Learning and sharing in a Chinese high-technology cluster: A study of inter-firm and intra-firm knowledge flows between R&D employees

learning, China, knowledge work, knowledge transfer

Consumer acceptance of Wood-Polymer Composites: a conjoint analytical approach with a focus on innovative and environmentally concerned consumers

Wood-Polymer Composites (WPCs) can contribute towards resource efficiency as they mainly consist of wood by-products and/or waste materials. The eco-innovative materials represent a hybrid solution on the ‘two-evils’ continuum’ constituted by the competing materials of wood and plastics; the former being too expensive and resource consuming in mass consumption, the latter cheap but environmentally hazardous. However, consumer acceptance of WPCs is questioned due to the merger of components consumers perceive as being contradictory (wood and plastics). Additionally, it is discussed whether consumers' innovativeness enhances WPC acceptance, while eco-friendly consumers may reject WPCs because of environmental concerns related with the synthetic components. To determine the potential market for products made of eco-innovative materials, two German-language online studies (n = 198, n = 357) were created to examine consumer acceptance of WPCs in relation to the competing materials. Study 1 introduced a 3 (material: wood, WPC, plastics) × 2 (appearance: wooden or synthetic) within-subject design. Consistent with the expectations, study 1 showed a clear preference for wood over plastics based on a convenient sample. WPCs remained in the centre position, even for environmentally concerned consumers. Study 2 was conducted to replicate the findings with a representative sample. It additionally considered consumer innovativeness and included further product categories. WPCs only slightly deviated from the centre position in study 2. Mostly important, study 2 proved that the higher the environmental concern and the innovativeness of consumers, the more WPCs were accepted. When taken together, the results point to a greater WPC market than previous research had indicated. In general, premature concerns about innovative materials can be prevented by consumer acceptance studies examining the new materials' position in a surrounding ‘multi evils’ continuum’

The Role of Risk Perception, Trust, Innovativeness and Emotion in Developing Consumer’s Satisfaction in Electronic Mediated Environment (EME)

Services section has been mushrooming over the last decades and now dominates economic activity in most industrialized economies. Drawing on an array of interdisciplinary theoretical underpinnings stemming from trust, risk, trying, emotion, and consumer satisfaction, this paper proposes an integrated model to examine the causal relationships amid these constructs. The analysis of data from 415 Chinese consumers reveals that consumer innovativeness and emotions are very significant antecedents of risk perception of service, trust, service quality, and perceived benefits, which ultimately lead to consumer satisfaction of such services in EME. This comprehensive framework contributes to a foundation for future studies to investigate the roles of risk perception and trust vis-à-vis innovativeness and emotion in such an emerging IT artifact as e-services in EME

Public grid computing participation: An exploratory study of determinants

Using the Internet, “public” computing grids can be assembled using “volunteered” PCs. To achieve this, volunteers download and install a software application capable of sensing periods of low local processor activity. During such times, this program on the local PC downloads and processes a subset of the project's data. At the completion of processing, the results are uploaded to the project and the cycle repeats. Public grids are being used for a wide range of endeavors, from searching for signals suggesting extraterrestrial life to finding a cure for cancer. Despite the potential benefits, however, participation has been relatively low. The work reported here, drawing from technology acceptance and volunteer literature, suggests that the grid operator's reputation, the project's perceived need, and the level of volunteering activity of the PC owner are significant determinants of participation in grid projects. Attitude, in addition to personal innovativeness and level of volunteering activity, predicted intentions to join the project. Thus, methods traditionally used for motivating volunteer behavior may be effective in promoting the use of grid computing

Determinants of Users Intention to Adopt Mobile Fitness Applications: an Extended Technology Acceptance Model Approach

The present research was motivated by the recognition that the use of mobile fitness applications (MFA) is increasingly popular among sports and exercise participants in recent years. Using an extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) perspective, this study explored potential predictors of behavioral intention toward MFAs such as perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, personalization, personal innovativeness in information technology (PIIT), perceived enjoyment, mobile application self-efficacy, involvement in sports and exercise participation, and social influences (interpersonal and external influences). A theoretical model was developed and tested against the empirical data collected from 385 collegiate students enrolled in physical activity classes at a large university in the United States. The result of descriptive statistics indicated that the samples are active sports and exercise participants with their weekly exercise and sports participation of 5.41 hours. A measurement model and structural equation model were tested using AMOS 22.0 and confirmed eight out of eleven hypothesized relationships. In particular, personalization and PIIT were found to have significant effects on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use, which in turn, affected behavioral intention toward using MFAs. Interpersonal influence and involvement in sports and exercise participation were also found to have significant effects on intention whereas no significant effects of mobile application self-efficacy, perceived enjoyment, and external influence were observed. The analyses demonstrated that perceived usefulness was the most powerful determinants of behavioral intention followed by interpersonal influence in terms of the path coefficient values. The construct of PIIT and personalization accounted for 43.4% variances in perceived ease of use and 48.9% variances in perceived usefulness variance. All the constructs within the structural model except external influence, perceived enjoyment, and mobile application self-efficacy, collectively explained the 75.1 % variances in intention to use MFAs, suggesting that the examined model has a strong explanatory power regarding MFA users decision making process.\u2

Predicting potential respondents’ decision to participate in web surveys

Web-based surveys have received increasing attention given the potential benefits of convenience, low cost, and time saving compared with other survey modes. However, the use of the internet to collect data is restrained by the lack of willingness of people to respond. The objective of this research is to expose the determinants of intention to participate in a web survey. Based on the theory of reasoned action, this research proposes a model encompassing attitude toward a web survey, social norm, moral obligation, trust in the sponsor of a survey, topic involvement, topic sensitivity, and reputation of the sponsor to predict a potential respondent’s web survey participation intention. We examine the proposed model using a structural equation modelling procedure. The results indicate that attitude, social norm, moral obligation, reputation of sponsor, and trust in the sponsor exert positive effects on participation intentions in web surveys; attitude mediates the relationship between topic involvement and participation intention. However, topic sensitivity of the web survey has no effect either on attitude or on participation intention

Predicting potential respondents’ decision to participate in web surveys

Web-based surveys have received increasing attention given the potential benefits of convenience, low cost, and time saving compared with other survey modes. However, the use of the internet to collect data is restrained by the lack of willingness of people to respond. The objective of this research is to expose the determinants of intention to participate in a web survey. Based on the theory of reasoned action, this research proposes a model encompassing attitude toward a web survey, social norm, moral obligation, trust in the sponsor of a survey, topic involvement, topic sensitivity, and reputation of the sponsor to predict a potential respondent’s web survey participation intention. We examine the proposed model using a structural equation modelling procedure. The results indicate that attitude, social norm, moral obligation, reputation of sponsor, and trust in the sponsor exert positive effects on participation intentions in web surveys; attitude mediates the relationship between topic involvement and participation intention. However, topic sensitivity of the web survey has no effect either on attitude or on participation intention

THE EFFECTS OF PERSONAL INNOVATIVENESS , PERCEIVED RISK , AND COMPUTER SELF -EFFICACY ON ONLINE PURCHASING INTENT

The rapid growth of e-commerce makes it important for the success of companies to understand both the factors that facilitate and are barriers to these transactions. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between perceived Internet risk, personal innovativeness and computer/web self-efficacy, and online purchases intentions as three of these factors. Results indicate that perceived Internet risk, personal innovativeness and computer/web self-efficacy are all strongly related to online purchasing intentions. There is also a strong relationship between computer self- efficacy and personal innovativeness, two of the values-compatibility variables related to intention to purchase on-line. Suggestions for future research to test the applicability of the Technology Acceptance Model and/or its extensions in the e-commerce sector, as well as the antecedents of perceived usefulness in this setting, are discussed

EXAMINING TOURIST NON-PURCHASE INTENTION OF PEER-TO-PEER ACCOMMODATION: IMPEDING FACTORS AND PERCEIVED RISKS

With increasing trust and utilization of the Internet, the sharing economy is emerging in the tourism and hospitality marketplace. This study focused on tourist non-purchase intention to use peer-to-peer accommodation. To explore the non-purchase intention, the relationship between perceived risk and tourist non-purchase intention to use peer-to-peer accommodation, as well as the relationship between impeding factors and perceived risk were tested. The study employed survey data (N = 280) gathered from active adult U.S travelers who have never used peer-to-peer accommodation before and have no intention to use peer-to-peer accommodation in future. The results showed that six impeding factors (i.e., lack of trust, perceived cognitive effort, perceived cost, perceived safety and security, perceived service quality, perceived cleanliness) had significant effects on tourists’ perceived risks. Two perceived risks (i.e., Performance Risk, Psychological Risk) had significant effects on tourist non-purchase intention. Based on the results. both academic and practical implications are provided