Studying the Adaptive Comfort Model - A Case Study in Arid Climate: Cairo, Egypt

This study focused on investigating the thermal environment and its effect on the comfort mechanism in the hot arid climate of Cairo, Egypt. The effects of individual factors on the perception and preference of occupants in three educational buildings in the Greater Cairo Region were studied

The Effect of Third Party Procedural Justice Perceptions on Purchase Decisions: The Role of Uncontrolled Marketing Communications

Marketing scholars have long been interested in consumer likelihood to purchase and the antecedents that impact and influence these intentions. Management scholars have concurrently researched, primarily in the workplace, justice and injustice and the influencers and outcomes of these justice or injustice perceptions. This research conducts an online experiment to test the impact of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) on third party consumer procedural justice perceptions and consumer‟s likelihood to purchase. With the emergence of interactive web platforms, consumers have more places than ever to share their opinions and perceptions of the companies where they shop for goods and services. There has been a power shift with respect to integrated marketing communications from the firm toward the consumer via these new Web 2.0 platforms. Consumer review forums and anti-brand sites are used to create the treatment conditions in this interdisciplinary research. I find that negative eWOM has a significant impact on respondent‟s likelihood to purchase. Additionally, negative eWOM also affected study participant‟s perceptions of the procedural justice of the firm. Last, the research found that consumer procedural justice perception is a significant predictor of consumer likelihood to purchase. In other words, the study indicates that third parties, unaffiliated with the firm, are sensitive to how the firm treats its employees, and these consumer perceptions can affect how likely they are to purchase from the firm. The study results provide evidence of the power of eWOM to persuade and influence consumer likelihood to purchase. Furthermore, the results show that consumers have an interest in the fair treatment of employees at the firms where they may make a purchase

The Effect of Brand Image, Brand Personality and Brand Awareness on Purchase Intention of Local Fashion Brand “This Is April”

The fashion industry is one of the sectors in the creative economy. In 2019, the Indonesian Ministry of Industry revealed that the clothing industry recorded the largest export value. Therefore, business activists are competing to create local fashion brands and take steps to create purchase intention. This study aims to determine the impact of brand image, brand personality, and brand awareness on purchase intention Local Fashion Brand “This Is April” in Malang City. This is explanatory research type with a quantitative approach. The samples are 160 respondents. The sampling method is non-probability sampling with purposive sampling technique. The data collection method is questionnaire distributed online. This study used multiple linear regression analysis methods using IBM SPSS software. This study findings show that brand personality and brand awareness have a significant effect on purchase intention. Meanwhile, brand image has no effect on purchase intention. This study suggested that the company should maintain and increasing brand personality and brand awareness by, among others, following the fashion trends, project endorsement and collaboration with influencers to creat purchase intention. Keywords: Brand Image, Brand Persoanlity, Brand Awareness, Purchase Intentio

Chatbots’ extroverted or introverted personality’s influence on consumers’ purchase intention depending on consumers’ extroversion extent

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of chatbot personality on consumer purchase intention, depending on the consumer's level of extroversion. Through an experiment, this study will analyze the effects of extroverted and introverted chatbot personalities on consumers with different levels of extroversion. The findings will provide valuable insights into the impact of chatbot personality on consumers’ purchase intention and the potential for personalized communication strategies in e-commerce. Results indicate that chatbot perception significantly influences purchase intention and that a match in personality between the chatbot and the consumer leads to higher purchase intention. Additionally, extroverted chatbots are found to lead to higher purchase intention than introverted ones. Finally, perceived ease of chatbot use is shown to increase purchase intention. These findings suggest that providing chatbots with a personality can effectively enhance purchase intention, particularly if matching the consumer’s personalityO objectivo deste estudo é investigar a influência da personalidade do chatbot na intenção de compra do consumidor, dependendo do nível de extroversão do consumidor. Através de uma série de experiências, este estudo irá analisar os efeitos de personalidades extrovertidas e introvertidas de chatbots sobre consumidores com diferentes níveis de extroversão. Os resultados proporcionarão valiosos conhecimentos sobre o impacto da personalidade de chatbot na intenção de compra dos consumidores e o potencial para estratégias de comunicação personalizadas no comércio electrónico. Os resultados indicam que a percepção do chatbot influencia significativamente a intenção de compra e que uma correspondência na personalidade entre o chatbot e o consumidor leva a uma maior intenção de compra. Além disso, verifica-se que os chatbots extrovertidos levam a uma intenção de compra mais elevada do que os introvertidos. Finalmente, a percepção de facilidade de utilização do chatbot é aumenta a intenção de compra. Estas conclusões sugerem que dar uma personalidade aos chatbots pode efectivamente aumentar a intenção de compra

A thermal comfort model for high-altitude regions in the Ecuadorian Andes

Of Ecuador's 3.75 million households, 33% live in poor-quality and substandard dwellings. Construction standards provide metrics and criteria for energy and comfort performance evaluation; that plays a significant role in designing adequate and affordable dwellings. Due to a lack of supporting evidence, the thermal comfort criteria have been adopted from international standards, such as ASHRAE 90.2:2018. In the absence of accurate contextualised comfort models, building standards can trigger a combination of wasting energy and exacerbating discomfort. Furthermore, householders' environmental perception may be affected by particular weather and geographical conditions. Therefore, this research aims to define thermal comfort criteria, aligned with residents' perception in subtropical highlands, to be used for the thermal performance assessment in dwellings in the Ecuadorian Andes. The research combined cross-sectional thermal comfort surveys and thermal performance simulation. Data was collected in three locations between 2400 and 3000 meters above sea level. This thesis's main outcomes add knowledge on why and how people adapt to high-altitude locations. Thermal comfort temperatures are significantly different across the study locations due to altitude. Moreover, the comfort temperature differences also rely upon the broader limits of comfort acceptability for lower altitudes and acclimatised subjects. On the contrary, the range is narrower at higher altitudes and non-acclimatised residents. The derived high-altitude thermal comfort algorithm for the Ecuadorian Highlands resulted from the regression of the comfort temperature and the 24-hour mean outdoor air temperature. Over 80% of comfort hours were estimated for the study archetypes based on the high-altitude comfort model. International comfort models consistently overestimate the percentage of hours of discomfort for all the study archetypes. Moreover, the discomfort could increase up to 30% for dwellings in compliance with the thermal insulation requirement of the Ecuadorian construction standard (NEC11). The research outcomes are expected to contribute with grounded evidence to the development of local construction policy

Responses of male recreational runners during outdoor running in three shoes: Quantitative and qualitative studies

The introduction of advanced footwear technologies (AFT) in running shoes has sparked debate due to their significant impact on performance. However, there is a lack of research on how runners perceive them, especially compared to their own shoes and minimal shoes, which are also used in racing. Most research surrounding shoes with AFT is conducted in a laboratory environment, despite being designed for outdoor running. Therefore, this study aimed to provide a quantitative (Chapter 2) and qualitative (Chapter 3) assessment of runners running outdoors wearing three different shoes: Nike Vaporfly 4% (VP4), the original shoe with AFT; Saucony Endorphin Racer 2, a minimalist lightweight racing flat (FLAT); and runners’ habitual running shoes (OWN). The thesis aimed to compare biomechanical and subjective measures between shoes and explore possible correlations between comfort measures and biomechanical and subjective measures. Additionally, the thesis aimed to provide qualitative insights into shoe comfort and preferences of recreational runners wearing novel footwear. Chapter One briefly reviews the evolution of running shoes and research investigating the design, performance, comfort, and injury of minimalist shoes and shoes with AFT. Minimalist shoes are designed to mimic barefoot running and have been shown to improve running economy due to being lightweight. These shoes are perceived as potentially preventing injuries for being “closer to nature”. Shoes with AFT typically contain a thick midsole of polyamide block elastomer foam and curved stiff plate. Shoes with AFT are reported to improve running economy; however, individual responses vary, especially in recreational runners. Comfort is a critical factor for runners when purchasing shoes and is proposed to enhance performance and minimise injury risk. However, comfort is multifaceted, and individuals value different factors during footwear selection. Chapter Two is a quantitative study. In a cross-sectional study, 18 male recreational runners (age: 31.2 ± 10.5 y) ran three 1.5 km trials outdoors in OWN first, followed by FLAT and VP4 in random order. The first 1.1 km was run at a comfortable self-selected pace, and the final 400 m at a perceived 5 km race pace with a 30-second rest between speeds and 12-minutes rest between shoe conditions. Biomechanical measures were collected approximately 700 m into the 1.1 km run and 300 m into the 400 m run. Foot-strike angles were smaller in FLAT at both speeds (small to large effect size, ES) compared to both other shoes. The propulsion phase was shorter in VP4 (moderate to large ES) than in the other shoes. FLAT was ranked as being the least comfortable at the slower speed and perceived as the most likely to cause injury. OWN was ranked as the most comfortable at the slower speed and perceived as the shoe with the lowest injury risk. Comfort measures were more strongly correlated with subjective than biomechanical measures, illustrating the subjective nature of comfort. Chapter Three is a qualitative study. The 18 male recreational runners were interviewed before and after running the 1.5 km trials in the three shoes (OWN, FLAT, and VP4). From the interviews, four main themes emerged with regards to comfort, performance, and injury risk: familiarity, cushioning, support, and ease of running. VP4 had the highest number of participants who most favoured it for performance as well as least favoured it for performance, exhibiting the divergent perceptions of runners with regards to the shoe (i.e., runners either liked or disliked them). The FLAT was described as light and quick, while the VP4 was described as bouncy and quick. Regarding cushioning, participants perceived OWN as balanced and reflecting a middle ground between the two extreme novel shoes. OWN provided a sense of familiarity and reassurance to runners regarding injury risk, while the lack of cushioning in the FLAT was perceived to increase injury risk. Overall, the interviews revealed the perceived link between comfort and performance in recreational runners and the variability in runners' footwear preferences. The results of this thesis provide a more holistic understanding of running footwear comfort and performance in recreational runners. Comfort is a critical factor for shoe selection in runners, however, there is little association between comfort and biomechanics. Additionally, runners appear more likely to purchase shoes with AFT than minimalist possibly due to these being more similar to traditional running shoes and having more cushioning. Combining qualitative and quantitative analysis enables the extraction of a meaningful and nuanced interpretation from data. Furthermore, the valuable insights attained can help inform future shoe design and enhance the overall running experience for recreational runners