scholarly journals An International Investigation of the Institutional Factors Driving Sustainability Assurance

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Allah Bakhsh ◽  
Zeeshan Mahmood ◽  
Abu Bakar Mahmood
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Institutional Factors ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Stakeholder Orientation ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Sustainability Disclosure ◽  
The Impact

This paper investigates the impact of various factors associated with the adoption of sustainability assurance. Our objective is to find out the impact of country-level institutional factors (stakeholder orientation, voice and accountability, rule of law, investors’protection and long-term orientation) on sustainability assurance. Extant literature is scarce at country-level and specifically does not address the impact of cultural-orientation on sustainability assurance. This paper fills the gap and focuses on the cultural dimension (long-term orientation) in addition to other country-level institutional factors. Companies listed on the Sustainability Disclosure Database (http://database.globalreporting.org) constitute the population for this study. We filtered companies of large size from sustainability-sensitive industries which produced GRI-based reports in the year 2017. Our final sample comprised 196 companies from 41 countries. Using linear regression model, our results suggest that companies that are located in countries with weaker investor protections, greater rule of law, greater voice and accountability, and long-term orientation are more likely to adopt sustainability assurance whereas companies that are located in stakeholder-oriented countries are less likely to adopt sustainability assurance. This paper contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence of the impact of cultural dimensions on sustainability assurance. Future research can explore other dimensions of culture and their impact on sustainability assurance.

The impact of cultural dimensions on customer complaint behaviours: an exploratory study in Antalya/Manavgat tourism region

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gözde Seval Ergün ◽  
Olgun Kitapci
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sample Population ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Hotel Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Action ◽  
Customer Complaint ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The study was carried out to better understand the behaviour of tourists from different cultures and backgrounds, and to provide strategic solutions for tourism managers. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationships between the cultural dimensions of Hofstede and customer complaint behaviours. Design/methodology/approach Exploratory factor analyses were carried out separately for national culture and complaint behaviour scales and the factor structuring was then tested using a confirmatory factor analysis. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to test theoretical correlations and a conceptual model was created to put forward the correlations between national cultural dimensions and complaint behaviours, as well as to examine the impact of variation in one dimension on the other. Findings Significant correlations were observed between power distance and both public action and no action behaviours, uncertainty avoidance and public action and private action, as well as individualism/collectivism and public action. Research limitations/implications The sample population of the study included foreign tourists visiting Manavgat district in 2015. Manavgat as a destination is preferred by foreign tourists, rather than domestic tourists. In addition, many accommodations in the region only host guests from particular nationalities. For this reason, domestic tourists were not included in the survey. A limitation of the research is the fact that it focused only on hotel management. Extending the scope of the study in future research—the study could be carried out for a wider area and include other sectors—would increase the effectiveness of the study. Practical implications The results shed light on the fact that customers perform different complaint behaviours depending on variation in national cultural dimensions. In this context, the findings contribute to the hotel management literature and to the development of management strategies such as staff training, effective complaint solution methods, increasing customer complaints, using indirect resources effectively and decreasing the cost of solutions. The research also aims to create awareness in hotel managers by highlighting the importance of this issue. Originality/value In many of the studies where customer complaint behaviour and culture are analysed together, culture is regarded primarily as a geographical region, or as ethnical origin. Using Hofstede’s national cultural dimension scale, and taking into consideration all the national cultural dimensions, adds originality to this research. This study is one of the first to explore the impact of cultural dimensions on customer complaint behaviours in Turkey. This is also one of the first studies on complaint behaviour in the hotel industry.

Cross-country differences in European firms’ digitalisation: the role of national culture

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (8) ◽  
pp. 1563-1583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Rubino ◽  
Filippo Vitolla ◽  
Nicola Raimo ◽  
Isabel-Maria Garcia-Sanchez
Keyword(s):  
National Culture ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Managerial Implications ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between national culture and the country level of firms' digitalisation, by applying Hofstede's cultural framework to the European Union member states. Although many studies have observed the impact of national culture on firms' innovation and information and communication technology (ICT) adoption, there have been no analyses of how cultural dimensions impact firms' digitalisation at the country level. This study intends to fill that gap.Design/methodology/approachUsing a pooled ordinary least square (OLS) model, this study analyses data from 27 European countries over the period from 2014 to 2018.FindingsThe results suggest the existence of a negative, significant, relationship between both masculinity and uncertainty avoidance, and the country level of firms' digitalisation. Indulgence is found to positively and significantly influence a country's level of digitalisation. Contrary to expectations, this study indicates a negative, significant, relationship between individualism and the degree of digitalisation. Power distance is found to have no significant impact.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature by showing how a country's various cultural dimensions help or hinder the level of firms' digitalisation in that country. Theoretical and managerial implications are presented, including suggestions for future research.

scholarly journals Effect of Barley Sowing Density on the Integrated Weed Management of Lolium rigidum (Annual Ryegrass) in Mediterranean Dryland: A Modeling Approach

Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1565
Author(s):  
María Belén D’Amico ◽  
Guillermo R. Chantre ◽  
Guillermo L. Calandrini ◽  
José L. González-Andújar
Keyword(s):  
Weed Management ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Integrated Weed Management ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Weed Infestation ◽  
High Control ◽  
Weed Dynamics ◽  
The Impact

Population models are particularly helpful for understanding long-term changes in the weed dynamics associated with integrated weed management (IWM) strategies. IWM practices for controlling L. rigidum are of high importance, mainly due to its widespread resistance that precludes chemical control as a single management method. The objective of this contribution is to simulate different IWM scenarios with special emphasis on the impact of different levels of barley sowing densities on L. rigidum control. To this effect, a weed–crop population model for both L. rigidum and barley life cycles was developed. Our results point out: (i) the necessity of achieving high control efficiencies (>99%), (ii) that the increase of twice the standard sowing density of barley resulted in a reduction of 23.7% of the weed density, (iii) non-herbicide-based individual methods, such as delayed sowing and weed seed removal at harvest, proved to be inefficient for reducing drastically weed population, (iv) the implementation of at least three control tactics (seed removal, delay sowing and herbicides) is required for weed infestation eradication independently of the sowing rate, and (v) the effect of an increase in the sowing density is diluted as a more demanding weed control is reached. Future research should aim to disentangle the effect of different weed resistance levels on L. rigidum population dynamics and the required efficiencies for more sustainable IWM programs.

scholarly journals Dryland Food Security in Ethiopia: Current Status, Opportunities, and a Roadmap for the Future

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6503
Author(s):  
Yu Peng ◽  
Hubert Hirwa ◽  
Qiuying Zhang ◽  
Guoqin Wang ◽  
Fadong Li
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Security Assessment ◽  
Security Issue ◽  
Sustainable Development Goal ◽  
Zero Hunger ◽  
The Impact

Given the impact of COVID-19 and the desert locust plague, the Ethiopian food security issue has once again received widespread attention. Its food crisis requires comprehensive and systematic research to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of zero hunger. This review discusses the current situation and the causes of food security in Ethiopia. We focus on the challenges in the food security assessment field. The article lists seven typical causes of food insecurity and three roots of food security in Ethiopia. Long-term food security assessment and a comprehensive understanding and manageability for food security causes are considered as the main existing research challenges. Climate-resilient management, water management, and long-term ecosystem network monitoring and data mining are suggested as potential roadmap for future research.

scholarly journals The effect of national cultural differences of board members on integrated reporting

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simona Alfiero ◽  
Massimo Cane ◽  
Ruggiero Doronzo ◽  
Alfredo Esposito
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Differences ◽  
Critical Mass ◽  
Cultural Dimensions ◽  
Board Members ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Integrated Reporting ◽  
Independent Variables ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Positive Effect

This research, based on stakeholder theory and the national cultural dimensions, aims to test the influence of foreigners on board and its size on Integrated Reporting (IR) practices. The analysis is based on a sample of 1,058 European companies from 18 different countries, who adopted or not the IR for the year 2015, and it relies on a Logit. The dependent variable is a dummy (presenting or not the IR) and the independent variables are represented by the board characteristics (foreigners and size). The impact of the critical mass on the presence of foreigners and the cultural dimension on the basis of directors’ nationality was tested relying on the masculinity/femininity dimension of Hofstede. Besides, the directors’ country of origin was considered, namely if they belong to the major European countries presenting a wider IR diffusion. The relationship between foreigners on board and IR is found to be negative. This means that companies with at least one foreigner are less inclined to adopt IR. The results show that the boards with more of three foreign administrators have a major propensity to adopt the IR. The membership of the directors in countries with a feminist culture also has a positive effect.

Not Only Individualism: The Effects of Long-Term Orientation and Other Cultural Variables on National Innovation Success

2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrzej Bukowski ◽  
Seweryn Rudnicki
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Support ◽  
Cultural Factors ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Cultural Dimension ◽  
Cultural Predictors ◽  
Cultural Variables ◽  
Single Pattern ◽  
The Impact

This article re-examines the effects of culture on national innovation rates. Pointing to the innovation success of some East Asian countries, it argues that the cultural dimension of individualism is not able to fully account for the role of culture in national innovativeness, and there is a need to include a wider set of cultural factors in the analysis. Several competing measures of national innovation performance over the last decade and Hofstede’s measures of culture, as well as their recently revised versions proposed by Minkov and collaborators, are employed to test the hypotheses. The findings show that, apart from individualism, long-term orientation, and flexibility, the dimensions omitted in the prior studies are positive and strong cultural predictors of national innovation intensity, whereas the role of other cultural factors finds little empirical support. The study suggests that there is no single pattern for the impact of culture on national innovation rates that should be taken into account in seeking effective innovation strategies and policies. It also highlights the need to advance the understanding of the causal mechanism between culture and innovativeness to guide further theoretical and empirical analysis.

Prepaid debit cards and banking intention

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia T. Anong ◽  
Aditi Routh
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Transtheoretical Model ◽  
Customer Segmentation ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Bank Account ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Debit Card ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Debit Cards

PurposeThis study examines the relationship between prepaid debit card use and the intention to open a bank account within twelve months. The Transtheoretical Model (TTM) of Behavior Change helped to conceptualize one's stage in the process of changing from unbanked status if desired. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) provided a framework to examine factors that influence banking intention. Prepaid debit card use is considered a social norm as it is a popular alternative to banking, and these accounts have increasingly mimicked bank account features in recent years.Design/methodology/approachThree in-depth focus group interviews with low-income respondents were first conducted in 2012, which revealed a prolific use of prepaid debit cards. Most participants had previous banking history, and despite negative experiences, some requested information about banking terms and “free” banking. These themes and previous studies informed a TPB-based biprobit model, which was estimated using data of an unbanked sample from 2013, 2015 and 2017 waves of the US Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households.FindingsThough there was banking interest in the focus groups, no significant empirical association was found between recent prepaid debit card use and banking intention. Going deeper with another sample, we found that current cardholders were equally likely to have become recently banked or to be long-term unbanked but less likely to be long-term banked. Also, factors such as a more recent relationship with banks, use of other alternative financial services for transactions and credit, smartphone ownership, and trust increase banking intention.Research limitations/implicationsThe main limitation of the study is the cross-section quantitative data. Future research may track banking status over time, particularly as financial technology (fintech) evolves with alternatives that may influence banks and customers to adapt.Practical implicationsTo compete with “leapfrog” fintech banking alternatives, bank managers should consider utilizing customer segmentation to target “at-risk” customers and former customers with products and terms tailored to meet their banking needs. Banks can also tailor digital products to capture markets in banking desserts through mobile phones.Originality/valueThis mixed-methods study is unique in that it builds on insights from earlier in-depth interviews with real unbanked groups to examine a trend in prepaid debit card use and the impact on banking interest.

scholarly journals Arts-Based Interventions for Professionals in Caring Roles During and After Crisis: A Systematic Review of the Literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dominik Havsteen-Franklin ◽  
Megan Tjasink ◽  
Jacqueline Winter Kottler ◽  
Claire Grant ◽  
Veena Kumari
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Safe Place ◽  
Practice Elements ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Crisis Events ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

Crisis events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can have a devastating effect on communities and the care professionals within them. Over recent years, arts-based interventions have helped in a wide range of crisis situations, being recommended to support the workforce during and after complex crisis but there has been no systematic review of the role of arts-based crisis interventions and whether there are cogent themes regarding practice elements and outcomes. We, therefore, conducted a systematic review to (i) define the arts-based change process used during and after crisis events, and (ii) explore the perceptions of intermediate and long-term mental health benefits of arts-based interventions for professionals in caring roles. Our search yielded six studies (all qualitative). All data were thematically aggregated and meta-synthesized, revealing seven practice elements (a safe place, focusing on strengths and protective factors, developing psychosocial competencies to support peers, emotional expression and processing, identifying and naming the impact of the crisis, using an integrative creative approach, and cultural and organizational sensitivity) applied across all six studies, as well as a range of intermediate and long-term benefits shared common features (adapting, growing, and recovering; using the community as a healing resource; reducing or preventing symptoms of stress or trauma reactions, psychophysiological homeostasis). The ways in which these studies were designed independently from one another and yet used the same practice elements in their crisis interventions indicates that there is comparability about how and why the arts-based practice elements are being used and to what effect. Our findings provide a sound basis and meaningful parameters for future research incorporating quantitative and qualitative approaches to firmly establish the effectiveness of art-based interventions, and how arts can support cultural sensitivity, acceptability and indicated outcomes, particularly those relating to stress and trauma during or following a crisis.

Current and Future Surgical and Interventional Management Options for Adenomyosis

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (02/03) ◽  
pp. 157-167
Author(s):  
Joseph Chen ◽  
Anne E. Porter ◽  
Kimberly A. Kho
Keyword(s):  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Wedge Resection ◽  
Abnormal Uterine Bleeding ◽  
High Intensity Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Obstetric Outcomes ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Recommended Treatment ◽  
The Impact

AbstractHistorically, hysterectomy has been the recommended treatment for patients with adenomyosis. However, in the past two decades, various uterine-sparing treatment methods have emerged. These range from excisional techniques such as adenomyomectomy or wedge resection to uterine artery embolization, radiofrequency thermal ablation, hysteroscopic excision, endometrial ablation, and high-intensity focused ultrasound. While largely investigative for the treatment of adenomyosis, these procedures have demonstrated improvement in symptoms including abnormal uterine bleeding, dysmenorrhea, pelvic pain, and overall quality of life. However, long-term data including fertility and obstetric outcomes are needed. Future research is needed to better understand the impact of these uterine-preserving techniques to expand our armamentarium for the treatment of adenomyosis.

Dams: Effects of Hydrological Infrastructure on Development

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-148
Author(s):  
Andrew Dillon ◽  
Ram Fishman
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Flood Control ◽  
The Body ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Emerging Issues ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Benefits And Costs ◽  
Distributional Impacts

Hydrological investments, particularly irrigation dams, have multiple potential benefits for economic development. Dams also have financial, environmental, and distributional impacts that can affect their benefits and costs. This article reviews the evidence on the impact of dams on economic development, focusing on the levels and variability of agricultural productivity, and its effect on poverty, health, electricity generation, and flood control. We also review the evidence on irrigation efficiency and collective action of dam maintenance. Throughout the discussion, we highlight the empirical challenges that restrict the body of causally interpretable impact estimates and areas in which the evidence is particularly thin. We conclude with a discussion of emerging issues pertaining to the long-term sustainability of dams’ impacts and suggest directions for future research.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document