quality in FSC and asymmetric price transmission in the FSC. Among the identified themes, GHG emission impact of the farm food system and traceability and product quality in the FSC have received increasing attention in recent years. The dairy sector is the most addressed sector (36 per cent), followed by fruits and vegetables (27 per cent), meat and poultry (18 per cent), seafood (10 per cent) and grains and oilseed (8 per cent). It is also identified that the dairy sector has received significant attention in the “GHG Emission impact of farm food system” theme. Similarly, meat and poultry sectors have received much attention in the “Traceability and product quality in the food supply chain” theme. Also, the authors identified that the empirical modelling approaches are the most commonly used solution methodology, followed by the conceptual/qualitative methods in the SME FSC.
Originality/value
This study maps and summarizes the existing knowledge base of supply chain issues in the SME food sector. The results of this review provide the major research areas, most commonly used approaches and food sectors addressed. This study also highlights the research gaps and potential future research direction.
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Ilona Liliána Birtalan, Ágnes Neulinger, György Bárdos, Adrien Rigó, József Rácz and Szilvia Boros
While many characteristics of food consumption have been examined, little attention has been given to the health potential of consuming from local food communities. Local food…
Abstract
Purpose
While many characteristics of food consumption have been examined, little attention has been given to the health potential of consuming from local food communities. Local food communities, including community supported agriculture (CSA) are food initiatives, which try to respond to the healthy food, environmental or socioeconomic challenges of the food system. As a step toward understanding local food communities, this study sets out to examine the health-related adaptivity and self-management practices of CSA participation.
Design/methodology/approach
The qualitative research approach, which included semi-structured interviews (n = 35), was designed to discover the potential for being healthy: the ability to adapt and to self-manage among CSA participants. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis.
Findings
The results suggest that local food communities can influence health-related adaptivity and self-management in the following themes: awareness of product origins; enhanced food-management capability; expanding applicability and usability of the food environment; and strengthening one's food-related self-image.
Practical implications
Increasing the presence of local food communities might be part of developing strategies to evaluate the health effects of the local food environment and to encourage consumers to take responsibility for their own health.
Originality/value
This study extends the food consumption literature to include new knowledge about how local food communities facilitate individual efforts to enhance their own potential for health as well as improving understanding of the mechanisms that underpin a healthy diet.
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Sharon A. Simmons and Jeffrey S. Hornsby
We conjecture that there are five stages to academic entrepreneurship: motivation, governance, selection, competition, and performance. The process of academic entrepreneurship…
Abstract
We conjecture that there are five stages to academic entrepreneurship: motivation, governance, selection, competition, and performance. The process of academic entrepreneurship originates with the motivation of faculty, universities, industry, and government to commercialize knowledge that originates within the university setting. The model conceptualizes that the governance and competitiveness of the commercialized knowledge moderate the mode selection and ultimately the performance of academic entrepreneurship. The conceptual and empirical support for the model are derived from a theory-driven synthesis of articles related to academic entrepreneurship.
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Monica Carfagni, Lorenzo Fiorineschi, Rocco Furferi, Lapo Governi and Federico Rotini
This paper aims to argue about the involvement of additive technologies (ATs) in the prototyping issues of designing. More precisely, it reviews the literature contributions…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to argue about the involvement of additive technologies (ATs) in the prototyping issues of designing. More precisely, it reviews the literature contributions focused on the different perspectives of prototyping activities for design purposes, searching for both available knowledge and research needs concerning the correct exploitation of ATs.
Design/methodology/approach
A two-step literature review has been performed. In the first step, general information has been retrieved about prototyping issues related to design. In the second step, the literature searches were focused on retrieving more detailed information about ATs, concerning each of the main issues identified in the previous step. Extracted information has been analyzed and discussed for understanding the actual coverage of the arguments and for identifying possible research needs.
Findings
Four generally valid prototyping issues have been identified in the first step of the literature review. For each of them, available information and current lacks have been identified and discussed about the involvement of AT, allowing to extract six different research hints for future works.
Originality/value
This is the first literature review concerning AT-focused contributions that cover the complex and inter-disciplinary issues characterizing prototyping activities in design contexts.
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Jiejie Lyu, Deborah Shepherd and Kerry Lee
Student entrepreneurs account for a considerable number of start-up ventures derived from university settings. Nevertheless, there is little research that demonstrates how…
Abstract
Student entrepreneurs account for a considerable number of start-up ventures derived from university settings. Nevertheless, there is little research that demonstrates how university entrepreneurship education (EE) directly influences students’ start-up activities. The primary purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of various types of university entrepreneurship activities (incorporate entrepreneurial courses, extra-curricular initiatives, and start-up support) on student start-up behavior. This quantitative research utilized questionnaire data collected from university students (n = 1,820) in southeast China and was analyzed with hierarchical Poisson regression in STATA procedures. Research results indicate that engaging in any type of university entrepreneurship activities positively predicts students’ start-up activities, yet this positive effect is contingent on students’ prior start-up experience and the overall university entrepreneurial climate. These findings advance our understanding of crucial elements within university entrepreneurial ecosystems and how various entrepreneurship activities within these ecosystems potentially impact students’ venture creation.
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This paper aims to understand an employee’s intention toward whistleblowing by analyzing Ajzen’s (1991) theory of planned behavior (TPB) and Graham’s principled organizational…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to understand an employee’s intention toward whistleblowing by analyzing Ajzen’s (1991) theory of planned behavior (TPB) and Graham’s principled organizational dissent (POD). It also seeks to find the moderating effect of perceived organizational support (POS) on whistleblowing intention (BI).
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 220 usable responses, collected from government employees of India, were analyzed using structural equation modeling. For developing a questionnaire, items were adopted from the literature and were measured on a five-point Likert-type rating scale.
Findings
Results revealed that attitude, perceived behavioral control (PBC), subjective norm (SN) and perceived responsibility of reporting (PRR) positively influence BI whereas the perceived cost of reporting (PCR) negatively influenced BI. It was further found that POS negated the effect of attitude, PBC, PCR and PRR on BI and strengthens the effect of SN.
Research limitations/implications
The present study adds to the list of academic literature on topics such as corporate governance and whistleblowing and provides new avenues to academicians and researchers for research. It provides a comprehensive understanding of whistleblowing concept, factors that influence BI and reasons to promote whistleblowing culture in organizations.
Practical implications
The findings may help government institutions to understand the factors that hinder whistleblowing practices and to devise strategies to foster a culture of whistleblowing. It may also offer insights to managers to mold human resource practices so that it includes policies of moral behavior.
Originality/value
This study is one of the initial studies in the Indian context to explore the moderating role of perceived organization support on employee’s intention to blow the whistle.