1,721,162 research outputs found
Disentangling the impact of omnichannel integration on consumer behavior in integrated sales channels
Full text link“Brick-and-mortar” retailers, when expanding their businesses to online channels, can either add a separate online channel or integrate channels to enhance service offerings. Although past studies on channel choice have yielded insights into factors affecting consumers’ channel preference, there is a dearth of research that sheds light on when and why massive investments into channel integration would be preferred over online optimizations. To this end, we construct and validate a theoretical model that posits omnichannel integration services for acquisition and recovery as predictors of consumers’ online channel preference through influencing their perceptions of convenience and risk. Our experimental study reveals how distinct configurations of cross-channel service offerings affect consumers’ channel evaluations and decisions, as well as how complementarities from channel integration across transaction and post-transaction phases can prevail over pure online substitutes. Consequently, this study bridges diagnostic and prescriptive research streams on multichannel and omnichannel retail by attesting to channel integration as a viable channel differentiator. From a practical standpoint, we compare 12 distinct channel configurations with regard to consumers’ core evaluative criteria and highlight the value of omnichannel integration since efficiency improvements to the online channel can only serve as a partial substitute to channel integration
Conducting Online Focus Groups - Practical Advice for Information Systems Researchers
Full text linkVideo-based online focus groups present an emerging opportunity for IS researchers to collect rich data. They allow researchers to assemble participants from all over the world who collectively discuss contemporary IS phenomena. In order to realize the full potential of online focus groups for IS research, we need to understand the challenges and uncover possible solutions for designing and conducting online focus groups. We review prior (online) focus group literature in and beyond the IS discipline. Additionally, we provide a detailed account of our own experiences with seven online focus groups in the context of digital platforms. In supplementing our own experiences with those of others in prior literature, we present the conditions under which online focus groups are especially appropriate, summarize the challenges inherent in the online focus group method and provide practical advice on its application
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Effectiveness of the Alfredson Protocol Compared With a Lower Repetition-Volume Protocol for Midportion Achilles Tendinopathy: A Randomized Controlled Trial
No full textStudy Design\ud
Randomized clinical trial. \ud
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Objectives\ud
To compare the effectiveness of the Alfredson eccentric heel-drop protocol with a “do-as-tolerated” protocol for nonathletic individuals with midportion Achilles tendinopathy. \ud
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Background\ud
The Alfredson protocol recommends the completion of 180 eccentric heel drops a day. However, completing this large number of repetitions is time consuming and potentially uncomfortable. There is a need to investigate varying exercise dosages that minimize the discomfort yet retain the clinical benefits. \ud
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Methods\ud
Twenty-eight individuals from outpatient physiotherapy departments were randomized to either the standard (n = 15) or the do-as-tolerated (n = 13) 6-week intervention protocol. Apart from repetition volume, all other aspects of management were standardized between groups. Tendinopathy clinical severity was assessed with the Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment-Achilles (VISA-A) questionnaire. Pain intensity was assessed using a visual analog scale (VAS). Both were assessed at baseline, 3 weeks, and 6 weeks. Treatment satisfaction was assessed at week 6. Adverse effects were also monitored. \ud
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Results\ud
There was a statistically significant within-group improvement in VISA-A score for both groups (standard, P = .03; do as tolerated, P<.001) and VAS pain for the do-as-tolerated group (P = .001) at week 6, based on the intention-to-treat analysis. There was a statistically significant between-group difference in VISA-A scores at week 3, based on both the intention-to-treat (P = .004) and per-protocol analyses (P = .007), partly due to a within-group deterioration at week 3 in the standard group. There were no statistically significant between-group differences for VISA-A and VAS pain scores at week 6, the completion of the intervention. There was no significant association between satisfaction and treatment groups at week 6. No adverse effects were reported. \ud
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Conclusion\ud
Performing a 6-week do-as-tolerated program of eccentric heel-drop exercises, compared to the recommended 180 repetitions per day, did not lead to lesser improvement for individuals with midportion Achilles tendinopathy, based on VISA-A and VAS scores
Perometry limb volume measurement: Protocol development and reliability
No full textAims: Perometry measurement of limb volume involves non-invasive optoelectronic scanning and is increasingly used due to its practicality and increasing evidence for its validity. This study aimed to develop a standardized protocol for the measurement of upper and lower limb volume using a vertical perometer (400T) and test its reliability. Methodology: Multiple pilot studies were conducted in a laboratory-based setting to investigate specific procedural questions and develop the final standardized protocol. This included elements such as standardization of the proportion of limb being measured, and of limb positioning within the perometer frame. The standardized protocol was tested for inter-and intra-rater reliability in two raters, on two separate test occasions, 24-48 h apart. The study included 30 volunteers with no known clinical conditions (n = 23 women, seven men; mean age 23). Major findings: High intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) values resulted for intra-rater and inter-rater reliability in the upper and lower limbs (0.953-0.989). Limits of agreement analysis demonstrated less positive results, however. Principal conclusion: The results provide support for the use of this protocol to increase standardization and comparability of measurement in clinical and research contexts. Further investigation in different clinical populations is required. © 2013 Informa Healthcare
Contribution of vision, touch, and hearing to the use of sham devices in acupuncture-related studies
Full text linkDerek Santos - ORCID 0000-0001-9936-715X
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9936-715XThis study investigates whether visual deprivation influences participants' accuracy in differentiating between real and sham acupuncture needles. It also evaluates the relative contributions of tactile, visual, and auditory cues that participants use in their decision-making processes. In addition, a simple sensory decision-making model for research using acupuncture sham devices as comparative controls is proposed. Forty healthy individuals underwent two conditions (blindfolded and sighted) in random sequence. Four sham and four real needles were randomly applied to the participants' lower limb acupoints (ST32 to ST39). Participants responded which needle type was applied. Participants then verbally answered a questionnaire on which sensory cues influenced their decision-making. The proportion of correct judgments, P(C), was calculated to indicate the participants' accuracy in distinguishing between the needle types. Visual deprivation did not significantly influence the participants' discrimination accuracy. Tactile cues were the dominant sensory modality used in decision-making, followed by visual and auditory cues. Sharp and blunt sensations were associated with the real and sham needles, respectively, for both conditions. This study confirmed that tactile cues were the main sensory modalities used in participant decision-making during acupuncture administration. Also, short-term blindfolding of participants during procedures will unlikely influence blinding effectiveness.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jams.2019.12.00313pubpub
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Signal detection theory in the study of nociceptive and pain perception processes
Full text linkSignal detection theory (SDT) measures (discriminability and response bias) have been proposed to be valid for determining pain perception changes. The construct validity of SDT measures applied to pain perception studies has been questioned on three grounds: interpretation, methodology and theory. Multiple interpretations are possible for the combinations of discriminability and response bias change when the magnitude-rating scale is used for pain perception studies. This is resolved by utilising the confidence-rating scale. The problem of comparability of results between the two scales is bridged by Irwin ;Whitehead’s (1991) common analytical framework. The results of this thesis supported the framework’s prediction that both scales are comparable. Therefore, the confidencerating scale was used for all studies within this thesis for interpretational clarity. Response bias data were not analysed in this thesis due to data artefacts created by correction methods for zero proportions in response categories. Methodologically, the construct validity of discriminability is influenced by the research design and procedures. Therefore, the following procedures were adopted to address weaknesses in previous studies. The one-interval confidence-rating task was used with a six-category confidence-rating scale and post-trial feedback. Based on a methodological study conducted within this thesis, the trial number was pragmatically reduced from 40 trials to 17 trials per stimulus intensity. This trial number reduction would not alter the mean and variance of the data sufficiently to influence the outcome of inferential statistical testing performed. Due to the novel use of the Quantitative Sensory Testing machine for the signal detection study procedures, accuracy and precision study on the machine was performed. This thesis found that the accuracy, repeatability and reproducibility of the machine in generating noxious thermal stimuli is excellent for the purposes of this thesis. Machine error is eliminated as a major source of variance for the thesis results. Theoretically, critics have challenged the construct validity of discriminability as an indicator of pain perception alteration. This thesis examined this issue in two separate contexts: 1) discriminability change as a correlate of local anaesthesia and, 2) discriminability as a correlate of psychological factors (depression and anxiety) in chronic low back pain (CLBP) sufferers. The results failed to establish the construct validity of discriminability for both contexts. However, the higher discriminability in CLBP sufferers compared to healthy individuals is in contrast to past research and warrant further investigation. This thesis addressed the construct validity issues through theoretical, methodological and interpretational modifications. A more robust analysis of the construct validity issue was facilitated. Caution is recommended on the use of discriminability as a pain perception measure until the construct validity issue has been satisfactorily resolved.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MANUAL ROAD PRICING SCHEME AND THE PUBLIC'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS ELECTRONIC ROAD PRICING SCHEME
No full textBachelor'sBACHELOR OF SCIENCE (REAL ESTATE
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