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1 – 10 of over 5000

Abstract

Details

Energy Economics
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-780-1

Article
Publication date: 21 September 2022

Tan Jiang, Guang Luo, Zikai Wang and Wenhui Yu

The purpose of this study is to analyse and discuss the influencing factors of user experience in university mobile libraries and the improvement path of user experience in the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to analyse and discuss the influencing factors of user experience in university mobile libraries and the improvement path of user experience in the context of mobile learning.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopted the grounded theory research method, and the sample included 28 students from five universities, with mobile libraries as the research objects and semi-structured interview as data acquisition method. A step-by-step coding analysis of the original interview materials was conducted, which comprehensively identified the main concerns and problems encountered by users of the university mobile library apps especially in the mobile learning behaviour mode, and then a theoretical model of the influencing factors of the app user experience of the university mobile library was constructed.

Findings

A theoretical model of influencing factors was constructed, which determined that system quality, interaction quality, content quality, interface quality and function quality were the key elements of mobile library user experiences. Furthermore, based on the research results and user feedback obtained in the research process, the content and key points relating to the user experience can be elaborated in detail. In addition, this study was able to determine users' perspectives and their behavioural characteristics when engaging in mobile learning.

Originality/value

This study establishes a theoretical model of the factors influencing of the user experience of university mobile libraries based on mobile learning, which could provide a valuable reference for the design of other programs and strategies to promote user learning experiences of mobile library app in colleges and universities.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. 42 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 13 December 2017

Qiongwei Ye and Baojun Ma

Internet + and Electronic Business in China is a comprehensive resource that provides insight and analysis into E-commerce in China and how it has revolutionized and continues to…

Abstract

Internet + and Electronic Business in China is a comprehensive resource that provides insight and analysis into E-commerce in China and how it has revolutionized and continues to revolutionize business and society. Split into four distinct sections, the book first lays out the theoretical foundations and fundamental concepts of E-Business before moving on to look at internet+ innovation models and their applications in different industries such as agriculture, finance and commerce. The book then provides a comprehensive analysis of E-business platforms and their applications in China before finishing with four comprehensive case studies of major E-business projects, providing readers with successful examples of implementing E-Business entrepreneurship projects.

Internet + and Electronic Business in China is a comprehensive resource that provides insights and analysis into how E-commerce has revolutionized and continues to revolutionize business and society in China.

Details

Internet+ and Electronic Business in China: Innovation and Applications
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-115-7

Abstract

Details

Applying Partial Least Squares in Tourism and Hospitality Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-700-9

Book part
Publication date: 11 November 2019

Juan G. Arroyo-Flores

This study traces the boundaries of online-based social networks and its possible extensions and intersections with offline social networks. It focuses on the massive multiplayer…

Abstract

This study traces the boundaries of online-based social networks and its possible extensions and intersections with offline social networks. It focuses on the massive multiplayer online (MMO) gaming community. Most online gaming research has only addressed one side of the equation, that is, the online aspect of social interaction, omitting the offline context. The primary objective is to look at both offline and online social contexts of gamers. The data analyzed here are part of a bigger research project. Using a sample of 242 respondents and a total of 1,452 social ties (three online and three offline) this work addresses the differences and similarities between online gamer’s offline and online networks. Around 72% of the participants were between the ages of 18 and 37. This group provides insight into the management of social interactions and ties in the digital age among millennials and the coming-of-age of Generation Z. The analysis suggests that overall offline ties are slightly more important than online. Still, this does not imply that online ties are not meaningful at all. The length of their online relationships plays a significant role in how participants qualify their ties. Most participants that had not met face-to-face were willing to meet their online ties. They also reported sharing personal and everyday life matters with their online social network at a lower rate of their offline network. Time spent with online relationships stemming from online gaming and a cooperative environment is more likely to be considered higher quality time. This suggests that in MMOs the gap between online and offline relationships is becoming narrower.

Details

Mediated Millennials
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83909-078-3

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 November 2008

Chuanli Qin, Jin Zheng, Jiang Haijian, Tan Qiang and Bai Xuduo

The aim of the paper is to develop a method to block hydroxyl groups of epoxy acrylate (AAEP) in vinyl ester resin (VER) and to study the influence of modified VER on…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of the paper is to develop a method to block hydroxyl groups of epoxy acrylate (AAEP) in vinyl ester resin (VER) and to study the influence of modified VER on polyurethane/(VER) interpenetrating polymer network (PU/VER IPN).

Design/methodology/approach

The hydroxyl groups of AAEP in VER were blocked via different methods. Infra‐red spectroscopy was adopted to study the influence of the reagents, reaction temperature and feed molar ratio on the blocking effect of hydroxyl groups and the optimised technological parameters were determined. The PU/VER IPN and PU/modified VER IPN were prepared by simultaneous interpenetrating of VER (mixture of AAEP and butyl methacrylate with the mass ratio of 2/1) or modified VER and synthesised PU in their laboratory. The microstructure, dynamic mechanical properties and mechanical properties of PU/VER IPN and PU/modified VER IPN were compared.

Findings

The results showed that compared to unmodified IPN, because the hydroxyl groups in VER were blocked and no chemical cross‐linked structure existed between the two networks, the modified IPN showed dual‐continuous microsturcture with larger phase domain sizes between 20 and 50 nm. The effect damping temperature range of modified IPN was broadened and its damping performance was improved. The mechanical strength of modified IPNs decreased and their break elongation increased evidently.

Practical implications

The PU/modified VER IPN with excellent damping properties can be used in the applications where reduction of vibration and noise is desired.

Originality/value

The PU/modified VER IPN, in which no chemical cross‐linked structure existed between the two networks, was novel and its damping performance was improved and excellent.

Details

Pigment & Resin Technology, vol. 37 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0369-9420

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 16 May 2024

Guus Hendriks

China’s foreign aid efforts in Africa remain contentious. Chinese foreign aid tends to be different from “traditional” development assistance in that it frequently involves firms…

Abstract

China’s foreign aid efforts in Africa remain contentious. Chinese foreign aid tends to be different from “traditional” development assistance in that it frequently involves firms as the implementing agents of projects. Firms bring unique resources to public–private partnerships (PPPs) formed with government agencies, but their possible self-interested nature also gives rise to concerns over their development impact. Yet, on a larger scale, little is known about the characteristics of Chinese PPPs in foreign aid. Using project-level data available for 1,308 Chinese aid projects in 50 countries across Africa, the author characterizes the projects undertaken by firms and government agencies in a PPP and contrasts them to those executed by Chinese government agencies without firm involvement. This exploratory data analysis suggests that important differences apply, as Chinese PPPs tend to target different sustainable development goals (SDGs), work on the basis of distinct aid conditions, and implement projects that tend to be larger than those that are solely run by government agencies. Such observations raise important questions of an ethical, theoretical, and international nature, and warrant further research. The author develops a research agenda that aims at issues particularly important for business ethics scholars, organization theorists, and international business scholarship.

Details

Walking the Talk? MNEs Transitioning Towards a Sustainable World
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83549-117-1

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 May 2022

Kazem Shamsadini, Mahdi Askari Shahamabad and Fateme Askari Shahamabad

Increasing environmental pollution and destruction have damaged sustainability in polluting societies and organizations. For this reason, various environmental management programs…

Abstract

Purpose

Increasing environmental pollution and destruction have damaged sustainability in polluting societies and organizations. For this reason, various environmental management programs have recently been developed by governments and the environmental protection agencies (EPAs) to control and reduce environmental pollution. One of these programs is environmental audit (EA), which has not been fully implemented yet in developing countries and it has many disadvantages. It seems that one of the reasons for the lack of perfect implementation of EA in these countries is the lack of adequate review of the factors affecting its implementation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors affecting EA implementation and then analysis of causal relationships between them.

Design/methodology/approach

Decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) technique was used to identify causal relationships of factors affecting EA implementation. Based on the literature review and interviewing nine experts in EA, 17 factors were identified to influence EA implementation. Six experts were selected for the evaluation using snowball sampling method. Using the DEMATEL approach, a cause and effect relationship diagram was generated through which the effect of factors was analyzed.

Findings

Seventeen factors were categorized in terms of cause and effect, and the interrelationships of factors were also analyzed. “Reducing environmental impacts and improving environmental performance,” “obtaining environmental management system certificates” and “contributing to the environmental goals of investment projects” are the most prominent factors on the basis of their prominent score.

Research limitations/implications

Analysis in the research is highly dependent on expert judgments and opinions may be biased. However, the initial matrix obtained from the experts is hindered by the ambiguity about some relationships. But this can be improved by using fuzzy and gray set theories. The factors used for the analysis may not be comprehensive and other researchers may find other factors.

Practical implications

Identifying the factors affecting EA implementation and analyzing causal relationships between them can be a guide and help governments to improve the implementation of EA or even develop this policy by being aware of the effect of the factors analyzed.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no comprehensive study of factors affecting EA implementation has been undertaken; this study is the first to identify these factors and analyze them using DEMATEL. Therefore, it is suggested that governments and EPAs in the policies focus on the significant factors.

Details

Social Responsibility Journal, vol. 19 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-1117

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 20 July 2012

Jiping Zuo and Yongping Jiang

Purpose – This chapter explores ways in which urban women in China balance work and family demands, as the state's protective and welfare functions in post-Mao reform are…

Abstract

Purpose – This chapter explores ways in which urban women in China balance work and family demands, as the state's protective and welfare functions in post-Mao reform are increasingly being replaced by market forces, and the chapter examines how urban women's enactment of work and family roles are shaped by changing workplaces as well as by their personal and family circumstances. The purpose is to understand the impact of marketization on gender configuration through the lens of the work-family nexus.

Research design – Data come from in-depth interviews conducted between 2005 and 2007 with 115 married women in four large cities. For analytical purposes, the informants were divided into three groups: stay-at-home moms, family-orientated working women, and work/career-oriented women.

Findings – Although market reform may create opportunities for some women to enhance their personal lives, as a consequence of workers' loss of the safety net and welfare benefits, the neglect of women's reproductive work, and the commercialization of child care and child education, it has generated, for many women, much role conflict between work and family. Work/career-oriented women are able to actively engage in market activities precisely because they are protected still by the state, can afford commercial services of domestic tasks, or have strong support from their extended families.

Originality/value – Women's varying role orientations reflect more their strategies of coping with structural changes than their mere adherence to certain gender ideologies.

Social implications – The chapter calls for curbing unbridled market forces and restoring public services so as to create a family/women-friendly work and social environment.

Details

Social Production and Reproduction at the Interface of Public and Private Spheres
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-875-5

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 November 2018

Sudarsana Desul, Madurai Meenachi N., Thejas Venkatesh, Vijitha Gunta, Gowtham R. and Magapu Sai Baba

Ontology of a domain mainly consists of a set of concepts and their semantic relations. It is typically constructed and maintained by using ontology editors with substantial human…

Abstract

Purpose

Ontology of a domain mainly consists of a set of concepts and their semantic relations. It is typically constructed and maintained by using ontology editors with substantial human intervention. It is desirable to perform the task automatically, which has led to the development of ontology learning techniques. One of the main challenges of ontology learning from the text is to identify key concepts from the documents. A wide range of techniques for key concept extraction have been proposed but are having the limitations of low accuracy, poor performance, not so flexible and applicability to a specific domain. The propose of this study is to explore a new method to extract key concepts and to apply them to literature in the nuclear domain.

Design/methodology/approach

In this article, a novel method for key concept extraction is proposed and applied to the documents from the nuclear domain. A hybrid approach was used, which includes a combination of domain, syntactic name entity knowledge and statistical based methods. The performance of the developed method has been evaluated from the data obtained using two out of three voting logic from three domain experts by using 120 documents retrieved from SCOPUS database.

Findings

The work reported pertains to extracting concepts from the set of selected documents and aids the search for documents relating to given concepts. The results of a case study indicated that the method developed has demonstrated better metrics than Text2Onto and CFinder. The method described has the capability of extracting valid key concepts from a set of candidates with long phrases.

Research limitations/implications

The present study is restricted to literature coming out in the English language and applied to the documents from nuclear domain. It has the potential to extend to other domains also.

Practical implications

The work carried out in the current study has the potential of leading to updating International Nuclear Information System thesaurus for ontology in the nuclear domain. This can lead to efficient search methods.

Originality/value

This work is the first attempt to automatically extract key concepts from the nuclear documents. The proposed approach will address and fix the most of the problems that are existed in the current methods and thereby increase the performance.

Details

The Electronic Library, vol. 37 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0264-0473

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 5000