Effects of COVID-19 on Business and Research

The COVID-19 outbreak is a sharp reminder that pandemics, like other rarely occurring catastrophes, have happened in the past and will continue to happen in the future. Even if we cannot prevent dangerous viruses from emerging, we should prepare to dampen their effects on society. The current outbreak has had severe economic consequences across the globe, and it does not look like any country will be unaffected. This not only has consequences for the economy; all of society is affected, which has led to dramatic changes in how businesses act and consumers behave. This special issue is a global effort to address some of the pandemic-related issues affecting society. In total, there are 13 papers that cover different industry sectors (e.g., tourism, retail, higher education), changes in consumer behavior and businesses, ethical issues, and aspects related to employees and leadership.acceptedVersio

Using Consumer-Generated Social Media Posts to Improve Forecasts of Television Premiere Viewership: Extending Diffusion of Innovation Theory

This research investigated how social media can be quantified and used as an input to improve audience forecasts for television show premieres. There were two key findings. First, Twitter activity (volume of tweets and retweets) drives viewership of shows that are unscripted (i.e., reality or competition shows). From a practical perspective, Twitter activity improved prediction accuracy beyond that of forecasting inputs typically employed by the industry. The second key finding was the interaction of media attention given to a show and audience size of the show leading into (i.e., preceding) the premiere. One practical implication for network scheduling and promotion efforts is to use strong lead-in shows along with large mass media efforts for a television season’s “flagship” series that are most important for a network’s success. This research also extends Diffusion of Innovation theory (Rogers, 2003) and diffusion modeling to television entertainment consumption. Diffusion of Innovation theory predicts the importance of information dispersion across heterophilous groups (i.e., groups that are diverse). The Bass (1969) diffusion model, a statistical model introduced to describe the diffusion of innovation, also predicts that media presence (an external factor) in conjunction with consumer eWOM (an internal factor) drive premiere ratings

JOB SATISFACTION ON JOB PERFORMANCE OF EMPLOYEES IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY

This research article aims to “To measure the impact of key predictors of job satisfaction on job performance of employees in IT industry”. The paper applies data reduction using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) on a sample of 364 respondents drawn from IT industry in the Bengaluru and condenses a set of 12 job satisfaction items converted into a four key predictors. The present study proposes a model of the impact of key predictors of job satisfaction on job performance. The study found that pay, supervision, work itself and promotion are impacting significantly the job performance. Therefore, IT companies should focus on the above factors to job performance of employees. The study investigated the impact of key predictors of job satisfaction on job performance of the employees in IT industry concluded that pay had the highest impact on the job performance of the employees’ supervision, work itself followed by promotions

Risk factors for multiple pregnancies in intrauterine insemination cycles with ovarian stimulation: a predictive approach

Background: The aim of this study was to predict the risk of multiple pregnancies during ovarian stimulation (OS) followed by intrauterine insemination (IUI) as a treatment for infertility and to identify risk factors associated with multiple pregnancies in IUI cycles. Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted on 358 couples who underwent OS with IUI between January 2022 and July 2023. Data on maternal and paternal age, type of infertility, gonadotropin dosing, follicular size, and total motile sperm concentration (TMSC) were collected. The primary outcome was clinical pregnancy, defined as the presence of a gestational sac on transvaginal ultrasound (TVS). Descriptive and regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between these variables and the incidence of multiple pregnancies. Results: A total of 358 IUI cycles resulted in 57 clinical pregnancies, yielding a pregnancy rate of 15.9%. Among these, 87.7% were singleton pregnancies, and 12.3% were multiple pregnancies. No significant association was found between maternal age, paternal age, or type of infertility and multiple pregnancy outcomes. However, regression analysis revealed that the presence of follicles between 13-15 mm, in combination with larger follicles (>15 mm), significantly increased the likelihood of multiple pregnancies (p=0.007). Additionally, a significant relationship was found between gonadotropin dosing and multiple pregnancy rate (p<0.05), whereas TMSC did not significantly correlate with multiple pregnancy outcomes (p=0.57). Conclusions: The risk of multiple pregnancies in IUI cycles is significantly associated with follicle size, particularly the presence of follicles in the 13-15 mm range, and higher gonadotropin dosing. While TMSC did not affect multiple pregnancy rates, careful monitoring of ovarian response, especially follicle size, is crucial for minimizing the risk of multiple pregnancies and optimizing clinical outcomes in controlled OS (COS)-IUI cycles

Multidimensional Facets of Perceived Risk in Mobile Travel Booking

Despite the growing prevalence of smartphones in daily life and travel context, travellers still perceive an extent of risk associated with using their smartphone to book travel products. In order to alleviate or reduce perceived risk, it is important to better understand the dimensions of and the factors that contribute to perceived risk. This study analysed 411 responses from an online panel to examine perceived risk in mobile travel booking and identified the following facets: time risk, financial risk, performance risk, privacy/security risk, psychological risk, physical risk, and device risk. Several antecedents of perceived risk were identified. Perceived collection of personal information via smartphones contributes positively, while consumer innovativeness, trust, and visibility contribute negatively to perceived risk. Further, the predictive validity of perceived risk is confirmed as it significantly explains perceived usefulness, attitude, and behavioural intention in mobile travel booking. Implications to manage perceived risk and its antecedents are provided

Application Of Media Richness Theory To Data Collection

Researchers and practitioners are becoming more dependent on electronic means of data collection. This study utilizes media richness theory (MRT) as a means to better understand respondent performance in data collection among adults and adolescents. Examining the differences between paper and pencil, interview and electronic form methods of data collection, the results of this study indicate that matching task type to data collection method according to MRT principles produces improved levels of response distortion as expected; however, item omissions are not influenced in the manner anticipated from MRT concepts

An exploratory study of executive factors that lead to technology adoption in small businesses

The small business setting can be quite competitive, and companies that succeed tend to invest in technology to gain or maintain a competitive edge. Often, the adoption of technology is heavily dependent on the specific will and desires of the CEO or other top executives. This research aims to determine what executive factors affect the adoption of technology among small businesses. We employ the technology acceptance model to test the correlations between technology acceptance and the unique characteristics of small digital printing companies. The results suggest that the executive personality traits of entrepreneurship and technology readiness are indicators of a positive attitude toward technology and market orientation and show that this positive attitude correlates with technology adoption

SyntenyTracker: a tool for defining homologous synteny blocks using radiation hybrid maps and whole-genome sequence

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The recent availability of genomic sequences and BAC libraries for a large number of mammals provides an excellent opportunity for identifying comparatively-anchored markers that are useful for creating high-resolution radiation-hybrid (RH) and BAC-based comparative maps. To use these maps for multispecies genome comparison and evolutionary inference, robust bioinformatic tools are required for the identification of chromosomal regions shared between genomes and to localize the positions of evolutionary breakpoints that are the signatures of chromosomal rearrangements. Here we report an automated tool for the identification of homologous synteny blocks (HSBs) between genomes that tolerates errors common in RH comparative maps and can be used for automated whole-genome analysis of chromosome rearrangements that occur during evolution.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>We developed an algorithm and software tool (SyntenyTracker) that can be used for automated definition of HSBs using pair-wise RH or gene-based comparative maps as input. To verify correct implementation of the underlying algorithm, SyntenyTracker was used to identify HSBs in the cattle and human genomes. Results demonstrated 96% agreement with HSBs defined manually using the same set of rules. A comparison of SyntenyTracker with the AutoGRAPH synteny tool was performed using identical datasets containing 14,380 genes with 1:1 orthology in human and mouse. Discrepancies between the results using the two tools and advantages of SyntenyTracker are reported.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>SyntenyTracker was shown to be an efficient and accurate automated tool for defining HSBs using datasets that may contain minor errors resulting from limitations in map construction methodologies. The utility of SyntenyTracker will become more important for comparative genomics as the number of mapped and sequenced genomes increases.</p

Montmorillonite modified by CNx supported Pt for methanol oxidation

A composite support based on nature clay, i.e. montmorillonite (MMT), shows great promise as support materials for Pt electrocatalyst for the methanol oxidation reaction in fuel cell anodes. The reported composite support (CNx-MMT) was prepared via carbonizing MMT which was covered by N-contented polymer. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy results showed that Pt nanoparticles can be well-dispersed on the composite support with highly dispersed tiny crystal Pt nanoparticles. Cyclic voltammetry measurements showed that the Pt/CNx-MMT has the enhanced electrocatalytic activity in methanol oxidation reaction. The developed Pt catalyst supported on new composite support is catalytically more active for methanol electrooxidation than Pt supported on the conventional carbon support and shows good stability, offering promising potential for application of MMT as support for fuel cell electrocatalysis.Web of Scienc