Helmut Wernick, Patrick Hoelzl and Bernhard G. Zagar
The purpose of this paper is to present a fast and contactless measurement method to determine the spatial conductivity distribution within an intrinsically conducting polymer…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a fast and contactless measurement method to determine the spatial conductivity distribution within an intrinsically conducting polymer, more precisely a conductive rubber sheet specimen. As a consequence of the manufacturing process and the material composition, the conductivity distribution within the sheet is assumed to be inhomogeneous.
Design/methodology/approach
The current density distribution within the conductive rubber sheet due to an excitation current is estimated from the measured magnetic field distribution. Therefore, a GMR sensor is used to spatially sample the magnetic field above the specimen. Based on the estimated current density distribution and alternatively the local power dissipation calculated from a thermal image, the conductivity distribution within the specimen is determined. For comparison a reference measurement with a classical resistivity probe is done.
Findings
The measurement results show a good agreement between the developed and the classical method. Moreover, the developed measurement method requires less time and still offers a higher spatial resolution.
Originality/value
The presented results demonstrate the potential of the developed measurement method for determining the conductivity distribution within thin and planar specimens. Furthermore, conclusions can be drawn about the material homogeneity of the used test specimen.
Details
Keywords
Gia Nardini and Richard J. Lutz
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between mental simulation and affective misforecasting of hedonic consumption experiences.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between mental simulation and affective misforecasting of hedonic consumption experiences.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors present a series of lab and field studies that manipulate mental simulation and experience type (ordinary versus extraordinary) and measure affective misforecasting and mindfulness. Data were analyzed using a combination of ANOVA and PROCESS.
Findings
Mental simulation before an experience causes negative affective misforecasting to occur for extraordinary experiences but not ordinary experiences. The authors further show that mindfulness mediates the effect of mental simulation on affective misforecasting.
Practical implications
The findings provide insight into how thinking about experiences before consumption affects consumers’ actual engagement with the experience. This paper suggests that, by encouraging consumers to mentally simulate their experiences before consumption, marketers may cause consumers to miss out on enjoying their experiences to the fullest. Instead, marketers may want to maintain some mystique by encouraging consumers to “come see for themselves”.
Originality/value
The authors demonstrate a novel cause of affective misforecasting: mental simulation before the experience and provide initial evidence in support of a novel psychological process explanation (i.e. mindfulness) for the effect of mental simulation on affective misforecasting.
Details
Keywords
Dene Hurley and Amod Choudhary
The purpose of this study is to examine the role of chief financial officers’ (CFOs’) gender in financial risk taking of 58 US companies along with the impact of having women…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the role of chief financial officers’ (CFOs’) gender in financial risk taking of 58 US companies along with the impact of having women board members.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a panel data of 58 selected S&P 500 companies during the period 2012-2016, this paper determines whether the gender of CFOs and having women board members play a role in risk-taking behavior of firms.
Findings
Firms led by female CFOs are smaller in size with lower net income and net revenue. The panel data analysis shows that the impact of female CFOs on firms’ financial risk is mixed, depending on risk measures used, whereas increasing female board members reduces that risk.
Research limitations/implications
The data used is limited to 58 S&P 500 companies, and two of the three risk-taking measures used in the study, specifically investment in property, plant and equipment (PPE) and debt/equity ratio, may not be applicable to some industries.
Practical implications
The findings provide mixed evidence of risk aversion by females in executive and leadership positions, depending on the measures used and the management responsibilities they undertake (CFO versus board member) with support for the glass cliff phenomenon in which females may be leading financially precarious organizations.
Social implications
Female CFOs are found to be leading relatively smaller and financially poor-performing firms compared with the male CFO-led firms, thereby giving support to the glass cliff arguments.
Originality/value
The paper examines the role of CFOs’ gender and board diversity in risk taking as measured by the investment in PPE, debt/equity ratio and stock return volatility.
Details
Keywords
Khyati Shetty, Jason R. Fitzsimmons and Amitabh Anand
The purpose of this study is to utilize social cognitive theory to investigate how social comparison orientations, individual cognitive, and environmental factors influence…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to utilize social cognitive theory to investigate how social comparison orientations, individual cognitive, and environmental factors influence females' decisions to pursue self-employment in the United Arab Emirates In doing so, the authors explore how the entrepreneurial self-efficacy of Emirati women also influences individuals towards entrepreneurship.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a survey instrument administered in both English and Arabic, data were collected from one hundred and three (103) employed Emirati women and eighty-four (84) self-employed Emirati women who were taking part in workshops conducted by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce.
Findings
The results from the study suggest that the social environment is a contributing factor toward self-employment, with higher levels of social comparison orientation increasing the likelihood of Emirati women being self-employed. Consistent with prior research, the authors also find that internal cognitive factors also play a significant role, with Emirati women possessing higher levels of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and having a higher likelihood of being self-employed.
Originality/value
This is one of the few studies aimed at exploring the role of social comparison orientation as a factor in motivating females towards entrepreneurship in the Middle East and North African (MENA) region.