Inferences on enacted understanding: using immersive technologies to assess intuitive physical science knowledge

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Tscholl ◽  
Jason Morphew ◽  
Robb Lindgren
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Physical Science ◽  
Mixed Reality ◽  
Physical World ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Digital Learning ◽  
Science Knowledge ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Dynamic Stimuli ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This study aims to advance the proposal to use immersive virtual learning environments to stimulate and reveal deep-seated knowledge about science, giving instructors and researchers unique possibilities for assessing and identifying intuitive physical science knowledge. Aside from the ability to present rich and dynamic stimuli, these environments afford bodily enactment of people’s understanding, which draws less from declarative knowledge stores and more from everyday experiences with the physical world. Design/methodology/approach The authors ground their proposal in a critical review of the impact of stimulus and task characteristics of traditional physics inventories. Using a grounded theory approach, the authors present classifications and interpretations of observed bodily enactments of physics understandings in a study where participants enacted their understanding of force and motion of space in an immersive, interactive mixed reality (MR) environment. Findings The authors find that instances of these action categories can be interpreted as relating to underlying knowledge, often identified by other studies. The authors thus replicate a number of prior findings, which provide evidence to establish validation for using MR simulation as a tool for identifying people’s physical intuitions. Research limitations/implications This study targeted only a few specific physical science scenarios. Further, while a number of key insights about student knowledge came from the analysis, many of the observations are mere leads in need of further investigation and interpretation rather than core findings. Originality/value Immersive digital learning environments are primarily used for instruction. The authors propose to use and design them for assessment as well. This paper should prompt more research and development in this direction.

The impact of different play activity designs on students’ embodied learning

2019 ◽  
Vol 120 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 611-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bria Davis ◽  
Xintian Tu ◽  
Chris Georgen ◽  
Joshua A. Danish ◽  
Noel Enyedy
Keyword(s):  
Learning Environments ◽  
Mixed Reality ◽  
Interaction Analysis ◽  
Embodied Learning ◽  
Game Play ◽  
Student Interactions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Flexible Modeling ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to build on work that has demonstrated the value of play or game-based learning environments and to further unpack how different kinds of play activities can support learning of academic concepts. To do so, this paper explores how students learn complex science concepts through collective embodied play by comparing two forms of play labeled as Inquiry Play and Game Play. Design/methodology/approach This study builds off of previous research that uses the Science Through Technology Enhanced Play (STEP) technology platform (Authors et al., 2015). STEP is a mixed reality platform that allows learners to playfully explore science phenomena, such as the rules of particle behavior in solid, liquid and gas, through collective embodied activity. A combination of interaction analysis and qualitative coding of teacher and student interactions are used to examine patterns in the learning processes during embodied play activities. Findings Both forms of play led to similar learning gains. However, Inquiry Play promoted more emergent, flexible modeling of underlying mechanisms while Game Play oriented students more towards “winning”. Originality/value By contrasting play environments, this paper provides new insights into how different features of play activities, as well as how teachers orient their students according to these different features, support students’ learning in collective activity. As a result, these findings can provide insights into the design of future play-based learning environments that are intended to support the learning of academic concepts.

Use of 4.0 (I4.0) technology in HRM: a pathway toward SHRM 4.0 and HR performance

foresight ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajasshrie Pillai ◽  
Shilpi Yadav ◽  
Brijesh Sivathanu ◽  
Neeraj Kaushik ◽  
Pooja Goel
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Industry 4.0 ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hr Managers ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Grounded Theory Approach

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the use of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technology and its barriers in human resourcemanagement (HRM) for Smart HR 4.0 and its impact on HR performance. Design/methodology/approach The research has been conducted using the grounded theory approach. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 122 senior HR officers of national and multi-national companies in India after the extensive literature review. NVivo 8.0 software was used for the analysis of the interview data. Findings I4.0 technology is used for HRM functions by HR professionals. It is revealed that Smart HR 4.0 that emerged from the I4.0 technology has leveraged the HR performance. It is also found that usage barriers, traditional barriers and risk barriers affect the use of I4.0 technology in HRM. Originality/value A model is developed using the grounded theory approach for HR managers to understand the impact of I4.0 on HRM. This study reveals the barriers affecting the use of I4.0 technology in HRM. It also provides the model for HR performance that emerged through the use of I4.0 technology in HR and Smart HR 4.0. The research delivered key insights for the HR professionals, marketers of HR technology and technology developers.

Externalities of development of the sharing economy in tourism cities

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 138-157
Author(s):  
Daria Elżbieta Jaremen ◽  
Elżbieta Nawrocka ◽  
Michał Żemła
Keyword(s):  
Sharing Economy ◽  
Real Estate Market ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Procedure ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Benefits And Costs

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to identify the state-of-the-art of scientific research on externalities generated in cities by the sharing economy in tourism (SET) based on an extensive literature review. Design/methodology/approach This review detected benefits and costs of the SET in cities development described in the literature using the economic externalities theory approach. The SALSA (Search, AppraisaL, Synthesis and Analysis) research procedure was used to collect relevant academic articles. For findings, the qualitative and quantitative content analysis combined to make a critical analysis of selected papers was conducted. Findings Thirty articles devoted to the impact of the SET in cities were identified. Five topics that gained researchers’ attention were recognized: real estate market; transportation; quality of life and gentrification; entrepreneurship and innovativeness of citizens; and local budgets’ incomes. The studies that present externalities of development of the SET in a more complex way are extremely rare. Research limitations/implications Research limitations are related to the methods used. The subjectivism of the research is a limitation to possibilities to achieve similar results when analyzing the same set of papers by different researchers. The results then are not to be generalized. Practical implications The research reveals a list of problems with externalities of the development of the SET in tourism destinations. Those problems are to be solved by policymakers in cities. Originality/value This study identified the gaps of previous research on the impacts of the SET on cities’ development. The paper presented an original conceptualization of future research.

scholarly journals Exploring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on approaches to innovation in the consulting industry: a grounded theory pilot study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane Laurette Kamning
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Organizational Support ◽  
Dynamic Capabilities ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Innovative Solutions ◽  
Consulting Industry ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThere is a significant pressure on consulting businesses to produce innovative solutions and to assist their clients in producing innovative solutions for their organizational problems as well. In addition to that challenging need to innovate for survival and competition, as other contemporary firms, consultancies must face the global changes brought by the outbreak of the coronavirus infection since 2019. This qualitative pilot study aimed at exploring the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the approaches to innovation in the consulting industry.Design/methodology/approachTriggered from the literature gap on approaches to innovation in consultancies during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, a grounded theory approach was used to generate a theoretical explanation of how the COVID-19 is affecting the strategies and approaches of businesses in harnessing innovation opportunities from the perspectives of four professionals from an information technology (IT) consultancy in the USA.FindingsThe findings of this pilot study showed that organizational leaders' increased responsiveness, a Job-To-Be-Done strategy, organizational support and team adaption are the keys to harvesting dynamic capabilities for better competition, even during global environmental changes.Practical implicationsThis implies that managers remain the main actors in a firm's efforts to harvest dynamic capabilities. Innovation strategists, business leaders and policymakers can confidently work together to implement novel and flexible work settings that integrate both social and economic advancements.Originality/valueTheoretical implications support the sustainable innovation strategy concepts and the Job-To-Be-Done theory. Finally, the substantive theory from this pilot study lays the ground for future research on approaches to innovation in the consulting industry.

Impact of software as a service (SaaS) on software acquisition process

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 757-770
Author(s):  
Srinivasa Raghavan R. ◽  
Jayasimha K.R. ◽  
Rajendra V. Nargundkar
Keyword(s):  
Information Search ◽  
Chief Information Officer ◽  
Software As A Service ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Enterprise Software ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Acquisition Process ◽  
Acquisition Processes ◽  
The Impact

Purpose Organizations worldwide are adopting software as a service (SaaS) applications, where they pay a subscription fee to gain access rather than buying the software. The extant models on software acquisition processes, several of which are based on organizational buying behavior, do not sufficiently explain how SaaS application acquisition decisions are made. This study aims to investigate the acquisition process organizations follow for SaaS software, the changes to the roles of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and the business user and also looks at the impact of SaaS on the proliferation of unauthorized software systems. Design/methodology/approach The authors used exploratory research using the grounded theory approach based on 18 in-depth interviews conducted with respondents who have studied with enterprise software delivered on-premise and as SaaS in different roles such as sales, consulting, CIO, information technology (IT) management and product development. Findings The authors identified a need to classify the SaaS software and developed a framework that uses software specificity and its strategic importance to the organization to classify SaaS applications. The aforementioned framework is used to explain how software evaluation processes have changed for different kinds of SaaS applications. The authors also found that the CIO’s and the business users’ have changed substantially in SaaS application evaluations and found evidence to show that shadow IT will be restricted to some classes of SaaS applications. Originality/value By focusing on the changes to the roles and responsibilities of the members of the buying center, this paper provides unique insights into how the acquisition process of SaaS is different from the extant models used to explain enterprise software acquisitions. An understanding of how information search is conducted by the business users will help software vendors to target business users better.

Political connections, media impact and state-owned enterprises: an empirical analysis on corporate financial performance

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Giosi ◽  
Marco Caiffa
Keyword(s):  
Stock Prices ◽  
Boards Of Directors ◽  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Political Connections ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Political Connection ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Role ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to assess the differential impact on the stock market of statements made by and information about directors and companies who are politically connected, compared to directors and companies with no political connections. The authors also analyze the role played by state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which the authors have identified as politically connected companies because most board members are appointed by political authorities. Furthermore, the boundaries and institutional environment within which SOEs operate are likely to be different from private companies.Design/methodology/approachThe sample is composed of over 60,000 news articles on the boards of directors (both with political roles and without political roles) of listed Italian companies in the period 1998–2013. On that sample the authors run a regression analysis under the signaling theory approach.FindingsResults suggest a positive effect on market capitalization associated with individual political connections. This effect decreases when the political connection extends to the whole enterprise although it still remains, while a negative effect is associated with state-controlled enterprises. The impact of negative news content does not change depending on whether a board member has a political role or not.Originality/valuePrevious research has demonstrated a causal link between stock prices and their reaction to corporate news (Engelberg and Parsons, 2011; Peress, 2014), but no studies have quantified the different reactions that occur when the news mentions politically connected companies and individuals who hold a political role.

Understanding citizen engagement and concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic in China: a thematic analysis of government social media

2021 ◽  
Vol 73 (6) ◽  
pp. 865-884
Author(s):  
Lijuan Luo ◽  
Siqi Duan ◽  
Shanshan Shang ◽  
Wenfei Lyu
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Emotional Valence ◽  
User Participation ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Citizen Engagement ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact

PurposeIn crises such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, governments need to act in time to lead citizens toward rational reactions and disclose information effectively to the public. This paper aims to understand the content published by the government and identify how citizen engagement relates to content type and emotional valence.Design/methodology/approachThe grounded theory approach was adopted and nine types of content posted by the government were observed. The data were obtained from “People's Daily”, an official Sina Weibo account representing the voice of the Chinese government, from January 3 to June 22 in 2020.FindingsThe analysis shows that information related to emotional support and social mobilization were the most reposted, while those mentioning immoral and illegal incidents were the most liked and commented. Also, it was found that positive posts tend to attract more likes, yet with fewer reposts than neutral posts.Originality/valueThe authors adopted thematic analysis and focused on the impact of post content and valence on user participation behavior. This study expands the existing literature. The government can improve crises management capability by learning about citizen engagement behaviors on social media.

Buyer and supplier perspectives on environmental initiatives

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 1319-1350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monique Lynn Murfield ◽  
Wendy L. Tate
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
Supplier Relationships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Environmental Initiatives ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine managerial perspectives in both buyer and supplier firms implementing environmental initiatives in their supply chains, and explore the impact of environmental initiatives on buyer-supplier relationships. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative, grounded theory approach is used as the methodological approach to this research, including 15 in-depth interviews with managers from buyer and supplier firms implementing environmental initiatives in their supply chains to gain multiple perspectives of the buyer-supplier relationships. Findings The results suggest that implementing environmental initiatives within the supply chain changes the buyer-supplier relationship from transactional to collaborative, shifting from a commodity-focused purchase to a more strategic purchase as environmental initiatives are implemented. Research limitations/implications Although both buyer and supplier perspectives were considered, matched dyads were not used; researchers should continue to provide a holistic perspective of the phenomenon with dyadic data. Additionally, the use of a qualitative research approach suggests a lack of generalizability of results, and therefore researchers should further test the propositions. Practical implications Implementing environmental initiatives within the supply chain may require different approaches to supply management and development for long-term success. Suppliers should recognize that the capability to implement environmental initiatives with their customers is a differentiator. The nuances involved in managing the implementation of environmental initiatives between firms can be better managed by collaboratively developing metrics specifically related to the environment. Originality/value Previous research in environmental supply chain management has examined drivers and barriers of implementing environmental initiatives with suppliers, but fails to address the relationship dynamics involved when implementing environmental initiatives between organizations. This research begins to fill that gap.

scholarly journals Carer needs on an organic inpatient unit

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-64
Author(s):  
Jennifer Clegg ◽  
Sarah Craven-Staines
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Comparative Methods ◽  
Constructivist Grounded Theory ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Substantive Theory ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Theoretical Sampling ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Grounded Theory Approach

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to further understand the needs of carers when a relative with dementia is admitted to an organic impatient ward. Design/methodology/approach A constructivist grounded theory approach was employed to generate a substantive theory to understand the needs of carers and how staff perceive carer needs when a relative is admitted to a dementia ward. Five relatives and six members of staff were interviewed using purposive and theoretical sampling. Interview transcripts were analysed using initial, focused and theoretical coding using constant comparative methods to develop the end theory. Findings The grounded theory concluded that carers have three categories of needs: “The Safe and Cared for Relative”, “The Informed Carer and “The Understanding, Responsive and Available Service”. Underpinning the needs are the relationships between carers, their relative and staff. Three barriers were identified which can impact on these needs being effectively met. These identified barriers were: Loss, Time and Ineffective Communication. Originality/value The grounded theory demonstrates that carers needs fundamentally relate to their relatives being safe and cared for and being included and informed during the admission. Relationships can be ruptured when a barrier prevents the needs from being effectively met. Recommendations are made to aim to reduce the impact of the barriers and to aid staff in developing their understanding of the carer experience.

The impact of financial management practices and competitive advantage on the loan performance of MFIs

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Korutaro Nkundabanyanga ◽  
Brendah Akankunda ◽  
Irene Nalukenge ◽  
Immaculate Tusiime
Keyword(s):  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Significant Positive Relationship ◽  
Process Factors ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of financial management practices and competitive advantage on loan performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs). Design/methodology/approach In this cross-sectional study, the authors surveyed 70 MFIs in Kampala, Uganda. The authors applied principal component analysis to reduce the number of factors and identify the important elements that capture financial management practices, competitive advantage and loan performance of MFIs. The authors put forward and tested three hypotheses relating to the significance of the relationship between these three variables of MFIs using the statistical software package, SPSS and also apply the normal theory approach developed by Sobel (1982) and Baron and Kenny (1986) in testing the mediation by competitive advantage. Findings Robust financial management practices are associated with better loan performance of MFIs. Results also reveal a significant positive relationship between the competitive advantage of the MFIs and their loan performance. Furthermore, a significant positive relationship between competitive advantage and loan performance is found. Moreover results also show a full mediation effect of competitive advantage on the association of financial management practices and loan performance, implying that the association of financial management practices of the MFIs on their loan performance is entirely through their competitive advantage. Research limitations/implications Although there is plenty of literature on loan performance, financial management practices and competitive advantage, there is scarce literature on their effective conceptualization. This together with the imprecise definition of competitive advantage may have affected conceptualization of the authors study. Thus, in this study, the authors do not claim highly refined measurement concepts. Moreover, many of the extant studies for instance have measured loan performance quantitatively, yet process factors which are inherently qualitative in nature can better explain variances in loan performance concept. More research is therefore needed to better refine qualitative concepts used in this study. Practical implications Efforts by the MFIs management to improve loan performance must be matched with adoption of financial management practices that provide MFIs with sustained competitive advantage over their rivals. Originality/value In order to explain loan performance of MFIs, and drawing from social economics, management and accounting strands, this study shows that assessing the role of competitive advantage in the relationship between financial management practices and loan performance is imperative. Also, many of the extant studies have measured loan performance quantitatively, yet process factors or antecedents which are inherently qualitative in nature can better explain variances in loan performance concept. Thus this study calls for the refinement of loan performance concept and accounting for endogeneity.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document