Yen-Ting Chen, Li-Chi Lan and Wen-Chang Fang
Previous research has shown that consumers prefer a bonus pack to a price discount for virtue foods, whereas they prefer a price discount to a bonus pack for vice foods. Acting as…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous research has shown that consumers prefer a bonus pack to a price discount for virtue foods, whereas they prefer a price discount to a bonus pack for vice foods. Acting as a guilt-mitigating mechanism, a price discount justifies consumers' purchasing behavior, allowing them to save money and consume less vice foods. However, for virtue foods, neither the anticipated post-consumption guilt nor the resulting need for justification lead consumers to prefer a bonus pack to a price discount. This study investigates whether product promotions remain effective with other moderating variables.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use pricing tactic persuasion knowledge (PTPK), which refers to the consumer persuasion knowledge of marketers' pricing tactics, as a lens to understand whether the power of these promotions could be enhanced or mitigated. The authors inferred that increasing the frequency of exposure to these foods could positively influence consumers' purchasing choices. They conducted three studies to examine these effects. In Study 1, using pearl milk tea (vice food) and sugar-free tea (virtue food), the authors contended that consumers would prefer a price discount when purchasing pearl milk tea, but a bonus pack when purchasing sugar-free tea. In Studies 2 and 3, the authors varied the participants' frequency of exposure to photographs of people in everyday situations with vice (virtue) foods.
Findings
In Study 1, PTPK was shown to be more predictive of consumer choices regarding price discounts and bonus packs. In Studies 2 and 3, the authors contended that increased exposure to vice (virtue) foods increases the selection of vice (virtue) foods by participants who were unaware of having been exposed to vice (virtue) foods.
Originality/value
This research has not only made quite managerial and policy implications for marketing but also brought the theoretical contributions for marketing researches. This research demonstrates that either for vice foods or virtue foods, a price discount is preferred to a bonus pack.
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– This paper aims to apply the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) to validate the service factors of an academic library.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to apply the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) to validate the service factors of an academic library.
Design/methodology/approach
First, the service criteria were extracted from the SERVQUAL model and then their values were examined in the user’s mind. Second, the DEMATEL was applied to estimate the importance of the criteria and identify the causal factors. Next, an empirical study was conducted to demonstrate and validate the proposed approach. Finally, this paper offers some practical suggestions for academic libraries based on the analysis.
Findings
According to the analysis’ results, “Empathy” is the causal factor in the cause–effect diagram; i.e. the library should pay more attentions to “Empathy” rather than “Reliability”, “Responsiveness” and “Assurance” factors.
Originality/value
DEMATEL is a useful tool to identify the prominence and relationship of service factors; the evaluation is easy to apply and has not been used before in the discussion of library service. This paper provides an alternative for libraries to sort out the priorities of service improvement. The correspondence improvement can be addressed based on the causal analysis to make notable enhancement in service quality.
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Yen‐Ting Chen and Tsung‐Yu Chou
Like any product purchases, the success of online shopping depends largely on user satisfaction and other factors that further affect customers' intentions to continue shopping…
Abstract
Purpose
Like any product purchases, the success of online shopping depends largely on user satisfaction and other factors that further affect customers' intentions to continue shopping online (continuance intentions). This study seeks to integrate fairness theory with the trust concept to construct a model for investigating consumers' continuance intentions toward online shopping.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey collected data from 226 users with online shopping experience to empirically validate the hypothesised model.
Findings
The results indicate that distributive fairness and interactional fairness exert significant positive effects on customers' satisfaction and trust in vendors. Satisfaction is a strong predictor of the continuance intentions of consumers. However the fact that the relationship between trust in vendors and consumers' continuance intentions is insignificant offers insight into trust: consumers continue shopping online with certain levels of misgiving.
Originality/value –
The findings suggest that a user's trust in an online vendor can be enhanced by increasing fairness, particularly distributive fairness and interactional fairness. This also implies that an online user's satisfaction and trust are not just related to products: therefore vendors should put effort into the pre‐ and post‐sale experiences.
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Rahul Vishwanath Dandage, Santosh B. Rane and Shankar S. Mantha
Project risk management (PRM) and human resource management (HRM) are the two critical success factors (CSFs) for international project management. This paper aims to correlate…
Abstract
Purpose
Project risk management (PRM) and human resource management (HRM) are the two critical success factors (CSFs) for international project management. This paper aims to correlate these two CSFs, identify the human resource (HR) barriers, develop a hybrid model for risk management and develop strategies to overcome the HR barriers to effective risk management in international projects.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 20 key HR barriers have been identified through a literature survey and verified by project professionals. These HR barriers are ranked according to their ability to trigger other barriers by analysing their interactions using the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. Based on Ulrich’s revised model for HR functions, a hybrid framework for international PRM has been proposed.
Findings
DEMATEL analysis categorized nine barriers as cause barriers and 11 as affected barriers. The “PROJECTS” model proposed for HR strategy development suggests eight strategies to overcome these nine cause barriers. The hybrid PRM framework developed includes the effect of the HR dimension.
Research limitations/implications
This paper presents the generalized prioritization of HR barriers to international PRM. For a specific international project, the HR barriers and their prioritization may change slightly. The hybrid framework for PRM and the strategy development model suggested are yet to be validated.
Originality/value
Correlating two CSFs in international project management, i.e. HRM and PRM and ranking the HR barriers using the DEMATEL method is the uniqueness of this research paper. The hybrid framework developed for PRM based on HR functions in Ulrich’s revised model and the proposed new HR strategy development model “PROJECTS” are unique contributions of this paper.
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Kartal Doğukan Çiki, Mert Öğretmenoğlu and Ting-Yen Huang
This research investigates the effect of festival attributes such as music quality, atmosphere and place on music festival visitors' behavioural intentions, particularly focusing…
Abstract
Purpose
This research investigates the effect of festival attributes such as music quality, atmosphere and place on music festival visitors' behavioural intentions, particularly focusing on how visitors’ satisfaction and their subjective well-being mediate these relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
This research was designed as quantitative research to reveal the relationships between music quality, place and atmosphere with visitors' behavioural intentions. Structural equation modelling was used to test the relationships between the constructs using data from 256 festival attendees in Edirne.
Findings
The results reveal that perceived music quality and atmosphere significantly enhance visitors’ satisfaction, which in turn positively impacts word-of-mouth intention and subjective well-being. Moreover, subjective well-being positively and significantly affects visitors' revisit intentions. Finally, visitors’ satisfaction mediates the relationship between perceived music quality and word-of-mouth intention.
Originality/value
It is one of the first studies to investigate the mediating effects of visitor satisfaction and subjective well-being on the relationships between perceived music quality, atmosphere, place and the behavioural intentions of music festival attendees. Furthermore, the present study provides not only empirical support for the theoretical frameworks but also offers practical insights for festival organizers on enhancing visitor experiences to improve behavioural outcomes.
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Kuang Sheng Liu, Sung-Lin Hsueh and Han-Yi Chen
Rapid economic growth has enriched the lives of individuals and yielded rising material and living standards. However, various types of public pollution problems have successively…
Abstract
Rapid economic growth has enriched the lives of individuals and yielded rising material and living standards. However, various types of public pollution problems have successively emerged, and environmental problems have worsened in recent years. Furthermore, the prevalence of leisure and the rapid development of regional tourism industries and bed and breakfast lodging have exacerbated environmental destruction and pollution in various locales. The inclusion of ecotourism into ecological education and the provision of ecolodge are beneficial for the design of student learning outcomes; moreover, community residents and tourists can grasp the importance of environmental protection and education through ecolodging experiences. This measure would improve public awareness of environmental protection, facilitate the cultivation of social responsibility, and achieve the objective of environmental protection advocacy. Therefore, this study explored the relationship between ecological education and the environment by using Kenting National Park, a tourist attraction in Taiwan, as the case study. Tourists visiting the location were the research subjects, and convenience sampling was conducted by distributing 505 questionnaires, with 372 valid responses recovered—a return rate of 74%. The research revealed the following results: (a) Environmental education is positively correlated with environmental attitude. (b) Environmental attitude is positively correlated with environmental behavior. (c) Environmental education is positively correlated with environmental behavior. Finally, this paper proposes recommendations based on the research results with the aim of facilitating environmental literacy, correct environmental attitudes, concern for ecosystems, and the realization of environmental behavior.
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M.Y.L. Chew, Sheila Conejos and Ashan Senel Asmone
The aim of this paper is to present a research framework for the green maintainability of buildings. This study makes the case for the development of a new concept called “green…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to present a research framework for the green maintainability of buildings. This study makes the case for the development of a new concept called “green maintainability”. The paper also identifies and discusses the knowledge gap concerning green facilities management (FM). As an integral part of green FM, the economic, environmental and social impacts and opportunities of green maintainability throughout the total life cycle of the facility are also highlighted.
Design/methodology/approach
The little attention paid to the maintainability of green buildings has resulted in losses of lives due to occupational health and safety hazards as well as high operation and maintenance costs. To address this issue, this study has conducted a literature review to determine the relevant background knowledge and provides a conceptual framework that will aid in conceptualizing the green maintainability of buildings and the development of a research framework for the furtherance of this concept.
Findings
This paper finds that there is little research on the maintainability of green buildings, and the studies about the maintainability of green features are nonexistent in current research. This study confirms the knowledge gap of this little-researched area and draws from it the formulation of a research framework for the green maintainability of buildings to ensure green FM. Emerging literature on green practices and methods is currently receiving attention from academia, as well as building and construction practitioners, and can valuably contribute to the existing theories, practices and methods concerning building maintainability and facilities management.
Originality/value
This study develops the novel concept of green maintainability, which integrates maintainability and green FM at the planning/design stage. The proposed research framework is the first attempt to investigate the green maintainability of different typologies of buildings and especially green building technologies.