Texas A&M International University: Research Information Online (RIO)
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Common method bias in PLS-SEM: A full collinearity assessment approach
No full textThe author discusses common method bias in the context of structural equation modeling employing the partial least squares method (PLS-SEM). Two datasets were created through a Monte Carlo simulation to illustrate the discussion: one contaminated by common method bias, and the other not contaminated. A practical approach is presented for the identification of common method bias based on variance inflation factors generated via a full collinearity test. The author\u27s discussion builds on an illustrative model in the field of e-collaboration, with outputs generated by the software WarpPLS. They demonstrate that the full collinearity test is successful in the identification of common method bias with a model that nevertheless passes standard convergent and discriminant validity assessment criteria based on a confirmation factor analysis
Value Creation Through Social Strategy
No full textLiterature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) has tended to treat economic benefits to the firm as unintentional spillovers that result from laudable CSR behavior. Empirical studies of the relationship between CSR and corporate financial performance (CFP) have reported mixed findings. This article shifts the conceptual and empirical focus to investigate the conditions under which intentional profit-seeking through corporate social action projects can create economic value for the firm. The article uses resource-dependency theory and the resource-based view to define the firm’s external and internal environments respectively. From that perspective, the article looks at how corporate social action creates economic value through strategic social planning and strategic social positioning. A survey instrument was developed and applied to 110 large Spanish firms. In that sample, munificence and continuous innovation positively affect social positioning, while nongovernmental organization salience and social responsibility orientation positively affect social planning. Both social positioning and social planning in turn contribute to corporate ability to create value. The article concludes with a discussion of the research and managerial implications of these findings
Wheat flour versus rice consumption and vascular diseases: Evidence from the China study II data
No full textWhy does wheat flour consumption appear to be significantly associated with vascular diseases? To answer this question, we analyzed data on rice consumption, wheat flour consumption, total calorie consumption, and mortality from vascular diseases obtained from the China Study II dataset. This dataset covers the years of 1983, 1989 and 1993 and includes data related to biochemistry, diet, lifestyle, and mortality from various diseases in 69 counties in China. Our analyses point to a counterintuitive conclusion: it may not be wheat flour consumption that is the problem, but the culture associated with it, which is characterized by decreased levels of physical activity, decreased exposure to sunlight, increased consumption of processed foods, and increased social isolation. Wheat flour consumption may act as a proxy for the extent to which this culture is expressed in a population. The more this culture is expressed, the greater is the prevalence of vascular diseases
A finite difference method for the Fitzhugh-Nagumo equations
No full textIn this paper, we propose a special finite difference method to approximate traveling wave solutions of the FitzHugh-Nagumo equations. Consistency and stability of the method have been investigated. Numerical results are provided to illustrate the performance of the method. The threshold phenomenon of the neural system have also been studied numerically
Spotting the Self-Monitor: Accuracy in self-monitoring based on Facebook profiles
Get PDFPast studies have examined the relationship between social network usage and certain personality traits. For instance, correlations have been found between Facebook usage and personality aspects such as narcissism, shyness, and interdependence. However, previous research has only looked at self-ratings and researcher coding of such personality traits in order to look at these relationships. Furthermore, few studies have examined how accurately individuals are perceived or how accurately they present themselves using Facebook profiles. The current study examined the relationship between self-ratings and perceiver ratings of self-monitoring and likability. In the first phase of the study, a self-rating scale was used among college students (N = 25) to collect Facebook profile screenshots of high and low self-monitors. These screen shots were then used as the stimuli for the second phase of the study, where a second pool of college students (N = 221) rated those individuals on self-monitoring and likeability based solely on the information gathered from the Facebook profiles. It was predicted that there would be a significant difference between perceiver and self-ratings. Independent t-tests was used to compare the mean perceiver self-monitoring score to self-ratings. The results were significant, meaning perceivers did not accurately detect targets’ self-monitoring based on the way the individuals presented themselves on their Facebook profiles. It was also predicted that high self-monitors would be seen as less likable than low self-monitors. An analysis of variance found that those who were perceived as high self-monitors were in fact rated as less likable
The Political Gender Gap in Afghanistan
No full textWomen’s empowerment has become a salient issue in nation building in recent times. The need to secure basic human rights may well be at the core of the attention, but development experts appear to have recognized the core role of women in family and community well-being in developing countries and are beginning to tout the importance of women’s empowerment in all the aspects of development policies as reflected in the European Union’s Millennium Development Goals. This study explores political gender differences in Afghanistan, a Muslim country of extensive gender differentiation. The gender disparities we observe are not what one might have expected. Men outperform women only in those specific areas where the prohibitive structural and social limitations placed on women by the larger Afghan society would predict. We contend that these gaps would attenuate as Afghanistan’s nascent democracy deepens and extends more freedoms to Afghan women
Media Naturalness and Compensatory Adaptation: Counterintuitive Effects on Correct Rejections of Deceitful Contract Clauses
No full textResearch problem: Deciding whether to accept or reject contract clauses in software purchasing contracts is a complex communication-related task, which is likely faced daily by a multitude of software purchasing professionals in a variety of organizations. Research question: What are the effects of viewing contract clauses as video clips, compared to viewing clauses as text only, in terms of cognitive effort, communication ambiguity, and correctness in the acceptance or rejection of clauses in software purchasing contracts? Literature review: The literature on the Media Richness and Media Naturalness theories suggest that viewing contract clauses as video clips should reduce cognitive effort and communication ambiguity. However, while Media Richness theory suggests that correctness in the acceptance or rejection of clauses in software purchasing contracts should increase with the use of video clips, Media Naturalness theory suggests a neutral overall effect. Methodology: An experiment was conducted in which student participants were asked to either accept or reject 20 clauses from a software contract, placing themselves in the position of buyers. Of the 20 clauses, 6 were intentionally deceitful and potentially harmful to the buyer. Approximately half of the participants reviewed the contract clauses as web-based text, and the remaining as web-based video clips. Results and conclusions: Viewing contract clauses as video clips was associated with significantly less cognitive effort and less communication ambiguity than viewing the clauses as text only. Counterintuitively, increases in perceived cognitive effort and communication ambiguity were associated with more successful identification and rejection of deceitful contract clauses. The combination of these competing effects led to an overall neutral effect of the medium on the correctness in the acceptance or rejection of clauses. These findings are consistent with expectations based on Media Naturalness theory, particularly its compensatory adaptation proposition, and inconsistent with expectations based on Media Richness theory
A note on how to conduct a factor-based PLS-SEM analysis
No full textThe composite-factor estimation dichotomy has been the epicenter of a long and ongoing debate among proponents and detractors of the use of the partial least squares (PLS) approach for structural equation modeling (SEM). In this brief research note the author discusses the implementation of a new method to conduct factor-based PLS-SEM analyses, which could be a solid step in the resolution of this debate. This method generates estimates of both true composites and factors, in two stages, fully accounting for measurement error. The author\u27s discussion is based on an illustrative model in the field of e-collaboration. A Monte Carlo experiment suggests that model parameters generated by the method are asymptotically unbiased. The method is implemented as part of the software WarpPLS, starting in version 5.0. This note provides enough details for the method\u27s implementation in other venues such as R and GNU Octave
Science teachers’ decision-making in Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage (AOUM) classrooms: taboo subjects and discourses of sex and sexuality in classroom settings
No full textSex education, especially in the southeastern USA, remains steeped in an Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage (AOUM) approach, which sets up barriers to the education of sexually active students. Research confirms that science education has the potential to facilitate discussion of controversial topics, including sex education. Science teachers in the USA, however, may face legislative challenges influenced by the local political and social climate. This study aims to understand how science teachers address and construct curriculum related to sex education topics in AOUM environments. A Foucauldian lens is used to examine how teachers’ discourses influence decision-making concerning sex education. Findings from the study suggest that the AOUM curriculum influences the ways in which science teachers make decisions about the curriculum and taboo subjects such as homosexuality and abortion. The study also suggests that students learn about sex and sexuality in ways directly related to their personal experiences. Finally, study findings suggest that personal controversies, such as those relating to sexual health, can be integrated into science education through forms of teacher education and professional development attuned to the different ways that AOUM policies affect science teaching practices
Construcción de ciudadanía a partir del relato de jóvenes participantes del #YoSoy132
No full textEn este trabajo se presentan los resultados del análisis del relato de jóvenes que participaron en el surgimiento del #YoSoy132. De manera puntual analizamos el uso que hicieron de las redes sociales con relación al acceso a la información, formas de organización y visibilización en el espacio público. Analizaremos entonces la participación política juvenil a partir de la biografía y la generación para tratar de comprender lo que está en juego en términos de la construcción de ciudadanía en el largo plazo a partir del repertorio de acciones colectivas en el que se vieron envueltos los jóvenes participantes del #YoSoy132 durante el 2012