Sabrina Helm, Joyce Serido, Sun Young Ahn, Victoria Ligon and Soyeon Shim
The purpose of this study is to examine young consumers’ financial behavior (e.g. saving) and pro-environmental behavior (i.e. reduced consumption and green buying) as effective…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine young consumers’ financial behavior (e.g. saving) and pro-environmental behavior (i.e. reduced consumption and green buying) as effective proactive strategies undertaken in the present to satisfy materialistic values and maximize well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on an online survey among a panel of young American adults (N = 968).
Findings
The study finds a positive effect of materialism on personal well-being and negative effects on financial satisfaction, proactive financial coping and reduced consumption, but no effect on green buying, a separate and distinct pro-environmental strategy. Both proactive financial coping and reduced consumption are positively associated with subjective well-being.
Research limitations/implications
Future research should re-examine conceptualizations of materialism in the context of climate change and the meaning of possessions in the global digital economy; studies could also focus on the specific well-being effects of reduced consumption and alternative pathways to align materialistic and environmental values.
Practical implications
Consumer education should look to models of financial education to demonstrate how limited natural resources can be managed at the micro level to enhance consumers’ subjective well-being, as well as reduce resource strain at the macro level.
Originality/value
Key contributions are the examination of materialism and consumption in the dual contexts of financial and environmental resource constraints and the effects of these key macro-social phenomena on consumers’ perceived well-being. Another study highlight is the differentiation of two strategies for proactive environmental coping, of which only one, reduced consumption, increased personal well-being and decreased psychological distress.
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Ya-Hui Kuo, Pei-Chiang Wu and Sun Young Ahn
The purpose of this study was to develop a synthesized retail brand personality scale (RBPS) framework across retail formats. This research also addresses cultural differences by…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to develop a synthesized retail brand personality scale (RBPS) framework across retail formats. This research also addresses cultural differences by applying an emic-etic approach to scale development with United States (US) and Taiwanese samples.
Design/methodology/approach
After two focus group interviews and a pretest were conducted in both Taiwan and the US, a main test was conducted on consumer samples in Taiwan (N = 412) and in the US (N = 411). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to develop a valid, reliable RBPS.
Findings
The results revealed that sincerity and sophistication are comparable dimensions to those in the brand personality scale (BPS), and unpleasantness, traditionalism, enthusiasm, antagonism and innovativeness were found to be unique dimensions for retail brands. The findings also indicated that sincerity, unpleasantness and traditionalism are common dimensions across cultures, whereas innovativeness, sophistication and antagonism are culture-specific dimensions in the US, whereas enthusiasm is a specific dimension in Taiwan.
Originality/value
To the best of authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to develop a synthesized scale of retail brand personality that compares the identified dimensions to Aaker's (1997) BPS and includes an emic-etic approach. This research contributes to the branding literature and international marketing field, and has implications for retail practitioners.
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This study comprehensively reviews the global literature on busy boards and audit committees.
Abstract
Purpose
This study comprehensively reviews the global literature on busy boards and audit committees.
Design/methodology/approach
Six eight articles on busy boards and audit committees from prominent accounting journals are reviewed and analyzed under the “reputation” and “busyness” premise.
Findings
Most studies advocating the “reputation” hypothesis have the consensus that busy directors have their benefits (knowledge spillovers), particularly regarding sharing their in-depth knowledge, experiences and expertise. This phenomenon is pronounced for younger and IPO firms, which have high advising and financing needs. From the “busyness” perspective, busy directors are too overboard in carrying out their duty effectively and responsibly.
Practical implications
This study identifies future research avenues on busy boards/audit committees and suggests that policymakers and regulators should limit the number of board appointments.
Originality/value
This is the first study to extensively amalgamate research on busy directors and audit committees. It reveals the various proxies used to measure the busyness of board and audit committee members and the consequences of busyness.
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Mishal Naqvi, Shan Li, Yushi Jiang and Muhammad Hasnain Abbas Naqvi
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the technology acceptance model, privacy concerns and demographic factors on intention to use (ITU) social networking…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the technology acceptance model, privacy concerns and demographic factors on intention to use (ITU) social networking sites (SNSs).
Design/methodology/approach
A questionnaire survey was developed and administered to a convenience sample of 838 university students.
Findings
The findings indicate that perceived privacy, demographic factors and perceived usefulness (PU) have a significant effect on the ITU SNSs, and that age does not moderate the relationship between perceived ease-of-use and PU.
Originality/value
This study confirms the growing importance of SNSs. It also provides social networking service providers with insights into user intentions towards such networks.
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Jonghun Sun, Eunsun Ahn and Jiseon Shin
Based on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, we investigate antecedents and consequences of work meaningfulness.
Abstract
Purpose
Based on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, we investigate antecedents and consequences of work meaningfulness.
Design/methodology/approach
We used survey data from employees in various South Korean organizations and applied Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and a bootstrapping procedure to test our proposed model.
Findings
We found that employees’ perceptions of their jobs’ social impact and task variety are positively related to work meaningfulness, which leads to higher levels of innovative behavior. We found that work meaningfulness mediates the effects of employees’ perceived social impact and task variety on their innovative behaviors.
Originality/value
Our study contributes to the positive psychology literature by identifying work meaningfulness as a critical underlying mechanism in explaining the relationship between task variety, perceived social impact, and innovative behavior.
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Melissa Clark, Bomi Kang and Jennifer R. Calhoun
A competitive hospitality environment requires attracting new target markets. The purpose of this research is to investigate how young travelers’ intention to stay and electronic…
Abstract
Purpose
A competitive hospitality environment requires attracting new target markets. The purpose of this research is to investigate how young travelers’ intention to stay and electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) are impacted by a hotel’s environmental sustainability communications on social media.
Design/methodology/approach
The data were collected from 306 participants via online survey and analyzed in SPSS and AMOS. Structural equation modeling was utilized for hypotheses testing.
Findings
The results support the use of social media marketing (SMM) by hotels to communicate sustainability efforts, increasing intentions to stay and expanding eWOM. Hospitality marketers can use these findings to better understand young travelers’ priorities and their information-gathering process when planning travel.
Practical implications
The study revealed the positive relationship between travelers’ perceptions of hotel environmental sustainability and greater intention to stay and positive eWOM. This could lead to increased business and recommendations for hospitality companies from young consumers.
Originality/value
This study advances the understanding of how young customers respond to hotels’ efforts to promote environmental sustainability on social media. The findings add value to practitioners and academics in their understanding of how hospitality marketers can increase intention to stay and eWOM by marketing to young travelers about environmental sustainability on social media.
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Myung-Joong Kim, Juil Kim and Sun-Young Park
This study aims to investigate customers’ churning out of Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service, one of the most prevalent forms of IT convergence.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate customers’ churning out of Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service, one of the most prevalent forms of IT convergence.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the review of current literature, a research model is introduced to depict the effects of select independent variables on customer churning behavior. First of all, the two groups are compared in terms of predictor variables, including switching barriers, voice of customer (VOC), membership period and degree of contents usage. Then, a curvilinear regression was applied to understand the association relationship between the level of IPTV contents usage and variables of switching barriers, VOC and membership period. Third, a logit regression was performed to predict customer churning through the variables of switching barriers, VOC, membership period and level of IPTV contents usage.
Findings
Through the empirical analysis, this study analyzed the factors affecting customer churning behavior of IPTV service providers based on switching barriers, VOC and contents usage.
Originality/value
Although several studies on IPTV have been undertaken globally, they have largely depended on self-reporting surveys to examine dynamics between antecedent variables and IPTV performance in terms of customer satisfaction, usage intension and customer retention. This empirical study is performed to understand influential factors of IPTV service defection through the weblog analysis of 3,906 service users, who represented both service defectors and non-defectors during a specific month.
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This paper points out new directions for the deepening and broadening of the institution-based view, by drawing on three streams of research with which I have been involved…
Abstract
This paper points out new directions for the deepening and broadening of the institution-based view, by drawing on three streams of research with which I have been involved recently: (1) outward foreign direct investment from emerging economies, (2) bankruptcy laws and entrepreneurship development, and (3) institution-based research focusing on Africa. Such deepening has been accomplished by enhancing our institution-based understanding of foreign direct investment with a focus on emerging multinationals, while broadening has been done both substantively by probing into the impact of bankruptcy laws on entrepreneurship development around the world and geographically by calling for enhanced research attention on Africa via an institution-based lens.
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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.