The purpose of this paper is to investigate an efficient means of estimating the ability of students solving problems in the computer-based learning environment.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate an efficient means of estimating the ability of students solving problems in the computer-based learning environment.
Design/methodology/approach
Item response theory (IRT) and TrueSkill were applied to simulated and real problem solving data to estimate the ability of students solving homework problems in the massive open online course (MOOC). Based on the estimated ability, data mining models predicting whether students can correctly solve homework and quiz problems in the MOOC were developed. The predictive power of IRT- and TrueSkill-based data mining models was compared in terms of Area Under the receiver operating characteristic Curve.
Findings
The correlation between students’ ability estimated from IRT and TrueSkill was strong. In addition, IRT- and TrueSkill-based data mining models showed a comparable predictive power when the data included a large number of students. While IRT failed to estimate students’ ability and could not predict their problem solving performance when the data included a small number of students, TrueSkill did not experience such problems.
Originality/value
Estimating students’ ability is critical to determine the most appropriate time for providing instructional scaffolding in the computer-based learning environment. The findings of this study suggest that TrueSkill can be an efficient means for estimating the ability of students solving problems in the computer-based learning environment regardless of the number of students.
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Karen L. Xie and Young Jin Lee
When shopping for hotels online, consumers usually follow a sequential process of search, click-through and book. How to maximize consumer conversion on the path to purchase and…
Abstract
Purpose
When shopping for hotels online, consumers usually follow a sequential process of search, click-through and book. How to maximize consumer conversion on the path to purchase and prevent potential customers from giving up the online search remains an important topic to hotel marketers and online travel agents (OTAs). The purpose of this study is to understand how informational cues displayed in an online hotel search process, including quality indicators, brand affiliation, incentives (discounted price and promotion) and position in the search results, influence consumer conversion from one stage to another.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors collected clickstream data of hotel search from Expedia. The data include information on individual consumers’ click-through and booking, as well as events leading up to the conversions (or failure to convert) from search, click-through to book. It contains 940,164 hotels searched and displayed in 39,574 online search queries made by users in a regional US market between November 1, 2012 and June 20, 2013. The modeling strategy comprised the Heckman model and random effects model, which integrated sequential consumer behavior in different problem-solving stages while accounting for heterogeneity across different hotels online.
Findings
The authors find that consumers rely on informational cues displayed online to make decisions about hotel booking. Specifically, consumers tend to click through hotels with higher consumer-generated ratings and industry-endorsed ratings. However, they tend to rely on consumer-generated ratings rather than industry-endorsed ratings when committing to a booking. Moreover, consumers are strongly responsive to incentives (discounted price and promotion) when clicking-through and booking a hotel. Finally, the likelihood of consumer conversions from search to click-through and booking is higher for hotels with brand affiliation and higher positions in the search results.
Originality/value
This research provides critical managerial implications of online search for hotel marketers and OTAs. The results inform hotel marketers and OTAs on how consumers respond to informational cues displayed in their search process and how these informational cues influence consumer conversion from one stage to another. The sequential problem-solving process of search, click-through and booking disclosed in this study also helps hotel marketers to identify customer conversion opportunities using effective informational cues.
研究目的
当在线酒店预定时, 消费者往往遵循一系列流程, 搜索, 点击查询, 到最后预定。对于酒店营销商和线上旅游社(OTAs)来说, 如何最大化提高消费转化, 使得消费者不会半途中断, 最后预定酒店, 是一个重要话题。本论文的研究目的就是理解酒店在线搜索过程中, 信息线索如何影响每个阶段的消费转化, 其中涉及的因素有:信息质量、品牌、激励(折扣和促销)、以及搜索结果排名等。
研究设计/方法/途径
研究样本数据采集于Expedia酒店搜索点击流。其中包括个人消费者点击和预定信息、以及由搜索、点击查询到预定过程中的消费转化(或者中途转化失败)的各种事件。样本容量包括940,164家酒店, 其涉及到由美国局部市场消费者在2012年11月1日到2013年6月20日之间做出的39,574条搜索结果。 我们采用Heckman模型和随机效应模型来整合不同线性时间上的消费者行为, 同时考虑不同酒店的多样性。
研究结果
研究发现消费者使用在线信息线索来做酒店预订决策。具体来说, 消费者倾向于对于消费者评价高和行业认证高的酒店进行点击查询。然而, 相比行业认证, 消费者更倾向于借鉴消费者评价, 来做出最后预定决策。此外, 在点击查询和预定时, 消费者对于激励(折扣和促销)反应强烈。最后, 品牌和搜索排名靠前的酒店往往获得从搜索、点击查询到最后预定中更高的消费转化率。
研究原创性/价值
本论文对酒店营销商和OTAs有重要的在线搜索启示。研究结果向酒店营销商和OTAs证明消费者在搜索过程中对信息线索如何反应, 以及这些信息线索如何影响每个阶段之间的消费转化。本论文展示的从搜索、点击查询、到预定的线性决策过程对于酒店营销商们有着重大帮助, 帮助其使用信息线索找出各种消费转化机遇。
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Mike Thornhill, Karen Xie and Young Jin Lee
Previous literature has discussed the importance of two types of social media exposures: owned social media (OSM) exposures generated by service providers and earned social media…
Abstract
Purpose
Previous literature has discussed the importance of two types of social media exposures: owned social media (OSM) exposures generated by service providers and earned social media (ESM) exposures initiated by consumers. This study aims to examine the relative effects of owned and ESM exposures on brand purchase, as well as their advertising externality to competing brands. Rooted in theory of planned behavior and advertising externality literature, this study hypothesizes that owned and ESM exposures positively influence brand purchase. Such effects, however, can spill over to competing brands that invest in social media marketing and co-exist in the market.
Design/methodology/approach
This study collects brand purchase records and social media messages on the Facebook brand pages of a group of service providers over 12 months. The data are assembled for time series analysis with the unit of analysis being “brand × bi-week”.
Findings
Using a blend of fixed-effects models and seemingly unrelated regressions, this study finds that both owned and ESM exposures positively affect brand purchase, the purchase effect of OSM exposures is greater than ESM exposures, OSM exposures generate not only more purchase of the focal brand but also positive advertising externality to competing brands, whereas ESM exposures locks up the advertising effect to the focal brand without spilling over to competing brands.
Originality/value
This study advances the understanding about the externality of social media exposures in an increasingly competitive market where multiple brands invest in social media marketing and co-exist. Important implications on the strategic use of social media exposures to drive brand purchase while competing with similar brands are provided.
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Tianjie Deng, Anamika Barman-Adhikari, Young Jin Lee, Rinku Dewri and Kimberly Bender
This study investigates associations between Facebook (FB) conversations and self-reports of substance use among youth experiencing homelessness (YEH). YEH engage in high rates of…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates associations between Facebook (FB) conversations and self-reports of substance use among youth experiencing homelessness (YEH). YEH engage in high rates of substance use and are often difficult to reach, for both research and interventions. Social media sites provide rich digital trace data for observing the social context of YEH's health behaviors. The authors aim to investigate the feasibility of using these big data and text mining techniques as a supplement to self-report surveys in detecting and understanding YEH attitudes and engagement in substance use.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants took a self-report survey in addition to providing consent for researchers to download their Facebook feed data retrospectively. The authors collected survey responses from 92 participants and retrieved 33,204 textual Facebook conversations. The authors performed text mining analysis and statistical analysis including ANOVA and logistic regression to examine the relationship between YEH's Facebook conversations and their substance use.
Findings
Facebook posts of YEH have a moderately positive sentiment. YEH substance users and non-users differed in their Facebook posts regarding: (1) overall sentiment and (2) topics discussed. Logistic regressions show that more positive sentiment in a respondent's FB conversation suggests a lower likelihood of marijuana usage. On the other hand, discussing money-related topics in the conversation increases YEH's likelihood of marijuana use.
Originality/value
Digital trace data on social media sites represent a vast source of ecological data. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using such data from a hard-to-reach population to gain unique insights into YEH's health behaviors. The authors provide a text-mining-based toolkit for analyzing social media data for interpretation by experts from a variety of domains.
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Krisda Matmuang Cripe and Cheryl Burleigh
The purpose of this paper was to discover the best practices used by information technology (IT) project managers to determine what leadership skills, behaviors, communication…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper was to discover the best practices used by information technology (IT) project managers to determine what leadership skills, behaviors, communication tools and techniques are needed to lead and communicate effectively with virtual IT project teams.
Design/methodology/approach
In this qualitative case study, data was gathered by semistructured interviews from ten successful IT project managers from Northern California who had more than ten years of experience managing virtual teams (VTs) with growing and profitable IT companies in Silicon Valley, California.
Findings
IT project managers and leaders may consider building personal relationships with team members at the beginning of each project to foster a sense of camaraderie and common ground for the successful outcome and desired results. Maintaining cohesive team relationships to gain their trust and confidence may require additional coaching, mentoring, collaborating, recognizing their accomplishments, providing technical training, and understanding different cultures and local laws that relate to VTs to manage projects successfully to move projects forward in sustaining business, and assure customer satisfaction.
Originality/value
Findings from this study may assist IT project managers and leaders in building trust and rapport, increasing efficiency and developing effective lines of communication within their virtual IT teams.
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Woo-Young Lee, Youngjin Hur, Dae Yeon Kim and Christopher Brigham
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of congruity and endorsement on consumer attitudes toward sports website advertisements (Aad), the advertising brand (Abr), and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of congruity and endorsement on consumer attitudes toward sports website advertisements (Aad), the advertising brand (Abr), and consumers’ future intentions (FI).
Design/methodology/approach
The current study followed a 2×3 between-subjects experimental design. Sports celebrity (or the presence or absence of a sports celebrity in a banner ad) and the level of congruity between the website and banner ad (high congruity – soccer, medium congruity – snowboard, and low congruity – computer) were the primary independent variables. Data were collected in two stages. An initial pilot study (n=40) established the reliability and validity of the scaled measures guiding this test. The second phase of data collection, the main study, was conducted over a five-day period. A random assignment of treatment conditions (i.e. exposure to one of six banner ad manipulations) was followed by a series of short surveys designed to measure the dependent variables of subjects’ cognitive ad responses (i.e. Aad, Abr, and FI).
Findings
The results indicated that participants who viewed the ad with the endorsement showed a more positive Aad than those who viewed the ad without it. The participants with a high congruity condition reported a more positive Abr and higher FI than those with low or medium congruity.
Originality/value
This study extends the application of congruity theory to banner advertisements, thereby aiding our understanding of consumers’ perceptions of advertising.
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Jinyoung Min, Youngjin Yoo, Hyeyoung Hah and Heeseok Lee
Rather than viewing social network technology (SNT) as a mere tool to access a networked audience, we emphasize its role as both a means and a social actor to help verify people’s…
Abstract
Purpose
Rather than viewing social network technology (SNT) as a mere tool to access a networked audience, we emphasize its role as both a means and a social actor to help verify people’s self-images in an online social context.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing upon self-verification theory, this study investigates a mechanism of how users are willing to use SNTs continuously through the cognitive and affective reactions on two different SNTs. Structural equation modeling was used via data collected from 320 Facebook and 313 Twitter users.
Findings
Our results demonstrated that Facebook users regard it only as a useful tool for presenting self-images, while Twitter users are likely to feel an emotional attachment to technology as a social actor when ideal self-verification is gained, and that different types of SNTs create differential contexts for self-verification.
Research limitations/implications
This study suggests a new lens to understand SNT’s role as a social actor in the self-verification process, further identifying the SNT context in which SNT takes different roles.
Practical implications
In a certain SNT usage context, users are attached to SNTs, suggesting SNT providers consider features that enable SNT users to fulfill their own self-verification motives.
Originality/value
This study explores the roles of SNTs from a self-verification perspective. Our conceptualization of technology as a self-verifying social actor can further extend existing discussions on the role of SNT in response to self-verifying needs, while also promoting the continued use of SNTs in the future.
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Korean educational migrant (kirogi) families have received widespread popular attention due to their ironic form of family that sacrifices the togetherness of a family. Recent…
Abstract
Korean educational migrant (kirogi) families have received widespread popular attention due to their ironic form of family that sacrifices the togetherness of a family. Recent trends suggest that this practice is spreading to the less affluent classes and that many such families are heading to ‘new’ destinations, including Singapore. This study examines the transnational schooling and life experiences of Korean transnational educational families in Singapore. It addresses the questions, why did these families choose Singapore? Why did transnational schooling, which parents almost unanimously said that they had organised for the betterment of their children's future, lead to some families getting stuck in the destination country?
Fieldwork in Singapore and Korea was conducted between April 2006 and September 2007. In-depth interviews with both mothers and fathers who have at least one child attending public, private or international schools in Singapore, at the primary or secondary level, were conducted with 18 families. The analysis was conducted using a grounded theory approach and NVivo 7/8.
Although the Korean state's emphasis on international competitiveness and parental aspirations for their children's future upward social mobility were common motivators, Koreans in Singapore were also attracted by the relatively low cost, English–Chinese bilingualism and other ‘family-friendly’ features in Singapore. However, kirogi children had highly contrasting schooling experiences and they met with mixed success in gaining what they expected. Furthermore, many children in public schools faced demotion and other difficulties in their new school environments. Some less affluent families found themselves facing dilemmas of cross-border schooling. This study shows that transnational schooling does not necessarily operate equally favourably for participants from diverse class backgrounds. It also demonstrates that the societal contexts of reception in both the countries of origin and of destination, including the buffering institutions and reference groups and peer culture, are important factors shaping the schooling and life experiences of educational migrant children and in reconfiguring their trajectories.
Huiju Park, Soo-kyung Hwang, Joo-Young Lee, Jintu Fan and Youngjin Jeong
This paper investigated the impact of the distance of the heating unit from the body in a multi-layered winter clothing system on effective thermal insulation and heating…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper investigated the impact of the distance of the heating unit from the body in a multi-layered winter clothing system on effective thermal insulation and heating efficiency.
Design/methodology/approach
To identify changes in the thermal insulation and heating efficiency of electrical heating in different layers inside a winter clothing ensemble, a series of thermal manikin tests was conducted. A multi-layered winter ensemble with and without activation of a heating unit was tested on the thermal manikin under two different ambient temperature conditions (10°C and -5°C).
Findings
Results show that the effective thermal insulation of test ensembles increased by 5-7% with the activation of the heating unit compared to that without the activation. The closer the heating unit to the body, the higher the effective thermal insulation was in both ambient temperature conditions. This trend was more significant at lower ambient temperature.
Research limitations/implications
The results of this study indicate that providing electric heating next to the skin is the most effective in increasing effective thermal insulation and decreasing body heat loss in both ambient temperature (-5°C and 10°C). This trend was more remarkable in colder environment at -5°C of ambient temperature as evidenced by sharp decrease in heating efficiency and effective thermal insulation with an increase in distance between the manikin skin and heating unit at -5°C of ambient temperature compared to at 10°C of ambient temperature.
Practical implications
Based on the results, it is expected that proximity heating next to the skin, in cold environment, may reduce the weight and size of the battery for the heating unit because of the higher efficiency of electric heating and the potentially immediate perception of warmth supported by the greatest increase in effective thermal insulation, as well as the lowest heat loss that comes with activation of heating on the first layer in cold environment.
Originality/value
The finding of this study provides guidelines to sportswear designers, textile scientists, sports enthusiasts, and civilians who consider electric heating benefits for improved thermal comfort and safety in cold environments, especially in the areas of outdoor and winter sports and in military service. The results of this study indicate that providing electric heating next to the skin is the most effective in increasing effective thermal insulation and decreasing body heat loss in both ambient temperature (-5°C and 10°C).