A character social network relationship map tool to facilitate digital humanities research

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Ming Chen ◽  
Chung Chang ◽  
Yung-Ting Chen
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Digital Humanities ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Interaction Interface ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
System Effectiveness ◽  
Ancient Texts

PurposeDigital humanities aim to use a digital-based revolutionary new way to carry out enhanced forms of humanities research more effectively and efficiently. This study develops a character social network relationship map tool (CSNRMT) that can semi-automatically assist digital humanists through human-computer interaction to more efficiently and accurately explore the character social network relationships from Chinese ancient texts for useful research findings.Design/methodology/approachWith a counterbalanced design, semi-structured in-depth interview, and lag sequential analysis, a total of 21 research subjects participated in an experiment to examine the system effectiveness and technology acceptance of adopting the ancient book digital humanities research platform with and without the CSNRMT to interpret the characters and character social network relationships.FindingsThe experimental results reveal that the experimental group with the CSNRMT support appears higher system effectiveness on the interpretation of characters and character social network relationships than the control group without the CSNRMT, but does not achieve a statistically significant difference. Encouragingly, the experimental group with the CSNRMT support presents remarkably higher technology acceptance than the control group without the CSNRMT. Furthermore, use behaviors analyzed by lag sequential analysis reveal that the CSNRMT could assist digital humanists in the interpretation of character social network relationships. The results of the interview present positive opinions on the integration of system interface, smoothness of operation, and external search function.Research limitations/implicationsCurrently, the system effectiveness of exploring the character social network relationships from texts for useful research findings by using the CSNRMT developed in this study will be significantly affected by the accuracy of recognizing character names and character social network relationships from Chinese ancient texts. The developed CSNRMT will be more practical when the offered information about character names and character social network relationships is more accurate and broad.Practical implicationsThis study develops an ancient book digital humanities research platform with an emerging CSNRMT that provides an easy-to-use real-time interaction interface to semi-automatically support digital humanists to perform digital humanities research with the need of exploring character social network relationships.Originality/valueAt present, a real-time social network analysis tool to provide a friendly interaction interface and effectively assist digital humanists in the digital humanities research with character social networks analysis is still lacked. This study thus presents the CSNRMT that can semi-automatically identify character names from Chinese ancient texts and provide an easy-to-use real-time interaction interface for supporting digital humanities research so that digital humanists could more efficiently and accurately establish character social network relationships from the analyzed texts to explore complicated character social networks relationship and find out useful research findings.

Development and evaluation of an automatic text annotation system for supporting digital humanities research

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 436-455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Ming Chen ◽  
Yung-Ting Chen ◽  
Chen-Yu Liu
Keyword(s):  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Digital Humanities ◽  
Word Segmentation ◽  
Ancient Text ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Text Annotation ◽  
Annotation System ◽  
Segmentation Process ◽  
Automatic Text ◽  
Ancient Texts

Purpose An automatic text annotation system (ATAS) that can collect resources from different databases through Linked Data (LD) for automatically annotating ancient texts was developed in this study to support digital humanities research. It allows the humanists referring to resources from diverse databases when interpreting ancient texts as well as provides a friendly text annotation reader for humanists interpreting ancient text through reading. The paper aims to discuss whether the ATAS is helpful to support digital humanities research or not. Design/methodology/approach Based on the quasi-experimental design, the ATAS developed in this study and MARKUS semi-ATAS were compared whether the significant differences in the reading effectiveness and technology acceptance for supporting humanists interpreting ancient text of the Ming dynasty’s collections existed or not. Additionally, lag sequential analysis was also used to analyze users’ operation behaviors on the ATAS. A semi-structured in-depth interview was also applied to understand users’ opinions and perception of using the ATAS to interpret ancient texts through reading. Findings The experimental results reveal that the ATAS has higher reading effectiveness than MARKUS semi-ATAS, but not reaching the statistically significant difference. The technology acceptance of the ATAS is significantly higher than that of MARKUS semi-ATAS. Particularly, the function comparison of the two systems shows that the ATAS presents more perceived ease of use on the functions of term search, connection to source websites and adding annotation than MARKUS semi-ATAS. Furthermore, the reading interface of ATAS is simple and understandable and is more suitable for reading than MARKUS semi-ATAS. Among all the considered LD sources, Moedict, which is an online Chinese dictionary, was confirmed as the most helpful one. Research limitations/implications This study adopted Jieba Chinese parser to perform the word segmentation process based on a parser lexicon for the Chinese ancient texts of the Ming dynasty’s collections. The accuracy of word segmentation to a lexicon-based Chinese parser is limited due to ignoring the grammar and semantics of ancient texts. Moreover, the original parser lexicon used in Jieba Chinese parser only contains the modern words. This will reduce the accuracy of word segmentation for Chinese ancient texts. The two limitations that affect Jieba Chinese parser to correctly perform the word segmentation process for Chinese ancient texts will significantly affect the effectiveness of using ATAS to support digital humanities research. This study thus proposed a practicable scheme by adding new terms into the parser lexicon based on humanists’ self-judgment to improve the accuracy of word segmentation of Jieba Chinese parser. Practical implications Although some digital humanities platforms have been successfully developed to support digital humanities research for humanists, most of them have still not provided a friendly digital reading environment to support humanists on interpreting texts. For this reason, this study developed an ATAS that can automatically retrieve LD sources from different databases on the Internet to supply rich annotation information on reading texts to help humanists interpret texts. This study brings digital humanities research to a new ground. Originality/value This study proposed a novel ATAS that can automatically annotate useful information on an ancient text to increase the readability of the ancient text based on LD sources from different databases, thus helping humanists obtain a deeper and broader understanding in the ancient text. Currently, there is no this kind of tool developed for humanists to support digital humanities research.

A Chinese ancient book digital humanities research platform to support digital humanities research

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 314-336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chih-Ming Chen ◽  
Chung Chang
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
Chinese Text ◽  
Digital Humanities ◽  
Word Segmentation ◽  
Digital Archives ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Text Annotation ◽  
Research Platform ◽  
Ancient Texts

PurposeWith the rapid development of digital humanities, some digital humanities platforms have been successfully developed to support digital humanities research for humanists. However, most of them have still not provided a friendly digital reading environment and practicable social network analysis tool to support humanists on interpreting texts and exploring characters’ social network relationships. Moreover, the advancement of digitization technologies for the retrieval and use of Chinese ancient books is arising an unprecedented challenge and opportunity. For these reasons, this paper aims to present a Chinese ancient books digital humanities research platform (CABDHRP) to support historical China studies. In addition to providing digital archives, digital reading, basic search and advanced search functions for Chinese ancient books, this platform still provides two novel functions that can more effectively support digital humanities research, including an automatic text annotation system (ATAS) for interpreting texts and a character social network relationship map tool (CSNRMT) for exploring characters’ social network relationships.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopted DSpace, an open-source institutional repository system, to serve as a digital archives system for archiving scanned images, metadata, and full texts to develop the CABDHRP for supporting digital humanities (DH) research. Moreover, the ATAS developed in the CABDHRP used the Node.js framework to implement the system’s front- and back-end services, as well as application programming interfaces (APIs) provided by different databases, such as China Biographical Database (CBDB) and TGAZ, used to retrieve the useful linked data (LD) sources for interpreting ancient texts. Also, Neo4j which is an open-source graph database management system was used to implement the CSNRMT of the CABDHRP. Finally, JavaScript and jQuery were applied to develop a monitoring program embedded in the CABDHRP to record the use processes from humanists based on xAPI (experience API). To understand the research participants’ perception when interpreting the historical texts and characters’ social network relationships with the support of ATAS and CSNRMT, semi-structured interviews with 21 research participants were conducted.FindingsAn ATAS embedded in the reading interface of CABDHRP can collect resources from different databases through LD for automatically annotating ancient texts to support digital humanities research. It allows the humanists to refer to resources from diverse databases when interpreting ancient texts, as well as provides a friendly text annotation reader for humanists to interpret ancient text through reading. Additionally, the CSNRMT provided by the CABDHRP can semi-automatically identify characters’ names based on Chinese word segmentation technology and humanists’ support to confirm and analyze characters’ social network relationships from Chinese ancient books based on visualizing characters’ social networks as a knowledge graph. The CABDHRP not only can stimulate humanists to explore new viewpoints in a humanistic research, but also can promote the public to emerge the learning interest and awareness of Chinese ancient books.Originality/valueThis study proposed a novel CABDHRP that provides the advanced features, including the automatic word segmentation of Chinese text, automatic Chinese text annotation, semi-automatic character social network analysis and user behavior analysis, that are different from other existed digital humanities platforms. Currently, there is no this kind of digital humanities platform developed for humanists to support digital humanities research.

The role of online social networks in university students’ environmentally responsible behavior

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amirreza Rezaei ◽  
Saba Ahmadi ◽  
Hamid Karimi
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Online Social Networks ◽  
Environmental Attitudes ◽  
Environmental Issues ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Environmentally Responsible Behavior ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Responsible Behavior ◽  
Environmentally Responsible

Purpose This study aims to determine the effect of online social networks on university students’ environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). This research aimed to develop and test a behavioral model in the context of online social networks, where students’ attitudes, knowledge and behavior influence their ERB. Design/methodology/approach This study used a quasi-experiment with a pretest-posttest design and a random parallelization control group. The research used a questionnaire to assess ERB, environmental attitudes and environmental knowledge. The researcher randomly assigned 120 students to an experimental and a control group of equal size. Both groups initially completed a pretest. The experimental group was trained in environmental issues over four months (an academic semester) via an online social network. Findings The findings indicated that the social network had a significant effect on motivating ERB. Additionally, it improved environmental attitudes. According to the results, online social networks such as Facebook can significantly aid in teaching and learning environmental issues in formal academic settings. Originality/value Online social networks facilitated significant cognitive progress in environmental education. The primary objective is to educate students about ERB.

scholarly journals Social networks, corruption and institutions of accounting, auditing and accountability

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 508-530 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Phiri ◽  
Pinar Guven-Uslu
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Wealth Distribution ◽  
Network Activity ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
African Context

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate institutions of accountability in Zambia in order to understand how social networks may influence such institutions not to discharge their mandates as expected from time to time. The study equally seeks to explore how social networks may perpetuate corrupt activities and compromise the functioning of institutions of accountability. Design/methodology/approach The conceptual framework adopted in this study draws on insights from social network theory (SNT) and Bourdieu’s ideas of capital to devise a critical lens for investigating network activity and its influence on the functioning of institutions of accountability. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews with respondents drawn from different institutions of accountability. Social network analysis was conducted through content analysis. Findings Research findings highlight the presence of networks of a corrupt nature operating within government structures and some institutions of accountability. Manifested in the form of systemic and familial archetypes, these networks appear to be championed and propelled by senior government officials like controlling officers and other actors of a political nature including ministers and presidents. Most of these corrupt activities are organised through brokerage mechanisms that interface internal and external networks. Research limitations/implications Due to the clandestine nature of corruption activities, however, the study was unable to determine measures of centrality and density since these details were not forthcoming during interviews. Such information could only become available if willing individuals involved in corruption could be identified so that they explain who they conduct their corruption with together with the number of connections involved and the most influential individuals in those networks. Social implications This study helps us to understand that activities of a corrupt nature are often undertaken through well-connected groups and networks that make it difficult for institutions of accountability to detect and untangle such activity. The study also suggests that accountants and other accountability actors may have forgotten that accounting is not just a technical discourse for enhancing one’s economic status but is an ethical profession as well. There is a great need to put institutions in place which should hold everyone, including the president and ministers, accountable to the Zambian people in the light of wrongdoing. Dismantling the corrupt network activities inferred from the data entails a complete top-down change in systems of politics, governance, wealth distribution and social values. Originality/value This study contributes towards filling the gap of undertaking accounting research of a critical nature focussed on African contexts (Rahaman, 2010). The paper is equally an attempt at providing empirical flesh to Laughlin’s (1991) framework on organisational transformations through complementing that framework with SNT. The study is also among the first to draw on the experiences and insights of actors working within institutions of accountability to highlight accountability challenges within an African context.

scholarly journals The role of intangible assets and liabilities in firm performance: empirical evidence

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdifatah Ahmed Haji ◽  
Nazli Anum Mohd Ghazali
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Intangible Assets ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Corporate Financial Performance ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Single Measure ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Findings

Purpose The purpose of this paper is primarily to explore the extent of intangible assets and liabilities of large Malaysian companies. The authors also examine whether intangible assets and liabilities of a firm have similar or contrasting roles in firm performance. Design/methodology/approach Using a direct and straightforward measure of intangible assets and liabilities, the authors examine a large pool of data from large Malaysian companies over a six-year period spanning from 2008 to 2013. Findings The longitudinal analyses show a significant number of the sample companies, between 34 and 59.33 percent, have a consistent pattern of intangible liabilities. The authors also find firms with intangible liabilities have significantly underperformed financially than a control group of firms. In addition, the authors find that intangible liabilities have significant negative impact on firm performance whereas intangible assets have a contrasting positive impact on firm performance. Research limitations/implications One limitation of this study is that the authors have only used a single measure of intangible assets and liabilities. Albeit the measures used are straightforward and more objective, there could be other measures to capture intangibles. Practical implications The research findings have several theoretical as well as policy implications. Theoretically, the authors extend the resource-based view to the intangible asset-liability mix, affirming the crucial role of intangible resources in financial performance whilst introducing the unfavorable role of intangible liabilities in corporate financial performance. In terms of policy implications, the research findings provide initial empirical input to emerging calls for broader perspectives of intangibles, beyond intangible assets to include intangible liabilities, and therefore belong to an emerging paradigm toward the nature of intangibles. Originality/value This study documents a rare empirical account of the contrasting roles of intangible assets and liabilities in corporate financial performance.

Development and validation of a unidimensional domain-specific entrepreneurial self-efficacy scale

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leon Schjoedt ◽  
Justin B. Craig
Keyword(s):  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Nascent Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
New Business ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Development And Validation

Purpose Given the nature of entrepreneurship, a domain-specific self-efficacy scale should pertain to venture creation, be unidimensional, and be developed and validated using nascent entrepreneurs – persons for whom self-efficacy may be most important. Extant measures employed in entrepreneurship research do not meet all these criteria. The purpose of this paper is to develop and validate a unidimensional entrepreneurial self-efficacy (ESE) scale based on samples of nascent entrepreneurs. Design/methodology/approach Data from a sample of nascent entrepreneurs and items from PSED I were used to develop and assess the validity of a new ESE scale. To further establish scale validity, a comparison group from PSED I along with a sample of nascent entrepreneurs from PSED II were employed. Findings A unidimensional three-item self-efficacy scale for assessing a person’s belief that s/he can create a new business successfully is developed and validated using samples of nascent entrepreneurs and a control group. Research limitations/implications The scale offers opportunity to enhance research-based assessment using a parsimonious, reliable, and valid unidimensional measure of ESE. The scale may enhance future research findings, as well as promoting reconsideration of past research findings, on many issues in the entrepreneurship literature. Originality/value This research uses a sample of nascent entrepreneurs to provide a new three-item scale for assessment of ESE that is parsimonious, valid, and unidimensional.

The influence of trust and perceived playfulness on the relationship commitment of hospitality online social network-moderating effects of gender

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 924-944 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chi-Hua Li ◽  
Chun-Ming Chang
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Relationship Commitment ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Trust Theory ◽  
Perceived Playfulness ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose From the commitment–trust theory angle, this study aims to understand why members of social network sites (SNSs) are willing to build a relationship commitment with hospitality SNSs, engage in online word-of-mouth (WOM) and show a willingness to repurchase. This paper proposes a model to express the relationship commitment and gender as a moderator in the relationship. Design/methodology/approach The interviews of a formal survey were selected by a purposive sampling method, and an online questionnaire survey was conducted in Taiwan. This study used the partial least square method to conduct structural equation modeling analysis. Findings The findings suggest that trust and perceived playfulness of the hospitality community have positive influences on relationship commitment, and also that the relationship commitment has a positive influence on online WOM and willingness to repurchase. This analysis provides strong support for the view that gender exerts a significant moderating role on our model relationships. Practical implications SNSs aspiring to stand out in the highly competitive internet environment must cultivate consumers’ trust and relationship commitment, and develop strategies to retain community members, as well as strengthen the safeguard personal information and the playfulness of activities. SNSs that launch relationship marketing activities should encourage community members to spread positive WOM through various activities. Originality/value This study combined the commitment–trust theory and technology acceptance model. It aimed to develop a theory-based model of relationship commitment in the hospitality SNSs’ context. Both trust and perceived playfulness are positively related to commitment; they are essential and important elements of successful hospitality SNSs. The gender difference plays a vital role in determining individuals’ behavior intention in the hospitality SNSs, as females and males have different decision-making processes.

IoT adoption in agriculture: the role of trust, perceived value and risk

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 804-821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Priyanka Jayashankar ◽  
Sree Nilakanta ◽  
Wesley J. Johnston ◽  
Pushpinder Gill ◽  
Reed Burres
Keyword(s):  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Perceived Value ◽  
Epistemic Value ◽  
Data Handling ◽  
Service Dominant Logic ◽  
Content Type ◽  
B2b Marketing ◽  
Dominant Logic ◽  
Research Findings

PurposeThis paper aims to study the antecedents of Internet of Things (IoT) adoption among farmers and determine how trust in the technology influences its adoption when mediated by perceived value and risk. Through the conceptualization of trust and perceived risk, the authors factor in farmers’ perceptions of agricultural technology providers and discuss different forms of perceived value, spanning economic, green and epistemic value.Design/methodology/approachThis paper develops a distinctive research design, drawing on elements of the value-based adoption and technology acceptance models. By linking different elements of perceived value with IoT technology, the authors also apply the service-dominant logic to this study. They study how trust affects perceived value and risk and then determine how perceived value and risk, in turn, affect IoT adoption. The authors test the hypotheses by developing a structural equation model to analyze the results of a survey, wherein 492 farmers from Iowa, the USA, participated.FindingsThe results show a positive relationship between trust and perceived value and a negative relationship between trust and perceived risk. Perceived value had a positive impact on IoT adoption, whereas perceived risk had a negative impact on IoT adoption.Practical implicationsThe research findings on trust and perceived value and risk are timely and relevant for business-to-business (B2B) marketing practitioners and agricultural stakeholders, especially in an era where farmers are expressing growing concerns about data handling risk posed by IoT technology adoption.Originality/valueThe research findings signal a transition in focus from the goods-dominant logic to the service-dominant logic in agriculture, whereby farmers are drawn to IoT technology because of perceived economic, green and epistemic value and as a result, can differentiate themselves on how well they deploy operant resources. This paper not only provides a unique conceptualization of perceived value but also pave the way for a richer conceptualization of IoT core functions that enable farmers to fulfill green and epistemic goals. This is the first B2B marketing paper discussing the antecedents of IoT adoption in agriculture, such as farmers’ perceptions of both monetary and non-monetary forms of value and perceived data handling risk.

scholarly journals A knowledge structures exploration on social network sites

Kybernetes ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (5) ◽  
pp. 818-839 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel J. Sánchez-Franco ◽  
Mirian Muñoz-Expósito ◽  
Ángel F. Villarejo-Ramos
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Technology Acceptance ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Graphical Representation ◽  
Social Network Sites ◽  
Community Support ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Associative Network ◽  
Acceptance Model

Purpose This paper aims to describe a method for combining perceived community support, relationship quality and the extended technology acceptance model in the same empirically derived associative network. The research also examines the moderating role of accumulation of knowledge (based on beliefs and opinions) derived from social interactions. Design/methodology/approach The Pathfinder algorithm is a valid approach for determining network structures from relatedness data. Such a graphical representation provides managers with a comprehensible picture of how social behaviours relate to loyalty-based dimensions. Findings As the benefits of community participation and integration might be differently evaluated by new and long-term users, the research examines the associative network by levels of user familiarity. This study indeed contributes to the analysis of enduring social bonds with respect to individuals’ decision-making processes, as it provides details representing specific relationships between diverse concepts based on true-loyalty. Practical implications The application of Pathfinder to the study of online social services and user behaviour appears to have potential for unveiling the structures of social network sites members and designing successful strategies for prospective community managers. Originality/value This is the first study to the author’s knowledge that empirically tests a theory-grounded framework for integrating individual characteristics and relational driver and focuses on associative structures evidenced as a representation of the most salient loyalty-based concepts by also studying the moderating effects of familiarity.

Privacy as a secondary goal problem: an experiment examining control

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 382-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Hughes-Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Treatment Group ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Potential Effect ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on results of an investigation into the impact of adding privacy salient information (defined through the theory of planned behaviour) into the user interface (UI) of a faux social network. Design/methodology/approach – Participants were asked to create their profiles on a new social network specifically for Nottingham Trent University students by answering a series of questions that vary in the sensitivity of personal information requested. A treatment is designed that allows participants to review their answers and make amendments based on suggestions from the treatment. A dynamic privacy score that improves as amendments are made is designed to encourage privacy-oriented behaviour. Results from the treatment group are compared to a control group. Findings – Participants within the treatment group disclosed less than those in the control with statistical significance. The more sensitive questions in particular were answered less when compared to the control, suggesting that participants were making more privacy-conscious decisions. Practical implications – Work within this paper suggests that simple UI changes can promote more privacy-conscious behaviour. These simple changes could provide a low-cost method to ensuring the Internet safety of a wide range of users. Originality/value – This study provides a clear definition of privacy salient UI mechanisms based on a well-established theory of behaviour and examines their potential effect on end-users through a novel experiment. Results and methods from this work can enable researchers to better understand privacy behaviour.

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