Muslim Investor Behavior in Indonesian Capital Markets: an Extention of Theory of Planned Behavior

This study aims to measure the intentions of Muslim investors in investing in Islamic stocks using the Theory of Planned Behavior and including religiosity. Religiosity was added in the study to answer the weakness of TPB to add new external variables to it. The sample of this research is Muslim investors who invest in shariah stocks with 200 investors. The analytical tool used in this study is Partial Least Square (PLS) using SmartPLS 3.0 software. This study indicates that the variables of attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control have a significant positive effect on the intention of Muslim investors to invest in Islamic stocks. Religiosity is also proven to have a significant positive effect on the intentions of Muslim investors to invest in Islamic stocks. Religiosity is proven to be a new external variable in the TPB that can measure Muslim intentions to invest in Islamic stocks.

Experimentation with Self-Serving Attribution Biases

We study an experimentation problem in a situation where the outcomes depend on the decision-maker’s intrinsic ability and on an external variable. We analyze the mistakes made by individuals who hold inaccurate prior beliefs about their ability. Overconfident individuals take too much credit for their successes and excessively blame external factors if they fail. They are too easily dissatisfied with their environment, which leads them to experiment in variable environments and revise their self-confidence over time. In contrast, underconfident individuals might be trapped in low-quality environments and incur perpetual utility losses. (JEL D11, D83, D91)

Optimal preliminary design of variable section beams criterion

The present paper discusses about optimal shape solution for a non-prismatic planar beam. The proposed model is based on the standard Timoshenko kinematics hypothesis (i.e., planar cross-section remains planar in consequence of a deformation, but it is able to rotate with respect to the beam center-line). The analytical solution for this type of beam is thus used to obtain deformations and stresses of the beam, under different constraints, when load is assumed as the sum of a generic external variable vertical one and the self-weight. The solution is obtained by numerical integration of the beam equation and constraints are posed both on deflection and maximum stress under the hypothesis of an ideal material. The section variability is, thus, described assuming a rectangular cross section with constant base and variable height which can be described in general with a trigonometric series. Other types of empty functions could also be analyzed in order to find the best strategy to get the optimal solution. Optimization is thus performed by minimizing the beam volume considering the effects of non-prismatic geometry on the beam behavior. Finally, several analytical and numerical solutions are compared with results existing in literature, evaluating the solutions’ sensibility to some key parameters like beam span, material density, maximum allowable stress and load distribution. In conclusion, the study finds a critical threshold in terms of emptying function beyond which it is not possible to neglect the arch effect and the curvature of the actual axis for every different case study described in this work. In order to achieve this goal, the relevance of beam span, emptying function level and maximum allowable stress are investigated.

A Conceptual Framework of a Streamlined Extended Technology Acceptance Model for Mobile Application Adoption

Information systems have enjoyed their fair share of success over the years. Various technology adoption theories and models have been used to understand the factors that cause users to harmonize with new technology. Although the technology acceptance model is the most widely used of all technology adoption theories and also gives room for the addition of an external variable, many experts believe that a rudimentary construct should govern its core variables in the field with which it is applied. This believes system birthed the TAM 2 model, which came with an external variable to the extant TAM model. One of the firm beliefs upheld by the TAM model is that “perceived ease of use” fuels users’ intention to accept and adopt new IS systems or otherwise. The TAM 2 or Extended TAM model is driven by the notion that a unique and influential construct in the context of the technology or the object being assessed would improve the result’s accuracy. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to introduce mobile skillfulness as an influential construct that regulates the perception of ease and usefulness in the technology acceptance model for the assessment of mobile-related technologies. This study aims to develop an extended model from the extant TAM model that befits the acceptance assessments of mobile-related technologies such as applications and mobile games. The method used in this article is a literature survey to explore and understand the technology acceptance model (TAM), which would match mobile-related technology. The comprehensive conceptual model has been constructed in this article.

Higher education leadership and context: a study of university vice-chancellors and presidents

PurposeUniversities claim to provide many benefits to their context. What remains less clear is what is meant by context. Whatever it is, context is fundamental to decision-making. Understanding what context means is crucial to understanding leadership in higher education.Design/methodology/approachTheoretically informed by Eacott's relational approach, this study is based on interview data from a purposive sample of ten English vice-chancellors and nine Canadian university presidents. Transcripts were analysed for the assumptions participants held regarding the work of universities and how that played out in practice.FindingsContext is not an external variable engaged with or acted upon. It is not separate to leadership and the work of universities but is constitutive of and emergent from activities. There is no single definition of context, and this has major implications for university activities.Research limitations/implicationsContext(s) is based on assumptions. Making explicit the assumptions of participants, without pre-defining them, is a key task of research on leadership in higher education.Practical implicationsLeaders need to explicitly articulate their assumptions regarding the work of universities. Assessment should be based on the coherence between the espoused position and activities undertaken.Originality/valueThrough the emerging resources of relational scholarship, this paper demonstrates how context is constitutive of and emergent from the activities of universities. More than novel vocabulary, the paper makes a fundamental point about the generative nature of context. De-centring entities (e.g. university, leader, context) and focusing on relations our approach provide a path forward by encouraging the articulation of intended purpose(s) and perspective on the work of universities.

Changes in LIF expression on PCOS as biomarker implantation

Objectives: This study aimed to compare the endometrial expression of LIF PCOS compared to normal and determine the effect of PCOS and external variables that affect LIF expression.Materials and Methods: This retrospective case control study with a correlational approach was conducted at Sekar Clinic, General Hospital Dr. Moewardi Surakarta. Subject were taken by consecutive sampling starting from September 2018 –. Februari 2019. External variable: age, occupation, family history PCOS, menarche, and BMI were recorded. The research samples were 60 subjects consisting of 30 PCOS patients based on Rotterdam criteria and 30 fertile women. In the luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion phase at LH + 5 days - LH + 10 days, an endometrial biopsy is performed with pipelle curettage, then it is examined by immunohistochemistry. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney, linier regression test.Results: Mean of LIF expression was found significantly lower in PCOS group (1.53±3.65) compared to control group (35.33±21.04, with p=<0.001). Multivariate analysis linear regression in the effect of PCOS and external variables to endometrial LIF expression models showed PCOS (b=-1.14; 95% CI=-1.56 – -0.72; p=<0.001) and occupation (b = 0.32; 95% CI=0.14 – 0.52; p=0.001) significantly decreases LIF expression. PCOS (B=-1.14) is more important than Occupation (B=0.33) in decreasing LIF expression.Conclusion:LIF expression decreased in the endometrium of PCOS patients and occupations compared to normal group, with considering all existing variables.

The configurations of HRM bundles in MNCs by their contributions to subsidiaries’ performance and cultural dimensions

The main goal of the paper is to determine whether the HQs of MNCs evaluate the significances of particular HRM subfunctions to their foreign subsidiaries’ performance differently depending on a specific cultural context and—as a consequence—various configurations of HRM subfunctions may be identified in different cultural contexts. The theoretical assumptions are based on a combination of the configurational and contextual perspectives through a cross-cultural lens. In the empirical research an abductive reasoning process is applied. The research sample covers 200 headquarters of MNCs. To analyze the collected data both descriptive and correlational statistical methods are used. Two patterns of configurational bundle of HRM have been identified: A and B. Pattern A tends to be more system oriented and Pattern B more centralization oriented. Pattern A covers the subsidiaries which, with comparison to their HQ, are of lower power distance, higher individualism, higher masculinity, lower uncertainty avoidance, longer time orientation, and higher indulgence. Pattern B is composed of the subsidiaries with the opposite signs of the cultural distance index. The originality of the study consists in the application of the abductive research model. Thanks to it, we were able to search and find the simplest and most probable explanations for our observations. And the value of the research itself lies in the evidence that the contextual perspective with its configurational implications in the HRM research field is useful in identifying the phenomena that are difficult to identify or unidentifiable otherwise. The findings of the present study provide some knowledge on how cultural distance (external variable) and the significance of HRM to the subsidiary’s performance results (internal variable) interact in impacting on different configurational bundles of HRM subfunctions, their centralization practices and knowledge flows in MNCs.

Fish harvesting advice under climate change: A risk-equivalent empirical approach

The rate of climate change (CC) has accelerated to the point where it now affects the mid- to long-term sustainability of fishing strategies. Therefore, it is important to consider practical and effective ways to incorporate CC into fisheries advice so that the advice can be considered conditioned to CC. We developed a model to characterise the empirical relationship between a variable affected by climate and fish production. We then used model projections as a foundation for a risk analysis of CC effects on harvesting of Greenland halibut Reinhardtius hippoglossoides in the Gulf of St Lawrence, Canada. The risk-based approach quantified a) the relative change in risk of a status quo fishing strategy under various CC scenarios, and b) the change in fishery exploitation rates required to achieve a management objective over a specified time period at a level of risk considered acceptable (risk equivalent fishery exploitation advice). This empirical approach can be used to develop risk-based advice for any other external variable that affects stock production in addition to climate-related variables and it can be applied in most situations where there is an index of stock biomass and fisheries catch. Shifting the focus from process-based understanding of the responses of fish stocks to CC to quantification of how CC-contributed uncertainty can alter the risks associated with different fishing strategies and/or management options, can ensure timely delivery of robust scientific advice for fisheries under non-stationary environmental conditions.