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Article
Publication date: 9 May 2013

Michael Bleaney and R. Todd Smith

The purpose of this paper is to examine the conditions under which discount risk leads to closed‐end funds trading at a discount.

454

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the conditions under which discount risk leads to closed‐end funds trading at a discount.

Design/methodology/approach

A model of investor portfolio choice is developed in which investors face proportional fees for holding managed funds but fixed transaction fees for purchasing other risky assets. The conditions under which investors will hold shares in closed‐end funds are derived.

Findings

It is shown that, with fixed transaction costs in the market for risky assets, investors with wealth below a certain threshold will hold pooled index funds that charge a proportional fee, rather than the market portfolio chosen by wealthier investors. If a portfolio of closed‐end index funds yields greater volatility of returns to investors than open‐end index funds (i.e. displays “excess volatility”), and charges the same fees, the closed‐end funds need to trade at a discount in equilibrium to attract buyers. The same applies to actively managed funds if higher fees fully reflect extra expected returns from the managers' skill.

Practical implications

A primary determinant of closed‐end fund discounts is discount volatility and co‐movement across funds.

Originality/value

Until now it has been argued that discount risk needs to be systematic (correlated with market returns) to be priced. The evidence that discount risk is systematic is weak. There is strong empirical evidence of excess volatility and co‐movement of discounts across closed‐end funds, which in our model are a sufficient condition for funds to trade at a discount, under plausible assumptions. This model thus provides a stronger argument that discount risk explains why discounts exist.

Details

Review of Accounting and Finance, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1475-7702

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Article
Publication date: 19 June 2009

Ulrike Ravens‐Sieberer, John Freeman, Gyongyi Kokonyei, Christiane A. Thomas and Michael Erhart

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether students' perceptions of their school environment and their adjustment to school are associated with health outcomes across…

1506

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether students' perceptions of their school environment and their adjustment to school are associated with health outcomes across gender and age groups.

Design/methodology/approach

Data from the cross‐sectional international Health Behavior in School‐aged Children Survey of the year 2002 (n=162 306) were analyzed. A structural equation model (LISREL) specified social school climate and school demands influencing, school adjustment (achievement and liking of school). The latter aspects were assumed to influence the health outcomes general health item, life satisfaction and multiple psychosomatic symptoms. Analyses were repeated across gender and age (11, 13 and 15 years).

Findings

The specified LISREL model fitted the data well on the entire sample as well as for age and gender subgroups (RMSEA=0.043‐0.054). Overall, girls' general perceived health and life satisfaction seemed to be more strongly affected by the school environment than boys'. Age affected the goodness of fit of the model and reduced the strength of the relationship between school pressure and school adjustment. In all subgroups, the relationship between better school perceptions and better subjective health and life satisfaction were supported by the analyses.

Research limitations/implications

Reported findings are limited to the cross‐sectional study design which precludes causal inferences. Further research using longitudinal data is warranted to confirm the findings.

Practical implications

Relationships between school environment and school adjustment and health‐related outcomes revealed the relative importance of school social climate and demands for school adjustment and through the latter in determining subjective health and life satisfaction. School social climate is a target for promoting health and well‐being of children and adolescents.

Originality/value

Complex statistical analyses employing structural equation modelling confirmed findings on the importance of school aspects for child and adolescents in a huge data set.

Details

Health Education, vol. 109 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-4283

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Book part
Publication date: 10 December 2015

Dekar Urumsah

The concept and practice of e-services has become essential in business transactions. Yet there are still many organizations that have not developed e-services optimally. This is…

Abstract

The concept and practice of e-services has become essential in business transactions. Yet there are still many organizations that have not developed e-services optimally. This is especially relevant in the context of Indonesian Airline companies. Therefore, many airline customers in Indonesia are still in doubt about it, or even do not use it. To fill this gap, this study attempts to develop a model for e-services adoption and empirically examines the factors influencing the airlines customers in Indonesia in using e-services offered by the Indonesian airline companies. Taking six Indonesian airline companies as a case example, the study investigated the antecedents of e-services usage of Indonesian airlines. This study further examined the impacts of motivation on customers in using e-services in the Indonesian context. Another important aim of this study was to investigate how ages, experiences and geographical areas moderate effects of e-services usage.

The study adopts a positivist research paradigm with a two-phase sequential mixed method design involving qualitative and quantitative approaches. An initial research model was first developed based on an extensive literature review, by combining acceptance and use of information technology theories, expectancy theory and the inter-organizational system motivation models. A qualitative field study via semi-structured interviews was then conducted to explore the present state among 15 respondents. The results of the interviews were analysed using content analysis yielding the final model of e-services usage. Eighteen antecedent factors hypotheses and three moderating factors hypotheses and 52-item questionnaire were developed. A focus group discussion of five respondents and a pilot study of 59 respondents resulted in final version of the questionnaire.

In the second phase, the main survey was conducted nationally to collect the research data among Indonesian airline customers who had already used Indonesian airline e-services. A total of 819 valid questionnaires were obtained. The data was then analysed using a partial least square (PLS) based structural equation modelling (SEM) technique to produce the contributions of links in the e-services model (22% of all the variances in e-services usage, 37.8% in intention to use, 46.6% in motivation, 39.2% in outcome expectancy, and 37.7% in effort expectancy). Meanwhile, path coefficients and t-values demonstrated various different influences of antecedent factors towards e-services usage. Additionally, a multi-group analysis based on PLS is employed with mixed results. In the final findings, 14 hypotheses were supported and 7 hypotheses were not supported.

The major findings of this study have confirmed that motivation has the strongest contribution in e-services usage. In addition, motivation affects e-services usage both directly and indirectly through intention-to-use. This study provides contributions to the existing knowledge of e-services models, and practical applications of IT usage. Most importantly, an understanding of antecedents of e-services adoption will provide guidelines for stakeholders in developing better e-services and strategies in order to promote and encourage more customers to use e-services. Finally, the accomplishment of this study can be expanded through possible adaptations in other industries and other geographical contexts.

Details

E-services Adoption: Processes by Firms in Developing Nations
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-709-7

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Book part
Publication date: 10 December 2015

Chun Kit Lok

Smart card-based E-payment systems are receiving increasing attention as the number of implementations is witnessed on the rise globally. Understanding of user adoption behavior…

Abstract

Smart card-based E-payment systems are receiving increasing attention as the number of implementations is witnessed on the rise globally. Understanding of user adoption behavior of E-payment systems that employ smart card technology becomes a research area that is of particular value and interest to both IS researchers and professionals. However, research interest focuses mostly on why a smart card-based E-payment system results in a failure or how the system could have grown into a success. This signals the fact that researchers have not had much opportunity to critically review a smart card-based E-payment system that has gained wide support and overcome the hurdle of critical mass adoption. The Octopus in Hong Kong has provided a rare opportunity for investigating smart card-based E-payment system because of its unprecedented success. This research seeks to thoroughly analyze the Octopus from technology adoption behavior perspectives.

Cultural impacts on adoption behavior are one of the key areas that this research posits to investigate. Since the present research is conducted in Hong Kong where a majority of population is Chinese ethnicity and yet is westernized in a number of aspects, assuming that users in Hong Kong are characterized by eastern or western culture is less useful. Explicit cultural characteristics at individual level are tapped into here instead of applying generalization of cultural beliefs to users to more accurately reflect cultural bias. In this vein, the technology acceptance model (TAM) is adapted, extended, and tested for its applicability cross-culturally in Hong Kong on the Octopus. Four cultural dimensions developed by Hofstede are included in this study, namely uncertainty avoidance, masculinity, individualism, and Confucian Dynamism (long-term orientation), to explore their influence on usage behavior through the mediation of perceived usefulness.

TAM is also integrated with the innovation diffusion theory (IDT) to borrow two constructs in relation to innovative characteristics, namely relative advantage and compatibility, in order to enhance the explanatory power of the proposed research model. Besides, the normative accountability of the research model is strengthened by embracing two social influences, namely subjective norm and image. As the last antecedent to perceived usefulness, prior experience serves to bring in the time variation factor to allow level of prior experience to exert both direct and moderating effects on perceived usefulness.

The resulting research model is analyzed by partial least squares (PLS)-based Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach. The research findings reveal that all cultural dimensions demonstrate direct effect on perceived usefulness though the influence of uncertainty avoidance is found marginally significant. Other constructs on innovative characteristics and social influences are validated to be significant as hypothesized. Prior experience does indeed significantly moderate the two influences that perceived usefulness receives from relative advantage and compatibility, respectively. The research model has demonstrated convincing explanatory power and so may be employed for further studies in other contexts. In particular, cultural effects play a key role in contributing to the uniqueness of the model, enabling it to be an effective tool to help critically understand increasingly internationalized IS system development and implementation efforts. This research also suggests several practical implications in view of the findings that could better inform managerial decisions for designing, implementing, or promoting smart card-based E-payment system.

Details

E-services Adoption: Processes by Firms in Developing Nations
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78560-709-7

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Article
Publication date: 1 July 2014

S.O. Ismaila, O.G. Akanbi and C.N. Ngassa

The purpose of this study was to obtain some anthropometric dimensions of students in secondary schools necessary for the design of school furniture and use them to establish the…

325

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to obtain some anthropometric dimensions of students in secondary schools necessary for the design of school furniture and use them to establish the models that best determine the relationships among the anthropometric dimensions and standing height.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 480 students aged 10 to 18 years (n = 480, SD = ± 2.3 years) were randomly selected from eight public and eight private secondary schools in Ibadan, South West Nigeria. All the dimensions were subjected to curve estimation using Statistical Products and Services Solution 16.0 Statistical Package. The models with p < 0.005 and highest coefficient of determinations were selected as the best models to predict the relationships among the standing height and other variables.

Findings

The study proposes 11 models using standing height to estimate necessary anthropometric dimensions for the design of school furniture. The results of the study show that all anthropometric dimensions correlate more non-linearly with standing height than linearly.

Originality/value

The proposed models will have wide applications for the estimation of anthropometric data necessary for the design and construction of school furniture for use in secondary schools in South Western Nigeria.

Details

Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, vol. 12 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1726-0531

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Article
Publication date: 17 February 2012

Ursula Griebler and Peter Nowak

Participation is a core value for health promoting schools. Student participation at schools is often implemented in various forms of councils. The aims of this article are to…

1828

Abstract

Purpose

Participation is a core value for health promoting schools. Student participation at schools is often implemented in various forms of councils. The aims of this article are to summarise the effects of student participation in student councils, to show who benefits most and to discuss characteristics that make student councils effective.

Design/methodology/approach

The article is based on a recently conducted systematic literature review. Nearly one third of all included cases were dealing with student participation in the form of student councils. The authors conducted a qualitative analysis of the diverse effects and characteristics of student councils.

Findings

Effects of student participation in student councils can be categorised into personal effects on students, effects on interactions and on the school as an organisation. Students actually participating in councils, i.e. the student representatives, benefit most in terms of personal effects (e.g. increasing life skills, self‐esteem, developing democratic skills) and in terms of improvements in peer relationships or student‐adult relationships. All students benefit from improvements in the physical or social environment of the school. The characteristics that potentially make student councils successful concern the council composition, election procedures of representatives, positions and procedures and frequency and timing of council meetings, communication between council and the student body or other actors, the decision‐making power of the council, supportive school context and training of councillors and staff.

Originality/value

This is the first systematic synthesis of research conducted on effects of student participation in student councils. The article discusses the potential of student councils for strengthening the whole‐school approach to health promotion.

Details

Health Education, vol. 112 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-4283

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Article
Publication date: 1 November 2007

Jason K. Ritter, Dave Powell and Todd S. Hawley

This paper reports on the processes and outcomes of a collaborative self-study conducted by three beginning teacher educators who sought to examine the efficacy of their teaching…

23

Abstract

This paper reports on the processes and outcomes of a collaborative self-study conducted by three beginning teacher educators who sought to examine the efficacy of their teaching practices while working with student teachers in the field. By systematically embracing opportunities to explore mutually pressing issues and concerns manifest across the student teaching semester, the authors found that collaborative self-study provided a useful framework for considering their pedagogical reasoning and decision making as they encouraged student teachers to engage in rationale-based practice. The understandings gleaned from this study provided the authors with a basis upon which to reexamine their developing teacher educator pedagogies, as well as to critique the nature and structure of their teacher education program.

Details

Social Studies Research and Practice, vol. 2 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1933-5415

Available. Content available
Book part
Publication date: 21 January 2022

Abstract

Details

Repositioning Out-of-School Learning
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-739-3

Available. Content available
Book part
Publication date: 7 August 2023

Tim Jay and Jo Rose

Free Access. Free Access

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Parental Engagement and Out-of-School Mathematics Learning
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-705-8

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Article
Publication date: 7 November 2016

Todd D. Smith and Mari-Amanda Dyal

The purpose of this paper is to develop and present a safety-oriented job demands-resources (JD-R) model that supports the notion that excessive job demands in the fire service…

661

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop and present a safety-oriented job demands-resources (JD-R) model that supports the notion that excessive job demands in the fire service, when not controlled or countered, may increase firefighter burnout and diminish firefighter safety.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach for the present project includes a review of the JD-R literature and the presentation of a conceptual model specific to fire service organizations.

Findings

A conceptual model, relevant to fire service organizations was derived. The model argues that excessive job demands associated with workload, physical demands, emotional demands, and complexity can result in burnout if not controlled or countered. Safety-specific resources, including recovery, support, safety-specific transformational leadership and safety climate are theorized to buffer these effects and are suggested to enhance firefighter engagement. These effects are argued then to improve firefighter safety. Ultimately, the findings will help guide future research, intervention projects and workplace safety and health management programs and initiatives.

Originality/value

This paper and conceptual model extends the application of the JD-R model to fire service organizations. Further, the conceptual model supports the application of safety-specific job resources vs more traditional job resources as a means to enhance firefighter safety.

Details

International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 9 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8351

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