In the digital technology era, mobile devices have an important rule to deploy a copy of data and information through the network. An electronic reader (eReader) allows readers to read written materials in an electronic manner that is available in many models. The objective of this study is to evaluate the usage of eReader by higher education students. We firstly identified the most frequently used eReader by surveying higher education students. The survey results showed that Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle, and Samsung Tablet are the most popular eReader devices used by higher education students. We presented these results, and then we analyzed the surveyed results in detail in order to develop an evaluation metric of the eReader in a mobile platform that clearly allows the selection of the most suitable eReader for higher education students. The main contribution of this paper is the development of a set of criteria that can be used by students in the selection of an eReader that matches their specific needs and requirements.

Aim/Purpose: Governments, private business, and academia have become increasingly aware of the importance of collaboration in multi-stakeholder, multicultural environments. This is due to the globalization and (developing) mutual relationships with other global partners, due to the often varying visions and goals between the respective organizations in managing projects that span those environments. Background: This research conducts a survey of literature pertaining to organizational collaboration in multi-stakeholder, multicultural environments in government, private business, and academic sectors, conducting an analysis to identify the gaps in the basic questions thus far explored in the literature. The gap analysis will expose the opportunities for greater collaboration in these environments. Methodology: The author conducted a literature review to identify existing research gaps to focus interviews that will develop multiple case studies in future research. Contribution/Findings: This literature review has determined gaps in understanding how contributing factors to cultural communication impact collaboration in multi-cultural, multi-stakeholder organizations, encouraging additional research in this area. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners have the opportunity to develop their use of cultural communication contributing factors, potentially increasing their collaboration efficiency. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers have opportunity to gather empirical evidence that factors of cultural communication may influence collaboration in the multi-cultural, multi-stakeholder environment. Impact on Society Improved understanding of how cultural communication factors influence collaboration in multi-cultural, multi-stakeholder organizations can improve organizational efficiency. Future Research: Gather empirical evidence that factors of cultural communication may influence collaboration in the multi-cultural, multi-stakeholder environment.

Aim/Purpose: The aim and purpose of this study is to understand why there is a dearth of faculty of color ascending to senior levels of leadership in higher education institutions, and to identify strategies to increase the representation of faculty of color in university senior administrative positions. Background: There is a lack of faculty of color in senior level academic administrative position in the United States. Although there is clear evidence that faculty of color have not been promoted to senior level positions at the same rate as their White colleagues, besides racism there has been little evidence regarding the cause of such disparities. This is becoming an issue of increased importance as the student bodies of most U.S. higher educational institutions are becoming increasingly more inclusive of people of various racial and ethnic backgrounds. Methodology: Qualitative interviews were used Contribution: This study adds to the research and information made previously available regarding the status of non-White higher educational members in the U.S. by contributing insights from faculty of color who have encountered and are currently encountering forms of discrimination within various institutions. These additions include personal experiences and suggestions regarding the barriers to diversification and implications of the lack of diversity at higher educational institutions. Given the few diverse administrative or executive leaders in service today in higher education, these personal insights provide seldom-heard perspectives for both scholars and practitioners in the field of higher education. Findings: Limited diversity among faculty at higher educational institutions correlates with persistent underrepresentation and difficulty in finding candidates for leadership positions who are diverse, highly experienced, and highly ranked. This lack of diversity among leaders has negative implications like reduced access to mentorship, scholarship, and other promotional and networking opportunities for other faculty of color. While it is true that representation of faculty of color at certain U.S. colleges and programs has shown slight improvements in the last decade, nationwide statistics still demonstrate the persistence of this issue. Participants perceived that the White boys club found to some extent in nearly all higher educational institutions, consistently offers greater recognition, attention, and support for those who most resemble the norm and creates an adverse environment for minorities. However, in these findings and interviews, certain solutions for breaking through such barriers are revealed, suggesting progress is possible and gaining momentum at institutions nationwide. Recommendations for Practitioners: To recruit and sustain diverse members of the academic community, institutions should prioritize policies and procedures which allocate a fair share of responsibilities between faculty members and ensure equity in all forms of compensation. In addition, institutional leaders should foster a climate of mutual respect and understanding between members of the educational community to increase confidence of people of color and allow for fresh perspectives and creativity to flourish. Where policies for diversification exist but are not being applied, leaders have the responsibility to enforce and set the example for other members of the organization. Assimilation of diverse members occurs when leaders create an inclusive environment for various cultures and advocate for social and promotional opportunities for all members of the organization. Recommendations for Researchers: Significant research remains on understanding barriers to the preparation of faculty of color for leadership in higher education. While this research has provided first-hand qualitative perspectives from faculties of color, additional quantitative study is necessary to understand what significant differences in underrepresentation exist by race and ethnicity. Further research is also needed on the compound effects of race and gender due to the historic underrepresentation of women in leadership positions. At the institutional and departmental level, the study validates the need to look at both the implicit and explicit enforcement of policies regarding diversity in the workplace. Future Research: Higher education researchers may extend the findings of this study to explore how faculty of color have ascended to specific leadership roles within the academy such as department chair, academic dean, provost, and president.

Aim/Purpose: To understand readiness of students for learning in online environments across different age groups. Background: Online learners today are diverse in age due to increasing adult/mature students who continue their higher education while they are working. Understanding the influence of the learners’ age on their online learning experience is limited. Methodology: A survey methodology approach was followed. A sample of one thousand nine hundred and twenty surveys were used. Correlation analysis was performed. Contribution: The study contributes by adding to the limited body of knowledge in this area and adds to the dimensions of the Online Learning Readiness Survey additional dimensions such as usefulness, tendency, anxiety, and attitudes. Findings: Older students have more confidence than younger ones in computer proficiency and learning skills. They are more motivated, show better attitudes and are less anxious. Recommendations for Practitioners: Practitioners should consider preferences that allow students to configure the learning approach to their age. These preferences should be tied to the dimensions of the online learning readiness survey (OLRS). Recommendations for Researchers: More empirical research is required using OLRS for online learning environments. OLRS factors are strong and can predict student readiness and performance. These are opportunities for artificial intelligence in the support of technology-mediated tools for learning.

Aim/Purpose: Board of Directors seek to use their big data as a competitive advantage. Still, scholars note the complexities of corporate governance in practice related to information security risk management (ISRM) effectiveness. Background: While the interest in ISRM and its relationship to organizational success has grown, the scholarly literature is unclear about the effects of Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) leadership styles, the alignment of the governance of big data, and ISRM effectiveness in organizations in the West-ern United States. Methodology: The research method selected for this study was a quantitative, correlational research design. Data from 139 participant survey responses from Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) in the Western United States were analyzed using 3 regression models to test for mediation following Baron and Kenny’s methodology. Contribution: Previous scholarship has established the importance of leadership styles, big data governance, and ISRM effectiveness, but not in a combined understanding of the relationship between all three variables. The researchers’ primary objective was to contribute valuable knowledge to the practical field of computer science by empirically validating the relationships between the CTOs leadership styles, the alignment of the governance of big data, and ISRM effectiveness. Findings: The results of the first regression model between CTOs leadership styles and ISRM effectiveness were statistically significant. The second regression model results between CTOs leadership styles and the alignment of the governance of big data were not statistically significant. The results of the third regression model between CTOs leadership styles, the alignment of the governance of big data, and ISRM effectiveness were statistically significant. The alignment of the governance of big data was a significant predictor in the model. At the same time, the predictive strength of all 3 CTOs leadership styles was diminished between the first regression model and the third regression model. The regression models indicated that the alignment of the governance of big data was a partial mediator of the relationship between CTOs leadership styles and ISRM effectiveness. Recommendations for Practitioners: With big data growing at an exponential rate, this research may be useful in helping other practitioners think about how to test mediation with other interconnected variables related to the alignment of the governance of big data. Overall, the alignment of governance of big data being a partial mediator of the relationship between CTOs leadership styles and ISRM effectiveness suggests the significant role that the alignment of the governance of big data plays within an organization. Recommendations for Researchers: While this exact study has not been previously conducted with these three variables with CTOs in the Western United States, overall, these results are in agreement with the literature that information security governance does not significantly mediate the relationship between IT leadership styles and ISRM. However, some of the overall findings did vary from the literature, including the predictive relationship between transactional leadership and ISRM effectiveness. With the finding of partial mediation indicated in this study, this also suggests that the alignment of the governance of big data provides a partial intervention between CTOs leadership styles and ISRM effectiveness. Impact on Society: Big data breaches are increasing year after year, exposing sensitive information that can lead to harm to citizens. This study supports the broader scholarly consensus that to achieve ISRM effectiveness, better alignment of governance policies is essential. This research highlights the importance of higher-level governance as it relates to ISRM effectiveness, implying that ineffective governance could negatively impact both leadership and ISRM effectiveness, which could potentially cause reputational harm. Future Research: This study raised questions about CTO leadership styles, the specific governance structures involved related to the alignment of big data and ISRM effectiveness. While the research around these variables independently is mature, there is an overall lack of mediation studies as it relates to the impact of the alignment of the governance of big data. With the lack of alignment around a universal framework, evolving frameworks could be tested in future research to see if similar results are obtained.

Aim/Purpose This paper focuses on systematizing and rethinking the conformity of modern transdisciplinarity with its prime cause and initial ideas. Background The difficulties of implementing transdisciplinarity into science and education are connected with the fact that its generally accepted definition, identification characteristics, and methodological features are still missing. In order to eliminate these disadvantages of transdisciplinarity, its prime cause and initial ideas had to be detected. It is also important to analyze the correspondence of the existing opinions about transdisciplinarity with the content of these cause and ideas. Methodology The qualitative analysis of the literature reviews on the subject of transdisciplinary was used in order to determine the correspondence of the opinions about the transdisciplinarity with the meaning of its prime cause and initial ideas. These opinions had to be generalized as well. Through this method, it was possible to detect and classify opinions into 11 groups including 39 stereotypes of transdisciplinarity. For substantiation of transdisciplinary approaches that are consistent with the approaches of contemporary science, C.F. Gauss random variables normal distribution was used. The “Gauss curve” helped to show the place of transdisciplinary and systems transdisciplinary approaches in the structure of academic and systems approaches. The “Gauss curve” also demonstrated the step-by-step “broadening of the scientific worldview horizon due to sequential intensification of synthesis, integration, unification, and generalization of the disciplinary knowledge.” Contribution After reconsideration of the results on qualitative analysis of the literature reviews, the generalized definition of transdisciplinarity could be formulated, including the definition for transdisciplinary and systems transdisciplinary approaches. It was proven that transdisciplinarity is a natural stage for the development of contemporary science and education, and the transdisciplinary approaches were able to suggest the methods and tools to solve the complex and poorly structured problems of science and the society. Findings Many existing stereotypes of transdisciplinarity do not meet its prime cause and initial ideas. Such stereotypes do not have deep philosophic and theoretical substantiation. They also do not suggest the transdisciplinary methods and tools. Thus, the authors of such stereotypes often claim them to be transdisciplinary or suggest perceiving them as transdisciplinarity. This circumstance is the reason why many disciplinary scientists, practitioners, and initiators of higher education view transdisciplinarity as a marginal direction of contemporary science. Based on the generalized definition of transdisciplinarity, as well as its prime cause and initial ideas, it was shown that transdisciplinarity is presented in contemporary science in the form of two different approaches, i.e., the transdisciplinary approach and systems transdisciplinary approach. The objective of the transdisciplinary approach is to ensure science development at the stage of synthesis and integration of disciplinary knowledge, while the objective of the systems transdisciplinary approach is to ensure that the problems of modern society are solved through unification and generalization of the disciplinary knowledge. Recommendation for Researchers The researchers should consider that within the limits of the transdisciplinary approach, the disciplinary specialists are managed. Within the limits of the systems transdisciplinary approach, the disciplinary knowledge is managed. Thus, the transdisciplinary approach is efficient for organization and research with participation of the scientists of the complementary disciplines. An example of such research can be a team of researchers of medical disciplines and complementary disciplines from chemistry, physics, and engineering. The systems transdisciplinary approach is efficient for organization and performance of research with participation of the scientists of non-complementary disciplines such as economics, physics, meteorology, chemistry, ecology, geology, and sociology. Future Research In terms of the main initial idea, transdisciplinarity is formed as a global approach. The global approach should have a traditional institutional form: it should be a science discipline (meta-discipline) and have carriers with the transdisciplinary worldview. Training for such carriers can be organized by the universities within the limits of the systems transdisciplinarity departments and Centers of Systems Transdisciplinary Retraining for Disciplinary Specialists. Thus, it is reasonable to initiate discussion for the idea to reform the disciplinary structure of the universities considering creation of such departments and centers.

Aim/Purpose: The low proportion of women currently working in the field of business information systems presents an opportunity to attract more women to this field. For example, in Germany, the proportion of women studying business information systems is currently 21%, compared to 48% in business administration (Statistisches Bundesamt, 2020). Which characteristics make the professional field of business information systems appear attractive to women and men – and which characteristics do not? Background: Studies on careers in business information systems are important to mitigate the long-lasting shortage of IT specialists, yet research is limited in this area. Methodology: To capture empirical data, graduates of the Business Information Systems program at the University of Applied Sciences in Hannover were surveyed. Contribution: The results show that women and men perceive the work climate and working conditions very differently and are also satisfied to a different extent. Characteristics of the work climate place significantly more restrictions on satisfaction for women than for men. Women primarily criticize characteristics that can be described as involving “a lack of fairness”. Findings: The differences in perceived work climate may negatively impact the proportion of women in business information systems. A number of measures have already been established to support women in coping better with the prevailing climate. However, some measures bear the risk that women are thus accused of assimilating to the prevailing climate. This can seem pre-sumptuous since the dominant male culture is taken for granted and “set”. Measures for team-building and personnel development appear to be more suitable if these address the actual values and norms of teamwork, question them where necessary, and change them for everyone. Recommendations for Practitioners: Women’s career goals are clearly different from men’s goals, and women do not achieve goals with high priority very well. Work climate is perceived more critically by women than by men: less fair, less supportive. Advantages of diversity and plurality are put at risk if women should put aside their different “other” perceptions of cooperation and negotiation in order to act according to the rules of the male-dominated system. Impact on Society: Studies on careers in business information systems are important to mitigate the longer-lasting shortage of IT specialists. The low proportion of women currently working in IT presents an opportunity to attract more women to business information systems.

Aim/Purpose . The quantitative comparative ex post facto research study covered in this paper aims to fill gaps in the literature by focusing on whether gender influences perceptions of leadership; diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA); and job satisfaction among federal employees within the Department of Justice using empirical data. The study also explores whether there are relationships between the perception of leadership and job satisfaction and the perception of DEIA and job satisfaction. Background. Since 2002, the United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has administered the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS), which measures employee perceptions of whether and to what extent successful organizational conditions exist in their agencies. Areas currently assessed within the FEVS include training, job satisfaction, leadership effectiveness, management effectiveness, work-life balance, and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. The exploration of variations in perceptions of leadership, DEIA efforts, and job satisfaction among U.S. federal employees by gender and other criteria are crucial areas for research that are underrepresented in the literature. This is not only important for the United States federal government, which is grappling with high attrition rates, but also for public administrations around the world. Methodology. A quantitative ex post facto research design was used to analyze data from responses of U.S. federal employees working for the Department of Justice. Leadership, job satisfaction, and DEIA were all measured using aggregate scores from pre-determined question sets. Differences based on gender were analyzed using t-tests. Additionally, chi-squares and Spearman’s rank correlations were employed in order to explore whether there is a relationship between the perception of leadership and job satisfaction and the perception of DEIA efforts and job satisfaction among U.S. federal government workers. Contribution. The findings of this study aid in providing empirical data to support the need for federal government leadership to understand the impact of employees’ perceptions on their willingness to continue working in the federal government. The research study was grounded in Public Service Motivation Theory, which centers around factors that motivate individuals to pursue and maintain careers in the public service sector. More specifically, this study supported the public service motivation theory in that it looked at gender as a mitigating factor in public service motivation as well as explored the role of leadership and DEIA as a correlating factor to job satisfaction. The results of this research have practical implications for federal government leaders interested in increasing employee motivation and retention and who should be considering the range of sociocultural and demographic characteristics that have been found in the research to impact employee perceptions and experiences. Findings. The analyses found differences in perceptions of leadership, DEIA, and job satisfaction among United States Federal Government employees based on gender. Additionally, perceptions of leadership and DEIA were both found to influence job satisfaction. The first research question explored in this study used a t-test to consider whether the perception of leadership among U.S. federal employees differed based on participant gender with significance found. The second research question examined whether the perceived job satisfaction of U.S. federal employees differed based on gender, with statistical significance detected. The third research question focused on whether perception of DEIA differed when gender was explored and the results of the t-test indicated a significant difference in perceptions of DEIA when gender was considered. The fourth research question considered the relationship between the perception of leadership and job satisfaction. A Chi-square and a Spearman Rank Correlation were performed, and a relationship was found to exist. Research question five explored whether a relationship exists between the perception of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility initiatives and job satisfaction, with significance found following a chi-square and a Spearman rank correlation. Recommendations for Practitioners. Leadership behaviors of managers and the existence of DEIA policies play a critical role in employees’ job satisfaction and commitment. The recommendations for organizational leadership in the public service sector include addressing gender inequality in work practices and environments and cultivating more inclusive organizational cultures. Recommendations for Researchers. The lack of inclusion of socio-cultural norms in the research on public service motivation is a gap that has yet to be sufficiently addressed and is an area of research that should be explored. Impact on Society. Research on public service motivation in local, state, national, and international government employment can aid organizations in developing strategies for improving recruitment, selection, and retention in public service organizations. This information can advance scientific knowledge on transforming management and leadership practices across sectors. Future Research. Future research can expound on what has been done here by examining in more detail how various identities, and more specifically intersecting identities, within the LGBTQIA+ community as well as other historically marginalized groups, impact such factors as perceptions of leadership, job satisfaction, employee motivation and retention, and work-life balance. Perceptions of specific DEIA initiatives should also be further explored.

The purpose of this paper was to explore the current and potential use of Facebook for learning purposes by Jordanian university students. The paper attempted to compare such use with other uses of Facebook. Further, the paper investigated Jordanian university students’ attitudes towards using Facebook as a formal academic tool, through the use of course-specific Facebook groups. To that end, quantitative data were collected from a sample of 451 students from three Jordanian public universities. Findings indicated that the vast majority of Jordanian students had Facebook accounts, which echoes its popularity amongst Jordanian youth compared to other types of online social networking sites. While both “social activities” and “entertainment” were the primary motivators for Jordanian students to create and use Facebook accounts, a growing number of them were using Facebook for academic purposes too. Further, Jordanian students had a positive attitude toward the use of “Facebook groups” as an educational tool for specific courses, and under specific conditions. Based on its findings, the paper provides suggestions for Jordanian higher institutions to invest in the application of Facebook as a formal academic tool.

A central premise for the creation of Electronic Health Records (EHR) is ensuring the portability of patient health records across various clinical, insurance, and regulatory entities. From portability standards such as International Classification of Diseases (ICD) to data sharing across institutions, a lack of portability of health data can jeopardize optimal care and reduce meaningful use. This research empirically investigates the relationship between health records availability and portability. Using data collected from 168 medical providers and patients, we confirm the positive relationship between user perceptions of expected satisfaction with EHR availability and the expected satisfaction with portability. Our findings contribute to more informed practice by understanding how ensuring the availability of patient data by virtue of enhanced data sharing standards, device independence, and better EHR data integration can subsequently drive perceptions of portability across a multitude of stakeholders.

Aim/Purpose: This study aims to develop a descriptive typology to better identify leadership toward creativity in virtual work in different types of companies. Background: The study empirically explores how leadership toward creativity occurs in virtual work and uses the theoretical lenses of creativity-conducive leadership and heterarchy to generate a typology. Methodology : A multiple qualitative case study design, interpretivist approach, and abductive analysis are applied. Data is collected by interviewing 21 leaders and employees face-to-face in four companies in the ICT sector and one business advisor company. Contribution: The empirical evidence of this study enriches the understanding of leadership toward creativity in virtual work and contributes to the limited empirical knowledge on leadership that stimulates a virtual workforce to achieve creativity. Findings: The four different types of companies in the typology utilize various transitions toward leadership creativity in virtual work. The trend in leadership in the existing virtually networked business environment is toward the “collective mind” company, which is characterized by shared values, meaningful work, collective intelligence, conscious reflection, transparency, coaching, empowering leadership by example, effective multichannel interaction, and assertiveness. The findings empirically support applying a heterarchy perspective to lead a virtual workforce toward creativity and promote leaders who are genuinely interested in people, their development, collaboration, and technology. Recommendations for Practitioners: The typology helps professionals realize the need to develop leadership, communication, interaction, learning, and growth to foster creative interaction and improve productivity and competitiveness. Recommendation for Researchers: This study enables researchers to more rigorously and creatively conceptualize the conditions and relationships in leadership that facilitate creativity in virtual work. Impact on Society : The findings highlight humanistic values for developing leadership. The study strengthens the view that collective creativity in virtual work cannot emerge without virtual and physical interaction in appropriate spaces and caring for each other. Future Research: Future studies may focus on other fields, industries, networks, roles of materialities, and employees in fostering creativity and on theory development. Longitudinal studies are advisable.

Aim/Purpose: The topic of this study is the ICT-enabled transformation of car dealerships to regional providers of sustainable mobility (e.g., car sharing). Background: Car dealerships offer specific conditions that enable a sustainable mobility offer, based on individual motorized transport like car sharing. This is especially useful in small towns or rural areas where people’s mobility is strongly dominated by private cars, and public transport coverage is limited. However, these new mobility services are combined services with the need of a deep integration of information systems, and these services are not yet related to car dealerships and customer acquisition has to be supported. Methodology: An empirical study with an inductive approach was chosen. The study consists of interviews with three focus groups of different stakeholders of car dealerships. Within the frame of the research project, “ReCaB – Regional Car-Balancing” a qualitative research approach was chosen. Within a design science approach the existing SusCRM architecture was adapted based on the elaborated requirements. Contribution: A software architecture is proposed, where Customer Relationship Management (CRM) components to market new sustainable mobility offers are vital parts and existing information systems of car dealerships are integrated. Findings: The basic feasibility of the establishment and customer acceptance has been demonstrated, at least in the area of car sharing within ReCaB. The execution in the car sharing field has already started and a number of car dealerships are already bringing their own offers to market. Major findings for the SusCRM architecture have been elaborated in a design science approach in the national German research project “Showcase for electro mobility”. Recommendations for Practitioners: There is still no fully functional prototype developed for this specific use case and evaluated in the car dealership environment. An implementation only, based on own efforts, is difficult for car dealerships because of the dealership’s lack of know-how as well as tight IT budgets. However, this approach appears particularly successful in rural areas where public transport services are heavily declining. For full implementation, the presented ICT support is imperative. Recommendation for Researchers: The research on the retailer level, especially in combination with a digital trans-formation by the use of ICT systems, is still fragmentary. Research in this area that both addresses sustainability goals on a general level and supports economical goals on the company level of automotive retailers would be useful. Impact on Society: Creation of sustainable offers as a substitute or supplement for mobility based on their own car is a promising way to reduce negative effects of mobility. Enhancement of the mobility of the people in rural areas is leading to a more active lifestyle by reaching the leisure facilities, workplaces and educational institutions in a sustainable manner. Future Research: In terms of the fast changing mobility landscape, especially on a technical level with the development of autonomous vehicles and digitalization of entire businesses new solutions are becoming accessible, that have to be integrated in further research.

Aim/Purpose: Violations of Information Systems (IS) security policies continue to generate great anxiety amongst many organizations that use information systems, partly because these violations are carried out by internal employees. This article addresses IS security policy violations in organizational settings, and conceptualizes and problematizes IS security violations by employees of organizations from a paradox perspective. Background: The paradox is that internal employees are increasingly being perceived as more of a threat to the security of organizational systems than outsiders. The notion of paradox is exemplified in four organizational contexts of belonging paradox, learning paradox, organizing paradox and performing paradox. Methodology : A qualitative conceptual framework exemplifying how IS security violations occur as paradoxes in context to these four areas is presented at the end of this article. Contribution: The article contributes to IS security management practice and suggests how IS security managers should be positioned to understand violations in light of this paradox perspective. Findings: The employee generally in the process of carrying out ordinary activities using computing technology exemplifies unique tensions (or paradoxes in belonging, learning, organizing and performing) and these tensions would generally tend to lead to policy violations when an imbalance occurs. Recommendations for Practitioners: IS security managers must be sensitive to employees tensions. Future Research: A quantitative study, where statistical analysis could be applied to generalize findings, could be useful.

Aim/Purpose: Despite the fact that the plethora of studies demonstrate the positive impact of information technology (IT) capabilities on SMEs performance, the understanding of underlying mechanisms through which IT capabilities affect the firm performance is not yet clear. This study fills these gaps by explaining the roles of absorptive capacity and corporate entrepreneurship. The study also elaborates the effect of IT capability dimensions (IT integration and IT alignment) upon the SMEs performance outcomes through the mediating sequential process of absorptive capacity and corporate entrepreneurship. Methodology: This study empirically tests a theoretical model based on the Dynamic Capability View (DCV), by using the partial least square (PLS) technique with a sample of 489 manufacturing SMEs in Pakistan. A survey is employed for the data collection by following the cluster sampling approach. Contribution: This research contributes to the literature of IT by bifurcating the IT capability into two dimensions, IT integration and IT alignment, which allows us to distinguish between different sources of IT capabilities. Additionally, our findings shed the light on the dynamic capability view by theoretically and empirically demonstrating how absorptive capacity and corporate entrepreneurship sequentially affect the firms' performance outcomes. At last, this study contributes to the literature of SMEs by measuring the two levels of performance: innovation performance and firm performance. Findings: The results of the analysis show that the absorptive capacity and the corporate entrepreneurship significantly mediate the relationship between both dimensions of IT capability and performance outcomes.

Aim/Purpose: Drawing on theories of organizational learning, this study analyzes the mechanism of Internet integration capability affecting knowledge generation by 399 Chinese enterprises. This paper will further explore whether there is a moderating role of learning orientation in the mechanism of Internet integration capability affecting enterprise knowledge generation. Background: The Internet has gradually integrated into the enterprise innovation system and penetrated into all aspects of technological innovation, which has promoted the integration and optimization of resources inside and outside the organization. However, there is limited understanding of how the combination of the Internet and integration capability can drive enterprise knowledge generation. Methodology: The study uses survey data from 399 organizations in China. Through structural equation modeling, this study assesses the relationship between Internet integration capability, organizational learning, knowledge generation, and uses PROCESS macro program to test the mediated moderation effect of learning orientation. Contribution: First, this study provides empirical evidence for managers to better build Internet integration capability and ambidextrous learning to promote enterprise knowledge generation. Second, this study highlights the important moderating role of learning orientation in the mediating role of ambidextrous learning. Findings: First, the study confirms the mediating role of exploratory learning and exploitative learning in knowledge generation driven by Internet integration capability. Second, the results show that when organizations have a strong learning orientation, the indirect path of Internet integration capability influencing knowledge generation through exploratory learning will be enhanced. Recommendations for Practitioners: Enterprises should pay full attention to the improvement of internet integration capability and ambidextrous learning to promote knowledge generation. In addition, enterprises should establish a good learning atmosphere within the organization to strengthen the bridge role of exploratory learning between Internet integration capability and knowledge generation. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers could collect data from countries with different levels of economic development to verify the universal applicability of the proposed theoretical model. Impact on Society: This study provides references for enterprises using Internet integration capability to promote their knowledge generation capability under the internet background. Future Research: Future research can compare the impact of Internet integration capability on knowledge generation in different industries.

Aim/Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the impact of innovation management and learning orientation as the mechanisms playing the role of an intermediate relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Kuwait. Background: SMEs are currently among the principal economic instruments in most industrialised and developing countries. The contribution of SMEs can be viewed from various perspectives primarily related to the crucial role they play in developing entrepreneurial activities, employment generation, and improving innovativeness. Developing countries, including Kuwait and other countries, in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), have recognised the key role played by SMEs as a strong pillar of growth. Consequently, many governments have formulated policies and programmes to facilitate the growth and success of SMEs. Unfortunately, the organisational performance of SMEs in developing countries, particularly in Kuwait, remains below expectations. The lagged growth could be due to a lack of good managerial practices and increasing competition that negatively impact their performance. Numerous researchers discovered the positive effect of entrepreneurial leadership on SMEs’ performance. However, a lack of clarity remains regarding the direct impact of entrepreneurial leadership on SMEs’ performance, especially in developing countries. Therefore, the nexus between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance is still indecisive and requires further studies. Methodology: This study adopted a quantitative approach based on a cross-sectional survey and descriptive design to gather data within a specific period. The data were collected by distributing a survey questionnaire to Kuwaiti SMEs’ owners and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) via online and on-hand instruments. A total of 384 useable questionnaires were obtained. Moreover, the partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) analysis was performed to test the hypotheses. Contribution: The current study contributed to the existing literature by developing a moderated mediation model integrating entrepreneurial leadership, innovation management, and learning orientation. The study also investigated their effect on the organisational performance of SMEs. The study findings also bridged the existing significant literature gap regarding the role of these variables on SMEs’ performance in developing countries, particularly in Kuwait, due to the dearth of studies linking these variables in this context. Furthermore, this study empirically confirmed the significant effect of innovation management and learning orientation as intermediate variables in strengthening the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and organisational performance in the settings of Kuwait SMEs, which has not been verified previously. Findings: The study findings showed the beneficial and significant impact of entrepreneurial leadership and innovation management on SME’s organisational performance. The relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and SMEs’ organisational performance is fundamentally mediated by innovation management and moderated by learning orientation. Recommendations for Practitioners: The present study provides valuable insights and information regarding the factors considered by the government, policymakers, SMEs’ stakeholders, and other authorities in the effort to increase the organisational performance level and facilitate the growth of SMEs in Kuwait. SMEs’ owners or CEOs should improve their awareness and knowledge of the importance of entrepreneurial leadership, innovation management, and learning orientation. These variables will have beneficial effects on the performance and assets to achieve success and sustainability if adopted and managed systematically. This study also recommends that SMEs’ entrepreneurs and top management should facilitate supportive culture by creating and maintaining an organisational climate and structure that encourages learning behaviour and innovation mindset among individuals. The initiative will motivate them towards acquiring, sharing, and utilising knowledge and increasing their ability to manage innovation systemically in all production processes to adapt to new technologies, practices, methods, and different circumstances. Recommendation for Researchers: The study findings highlighted the mediating effect of innovation management on the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership (the independent variable) and SMEs’ organisational performance (the dependent variable) and the moderating effect of learning orientation in the same nexus. These relationships were not extensively addressed in SMEs of developing countries and require further validation. Impact on Society: This study aims to influence the management strategies and practices adopted by entrepreneurs and policymakers who work in SMEs in developing countries. The effect will be reflected in the development of their firms and the national economy in general. Future Research: Future research should investigate the conceptual research framework against the backdrop of other developing economies and in other business settings to generalise the results. Future investigation should seek to establish the effect of entrepreneurial leadership style on other mechanisms, such as knowledge management processes, which could function with entrepreneurial leadership to improve SMEs’ performance efficiently. In addition, future studies may include middle and lower-level managers and employees, leading to more positive outcomes.

Aim/Purpose: The aim of this study is to determine the variables which affect the intention to use Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled smart wearables (e.g., smartwatches, rings, wristbands) payments. Background: Despite the enormous potential of wearable payments, studies investigating the adoption of this technology are scarce. Methodology: This study extends the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with four additional variables (Perceived Security, Trust, Perceived Cost, and Attractiveness of Alternatives) to investigate behavioral intentions to adopt wearable payments. The moderating role of gender was also examined. Data collected from 311 Kuwaiti respondents were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and multi-group analysis (MGA). Contribution: The research model provided in this study may be useful for academics and scholars conducting further research into m-payments adoption, specifically in the case of wearable payments where studies are scarce and still in the nascent stage; hence, addressing the gap in existing literature. Further, this study is the first to have specifically investigated wearable payments in the State of Kuwait; therefore, enriching Kuwaiti context literature. Findings: This study empirically demonstrated that behavioral intention to adopt wearable payments is mainly predicted by attractiveness of alternatives, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived security and trust, while the role of perceived cost was found to be insignificant. Recommendations for Practitioners: This study draws attention to the importance of cognitive factors, such as perceived usefulness and ease of use, in inducing users’ behavioral intention to adopt wearable payments. As such, in the case of perceived usefulness, smart wearable devices manufacturers and banks enhance the functionalities and features of these devices, expand on the financial services provided through them, and maintain the availability, performance, effectiveness, and efficiency of these tools. In relation to ease of use, smart wearable devices should be designed with an easy to use, high quality and customizable user interface. The findings of this study demonstrated the influence of trust and perceived security in motivating users to adopt wearable payments, Hence, banks are advised to focus on a relationship based on trust, especially during the early stages of acceptance and adoption of wearable payments. Recommendation for Researchers: The current study validated the role of attractiveness of alternatives, which was never examined in the context of wearable payments. This, in turn, provides a new dimension about a determinant factor considered by customers in predicting their behavioral intention to adopt wearable payments. Impact on Society: This study could be used in other countries to compare and verify the results. Additionally, the research model of this study could also be used to investigate other m-payments methods, such as m-wallets and P2P payments. Future Research: Future studies should investigate the proposed model in a cross-country and cross-cultural perspective with additional economic, environmental, and technological factors. Also, future research may conduct a longitudinal study to explain how temporal changes and usage experience affect users’ behavioral intentions to adopt wearable payments. Finally, while this study included both influencing factors and inhibiting factors, other factors such as social influence, perceived compatibility, personal innovativeness, mobility, and customization could be considered in future research.

Aim/Purpose: The need to explore leaders’ role as a mediating factor between knowledge sharing and firms’ competitiveness was the focus of this paper. Further, gaps related to knowledge sharing influence on firms’ competitiveness from an emerging economy perspective was a major driver of this study. Background: The relevance of knowledge sharing is today crucial for firms that seek to harness internal resource innovation towards ensuring increased competitiveness. The link between the actions of leaders and outcomes from sharing knowledge towards increased competitiveness would further advance theory on knowledge sharing and provide managerial implication that is instrumental for an improved organisational outcome. Methodology: The study sample was 282 participants and Partial least square structural equation model was used for the analysis of the data obtained through a questionnaire survey with the aid of SmartPLSv3.9. Contribution: The study contributes to knowledge management literature through advancing leadership as a mediating factor that accounts for the link between knowledge sharing and firms’ competitiveness, most especially from an emerging economy perspective. Findings: Knowledge sharing was found to have a positive effect on firms’ competitiveness. The study found that leadership behaviour mediates the relationship between knowledge sharing and a firm’s competitiveness. Recommendations for Practitioners: The study recommends that, when supported with the right attitude from leaders in the organisation, knowledge sharing will be beneficial towards the firm gaining competitiveness most especially. Future Research: Future studies should be carried out in other sectors aside from the manufacturing sector using the same measures used to measure knowledge sharing. Also, a comparative analysis of knowledge sharing and firms’ competitiveness using leaders’ behaviour as a mediator should be researched in other developing economies.

Aim/Purpose: This study examines the impact of transitioning from in-person classrooms to remote online business education and provides analysis of key factors impacting course and instructor ratings as well as strategies for higher education institutions to provide engaging instruction. Background: “Zoom”ing into teaching and moving out of traditional classrooms during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a path full of twists and has impacted student perceptions of courses as well as instructors. One challenge has been to make the quality of synchronous online instruction perceived by students as positive as classroom-delivered ones. Methodology: We analyze primary data collected in the course evaluation process from Business & Accounting students over six semesters between Fall 2019 to Spring 2022, covering pre-pandemic instruction in the classroom and the conversion to virtual instruction via Zoom. A total of 1782 observations for 38 courses were examined using mean comparison, regression and correlation analyses, and pairwise comparisons. Contribution: We provide insights from the evaluation of those instructors who were able to make their Zoom-delivered courses perceived by students as equivalent or better than room-delivered ones. Specifically, clear presentation, stimulating delivery, providing feedback and encouraging discussion were positively correlated with successful online classes. Findings: We find that there is a clear downward shift in course and instructor ratings as the change to synchronous online delivery was made. However, in the Spring of 2022, even though instructors and students were still not completely back in the classroom, both instructor and course ratings moved back closer to the pre-pandemic levels. The parameters associated with instructor ratings, such as providing feedback, clear presentations, stimulating sessions, and encouraging discussion, showed similar downward fluctuations. Also, aspects related to course content were affected by the transition to online modality, including training on critical thinking quantitative analysis, research and writing abilities, and overall usefulness of the content. Moore’s model of Transactional Distance helps explain these changes. Recommendations for Practitioners: We recommend that practitioners allow sufficient time for students and faculty to learn through online instruction delivery and supply training for both populations in adapting to learning in this delivery mode. Recommendation for Researchers: The disruption in higher education caused by COVID-19 has provided a wealth of information on the pluses and minuses of online delivery. Careful inspection of trends can help provide guidance to higher education leaders. Impact on Society: One of the many changes the COVID-19 pandemic brought was the opportunity to try alternate ways of connecting and learning. This study shows how this experience can be used to guide the future of higher education. Future Research: Further research is needed to explore the in-depth reactions of students and faculty to the switch from classroom to online delivery, to explore whether these findings can be more broadly applied to other subjects and other types of universities.

Aim/Purpose: ************************************************************************ After its investigation, the Research Ethics, Integrity, and Governance team at RMIT University found that the primary author of this paper breached the Australian Code and/or RMIT Policy and requested that the article be retracted. ************************************************************************** This paper aimed to examine the influence of ethical and transformational leadership on employee creativity in Malaysia’s private higher education institutions (PHEIs) and the mediating role of organizational citizenship behavior. Background: To ensure their survival and success in today’s market, organizations need people who are creative and driven. Previous studies have demonstrated the importance of ethical leadership in fostering employee innovation and good corporate responsibility. Research on ethical leadership and transformational leadership, in particular, has played a significant role in elucidating the role of leadership in relation to organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). In this study, we have focused on ethical and transformational leadership as an antecedent for enhancing employee creativity. Despite an increase in leadership research, little is known about the underlying mechanisms that link ethical leadership and transformational leadership to OCB. Because it sheds light on factors other than ethical leadership and transformational leadership that influence employees’ extra-role activity, this research is relevant theoretically. OCB may have a mediating function between ethical leadership and transformational leadership style and employee creativity because it is associated with the greatest outcomes, but empirical research has yet to prove this. So, one of the study’s goals is to add to the hypotheses about how ethical leadership style and transformational leadership affect employee creativity by using an important mediating variable – OCB. Methodology: This study adopted a quantitative approach based on a cross-sectional survey and descriptive design to gather the data in a specific period. A convenient sampling approach was used to gauge 275 employees from Malaysia’s PHEIs. To test the hypotheses and obtain a conclusion, the acquired data was analyzed using the partial least square technique (PLS-SEM). Contribution: The study contributes to leadership literature by advancing OCB as a mediating factor that accounts for the link between ethical and transformational leadership and employee creativity in the higher education sector. Findings: According to the research, OCB has a substantial influence on the creativity of employees. Furthermore, ethical leadership boosted OCB and boosted employee creativity, according to the research. OCB and employee creativity have both been demonstrated to benefit greatly from transformational leadership. Further research revealed that OCB is a mediating factor in the link between leadership styles and creative thinking among employees. Recommendations for Practitioners: Higher education institutions should focus on developing leaders who value transparency and self-awareness in their interactions with followers and who demonstrate an inner moral perspective in addition to balanced information processing to ensure positive outcomes at the individual and organizational levels. Higher education institutions should place a priority on hiring leaders that exhibit ethical and transformational traits to raise awareness of these leadership styles among employees. Recommendation for Researchers: The new study also adds significantly to the body of knowledge by examining the relationship between ethical and transformational leadership and the creativity of the workforce. It aimed to identify the relationship between transformational leadership style and individual creativity in higher education by examining the mediating influence of OCB. Impact on Society: Higher education institutions should devise strategies for developing ethical and transformative leaders who will assist boost OCB and creativity within their workforce. Students and faculty in higher education can benefit from these leadership methods by learning to think in more diverse ways and by developing thought processes that lead to a larger pool of innovative ideas and solutions. As a consequence, employees who show creative behavior may be effectively managed by leaders who utilize ethical and transformational leadership styles and motivate them to show OCB that allow them to solve creative problems creatively. Future Research: A mixed-methods approach should be used in future research, and this should be done in public institutions in developing and developed nations to put the findings to use and generalize them even further. Future research will be able to examine other mediators to learn more about how and why ethical and transformational leadership styles affect PHEI employees’ creativity.

Aim/Purpose: This paper illustrates the potential of health recommender systems (HRS) to support and enhance maternal care. The study aims to explore the recent implementations of maternal HRS and to discover the challenges of the implementations. Background: The sustainable development goals (SDG) aim to reduce maternal mortality to less than 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030. However, progress is uneven between countries, with primary causes being severe bleeding, infections, high blood pressure, and failed abortions. Regular antenatal care (ANC) visits are crucial for detecting and managing complications, such as hypertensive illnesses, anemia, and gestational diabetes mellitus. Utilizing maternal evaluations during ANC visits can help identify and treat problems early, lowering morbidity and death rates for both mothers and fetuses. Technology-enabled daily health recording can help monitor pregnancy by providing actionable guides to patients and health workers based on patient status. Methodology: A systematic literature review was conducted using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) to identify maternal HRS reported in studies between November 2022 and December 2022. Information was subsequently extracted to understand the potential benefits of maternal HRS. Titles and abstracts of 1,851 studies were screened for the full-text screening, in which two reviewers independently selected articles and systematically extracted data using a predefined extraction form. Contribution: This study adds to the explorations of the challenges of implementing HRS for maternal care. This study also emphasizes the significance of explainability, data-driven methodologies, automation, and the necessity for integration and interoperability in the creation and deployment of health recommendation systems for maternity care. Findings: The majority of maternal HRS use a knowledge-based (constraint-based) ap-proach with more than half of the studies generating recommendations based on rules defined by experts or available guidelines. We also derived four types of interfaces that can be used for delivering recommendations. Moreover, patient health records as data sources can hold data from patients’ or health workers’ input or directly from the measurement devices. Finally, the number of studies in the pilot or demonstration stage is twice that in the sustained stages. We also discovered crucial challenges where the explainability of the methods was needed to ensure trustworthiness, comprehensibility, and effective enhancement of the decision-making process. Automatic data collection was also required to avoid complexity and reduce workload. Other obstacles were also identified where data integration between systems should be established and decent connectivity must be provided so that complete services can be admin-istered. Lastly, sustainable operations would depend on the availability of standards for integration and interoperability as well as sufficient financial sup-port. Recommendations for Practitioners: Developers of maternal HRS should consider including the system in the main healthcare system, providing connectivity, and automation to deliver better service and prevent maternal risks. Regulations should also be established to support the scale-up. Recommendation for Researchers: Further research is needed to do a thorough comparison of the recommendation techniques used in maternal HRS. Researchers are also recommended to explore more on this topic by adding more research questions. Impact on Society: This study highlights the lack of sustainability studies, the potential for scaling up, and the necessity for a comprehensive strategy to integrate the maternal recommender system into the larger maternal healthcare system. Researchers can enhance and improve health recommendation systems for maternity care by focusing on these areas, which will ultimately increase their efficacy and facilitate clinical practice integration. Future Research: Additional research can concentrate on creating and assessing methods to increase the explainability and interpretability of data-driven health recommender systems and integrating automatic measurement into the traditional health recommender system to enhance the anticipated outcome of antenatal care. Comparative research can also be done to assess how well various models or algorithms utilized in these systems function. Future research can also examine creative solutions to address resource, infrastructure, and technological constraints, such as connectivity and automation to help address the shortage of medical personnel in remote areas, as well as define tactics for long-term sustainability and integration into current healthcare systems.

Aim/Purpose: The understanding of disease spread dynamics in the context of air travel is crucial for effective disease detection and epidemic intelligence. The Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Recovered-Hospitalized-Critical-Deaths (SEIR-HCD) model proposed in this research work is identified as a valuable tool for capturing the complex dynamics of disease transmission, healthcare demands, and mortality rates during epidemics. Background: The spread of viral diseases is a major problem for public health services all over the world. Understanding how diseases spread is important in order to take the right steps to stop them. In epidemiology, the SIS, SIR, and SEIR models have been used to mimic and study how diseases spread in groups of people. Methodology: This research focuses on the integration of air traffic network data into the SEIR-HCD model to enhance the understanding of disease spread in air travel settings. By incorporating air traffic data, the model considers the role of travel patterns and connectivity in disease dissemination, enabling the identification of high-risk routes, airports, and regions. Contribution: This research contributes to the field of epidemiology by enhancing our understanding of disease spread dynamics through the application of the SIS, SIR, and SEIR-HCD models. The findings provide insights into the factors influencing disease transmission, allowing for the development of effective strategies for disease control and prevention. Findings: The interplay between local outbreaks and global disease dissemination through air travel is empirically explored. The model can be further used for the evaluation of the effectiveness of surveillance and early detection measures at airports and transportation hubs. The proposed research contributes to proactive and evidence-based strategies for disease prevention and control, offering insights into the impact of air travel on disease transmission and supporting public health interventions in air traffic networks. Recommendations for Practitioners: Government intervention can be studied during difficult times which plays as a moderating variable that can enhance or hinder the efficacy of epidemic intelligence efforts within air traffic networks. Expert collaboration from various fields, including epidemiology, aviation, data science, and public health with an interdisciplinary approach can provide a more comprehensive understanding of the disease spread dynamics in air traffic networks. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can collaborate with international health organizations and authorities to share their research findings and contribute to a global understanding of disease spread in air traffic networks. Impact on Society: This research has significant implications for society. By providing a deeper understanding of disease spread dynamics, it enables policymakers, public health officials, and practitioners to make informed decisions to mitigate disease outbreaks. The recommendations derived from this research can aid in the development of effective strategies to control and prevent the spread of infectious diseases, ultimately leading to improved public health outcomes and reduced societal disruptions. Future Research: Practitioners of the research can contribute more effectively to disease outbreaks within the context of air traffic networks, ultimately helping to protect public health and global travel. By considering air traffic patterns, the SEIR-HCD model contributes to more accurate modeling and prediction of disease outbreaks, aiding in the development of proactive and evidence-based strategies to manage and mitigate the impact of infectious diseases in the context of air travel.

Aim/Purpose: The aim of this research paper is to suggest a comprehensive model that incorporates the technology acceptance model with the task-technology fit model, information quality, security, trust, and managerial support to investigate the intended usage of big data analytics (BDA) in banks and insurance companies. Background: The emergence of the concept of “big data,” prompted by the widespread use of connected devices and social media, has been pointed out by many professionals and financial institutions in particular, which makes it necessary to assess the determinants that have an impact on behavioral intention to use big data analytics in banks and insurance companies. Methodology: The integrated model was empirically assessed using self-administered questionnaires from 181 prospective big data analytics users in Moroccan banks and insurance firms and examined using partial least square (PLS) structural equation modeling. The results cover sample characteristics, an analysis of the validity and reliability of measurement models’ variables, an evaluation of the proposed hypotheses, and a discussion of the findings. Contribution: The paper makes a noteworthy contribution to the BDA adoption literature within the finance sector. It stands out by ingeniously amalgamating the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with Task-Technology Fit (TTF) while underscoring the critical significance of information quality, trust, and managerial support, due to their profound relevance and importance in the finance domain. Thus showing BDA has potential applications beyond the finance sector. Findings: The findings showed that TTF and trust’s impact on the intention to use is considerable. Information quality positively impacted perceived usefulness and ease of use, which in turn affected the intention to use. Moreover, managerial support moderates the correlation between perceived usefulness and the intention to use, whereas security did not affect the intention to use and managerial support did not moderate the influence of perceived ease of use. Recommendations for Practitioners: The results suggest that financial institutions can improve their adoption decisions for big data analytics (BDA) by understanding how users perceive it. Users are predisposed to use BDA if they presume it fits well with their tasks and is easy to use. The research also emphasizes the importance of relevant information quality, managerial support, and collaboration across departments to fully leverage the potential of BDA. Recommendation for Researchers: Further study may be done on other business sectors to confirm its generalizability and the same research design can be employed to assess BDA adoption in organizations that are in the advanced stage of big data utilization. Impact on Society: The study’s findings can enable stakeholders of financial institutions that are at the primary stage of big data exploitation to understand how users perceive BDA technologies and the way their perception can influence their intention toward their use. Future Research: Future research is expected to conduct a comparison of the moderating effect of managerial support on users with technical expertise versus those without; in addition, international studies across developed countries are required to build a solid understanding of users’ perceptions towards BDA.

Aim/Purpose: This study aims to devise a personalized solution for online healthcare platforms that can alleviate problems arising from information overload and data sparsity by providing personalized healthcare services to patients. The primary focus of this paper is to develop an effective medicine recommendation approach for recommending suitable medications to patients based on their specific medical conditions. Background: With a growing number of people becoming more conscious about their health, there has been a notable increase in the use of online healthcare platforms and e-services as a means of diagnosis. As the internet continues to evolve, these platforms and e-services are expected to play an even more significant role in the future of healthcare. For instance, WebMD and similar platforms offer valuable tools and information to help manage patients’ health, such as searching for medicines based on their medical conditions. Nonetheless, patients often find it arduous and time-consuming to sort through all the available medications to find the ones that match their specific medical conditions. To address this problem, personalized recommender systems have emerged as a practical solution for mitigating the burden of information overload and data sparsity-related issues that are frequently encountered on online healthcare platforms. Methodology: The study utilized a dataset of MC ratings obtained from WebMD, a popular healthcare website. Patients on this website can rate medications based on three criteria, including medication effectiveness, ease of use, and satisfaction, using a scale of 1 to 5. The WebMD MC rating dataset used in this study contains a total of 32,054 ratings provided by 2,136 patients for 845 different medicines. The proposed HSMCCF approach consists of two primary modules: a semantic filtering module and a multi-criteria filtering module. The semantic filtering module is designed to address the issues of data sparsity and new item problems by utilizing a medicine taxonomy that sorts medicines according to medical conditions and makes use of semantic relationships between them. This module identifies the medicines that are most likely to be relevant to patients based on their current medical conditions. The multi-criteria filtering module, on the other hand, enhances the approach’s ability to capture the complexity of patient preferences by considering multiple criteria and preferences through a unique similarity metric that incorporates both distance and structural similarities. This module ensures that patients receive more accurate and personalized medication recommendations. Moreover, a medicine reputation score is employed to ensure that the approach remains effective even when dealing with limited ratings or new items. Overall, the combination of these modules makes the proposed approach more robust and effective in providing personalized medicine recommendations for patients. Contribution: This study addresses the medicine recommendation problem by proposing a novel approach called Hybrid Semantic-based Multi-Criteria Collaborative Filtering (HSMCCF). This approach effectively recommends medications for patients based on their medical conditions and is specifically designed to overcome issues related to data sparsity and new item recommendations that are commonly encountered on online healthcare platforms. The proposed approach addresses data sparsity and new item issues by incorporating a semantic filtering module and a multi-criteria filtering module. The semantic filtering module sorts medicines based on medical conditions and uses semantic relationships to identify relevant ones. The multi-criteria filtering module accurately captures patient preferences and provides precise recommendations using a novel similarity metric. Additionally, a medicine reputation score is also employed to further expand potential neighbors, improving predictive accuracy and coverage, particularly in sparse datasets or new items with few ratings. With the HSMCCF approach, patients can receive more personalized recommendations that are tailored to their unique medical needs and conditions. By leveraging a combination of semantic-based and multi-criteria filtering techniques, the proposed approach can effectively address the challenges associated with medicine recommendations on online healthcare platforms. Findings: The proposed HSMCCF approach demonstrated superior effectiveness compared to benchmark recommendation methods in multi-criteria rating datasets in terms of enhancing both prediction accuracy and coverage while effectively addressing data sparsity and new item challenges. Recommendations for Practitioners: By applying the proposed medicine recommendation approach, practitioners can develop a medicine recommendation system that can be integrated into online healthcare platforms. Patients can then utilize this system to make better-informed decisions regarding the medications that are most suitable for their specific medical conditions. This personalized approach to medication recommendations can ultimately lead to improved patient satisfaction. Recommendation for Researchers: Integrating patient medicine reviews is a promising way for researchers to elevate the proposed medicine recommendation approach. By leveraging patient reviews, the approach can gain a more comprehensive understanding of how certain medications perform for specific medical conditions. Additionally, exploring the relationship between MC-based ratings using an improved aggregation function can potentially enhance the accuracy of medication predictions. This involves analyzing the relationship between different criteria, such as medication effectiveness, ease of use, and satisfaction of the patients, and determining the optimal weighting for each criterion based on patient feedback. A more holistic approach that incorporates patient reviews and an improved aggregation function can enable the proposed medicine recommendation approach to provide more personalized and accurate recommendations to patients. Impact on Society: To mitigate the risk of infection during the COVID-19 pandemic, the promotion of online healthcare services was actively encouraged. This allowed patients to continue accessing care and receiving treatment while adhering to physical distancing guidelines and shielding measures where necessary. As a result, the implementation of personalized healthcare services for patients is expected to be a major disruptive force in healthcare in the coming years. This study proposes a personalized medicine recommendation approach that can effectively address this issue and aid patients in making informed decisions about the medications that are most suitable for their specific medical conditions. Future Research: One way that may enhance the proposed medicine recommendation approach is to incorporate patient medicine reviews. Furthermore, the analysis of MC-based ratings using an improved aggregation function can also potentially enhance the accuracy of medication predictions.

Aim/Purpose: The major challenges for firms to initiate corporate social responsibility (CSR) arise from resource constraints, complexity, and uncertainty. Consuming considerable financial and human resources is the main difficulty for smaller firms or those operating in less profitable industries, and the lack of immediate outputs from CSR initiatives poses a challenge for firms in prioritizing and assessing their effectiveness. Background: To better integrate CSR management into overall business strategy and decision-making processes, Blockchain technology (BCT) could potentially offer a feasible and optimal alternative to CSR reports. Methodology: This study uses the fixed effects regression by way of the Least Squares Dummy Variable (LSDV) approach in STATA to analyze the direct effect of CSR management on business performance and the moderating effect of BCT adoption on this relationship with a panel data set of 5810 observations collected from the 874 listed companies in 2015 in Taiwan Stock Exchange through 2021. Contribution: This study contributes to the literature by shedding light on the organizational factors that influence BCT adoption. Findings: The findings show that firms with high levels of CSR management have better business performance. Additionally, the adoption of BCT strengthens the positive relationship between CSR management and business performance, but it cannot replace the fundamental principles of CSR. Finally, firm size does not significantly affect BCT adoption, indicating that companies of all sizes have an equal opportunity to adopt BCT, which can help to level the playing field in terms of resources available to different firms. Recommendations for Practitioners: This study suggests that firms managing CSR practices have better business performance, and the adoption of BCTs further enhances this positive relationship. However, BCT adoption does not have the same positive effect on business performance as CSR practices. Additionally, this research can help to inform public policy related to BCT adoption and diffusion. Recommendation for Researchers: By exploring the factors that influence BCT adoption, future researchers can provide insights into the key challenges and opportunities faced by organizations of different sizes and help to develop strategies for promoting the effective adoption of BCT. Impact on Society: Given the limitations of current CSR reporting, the understanding gained from BCT applications can provide companies with an alternative mechanism to foster progress in CSR implementation. Future Research: Firstly, while the fixed-effects model might have dampened the power of explanation because it only captures within-unit variation and ignores between-unit variation, the explanatory power is further limited due to only integrating two independent variables in this model. Because of limited data availability, this study only utilizes CSR_Report and firm_size as independent variables. Future studies can consider more key factors and may lead to different results. Additionally, panel data is collected from Taiwan and, therefore, may not be representative of the broader population. Future researchers integrating the Stock Exchange of different countries are recommended.

Aim/Purpose: This study examines the adoption and continued use of m-learning in Iraqi universities amidst an unstable environment by extending the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) and Expectation-Confirmation Model (ECM) models. The primary goal is to address the specific challenges and opportunities in Iraq’s higher education institutions (HEIs) due to geopolitical instability and understand their impact on student acceptance, satisfaction, and continued m-learning usage. Background: The research builds on the growing importance of m-learning, especially in HEIs, and recognizes the unique challenges faced by institutions in Iraq, given the region’s instability. It identifies gaps in existing models and proposes extensions, introducing the variable “civil conflicts” to account for the volatile context. The study aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of m-learning acceptance in conflict-affected regions and provide insights for improving m-learning initiatives in Iraqi HEIs. Methodology: To achieve its objectives, this research employed a quantitative survey to collect data from 399 students in five Iraqi universities. PLS-SEM is used for the analysis of quantitative data, testing the extended UTAUT2 and ECM models. Contribution: The study’s findings are expected to contribute to the development of a nuanced understanding of m-learning adoption and continued usage in conflict-affected regions, particularly in the Iraqi HEI context. Findings: The study’s findings may inform strategies to enhance the effectiveness of m-learning initiatives in Iraqi HEIs and offer insights into how education can be supported in regions characterized by instability. Recommendations for Practitioners: Educators and policymakers can benefit from the research by making informed decisions to support education continuity and quality, particularly in conflict-affected areas. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers can build upon this study by further exploring the adoption and usage of m-learning in unstable environments and evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed model extensions. Impact on Society: The research has the potential to positively impact society by improving access to quality education in regions affected by conflict and instability. Future Research: Future research can expand upon this study by examining the extended model’s applicability in different conflict-affected regions and assessing the long-term impact of m-learning initiatives on students’ educational outcomes.

The most common kind of blood cancer in people of all ages is leukaemia. The fractional mayfly optimisation (FMO) based DenseNet is proposed for the identification and classification of leukaemia in federated learning (FL). Initially, the input image is pre-processed by adaptive median filter (AMF). Then, cell segmentation is done using the Scribble2label. After that, image augmentation is accomplished. Finally, leukaemia classification is accomplished utilising DenseNet, which is trained using the FMO. Here, the FMO is devised by merging the mayfly algorithm (MA) and the fractional concept (FC). Following local training, the server performs local updating and aggregation using a weighted average by RV coefficient. The results showed that FMO-DenseNet attained maximum accuracy, true negative rate (TNR) and true positive rate (TPR) of 94.3%, 96.5% and 95.3%. Moreover, FMO-DenseNet gained minimum mean squared error (MSE) and root mean squared error (RMSE) of 5.7%, 9.2% and 30.4%.

The novel coronavirus pandemic ravaged the world in 2020, making the world fall into an unprecedented period of stagnation. This research used the Sol-Idea internet public opinion analysis platform to collect, and analyses online public opinion data associated with novel coronavirus. This research finds the following situations: 1) COVID-19 online opinion leaders are more likely to post in major discussion boards. However, opinion leaders of replies but use PTT forum as the main discussion channel; 2) According to the analysis of the content and behaviour of the account 'ebola01', it is found that the content of the posts are mostly news praising the ruling party government or mocking the opposing parties, with the sources mostly coming from media considered to be more pro-ruling party. Therefore, it can be inferred that 'ebola01' may be part of cyber army with a particular political spectrum.

In this paper, two hypothetical frameworks are proposed through the application of quality function deployment (QFD) to integrate the current institutional level and program level student learning focus areas with the relevant institutional and program specific stakeholder expectations. A generic skillset proficiency expected of all the graduating students at the institutional level by the stakeholders is considered in the first QFD application example and a program specific knowledge proficiency expected at the program level by the stakeholders is considered in the second QFD application example. Operations management major/option is considered for illustration purposes at the program level. In addition, an assurance of learning based approach rooted in continuous improvement philosophy is proposed to align the stakeholder expectations with the relevant student learning outcomes at different learning tiers.