Tents: a paradigm of lightness and sustainability in vernacular architecture and in Frei Otto's work

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan María Songel
Keyword(s):  
Essential Feature ◽  
Vernacular Architecture ◽  
Soap Film ◽  
Common Goal ◽  
Membrane Structures ◽  
Traditional Architecture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Physical Form ◽  
Hanging Chain ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to explore the relationship between vernacular architecture and Frei Otto's work, searching for shared principles and specific singularities, and testing whether lightness and sustainability can be identified as a common goal.Design/methodology/approachThe study is focused on tents and yurts, as archetypal examples of traditional architecture, and membrane structures and gridshells, as two types of light structures developed by Frei Otto. A comparative analysis of their behavior, form, elements, types, materials and strength has been carried out.FindingsThe survey carried out shows that Frei Otto's innovative tents and gridshells were not based on form imitation of vernacular architecture, but rather on a thorough understanding of physical form-generating processes, driving specific materials to optimal form, like his experiments with soap film models to generate tensioned minimal surfaces or his experiments with hanging chain net models to generate compressive antifunicular lattice shells.Originality/valueThis paper highlights how Frei Otto's endeavor to get the maximum with the minimum, to achieve a lot from a little, is also a key target of lightness and sustainability, and an essential feature of vernacular architecture.

Traditional architecture and sustainable conservation

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis Fernando Guerrero Baca ◽  
Francisco Javier Soria López
Keyword(s):  
Vernacular Architecture ◽  
Environmental Crisis ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Traditional Architecture ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Architectural Practice ◽  
Close Relationship ◽  
Sustainable Conservation ◽  
Social Use ◽  
Active Implementation

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the need to go beyond the “monumentalist” vision in restoration of built heritage and embrace principles of sustainability in this architectural practice. Design/methodology/approach Case studies as conceptual reference. Architectural typology. Findings The environmental crisis that is currently recognized as one of the most important problems that contemporary society must address urgently is a situation that still has not permeated enough in the practice of monumental restoration, which is still carried out using unlimited resources. Research limitations/implications In that sense, the close relationship between the built and the natural environment as an essential ingredient of the vernacular is analysed. Practical implications Much of the sustainable principles, that have been put forward as an example to be followed, are elements that have hundreds of years in the constructive tradition. Social implications In this context, vernacular architecture has much to contribute in the field of conservation by the enormous accumulated knowledge that its shapes, materials and social use represent. Originality/value This experience must be retrieved, but not as an aseptic laboratory experiment, but through its updated application and active implementation to improve the quality of life for inhabitants and contribute to the preservation of our cultural and natural environments.

scholarly journals SUSTAINABILITY LESSONS FROM VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE IN FREI OTTO'S WORK: TENTS AND GRIDSHELLS

2020 ◽  
Vol XLIV-M-1-2020 ◽  
pp. 233-240
Author(s):  
J. M. Songel
Keyword(s):  
Common Ground ◽  
Essential Feature ◽  
Vernacular Architecture ◽  
Modern Architecture ◽  
High Tech ◽  
Lightweight Structures ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract. Frei Otto is usually linked in the historiography of modern architecture to the German Pavilion for the Montreal Expo and the Olympic Stadium in Munich, a couple of works that have typically been regarded as predecessors of High-Tech architecture. But his contribution to architecture goes far beyond these worldwide famous works and can better be traced in his rich experience at the Institute for Lightweight Structures in Stuttgart, as an insightful observer of natural and man-made objects and as an investigator of the relationship between form, force and mass. He has developed new types of structures which often refer to primitive building types and can therefore be easily found in vernacular architecture: tents, nets, gridshells, branching constructions, folding roofs, umbrellas, as well as pneumatic and suspended constructions. All of them are the outcome of a very thorough process of investigation at his institute, which usually also included a survey of these building types in vernacular architecture. The target of this paper is to explore this relationship, and to test whether the strive for lightness can be regarded as a common ground between vernacular architecture and Frei Otto's work. In any case, his endeavour to get the maximum with the minimum, to achieve a lot from a little, is also a key target of sustainability and an essential feature of vernacular architecture.

Role of burnout on job level, job satisfaction, and task performance

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 630-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Won Ho Kim ◽  
Young-An Ra ◽  
Jong Gyu Park ◽  
Bora Kwon
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Organizational Context ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Job Level ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Final Sample ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
And Task

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of burnout (i.e. exhaustion, cynicism, professional inefficacy) in the relationship between job level and job satisfaction as well as between job level and task performance. Design/methodology/approach The final sample included 342 Korean workers from selected companies. The authors employed the Hayes (2013) PROCESS tool for analyzing the data. Findings The results showed that all three subscales of burnout (i.e. exhaustion, cynicism, professional inefficacy) mediate the relationship between job level and job satisfaction. However, only two mediators (i.e. cynicism, professional inefficacy) indicated the mediating effects on the association between job level and task performance. Originality/value This research presented the role of burnout on the relationships between job level, job satisfaction, and task performance especially in South Korean organizational context. In addition to role of burnout, findings should prove helpful in improving job satisfaction and task performance. The authors provide implications and limitations of the findings.

Dave Snowden on KM and big data/analytics: interview with David J. Pauleen

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Pauleen
Keyword(s):  
Big Data ◽  
Data Analytics ◽  
Big Data Analytics ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
A Company ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Scientific Officer

Purpose Dave Snowden has been an important voice in knowledge management over the years. As the founder and chief scientific officer of Cognitive Edge, a company focused on the development of the theory and practice of social complexity, he offers informative views on the relationship between big data/analytics and KM. Design/methodology/approach A face-to-face interview was held with Dave Snowden in May 2015 in Auckland, New Zealand. Findings According to Snowden, analytics in the form of algorithms are imperfect and can only to a small extent capture the reasoning and analytical capabilities of people. For this reason, while big data/analytics can be useful, they are limited and must be used in conjunction with human knowledge and reasoning. Practical implications Snowden offers his views on big data/analytics and how they can be used effectively in real world situations in combination with human reasoning and input, for example in fields from resource management to individual health care. Originality/value Snowden is an innovative thinker. He combines knowledge and experience from many fields and offers original views and understanding of big data/analytics, knowledge and management.

Heuristic biases in investment decision-making and perceived market efficiency

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syed Zulfiqar Ali Shah ◽  
Maqsood Ahmad ◽  
Faisal Mahmood
Keyword(s):  
Financial Markets ◽  
Market Efficiency ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Investment Decisions ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Investment Strategy ◽  
Individual Investors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Specific Investment ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to clarify the mechanism by which heuristics influences the investment decisions of individual investors, actively trading on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), and the perceived efficiency of the market. Most studies focus on well-developed financial markets and very little is known about investors’ behaviour in less developed financial markets or emerging markets. The present study contributes to filling this gap in the literature. Design/methodology/approach Investors’ heuristic biases have been measured using a questionnaire, containing numerous items, including indicators of speculators, investment decisions and perceived market efficiency variables. The sample consists of 143 investors trading on the PSX. A convenient, purposively sampling technique was used for data collection. To examine the relationship between heuristic biases, investment decisions and perceived market efficiency, hypotheses were tested by using correlation and regression analysis. Findings The paper provides empirical insights into the relationship of heuristic biases, investment decisions and perceived market efficiency. The results suggest that heuristic biases (overconfidence, representativeness, availability and anchoring) have a markedly negative impact on investment decisions made by individual investors actively trading on the PSX and on perceived market efficiency. Research limitations/implications The primary limitation of the empirical review is the tiny size of the sample. A larger sample would have given more trustworthy results and could have empowered a more extensive scope of investigation. Practical implications The paper encourages investors to avoid relying on heuristics or their feelings when making investments. It provides awareness and understanding of heuristic biases in investment management, which could be very useful for decision makers and professionals in financial institutions, such as portfolio managers and traders in commercial banks, investment banks and mutual funds. This paper helps investors to select better investment tools and avoid repeating expensive errors, which occur due to heuristic biases. They can improve their performance by recognizing their biases and errors of judgment, to which we are all prone, resulting in a more efficient market. So, it is necessary to focus on a specific investment strategy to control “mental mistakes” by investors, due to heuristic biases. Originality/value The current study is the first of its kind, focusing on the link between heuristics, individual investment decisions and perceived market efficiency within the specific context of Pakistan.

User experience sharing

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 1154-1184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Chen ◽  
Judy Drennan ◽  
Lynda Andrews ◽  
Linda D. Hollebeek
Keyword(s):  
User Experience ◽  
Online Communities ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Key Driver ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Level Of Effort

PurposeThis paper aims to propose user experience sharing (UES) as a customer-based initiation of value co-creation pertaining to service provision, which represents customers’ level of effort made for the direct benefit of others in their service network. The authors propose and empirically examine a user experience sharing model (UESM) that explicates customer-to-customer (C2C) UES and its impacts on firm-desired customer-based outcomes in online communities.Design/methodology/ApproachBased on an extensive review, the authors conceptualize UES and UESM. By using online survey data collected from mobile app users in organic online communities, the authors performed structural equation modeling analyses by using AMOS 24.FindingsThe results support the proposed UESM, showing that C2C UES acts as a key driver of both firm-desired customer efforts and customer insights. The results also confirmed that service-dominant (S-D) logic-informed motivational drivers exert a significant impact on C2C UES. Importantly, C2C UES mediates the relationship between S-D logic-informed motivational drivers and firm-desired customer-based outcomes.Originality/valueThis study offers a pioneering attempt to develop an overarching concept, UES, which reflects customers’ initiation of value co-creation, and to empirically examine C2C UES. The empirical evidence supports the key contention that firms should proactively facilitate C2C UES.

scholarly journals Corporate debt maturity and economic development

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 669-687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celia Álvarez-Botas ◽  
Víctor M. González-Méndez
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Firm Size ◽  
Debt Maturity ◽  
Corporate Debt ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Country Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Bank Concentration

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect of economic development on the influence of country-level determinants on corporate debt maturity, bearing in mind firm size and the period of financial crisis. Design/methodology/approach The authors employ panel data estimation with fixed effects to examine the role of economic development in influencing the relationship between country-level determinants on corporate debt maturity. The paper uses a sample of 30,727 listed firms, belonging to 39 countries, over the period 2005–2012. Findings Corporate debt maturity increases with the efficiency of the legal system and bank concentration and decreases with the weight of banks in the economy. However, the importance of these country determinants is greater in developing than in developed countries. The authors also show that firm size in developed and developing countries influences country determinants of corporate debt maturity. Finally, the results reveal that the financial crisis has affected the debt maturity of firms differently in developed and developing countries, with the effect of bank concentration lengthening debt maturity, this effect being more pronounced in developing countries. Practical implications The findings provide useful insights to guide policy decisions providing access to long-term financing, as corporate debt maturity depends on economic development, institutional environment, banking structure and firm size. Originality/value This study incorporates economic development in explaining the relationship between country-level determinants and corporate debt maturity.

To examine the relationships between supplier development practices and supplier-buyer relationship practices from the supplier’s perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 1309-1336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarang Joshi ◽  
Manoj Kharat ◽  
Rakesh Raut ◽  
Sachin Kamble ◽  
Sheetal Kamble
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Supplier Development ◽  
Competitive Advantages ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Relationship Improvement

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between supplier development practices (SDPs) and supplier-buyer relationship practices from the supplier’s perspective (SBRSP), and seek to understand how specific SDPs may impact a buyer’s operational performance as well as supplier-buyer relationship practices. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a survey of 512 respondents from the different manufacturing firms in India and applied structural equation modelling to test a structural model that proposes the impacts of various efforts of SDPs on a buyer’s performance as well as SBRSP. Findings The study concludes that SDPs and SBRSP together improve the relationship between a buyer and supplier, and this improved relationship leads to competitive advantages (CAs) followed by profitability. Results indicate that supplier perspective of buyer-supplier relationship can be improved under the condition of SDPs and SBRSP together. SDPs are driven by productive measure and competitive pressure, whereas customer uncertainty is found to be statistically insignificant. Research limitations/implications The study was carried out in North Maharashtra Industrial Zone of India, where the auto sector and machine/components manufacturing firms have been established for a considerable period of time. Results of the study are limited to manufacturing organizations predominantly focussing on the automobile sector and machine/components manufacturing firms. Practical implications This study provides significant insights into the specific impact of various SDPs and SBRSP for both academics and practitioners. SDPs along with SBRSP practices lead to improvement in the relationship leading to CAs. SBRSP suggests that trust, long-term commitments and the supplier’s perspective are important practices for relationship improvement. Originality/value The current study attempts to identify what are the success factors for the supplier-buyer relationship from the supplier’s perspective and SDPs and how the supplier-buyer relationship can be improved under the condition of SDPs and SBRSP. Hence, the aim is to develop a more thorough understanding of the outcomes of a supplier-buyer relationship improvement from both buyer’s and supplier’s perspective, under the conditions of supplier development to achieve CAs leading to profitability. Furthermore, the study analyses the effect of the improved supplier-buyer relationship for achieving CAs leading to profitability.

scholarly journals Relationship of patient shame to working alliance and satisfaction: a preliminary investigation

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 251-263
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Carabellese ◽  
Michael J. Proeve ◽  
Rachel M. Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Patient Satisfaction ◽  
Working Alliance ◽  
Preliminary Investigation ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediation Analyses ◽  
External Shame ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship of two distinct variants of dispositional shame (internal and external shame) with collaborative, purpose-driven aspects of the patient–provider relationship (working alliance) and patient satisfaction. The aim of this research was to conduct a preliminary investigation into the relevance of dispositional shame in a general healthcare population. Design/methodology/approach In total, 127 community members (mean age 25.9 years) who reported that they had regularly seen a GP over the past year were recruited at an Australian university. Participants were asked to reflect on their relationship with their GP, and completed instruments assessing various domains of shame, as well as working alliance and patient satisfaction. Findings Non-parametric correlations were examined to determine the direction and strength of relationships, as well as conducting mediation analyses where applicable. Small, negative correlations were evident between external shame and working alliance. Both external and internal shame measures were also negatively correlated with patient satisfaction. Finally, the relationship of external shame to patient satisfaction was partially mediated by working alliance. Practical implications Both the reported quality of patient–provider working alliance, and level of patient satisfaction are related to levels of dispositional shame in patients, and working alliance may act as a mediator for this relationship. Originality/value The findings from this preliminary study suggest that internal and external shame are important factors to consider in the provision of medical care to maximise the quality of patient experience and working alliance.

Workplace ostracism and work-to-family conflict among female employees: moderating role of perceived organisational support

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Youngkeun Choi
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Support ◽  
Family Conflict ◽  
Perceived Organizational Support ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Female Employee ◽  
Workplace Ostracism ◽  
Perceived Organisational Support ◽  
Female Employees ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Based on the conservation of resources theory, this study aims to develop and test the relationship between workplace ostracism and the work-to-family conflict of a female employee. And, it assumes that the direct link between workplace ostracism and the work-to-family conflict of a female employee is moderated by perceived organizational support. Design/methodology/approach For this, this study used a survey method and multiple regression analyses with multi-source data from 226 Korean female employees. Findings The results suggest the following. First, workplace ostracism was positively associated with the work-to-family conflict of a female employee. Second, there was a stronger positive relationship between workplace ostracism and work-to-family conflict for female employees with low as opposed to those with high levels of perceived organizational support. Originality/value To the best of author’s knowledge, this study is the first one to examine the moderating effect of perceived organizational support on the relationship between workplace ostracism and the work-to-family conflict of a female employee.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document