Exploring key determinants of virtual worlds \ud business success based on users' experience and\ud perception

Given the growth and popularity of virtual worlds, companies have a\ud strong interest in presenting themselves successfully in virtual worlds. We\ud designed an experimental study to identify the key determinants of virtual worlds\ud business success based on users’ experience and perception. The preliminary\ud results indicate that Starbucks, McDonalds, and Paris are the 3 most favorite sites.\ud Furthermore, 5 key determinants (entertainment, functionality, interactivity,\ud reality, and sociality) of business success in virtual worlds are identified in this\ud study. We conclude the practical and theoretical implications of the findings of\ud this study.\u

The evolution of Chinese entrepreneurial firms: Township-village enterprises revisited

"Township-village enterprises (TVEs) were a major engine of China's rapid rural industrialization in the past three decades. TVEs also played a key role in fostering entrepreneurship and served as a major stepping-stone for institutional changes when legal protections of private property rights were not in place and the state-owned enterprises (SOEs) were slow to react to changing market demand. As private ownership was gradually recognized legally, TVEs lost their edge in competing with private firms. In the past two decades, industrial clusters with a concentration of private entrepreneurial firms coordinated by local governments have emerged rapidly in many areas. The structures of such firms as TVEs and the subsequent clustering modes of production are an outcome of interaction with other local and macro environments. As the environment changes, a firm's organization and organizational structure may change as well." from authors' abstractCluster, Firm theory, Industrialization, Growth, Development strategies,

A mathematical form of force-free magnetosphere equation around Kerr black holes and its application to Meissner effect

Based on the Lagrangian of the steady axisymmetric force-free magnetosphere (FFM) equation around Kerr black holes(KBHs), we find that the FFM equation can be rewritten in a new form as $f_{,rr} / (1-\mu^{2}) + f_{,\mu\mu} / \Delta + K(f(r,\mu),r,\mu) = 0$, where $\mu = -\cos\theta$. By coordinate transformation, the form of the above equation can be given by $s_{,yy} + s_{,zz} + D(s(y,z),y,z) = 0$. Based on the form, we prove finally that the Meissner effect is not possessed by a KBH-FFM with the condition where $d\omega/d A_{\phi} \leqslant 0$ and $H_{\phi}(dH_{\phi}/dA_{\phi}) \geqslant 0$, here $A_{\phi}$ is the $\phi$ component of the vector potential $\vec{A}$, $\omega$ is the angular velocity of magnetic fields and ${H_{\phi}}$ corresponds to twice the poloidal electric current

Income sufficiency in an aging population : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Finance at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Using Household Economic Survey (HES) data in New Zealand and Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) data in 2018, retiree direct financial market participation proves to be an effective approach to improve retirees’ post-retirement financial wellbeing, shown in objective and subjective measurements. More specially, those retiree participants enjoy a higher annuitised net wealth and financial situation satisfaction in New Zealand, where universal superannuation is applied. Australian retiree participants have a higher replacement ratio and annuitised net wealth, along with a higher level of subjective financial situation satisfaction, and Australia uses the means-tested age pension system. Financial market participation strongly influences retiree income sufficiency in the objective and subjective measures in both universal and means-tested pension systems. Moreover, age, gender, partnership status, living area, eligibility for government pension, and employment status play certain roles in retiree post-retirement income sufficiency. Different methods, alternative calculations for income sufficiency, and alternative questions for subjective wellbeing results are all consistent with the main results. There is a clear policy implication for governments to encourage retiree financial market participation for better retirement life. The retiree’s income sufficiency gap is decomposed in Australia and New Zealand using the HILDA and HES datasets in 2018. The Oaxaca method decomposes different influences of demographic traits, individual financial positions, and unobserved factors on retirees’ income sufficiency in Australia and New Zealand with different pension systems. The results show that Australian retirees have a higher level of annuitised net wealth; New Zealand retirees have better life satisfaction. There is no significant difference in subjective financial situation satisfaction. Specifically, Australian retirees benefit more from individual financial positions, especially in homeownership, and New Zealand retirees enjoy better demographic traits, mainly self-rated health and unobserved variables. Relative income sufficiency comparison within each country and different distribution decomposition methods prove the same influence as the main result. The Australian government should improve retirees’ health status for better life satisfaction, while the New Zealand government should encourage homeownership for higher annuitised net wealth

Relating Organizational Politics to Social Networks and Individual Performance:An Empirical Study of a Chinese Manufacturer

Although the recognition of organizational and human resource related processes as inherently social has long been recognized and studied, they are often not studied together. Given the social processes that directly and significantly predict the formation of social networks, our understanding of these areas is underdeveloped. Therefore, a research model is proposed in this study to relate organizational politics to social networks and individual-level performance. A total of 78 usable responses were collected from on-site surveys conducted in a small-sized Chinese manufacturer in Shanghai, a subsidiary of Shanghai Precision & Scientific Instrument Co., Ltd (SPSIC). The data was analyzed to examine hypothesized relationships using AMOS 22. Results demonstrated that all hypothesized relationships were supported. This study contributes to the social networks literature as well as provides practical guidance to business managers

Simultaneous determination of ranitidine and metronidazole in pharmaceutical formulations at poly(chromotrope 2B) modified activated glassy carbon electrodes

AbstractA simple and sensitive electrochemical method for the simultaneous and quantitative detection of ranitidine (RT) and metronidazole (MT) was developed, based on a poly(chromotrope 2B) modified activated glassy carbon electrode (PCHAGCE). The PCHAGCE showed excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of both RT and MT in 0.1 mol/L phosphate buffer solution (pH 6.0). The peak-to-peak separations for the simultaneous detection of RT and MT between the two reduction waves in cyclic voltammetry were increased significantly from ∼0.1 V at activated GCE, to ∼0.55 V at PCHAGCE. By differential pulse voltammetry techniques, the reduction peak currents of RT and MT were both linear over the range of 1.0 × 10−5–4.0×10−4 mol/L. The detection limits (S/N = 3) were 5.4 × 10−7 mol/L and 3.3 × 10−7 mol/L for RT and MT, respectively. The modified electrode was successfully applied to the determination of RT and MT in pharmaceutical preparations and human serum as real samples with stable and reliable recovery data

Revisiting the IT Productivity Paradox: A Technology Life Cycle Perspective

In this paper, we revisit the “IT Productivity Paradox,” which refers to the inconclusive relationship between IT investment and performance improvement found in empirical studies. We argue that the cause of the “IT Productivity Paradox” is more than empirical measurement difficulties. Based on a rather comprehensive review of the literature, we identified and contrasted three underlying theoretical perspectives of the empirical studies. We then propose a new theoretical framework toward an in-depth theoretical understanding of the paradox. Developed upon the contingency approach, the proposed framework considers the stages of technology life cycle. The framework not only can provide useful guidance for practicing managers but also potentially can resolve the “IT Productivity Paradox,” hence making a significant contribution to the literature

Does process improvement lead to supplier performance? An empirical examination

This research develops a causal-predictive model for predicting the supplier performance due to buyer-initiated supplier process improvement (SPI). SPI is one type of supply chain collaboration that focuses on process improvement. It is a common practice in supply chains that are driven by a powerful buyer firm. Drawing upon the supply chain management and process improvement literature, we relate SPI to supplier performance via a supplier’s internal process improvement effort. SPI is operationalized as an index with formative indicators, which is appropriate for prediction studies. The model is then evaluated using the partial least squares structural equation modeling method, with empirical data collected from 53 supplier plants of a Fortune 500 firm. The results strongly supported the proposed causal-predictive model. Insights from this study can shed light on further theoretical development on supply chain process improvement, as well as can provide guidance for practicing managers

Impact of Team Attitude and Behavior on IS Project Success

Although the success rate of information systems (IS) projects has increased over the past two decades, the result is still far from satisfactory. To improve IS project success rate, this study proposes a research model to examine IS project performance from a team attitude and behavior perspective. A total of 91 IS projects were collected by an online survey from CIOs/CTOs/IT professionals. The collected data were analyzed by using AMOS 7.0. We found, via hypotheses testing, that (1) A project team’s goal commitment is positively related to its teamwork quality, (2) A project team’s goal commitment is positively related to IS project success, and (3) A project team’s teamwork quality is positively related to IS project success. Managerial implications to IS project practitioners were discusse