The place sustainability scale: measuring residents’ perceptions of the sustainability of a town

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 370-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viriya Taecharungroj ◽  
Thunwadee Tachapattaworakul Suksaroj ◽  
Cheerawit Rattanapan

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to develop a scale that assesses place sustainability from the perspectives of residents, who are the main stakeholders. The resulting place sustainability scale (PSS) is a practical and useful tool for place administrators to measure place sustainability at all scales.Design/methodology/approachThis research analyses the data collected from 636 residents in the town of Salaya in Central Thailand. To develop the scale, the authors randomise 318 samples to conduct an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and analyse the rest with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).FindingsA total of 11 factors of place sustainability were generated with 33 questionnaire items. Those factors were natural environment, social equity, economic growth, built environment, landscape, liveability, conviviality, transport, energy, water and waste management and governance.Practical implicationsThe PSS can help place administrators, such as chief executives of sub-districts, mayors of town municipalities or governors of provinces, assess perceived sustainability from the perspectives of their residents. They can use this scale in conjunction with other sustainability indicators that calculate data from real variables and values to develop a comprehensive view of sustainability that includes both real and perceptual dimensions.Originality/valueNumerous available indices and indicators use real variables and values to measure place sustainability. However, they have limitations: they can be complex and incomprehensible to outsiders or they might not support participative processes and policymaking. This research develops an alternative measure of place sustainability that assesses the perceptions of residents.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xujia Wang ◽  
Billy Sung ◽  
Ian Phau

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate how exclusivity and rarity (natural versus virtual) influence consumers' perceptions of luxury. Further, it examines whether exclusivity and rarity can function as distinct marketing strategies in today's luxury market environment.Design/methodology/approachOnline questionnaires were administered by adapting developed scales from prior research. Research stimuli were chosen from three luxury categories including bags, wine and cruise. Confirmatory factor analysis and multiple regressions were used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results confirmed that exclusivity, natural rarity and virtual rarity were perceived as relatively distinct constructs among our sample. Findings also highlighted that perceived natural rarity (PNR) has consistently emerged as a positive and significant contributor to consumers' perceptions of luxury across all three luxury categories. The influence of perceived exclusivity (PE) on perceptions of luxury has also shown to be significant for two product categories (luxury bag and luxury wine), whereas perceived virtual rarity (PVR) did not show any significant effects across all three categories.Practical implicationsThe results indicate that consumers perceive natural rarity, virtual rarity and exclusivity as relatively distinctive marketing strategies. This suggests that luxury businesses can adopt each strategy independently to achieve desired marketing outcomes.Originality/valueThis study offers theoretical support for the proposition that exclusivity and rarity may have different functions in luxury marketing implementations. It provides empirical evidence showing the distinctiveness of perceived exclusivity and perceived rarity, which have not be done in previous research.


Author(s):  
Aristides I Ferreira ◽  
Luis F. Martinez ◽  
Cary Cooper ◽  
Diana M. Gui

Purpose – Some underlying mechanisms regarding presenteeism still remain unclear, namely, the construct of “presenteeism climate” and the importance of “leadership” Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) for presenteeism. In order to shed some light into this phenomenon, the purpose of this paper is to develop and apply a new scale of presenteeism climate. Design/methodology/approach – In Study 1, the authors identified a pool of items from the literature and, in Study 2 (n=147) the authors tested 26 items that were pilot studied with exploratory factor analysis. In Study 3 (n=293) the authors tested a three-factor model – extra-time valuation, supervision distrust and co-workers competitiveness – with confirmatory factor analysis. Findings – Results showed that LMX has a negative correlation with presenteeism climate. Study 3 also showed that this structure remained invariant with additional samples from employees working in hospitals from Ecuador (n=90) and China (n=237). Finally, the authors included suggestions for future studies to overcome the limitations of this research. Practical implications – This study has implications for managers and academics, as it emphasizes the importance of favorable behaviors between leaders and employees in order to decrease presenteeism and its adverse consequences. Originality/value – The main contribution consists of identifying dimensions of presenteeism climate and developing measures. Additionally, the authors contribute to the literature on leadership by studying the influence of LMX on presenteeism climate.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 1571-1590
Author(s):  
Preeti Dwivedi ◽  
Vijit Chaturvedi ◽  
Jugal Kishore Vashist

PurposeThis research aims to examine the influence of transformational leadership on employee efficiency. The research also examines the role of knowledge sharing as a mediator between transformational leadership and employee efficiency.Design/methodology/approachThe research is based on the survey conducted among 200 employees of logistics firms. Exploratory Factor analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) approaches are used for the evaluation.FindingsThe study found that transformational leadership has positive and significant influence on employee efficiency. The research also demonstrates that after introducing knowledge sharing, it fully mediated the influence of transformational leadership on employee efficiency. The study suggests that, if leaders share their knowledge and expertise among the team, employees have a propensity to be highly effective and efficient than without knowledge sharing.Research limitations/implicationsBlue collar staff and unskilled labors of the firms are not included in the study. So, the study is limited to white collar staff only which can further be expanded by considering other ground staff. Also few or no such researches have been conducted in logistics firms, particularly in Indian logistics firms. So, the result of this study can be used as reference to explore the area. This study can be replicated in the logistics firms of other regions also.Practical implicationsThe finding of the study will help the top management of the organizations to formulate strategies to enhance its senior-subordinate relationship through knowledge sharing. The study also suggests that regular dissemination of knowledge among the team improves the efficiency of the team members and hence the performance of the organization.Originality/valueThis research examines the degree to which knowledge sharing acts as a mediator between transformational leadership and employee efficiency, which has not been found in previous studies.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mian M. Ajmal ◽  
Mehmood Khan ◽  
Angappa Gunasekaran ◽  
Petri T. Helo

PurposeProject scope creep is a nightmare and nearly intolerable task. Most project managers struggle to curtail the expanse and degree of scope creep. This study examines different likely project scope creep factors associated with the construction industry projects.Design/methodology/approachAfter many brainstorming sessions with construction stakeholders, several project scope creep factors were identified. Then, a detailed survey was executed in big construction projects of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA).FindingsThe results derived and validated five conspicuous factors leading to project scope creep. Respectively, the highest and the lowest impact on project scope appears to be imposed by tasks/specifications and complexity/uncertainty.Practical implicationsIt offers crucial support to the project stakeholders in scrutinizing different factors that stand as hurdles to project success and allows them to seek remedies to resolve them.Originality/valueIt is among the first study in the region that identifies and validates the factors that hinder construction project success.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 321-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sai On Cheung ◽  
Keyao Li

PurposeThis study aims to propose a framework of bias in construction project dispute resolution (CPDR hereafter).Design/methodology/approachWith reference to the literatures on effects of bias, manifestations of bias in CPDR were developed. Based on data obtained from construction professionals about their frequency of having these bias manifestations, the underlying constructs of biased behaviors were explored by a principal component factor analysis. A confirmatory factor analysis was further conducted to validate the framework of bias in CPDR.FindingsFour types of bias were identified as the constructs that underlie biased behaviors in CPDR. These four biases were included in the bias framework proposed: preconception, self-affirmation, optimism and interest-oriented. The potency of these types of bias was also evaluated.Practical implicationsFirst, the findings inform that the existence of bias in CPDR is real. Early detection allows management to intervene and steer CPDR team back to rational courses. Second, this study suggests optimizing CPDR procedures to diminish the chance of bias occurring.Originality/valueBias is almost an uncharted area in CPDR. The study fills this research gap by conceptualizing the underlying constructs of biased behaviors. The findings inform construction professionals of the likelihood of practicing biased behaviors in CPDR. Repeated dispute decisions in the commonly used multi-tiered dispute resolution process would enable the creeping in of biases.


2009 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 410-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanouil Stiakakis ◽  
Christos K. Georgiadis

PurposeThis study aims to identify the similarities and differences between the perspectives of providers and customers regarding the important dimensions and attributes of e‐service quality (e‐SQ).Design/methodology/approachTen criteria are proposed for assessment of e‐SQ in both business‐to‐business (B2B) and business‐to‐consumer (B2C) transactions. Confirmatory factor analysis confirms the validity of grouping these criteria into five proposed dimensions. The e‐SQ dimensions and criteria are then ranked in terms of their importance by a survey of respondents from small and medium‐sized enterprises with experience in conducting e‐business in Greece. The results are compared with selected surveys of customers' perceptions from the literature.FindingsThe results indicate that the providers' perceptions are in agreement with customers' perceptions with regard to e‐SQ dimensions, but not with regard to specific criteria (items) within those dimensions. The study also finds that providers have similar perceptions of the importance of the suggested e‐SQ criteria in B2B and B2C electronic transactions.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings should be generalised with care if extrapolated to other socio‐cultural settings and specific industries.Practical implicationsManagers should recognise that there might be differences between their views of e‐SQ and those of their customers.Originality/valueThis is one of the few studies to have focused on the perceptions of providers in assessing e‐SQ.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naval Garg ◽  
B.K. Punia ◽  
Vanshikha Kakkar ◽  
Sarika Kumari

Purpose Most of the studies in the field of homesickness are confined to students; this study aims to explore the feeling of homesickness among working professionals. Also, it tends to examine individual differences in the experience of homesickness across employees of different gender, ages, experience, family type, etc. The study also aspires to compare homesickness among military and civil employees. Design/methodology/approach The study explores five dimensions of homesickness, namely, missing family, missing friend, rumination about home, feeling lonely and adjustment problems. The collected data is subjected to reliability, validity and confirmatory factor analysis. Further, t-test and analysis of variance are used to explore homesickness differences across soldiers and corporate employees. Findings The study reveals that homesickness is significantly higher for employees in the male, unmarried, nuclear family, above the age of 45 years, and below the graduation category. Also, defense people experience more homesickness than civilian employees. Originality/value This study is one of the pioneer studies that compare homesickness among defense and civilian employees. Also, variables such as type of family, the experience of employees and marital status have hardly been explored in the literature of homesickness.


2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 192-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherein H. Abou- Warda

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the differences between the four main kinds of business schools in Egypt (private; internationally affiliated; public with local programs; and public with international programs) in terms of perceptions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO). Design/methodology/approach – Data were gathered 212 with a response rate of 55.1 percent from a sample of academics in the four groups of business schools (private; internationally affiliated; public with local programs; and public with international programs) using self-administered questionnaires. Results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted to check EO, construct validity and to identify meaningful factors. MANOVA was performed by using factors identified in the previous step to establish whether any significant differences exist between the four groups. Findings – The results show that differences between the four groups exist in terms of four sub-constructs of EO (research mobilization, unconventionality activities, industry collaboration, and perception of university policies) which successfully predict business school involvement in accreditation and commercialization setting. Practical implications – It is meaningful to conduct a comparative study of EO; the results of this study may be broadly applied to higher education (HE) systems in other countries where strong entrepreneurship has contribute to building a more solid economy. Originality/value – The recent literature has put little effort in understanding the effects of cultural differences among universities and its departments in terms of EO and none in identifying the differences between HE systems on the same topic.


2014 ◽  
Vol 116 (10) ◽  
pp. 1581-1599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Escanciano ◽  
María Leticia Santos-Vijande

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the status of the implementation of ISO 22000 in the food industry in Spain. The study identifies the main difficulties faced by firms during the adoption process, the benefits obtained, and the most influential benefits on firms overall satisfaction with ISO 22000. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was developed to identify the difficulties and benefits for ISO 22000 implementation. Data were collected among 189 Spanish certified firms. Factor analysis and multiple linear regression were used. Findings – ISO 22000 is used by firms operating in all links of the food chain (FC). Size of the firm is not a factor that determines its implementation. Exporter firms are more attracted to ISO 22000 certification. All sample firms experienced difficulties throughout the implementation process, being those related with time and money the most relevant. The benefits which most contributed to the firms’ satisfaction were internal in nature, in particular, those related to improved efficiency and food safety. Practical implications – Despite the many difficulties, both material and organizational, that sample firms experienced in implementing ISO 22000, and the complexity of the standard, the overall satisfaction is high. Originality/value – The sample analyzed comprised certified firms, including representatives of all links in the FC from farm to table. Prior research specifically aimed at analyzing ISO 22000 implementation and its benefits is very scarce.


2019 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 646-665 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pramod Sharma ◽  
Jogendra Kumar Nayak

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of tourists’ emotional experiences on predicting behavioral intentions via cognitive, affective and overall image in yoga tourism. Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted using data collected from 398 tourists visiting a yoga tourism destination in India. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling were used in analyzing the collected data. Findings The study confirmed that specific tourists’ emotions act as a predictor of cognitive, affective and overall image. This in turn influenced the behavioral intentions of tourists. The effect of specific emotions on affective image was stronger than on cognitive image in yoga tourism. Practical implications The marketing campaign of yoga tourism should highlight the special benefits of yoga to activate, stimulate and influence tourists toward yoga tourism, thereby improving the flow of future tourists. It would also help in better positioning and promoting yoga tourism as a unique and distinct niche tourism market. Originality/value This study contributed to the literature by understanding the predictive power of specific emotions on behavioral intentions via, cognitive, affective and overall image in yoga tourism. As far as the authors’ knowledge is concerned, this study is first known attempt to investigate such relationships in tourism literature.


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