Highlights

Summary

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Introduction

Results

Discussion

STAR★Methods

Acknowledgments

Supplemental information

Supporting Citations

References

Summary

Most extracellular matrices (ECMs) are known to be dissipative, exhibiting viscoelastic and often plastic behaviors. However, the influence of dissipation, in particular mechanical plasticity in 3D confining microenvironments, on cell motility is not clear. In this study, we develop a chemo-mechanical model for dynamics of invadopodia, the protrusive structures that cancer cells use to facilitate invasion, by considering myosin recruitment, actin polymerization, matrix deformation, and mechano-sensitive signaling pathways. We demonstrate that matrix dissipation facilitates invadopodia growth by softening ECMs over repeated cycles, during which plastic deformation accumulates via cyclic ratcheting. Our model reveals that distinct protrusion patterns, oscillatory or monotonic, emerge from the interplay of timescales for polymerization-associated extension and myosin recruitment dynamics. Our model predicts the changes in invadopodia dynamics upon inhibition of myosin, adhesions, and the Rho-Rho-associated kinase (ROCK) pathway. Altogether, our work highlights the role of matrix plasticity in invadopodia dynamics and can help design dissipative biomaterials to modulate cancer cell motility.

Introduction

Cancer cells invade extracellular matrices (ECMs) from primary tumors and intravasate into circulation in order to metastasize to distal organs. During this process, cells can actively modify their spreading (Chaudhuri et al., 2015; Discher et al., 2005; Vogel and Sheetz, 2006) and migration (Pakshir et al., 2019; Sunyer et al., 2016; van Helvert et al., 2018) by sensing the ECM’s mechanical properties, including stiffness (Chan and Odde, 2008; Discher et al., 2005; Elosegui-Artola et al., 2014) and viscosity (Bennett et al., 2018; Charrier et al., 2018; Chaudhuri et al., 2020; Gong et al., 2018). Such mechano-sensitivity is thought to be governed by adhesion dynamics and actomyosin contractility, and several approaches have been developed to quantitatively study mechano-transduction processes, including motor clutch dynamics for adhesions (Chan and Odde, 2008; Prahl et al., 2020) and chemo-mechanical feedback models for contractility (Alisafaei et al., 2019; Shenoy et al., 2016). Beyond stiffness and viscosity, certain ECMs, such as reconstituted basement membrane (rBM) matrices and type I collagen gels, exhibit plastic behavior, in which deformation can be irreversible (Ban et al., 2018; Nam et al., 2016). Recent studies have shown that invadopodia, which are actin-rich protrusions, can deform viscoplastic ECMs to facilitate invasive cell migration through matrices by mechanical force alone, independent of proteases (Wisdom et al., 2018; Wisdom et al., 2020). As these viscoplastic ECMs can be permanently deformed and thus possess long-term mechanical memory, how cells are able to sense plastic deformation and modify their behavior is a crucial, but as yet unanswered, question.

1- Introduction

2- Literature review

3- The model

4- Analysis

5- Extension: Alternative timing of quantity decisions

6- Conclusion

References

Abstract

This paper investigates manufacturer encroachment with both endogenous quality decision and asymmetric demand information to examine the effects of encroachment and information structure on quality and profits for chain members. Manufacturer encroachment results in a signaling game where at equilibrium the retailer has to distort the order quantity downward under low market size. Our result shows that encroachment leads to a lower quality when the manufacturer’s direct selling cost is intermediate. The manufacturer always benefits from encroachment, and the retailer benefits from encroachment under an intermediate direct selling cost of the manufacturer since she can deter the manufacturer from selling directly to avoid channel competition. Results provide several information management implications. Compared to the full and no information cases, asymmetric information may increase quality when direct selling is relatively efficient while decrease quality otherwise. The manufacturer may prefer to keep information disadvantages when his direct selling cost is relatively large and the prior probability of large market size is high. Additionally, the informed retailer may be willing to share information to avoid the unexpected order quantity downward distortion in the case of asymmetric information when direct selling is efficient. As a result, the chain members reach a consensus on information sharing when the manufacturer’s direct selling cost is quite small or relatively large.

Introduction

The rapid development of e-commerce has enabled many manufacturers to build online channels and sell products directly to consumers, aside from the existing traditional channel where products are sold through a retailer (Tedeschi, 2000). Such phenomenon of manufacturers establishing online channels is usually termed as “manufacturer encroachment”, which has been observed in a variety of industries (Tannenbaum, 1995). For instance, a great deal of electronic product makers, e.g., Apple and HP, sell their products through both third-party retail stores and their own websites (Chen et al., 2017). Another example is in the apparel and fashion industry, manufacturers, such as Nike, Adidas, Coach, also develop dual-channel supply chains consisting of both direct and retail channels (Li et al., 2015). Manufacturer encroachment gives rise to channel competition between the upstream manufacturer and the downstream retailer. To manage these dual distribution channels successfully, different manufacturers have adopted a variety of strategies (Wang et al., 2017). In order to avoid potential channel conflict, manufacturers, such as Daimler, Nikon, and Rubbermaid, only use the online direct channel as a virtue showroom to provide users with product information and in-stock information of nearby retail stores without offering any products in the direct channel. In addition, as quality plays a paramount role in product design of a manufacturer (Jerath et al., 2017), different channel structures may be applied to different levels of product quality (Chen et al., 2017). A survey in 2014 indicated that 47% of 67 US sales channel managers held the opinion that opening a direct online channel is beneficial for product quality improvement (Forrester Research, Inc., 2014). In apparel industry, it is shown that the transition to a dual-channel setting with both retail and direct channels could allow a manufacturer to deliver a better quality product (Mount, 2013). As a result, a question naturally arises that will manufacturer encroachment always increase product quality.

1- Introduction

2- Literature review and hypotheses

3- Method

4- Results

5- Discussion and conclusion

References

Abstract

Purpose – Online technologies have, in recent times, revolutionized the process of relationship building between firms and their customers. Nonetheless, there is a limited focus and theorization when it comes to explaining the link between online relationship marketing (ORM) activities and their impact on firm relationship marketing (RM) objectives. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine the signaling role of ORM activities in generating online trust and customer loyalty, through the lens of the signaling theory.
Design/methodology/approach – Data for the study were gathered through a survey of 429 Ghanaian retail bank customers. Results were analyzed using structural equation modeling techniques. Findings – The paper highlights the signaling role of engagement and interactivity online in influencing banks’ RM outcomes per the signaling theory. It concludes that bank’s online relationship activities, over and above the online tools utilized, need to communicate appropriate and useful signals in order to positively influence online trust and loyalty among customers.
Originality/value – The study, in its uniqueness, utilizes the signaling theory to explain the role and impact of online RM activities in the banking industry.

Introduction

It has become increasingly important for firms to build relationships with their customers and other key stakeholders in the industries within which they operate. This can be attributed, in part, to the advent of new forms of technology, and their ability to alter the nature of relationships and the way they are developed between firms and their stakeholders (Verma et al., 2016; Guo, 2014). Relationship marketing (RM) as a strategy contributes immensely to the firm’s value proposition within the marketplace. It fosters partnerships, which ultimately lead to profitable exchanges that help firms to acquire, retain and adequately satisfy their customers (Kanagal, 2009). But, technological advances are affecting customer expectations (Armistead and Kiely, 2003). Their needs and wants are constantly evolving, and as a result, marketers must frequently evaluate their methods to keep up with emerging trends. Although, businesses all over the globe are leveraging new and emerging technologies like e-mails (Huang and Shyu, 2009), Web 2.0 tools (Mitic and Kapoulas, 2012) and mobiles in enhancing existing relationships, as well as creating new channels of interaction with their customers, there is the need for extensive research regarding this phenomenon. Researchers such as Ghazi et al. (2013) and Huang and Shyu (2009) opine that there is limited research on firms’ RM activities online and how it influences other RM outcomes. For instance, some scholars (Fam et al., 2004) have postulated the relevance of studying the incorporation of firms’ RM activities online with other organizational practices and outcomes, to the advancement of existing knowledge on the role and potential of internet technology in RM. Furthermore, there is also a need for more theorization in understanding the relationship between the online variables and the RM constructs. That conceptual link tends to be silent in extant online relationship marketing (ORM) research.

1- Introduction

2- India’s healthcare sector: an emerging economy context

3- Theoretical grounding: signaling theory

4- Literature review: challenges facing the healthcare sector of an emerging economy

5- Research design

6- Discussion and conclusions

References

Abstract

In India, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed type of cancer among women in cities and urban areas, yet women seek medical care extremely late due to lack of awareness about self-examination. This study explores the health marketing literature via signaling theory, to uncover the unique social, economic, cultural and institutional challenges and opportunities faced by health marketers and consumers in breast cancer awareness (BCA) in an emerging economy – India. An interpretive-inductive method, alongside a grounded theory approach via focus groups with medical professionals and interviews with women is employed. Findings reveal complex challenges at national, state and community levels which impact negatively on the reputation of India’s health sector. Social marketing strategies could be leveraged to raise BCA via community health activists. Propositions are suggested and a conceptual framework is developed to assist health marketers to manage BCA in an emerging economy.

Introduction

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in most cities in India, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Kolkata, Chennai and Ahmedabad, accounting for 25% to 32% of all female cancers (Breast Cancer India, 2016). In India, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed type of cancer for urban Indian women (Bawa, 2012; Murthy, Agarwal, Chaudhry, & Saxena, 2007). Statistics show that 70,218 Indian women died of breast cancer in 2012 and by 2020 breast cancer is set to overtake cervical cancer as the most common type of cancer among all women in India (Shetty, 2012). In Western countries, breast cancer incidence rates increase with age, unlike India, where the rate of incidence is reversed, with the highest female mortality rate occurring in those aged between 30 and 50 (Khokhar, 2012). Studies show women seek medical care extremely late due to a lack of awareness about self-examination and India’s unique socio-cultural complexity (Rath & Gandhi, 2014; Shetty, 2012). Thus, women’s breast healthcare in India is neglected (Khokhar, 2012). The problem appears to manifest first, from insufficient government investment in developing an effective breast cancer awareness (BCA) strategy and second, the consequences of India’s rapid economic development. Globally, “…most developing countries have pursued formal health care system strategies which give primacy to government roles in financing and delivering health services” (Berman, 1998, p. 1463). However, for India, the task of delivering healthcare to over a billion people has proven a challenging and complex task, especially with the growing middle classes demanding higher quality healthcare services (Brosius, 2012). Healthcare in India is, at present, predominantly the responsibility of the central and state governments, each of the 29 respective states having control over delivering its own health services. However, overall control is held by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (hereafter MoHFW). Previous research has documented several challenges within the healthcare industry in India, including remuneration, motivation, commitment, quality, productivity, retention and training (e.g., Astor et al., 2005; Martinez & Martineau, 1998; O’Donnell et al., 2008; Sengupta & Nundy, 2005; Vujicic, Zurn, Diallo, Adams, & Dal Poz, 2004). India is also witnessing a growth in the private healthcare sector and evidence indicates that this industry will impact greatly on the economy, similar to the boom in the Information Technology-Business Process Outsourcing (IT–BPO) industry (NASSCOM, 2010). The federal budgets of 2011–16, showed on average a 10–20% rise in the health budget (federal budget speeches 2011–2016). For example, the funds from 2010 to 2011 for health rose to $5.9bn or £3.7bn (BBC, 2011) and in 2017–18 the health budget is expected to get a $1.5 billion, or 27%, increase in funding to around $7 billion (Kalra, 2016). However, there is no strategic focus on women’s breast healthcare (Gangane, Manvatkar, Ng, Hurtig, & San Sebastián, 2016).

Angiogenesis research in the past two decades has contributed significantly towards understanding the molecular pathophysiology of cancer progression and inspired target-oriented research and pharma industry for the development of novel anti-angiogenic agents. Currently, over eleven drugs targeting angiogenesis have been approved by the FDA for the treatment of various malignancies. Of the registered anti-angiogenic clinical trials until the end of 2017 (ClinicalTrials.gov), over 47% were completed, 10% were terminated, 3% withdrawn, over 0.5% were suspended and only 4 trials have culminated in FDA approval for marketing. On the one hand, the clinical benefits of anti-angiogenic drugs prompted the development of novel anti-angiogenic agents. On the other hand, however, a plethora of recent studies demonstrated the emergence of tumor drug resistance towards currently used anti-angiogenic therapeutics. Series of preclinical and clinical studies have highlighted the enigma of drug resistance with functional bypass pathways, and identified compensatory or alternative angiogenic mechanisms assuring tumor growth in the midst of an antiangiogenic stress environment. In the present review the classical literature of such redundant angiogenic pathways in concert with the key angiogenic factors and specialized cells involved in anti-angiogenic escape mechanisms is described. A strategic discourse regarding increasing tumor drug resistance and future modalities for anti-angiogenic therapy is also discussed in view of recent advances.

Introduction 

Vasculogenesis is the fundamental de novo process required for the development of blood vessels during embryonic development, wherein the angioblasts (endothelial progenitor cells) differentiate into endothelial cells in response to local cues and finally assemble to form the initial vascular plexus. Angiogenesis is the extension of vasculogenesis, which involves the development of new capillaries on pre-existing vessels. A vast body of literature has accumulated which describes the dynamics and complexities of new vessel formation (Chappell et al., 2016). From a physiological perspective, angiogenesis appears to be indispensable for tissue homeostasis, as the growth and development of an organism requires a well-developed network of blood vessels to ensure a continuous supply of oxygen and nutrients. Nevertheless, important physiological processes such as embryogenesis, organogenesis, wound healing, tissue repair, etc., cannot be achieved, unless there is a well-developed, mature orchestration of vascular network. Dissolution of vascular basal membrane, degradation of extracellular matrix (ECM), increase in vascular permeability, migration, invasion and proliferation of endothelial cells (ECs) and tube formation are the hallmarks of the angiogenic process. In brief, the process of neovascularization relies on a complex network and cross talks of proangiogenic factors, stromal cell interactions and remodeling of ECM (Gacche and Meshram, 2014). Under normal physiological conditions, the process of angiogenesis is regulated by maintaining a balance between activators and inhibitors of angiogenesis. The vessels developed through physiological angiogenesis are normal, stable and rarely proliferate under physiological conditions. However, in pathological conditions like cancer, the balance is more in favor of proangiogenic factors; as a result, there is excessive remodeling of vasculature. In contrast, the complex, abnormal, leaky and torturous vessels of tumors is the hallmark of pathological angiogenesis (Goel et al., 2011).

The role of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in India has to be seen in the historical context. They have played an important role in the country’s development. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) system introduced in these enterprises has gone beyond the original objective of grant of greater autonomy. While it has become a tool in strategic management today, it is riddled with some inadequacies that need to be removed. The article argues that a reformed MoU system will go a long way in enhancing the contribution of these enterprises to India’s GDP.

Introduction

The role of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in India needs to be seen in the historical context. Industrial development under colonial India was ‘a history of slow and arrested progress’ (Lokanathan, 1943). Lord Morley, Secretary of State for India (1905–1911) is reported to have ‘set his face against any attempt on the part of the [g]overnment to assist industrial development’ (ibid.). The First World War (1914–1918), however, exposed the short-sightedness of such an approach as supplies of essential commodities from abroad to India were cut off, either wholly or partially. In the face of such a crisis, the iron and steel plant of JRD Tata, set up in 1911 in Jamshedpur, was an exception and ‘stood the country in good stead during the war’ (ibid.). The subsequent period between the First World War (1914–1918) and Second World War (1939–1945) saw some increase in the output of coal, cement, cotton textile and sugar, but that was also way behind the country’s requirements. Indian industries continued to be heavily dependent ‘on foreign sources for machinery, capital equipment and even for spare parts’ (ibid.). Moreover, since the private corporate sector was dominated by the ‘managing agency system’ characterised by safe ventures, such as importers of machinery, traders and insurance agents, very little could be expected from them for industrialising the country. It was this legacy of an industrially backward India that the rulers of free India inherited at the time of Independence. The Government of India, therefore, adopted the Industrial Policy Resolution in 1948. It also enacted the Industries (Development and Regulation Act) in 1951, which provided for ‘industrial licensing’ to ensure optimum utilisation of scarce capital. Those who got the licences were assured of government support by way of grant of land, easy approvals, long-term loans and tariff protection. The Industrial Policy Resolution, adopted subsequently in 1956, made it further clear that ‘the need for planned and rapid development requires that all industries of basic and strategic importance, or in the nature of public utility services, should be in the public sector’. ‘The new public sector projects were given a corporate form with their own [b]oard of [d]irectors including people with business experience in the private sector as well as government officials’ (Jha, 1986).

The implementation of pro-market institutions – policies that support market relationships in the economy – have proliferated since the late 1980s. Socialist economies in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, and other countries like China and Vietnam transitioned to capitalism. Countries in Latin America, South Asia, and Africa moved away from import substitution and liberalized their economies. Advanced economies also deregulated industries and privatized firms (for an overview of all these changes, see Yergin & Stanislaw, 1998). Received wisdom in country-level research has been that these pro-market institutions have been beneficial for countries (e.g., Babetskii & Campos, 2007; Campos & Horvath, 2012a, b; Merlevede, 2003; Sahay & Goyal, 2006). However, firm-level research has disagreed over the effect of pro-market institutions on firm performance. Some have proposed that pro-market institutions improve firm performance (e.g., Banalieva, Eddleston, & Zellweger, 2015; Chacar, Newburry, & Vissa, 2010; Cuervo-Cazurra & Dau, 2009a; Kim, Kim, & Hoskisson, 2010; Majumdar & Bhattacharjee, 2014; Park, Li, & Tse, 2006), while others have argued the reverse (e.g., Chacar et al., 2010; Chari & David, 2012). Some researchers have underlined that not all pro-market institutions that are typically considered ‘‘good’’ for countries are equally beneficial for companies (e.g., Bhaumik & Dimova, 2014). We offer one solution to this disagreement in the literature by arguing that these pro-market institutions have asymmetric dynamic effects on firm performance. We do so by integrating institutional economics and its analysis of institutional arrangements and transaction costs (Coase, 1937; Meyer, Estrin, Bhaumik, & Peng, 2009; Meyer & Peng, 2016; North, 1990, 1992; Peng, Wang, & Jiang, 2008; Williamson, 1975, 1990), with signaling theory and its study of how economic agents interpret changes in institutions (Connelly, Certo, Ireland, & Reutzel, 2011; Huang, 2013; Spence, 1973; Walsh, 2007). Specifically, we present three ideas. First, we propose four distinct pro-market institutional dynamics. We distinguish pro-market reforms (improvement in pro-market institutions over time) from reversals (deterioration in pro-market institutions over time). We further differentiate between intensifying (continuing at an increasing pace over time) and fading (continuing, but at a decreasing pace over time) reforms and reversals. These distinctions are vital because reforms and reversals are not just a mirror image of each other; we propose that the varying conditions affect firm performance through different mechanisms.

Since the seminal works by Black and Cox (1976), Leland et al. (1994), Mella-Barral and Perraudin (1997), and Fan and Sundaresan (2000), an increasing number of studies investigate corporate bankruptcy decisions in continuous-time models. In dynamic bankruptcy models, prior works examine bankruptcy timing, debt renegotiation, liquidation, agency conflicts between equity- and debt holders, and so on.1 However, no study incorporates the stylized fact that a distressed firm has difficulty selling assets due to asymmetric information about asset quality (e.g., Gilson et al., 2000; Hotchkiss and Mooradian, 1998, and Povel and Singh, 2006) into dynamic bankruptcy models. To our knowledge, this is the first study that incorporates asymmetric information between insiders and outsiders in a dynamic bankruptcy model. In this novel framework, we address several questions. How can a distressed firm use asset sales timing as a signaling tool to resolve informational issues? How does asymmetric information affect bankruptcy timing and the procedure, as well as the debt and equity values? Our model builds on the standard setup in Mella-Barral and Perraudin (1997). Shareholders of a distressed firm make a bankruptcy choice between selling out and default, as well as its timing.2 The model does not distinguish between shareholders and managers, assuming that managers act in shareholders’ interests. Selling out is a rather successful exit. Indeed, shareholders sell all assets and obtain the residual value, that is, the sales price minus the face value of debt, while debt holders are repaid the face value of debt. On the other hand, default is an unsuccessful exit. Shareholders stop coupon payments of debt, and the former debt holders take over the firm and can either instantly sell assets (called liquidation bankruptcy) or operate the firm (called operating concern bankruptcy). A fraction of the firm value is lost to bankruptcy costs associated with ownership change. We add asymmetric information about asset quality to this standard setup. To be precise, the firm’s shareholders are better informed than outsiders about whether the firm’s running cost is high or low.3 The asset value will be higher to outsiders as the running cost is lower. Shareholders cannot directly transmit information about whether the firm is a highor low-cost type to outsiders. Although outsiders cannot directly observe the firm’s type, they can guess the firm’s type through the sales timing. In the model, we derive a separating equilibrium where the low-cost firm can separate itself from the high-cost firm through its bankruptcy choice and timing, and the firm’s type is perfectly revealed to outsiders. In equilibrium, the low-cost firm’s bankruptcy choice and timing can change with asymmetric information, while the high-cost firm’s bankruptcy choice and timing remain unchanged. In other words, the low-cost firms pay all costs due to asymmetric information. Most notably, we show that asymmetric information can delay the low-cost firm’s sales timing because the firm signals its asset quality to outsiders by delaying sales until the point at which the high-cost firm cannot imitate the low-cost firm’s sales. In the delayed sales case, only shareholders pay signaling costs, and debt holders suffer no loss due to asymmetric information because they are retired the face value of debt. A number of studies have investigated distressed firms’ asset sales with depressed prices (cf. fire sales in Pulvino, 1998; Shleifer and Vishny, 1992, and Eckbo and Thorburn, 2008). However, by developing the dynamic bankruptcy model with asymmetric information, we first show that a distressed firm can potentially avoid fire sales due to information issues by delaying asset sales.

The ongoing digitization process presents intriguing market opportunities for start-ups, which are new business ventures that develop and launch innovations based on entrepreneurial ideas (Heirman & Clarysse, 2007; Loch, Solt, & Bailey, 2008). As a result, an ever-increasing amount of e-innovations (EIs)1 is flooding the markets (Huang & Rust, 2013). EIs are Internet-enabled service innovations that offer new and unique value propositions via the Internet (Dotzel, Shankar, & Berry, 2013), where they first emerge. For instance, the online cloud service Dropbox, launched in 2008, was such an EI. Dropbox provided a new and unique value proposition that was commercially enabled by and emerged on the Internet. This study differentiates EIs from new Internet-based services, such as online travel booking or online classifieds, that solely involve offline services provided online and for which the value proposition does not first emerge on the Internet. By definition, EIs are either radically or incrementally new to the firm and customers. Although a proliferation of EIs exists in the B2B context, this study’s focus is on the B2C context, where the growth of EIs continues to soar (Hirt & Willemott, 2014). Despite the growing relevance of EIs, up to 90% of EIs fail (Marmer, Herrmann, Dogrultan, & Berman, 2011), which is not surprising given that the adoption of EIs implies high levels of uncertainty for potential customers, especially when start-ups launch EIs. Several characteristics inherent in EIs provided by start-ups cause this uncertainty, such as their digital nature (Featherman & Pavlou, 2003), impersonality (Dimoka, 2010), intangibility (Huang & Rust, 2013), and newness (Meuter & Ostrom, 2000), as well as unfamiliarity of the launching company (McKnight, Choudhury, & Kacmar, 2002). This uncertainty finds expression in privacy concerns and fear of data misuse (Featherman & Pavlou, 2003; Ha & Stoel, 2009; Sheehan & Hoy, 2000) and in doubts regarding performance (Featherman & Pavlou, 2003; Meuter & Ostrom, 2000). Customers seek to reduce their perceived uncertainty by using the information provided about EIs (Huang & Rust, 2013). A start-up’s goto-market strategy makes such information available. Prior research shows that the go-to-market strategy largely determines innovation failure or success (Avlonitis, Papastathopoulou, & Gounaris, 2001; Langerak, Hultink, & Robben, 2004; Lee, Lin, Wong, & Calantone, 2011). Therefore, this study focuses on the challenge of designing go-tomarket strategies as effective information signals for customers when launching EIs.

ncRNA

In light of the recognized importance of protein molecules in mediating biological functions, RNA was considered originally as merely an intermediate molecule for passing the genetic code from DNA to final protein products, as proposed in the central dogma of molecular biology. This notion was later challenged when an enormous number of ncRNAs were discovered and their significance became increasingly clear (Table 1). Recent advances in sequencing technologies have revealed that at least 70% of the human genome is transcribed into RNA while only less than 2% encodes proteins [1,2]. This has resulted in a paradigm shift in our understanding of the potential impact of the noncoding transcriptome (see Glossary) [3]. Some of the ncRNAs are constitutively expressed in all cells and essential for fundamental aspects of cell biology, thus being known as housekeeping ncRNAs. Housekeeping ncRNAs include small-sized transcripts such as tRNA for carrying amino acids, small nuclear RNA (snRNA) for RNA splicing, and small nucleolus RNA (snoRNA) for RNA modification as well as large-sized transcripts, such as rRNA for protein translation. In addition to the housekeeping ncRNAs, another functionally distinct category of ncRNAs whose primary function is to regulate gene expression is referred to as regulatory ncRNAs. Based on an arbitrary length cutoff of 200 nucleotides, regulatory ncRNAs are roughly divided into small ncRNAs and long ncRNAs (lncRNAs). Depending on the size, biogenesis, action, and targets with which they are associated, small ncRNAs can be further classified into several subgroups including miRNAs, endogenous siRNAs (endo-siRNAs), P elementinduced wimpy testis (PIWI)-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), and many others [4]. miRNAs, endo-siRNAs, and piRNAs often employ their sequences in a complementary manner to silence the expression of their target genes. Nevertheless, lncRNAs can act through genomic targeting, regulation in cis (affecting adjacent genes) or trans (affecting distant genes on different chromosomes), epigenetic mechanisms, and antisense interference to up- or downregulate gene expression due to not only primary sequence similarity but also the formation of secondary structures [5]. Unlike the housekeeping ncRNAs, the expression of these small ncRNAs and lncRNAs is highly regulated in different cell types or at different stages during development. Given the lengthy list of novel ncRNA classes and their extensive regulatory roles, for a discussion of a complete repertoire of the ncRNA transcriptome and their functions the reader is directed to other reviews [3,4].

Contemporary business to consumer (B2C) e-commerce sites strive to match their brick-and-mortar counterparts in terms of conversion rates (Becerra and Korgaonkar, 2011). Due the anonymity of online transactions coupled with the spatial and temporal displacement intrinsic to e-commerce sites (Xiao and Benbasat, 2011), it is not uncommon for consumers to be concerned about the risks involved in transacting with unknown e-retailers (Gefen, 2002a; Gefen et al., 2003a; Kim et al., 2008) and the uncertainty associated with product quality (Jiang and Benbasat 2004). Consequently, e-commerce sites must not only replicate the shopping experience of brick-and-mortar stores (e.g., Wells et al., 2011), they must also present their product offerings in an appealing fashion (e.g., Jiang and Benbasat, 2007a). These efforts have culminated in the rapid growth in e-commerce sales, which more than doubled the rate of growth of their brick-and-mortar counterparts (Tamimi and Sebastianelli, 2015). However, the continued growth of e-commerce is impeded by the information asymmetry inherent in the transactional relationship between consumers and e-retailers. Consumers generally do not possess perfect information prior to purchase (Biswas and Biswas, 2004) and thus can only indirectly assess the quality of products offered on ecommerce sites via the latter’s web interface (Jiang and Benbasat, 2004). Even for experienced consumers, uncertainty regarding product quality remains a valid concern (Williams, 2013). Information asymmetry hence deters consumers from committing to online purchase, which in turn limits e-commerce’s market penetration. In the fourth quarter of 2016, e-commerce retail sales only accounted for 8.3% of total sales1 . In this study, we seek to unleash the potential of e-commerce by confronting the problem of information asymmetry in online transactions. Signaling theory has been espoused by researchers as a fitting theoretical lens for comprehending how information asymmetry can be alleviated (Connelly et al., 2010; Spence, 2014). Signaling theory holds that insiders (signalers) can deliberately communicate to outsiders (receivers) unobservable attributes of an artifact, a process termed as signaling (Connelly et al., 2010; Spence, 2014). Guided by signaling theory, scholars have investigated how information cues (i.e., signals related to the true quality of product offerings) conveyed by an e-commerce site alleviate information asymmetry between consumers and e-retailers by facilitating the former’s evaluation of unobservable product attributes (Spence, 2014). Prior research has identified several aspects of e-commerce sites (e.g., reliable payment and user-friendly interface) that can be signaled to induce consumers’ purchase behavior (Van Der Heijden et al., 2003). Likewise, past studies have uncovered product-related properties, such as diagnosticity, that can be signaled by e-commerce sites to promote sales (Jiang and Benbasat, 2004). Yet, research to-date does not distinguish between product and service related qualities that can be conveyed to consumers in e-commerce context. Insomuch as the quality of e-commerce sites consists of product quality (Wells et al., 2011) and website (service) quality (Al-Debei et al., 2015), we extend prior research by postulating the existence of distinct signaling processes for product and website (service) qualities.

The Internet has moved those boundaries by collapsing time and distance in the information communication dimensions of markets. (Spence, 2002: 435) Information flow is central to markets (Etzion & Pe’er, 2014), and information on firms’ human resource management (HRM, hereafter) flows extensively and continuously on diverse websites. It is reported that firm websites provide more detailed information regarding jobs and HRM than other sources such as brochures and advertisements (Cober, Brown, Keeping, & Levy, 2004), and that a firm’s website is where individuals first seek and acquire firm information (e.g., Jones, Willness, & Madey, 2014; Peters, 2001). Nowadays, employees also actively dispatch their opinions on firms’ management on websites (e.g., Glassdoor in the US). Accordingly, information on firms’ HRM has proliferated rapidly online, but basically no knowledge has been accumulated regarding their associations: Are they delivering consistent messages? Are they contradictory? What factors influence signals sent by firms and by employees? Signaling theory provides a persuasive tool for analyzing HRM information flow and its effects. Notably, Nelson (1974) differentiated search products from experience products by insisting that the quality of the former is apparent prior to purchase, while the quality of the latter is more difficult to evaluate before purchase. Wells, Valacich, and Hess (2011) further explained that signaling premises are especially persuasive in experienced goods (or products) because they are characterized by a combination of high pre-purchase information scarcity (meaning that a consumer cannot interpret a product’s quality attributes before making a purchase) and high post-purchase information clarity (meaning that a consumer can assess the quality of a product after purchase or use). HRM represents a good case of experienced goods. Pre-purchase information scarcity is especially notable in HRM because, unlike financial statements, HRM information is not officially reported (Benson, Young, & Lawler, 2006), and outside of firm home pages, individuals have very few alternative channels revealing HRM information. However, after joining firms, individuals accumulate experiences with HRM. The merits of signaling theory include that pre-purchase information scarcity and post-purchase information clarity may result in distinctive outcomes.