The internet, its governance, and the multi-stakeholder model

Info ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 16-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Hill
Keyword(s):  
The Internet ◽  
Intergovernmental Organizations ◽  
Governance Mechanisms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Stakeholder Model ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Current Governance

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of key issues and concepts related to discussions of the internet, its governance, and its multi-stakeholder model. Design/methodology/approach – The method adopted is to discuss definitions of internet, to identify the key characteristics of internet, to define the multi-stakeholder approach, and to discuss the results it has achieved. Findings – The article finds that the internet is different from other networks, albeit not exactly in the ways that are commonly mentioned, and it finds that the internet's current governance mechanisms can be improved, in particular by increasing the role of more traditional governance mechanisms such as intergovernmental organizations. Originality/value – The analysis and conclusions are not found in previous literature, and they are meant to provoke further research and discussion.

The 2016 Police and Crime Commissioner elections

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Joyce
Keyword(s):  
Public Awareness ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Source Material ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Social ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Government

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the 2016 elections for Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and to compare them with those that took place in 2012. It seeks to evaluate the background of the candidates who stood for office in 2016, the policies that they put forward, the results of the contests and the implications of the 2016 experience for future PCC elections. Design/methodology/approach This paper is based around several key themes – the profile of candidates who stood for election, preparations conducted prior to the contests taking place, the election campaign and issues raised during the contests, the results and the profile of elected candidates. The paper is based upon documentary research, making particular use of primary source material. Findings The research establishes that affiliation to a political party became the main route for successful candidates in 2016 and that local issues related to low-level criminality will dominate the future policing agenda. It establishes that although turnout was higher than in 2012, it remains low and that further consideration needs to be devoted to initiatives to address this for future PCC election contests. Research limitations/implications The research focusses on the 2016 elections and identifies a number of key issues that emerged during the campaign affecting the conduct of the contests which have a bearing on future PCC elections. It treats these elections as a bespoke topic and does not seek to place them within the broader context of the development of the office of PCC. Practical implications The research suggests that in order to boost voter participation in future PCC election contests, PCCs need to consider further means to advertise the importance of the role they perform and that the government should play a larger financial role in funding publicity for these elections and consider changing the method of election. Social implications The rationale for introducing PCCs was to empower the public in each police force area. However, issues that include the enhanced importance of political affiliation as a criteria for election in 2016 and the social unrepresentative nature of those who stood for election and those who secured election to this office in these contests coupled with shortcomings related to public awareness of both the role of PCCs and the timing of election contests threaten to undermine this objective. Originality/value The extensive use of primary source material ensures that the subject matter is original and its interpretation is informed by an academic perspective.

Guest editorial: a new dawn for qualitative service research

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars Witell ◽  
Maria Holmlund ◽  
Anders Gustafsson
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Research Methodology ◽  
Qualitative Research Methods ◽  
Service Research ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Qualitative Research Methodology

Purpose The purpose of this study is to highlight the role of qualitative research in service research. This study discusses what qualitative research is, what role it has in service research and what interest, rigor, relevance and richness mean for qualitative service research. Design/methodology/approach This study examines the most common qualitative research methods and discusses interest, rigor, relevance and richness as key characteristics of qualitative research. The manuscripts in the special issue are introduced and categorized based on their contributions to service research. Findings The findings suggest that the amount of research using qualitative research methods has remained stable over the last 30 years. An increased focus on transparency and traceability is important for improving the perceived rigor of qualitative service research. Originality/value This special issue is the first issue that is explicitly devoted to the qualitative research methodology in service research. In particular, the issue seeks to contribute to a better use and application of qualitative research methodology.

A model for examining the role of the Internet of Things in the development of e-business

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Babak Esmaeilpour Ghouchani ◽  
Susan Jodaki ◽  
Maryam Joudaki ◽  
Alireza Balali ◽  
Lila Rajabion
Keyword(s):  
Internet Of Things ◽  
Operating Cost ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
It Knowledge ◽  
The Internet Of Things ◽  
Security Of Iot

Purpose Nowadays, the Internet of Things (IoT) offers new intelligent services and business model opportunities by extending the internet connectivity into physical devices and daily objects. Recently, this technology has had a deep impact on all the aspects of human societies from industry to management and business. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to predict the impact of using IoT services on the development of electronic business (e-business). Design/methodology/approach For evaluating the model’s elements, a questionnaire was designed. It was revised by experts with significant experiences. For statistical analysis, SmartPLS 3.2 is used. Findings The findings have confirmed the validity of the proposed model. The results also have indicated that the quality of IoT services (scalability, availability, reliability and ease of use), security of IoT services (trust, reputation, privacy and encryption) and IT knowledge of users (usage skills, awareness, experience and accuracy) have a positive and significant impact on development of e-business. Furthermore, the obtained results have revealed that the operating cost of IoT services (transmission time, storage capacity, functionality and stability) is significantly influenced by the development of e-business. Research limitations/implications By capturing a number of important factors in the proposed model, this study can provide a significant theoretical influence for researchers in the related area of interest. In fact, this study provides a worthwhile direction by assessing e-business performance, which, so far, has not been well assessed in many developing countries. Practical implications From a practical perspective, the statistical results support the crucial role of the following factors: quality of IoT services, the security of IoT services, operating cost of IoT services and IT knowledge of users. Hence, aspects relating to these factors must be the focus of attention of any organization in their endeavor to development of e-business. Originality/value This study meaningfully contributes to the knowledge and literature by focusing more on development e-business and IoT as original technology for further understanding, investigating other important features and applying advanced statistical analyses technique. By doing so, this study was able to develop the current understanding regarding the main aspects of development e-business and IoT services.

Challenges to ethical publishing in the digital era

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjam Jessica Curno
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Electronic Publishing ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Publication Ethics ◽  
Electronic Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to lay out some of the more complex issues arising in the area of publication ethics. The impact of electronic publishing and electronic information is a main focus of the paper. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws in particular upon the work of the Committee on Publication Ethics including illustrative cases discussed at the forum, guidelines and discussion documents. Findings – Three areas are highlighted to stimulate discussion around challenges of publication ethics in the digital era. These are the role of the internet in facilitating misconduct, the issue of confidentiality in publishing and how incentives in research assessments drive author behavior. Originality/value – The paper brings together a variety of issues discussed under the broader umbrella of electronic information and new technologies in publishing.

How entrepreneurial orientation drives farmers' innovation differential in Ugandan coffee multi-stakeholder platforms

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 629-650
Author(s):  
Carlos Luis Barzola Iza ◽  
Domenico Dentoni
Keyword(s):  
Risk Taking ◽  
Entrepreneurial Orientation ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Entrepreneurial Intentions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
African Context ◽  
Key Dimensions ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

PurposeThis study explores the role of the key dimensions of farmers' entrepreneurial orientation – namely proactiveness, risk-taking, innovativeness and intentions – as drivers of product, process and market innovation in the context of one coffee MSP in Uganda.Design/methodology/approachEmpirical data from 152 coffee farmers were analyzed via confirmatory factor analysis and partial least square multi-variate statistics.FindingsFindings highlight, first, that farmers' proactiveness significantly drives their product innovation and, to a lesser extent, process innovation. This effect holds when considering key control variables, such as access to key resources and associated actors. Second, more surprisingly, farmers' innovativeness hampers market innovation. Third, entrepreneurial intentions per se did not play a significant role in farmers' innovation. Fourth, the adapted measurement of risk-taking from the Western literature did not suit well the Ugandan coffee farming context.Research limitations/implicationsThese results lead to methodological implications for the measurement of farmers' risk-taking, innovative and proactive attitudes, as well as market innovation in rural Africa. Furthermore, they expand the role farmers' entrepreneurial orientation on product, process and market innovation in a rural African context.Originality/valueMulti-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) are often claimed to play an important role in stimulating farmers' innovation and enhancing rural development. Nevertheless, little is known yet on if why some farmers participating in MSPs may innovate more than others. This paper addresses this gap by shedding light on the role of farmers' entrepreneurial orientation.

scholarly journals Becoming-with in a compost society — Haraway beyond posthumanism

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Timeto
Keyword(s):  
Sociological Theory ◽  
Social Role ◽  
Body Politic ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
Nonhuman Animals ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Nonhuman Agency ◽  
Animal Question

PurposeThis paper considers the role of nonhuman animals in the thought of Donna Haraway, going from her critique of the animal as model/mirror for the evolution of the human body politic to her proposal for a “compost” society. It demonstrates her changing positions in relation to the social role of animals and the deepening of her critique of intersectional relations that subordinate nonhuman animals and animalized people.Design/methodology/approachThe paper intertwines a loosely historical approach and a thematic one, focusing on key issues of sociological theory, such as work, agency and kinship, and the way these relate to the animal question in Haraway's writings. Her texts are discussed both broadly and in-depth, and her positionality in terms of both feminism and antispeciesism is foregrounded.FindingsThe paper shows how the progressive abandonment of a posthuman approach in favor of a compostist one brings Haraway nearer to intersectional ecofeminism and to a fuller consideration of nonhuman agency at a material level, as well as to a deeper critique of instrumental relations of domination and issue that had been problematic in critiques of her earlier work.Social implicationsThe paper highlights the role of nonhumans in the evolution and constitution of societies and advocates a response-able multispecies politics.Originality/valueThis paper offers a comprehensive analysis of the social role of animals in Haraway's thought and the deepening antispeciesism of her feminist approach that sheds a different light on her positionality in relation to ecofeminism.

The Internet of Things and convenience

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 360-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Nolin ◽  
Nasrine Olson
Keyword(s):  
Internet Of Things ◽  
Critical Discussion ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Value Drivers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Opt Out ◽  
Future Society ◽  
Critical Scrutiny ◽  
The Internet Of Things

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore and engage with connections between the evolving technology of the Internet of Things (IoT) and notions of convenience. In particular, the concept of alpha convenience is introduced in order to articulate the broad scope of Internet “any-everything” connectivity, here called “alpha convenience.” Design/methodology/approach – The recommendations of Constructive Technology Assessment are followed in order to evaluate technology before implementation. The seven value drivers articulated by Fleisch (2010) are utilized in order to envision-specific aspects. Findings – Three critical aspects relating to alpha convenience are identified and discussed: gossiping technology, personalization and the disempowered smartphone user. It is argued that extreme forms of convenience shift traditional areas of human agency onto technology. It is also noted that alpha convenience tends to develop as ubiquitous feature of future society, making it difficult, if not impossible, to opt out. Research limitations/implications – The paper focusses on one powerful concept, although the IoT is merely one of several terms used to deliberate the role of next-generation information technology and society. Notable competitors include semantic web, ubiquitous computing, pervasive computing and ambient intelligence. Social implications – The IoT is predicted to be an intrusive feature into everyday life and the paper identifies important aspects. Originality/value – This is the first critical discussion of the IoT and convenience. The paper aims at conceptual innovation. Overall, there is a substantial lack of critical scrutiny of the emerging ideas of the IoT.

The Internet as a global public good and the role of governments and multilateral organizations in global internet governance

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Rodrigo Canazza
Keyword(s):  
Public Good ◽  
International Cooperation ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Global Public Good ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Internet Governance ◽  
Multilateral Organizations ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

The Internet presents social and economic attributes of a global public good, requiring governments and multilateral organizations to play central roles in Internet governance. This article examines the Internet as a global public good, identifies the roles of governments and multilateral organizations in global Internet governance, describes the current status of multi-stakeholder governance, and proposes guidelines to improve international cooperation.

The Emerging Field of Internet Governance

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura DeNardis
Keyword(s):  
Public Interest ◽  
Freedom Of Expression ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Net Neutrality ◽  
Internet Governance ◽  
The Public ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
Policy Arenas

This chapter demonstrates the significance of the emerging field of Internet governance, highlighting issues over standards, names and numbers, and net neutrality, which are unfolding in a variety of contexts around the world, including the Internet Governance Forum. It describes how technology could bias outcomes across policy arenas, such as privacy or freedom of expression. Internet governance generally refers to policy and technical coordination issues related to the exchange of information over the Internet. Governance has had immediate implications for freedom of expression online. Despite the significant public interest implications, Internet governance is largely hidden from public view. A crucial role of Internet governance research is to evaluate the implications of the tension between forces of openness and forces of enclosure, examine the implications of the privatisation of governance, and bring to public light the key issues at stake at the intersection of technical expediency and the public interest.

scholarly journals Homebuyers and the representation of spatial markets by information providers

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 292-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard J. Dunning ◽  
Andrew Grayson
Keyword(s):  
Housing Market ◽  
Information Acquisition ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Housing Markets ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Housing Search ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Information Providers

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to renew a research agenda considering the impact that information providers’ processes are having on the housing market; in particular to develop a research agenda around the role of the Internet in shaping households’ perceptions of the spatial nature of housing markets. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews the existing literature. It uses preliminary extensive survey findings about the role of the Internet in housing search to hypothesise ways in which households may be affected by this transition. Findings – Not applicable – other than evidence for the growth in the importance of the Internet in shaping households’ housing search. Practical implications – First, the academy needs to readdress the theory surrounding information acquisition and use insights from economics, sociology and psychology to understand these processes. Second, local authorities and academics should analyse the impact of Internet use on housing market boundaries (and the profound subsequent impact on policy traction). Third, estate agents should reconsider the role of the Internet in shaping housing markets and provide a critical response to the large property search engines. Originality/value – This paper reviews the literature and explores the necessity of a renewed interest in research on the role of information sources in framing and constraining housing search behaviour.

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