Phuong D. Le, Hui Xun Teo, Augustine Pang, Yuling Li and Cai-Qin Goh
Scholars have discouraged using silence in crises as it magnifies the information vacuum (see Pang, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to argue for its viability and explore the…
Abstract
Purpose
Scholars have discouraged using silence in crises as it magnifies the information vacuum (see Pang, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to argue for its viability and explore the type of silence that can be used.
Design/methodology/approach
Eight international cases were analyzed to examine how silence was adopted, sustained and broken.
Findings
The findings uncovered three intention-based typologies of strategic silence: delaying, avoiding and hiding silences. Among such, avoiding/hiding silence intensified crises and adversely affected post-silence organizational image when forcefully broken, while delaying silence helped preserve/restore image with primary stakeholders if successfully sustained and broken as planned.
Research limitations/implications
First, these findings may lack generalizability due to the limited number of cases studied. Second, local sentiments may not be fully represented in the English-language news examined as they may be written for a different audience. Finally, a number of cases studied were still ongoing at the time of writing, so the overall effectiveness of the strategy employed might be compromised as future events unfold.
Practical implications
A stage-based practical guide to adopting delaying silence is proposed as a supporting strategy before the execution of crisis response strategies.
Originality/value
This is one of the few studies to examine the role of silence in crisis communication as silence is not recognized as a type of response in dominant crisis theories – be it the situational crisis communication theory or the image repair theory (An and Cheng, 2010; Benoit, 2015; Benoit and Pang, 2008; Xu and Li, 2013).
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Wenjia Yang, Haijuan Zhou and Yuling Li
The purpose of this paper is to report the investigations on the potential of a new evolutionary algorithm based on probabilistic models – the quantum-inspired evolutionary…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report the investigations on the potential of a new evolutionary algorithm based on probabilistic models – the quantum-inspired evolutionary algorithm (QEA) in solving inverse problems.
Design/methodology/approach
An improved QEA.
Findings
The proposed algorithm is an efficient and robust global optimizer for solving inverse problems.
Originality/value
To enhance the convergence speed without compromising the diversity performances of the populations, a new definition of global information sharing is introduced and implemented. To guarantee the balance between exploration and exploitation searches, a different migration strategy and formula, as well as a novel formulation for adaptively updating the rotation angle, are developed.
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Xin Chen, Xiaoyu Zheng, Meiling He, Yuling Liu, Hong Mao, Xiwu Li, Hongwei Yan, Yi Kong, Liya Li and Yong Du
During the forming process, aluminum alloy sheets develop various types of textures and are subjected to cyclic loading as structural components, resulting in fatigue damage. This…
Abstract
Purpose
During the forming process, aluminum alloy sheets develop various types of textures and are subjected to cyclic loading as structural components, resulting in fatigue damage. This study aims to develop polycrystalline models with different orientation distributions and incorporate suitable fatigue indicator parameters to investigate the effect of orientation distribution on the mechanical properties of Al-7.02Mg-1.78Zn alloys under cyclic loading.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, a two-dimensional polycrystalline model with 150 equiaxed grains was constructed based on optical microscope images. Subsequently, six different orientation distributions were assigned to this model. The fatigue indicator parameter of strain energy dissipation is utilized to analyze the stress response and fatigue crack driving force in polycrystalline models with different orientation distributions subjected to cyclic loading.
Findings
The study found that orientation distribution significantly influences fatigue crack initiation. Orientation distributions with a larger average Schmid factor exhibit reduced stress response and lower fatigue indicator parameters. Locations with a larger average Schmid factor experience greater plastic deformation and present a higher risk for fatigue crack initiation. RVE with a single orientation undergoes more rotation to reach cyclic steady state under cyclic loading due to the ease of deformation transfer.
Originality/value
Currently, there are no reports in the literature on the calculation of fatigue crack initiation for Al-Mg-Zn alloys using the crystal plasticity finite element method. This study presents a novel strategy for simulating the response of Al-7.02Mg-1.78Zn materials with different orientation distributions under symmetric strain cyclic loading, providing valuable references for future research.
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Jaeyun Han, Susan Farruggia and Mike Stieff
Understanding group dynamics is essential for promoting institutional change. The purpose of this brief article is to introduce the use of Yule’s Q to quantify group dynamics in a…
Abstract
Purpose
Understanding group dynamics is essential for promoting institutional change. The purpose of this brief article is to introduce the use of Yule’s Q to quantify group dynamics in a way that allows an individual’s tendency to associate with others based on their shared attributes to be captured as they evolve.
Design/methodology/approach
Two academic departments at a large public urban university participated in ongoing meetings as part of the year-long change initiative. Field notes of these meetings were recorded for information on participants and the flow of conversations. Yule’s Q was calculated with responsive interaction network and attribute data coded from the field notes.
Findings
Yule’s Q can be used to quantify group dynamics with a visualization of interactions among group members. The differences in the triggered divisions or faultlines in organizational change initiatives by shared common attributes (e.g. levels of positions within departments) can be related to group interactions and/or disruptions in collaboration.
Originality/value
This study can contribute to broadening the research community’s analytic approaches to utilizing network and attribute data for understanding group dynamics and their patterns across meetings.
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Wenliang Fan, Pengchao Yang, Yule Wang, Alfredo H.-S. Ang and Zhengliang Li
The purpose of this paper is to find an accurate, efficient and easy-to-implement point estimate method (PEM) for the statistical moments of random systems.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to find an accurate, efficient and easy-to-implement point estimate method (PEM) for the statistical moments of random systems.
Design/methodology/approach
First, by the theoretical and numerical analysis, the approximate reference variables for the frequently used nine types of random variables are obtained; then by combining with the dimension-reduction method (DRM), a new method which consists of four sub-methods is proposed; and finally, several examples are investigated to verify the characteristics of the proposed method.
Findings
Two types of reference variables for the frequently used nine types of variables are proposed, and four sub-methods for estimating the moments of responses are presented by combining with the univariate and bivariate DRM.
Research limitations/implications
In this paper, the number of nodes of one-dimensional integrals is determined subjectively and empirically; therefore, determining the number of nodes rationally is still a challenge.
Originality/value
Through the linear transformation, the optimal reference variables of random variables are presented, and a PEM based on the linear transformation is proposed which is efficient and easy to implement. By the numerical method, the quasi-optimal reference variables are given, which is the basis of the proposed PEM based on the quasi-optimal reference variables, together with high efficiency and ease of implementation.
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Weinan Zheng, Peng Xiao and Andrew Madden
Academic contention occurs when research evidence is amenable to more than one interpretation. China has a long tradition of Shang Que (商榷), in which authors argue for their…
Abstract
Purpose
Academic contention occurs when research evidence is amenable to more than one interpretation. China has a long tradition of Shang Que (商榷), in which authors argue for their preferred interpretation. The modern form of this tradition is the Shang Que article, which often takes the form of research papers in Chinese-language journals and which tends to be question-oriented. Shang Que articles usually take the views of a particular author or article as the focus of independent and complete criticism by another, independent, academic. This paper explains the role of Shang Que articles in Chinese scholarship and their influence on international academia.
Design/methodology/approach
A bibliometric analysis was used to explore the characteristics and evolution of Chinese Shang Que articles using 30,577 articles published between 1979 and 2018. Microsoft Excel and Gephi were used for data analysis and visualization.
Findings
Findings suggest a decline in the number of Shang Que articles and an increase in the number of co-authors. Shang Que articles remained particularly prominent in Philosophy and Humanities and Social Sciences, where they focused on local issues such as classical Chinese, the Sinicization of Marxism and Chinese literature. This suggests that the number of Shang Que articles is related to the degree of internationalization of a research field.
Originality/value
Shang Que articles, which have been influenced by academic paradigms in English, are a fusion of China's Shang Que tradition and of the modern academic system. Through considering Shang Que articles, this paper explores the benefits of local academic traditions in non-English-speaking cultures.
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Chong Li, Yuling Qu and Xinping Zhu
A novel asynchronous network-based model is proposed in this paper for the sentiment analysis of online public opinions. This new model provides a new approach to analyze the…
Abstract
Purpose
A novel asynchronous network-based model is proposed in this paper for the sentiment analysis of online public opinions. This new model provides a new approach to analyze the evolution characteristics of online public opinion sentiments in complex environment.
Design/methodology/approach
Firstly, a new sentiment analysis model is proposed based on the asynchronous network theory. Then the graphical evaluation and review technique is employed and extended to design the model-based sentiment analysis algorithms. Finally, simulations and real-world case studies are given to show the effectiveness of the proposed model.
Findings
The dynamics of online public opinion sentiments are determined by both personal preferences to certain topics and the complex interactive influences of environmental factors. The application of appropriate quantitative models can improve the prediction of public opinion sentiment.
Practical implications
The proposed model-based algorithms provide simple but effective ways to explore the complex dynamics of online public opinions. Case studies highlight the role of government agencies in shaping sentiments of public opinions on social topics.
Originality/value
This paper proposes a new asynchronous network model for the dynamic sentiment analysis of online public opinions. It extends the previous static models and provides a new way to extract opinion evolution patterns in complex environment. Applications of the proposed model provide some new insights into the online public opinion management.
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Attila Endre Simay, Yuling Wei, Tamás Gyulavári, Jhanghiz Syahrivar, Piotr Gaczek and Ágnes Hofmeister-Tóth
The recent advancements in smartphone technology and social media platforms have increased the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) color cosmetics. Meanwhile, China is a…
Abstract
Purpose
The recent advancements in smartphone technology and social media platforms have increased the popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) color cosmetics. Meanwhile, China is a lucrative market for various foreign beauty products and technological innovations. This research aims to investigate the adoption of AI color cosmetics applications and their electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) intention among Chinese social media influencers. Several key concepts have been proposed in this research, namely body esteem, price sensitivity, social media addiction and actual purchase.
Design/methodology/approach
An online questionnaire design was used in this research. A combination of purposive sampling and snowball sampling of AI color cosmetics users who are also social media influencers in China yields 221 respondents. To analyze the data, this research employs Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) method via SPSS and AMOS software. A 2-step approach, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), is implemented to prove the hypotheses and generate the results.
Findings
1) Social media addiction is a positive predictor of AI color cosmetics usage, (2) AI color cosmetics usage is a positive predictor of actual purchase, (3) actual purchase is a positive predictor of e-WOM intention and lastly, (4) there is a full mediation effect of actual purchase.
Originality/value
This research draws on the uses and gratification (U&G) theory to investigate how specific user characteristics affect Chinese social media influencers' adoption of AI color cosmetics, as well as how this may affect their decision to purchase branded color cosmetics and their e-WOM.
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Yuling Ran, Wei Bai, Lingwei Kong, Henghui Fan, Xiujuan Yang and Xuemei Li
The purpose of this paper is to develop an appropriate machine learning model for predicting soil compaction degree while also examining the contribution rates of three…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop an appropriate machine learning model for predicting soil compaction degree while also examining the contribution rates of three influential factors: moisture content, electrical conductivity and temperature, towards the prediction of soil compaction degree.
Design/methodology/approach
Taking fine-grained soil A and B as the research object, this paper utilized the laboratory test data, including compaction parameter (moisture content), electrical parameter (electrical conductivity) and temperature, to predict soil degree of compaction based on five types of commonly used machine learning models (19 models in total). According to the prediction results, these models were preliminarily compared and further evaluated.
Findings
The Gaussian process regression model has a good effect on the prediction of degree of compaction of the two kinds of soils: the error rates of the prediction of degree of compaction for fine-grained soil A and B are within 6 and 8%, respectively. As per the order, the contribution rates manifest as: moisture content > electrical conductivity >> temperature.
Originality/value
By using moisture content, electrical conductivity, temperature to predict the compaction degree directly, the predicted value of the compaction degree can be obtained with higher accuracy and the detection efficiency of the compaction degree can be improved.
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Hao Zhou, Song Liu, Yuling He and Xiaoye Qian
Drawing upon conservation of resources theory, this study aims to explore how ethical leadership relates to subordinates' emotional exhaustion through the chain mediating effects…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing upon conservation of resources theory, this study aims to explore how ethical leadership relates to subordinates' emotional exhaustion through the chain mediating effects of organizational networking behavior and organizational embeddedness.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 447 airport employees in China. PROCESS macro in SPSS was used to test the hypotheses.
Findings
Results indicated that ethical leadership is negatively correlated with emotional exhaustion; organizational networking behavior and organizational embeddedness play a chain mediating role in the negative relationship between ethical leadership and emotional exhaustion.
Originality/value
This study provides new insights into the association between ethical leadership and emotional exhaustion, and enriches the antecedents and consequences of organizational networking behavior.