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Article
Publication date: 5 July 2019

Morteza Akbari, Maryam Mehrali, Nader SeyyedAmiri, Niloofar Rezaei and Afsaneh Pourjam

In the current era, businesses and customers are becoming increasingly concerned with social and environmental issues, and unlike the past, the main focus is not merely on…

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Abstract

Purpose

In the current era, businesses and customers are becoming increasingly concerned with social and environmental issues, and unlike the past, the main focus is not merely on economic growth. As new customers are getting more informed and responsible toward their surroundings, it is necessary for enterprises to act responsibly to attract responsible customers. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on brand positioning and customer loyalty in travel agencies in Tehran, Iran.

Design/methodology/approach

Through quota sampling, 86 agencies are selected and a number of 200 customers of those travel agencies are surveyed by means of purposive sampling.

Findings

The result reveals that CSR has a significant effect on loyalty of customers and brand positioning. In addition, the results indicate that all hypotheses have significant effects except for the C-C identification on customer loyalty.

Practical implications

Tourism managers should bear in mind that performing CSR activities is not merely a cost burden but a viable strategy for creating competitive advantage. They should adapt their CSR activities to the industry environment.

Originality/value

The study provides important evidence about CSR and their role in brand positioning and customer loyalty in tourism industry. In addition, the study contributes to the literature by developing the link between CSR and brand positioning.

Details

Social Responsibility Journal, vol. 16 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-1117

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Article
Publication date: 5 May 2020

Mostafa Rezaei, Ali Mostafaeipour, Niloofar Jafari, Nafiseh Naghdi-Khozani and Ali Moftakharzadeh

Acute shortage of potable water and energy supplies is expected to raise in developing countries in the near future. One solid way to address these issues is to exploit renewable…

572

Abstract

Purpose

Acute shortage of potable water and energy supplies is expected to raise in developing countries in the near future. One solid way to address these issues is to exploit renewable energy resources efficiently. Hence, this study aims to investigate wind and solar energy use in the coastal areas of southern Iran for renewable-powered seawater desalination and hydrogen production systems.

Design/methodology/approach

To accomplish the aforementioned purpose, five areas most prone to the problems in Iran, namely, Mahshahr, Jask and Chabahar ports and Kish and Hormoz islands were scrutinized. To ascertain the amount of wind and solar energy available in the areas, Weibull distribution function, Angstrom–Prescott equation and HOMER software were used.

Findings

The findings indicated that wind energy density in Kish was 2,014.86 (kWh/m2.yr) and solar energy density in Jask equaled to 2,255.7 (kWh/m2.yr) which possessed the best conditions among the areas under study. Moreover, three commercial wind turbines and three photovoltaic systems were examined for supplying energy needed by the water desalination and hydrogen production systems. The results showed that application of wind turbines with rated power of 660, 750 and 900 kWh in Kish could result in desalting 934,145, 1,263,339 and 2,000,450 (m3/yr) of seawater or producing 14,719, 20,896 and 31,521 (kg/yr) of hydrogen, respectively. Additionally, use of photovoltaic systems with efficiency of %14.4, %17.01 and %21.16 in Jask could desalinate 287, 444 and 464 (m3/yr) of seawater or generate 4.5, 7 and 7.3 (kg/yr) of hydrogen, respectively.

Originality/value

Compared to the huge extent of water shortage and environmental pollution, there has not been conducted enough studies to obtain broader view regarding use of renewable energies to solve these issues in Iran. Therefore, this study tries to close this gap and to give other developing nations the idea of water desalination and hydrogen production via renewable energies.

Details

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology , vol. 18 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1726-0531

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Article
Publication date: 30 November 2022

Ensiyeh Jenabi, Niloofar Rabiei, Mahdieh Seyedi, Mohammad Rezaei, Ali Reza Soltanian, Saeid Bashirian and Amir Mohammad Salehi

This study aims to investigate the psychometric properties of the social communication questionnaire (SCQ) in Iran by identifying children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who…

52

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the psychometric properties of the social communication questionnaire (SCQ) in Iran by identifying children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who had Persian-speaking parents.

Design/methodology/approach

A case–control study was performed from June to August 2021 in Hamadan, Iran. The case group consisted of children who were examined by clinicians who used a coding scheme based on the DSM-V criteria for ASD by a psychiatrist. The control group consisted of non-ASD children who were asked to participate in the study. This study conducted the reliability, content and face validity to evaluate the psychometric properties of the tool. In the first step, Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin and Bartlett’s test were used to determine sampling adequacy and appropriateness of correlation matrix. In the second step, the exploratory factor analysis approach was used. The method of extracting the factors is done by using the varimax rotation method and selecting the number of factors using an eigenvalue and scree plot. Statistical analysis was performed using Software Package for Social Sciences 21 with the statistical significance set at level less than 0.05.

Findings

The quantitative content validity analysis revealed that the mean of content validity ratio and content validity index were 0.92 and 0.91, respectively. Mean score ± standard deviation in the two groups of ASD and control were 14.23 ± 3.84 and 7.83 ± 4.80, respectively. With cut-off point >12.5, sensitivity, specificity and misclassification error values were 73.33%, 80.0% and 23%, respectively.

Research limitations/implications

The results showed that the internal consistency of the SCQ is desirable. Also, the internal consistency of its five subscales was obtained between 0.700 and 0.87. The findings showed that SCQ questionnaire is highly reliable in reciprocal social interaction (Factor 1) and the total score, while other factors were relatively reliable.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper on psychometric properties of SCQ in ASD children in Iran.

Details

Advances in Autism, vol. 9 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-3868

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Article
Publication date: 29 October 2021

Hannan Amoozad Mahdiraji, Moein Beheshti, Seyed Hossein Razavi Hajiagha, Niloofar Ahmadzadeh Kandi and Hasan Boudlaie

Due to the political, economic and infrastructure barriers and risks that international entrepreneurs (IEs) face when researching an emerging economy's agrifood sector, this…

305

Abstract

Purpose

Due to the political, economic and infrastructure barriers and risks that international entrepreneurs (IEs) face when researching an emerging economy's agrifood sector, this research aims to identify the major barriers, analyse their relationships, quantify their importance, classify and rank them. Thus, the IEs will gain a better understanding and vision of their decision-making processes in this era.

Design/methodology/approach

To do this, the authors first created a list of barriers to entry for IEs into Iran's rising economy's agrifood industry. Following that, a multi-layer decision-making approach was developed and implemented to accomplish the research objectives. The first stage utilized a hybrid of interpretive structural modelling (ISM) and cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification (MICMAC) to depict the level-based conceptual model and classification of the IEs’ obstacles to entry into the agrifood sector. Following that, a hybrid decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL), and analytic network process (ANP) called DANP was utilized to present a causal relationship between the barriers, identify their causes and effects, and also quantify the relevance of each barrier.

Findings

After employing the multi-layer decision-making approach, the results demonstrated that fundamental limitations, including infrastructure and technology limitations, are the most critical barriers alongside policy factors encompassing governmental support and access to global or regional economy/market. According to the results, innovation and economic sustainability of the agrifood supply chain also matter. All of these critical barriers are intertwined and should be planned and solved simultaneously. Furthermore, based on DANP results, the sustainability pillars (economy, environment, society), besides the low efficiency of the agrifood sector in Iran, should be investigated further for future policy makings.

Originality/value

A hybrid multi-layer decision-making approach has been used for analysing the barriers of investment in the agrifood sector of the emerging economy of Iran for the international entrepreneurs. Moreover, the authors provide implications and insights for IEs and officials for decision-making in the future.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 124 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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Article
Publication date: 1 November 2021

Seyed Hossein Razavi Hajiagha, Niloofar Ahmadzadeh Kandi, Hannan Amoozad Mahdiraji, Vahid Jafari-Sadeghi and Shide Sadat Hashemi

Science and technology parks (STPs) have a limited capacity, which can create challenging conditions for applicants. This makes the location selection a multi-criteria…

615

Abstract

Purpose

Science and technology parks (STPs) have a limited capacity, which can create challenging conditions for applicants. This makes the location selection a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem to find and apply for the most appropriate STP with the highest accordance with the startup's requirements. This research aims to select the most appropriate STP to locate an international entrepreneurial pharmaceutical startup under uncertainty. Since drugs are generally produced domestically in developing countries such as Iran, the access of pharmaceutical startups to the resources provided by STPs can lead to overcoming competitors and improving the country's health system.

Design/methodology/approach

In this research, the factors or attributes effective on startup location were extracted through a two-round Delphi method, which was performed among 15 experts within three groups. Subsequently, the determining factors were used to select the location of a pharmaceutical startup among possible STPs. In this regard, decision-makers were allowed to use different types of numbers to transfer their opinion. Afterward, the heterogeneous weighted aggregated sum product assessment (HWASPAS) method was applied to calculate the score of each alternative and rank them to place the studied startup successfully.

Findings

The results indicated that Tehran STP stands in the first place; however, if the decision was made based on single criterion like cost, some other STPs could be preferable, and many managers would lose this choice. Furthermore, the results of the proposed method were close to other popular heterogeneous MCDM approaches.

Originality/value

A heterogeneous WASPAS is developed in this article for the first time to enable international entrepreneurs to imply their opinion with various values and linguistic variables to reduce the emphasis on accurate data in an uncertain environment.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

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Article
Publication date: 27 February 2023

Ali A. Ali, H. Abd El-Wahab, Moustafa S. Abusaif, Ahmed Ragab, Omar A. Abdel-Jaid, E.A. Eldeeb and Yousry A. Ammar

The paper aims to the preparation of novel disperse dye based on azo salicylaldehyde derivatives TF-A [2-hydroxy-5-((3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)diazenyl)benzaldehyde] and full…

206

Abstract

Purpose

The paper aims to the preparation of novel disperse dye based on azo salicylaldehyde derivatives TF-A [2-hydroxy-5-((3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)diazenyl)benzaldehyde] and full evaluation of their use as disperse dye TF-ASC [bis 2-hydroxy-5-((3-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)diazenyl)benzaldehyde Schiff base with 4,4'-methylenedianiline] for dyeing polyester fabric at various conditions.

Design/methodology/approach

The dispersed dye was synthesized via Schiff base condensation in the presence of ceric ammonium nitrate cerium ammonium nitrate 10 mmole% as an eco-friendly catalyst at room temperature. The chemical structure of the prepared dye was characterized via elemental analysis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, 1H- and 13 C-NMR spectroscopic analysis tools. This study thoroughly examined the dyeing of disperse dye TF-ASC on polyester at various conditions. The characteristics of dyed polyester fabric were measured by colour measurements, as well as light, washing, crock fastness and finally, colour strength. The discrete fourier transform (DFT) theoretical studies, including EHOMO, ELUMO and optimized geometrical structure, were assumed and discussed in detail.

Findings

The results showed that the synthesized organic dye TF-ASC was highly functional and appropriate for this kind of dyeing method. The dyeing fabrics obtained from disperse dye TF-ASC, properties possess high colour strength as well as good overall fastness properties. These dyes had a high affinity for polyester fabric, with just a tiny change in dye affinity when the pH was changed, even under alkaline circumstances. The dye levelness and shade depth of the colour results were good, and there were a variety of hues from light brownish yellow to deep brownish yellow. The results obtained from DFT computational studies such as EHOMO, ELUMO, optimized structure, diploe moment µ and electrophilicity index deduced that prepared organic dye TF-ASC is more applicable as a dispersed dye.

Originality/value

This research is significant because it provides a new dye for dyeing polyethylene terephthalate fibres with exceptional brightness and levelness; the method of preparation is a useful pathway due to its being known as a green chemistry method.

Details

Pigment & Resin Technology, vol. 53 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0369-9420

Keywords

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