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Stone, Merlin, Emmanuel Kosack, and Eleni Aravopoulou. "Relevance of academic research in information technology and information management." Bottom Line 33, no. 3 (June 30, 2020): 273–95. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bl-05-2020-0034.
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Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the relevance of academic research, in terms of the topic match, to commercial practise in information technology, using the case study of a large and very rapidly growing supplier that uses leading-edge management approaches, Salesforce.com. Design/methodology/approach Academic literature review and review of commercial literature and information published by Salesforce.com. Findings Academics’ choice of topics matches the issues and topics present in the development of Salesforce.com, but suffers from the lack of interdisciplinary approach and particularly fails to integrate technical, marketing and financial approaches. Research limitations/implications The case study is of only one company, though an important one, although other large companies are involved e.g. Amazon Web services. However, the approach could easily be widened to several companies. Practical implications The case study approach will help academics focus on creating more applicable research and help students to learn about companies and may also eventually help practitioners to create thought leadership. Social implications If the financial and economic aspects of such case studies are integrated with other business aspects, these will provide a better view of the positive (or negative) contribution made by companies such as the one in the case study. Originality/value This is the first time that a case study has been examined in the context of the relevance/rigour debate.
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Bărbieru, Mihaela. "Adapting political communication to technology. Case study: evolutionary aspects on social networks in Romania." Swedish Journal of Romanian Studies 5, no. 2 (May 15, 2022): 117–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.35824/sjrs.v5i2.23777.
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In recent years, studies on social networks have begun to become more and more numerous in the literature, with scientists showing a real interest in an influential analysis that they have on societies. Social networks are tools through which political candidates have the opportunity to distribute their political message during election campaigns, as well as outside them, to a growing audience. A very strong connection has been made between technology and communication, outside of which we, as individuals, can no longer exist, the virtual space managing to exploit communication in all its aspects. Online political communication, an easily accessible form of manifestation that attracts disinterested political groups, offers the possibility of avoiding information bottlenecks for citizens by changing content in real time, with low information costs, which means a real advantage for politicians.The importance of social networks in political communication is even greater as its role is the main channel of communication and occupies a special place in election campaign strategies. The present study aimes to analyze the phenomenon of social networks in terms of the benefits it offers to politics, through an online political communication with content transmitted in real time, without time limit and with low costs.
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Rezaei, Mahmud, Rojin Marzi, and Elham Shojaee. "Embedded heritage: the role of information and communication technology (ICT) in urban placemaking (case study: Tehran's citadel)." Journal of Historical Archaeology & Anthropological Sciences 7, no. 3 (December 21, 2022): 152–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.15406/jhaas.2022.07.00265.
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As young, active, creative, and authentic people tend to outmigration from the historical contexts of downtown Tehran, the question in this paper has dealt with the ways of place-making through ICT. Hence, the article seeks to find an urban design solution to attract people to the inner parts of the cities. The primary purpose of this study is to enhance public events in the historic zone of Tehran's Citadel by using ICT. In spite of the potentials of the heritage areas in empowering social interactions and nightlife entertainments, many of the historic urban spaces have now fallen into disrepair and decrepitude. The importance of this research is in recreating the morphological, economic, social and historical aspects of vast and sensitive areas in Tehran and other similar cities. Therefore, by studying the evolution of urban fabrics in three historical periods, the physical, social, and historic-cultural features of these periods have been studied and assessed through 3D modeling and fabrication. Volumetric envelopes of historic monuments, some of which are now destroyed, are to be made and virtually displayed in the original location of the buildings by using lighting techniques. The result of this paper indicates that in addition to its instrumental role of digital documentation production, ICT may enhance historical urban sites and aid people in three main place aspects including the functional aspect (enhancing safety, nightlife, and social interaction), the perceptual aspect (enhancing the identity of the place) and the physical aspect (redesigning urban places).
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Ma, Tiejun, and Frank McGroarty. "Social Machines: How Recent Technological Advances have Aided Financialisation." Journal of Information Technology 32, no. 3 (September 2017): 234–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/s41265-017-0037-7.
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In recent years, financial markets have been fundamentally transformed by innovations in information technology, in particular with regard to the web, social networks, high-speed computer networks and mobile technologies. We borrow the concept of Social Machines from Web Science as a single concept that captures the essence of all these recent technological changes to argue that the emergence of these Social Machines has aided the transformation of financial markets and society. This study explores the formation of these Social Machines with three sample disruptive technologies – automated/high-frequency trading, social network analytics and smart mobile technology. Through critical reflective analysis of these three case studies, we assess the impact of information technology innovation on financialisation. We adopt three case studies – automated trading; market information extraction using social media technologies; and information diffusion and trader decision-making with mobile technology on financial and real sector changes – which demonstrate the increasing trend of transaction velocity, speculative trading, increased complex information network, accelerated inequality and leverage. Our findings demonstrate that technologically enabled financial Social Machines harness crowd wisdom, engage disparate individual traders to produce more accurate price estimations, and have enhanced decision-making capability. However, these same changes can also have a simultaneously detrimental effect on financial and real sectors, in some situations exacerbating underlying distortions, such as misinformation due to complex information networks, speculative trading behaviour, and higher volatility with transaction velocity. Overall, we conclude that these innovations have transformed the fundamental nature of key aspects of the finance industry and society as a whole.
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Clegg, Chris, Patrick Waterson, and Neil Carey. "Computer Supported Collaborative Working: Lessons from Elsewhere." Journal of Information Technology 9, no. 2 (June 1994): 85–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/026839629400900201.
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In this paper we review two application areas in the field of IT concerning advanced manufacturing technology and office automation. We argue that new systems in both these areas have been predominantly technology-led in their development and implementation, excluding adequate attention to their human and organizational aspects. We describe two case studies as illustrations of these points and argue that the reasons for this technology-led approach lie in a complex interacting set of social systems that work effectively to marginalize the human and organizational aspects of the new technologies. The applicability of these findings to the domain of Computer Supported Collaborative Working (CSCW) is examined. There are two main sets of lessons that can be learned: those that apply generally to the field of IT, and thereby have relevance also to the special case of CSCW; and those that are particular to the conduct and content of research and development into CSCW. These lessons are outlined in the form of sets of suggestions.
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Hakim, Bhanu Rizfa, and Amos Setiadi. "CHANGE IN THE IMAGE OF REGION TOWARD THE SPATIAL SETTING AND BEHAVIOR (A case study of Tamansari "Cyber" Village, Yogyakarta)." DIMENSI (Journal of Architecture and Built Environment) 48, no. 1 (October 26, 2021): 9–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.9744/dimensi.48.1.9-18.
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Cyber village is a residential area in RT (neighborhood association) 36 in the tourist area in Tamansari Yogyakarta. It has recognized image as an information technology based region with good internet network. Internet technology at the cyber village is slowly changing the behavior of the citizens from the social, economy, culture and tourism aspects. The behavior changes on the social, economic, cultural and tourism aspects affect the spatial setting at Tamansari "cyber" village to become a unique tourist area. The methods used in this research were Qualitative Research through observation to identify phenomena that occur, interviews, and literature studies that were analyzed by behavior setting method. The results of this research showed that changes in the image of the region influence the citizens’ behavior that finally creates certain spatial settings to meet the needs for space which could accommodate the village potentials, covering the social, economic, tourism and cultural potentials.
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Yagoub, M. M. "PUBLIC PERCEPTION ON DISASTER MANAGEMENT USING VOLUNTEERED GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION (VGI): CASE OF UAE." ISPRS Annals of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences II-2/W2 (October 19, 2015): 241–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/isprsannals-ii-2-w2-241-2015.
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The number of smart phones that are supported by location facility like Global Positioning System (GPS), Camera and connected to the internet has increased sharply in UAE during the last five years. This increase offers a chance to capitalize on using these devices as resources for data collection, therefore reducing cost. In many cases specific events may happen in areas or at time where there may be no governmental departments to collect such unrepeated events. The current research will showcase various studies that had been conducted on Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) debating various aspects such as accuracy, legal issues, and privacy. This research will also integrate Geographic Information System (GIS), VGI, social media tools, data mining, and mobile technology to design a conceptual framework for promoting public participation in UAE. The data gathered through survey will be helpful in correlating various aspects of VGI. Since there are diverse views about these aspects, policy makers are left undecided in many countries about how to deal with VGI. The assessment of the UAE case will contribute to the age-long debate by examining the willingness of the public to participate. The result will show the public perception to be as sensors for data collection. Additionally, the potential of citizen involvement in the risk and disaster management process by providing voluntary data collected for VGI applications will also be explored in the paper.
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Fatimah, Sri, Mochamad Gunardi Judawinata, Mochamad Nursiyam Barkah, Lucyana Trimo, and Yosini Deliana. "Towards Smart Village: A Case Study of Genteng Village Development in Sumedang, West Java, Indonesia." Society 8, no. 2 (December 30, 2020): 663–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.33019/society.v8i2.264.
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This research aims to identify the prospects and challenges for implementing smart villages using a case study of Genteng Village in West Java, Indonesia, according to the sustainable development perspective and the enabler factors of socio-economic factors, village’s technology, and environmental aspects. This research uses a qualitative approach to assess the potencies and challenges from social, economic, environmental, and infrastructure perspectives. This research conducts a field survey with in-depth interviews and observation in Genteng Village, Sukasari Sub-district, Sumedang Regency, West Java Province to tap the information needed. Interviews with stakeholders were conducted with informants representing the rural stakeholders consisted of village official government, village local champion/leader, and farmer group representatives. Researcher involvement in nearly two years in regular visits and observations before this research has enriched and validated the information obtained. This research found prospective local social capital components and economic potencies to develop using the smart village framework. Environment and infrastructure are relatively still the challenges to be overcome towards the smart village. This research concludes that Genteng Village is on the right track, though early-stage to develop as a smart village. External factors, mainly information and communication technology, will be one of the main driving factors for optimism in implementing a smart village in Genteng Village.
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Al-Yafi, Karim, Mazen El-Masri, and Ray Tsai. "The effects of using social network sites on academic performance: the case of Qatar." Journal of Enterprise Information Management 31, no. 3 (April 9, 2018): 446–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jeim-08-2017-0118.
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Purpose Social network sites (SNSs) have been common applications attracting a large number of users in Qatar. Current literature remains inconclusive about the relationship between SNS usage and users’ academic performance. While one stream confirms that SNS usage may lead to addiction and seriously affect individuals’ academic performance, other studies refer to SNS as learning enablers. The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, it investigates the SNS usage profiles among the young generation in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) represented by Qatar; second, it examines the relationship between the identified SNS usage profiles and their respective users’ academic performance. Design/methodology/approach The study follows a quantitative survey-based method that was adapted from Chen’s internet Addiction Scale to fit the context of social networks. Data were collected from students of two universities in Qatar, one private and another public. Respondents’ grade point average was also collected and compared across the different usage profiles to understand how SNS usage behavior affects academic performance. Findings Results reveal that there is no linear relationship between SNS usage and academic performance. Therefore, this study further investigates SNS usage profiles and identifies three groups: passive (low usage), engaged (normal usage) and addicted (high usage). It was found that engaged users demonstrate significantly higher academic performance than their passive and addicted peers. Moreover, there is no significant difference in the academic performance between passive and addicted users. Research limitations/implications This study is cross-sectional and based on self-reported data collected from university students in Qatar. Further research venues could employ a more general sample covering a longer period, differentiating between messaging tools (e.g. WhatsApp) and other pure SNS (e.g. Twitter), and to cover other aspects than just academic performance. Originality/value This study complements research efforts on the influence of technology on individuals and on the society in the GCC area. It concludes that engaged SNS users achieve better academic performance than the addicted or passive users. Contradicting the strong linear relationship between SNS and performance, as claimed by previous studies, is the main originality of this paper.
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Lafton, Tove, Halla B. Holmarsdottir, Olaf Kapella, Merike Sisask, and Liudmila Zinoveva. "Children’s Vulnerability to Digital Technology within the Family: A Scoping Review." Societies 13, no. 1 (December 31, 2022): 11. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/soc13010011.
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Children today experience digital engagement from a young age, and information and communication technology (ICT) use impacts how the family, seen as a social–relational structure or network of two or more people, communicates and interacts in daily life. This review broadly encompasses how children and young people are vulnerable regarding digital technology, focusing on diverse aspects of the family. The scoping review includes a final corpus of 100 articles broadly focusing on the term ‘vulnerability’ as it relates to digital technology and the family. The themes identified originate from the articles and describe five domains of vulnerability: (1) extensive Internet use, (2) age and gender, (3) risky online behaviour, (4) social networking as a social lubricant, and (5) parental mediation and care. The studies identified lean heavily on quantitative studies measuring time, whilst depth and context are less visible. Despite a growing body of research, there is a lack of both qualitative studies and research examining the role of technology in the lives of children and young people and how family dynamics are affected in the digital age.
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Susihono, Wahyu, and Tania Anggi Saputri. "Identify eight aspects of ergonomics to determine the improvement of human-machine interaction work (case studies in manufacturing industry)." MATEC Web of Conferences 218 (2018): 04018. http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201821804018.
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Manufacturing Industry is one of the industrial activities in Indonesia, manufacturing industry is an industry with main activities is to change raw materials, components, or other parts into goods which is according to company specifications standards. In the production floor, activity in the manufacturing industry, the workers have different job specifications with each other. Some works consist of human-machine interaction is found by the activity between workers and lathe machine, welding maching, milling machine, frais machine, and others. The manufacturing industry will increase its ability to serve a variety of better quality products caused by the desire or encouragement of the customers. In general, according to the increase of corporate targets, its also need improvement from the aspect of work performance. To obtain a description of the proposed improvement based on human performance, it is necessary to identify the eight aspects of ergonomics include the consumption of nutritionalfor workers (energy), muscle power, body posture, environment, time conditions, social conditions, information conditions, and human machine interaction. This research use cross sectional method approach that is research done at one time, no follw up, to find the correlation between independent variable (risk factor) with dependent variable (effect). The conclusion of this research is needed nutrition intake or nutrition to recover the workers, it is necessary to design facilities such as manufacturing aids to reduce the use of excess muscle or appropriate technology (TTG). After the application of TTG (Appropriate Technology) to reduce the excessive use of muscle to the workers, the company should provide the nutritional intake accordance with workload of employees in the manufacturing industry
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Turel, Ofir. "Technology-Mediated Dangerous Behaviors as Foraging for Social-Hedonic Rewards: The Role of Implied Inequality." MIS Quarterly 45, no. 3 (September 1, 2021): 1249–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.25300/misq/2021/16353.
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Technology-mediated dangerous behaviors (TMDBs), such as posting selfies while driving or posting private information, are prevalent and potentially require interventions. Knowledge about the drivers of these, and specifically the role of information in stimulating such behaviors, is limited. To address this gap, this paper turns to foraging and risk-sensitivity theories. These theories suggest that animals engage in more dangerous behaviors when their perceived need for calories is high. Similarly, humans increase financial risk-taking when they perceive dissatisfaction with what they have. Importantly, inequality information can increase such perceptions and change people’s risk-taking propensity. Adapting these ideas, the paper postulates that TMDBs resemble food-seeking in animals in that they are goal oriented, can be dangerous, and yield unknown (probabilistic) rewards. Therefore, TMDBs are explained using foraging and risk-sensitivity theory angles. Focusing on social media users (Studies 1-4; four experiments; total n = 2,504), I argue that (1) it is reasonable to view users as foraging the “fields of social media” for social-hedonic rewards, (2) it is possible to alter their risk appetite and TMDBs through inequality information and upward comparison mechanisms, (3) this process can be mediated not only through cognitions, but also emotions, and (4) perceived scarcity of rewards and social comparison orientation affect this process. With Study 5, the paper extends the core aspects of this theoretical perspective to the U.S. state level and argues that objective financial inequality can explain differences between states in terms of TMDBs such as texting while driving and relative interest in TMDBs such as prank videos. The findings largely support these assertions. They illuminate the role of information, notably inequality, in driving TMDBs, extend prior research focused on basic needs (e.g., physiological needs in the case of food intake decisions) to an evaluation of higher-order human needs (e.g., needs for belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization) catered to by nonphysiological, social-hedonic rewards, and point to important mechanisms that translate inequality into TMDBs.
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Thangavel, Gomathi, Mevludin Memedi, and Karin Hedström. "Customized Information and Communication Technology for Reducing Social Isolation and Loneliness Among Older Adults: Scoping Review." JMIR Mental Health 9, no. 3 (March 7, 2022): e34221. http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/34221.
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Background Advancements in science and various technologies have resulted in people having access to better health care, a good quality of life, and better economic situations, enabling humans to live longer than ever before. Research shows that the problems of loneliness and social isolation are common among older adults, affecting psychological and physical health. Information and communication technology (ICT) plays an important role in alleviating social isolation and loneliness. Objective The aim of this review is to explore ICT solutions for reducing social isolation or loneliness among older adults, the purpose of ICT solutions, and the evaluation focus of these solutions. This study particularly focuses on customized ICT solutions that either are designed from scratch or are modifications of existing off-the-shelf products that cater to the needs of older adults. Methods A scoping literature review was conducted. A search across 7 databases, including ScienceDirect, Association for Computing Machinery, PubMed, IEEE Xplore, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science, was performed, targeting ICT solutions for reducing and managing social isolation and loneliness among older adults. Articles published in English from 2010 to 2020 were extracted and analyzed. Results From the review of 39 articles, we identified 5 different purposes of customized ICT solutions focusing on reducing social isolation and loneliness. These were social communication, social participation, a sense of belonging, companionship, and feelings of being seen. The mapping of purposes of ICT solutions with problems found among older adults indicates that increasing social communication and social participation can help reduce social isolation problems, whereas fulfilling emotional relationships and feeling valued can reduce feelings of loneliness. In terms of customized ICT solution types, we found the following seven different categories: social network, messaging services, video chat, virtual spaces or classrooms with messaging capabilities, robotics, games, and content creation and management. Most of the included studies (30/39, 77%) evaluated the usability and acceptance aspects, and few studies (11/39, 28%) focused on loneliness or social isolation outcomes. Conclusions This review highlights the importance of discussing and managing social isolation and loneliness as different but related concepts and emphasizes the need for future research to use suitable outcome measures for evaluating ICT solutions based on the problem. Even though a wide range of customized ICT solutions have been developed, future studies need to explore the recent emerging technologies, such as the Internet of Things and augmented or virtual reality, to tackle social isolation and loneliness among older adults. Furthermore, future studies should consider evaluating social isolation or loneliness while developing customized ICT solutions to provide more robust data on the effectiveness of the solutions.
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Chen, Wenjie, Wenbing Zhang, and Lu Li. "Precise Transmission for COVID-19 Information: Based on China’s Experience." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 6 (March 15, 2021): 3015. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063015.
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Information on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a significant focus for the global public since the outbreak of the disease. In response, data visualization has become the main form of media used to inform the public about the global pandemic’s progress. This paper studies the example of China, the main country affected by the virus in the early stage of the pandemic, to explain the problems regarding the differences in time, knowledge, and technology for information transmission. This paper also tries to explain the causes behind the dissemination of rumors, misjudgment of the public, and the difficulties of perception regarding pandemic information based on the three aspects of information collection, processing, and presentation. We argue that comprehensive information transmission with direct and clear visual presentation could help the public better understand the development of the pandemic, relieve social panic, and help authorities promptly adjust public health policies to absorb the social and economic impacts of the pandemic. Based on a case study, we propose that hierarchical presentation, comprehensive descriptions, and accurate visualizations of pandemic data can effectively improve information transmission, thus providing helpful references for authorities and organizations to improve the effectiveness of pandemic information transmission.
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Schopfel, Joachim, Julien Roche, and Gilles Hubert. "Co-working and innovation: new concepts for academic libraries and learning centres." New Library World 116, no. 1/2 (January 12, 2015): 67–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/nlw-06-2014-0072.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the debate on the development of academic libraries, by the introduction of the concepts of co-working and innovation to the learning centres. Design/methodology/approach – The paper builds on published case studies and French initiatives. Findings – The proposal of this paper is that the academic library can meet its social responsibility on the campus and in society by drawing on the model of the co-working spaces and communities, by the support of innovation and the transfer of knowledge to the world of work. Moreover, the proposal is to include these new functions into the concept of learning centre, i.e. to develop the work-related aspects of the learning centre. Research limitations/implications – Future research on academic libraries should focus on social responsibility and their contribution not only to students’ academic success but also to students’ employability and to the transfer of technology. Practical implications – The paper contributes to the development and marketing of new academic library services and to its strategic positioning on the campus. Originality/value – Co-working and innovation are relatively new but promising concepts for academic libraries. Except for some recent case studies, conceptual papers are still missing that combine empirical experience with a theoretical approach.
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Rolinskyi, O. V., B. S. Huzar, Y. V. Ulianych, and O. V. Ponomarenko. "Information technology development on the Ukrainian insurance market." Collected Works of Uman National University of Horticulture 2, no. 98 (June 20, 2021): 186–94. http://dx.doi.org/10.31395/2415-8240-2021-98-2-186-194.
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In the context of virtualization of economic relations, the entities of the insurance market cannot avoid these processes, so in order to improve the quality and availability of insurance services it is necessary to extend information technology in insurance business. The main motivation for the introduction of information technology by insurance companies is the need to reduce costs, expand the area of activities, ensure the diversification of risks. It is equally important the simplicity and comfort of buying an insurance product online. The insurance market of Ukraine is at the phase of development and formation, having a number of challenges and uncertainties. Therefore, its further information and technological development must obtain priority in the economic and social aspects of state policy, taking into account its European integration guidelines. The article considers the importance of modern information technologies in the operation of insurance companies in Ukraine. The range of modern software products and information technologies, which are widespread in use in the insurance market of Ukraine, is studied. The key components of information technologies of insurance companies are considered. The concept of Insuretech funding is substantiated and researched. The problems of information technology development on the Ukrainian insurance market are analyzed and the ways of its improvement are offered. For the further development of Internet insurance the improving of legislative framework on this point is essential; it is necessary that the websites of insurance companies contain sufficient amount of information content and a number of opportunities are provided for clients: obtaining truthful information about the activities of the insurance company and its services; calculation of the cost of the insurance policy using an online calculator; filling out an application for insurance; in the case of the event covered by the insurance, remote payment of the insurance policy and insurance payments; delivering to the policyholder of the insurance policy, which would be confirmed by an digital signature; online communication with the client at all stages of sales and administration of insurance policies.
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Chompolola, Abson, and Oliver Kaonga. "Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in Zambia – The Case of Chongwe District." Journal of Sustainable Development 9, no. 3 (May 30, 2016): 77. http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/jsd.v9n3p77.
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<p>The Zambian government and its cooperating partners have been trying to promote the use of conservation agriculture for improved food security and promotion of environmental sustainability. The methods used to promote conservation agriculture however are not adequately informed because no Zambia-specific studies have been done to explain adoption behaviour. This study aimed at explaining the factors that affect the adoption of conservation agriculture in Zambia using a case study.</p><p>A cross section survey of 200 randomly selected small scale farmers in Chongwe district was conducted using a structured questionnaire. Information collected included demographic characteristics of participating households, economic, as well as social characteristics. Respondents also provided information on the farming practices they are currently using vis a vis conservation agriculture.</p>A decision model was estimated using logistic regression and the results indicate that the adoption of conservation agriculture in the survey area is basically influenced by ownership of draft power, availability of labour, and the frequency of contact with the farmer support extension system. Potential to increase the adoption rate is plenty, but can only be tapped into if strategies and policies take into account the behavioural aspects of the adoption of the technology.
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Sachdeva, Neeraj, Anne-Marie Tuikka, Kai Kristian Kimppa, and Reima Suomi. "Digital disability divide in information society." Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society 13, no. 3/4 (August 10, 2015): 283–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/jices-10-2014-0050.
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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to create a conceptual framework, based on a structured literature review, to analyze the digital disability divide and help find solutions for it. A digital disability divide exists between people with impairments and those without impairments. Multiple studies have shown that people without impairments are less likely to own a computer or have an Internet connection than are people with impairments. However, the digital disability divide is seen in relation not only to access but also to accessibility and use. For people with impairments, new technological innovations offer solutions for everyday challenges, such as finding information, communicating with others and using electronic services. Design/methodology/approach – For this study, 4,778 conference and journal publications were systematically analyzed. Findings – A number of key findings emerged. This field is relatively new, and the literature is highly focused on the technological and social aspects of the digital disability divide, with technology and societal attributes being the core sub-attributes for a comprehensive model. The previous literature did not significantly study the consequences of the financial situation of individuals; rather, the predominant focus was on the have-nots and countries with low income potentials. Furthermore, motivation reveals a compelling case within the digital disability divide subset. Originality/value – The review provides a consolidated view of past research on the general topic of the digital disability divide and the attributes that affect it.
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M.E. de Waal, Benny, and Ronald Batenburg. "The process and structure of user participation: a BPM system implementation case study." Business Process Management Journal 20, no. 1 (January 28, 2014): 107–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/bpmj-05-2012-0045.
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Purpose – The aim of this study is to debunk the relationship between user participation practices and the development and success of information systems/information technology implementations. While most studies practically rely on how many participation activities are performed, the process through which users engage in user participation is not specified. Design/methodology/approach – A mixed method approach was applied to study the research questions. A number of relationships were tested by survey data collected among 143 end-users and 49 interviews of employees of a large Dutch social insurance organization that implemented a new and integrative business process management (BPM) system. Findings – The results show that specification of the participation context is of key importance for understanding the success of BPM implementation. Quantitative and qualitative analyses show that rich participation activities hold a stronger positive relationship with the BPM system development and implementation success than other participatory activities that only assist development or implementation. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the updated theory of user participation by Markus and Mao can be turned into a useful instrument for measuring the different aspects of participation. Originality/value – Most studies on user participation “only” measure how many participation activities were performed, and not how or why they were performed. Furthermore, the combination of qualitative and quantitative data and instruments resulted in a greater understanding of how exactly user participation was brought into practice and how the consequences of this practice were interrelated.
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Gajdzik, Bożena, and Radosław Wolniak. "Transitioning of Steel Producers to the Steelworks 4.0—Literature Review with Case Studies." Energies 14, no. 14 (July 7, 2021): 4109. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/en14144109.
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The publication presents a picture of modern steelworks that is evolving from steelworks 3.0 to steelworks 4.0. The paper was created on the basis of secondary sources of information (desk research). The entire publication concerns the emerging opportunities for the development of the steel producers to Industry 4.0 and the changes already implemented in the steel plants. The collected information shows the support environment for changes in the steel sector (EU programs), the levels of evolution of steel mills, along with the areas of change in the steel industry and implemented investment projects. The work consists of a theoretical part based on a literature review and a practical part based on case studies. The work ends with a discussion in which the staged and segmented nature of the changes introduced in the analyzed sector is emphasized. Based on the three case studies described in the paper, a comparative analysis was conducted between them. When we tried to compare methods used in the three analyzed steel producers (capital groups): ArcelorMittal, Thyssenkrupp, and Tata Steel Group, it can be seen that in all organizations, the main problem connected with steelworks 4.0 transition is the digitalization of all processes within an organization and in the entire supply chain. This is realized using various tools and methods but they are concentrated on using technologies and methods such as artificial intelligence, drones, virtual reality, full automatization, and industrial robots. The effects are connected to better relations with customers, which leads to an increase in customer satisfaction and the organizations’ profit. The steel industry will undergo further strong changes, bringing it closer to Industry 4.0 because it occupies an important place in the economies of many countries due to the strong dependence of steel producers on the markets of the recipients (steel consumers). Steel is the basic material needed to make many products, and its properties have been valued for centuries. In addition, steel mills with positive economic, social, and environmental aspects are part of the concept of sustainability for industries and economies.
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Nisrina, Rumaysha Gikha. "User generated content sebagai strategi komunikasi pemasaran digital: studi kasus fenomena #shopeehaul." Jurnal Komunikasi Profesional 5, no. 6 (December 31, 2021): 558–71. http://dx.doi.org/10.25139/jkp.v5i6.4316.
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The dynamic development of communication technology certainly brings changes in various aspects including marketing. The presence of digital channels brings new access for companies or brands to convey their marketing messages. The difference between analogue and digital marketing, of course, results in different marketing strategies. Changes in the orientation of the product to consumers also have an effect. In digital marketing, user generated content is an important feature, especially with the increasing number of social media users, including in Indonesia. As in the case of the '#Shopee Haul’ phenomenon, where user generated content becomes a digital marketing strategy that has a positive impact on product sales. This research focuses on how user generated content can be an effective digital marketing strategy from a user perspective, using descriptive qualitative methods and case studies. Primary data sources were obtained from interviews with informants who met the criteria (purposive sampling), and were supported by secondary data sources derived from participatory observation. As a result, user generated content can be an effective digital strategy due to the features attached to UGC itself, such as personal values and individual creativity, motivation to share information and social benefits.
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Malenge, Ezekiel. "An Exploratory Study of the Effect of Mobile Money Services on the Growth of Micro-Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Bosaso." Dinasti International Journal of Economics, Finance & Accounting 3, no. 4 (October 31, 2022): 454–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.38035/dijefa.v3i4.1458.
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The purpose of this exploratory study is to seek information on the effect of Mobile Money Services (MMS) dynamics on the growth of Micro-Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. (MSMEs) The available studies provide limited information on the subject, regarding the growth of micro-small and medium-sized enterprises, especially in Bosaso municipality, Puntland Somalia. The study is guided by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) to arrive at some of the factors affecting the growth of micro small and medium-sized enterprises. The study is based on a case study carried out using quasi-structured interviews, observation and documentation. The data was collected from a sample of 34 participants. The information gathered indicated that usefulness, social influence, accessibility, cost, enabling environment and trust aspects were linked to behavioural intention to utilise mobile money service, which has the potential to lead to the growth of micro-small and medium-sized enterprises. Furthermore, it was learned that though mobile money service technology is new in the market, but the rate at which it is being adopted is on upward trajectory. Moreover, most of the participants possessed smartphones and they were already utilizing them to conduct their business transactions. The article presents information collected through the administration of interviews, observation and documentation. The findings potentially increase awareness of mobile money technology among MSMEs, policymakers, financial institutions, academicians and researchers. Thus, the overall growth of MSMEs.
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Akoumianakis, Demosthenes, Giannis Milolidakis, George Vlachakis, Nikolas Karadimitriou, and Giorgos Ktistakis. "Retaining and Exploring Digital Traces." International Journal of Virtual Communities and Social Networking 3, no. 4 (October 2011): 46–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.4018/jvcsn.2011100104.
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The present work rests and elaborates on the assumption that social technologies are increasingly turned into computer-mediated virtual settlements, thereby allowing the excavation of a variety of enacted cyber-phenomena such as ad hoc online ensembles, informal social networks and virtual communities, on the grounds of ‘digital’ traces or remains. In this vein, the authors motivate and present a method for virtual excavations that is tightly coupled to a transformational technology such as knowledge visualization. The analytical and explanatory value of the method is assessed using two case studies addressing representative genres of social technologies, namely web sites augmented with social plug-ins and social networking services. Analysis reveals intrinsic aspects of ‘digital’ traces and remains, the form they take in today’s social web and the means through which they can be excavated and transformed to useful information. It turns out that such virtual excavations, when organized and conducted carefully, can be of benefit to enterprises, service organizations and public sector institutions. In addition, their tight coupling with knowledge visualization eliminates extensive data analysis as much of this work can be done using the visualization. On the other hand, and depending on the size of digital trace data, the choice of visualizations and the underlying toolkit are of paramount importance.
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Lin, Tingting, and Riitta Hekkala. "Governance structure in IT outsourcing: a network perspective." Strategic Outsourcing: An International Journal 9, no. 1 (February 15, 2016): 38–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/so-03-2015-0011.
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Purpose – The governance of information technology outsourcing (ITO) has been identified as an essential determinant for ITO success. Prior studies have shed light on effective governance structures in different organizational contexts. This study aims to advance this prior knowledge by exploring how interpersonal networks, as an important aspect of such context, reflect and influence ITO governance. Design/methodology/approach – A single case study was conducted from a vendor’s perspective in an ITO dyad. Social network analysis was leveraged to reveal the interpersonal networks, with whole-network analysis on 24 team members in an ITO vendor company. In addition, open-ended interviews with six selected team members were utilized to identify the perceived governance structure. Findings – The findings of this study suggest certain features of interpersonal networks, i.e. network density and cross-network comparison, can reflect governance structure in multiple aspects. Meanwhile, the authors also argue that interpersonal networks can influence the form of governance structure. Research limitations/implications – As a single case study, the context of the research site cannot be ignored in the inference of findings. To increase the confidence for further generalization, future empirical studies are needed especially in contrasting sites, such as ITO relations based on network governance. Originality/value – This study associates intra-organizational characteristics of the vendor to the inter-organizational governance structure of the ITO relationship. It also provides an innovative methodology for both researchers and practitioners to assess ITO governance structure.
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Chiari, Brasília M., and Bárbara N. G. Goulart. "The role of research methodology in the rational use of technology in monitoring and preventing communication disorders." Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências 81, no. 3 (September 2009): 497–502. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/s0001-37652009000300014.
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Studies showing stronger scientific evidence related to speech, language and hearing pathology (SLP) have an impact on the prevention and rehabilitation of human communication and gained ground in SLP research agenda. In this paper we discuss some aspects and directions that should be considered for in-depth knowledge about speech, language and hearing needs in different population groups (age group, gender and other variables according to specific related disorders) for improved comprehensive care, successful efforts and effective use of financial and human resources. It is also discussed the decision making process for requesting complementary evaluations and tests, from routine to highly complex ones, that should be based on each test and/or procedure and their contribution to the diagnosis and therapeutic planning. In fact, it is crucial to have reliable parameters for planning, preventing and treating human communication and its related disorders. Epidemiology, biostatistics and social sciences can contribute with more specific information in human communication sciences and guide more specific studies on the international science and technology agenda, improving communication sciences involvement in the international health-related scientific scenario.
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Sborz, Julia, Andreza Kalbusch, and Elisa Henning. "A Review on Domestic Hot Water Consumption in Social Housing." Water 14, no. 17 (August 30, 2022): 2699. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/w14172699.
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Studying the resource consumption of a social housing community is very important due to the large-scale aspect of such programs and interventions. Despite the importance of domestic hot water consumption in social housing communities, it has never been specifically reviewed. This paper presents a comprehensive literature review on that topic to serve as a reference for future studies and projects. The topic was found to be approached differently across the world due to climate, cultural, and construction particularities. A great effort to associate solar-based hot water solutions with social housing was also found, particularly in places of high solar irradiance. Quantitative case studies were analyzed and compared, showing that domestic hot water consumption varies within every study, but not as much when comparing averages from different studies. Regarding factors that influence domestic hot water consumption, user behavior clearly plays a significant role, especially concerning the lack of information to the users on the available hot water system and its operation. Finally, the DHWC profiles and patterns available in the literature present similarities such as peaks in the mornings and evenings, and seasonal variations with less use in warmer periods.
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Fors, Per, and Thomas Lennerfors. "“We Started Building Green IT Back in the 1970s”: Making Sense of Sustainable ICT through Organizational History." Sustainability 10, no. 8 (July 30, 2018): 2668. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su10082668.
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Traditionally, research related to Sustainable Information and Communication Technology (Sustainable ICT) has focused on the technological aspects, but there is an emerging stream of research, which looks at Sustainable ICT from the viewpoint of the social sciences. In this paper, we build on and contribute to this research by emphasizing the role of history in the shaping of Sustainable ICT. Rather than seeing the importance of history as pure technological determinism or path dependency, we draw on the historical turn in organizational studies to highlight the idea that history is malleable. This implies that organizational actors can reshape their past from the present, thus creating new conditions for the future. To highlight the importance of this theoretical conceptualization of history, we present a case study of the Nordic ICT company Tieto, where the heat recovery system of the Älvsjö data center (finished in 1978) was reconceptualized as “green” following the Green Information Technology (Green IT) trend in 2007. This way of theorizing organizational history could be used more widely within research into Sustainable ICT in order to understand why Sustainable ICT has become what it is, which also implies that we can re-interpret this history to shape the future of Sustainable ICT.
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Goren-Inbar, Naama. "Culture and cognition in the Acheulian industry: a case study from Gesher Benot Yaʿaqov." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 366, no. 1567 (April 12, 2011): 1038–49. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2010.0365.
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The Acheulian presence in the Dead Sea Rift and its environs is characterized by the discontinuity of its cultural manifestations. Nevertheless, the long stratigraphic sequences of the Acheulian Technocomplex provide a unique opportunity for synergetic examination along a temporal trajectory. Hominin cognitive and cultural behaviour are studied at Gesher Benot Yaʿaqov through analyses of lithic, palaeontological and palaeobotanical assemblages, as well as the Early–Middle Pleistocene environment, ecology and climate. The study attempts to reconstruct reduction sequences of some major artefact groups at the site, which include raw material acquisition, production, technology, typology, usage and discard. Experimental archaeology illustrates artefact mobility on the palaeo-landscape. Strategies of biomass-exploitation are studied in detail, with other aspects yielding additional information on hominin subsistence and adaptive responses to their environment. The cultural marker of fire and the spatial association of selected categories of finds are integrated in the general synthesis, allowing reconstruction of the cultural and cognitive realm of Acheulian hominins. The synthesis attempts to reassess the abilities, social structure, subsistence and adaptability to the changing environment of hominins in the Levantine Corridor.
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Nesterenko, Zoia V. "Axiological component in digitalization of health care and medicine." Pediatrician (St. Petersburg) 13, no. 3 (August 12, 2022): 5–13. http://dx.doi.org/10.17816/ped1335-13.
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The basis of the modern industrial revolution is digitalization and artificial intelligence due to the influence of the digitalization process on all aspects of the economy, public life, including healthcare and education. The creation of a modernized healthcare system that would meet world standards implies an increase in both the quality and accessibility of medical care, which requires new technological solutions. The development of any new technology relies on digitalization, which has led to the creation of the Internet, robots, and artificial intelligence. Digital health is a new format for the medical industry to improve the efficiency and quality of medical care. The training of modern specialists provides for a significant change in teaching methods. The dependence of the quality of medical education on the multicomponent and increasingly digital nature of social reality is obvious. Additional special training of doctors for remote work is needed, the development of curricula taking into account the digitalization of healthcare. The relevance of the problem of digitalization of higher medical education involves an analysis of the state of modernization processes in medical universities, regulations on the electronic information educational environment of the university, including electronic information and educational resources, a set of information, telecommunication technologies and technological tools. The necessity of systematizing the social effects of the digitalization of higher education and conducting appropriate prolonged studies is substantiated.
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Allawi, Ahmed Hussein. "Towards Smart Trends for Tourism Development and its Role in the Place Sustainability- Karbala Region, a Case Study." International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning 17, no. 3 (June 2, 2022): 931–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.18280/ijsdp.170323.
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Tourism is currently considered one of the most important economic sectors that directly or indirectly affect societies and have a positive role in achieving spatial development, whether on (the country, regions, or cities) and its sustainability, and one of the modern trends in the field of achieving sustainability is adopting Elements of (intelligence) in development activities, the most important of which is smart tourism, which has the potential to make a qualitative and quantitative transition in the life of the local community in various aspects (economic, social, environmental, and environmental urban) if smart variables (smart governance - sustainability - technology - innovation - accessibility and smart mobility - communication and information technologies - social capital - cultural heritage - creativity) are taken more seriously in applying them to the reality of the situation in planning, implementation and management, allowing the investment of strengths and positive disks to overcome risks, challenges and weaknesses. This study was distinguished from the previous studies on the topics of smart tourism in that it relied on all indicators that contribute to the development of smart tourism in the field of sustainable spatial development by relying on the development potential of the regions, which greatly encourages the introduction of smart technology mainly in development. As is the case in the province (Karbala) in Iraq, which was chosen as a study area because of its great tourism development potential to find the available and latent opportunities in the transition to smart tourism, as well as to assess its role in sustainable development. The study reached important results through the use of statistical methods, including SPSS, represented in the presence of a strong correlation between smart tourism indicators and sustainable spatial development. Tourism supply and demand directly interact intimately, whose results are reflected on the entire Karbala region in the short and long term.
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Coyle, Meaghan, and Caroline Smith. "A Survey Comparing Tcm Diagnosis, Health Status and Medical Diagnosis in Women Undergoing Assisted Reproduction." Acupuncture in Medicine 23, no. 2 (June 2005): 62–69. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/aim.23.2.62.
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Introduction For many women, undergoing assisted reproductive technology can be a difficult experience, and can result in changes in physical and emotional health and wellbeing. Recent research has suggested that acupuncture may be helpful for women undergoing assisted reproductive technology. To date, there is no information describing the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndromes seen in women undergoing assisted reproductive technology, or relationships between TCM and Western medicine diagnoses. Objective To examine the health status of women undergoing assisted reproductive technology from both Western and Chinese medicine perspectives. Methods One hundred and eighty women were included in the study. All underwent a TCM diagnosis, 177 (98.3%) completed the quality of life questionnaire SF36. Information about Western medicine diagnosis was collected from case notes and was available for 176 (97.7%) women. Results Women in the trial reported poorer health on several domains of the SF36 compared with the South Australian population. The most common TCM diagnosis was ‘Kidney Yang deficiency’, diagnosed for 53.9% of patients. A TCM diagnosis of Qi or ‘Blood stagnation’ was associated with poorer quality of life on the mental health, emotional role function and social function domains of the SF36. No associations were found between TCM diagnosis and physical or general health components of the SF36. Conclusions Associations between TCM and reproductive health diagnoses were demonstrated. Emotional health and wellbeing is an important aspect of patient care that needs to be addressed in clinical practice and research studies, as the findings suggest that this aspect of their health is often poorer during assisted reproductive technology.
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Bagheri, Rouhollah, Mohhamad Reza Hamidizadeh, and Parisa Sabbagh. "The mediator role of KM process for creative organizational learning case study." VINE 45, no. 3 (August 10, 2015): 420–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/vine-06-2014-0039.
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Purpose – The current study aims to investigate the existing relationship between knowledge management (KM) infrastructures, KM process capabilities, creative organizational learning (OL) and organizational performance. Design/methodology/approach – Statistical population includes executives of knowledge-based companies in Tehran Science and Technology Park of Iran. The 68 questionnaires were distributed among the census, of which 60 questionnaires were completed correctly. The research data were analyzed by SPSS and PLS software. The unit of analysis is a company that has adopted a knowledge management system (KMS). Target population of the research consisted of 85 top managers of knowledge-based companies in Tehran Science and Technology Park of Iran (N = 85). Random sampling method was applied in this study, and 71 top managers were considered as the statistical sample based on the “Morgan Table”. One standard five-point Likert questionnaire was adopted and distributed between top managers in the park; 62 questionnaires were returned, among which 60 were statistically investigated. The structural relations among variables were tested using the partial least squares method. Findings – This study shows that the KM processes can mediate between creative OL and factors in the KM infrastructure. The results of the study demonstrate that KM process capabilities have the most crucial role in creative OL. The results indicate a significant influence of the infrastructure capabilities on the process capabilities, also the impacts of KM process capabilities on creative OL and the impacts of creative OL on organizational performance was confirmed. Research limitations/implications – Using a holistic view of the KM performance framework, this study has provided insights to KM for researchers because it explains the integrated aspects of KM performance by examining the relationships between the KM infrastructure, knowledge process capabilities, and organizational outcomes. Previous studies on KM have been fragmented because they only consider some aspects of KM performance rather than using a holistic view of the KM performance framework: they have examined the relationship between one or two facets of KM enablers and process capability, or between KM process capabilities and organizational performance. Practical implications – In order to manage rapid change and global competition in business environments, knowledge workers should create new business opportunities and continuously question what and how they can contribute to these chances. Organizational KMS should support the learning processes of their knowledge workers. Social implications – The continuous learning and experiments are necessary in order to produce new ideas and products: it is critical to emphasize the importance of a KM infrastructure that supports and encourages learning in organizations. The creative learning in turn affects organizational performance indicating that without learning, organizations cannot overcome the boundary of old business practices and adjust to change in environments. Originality/value – Previous researches did not appraise the effect of KM and its capabilities on organizational performance, and the specific influence of creative OL was disregarded. The present study demonstrates the mechanism of KM effect on organizational performance and describes the comprehensive dimensions of KM performance.
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Nevo, Saggi, Dorit Nevo, and Henry Kim. "From Recreational Applications to Workplace Technologies: An Empirical Study of Cross-Context IS Continuance in the Case of Virtual Worlds." Journal of Information Technology 27, no. 1 (March 2012): 74–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1057/jit.2011.18.
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Although three-dimensional, immersive virtual worlds, such as Active Worlds, Second Life, and Teleplace have been in existence for several years, their organizational use is rather limited. This paper posits, perhaps counter intuitively, that the diffusion of virtual worlds within organizations could be enhanced by their recreational usage. This argument is motivated by the notion developed in this paper that the use of technologies need not remain within a single context, but instead can cross-contexts, for example from recreational to vocational. We term such shift cross-context IS continuance. This paper proposes that workers using virtual worlds for recreational (i.e., hedonic and social) use are suitably positioned to discover those technologies’ workplace applicability, thereby assisting in their diffusion within the organization. Building on the supporting results of an empirical study, this paper recommends that managers consider allowing for ‘playtime’ with virtual worlds as a mechanism for enhancing their adoption and subsequent diffusion in the workplace. From an information systems (IS)-research perspective, this paper makes several important contributions. First, it contributes to the IS continuance literature by arguing for, and providing evidence in support of, the existence of cross-context continuance. To date, this literature stream has examined only one aspect of continuance - for example, within-context. Second, this paper identifies recreational and work as distinct dimensions of technology usage, and hedonic and social usage as sub-dimensions of the former, thereby contributing to the contextualization of this core IS construct. Third, it is one of the early field studies dedicated to the empirical examination of virtual worlds.
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Ziegler, Robert. "Technology Focus: High-Pressure/High-Temperature (March 2022)." Journal of Petroleum Technology 74, no. 03 (March 1, 2022): 79–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.2118/0322-0079-jpt.
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What a difference a year can make. Oil and gas prices have reached and stabilized at levels that have not been seen for over half a decade, demonstrating that the adage “low oil prices are the remedy of low oil prices” is still true. Let us now see if we are again at the cusp of a new period of exuberance and if the cyclical nature of oil prices could soon show its grim face once more. A key industry discipline required to delay, or maybe even avoid, another price collapse is the planning and execution of high-pressure/high-temperature (HP/HT) projects. Perhaps the movement of some financial institutions toward considering environmental, social, and governance aspects when deciding to fund oil and gas projects will provide the beneficial longer-term stabilization of the current oil and gas price levels. More than ever, the saying “the easy/cheap oil is over” is true, and that requires a more-stable economic environment than we had in past years to assure the world’s uninterrupted energy and chemical feedstock supply, an important share of which will come from HP/HT reservoirs. For this year, I think we can see where the activity currently is from the available HP/HT related papers of the past year or two. A predominance of papers came from Chinese companies enthusiastically embarking on these challenging projects to secure their domestic energy needs and reporting their technology innovations and learning curves in interesting case studies. I was able to find some geographic diversity by including case studies from the Middle East as well, where good ideas and innovative low-cost approaches have enabled economically feasible project delivery in tough times. Notably absent in the choice of papers were the traditional HP/HT areas of the deep Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea. But maybe the more favorable oil and gas prices will spawn some new activity in these areas as well, if the regulatory and fiscal environment also improves. Reading this year’s case studies, some of the more experienced engineers among us will notice that, on some occasions, known challenges have been encountered that, in our experience, had been successfully mitigated in previous projects. This is likely a weakness from the Great Crew Change, where the knowledge preservation and transfer may not always have happened satisfactorily. The cut-throat cost-saving environment of the past few years, combined with the worldwide health crisis leading to curtailed travel and many workshops and conferences being canceled, certainly contributed to this lack of information flow as well. This is why it is so important to engage in SPE through online interest/discussion groups to find the necessary expertise in our pool of members. With this recommendation, I hope you will read the 2022 featured papers with interest and take them as encouragement and a source of good ideas for the years of greatly improved activity levels before us. Recommended additional reading at OnePetro: www.onepetro.org. IPTC 20148 - Solid Management Optimization for Offshore Big-Bore HP/HT Sour Gas Well Cleanup by Ardian Nengkoda, Saudi Aramco, et al. SPE 199052 - One of the Deepest Wells Drilled in Bolivia: High Pressure and Temperature in More Than 9 Months of Drilling, No Casing Wear Detected by Russell Mertens, WWT International, et al. SPE 202250 - Next-Generation Ceramic Sand Screens as Openhole Completion Solution in High-Rate Erosive and Corrosive Well Environment at Dvalin HP/HT Field, Offshore Norway by Robert Ritschel, Wintershall DEA, et al.
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Kassen, Maxat. "Politicization of e-voting rejection: reflections from Kazakhstan." Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy 14, no. 2 (May 4, 2020): 305–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/tg-11-2019-0106.
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Purpose Despite certain political, organizational, technological and socioeconomic benefits that e-voting brings, governments around the world are beginning one by one to denounce its further use in the electoral process. In this regard, the paper aims to analyze reasons that led to the discontinuation of e-voting, resorting to the case of Kazakhstan, a transitional post-soviet country, which actively used the technology in 2004-2011, as a poster child of the global trend, elaborating on key political, socioeconomic, organizational and technological risks that could be associated with the possible return of this innovation in future elections. Design/methodology/approach The research is based on the combination of context and policy analysis, as well as focus groups studies and semi-structured interviews. The context analysis was aimed to understand various political and socioeconomic benefits in adopting e-voting in Kazakhstan. The policy analysis was useful in identifying implementation strategies of the government in promoting e-voting. The focus groups were helpful in understanding the perspectives of various audiences on e-voting. The semi-structured interviews were carried among independent developers in regard to the potential software products that could be used to propose new solutions in the area, including by experimenting with various blockchain platforms. Findings Analyzing the lessons from Kazakhstan, one can conclude that e-voting was introduced and used for several years by authorities in this country for certain economic and organizational benefits, but later they had to reject it and return to traditional paper ballot due to lack of confidence from the non-governmental sector in the capacity of public sector to ensure the integrity of e-voting procedures. As a result, building trust and applying innovative approaches should be a priority for policymakers in the area, if they wish to return to this technology, especially in adopting new presumably more reliable solutions based on blockchain technologies. Research limitations/implications The primary data that was collected by the author from field studies were indexed, refined and presented in a special matrix in a separate section, which were interpreted in the discussion session. These data could be used by other scholars for further interpretation and analysis in their own studies, setting new research agendas and testing hypotheses. This is a single case study research, which is focused on the analysis of reasons that led to the denunciation of e-voting in Kazakhstan, which results could be extrapolated mostly to similar transitional post-totalitarian settings. Practical implications The study can be used to inform ways of how to improve the current e-voting platforms, especially in ensuring better security and transparency of the systems, which could be useful for developers who work on blockchain-driven solutions. Social implications The results of the case study research and expert opinions expressed by various software developers in the e-government areas, which were presented in the paper, could be used by both an academic community and practitioners in understanding better a wide range of political, organizational, economic, social and technological drivers, risks and new opportunities in promoting e-voting technology as a trust generating social phenomenon. Originality/value The paper proposes the first case study of reasons that led to the discontinuation of e-voting in the context of such a typical transitional, post-totalitarian and post-soviet society as Kazakhstan, providing new insights into a wide range of political, regulatory, socioeconomic, organizational and technological aspects of related policy decision-making and implementation strategies adopted by public institutions in this country.
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Alshaddadi*, Raed. "Applying E-Commerce on Small Medium Enterprise: A Case Study for Saudi Perfumes & Cosmetics Retailer in KSA." International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering 10, no. 1 (May 30, 2021): 73–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.35940/ijrte.a5725.0510121.
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Electronic commerce has been reshaping the aspects of businesses and social life over this period of years. This is made possible with the constant innovation of information system (e.g. website, mobile application) and the global computer network (i.e. internet). There are a number of studies that emphasize on the benefits of adapting this strategy. However, though the benefits of this strategy may well overshadow the issues. The adoption of this strategy is not widely used for the small medium enterprise, opposed to large enterprise. Hence, this research study aims to underline the value and provide recommended guide for applying e- commerce for an small medium enterprise (SME) company. Saudi Perfumes & Cosmetics company located in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) was adapted as the case study. Quantitative research methodology was adopted as the primary techniques using online survey, alongside sources from books, articles, journals and web contents are used as the secondary data. It was found that the company is facing various issues when using direct selling method (e.g. time consuming, difficulty to understand) and the respondents from this survey believes that applying e-commerce would help to resolve this issues. It was concluded that using an off the shelf application provided by Shopify service is the best option. This is given the rationale of having the software provided by the service provider to support both web and mobile application in a single developed application. Therefore, saving cost and development time.
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Ortiz, Nestor, Laura González, and Juan Saldarriaga. "Impact on Potable Water Consumption Due to Massive Migrations: The Case of Bogotá, Colombia." Water 14, no. 24 (December 7, 2022): 3987. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/w14243987.
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One of the most important aspects for the regulation of a water distribution system in a city is the accurate projection of the population to be supplied. Accordingly, it is necessary to know the social, cultural, and economic characteristics of the inhabitants, as well as the industrial, commercial, tourist and migratory dynamics to understand a city’s future development. Generally, population growth is continuous and usually follows a trend that makes it possible to extrapolate the future population, thus predicting the demand for drinking water based on per capita supply. However, forced migrations challenge this assumption. The present work aims to collect and analyze information related to Venezuelan migration, in the southern zone of Bogotá, Colombia. First of all, in this project, the demographic characteristics of the migrant population are defined, and the different sources of information collected during the study are used to estimate the total number of migrants in Bogotá. Then, new methodologies for tracking people using social media data connections, geolocation from active connections, and emerging platforms are shown. This is followed by an explanation of two approaches used to estimate the number of migrants from 2014 to 2020 in the boroughs of: Kennedy, Bosa, Tunjuelito, Usme, Ciudad Bolivar and the municipality of Soacha. Finally, using mathematical and statistical approximations, the study shows that the increases in water consumption in the city coincides with the flow rates needed to supply the migrant population. The results indicate that during the first half of 2021 the flow demanded by the migrant population in the studied localities was around 8 Mgal/d (350 L/s), which is 35.1% of the total flow demanded by the entire migrant population in Bogotá. The migrant water consumption was between 4.8% and 6.1% of the total demand for the city.
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Krupitzer, Christian, and Anthony Stein. "Food Informatics—Review of the Current State-of-the-Art, Revised Definition, and Classification into the Research Landscape." Foods 10, no. 11 (November 22, 2021): 2889. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/foods10112889.
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Background: The increasing population of humans, changing food consumption behavior, as well as the recent developments in the awareness for food sustainability, lead to new challenges for the production of food. Advances in the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, including Machine Learning and data analytics, might help to account for these challenges. Scope and Approach: Several research perspectives, among them Precision Agriculture, Industrial IoT, Internet of Food, or Smart Health, already provide new opportunities through digitalization. In this paper, we review the current state-of-the-art of the mentioned concepts. An additional concept is Food Informatics, which so far is mostly recognized as a mainly data-driven approach to support the production of food. In this review paper, we propose and discuss a new perspective for the concept of Food Informatics as a supportive discipline that subsumes the incorporation of information technology, mainly IoT and AI, in order to support the variety of aspects tangent to the food production process and delineate it from other, existing research streams in the domain. Key Findings and Conclusions: Many different concepts related to the digitalization in food science overlap. Further, Food Informatics is vaguely defined. In this paper, we provide a clear definition of Food Informatics and delineate it from related concepts. We corroborate our new perspective on Food Informatics by presenting several case studies about how it can support the food production as well as the intermediate steps until its consumption, and further describe its integration with related concepts.
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Hofman, Darra, Victoria Louise Lemieux, Alysha Joo, and Danielle Alves Batista. "“The margin between the edge of the world and infinite possibility”." Records Management Journal 29, no. 1/2 (March 11, 2019): 240–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/rmj-12-2018-0045.
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Purpose This paper aims to explore a paradoxical situation, asking whether it is possible to reconcile the immutable ledger known as blockchain with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), and more broadly privacy and data protection. Design/methodology/approach This paper combines doctrinal legal research examining the GDPR’s application and scope with case studies examining blockchain solutions from an archival theoretic perspective to answer several questions, including: What risks are blockchain solutions said to impose (or mitigate) for organizations dealing with data that is subject to the GDPR? What are the relationships between the GDPR principles and the principles of archival theory? How can these two sets of principles be aligned within a particular blockchain solution? How can archival principles be applied to blockchain solutions so that they support GDPR compliance? Findings This work will offer an initial exploration of the strengths and weaknesses of blockchain solutions for GDPR compliant information governance. It will present the disjunctures between GDPR requirements and some current blockchain solution designs and implementations, as well as discussing how solutions may be designed and implemented to support compliance. Immutability of information recorded on a blockchain is a differentiating positive feature of blockchain technology from the perspective of trusted exchanges of value (e.g. cryptocurrencies) but potentially places organizations at risk of non-compliance with GDPR if personally identifiable information cannot be removed. This work will aid understanding of how blockchain solutions should be designed to ensure compliance with GDPR, which could have significant practical implications for organizations looking to leverage the strengths of blockchain technology to meet their needs and strategic goals. Research limitations/implications Some aspects of the social layer of blockchain solutions, such as law and business procedures, are also well understood. Much less well understood is the data layer, and how it serves as an interface between the social and the technical in a sociotechnical system like blockchain. In addition to a need for more research about the data/records layer of blockchains and compliance, there is a need for more information governance professionals who can provide input on this layer, both to their organizations and other stakeholders. Practical implications Managing personal data will continue to be one of the most challenging, fraught issues for information governance moving forward; given the fairly broad scope of the GDPR, many organizations, including those outside of the EU, will have to manage personal data in compliance with the GDPR. Blockchain technology could play an important role in ensuring organizations have easily auditable, tamper-resistant, tamper-evident records to meet broader organizational needs and to comply with the GDPR. Social implications Because the GDPR professes to be technology-neutral, understanding its application to novel technologies such as blockchain provides an important window into the broader context of compliance in evolving information governance spaces. Originality/value The specific question of how GDPR will apply to blockchain information governance solutions is almost entirely novel. It has significance to the design and implementation of blockchain solutions for recordkeeping. It also provides insight into how well “technology-neutral” laws and regulations actually work when confronted with novel technologies and applications. This research will build upon significant bodies of work in both law and archival science to further understand information governance and compliance as we are shifting into the new GDPR world.
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Fields, Noelle, Ling Xu, Erin Roark, Sruthi Sundar, Ishan Williams, and Joseph Gaugler. "Pivoting during the pandemic: A case study of the Senior Companion Program Plus." Innovation in Aging 5, Supplement_1 (December 1, 2021): 805. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igab046.2964.
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Abstract Introduction: Growing research supports the use of older volunteers to provide respite and community-based assistance to persons with ADRD and their caregivers. This study explores the impact of COVID-19 on a face-to-face, peer-led psychoeducational intervention for African American ADRD family caregivers, the Senior Companion Program Plus (SCP-Plus), and its subsequent need to ‘pivot’ during the pandemic. Method: The SCP-Plus was a randomized control trial across three states that assessed program impact on ADRD family caregiver stress/burden, coping, and social support. In spring 2020, the SCP-Plus intervention was halted because of the potential risk to participants due to COVID-19 (n = 20 enrolled dyads). In an effort to maintain rapport and trust, critical to retention in research studies, team members began weekly (March-April) and then bi-weekly calls (May-December) for the purpose of providing a social check-in and to provide updates on the status of the intervention. Results: A total of 396 calls lasting approximately 10 minutes each were completed. Participants shared concerns around safety, access to food/supplies/masks/testing, feelings of stress and loss, concern for others, and the importance of technology as a means of social connection. Although the intervention aspect of the SCP-Plus ultimately ended due to COVID-19, information gleaned from these check-ins were used to pivot the study. The study moved forward by using a descriptive phenomenological approach to capture dyads’ lived experiences during COVID-19. Discussion: Overall, purposeful participant engagement through weekly/bi-weekly phone calls suggests that this is a promising strategy for participant retention as well as for pivoting research.
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Park, Jiyoung, Sein Hwang, Seolhyang Baek, and Gill A. Ten Hoor. "An Interactive Live and Online Cooking Program for Children in Vulnerable Families—An Exploratory Study." Healthcare 10, no. 12 (November 28, 2022): 2389. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10122389.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of technology for communication and social interactions. Especially for children in low-income families—a vulnerable population suffering from health and digital disparities—the situation worsened during the pandemic. Earlier studies in times of COVID-19 suggested that the children in Korea who usually do homework and dine at community childcare centers (CCCCs, free after-school care places) need to learn more about how to eat healthily and how to interact with others using digital technology. Therefore, to reduce these children’s health and digital inequalities, an interactive live and online cooking program was developed and provided to 313 children and 95 staff members at the 29 CCCCs located in the southern provinces in South Korea. The aim of the current study was to explore the experiences of children and staff with the program. After surveying their experiences, a high degree of satisfaction was found (children: 3.60 ± 0.10; staff: 3.63 ± 0.08 points out of 4.00). Aspects that needed improvement in the program were related to (in)experience in online technology, the frequency and timing of the cooking classes, and the communication between the centers and (online) chefs. In addition, in a word cloud analysis, terms such as ‘fun’, ‘delicious’, and ‘want’ were highlighted for children, and terms such as ‘participating’ and ‘preparation’ dominantly appeared for the staff. In the analysis of negative experiences, terms related to environmental factors such as ‘sound’, ‘hear’, and ‘voice’ were highlighted. This novel but preliminary approach for children from low-income families, by integrating cooking with digital technology, indicates that with enough digital support, the CCCCs are a promising platform to promote healthy eating and digital literacy. Optimizing and disseminating these strategies during this pandemic period, and future pandemics, could be beneficial to keep children in their communities healthy, and ultimately reduce socioeconomic health disparities.
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Toledo, Renata Ferraz de, Ana Paula Koury, Carolina Monteiro de Carvalho, and Francisco Nilson Paiva dos Santos. "Participatory process for mapping socio-environmental determinants of health by community agents: Contributions to urban management and planning." Revista Brasileira de Ciências Ambientais 56, no. 4 (October 14, 2021): 564–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.5327/z217694781035.
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Studies about socio-environmental determinants are recognized as important to better understand the factors that influence health and quality of life, and how they operate to generate inequalities. This article reports the mapping of socio-environmental determinants of health, carried out by community health agents from the community of Paraisópolis, the second-largest slum in the city of São Paulo (state of São Paulo), seeking to analyze potential contributions of this participatory process to urban management and planning. As part of an action research study and following the stages of Paulo Freire’s Research Itinerary (Culture Circles), the mapping was carried out by integrating the Talking Map technique with Geographic Information Systems (GIS), in what has been called Participatory GIS or Geographic Information Systems with Social Participation (PGIS). Positive aspects were recognized and addressed by community agents, as well as several situations of socio-environmental vulnerability as a result of the agglomerated nature of the place, directly related to urban management and planning needs. This shows that, through a participatory mapping process, citizens cannot only better identify, but also more effectively communicate their needs and qualify intervention strategies in the territory. Therefore, it is possible to address the residents’ priorities more representatively, especially in places where traditionally marginalized social groups live. And also, community health agents, who play a central role in this research process because they live and work in the same place, are fundamental to boost, mobilize, and support the complex aspects involved, both in Primary Health Care, as well as in urban management and planning.
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Durán, Claudia, Fredi Palominos, Raúl Carrasco, and Eduardo Carrillo. "Influence of Strategic Interrelationships and Decision-Making in Chilean Port Networks on Their Degree of Sustainability." Sustainability 13, no. 7 (April 2, 2021): 3959. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13073959.
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An extensive literary review is carried out to determine the strategic and business advantages, and difficulties that non-smart ports must face to develop sustainability. Based on a two-port case study, the strategic text of the corporate missions of port administrators and operators is analyzed and classified in order to understand to what extend economic, social and environmental aspects are fulfilled. A conceptual model is designed for an information system based on indicators that can determine the state or degree of sustainability in the critical operational activities of the ports studied. A system is proposed that is based on a data warehouse core and a multidimensional database, which can be implemented in the ROLAP mode, allowing taking advantage of the good characteristics of relational databases without losing the OLAP approach. A discussion of the strategic feasibility of implementing this conceptual model of case study monitoring and its long-term benefits is delivered. The conclusions state that the development of this green technology requires cultural changes, public policy initiatives and the incorporation of new actors. In addition, more research is needed in this area to identify other relevant sustainable variables.
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Rubilar Donoso, Gabriela. "NARRATIVES AND BIOGRAPHICAL APPROACH. USES, SCOPE AND CHALLENGES FOR INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH." Enfermería: Cuidados Humanizados 6, Especial (October 27, 2017): 76. http://dx.doi.org/10.22235/ech.v6iespecial.1454.
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This article reviews the scope and potential of research done using a biographical approach and the role that this approach adopts in giving voice to experiences lived by the subjects. Special emphasis is placed on the use of narratives to construct life stories, histories and testimonies, incorporating elements for a discussion about their use and enhancement as an approach for research and intervention. This article is written from an interdisciplinary perspective, recognizing the strengths of this approach that can be applied to diverse disciplines within social sciences, humanities and health sciences. This paper analyzes the trends that have influenced in studies from a biographical approach, considering historical and epistemological aspects. This is particularly relevant for disciplines related to human care, such as Nursing or Social Work that deal with narratives of participants who have faced situations of pain or illness. The narrative-biographical approach allows us to retrieve these histories and to contribute to the memories of people willing to narrate their experiences. The article concludes by examining the contemporary uses of this approach both in research and in social interventions. Current challenges related to this approach are discussed and also the possibility of combining it with multimedia devices and the use of information technology.
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Biviji, Rizwana, Karmen S. Williams, Joshua R. Vest, Brian E. Dixon, Theresa Cullen, and Christopher A. Harle. "Consumer Perspectives on Maternal and Infant Health Apps: Qualitative Content Analysis." Journal of Medical Internet Research 23, no. 9 (September 1, 2021): e27403. http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/27403.
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Background Despite the popularity of maternal and infant health mobile apps, ongoing consumer engagement and sustained app use remain barriers. Few studies have examined user experiences or perceived benefits of maternal and infant health app use from consumer perspectives. Objective This study aims to assess users’ self-reported experiences with maternal and infant health apps, perceived benefits, and general feedback by analyzing publicly available user reviews on two popular app stores—Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Methods We conducted a qualitative assessment of publicly available user reviews (N=2422) sampled from 75 maternal and infant health apps designed to provide health education or decision-making support to pregnant women or parents and caregivers of infants. The reviews were coded and analyzed using a general inductive qualitative content analysis approach. Results The three major themes included the following: app functionality, where users discussed app features and functions; technical aspects, where users talked about technology-based aspects of an app; and app content, where users specifically focused on the app content and the information it provides. The six minor themes included the following: patterns of use, where users highlighted the frequency and type of use; social support, where users talked about receiving social support from friends, family and community of other users; app cost, where users talked about the cost of an app within the context of being cost-effective or a potential waste of money; app comparisons, where users compared one app with others available in app stores; assistance in health care, where users specifically highlighted the role of an app in offering clinical assistance; and customer care support, where users specifically talked about their interaction with the app customer care support team. Conclusions Users generally tend to value apps that are of low cost and preferably free, with high-quality content, superior features, enhanced technical aspects, and user-friendly interfaces. Users also find app developer responsiveness to be integral, as it offers them an opportunity to engage in the app development and delivery process. These findings may be beneficial for app developers in designing better apps, as no best practice guidelines currently exist for the app environment.
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Dias, Danilo Rocha, Frederico Santos Lages, Ênio Lacerda Vilaça, Ivana Márcia Alves Diniz, and Lia Silva de Castilho. "Humanization of care: challenges after Covid-19 pandemic." Research, Society and Development 11, no. 2 (February 4, 2022): e50411225931. http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v11i2.25931.
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Face of impacting changes in healthcare after COVID-19 pandemic, an imminent discussion is how to achieve humanization of care with so many safety barriers between healthcare providers and patients. The objective of this study is to propose an operational model to assist in the planning of actions and inspire work fronts in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, providing insights for future research and health policies. A search was carried out in PubMed Central using the terms “health care models” and “humanization of care”. Studies that presented conceptual and methodological aspects of health care models were selected, in addition to experience reports and systematic reviews. From the identification of critical elements for the humanization of care, an operational model was developed suggesting the most relevant themes that require solutions and organized actions to face the Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences. The proposed themes were transdisciplinary approach, health technology, cost-effectiveness, equity, social justice, education, health promotion, information access, safety and well-being, resources distribution, sustainability. This model may be useful to organize healthcare actions based on humanization of care, involving society in a collective effort to maintain the quality of care.
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Seibert, Kathrin, Dominik Domhoff, Dominik Bruch, Matthias Schulte-Althoff, Daniel Fürstenau, Felix Biessmann, and Karin Wolf-Ostermann. "Application Scenarios for Artificial Intelligence in Nursing Care: Rapid Review." Journal of Medical Internet Research 23, no. 11 (November 29, 2021): e26522. http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/26522.
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Background Artificial intelligence (AI) holds the promise of supporting nurses’ clinical decision-making in complex care situations or conducting tasks that are remote from direct patient interaction, such as documentation processes. There has been an increase in the research and development of AI applications for nursing care, but there is a persistent lack of an extensive overview covering the evidence base for promising application scenarios. Objective This study synthesizes literature on application scenarios for AI in nursing care settings as well as highlights adjacent aspects in the ethical, legal, and social discourse surrounding the application of AI in nursing care. Methods Following a rapid review design, PubMed, CINAHL, Association for Computing Machinery Digital Library, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Xplore, Digital Bibliography & Library Project, and Association for Information Systems Library, as well as the libraries of leading AI conferences, were searched in June 2020. Publications of original quantitative and qualitative research, systematic reviews, discussion papers, and essays on the ethical, legal, and social implications published in English were included. Eligible studies were analyzed on the basis of predetermined selection criteria. Results The titles and abstracts of 7016 publications and 704 full texts were screened, and 292 publications were included. Hospitals were the most prominent study setting, followed by independent living at home; fewer application scenarios were identified for nursing homes or home care. Most studies used machine learning algorithms, whereas expert or hybrid systems were entailed in less than every 10th publication. The application context of focusing on image and signal processing with tracking, monitoring, or the classification of activity and health followed by care coordination and communication, as well as fall detection, was the main purpose of AI applications. Few studies have reported the effects of AI applications on clinical or organizational outcomes, lacking particularly in data gathered outside laboratory conditions. In addition to technological requirements, the reporting and inclusion of certain requirements capture more overarching topics, such as data privacy, safety, and technology acceptance. Ethical, legal, and social implications reflect the discourse on technology use in health care but have mostly not been discussed in meaningful and potentially encompassing detail. Conclusions The results highlight the potential for the application of AI systems in different nursing care settings. Considering the lack of findings on the effectiveness and application of AI systems in real-world scenarios, future research should reflect on a more nursing care–specific perspective toward objectives, outcomes, and benefits. We identify that, crucially, an advancement in technological-societal discourse that surrounds the ethical and legal implications of AI applications in nursing care is a necessary next step. Further, we outline the need for greater participation among all of the stakeholders involved.
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Hoang, Peter, Colin Whaley, Karen Thompson, Venus Ho, Uzma Rehman, Karla Boluk, and Kelly A. Grindrod. "Evaluation of an Intergenerational and Technological Intervention for Loneliness: Protocol for a Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial." JMIR Research Protocols 10, no. 2 (February 17, 2021): e23767. http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/23767.
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Background Social integration and mental health are vital aspects of healthy aging. However, close to half of Canadians older than 80 years report feeling socially isolated. Research has shown that social isolation leads to increased mortality and morbidity, and various interventions have been studied to alleviate loneliness among older adults. This proposal presents an evaluation of an intervention that provides one-on-one coaching, is intergenerational, provides both educational and socialization experiences, and increases technology literacy of older adults to overcome loneliness. Objective This paper describes the protocol of a randomized, mixed-methods study that will take place in Ontario, Canada. The purpose of this study is to evaluate if an intergenerational technology literacy program can reduce social isolation and depression in older adults via quantitative and qualitative outcome measures. Methods This study is a randomized, mixed-methods, feasibility trial with 2 conditions. Older adults in the intervention condition will receive 1 hour of weekly technological assistance to send an email to a family member, for 8 weeks, with the assistance of a volunteer. Participants in the control condition will not receive any intervention. The primary outcomes are loneliness, measured using the University of California, Los Angeles Loneliness Scale, and depression, measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale, both of which are measured weekly. Secondary outcomes are quality of life, as assessed using the Older People’s Quality of Life-Brief version, and technological literacy, evaluated using the Computer Proficiency Questionnaire-12, both of which will be administered before and after the intervention. Semistructured interviews will be completed before and after the intervention to assess participants’ social connectedness, familiarity with technology, and their experience with the intervention. The study will be completed in a long-term care facility in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Significance was set at P<.05. Results This study was funded in April 2019 and ethical approval was obtained in August 2019. Recruitment for the study started in November 2019. The intervention began in February 2020 but was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The trial will be restarted when safe. As of March 2020, 8 participants were recruited. Conclusions Information and communication technology interventions have shown varying results in reducing loneliness and improving mental health among older adults. Few studies have examined the role of one-on-one coaching for older adults in addition to technology education in such interventions. Data from this study may have the potential to provide evidence for other groups to disseminate similar interventions in their respective communities. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/23767
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Liu, Ling, Janek Ratnatunga, and Lee J. Yao. "Firm characteristics and balanced scorecard usage in Singaporean manufacturing firms." International Journal of Accounting & Information Management 22, no. 3 (July 29, 2014): 209–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijaim-05-2013-0038.
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Purpose – This study aims to examine the effects of balanced scorecard (BSC) usage on performances in the context of four contingent variables in Singaporean manufacturing firms. The results show that firms are more likely to adopt BSC if they are large in size, have products at an early product lifecycle (PLC) stage, operate in highly uncertain environments or adopt differentiation strategies. However, the adoption of BSC improves performance only in firms that are large or have products at an early PLC stage. The results suggest that contingent factors in which a firm operates can exert significant effects on the results of adopting BSC. Design/methodology/approach – Survey data are collected, then the authors check data correlations, principle components analysis, run regression analysis and ANOVA. Findings – BSC use is positively and significantly correlated with PLC stage, external environment and performance. Size and strategy are positively correlated with BSC usage, but are not statistically significant. Higher BSC use is found in large firms with products at an early PLC stage or operating in a highly uncertain environment. Companies with a cost leadership strategy are significantly associated with BSC use. Research limitations/implications – This study has small sample size and uses survey research method. The measurements to capture all aspects of BSC usage are non-exhausting. Future research can use different methodologies, such as field studies, case studies and lab experiments, to examine other industries than manufacturing. Practical implications – The authors results show the positive association between BSC use and certain firm characteristics. Firms with those characteristics should get insights about the benefit of using BSC and extract the maximum benefit from their investment on the BSC use and those firms which don’t have BSC in implication may think of implementing the BSC use. Social implications – Firms’ contingent factors affect the value of adopting BSC. With the authors research result, firms will be aware of how to extract the most value out of BSC and improve the social wealth of the manufacturing industries. Originality/value – The authors paper is the first paper to use survey method to examine the association between BSC and firms’ contingent factors in the Singaporean manufacturing firms setting.
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Valente, Pedro Santos, José Benício Costa, Gilberto Martins Lynch, and Douglas Da Silva Barros. "David Ausubel’s theory and learning improvement: a case study of the Leveling Courses Program in Basic Sciences for Engineering." International Journal on Alive Engineering Education 4, no. 2 (April 23, 2018): 65. http://dx.doi.org/10.5216/ijaeedu.v4i2.48273.
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The evasion in higher education, especially in science courses, is a reality faced by universities not only in Brazil, but also in several other countries around the world. The number of students who drop out of university is very expressive, resulting in academic, economic and social losses. To try to minimize this problem, the University Extension Department of the Federal University of Pará (UFPA) together with the Institute of Technology (ITEC) created in 2011 the Levelling Courses Program in Basic Sciences for Engineering (LCPBSE), whose main area of action is to teach basic mathematics, physics and chemistry for the newly enrolled students in engineering courses. These classes happen before the students have contact with the first subjects of the basic cycle, especially the discipline of Calculus 1, common to all engineering courses. Recent statistical studies have demonstrated that LCPBSE has a relevant role to reduce educational gaps in conceptual and operational fields in the basic sciences to engineering, in addition to working essential topics to the basic courses of undergraduate. Recognizing the importance of LCPBSE as fundamental tool against evasion rate, the research is aiming to better understand its functionality and how it was able to increase the approval ratings. Thus, this paper has as objective to explain how the LCPBSE supports students and it tries to understand what epistemological learning mechanism under the factors contributing to students academic performance increasing. The methodology was based on the bibliographical research of several authors who study the cognitive learning. Among them, we studied those who had a philosophical cognitive/constructivist stance: Piaget, Vygotsky, Kelly, Ausubel and Vergnaud. As a result of this studies, we focus on David Ausubel’s work, who proposes the Meaningful Learning Theory, a thesis that may be able to explain how LCPBSE is helping students to learn more efficiently. According to Ausubel, for learning to be meaningful, it is necessary for the new information to relate to a relevant aspect already existing in the learner's cognitive structure. These relevant aspects are called subsumers, which serve as an anchor for the new knowledge to be acquired. Based on this, the LCPBSE classes may be serving as an organizer of the students' subsumers, so that they can attend the Calculus classes already with the necessary prior knowledge. Finally, we concluded that the organization of subsumers can be a critical strategy used to improve learning and to decrease the evasion rates. Such strategy can be applied not only in the LCPBSE, but also in other programs of other universities.