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Digital platforms: customer satisfaction, eWOM and the moderating role of perceived technological innovativeness
Get PDFPurpose
The paper aims to investigate how customer satisfaction can be achieved in the context of digital platform services, its influence on electronic word of mouth (eWOM) and how such relationships can be moderated by perceived technological innovativeness (PTI).
Design/methodology/approach
The research framework was developed and empirically tested using an online survey and analysed using structural equation modelling (SEM). Data were gathered from 501 Uber customers in London, UK.
Findings
The study recognises and confirms that trust and cost saving enhanced customer satisfaction in Uber mobility services, which has a positive impact on eWOM. There are other findings regarding users who share rides vs those who do not share. Furthermore, it has been found that PTI moderates the relationship between customer satisfaction and eWOM.
Originality/value
The research draws on collaborative consumption literature and contributes to the antecedents of customer satisfaction in digital economy literature: trust, environmental impact, cost saving and utility. The study offers an empirical validation of the role of PTI in enhancing eWOM. The paper breaks new ground for a better understanding of how PTI can moderate the influence of customer satisfaction and eWOM in digital platforms
Collaborative autoethnography: from rhythm and harmony to shared stories and truths
Get PDFThis chapter offers a review of the rich and diverse literature on collaborative autoethnography interwoven with a critical, personal, and political collaborative autoethnography. We outline the origins and development of collaborative approaches to autoethnography, the diverse approaches that have been used to date, and the relationships that may be called into being when autoethnographic researchers choose to collaborate. We see an important hallmark of collaborative autoethnography to be an openness to, and playful experimentation with, multiple voices and forms. Innovation and multiplicity, we suggest, enrich a field where difference and diversity are not only welcomed and very much at home but also essential
Comparative genomics analysis demonstrated a link between staphylococci isolated from different sources: a possible public health risk
Get PDFCoagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) have been recovered from different ecological niches, however, little is known about the genetic relatedness of these isolates. In this study, we used whole genome sequencing to compare mecA positive (mecA+) Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus haemolyticus and Staphylococcus hominis isolates recovered from hand-touched surfaces from general public settings in East and West London with data of isolates deposited to European Nucleotide Archive (ENA) by other research groups. These included isolates associated with hospital settings (including those recovered from patients), healthy humans, livestock, pets, plants and natural and other public environments. Using core and accessory phylogenetic analyses we were able to identify that the mecA+ S. epidermidis and S. haemolyticus isolates recovered from general public settings were genetically related to isolates recovered from the bloodstream, urinary tract and eye infections. S. epidermidis isolates recovered in our study were also shown to be genetically related to isolates previously recovered from livestock/livestock housing, whereas S. haemolyticus isolates were genetically related to isolates recovered from a dog and kefir (fermented cow milk drink). MecA+ S. hominis isolates were not genetically related to any isolates recovered from clinical samples but were genetically related to isolates recovered from mosquitoes, air samples (residential areas) and kefir. All three species showed to have genetic relatedness to isolates recovered from healthy humans. These results show that CoNS isolates in this study share genetic similarities with those of different lineages and that mecA+ S. epidermidis and S. haemolyticus isolates found in general public settings in this study may pose a risk to public health
On the use of short-time Fourier transform for the analysis of tree root systems using ground penetrating radar
Get PDFMonitoring and protecting natural assets is increasingly important today, as aggressive pathogens are negatively impacting the trees' survival. In this regard, root systems are affected by fungal infections that cause roots’ rot and eventually lead to trees' death. Such disease can spread rapidly to the adjacent trees and affect larger areas. Since these decays generally do not display visible signs, early identification is the key to tree preservation.
Within this context, non-destructive testing (NDT) methods are becoming popular, being more versatile than destructive methods. Specifically, ground penetrating radar (GPR) is emerging as an accurate geophysical method for tree root mapping. Recent research has focused on implementing automated algorithms for 3D root mapping, improving root detection through advanced GPR signal processing and the estimation of tree roots' mass density [1]. Also, recent studies have proven that GPR is effective in mapping the root system's architecture of street trees [2].
The present research reports the preliminary results of an experimental study, conducted to investigate the feasibility of a novel tree root assessment methodology based on the analysis of GPR data both in time and frequency domain. To this end, data were processed using a short-time Fourier transform (STFT) approach [3], which allows the evaluation of how the frequency spectrum changes across the signal propagation time window. The suggested processing system may be implemented for expeditious analyses or on trees challenging to access, such as in urban environments, where more comprehensive survey methods are not applicable. The objectives of this study, therefore, are to investigate how different features (i.e., roots, layers) affect the time-frequency analysis of GPR data, and to identify recurring patterns in the results to set a coherent data processing methodology.
Results' interpretation has shown the viability of the presented approach in recognising the influence of different features on the analysis of GPR data as it changes over time. This also allowed the detection of recurring patterns in the analysed data, proving that this method is worthy of further investigations
Differences in the socio-demographic determinants of undernutrition in children aged <5 years in urban and rural areas of Bangladesh measured by the Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure
Get PDFObjectives: This study investigates the prevalence and determinants of undernutrition among children <5 years living in Bangladesh using the Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure (CIAF) and highlights the differences between urban and rural areas.
Study design: Data are drawn from three cross-sectional Bangladesh Demographic Health Surveys (BDHS) conducted from 2007 to 2014.
Methods: A Chi-square test was used to assess the prevalence of under-5 child undernutrition. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify various socio-demographic risk factors.
Results: The prevalence of undernutrition based on the CIAF was 52% among children under-5 in Bangladesh. The prevalence of undernutrition in children living in urban areas was found to be 45% and 54% in rural areas. As per the CIAF, undernutrition was highly prevalent among children in the older age group, children of uneducated and currently working mothers, those of underweight mothers, were fourth and above in the birth order, had fathers who were manual labourers, where households had no access to television and those in the poorest households whether in urban or rural areas. Children in the older age group, children of uneducated mothers, those with underweight mothers and from the poorest households provided common key risk factors for undernutrition in both urban and rural areas. Children of fourth and above birth order, and not watching television at all were additional risk factors of child undernutrition in rural areas.
Conclusion: Half of the children in rural areas and two-fifth of them in urban areas are suffering undernutrition in Bangladesh and several socio-demographic factors heighten the risks. Also, birth order and watching television were identified as the differential risk factors. This study therefore concludes that evidence-based interventions are needed to reduce the burden of undernutrition in children in the country
Campus closures and the devaluing of emplaced Higher Education: widening participation in neoliberal times
No full textWidening participation (WP) in Higher Education (HE) is often positioned as key to resolving social inequality; it underpins arguments that increasing levels of education lead to reduced levels of poverty. Located within the tension of duty and need, WP is positioned as both the responsibility of the University and a financial imperative. This paper considers the student experience of this tension, specifically the contradictions between discourses of equality and diversity and neoliberal conceptualisations of HE as market. Drawing upon qualitative research conducted during the closure of a WP satellite campus, the paper explores the consequences of the withdrawal of HE provision for ‘local’ students. Utilising focus group methodologies to develop an approach for ‘thinking with’ seven WP students, the paper explores the material, social and affective contexts within which students experience university in their ‘hometown’. Foregrounding participants’ critical understanding of their ‘place’ within a marketised HE sector, we consider the formation of student identity as a site of struggles for value. We argue, the closure of satellite campuses must be understood within the context of deepening social-spatial inequalities. Developing a critique of individualised constructions of ‘social mobility’, we outline an alternative imaginary of HE as an intergenerational community resource
Imagining genomic medicine futures in primary care: general practitioners’ views on mainstreaming genomics in the National Health Service
Get PDFGenomic medicine has captured the imaginations of policymakers and medical scientists keen to harness its health and economic potentials. In 2012, the UK government launched the 100,000 Genomes Project to sequence the genomes of British National Health Service (NHS) patients, laying the ground for mainstreaming genomic medicine in the NHS and developing the UK’s genomics industry. However, the recent research and reports from national bodies monitoring genomic medicine's roll-out suggest both ethical and practical challenges for health-care professionals. Against this backdrop, this paper, drawing on qualitative research interviews with general practitioners (GPs) and documentary analysis of policy, explores GPs’ views on mainstreaming genomic medicine in the NHS and implications for their practice. Analysing the NHS’s genomic medicine agenda as a ‘sociotechnical imaginary’, we demonstrate that whilst sociotechnical imaginaries are construed as collectively shared understandings of the future, official visions of genomic medicine diverge from those at the forefront of health-care service delivery. Whilst policy discourse evokes hope and transformation of health care, some GPs see technology in formation, an unattainable ‘utopia’, with no relevance to their everyday clinical practice. Finding space for genomics requires bridging the gap between ‘work as imagined’ at the policy level and ‘work as done’ in health-care delivery
Experimental and theoretical behaviour of reinforced concrete beams containing hybrid fibres
Get PDFThe use of fibres of different sizes are needed to improve the control of multi-level cracking of reinforced concrete (RC). There are several studies of the use of hybrid fibres for this purpose, however, there is limited work on the finite element modelling (FEM) of fibres in crack arresting of RC beams. In this study, fifteen RC beams containing silica fume, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polypropylene (PP), or hybrid fibres were experimentally tested and then finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted using ATENA 3D. The fibres were used up to 2.5% in the beams which were reinforced with and without shear reinforcement. All the beams were tested under four point bending with span to depth (a/d) ratio of 2.25. It was found that the PP, PVA fibres, and their hybrid in RC beams showed higher ductility in terms of multiple cracking before failure as compared with control beam without fibres. It was noticed also that PVA fibre showed a relatively greater flexural strength and recovery effect compared to PP fibre. Adding more than 1.5% PVA or hybrid fibres (1.5% PVA and 0.375% PP) without shear reinforcement contributed towards increasing shear capacity and ductility compared to the control beam containing shear reinforcement without fibres. A combination of small amount of hybrid fibres (0.75% PVA and 0.75% PP) and stirrups reinforcement resulted in a higher shear strength and higher ductility compared to other studied beams without shear reinforcement, which contain PVA, PP fibres up to 2.5% or hybrid fibres (1.5% PVA and 0.375% PP). A simple empirical equation based on the ACI-code 318-19 was used for predicting the shear behaviour of the studied beams taking in to consideration the effect of hybrid fibres for predicting the shear strength of the studied beams in a simple and accurate way. Based on the results of this investigation, it is recommended that a combination of hybrid fibres (0.75% PVA and 0.75% PP) and stirrups reinforcement (7.5 Ø 6 /m) should be used to achieve adequate shear behaviour of hybrid fibre reinforced concrete beams. The FEA results of all beams showed a good correlation with the experimental results in terms of the maximum load, load versus deflection and crack patterns
Global prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in cats: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Get PDFThe One-Health approach highlights that the health of human populations is closely connected to the health of animals and their shared environment. Cryptosporidiosis is an opportunistic zoonotic disease considering as global public health concern. Cats are considered as one of potential host for transmitting the Cryptosporidium spp. infection to humans. A random-effects meta-analysis model was used to estimate the overall and the subgroup-pooled prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. across studies, and the variance between studies (heterogeneity) were quantified by I2 index. Eighty articles (including 92 datasets), from 29 countries met eligibility criteria for analysis. The pooled global prevalence (95% CI) of Cryptosporidium spp. in cats was 6% (4–8%), being highest in Africa 14% (0–91%) and lowest in South and Central America 4% (3–7%) countries. Considering the detection methods, the pooled prevalence was estimated to be 26% (1–67%) using serological detection methods, 6% (3–10%) using coproantigen detection methods, 5% (3–7%) using molecular detection methods, and 4% (3–7%) using microscopic detection methods. The highest prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was found in stray cats 10% (5–17%), while pet (domestic) cats 4% (3–7%) had the lowest prevalence. These results emphasize the role of cats as reservoir hosts for human-infecting Cryptosporidium spp. Prevention and control of this zoonosis in cats should receive greater attention by health officials and health policymakers, especially in countries where prevalence are highest