Factors influencing academic library users' intention to use mobile systems: A comparison of current users and potential adopters

Purpose: The study intends to examine the factors influencing the behavioral intention to use academic libraries&#39; mobile systems from the perspective of current users and potential adopters, respectively. Design/methodology/approach: Our study investigates the mobile library system&#39;s acceptance by using a context-specific extension of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the technology acceptance model (TAM), which includes such factors as mobile self-efficacy, personal innovativeness and perceived playfulness. Structural equation modeling was used to test the validity of the proposed model based on the empirical data which was collected from 210 questionnaire survey participants. Findings: The result shows that 1) for both current users and potential adopters, attitude toward use and subjective norm both have a significant and positive impact on behavioral intention to use; 2) perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are significantly correlated to potential adopters&#39; attitude toward use whereas perceived usefulness and perceived playfulness are significantly related to current users&#39; attitude toward use; 3) as for the comparison between the two groups of users, personal innovativeness not only affects perceived usefulness of both current users and potential adopters, but also affects potential adopters&#39; perceived playfulness positively. Mobile self-efficacy has a significant effect on perceived ease of use for both types of users. Research limitations: Although the sample size met the basic statistics requirements for the social research, the participants were mainly college students, and other mobile system users like faculty members and researchers were not investigated. In addition, some influencing factors, such as information quality, system quality and service quality were not considered in the research model. Practical implications: This study reveals main factors which influence both current users and potential adopters&#39; intention to use the mobile system, providing academic libraries with insights into management strategies to offer customized mobile services to different types of users. Originality/value: Previous studies did not distinguish current users from potential adopters, which is not conducive for academic libraries to provide customized services and attract potential users. We presented an exploratory study to address this issue. Purpose: The study intends to examine the factors influencing the behavioral intention to use academic libraries&#39; mobile systems from the perspective of current users and potential adopters, respectively. Design/methodology/approach: Our study investigates the mobile library system&#39;s acceptance by using a context-specific extension of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the technology acceptance model (TAM), which includes such factors as mobile self-efficacy, personal innovativeness and perceived playfulness. Structural equation modeling was used to test the validity of the proposed model based on the empirical data which was collected from 210 questionnaire survey participants. Findings: The result shows that 1) for both current users and potential adopters, attitude toward use and subjective norm both have a significant and positive impact on behavioral intention to use; 2) perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are significantly correlated to potential adopters&#39; attitude toward use whereas perceived usefulness and perceived playfulness are significantly related to current users&#39; attitude toward use; 3) as for the comparison between the two groups of users, personal innovativeness not only affects perceived usefulness of both current users and potential adopters, but also affects potential adopters&#39; perceived playfulness positively. Mobile self-efficacy has a significant effect on perceived ease of use for both types of users. Research limitations: Although the sample size met the basic statistics requirements for the social research, the participants were mainly college students, and other mobile system users like faculty members and researchers were not investigated. In addition, some influencing factors, such as information quality, system quality and service quality were not considered in the research model. Practical implications: This study reveals main factors which influence both current users and potential adopters&#39; intention to use the mobile system, providing academic libraries with insights into management strategies to offer customized mobile services to different types of users. Originality/value: Previous studies did not distinguish current users from potential adopters, which is not conducive for academic libraries to provide customized services and attract potential users. We presented an exploratory study to address this issue.</div

Dietary supplementation of magnolol alleviates fatty liver hemorrhage syndrome in postpeak Xinhua laying hens via regulation of liver lipid metabolism

ABSTRACT: As a metabolic disease, fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome (FLHS) has emerged as a major cause of noninfectious mortality in laying hens, resulting in substantial economic losses to the poultry industry. This study aimed to investigate the therapeutic effects of magnolol on FLHS in postpeak laying hen model, focusing on lipid metabolism, antioxidative capacity, and potential molecular mechanisms of action. We selected 150 Xinhua laying hens aged 50 wk and divided them into normal diet group (ND), high-fat diet group (HFD), 100 mg/kg magnolol group (MG100), 300 mg/kg magnolol group (MG300), 500 mg/kg magnolol group (MG500) on average. The experiment lasted for 6 wk, and liver samples were collected from the hens at the end of the experiment. The results demonstrated that the inclusion of magnolol in the diet had a significant impact on various factors. It led to a reduction in weight, an increase in egg production rate, a decrease in blood lipid levels, and an improvement in abnormal liver function, liver steatosis, and oxidative stress. These effects were particularly prominent in the MG500 group. The RNA—Seq analysis demonstrated that in the MG500 group, there was a down-regulation of genes associated with fatty acid synthesis (Acc, Fasn, Scd, Srebf1, Elovl6) compared to the HFD group. Moreover, genes related to fatty acid oxidation (CPT1A and PGC1α) were found to be up-regulated. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis of these differentially expressed genes indicated their enrichment in the PPAR signaling pathway. These findings demonstrate that magnolol can mitigate FLHS by inhibiting fatty acid synthesis and promoting fatty acid oxidation. This discovery offers a novel approach for treating FLHS in laying hens, reducing the economic losses associate with FLHS

Intersubject similarity in neural representations underlies shared episodic memory content.

Individuals generally form their unique memories from shared experiences, yet the neural representational mechanisms underlying this subjectiveness of memory are poorly understood. The current study addressed this important question from the cross-subject neural representational perspective, leveraging a large functional magnetic resonance imaging dataset (n = 415) of a face-name associative memory task. We found that individuals memory abilities were predicted by their synchronization to the group-averaged, canonical trial-by-trial activation level and, to a lesser degree, by their similarity to the group-averaged representational patterns during encoding. More importantly, the memory content shared between pairs of participants could be predicted by their shared local neural activation pattern, particularly in the angular gyrus and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, even after controlling for differences in memory abilities. These results uncover neural representational mechanisms for individualized memory and underscore the constructive nature of episodic memory