The Influence of Verbal Assurances and Intrapersonal Empowerment Traits on Contract Signing Behaviors

This thesis examines the acceptance of nonsense explanations in a contract signing scenario. Based on review of literature in contract signing behaviors, trust, social scripts, and empowerment, it is hypothesized that low status groups would be more likely to adhere to social scripts and sign problematic contracts. However, participants would be less likely to sign problematic contracts and accept senseless explanations if they are empowered. Accordingly, groups with lower status and low scores in empowerment were predicted to be more likely to sign a problematic contract than those with low status and high empowerment. Two studies test these hypotheses. The first study examines survey data collected in the city of Chicago and measures participants’ willingness to sign contracts in hypothetical scenarios. Results indicated that participants were more willing to sign problematic contracts with assurances than without assurances. Participants with low income were also more likely to agree to sign a problematic contract than participants with high income. A second study using an online sample and the inclusion of survey items to measure empowered personality traits replicated the finding of study one, however empowered traits did not predict willingness to sign the problematic contracts. Implications are discussed

Mitigating Sunk Cost Bias for Consumers: Considering Alternatives Within High and Low Construal Levels When Costs are Sunk

Abstract This paper explores how sunk costs increase consumers’ vulnerability to fraud and explores possible intervention strategies. Sunk cost bias occurs when individuals persist in an activity due to past investments (Arkes & Blumer, 1985). Outcome salience, framing, and alternatives can help alleviate loss aversion and persistence when costs are sunk (Stewart, Chater, Stott, & Reimers, 2003; Van Schie & Van Der Pligt, 1995). Option evaluation is influenced by an individual’s construal level (Ding & Keh, 2017; Henderson, 2013; Sun, Keh, & Lee, 2019). Construal level theory (CL) describes the impact of psychological distance on thinking– with greater distance thinking is more abstract (high CL), with less distance thinking is more concrete (low CL) (Trope & Liberman, 2010). Individuals in a high construal mindset could be more likely to consider conceptual alternatives, like not purchasing a home, while individuals in a low construal mindset could be more likely to consider pursing a different loan, if they know they have preapproval from other lenders. Five studies investigated 1) sunk costs in fraudulent scenarios 2) the influence of construal level on sunk costs, 3) the influence of construal level on the evaluation of similar or general alternative options, 4) whether the presence of alternatives alleviate persistence when costs are sunk, and 5) whether the relationship between the presence of alternatives and persistence is mediated by the perceived feasibility of exploring other options. If effective, option salience can inform consumer protection efforts

Managing talents through succession planning in the Malaysian public sector / Hamizam Abdulla Zabidi...[et al.]

Succession planning is not a new concept but recently redefined and reemphasized due to the importance of ensuring there is talent continuity in an organization. This is especially when there is so much buzz on the notion that retaining and managing the right talents is one of the main survival elements of an organization in the competitive world. In implementing such concept, the main issue of interest is identifying the suitable dimensions needed to build a sophisticated and solid succession planning model. This concept paper is aimed to explain the various literatures of succession planning in managing talents. From the various literatures, the paper attempts to identify the key elements to conceptually build a succession planning model which will fit within the Malaysian public sector scenario. Primarily, the paper is based on various literatures and reports available about the concept. Specifically, the literatures and reports referred are those which focus on the dimensions of the various approaches. In addition, the identification of the key dimensions for Malaysian public sector is done through comparing specific perspectives of different approaches suggested by various literatures reviewed. The finding would give some insights on succession planning as a major tool in managing talents in Malaysian public sector’s scenario

Unveiling the Incidence of Interfirm Collaboration: Evidence from Research and Development Companies in Malaysia

Nowadays, interfirm collaboration has become an increasingly popular strategy among many organizations in various industries, in order to remain competitive. Based on the contingency theory, this paper examines the moderating effect of interfirm collaboration on the relationship between Human Resource Management (HRM) practices and organizational performance. Interfirm collaboration refers to the collaboration strategies undertaken by R&D companies, with other companies in similar or diverse functional areas, including R&D, marketing, or manufacturing, to enhance performance.  Using data from 64 R&D companies, the hierarchical regression analyses showed that only collaboration in R&D and functional collaboration in manufacturing significantly moderated the relationship between HRM practices and organizational performance. Overall, the results provided partial support in the domain of the contingency theory. These results, however, are limited by the small sample size, which might have produced non-significant findings. Therefore, the generalization should be taken cautiously. Future research with a larger sample size is needed to confirm the findings

Certificate For Occupancies (CFO) and Certificate of Completion and Compliances (CCC): are customers satisfied? / Norisfarizan Ismail...[et al.]

This study focuses on identifying the factors causing delay on issuing Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) and customer’s level of awareness on the process of getting those certificates. Certificate of Completion and Compliances (CCC) is an official certificate which acknowledged and certify that the building was complete and safe for occupation with complete infrastructure and comply with regulations under the Local Government Act 1976 (Act 171) and Uniform Building By-Law (UBBL). Previously, the issuance of CCC (formerly known as CF) would take about three to sixth month or even a year. In 2007 the Malaysian government reviewed the process and gave resposibility to professional architects and engineers instead of local authorities to issue the CCC. This is to reduce red-tape and to ensure that house buyers and building owners get to move in as quickly as possible without compromising their safety. Buyers are promised a time period of two weeks for CCC. Unfortunately until today, there are complaints from buyers about developers’ failure in issuing CCC on time. Questionnaires were distributed to obtain perception from relevant parties especially developers and buyers.The outcome of the study could contribute to the improvement of services to the relevant bodies

Unveiling the Incidence of Interfirm Collaboration: Evidence from Research and Development Companies in Malaysia

Nowadays, interfirm collaboration has become an increasingly popular strategy among many organizations in various industries, in order to remain competitive. Based on the contingency theory, this paper examines the moderating effect of interfirm collaboration on the relationship between Human Resource Management (HRM) practices and organizational performance. Interfirm collaboration refers to the collaboration strategies undertaken by R&D companies, with other companies in similar or diverse functional areas, including R&D, marketing, or manufacturing, to enhance performance.  Using data from 64 R&D companies, the hierarchical regression analyses showed that only collaboration in R&D and functional collaboration in manufacturing significantly moderated the relationship between HRM practices and organizational performance. Overall, the results provided partial support in the domain of the contingency theory. These results, however, are limited by the small sample size, which might have produced non-significant findings. Therefore, the generalization should be taken cautiously. Future research with a larger sample size is needed to confirm the findings

A roadmap for the implementation of ISO 9001:2000 in academia: 9 steps to certification by FSPP, UiTM. / Maniam Kaliannan and Jasmine Ahmad

The environment in which universities operate is rapidly becoming demanding, competitive and global. Today, academia faces much the same situation manufacturing and service companies 'in the real world' have been encountering for decades. It seems that only with explicit quality assurance and the ability to operate in a profitable manner will universities be able to survive in the academic market. One of the ways to meet the increasing need for a global quality assurance in academia is to design, implement and maintain quality systems based on the internationally accepted ISO 9000 standards. The Faculty of Administrative Science and Policy Studies (FSPPP), UiTM was awarded ISO 9001: 2000 certification on 11 July 2004. It accomplished this as quickly as possible, spending only six months and less. This paper reveals the timeline and 9 steps FSPPP followed to accomplish its objective. The steps include: 1. Management Commitment, 2. Appointment of Management Representative, 3. Establishment of the ISO 9001:2000 Quality Committee, 4. Implementation Schedule, 5. Draft Quality Documents, 6. Conduct Internal Audit, 7. Respond To Findings, 8. LRQA Adequacy Audit (Stage One) and 9. LRQA Compliance Audit (Stage Two)

Social-psycho Issues of Enterprise Information System Usage among Government Outsource Vendors Comprising Malaysian Small-Medium Enterprises

This paper describes the socio-psychological issues that hinder the holistic usage of ERP system among sampled Malaysian SME’s that were the vendors through government outsourced projects. Five hundred questionnaires were sent to the pre-identified SMEs in Selangor through e-mail, 251 questionnaires were returned and only 110 were taken for data analysis, representing 44% of the response rate. The study found that the perceived benefits and social influence have positive significant relationship with the ERP system usage. The social influence has the strongest effect towards the ERP system usage among SMEs in Selangor. The system complexity does not influence the relationship between socio-psychological factors and ERP system usage among SMEs in Selangor. This study provides insight for the management of SMEs and the service providers on the factors influencing the ERP system usage. It contributes to the breadth of knowledge of the ERP system in SMEs from the perspective of a developing nation since the SMEs play an important role in the nation’s economy

Inappropriate statin therapy according to ASCVD risk: Can we do better?

Background: Statin therapy targeted at reducing 10-year risk of ASCVD has become a cornerstone of preventative health in the outpatient setting. Appropriate statin prescription can lead to improved morbidity and mortality as outlined by current American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) guidelines. Methods: In this empiric observational study performed in August 2018, we calculated the 10-year ASCVD risk for patients visiting the Henry Ford Hospital Academic Internal Medicine Clinic between January and December 2017, and compared the ACC/AHA guideline recommended statin intensity with the one currently prescribed. Our aim was to assess appropriateness of statin therapy based on ASCVD risk calculation and ACC/AHA guidelines. Results: Of the 2994 patients assessed, approximately 1548 patients were prescribed an inappropriate intensity of statin based on 10-year ASCVD risk calculation (p \u3c 0.001). For female patients, the odds of appropriate statin dose prescription increased by approximately 81.9% (odds ratio 1-1.819) when compared to male patients (95% CI 1.559-2.124). For black patients, the odds of appropriate statin prescription decreased by 32.2% (odds ratio 1-0.678) when compared to white patients (95% CI 0.532-0.864). Approximately 1245 patients currently taking high-intensity statin did not qualify for one as compared to 484 patients (p \u3c 0.001). Conclusion: Calculation of 10-year ASCVD risk is an integral part of guiding statin prescription and preventative health therapy in the outpatient setting, However, an increasing percentage of patients are not managed adequately according to ACC/AHA guidelines. Race, gender, and income disparities appear to be major factors influencing appropriateness of statin prescription. This demonstrates a major opportunity for potential intervention to improve statin prescription and patient health outcomes.https://scholarlycommons.henryford.com/merf2019hcd/1000/thumbnail.jp

Transforming bureaucratic culture into market-oriented culture in Malaysian civil service

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of organizational leadership, professional attitudes, entrepreneurial values, and macro environment context within the parameters of the new public management (NPM). A major feature of NPM is its market-oriented approach. The premise of NPM reform wave is that more market orientation in the public sector will lead to greater cost-efficiency for government, without having negative side effects on other objectives and considerations. It is hypothesized that the presence of those four independent variables will influence public employees to exhibit market-oriented values. Survey questionnaires were sent out to 248 public officials in four government agencies in the federal government agencies in the capital city of Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.The response rate was 60.5%. The findings indicated that only professional attitudes and macro-environment context are statistically significant while organizational leadership and entrepreneurial values were positively related to market orientation but were statistically insignificant