Md. Mahiuddin Sabbir, Mazharul Islam and Samir Das
This study aims to understand the determinants of online pharmacy or epharmacy adoption among young consumers in Bangladesh using an extended unified theory of acceptance and use…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to understand the determinants of online pharmacy or epharmacy adoption among young consumers in Bangladesh using an extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) model.
Design/methodology/approach
A structured Google Docs questionnaire was sent out to 420 respondents using messenger service; 285 useable responses were finally extracted. Data were empirically validated using the two-staged structural equation model (SEM)-neural network analysis approach.
Findings
The robustness of the classical UTAUT model remains intact in the context of online pharmacy adoption. Among the integrated variables, while perceived trust and health literacy were found significant, perceived risk and personal innovativeness were found insignificant in determining consumers’ intention to adopt online pharmacy. The neural network analysis provided further verification of these findings derived from the SEM.
Practical implications
The findings of this study would facilitate in devising better strategies for entering or expanding online pharmacy business in developing countries such as Bangladesh.
Originality/value
The originality of the current study relates to the two-fold contributions of this study. First, while this study extended the classical UTAUT model by incorporating perceived risk, perceived trust, personal innovativeness and health literacy, the inclusion of the following two variables is fresh within the extant online pharmacy literature. Second, by using a two-staged SEM-neural network analysis approach, this study advances the past studies on e-commerce adoption in pharmaceutical settings and provides a general understanding of the customers of developing countries.
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Md. Shahinur Rahman, Samir Das, Gazi Md. Shakhawat Hossain and Tajia Tajrin
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors, which drive teenagers’ behavioural intention to adopt wearable technologies and their behavioural intention to recommend…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors, which drive teenagers’ behavioural intention to adopt wearable technologies and their behavioural intention to recommend others.
Design/methodology/approach
This study proposes a new adoption model combining two different models including the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology and the theory of planned behaviour, which provided relevant contributions for understanding the adoption of wearable technologies. A structural equation modelling approach using analysis of a moment structures 23 software was used to analyse the data collected from 318 respondents.
Findings
Findings of this study reveals that performance expectancy (β = 0.28; t = 2.049), facilitating conditions (β = 0.28; t = 1.989), social influence (β = 0.23; t = 3.150) and attitude (β = 0.18; t = 3.246) have a statistically significant impact on behavioural intention. Additionally, behavioural intention (β = 0.15; t = 2.543) and attitude (β = 0.15; t = 3.261) have a statistically significant impact on intention to recommend others. However, effort expectancy, price value, hedonic motivation and habit did not have a significant influence on behavioural intention.
Practical implications
In this study, the understanding of the determinants contributing to teenagers’ behavioural intention to use wearable technologies and driving their intention to recommend others to adopt these devices will provide insights to practitioners and decision makers to customize the features of wearable devices to promote sustainable use of these technologies.
Originality/value
This study is among the first to investigate wearable technologies from behavioural perspectives especially on teenagers in Bangladesh. Hence, the findings of this study will help to comprehensively explain teenagers’ behavioural intention to adopt wearable technologies and their intention to recommend others.
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While internal wars have acquired a new lease of life in the post-Cold War era and the capacity of the states has become limited thanks to globalization, non-state actors are seen…
Abstract
While internal wars have acquired a new lease of life in the post-Cold War era and the capacity of the states has become limited thanks to globalization, non-state actors are seen to play an increasingly important role in handling and mitigating them. The paper focuses on four such interventions in contemporary India ranging from (a) parties themselves striving hard for bringing the conflicts to an end and (b) “third party” acting as a mediator to (c) both armed and unarmed interventions of organized nature and (d) initiatives individuals take while trying to resolve them. Not all such interventions are necessarily civil society interventions for the latter aim not only at ending conflicts but ending them in a way that establishes the principles of rights, justice, and democracy.
Salwa H. El-Sabbagh, Doaa Samir Mahmoud, Nivin M. Ahmed, A.A. Ward and Magdy Wadid Sabaa
This paper aims to study the role of organobentonite (OB) as a filler to improve the mechanical strength of styrene butadiene rubber (SBR). Organoclay was first prepared by…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to study the role of organobentonite (OB) as a filler to improve the mechanical strength of styrene butadiene rubber (SBR). Organoclay was first prepared by modifying bentonite with different concentrations of N-cetyl-N, N, N-triethyl ammonium bromide. A series of SBR composites reinforced with OB were prepared using master-batch method.
Design/methodology/approach
The curing characteristics, mechanical properties, thermal behavior, dielectric properties and morphology of SBR/OB composites were investigated.
Findings
The elastic modulus and tensile strength of composites were increased by inclusion of OB, while the elongation at break was decreased, due to the increase in the degree of cross-linking density. Thermal gravimetric analysis revealed an improvement in the thermal stability of the composite containing 0.5 cation exchange capacity (CEC) OB, while the scanning electron micrographs confirmed more homogenous distribution of 0.5CEC OB in the rubber matrix. Also, SBR/0.5CEC OB showed low relative permittivity and electrical insulating properties.
Research limitations/implications
Bentonite has been recognized as a potentially useful filler in polymer matrix composites because of their high swelling capacity and plate morphology.
Practical implications
OB improves the cured rubber by increasing the tensile strength and the stiffness of the vulcanizate.
Social implications
Using cheap clay in rubber industry lead to production of low cost products with high efficiency.
Originality/value
The clay represents a convenient source because of their environmental compatibility. The low cost and easy availability make the modified clay used as fillers in rubber matrices, and the resultant composites can be applied in variety industrial of applications such as automobile industries, shoe outsoles, packaging materials and construction engineering.
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Trong Nghia-Nguyen, Le Thanh Cuong, Samir Khatir, Le Minh Hoang, Salisa Chaiyaput and Magd Abdel Wahab
Concrete gravity dams are important structures for flood control and hydraulic power generation, but they can be vulnerable to seismic activity due to ground movements that…
Abstract
Purpose
Concrete gravity dams are important structures for flood control and hydraulic power generation, but they can be vulnerable to seismic activity due to ground movements that trigger crack propagation.
Design/methodology/approach
To better understand the factors that affect the stability of concrete gravity dams against concrete fracture during earthquakes, a concrete plastic damage model has been utilized with two new expressions to simulate compressive and tensile damage variables.
Findings
The findings showed that the crack patterns were strongly influenced by the concrete’s strength. The simulation results led to the proposal of appropriate concrete properties aimed at minimizing damage. These findings, together with the proposed model, offer significant insights that can enhance the safety and stability of concrete gravity dam structures.
Originality/value
This study offers a comprehensive analysis of concrete behavior under varying grades and introduces simple and robust expressions for evaluating concrete parameters in plastic damage models. The versatility of these expressions enables accurate simulation of stress-strain curves for different grades, resulting in excellent agreement between model results and experimental findings. The simulation of the Koyna Dam case study demonstrates a similarity in crack patterns with previous simulations and field observations.
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Amy Yau, Ben Marder and Stephanie O’Donohoe
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to an understanding of the role of social media in negotiating and managing identity for transient migrants relating to the home and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to an understanding of the role of social media in negotiating and managing identity for transient migrants relating to the home and host culture during the acculturation process.
Design/methodology/approach
Focussing on international students in the UK, this paper reports on findings from a qualitative study involving interviews with 27 transient migrants about their social media use and the negotiation of their identity online.
Findings
This paper highlights the multifaceted role that social media plays in the identity negotiations of transient migrants and it offers three theoretical contributions. First, the authors show that social media serves as a medium, consequence and determinant of identity. Second, provide four strategies for identity management are provided: boundary management, access management, online content management and offline content management. Third, contextualised support is provided for a reciprocal relationship between the different identity-related roles played by social media.
Research limitations/implications
The paper highlights the complex role of social media for identity within the acculturation process for transient migrants. Identity contestation may be salient for young student migrants, especially where there is a large cultural distance between the home and host culture. Identity negotiations and struggles may not be salient with older migrants or migrants who have migrated for different reasons or where there is a small cultural distance between the home and host culture.
Practical implications
This paper offers recommendations for social media site designers for enhancing the users experience during acculturation by guiding the navigation with identity management strategies as well as to highlight the possible predicaments of not managing their identity online.
Originality/value
Based on qualitative research with transient migrants using social media during acculturation, the paper provides a theoretical model of the role and reciprocal relationship of social media for identity, serving the role as a medium, consequence and determinant. The paper incorporates four identity management strategies that migrants can use on social media.
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Mohammed Z. Salem, Samir Baidoun, Grace Walsh and Netham Sweidan
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of female portrayal in advertisements on Palestinian female consumers’ purchasing decisions. TV and online media were selected…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of female portrayal in advertisements on Palestinian female consumers’ purchasing decisions. TV and online media were selected as the medium for the study. Specifically, the researchers examine the one-dimensional sexualized female portrayal in advertisements.
Design/methodology/approach
Culture is used as the lens through which the study examines the relationship between independent and dependent variables concerning the topic of this study. The study collected primary data from 395 Palestinian participants through a survey questionnaire.
Findings
The findings of the study revealed that there is a relationship between the independent variable (the sexualized female portrayal in foreign advertisements – advertisements originating in foreign countries) and the dependent variable (Palestinian female consumers’ purchase decision). Additionally, the study found that the cultural differences between Palestine and other foreign countries have a negative impact on the Palestinian female consumers’ perception of the product being advertised.
Practical implications
Although traditional marketing procedures would allow companies to filter and adapt particular adverts to suit various cultural, social and political environments, the advent of the open web and satellite TV channels extend the advertisements reach to audiences beyond their intended demographic.
Originality/value
This is the first study set in the Arab context (including Palestine) to explore the impact of sexualized female portrayal in advertisements on Palestinian female consumers’ purchasing decision.