Abstract

Global virtual teamwork has emerged as a cornerstone of collaborative teamwork in today’s work landscape, characterized by cross-border collaboration using digital technologies. Although research has started to investigate the mechanisms underlying effective teamwork through information and communication technologies (ICTs), an often-neglected dimension is the pivotal social context within which this collaboration unfolds. To address this research gap, this study adopts a social capital lens on teamwork in proposing social capital as a multidimensional mediator between the usage of ICTs and team effectiveness. The research model was tested using questionnaire data from 271 technologically sensitive and aware companies in the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). The findings reveal that using multiple ICTs alone does not suffice for effective global virtual teamwork. Therefore, this study highlights the significance of social capital for the effectiveness of global virtual teamwork, which holds significant implications for theory and practice.

Introduction

Advances in information and communication technologies (ICTs), coupled with the increasing prevalence of globalization, have driven organizations to rely on digital technologies for globally distributed collaboration—so-called global virtual teamwork ( Tavoletti & Taras, 2023 ). Due to several benefits, such as time and cost savings, talent pooling, and increased team diversity, global virtual teams were already well established in today’s workplace before the COVID-19 pandemic ( Jimenez, Boehe, Taras, & Caprar, 2017 ; Kozlowski & Ilgen, 2006 ; Tavoletti & Taras, 2023 ). However, global virtual teamwork also presents significant challenges that can threaten team effectiveness. Reliance on ICTs reduces media richness and delays feedback, including an increased risk of miscommunication and misunderstanding ( Bilotta et al., 2021 ; Klitmøller & Lauring, 2013 ; Mangla, 2021 ).

Based on the premise that a single medium cannot support the two fundamental communication processes of conveyance (i.e., sharing new information) and convergence (i.e., reaching a common understanding), we introduce the concept of ICT usage, which refers to the frequent and strategic use of multiple ICTs ( Dennis, Fuller, & Valacich, 2008 ; Niinimäki, Piri, Lassenius, & Paasivaara, 2012 ). We propose that high levels of ICT usage will increase team effectiveness, which consists of performance, longevity, and satisfaction ( Dennis et al., 2008 ; Hackman, 1987 ).

Conclusion

The confluence of digitalization and globalization has had an enduring influence on utilizing virtual and global collaboration in the workplace. Due to their embeddedness in a social context, teams are a focal point of multiple levels, linking the individual team members and the organizational system holistically ( Kozlowski & Bell, 2013 ). This requires a profound comprehension of the social context, which can enhance the uptake of ICTs and the effectiveness of global virtual teamwork. To fill this research gap, we conceptualized social capital as a multidimensional mediator, encompassing structural, cognitive, and relational social capital ( Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998 ), between the adoption of ICTs and team effectiveness composed of performance, satisfaction, and longevity.

In summary, this study provides a solid foundation for integrating social capital in global virtual teamwork. The results of our study indicate that frequent use of multiple ICTs does not influence the effectiveness of global virtual teams. Instead, a significant positive relationship was found between ICT use and social capital. Regarding the individual dimensions of social capital, this relationship was only found for structural social capital. Similar results were obtained for the mediator hypotheses, with both total and structural social capital acting as strengthening mediators between ICT usage and team effectiveness. Conversely, cognitive and relational social capital did not show significant mediating effects. The present research context makes developing cognitive and relational social capital difficult, although their importance cannot be denied, as both social capital and its individual dimensions show a positive relationship with team effectiveness. Possible ways to build cognitive and relational social capital include allocating sufficient time for team interactions and creating shared physical spaces, such as face-to-face meetings, to balance them. Overall, our study provides insights into the extent to which the integration of social capital enhances team effectiveness in today’s digitized and globalized world.

Abstract

Using a unique dataset comprising 6313 firm-year observations for Chinese listed firms between 2008 and 2017, we investigate the impact of CEO social capital on cost of debt. Our results show that CEO social capital is negatively related to cost of debt, and the impact of CEO social capital in environments with a low degree of marketization or social trust is more pronounced than in environments with a high degree of marketization or social trust. Moreover, our results reveal that two potential mechanisms, discretionary accruals and information disclosure quality, mediate the impact of CEO social capital on cost of debt.

Introduction

Research into social capital in the area of social economics emerged late last century (e.g., Coleman, 1988 ; Putnam, 1993 , Putnam, 1995 ; Knack and Keefer, 1997 ; Uzzi, 1997 ; Portes, 1998 ; Woolcock, 1998 ; Dasgupta, 2005 ; Fafchamps, 2006 ). Prior studies have acknowledged the significance of the personal social capital embedded in social networks for corporate commercial activities, including corporate financing ( Engelberg et al., 2012 ; Ferris et al., 2017 ; Huang and Shang, 2019 ; Jin et al., 2019 ), corporate investment ( Faleye et al., 2014 ; Fracassi, 2017 ), mergers and acquisitions ( Fracassi and Tate, 2012 ; El-Khatib et al., 2015 ), executive employment and compensation policies ( Hwang and Kim, 2009 ; Fracassi and Tate, 2012 ; Nguyen, 2012 ; Engelberg et al., 2013 ; Ferris et al., 2020 ), risk-taking and accounting practices ( Ferris et al., 2017 , Ferris et al., 2019 ; Panta, 2020 ), and litigation risk ( Zhang et al., 2023 ). Personal social capital embedded in social networks, especially the social capital of corporate executives, has a significant influence on corporate financing. Social capital enhances the trust between borrowers and lenders and increases risk-taking behavior as social capital is seen as an informal insurance. As invisible social credit and a conduit for the exchange of information, CEO social capital benefits corporate financing activities.

We are motivated to investigate the connect between CEO social capital and cost of debt due to the complex institutional background of network and the importance of debt financing in the context of China. Despite China’s remarkable economic growth in recent decades, its financial and legal environments remain underdeveloped. Allen et al. (2005) suggest that in order to sustain this growth, China requires alternative governance mechanisms and informal institutional arrangements. In the Chinese context, China is characterized as a relationship-based society, where social capital embedded in social networks, known as “Guan Xi,” holds significant prevalence and complexity. These networks provide Chinese additional social resources such as information and status ( Song et al., 2012 ; Bian, 2019 ). For example, the CEOs and chairmen of Chinese non-state-owned firms use bank loans to raise funds through their political contacts ( Yu and Pan, 2008 ). Loan approvals and covenants for Chinese corporates are influenced by CEO social capital ( Shen et al., 2009 ; Xu and Li, 2016 ). CEO social capital is negatively associated with firm leverage and short-term debt ratio, and social capital lowers the need for corporate bank borrowing ( Huang and Shang, 2019 ), and the social capital benefits improving the quality of corporate loans ( Jin et al., 2019 ). These studies only reveal the impact of managerial social capital on corporate financing, while the research into the impact of CEO social capital on the cost of debt is relatively scarce, particularly in emerging markets such as China.

Conclusion

This study investigates the relationship between CEO’s social capital and cost of debt. We posit that CEO’s social capital offers incentives for CEOs to provide enhanced information transparency and quality, which lowers the monitoring costs for the borrowers, inducing reduced cost of debt. Additionally, CEO’s social capital creates a sense of trust between the lenders and the borrowers due to the informal tie that social capital creates among the networks. Using a unique dataset consisting with 6313 firm-year observations from the firms listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchange markets from 2008 to 2017, our results suggest that CEO’s social capital reduces cost of debt in the context of China, and such effect is more pronounced when there is a lack of information verification from the regulators (i.e., marketization) and societal norm (i.e., social trust). Moreover, we find that CEO’s social capital reduces cost of debt through the path of reduced discretionary accruals and information disclosure quality. Our results hold after a battery of robustness checks, including the three individual proxies (betweenness centrality, closeness centrality and degree centrality) for CEO social capital, the two alternative proxies for cost of debt, sample without political capital, excess social capital, the consideration of family business characteristics, the interactive effect of state-owned enterprises and endogeneity concerns.

Abstract

Although determinants of life satisfaction in older adults have been well documented, research has to date failed to fully address the experience of older adults living in places with different levels of urbanization. Furthermore, there are conflictive findings regarding the type of residence environment that offers the greatest benefits for the wellbeing of older adults. Our study proposes an integrative research model to determine the nature of the relationships between loneliness, self-esteem and life satisfaction, with a particular focus on the living environment (rural-urban) of the older adults. Using a cross-sectional survey design volunteers (aged 60+) from rural (n = 198) and urban (n = 198) in Galicia (Spain) completed a questionnaire. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to test the relationships between loneliness, self-esteem and life satisfaction and multigroup analysis was performed to analyse the existence of differences in the relationships based on the area of residence of older adults. We found that higher levels of loneliness were a significant predictor of reduced life satisfaction and reduced self-esteem. Self-esteem not only increases life satisfaction, but also reduces the negative impact loneliness may have on it. Where the older adults lived had a significant effect on the relationships between loneliness, self-esteem and life satisfaction. The relationships were stronger for older adults living in urban areas. Differentiated policy initiatives should be considered, depending on the area of residence in order to increase the life satisfaction of older adults.

Introduction

In recent decades, the European Union (EU) has experienced two parallel processes: population aging and urbanization. The urban population rose from 58 % in 1960 to over 75 % in 2022 [1]. The proportion of population aged 65 and over stands at almost 21 % and forecasts suggest that in 2050, the old-age dependency ratio will exceed 52 % [2,3]. Within this process, a significant number of older adults live in urban areas, many of whom have relocated from rural environments, whilst others remain in their familiar surroundings in line with what is known as “aging in place”. In any case, the residential environment, whether rural or urban, poses various challenges for older adults [4].

Older adults’ quality of life is influenced by a large number of factors that range from social support and relationship networks to the environment, residence conditions, financial resources, older adults’ degree of activity, autonomy and independence when making decisions, as well as physical and mental health [5,6]. In fact, the World Health Organization’s quality-of-life scale, known as the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire, includes 26 questions grouped into four domains: physical health, psychological health, social relationships and environmental health [7,8]. The environmental dimension of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire includes items designed to identify aspects including not only the home environment, opportunities for acquiring new information and skills and for recreation, the physical environment and transport, but also health and social care, security and, of course, financial resources.

Conclusions

The main aim of this study was to examine the association between loneliness, self-esteem and life satisfaction among older adults in Galicia (Spain), with a particular focus on the (rural-urban) residence environment of the older adults. The data support an association between these variables in the predicted direction and the results provide strong support to the theoretical model proposed.

Older adults’ life satisfaction depends significantly on loneliness. The greater the perceived loneliness, the lower the degree of life satisfaction. Loneliness also impacts significantly and negatively on self-esteem. In turn, self-esteem has a positive and significant influence on life satisfaction. Self-esteem not only increases life satisfaction, but it also reduced the negative impact of loneliness on life satisfaction.

Where older adults live had a significant effect on the relationship between loneliness, self-esteem and life satisfaction, which was stronger for older adults living in urban areas. These results may be partly explained by the slightly higher means for loneliness reported among urban older adults. Reported self-esteem mitigated the impact of loneliness on life satisfaction in older adults living in the city.

Abstract

Food security is pivotal for national sustainable development. This study utilizes panel data from 31 Chinese provinces spanning from 1990 to 2021 to construct distinct indicator systems for urban–rural integration and food security. The entropy method is employed to assess levels of urban–rural integration and food security, with their inter-relationship examined through a fixed-effects model. Additionally, this study conducts rigorous robustness and endogeneity tests, alongside comprehensive heterogeneity analyses across various dimensions and regions. The findings underscore the significant role of urban–rural integration in enhancing food security, particularly within spatial, social, and economic dimensions, albeit encountering challenges in ecological integration. Moreover, the impact of urban–rural integration on food security manifests differently across diverse food-producing regions, exhibiting notable advantages in primary production and distribution hubs while being negligible in balanced regions. These results accentuate the critical necessity for refining urban–rural integration strategies to bolster food security. Consequently, in formulating agricultural regional policies, careful consideration of resource allocation and the developmental stages of each region is imperative to ensure food security and promote sustainable agricultural practices.

Introduction

Food security is fundamentally linked to human well-being, acting as a crucial safeguard for national economic development and playing a direct role in ensuring peace and stability [1]. As we look to the future, the imperative of maintaining food security becomes a global priority, essential for achieving various Millennium Development Goals [2,3]. According to the “2018 World Urbanization Prospects” report, by the mid-21st century, approximately two-thirds (68%) of the world’s population will reside in urban areas, with a projected increase of 2.5 billion in the global urban population by 2050, nearly 90% of which will occur in the developing regions of Asia and Africa [4]. This urban concentration, along with ongoing expansion, poses significant challenges, including a shrinking rural workforce, diminishing arable land, environmental degradation, and compromised food security. The rapid pace of urbanization challenges the development of sustainable production and existing consumption models, necessitating targeted initiatives to manage the increased food consumption of urban populations; enhance urban dietary patterns in response to shifts in food demand, primarily through the efficient reallocation of agricultural resources; and maintain essential interactions between urban and rural areas in developing countries.

The realm of food security, marked by inherent complexity and dynamism, is influenced by a confluence of factors, including global pandemics, geopolitical strife, and climatic volatility, which have introduced challenges on an unprecedented scale [5,6]. In China, significant advances have been achieved in food production, supply chains, and agricultural economic development. Notably, China currently supports 22% of the global populace whilst possessing only 7% of the planet’s arable land [7]. For fourteen consecutive years, China’s per capita food availability has exceeded the globally recognized safety threshold of 400 kg per year, marking a crucial milestone in achieving grain self-sufficiency and the absolute security of staple foods. Despite these advances, a substantial demographic base continues to drive significant food demand, further intensified through the processes of urbanization and rapid economic growth, thereby increasing food requirements across both urban and rural sectors. Enhancements in urban–rural dynamics have facilitated resource distribution; however, disparities in resource allocation continue to pose risks to food security. The promotion of urban–rural integration strategies aims to optimize resource allocation efficiency, thereby reinforcing food security paradigms. The advances in agricultural technology have significantly increased food production levels; however, challenges such as land scarcity, workforce attrition, and an aging demographic persist [8,9]. Ensuring a stable and sufficient food supply remains critical [10]. Addressing the basic nutritional needs of the population will underpin food security. The historical data from the years 1949 to 2021 demonstrate the effective maintenance of per capita food consumption for urban and rural residents, with the food supply–demand ratio rising from 1.05 in 1949 to 3.68. As shown in Figure 1, as the trajectory of per capita food production approaches its peak, showing only a marginal decline, and with the diversification of the food supply leading to a reduction in per capita food demand, China is compelled to recalibrate its food security strategy to address the emerging challenges and shifts in paradigms.

Results

4.1. Analysis of Urban–Rural Integration and Food Security Measurement Results
4.1.1. Analysis of Food Security Measurement Results
Figure 3 illustrates the levels of food security across China’s 31 provinces (excluding Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan) from 1990 to 2021, highlighting a consistent enhancement in food security across the provinces. Key grain-producing regions such as Heilongjiang, Henan, and Shandong remain pivotal in ensuring food security despite approaching saturation in their capacity. Leveraging their abundant resources, these primary production areas have efficiently supplied food to major consumption centers, fostering a synergy of regional strengths. Concurrently with economic progress, the focal point of food security is gradually shifting northward, with Xinjiang, Shanxi, and Qinghai emerging as critical hubs for food reserve capabilities, demonstrating significant potential. Although primary consumption areas display low self-sufficiency, their economic influence and robust infrastructure support reliance on primary production regions and trade to ensure food security. Advancements in transportation, technology, and digitalization are steadily enhancing food supply capabilities, underscoring the importance of maintaining regional food security equilibrium as a fundamental aspect of revising the national food security strategy.

Abstract

     Systemic racism and discriminatory practices continue to disproportionally expose Black children and families to less than optimal health and economic resources. COVID-19 sheds existing light on how longstanding systemic inequalities affecting Black children and families create racial disparities in accessing material resources. The purpose of this study (N = 704 Black caregivers) is to better understand the relationship between experiences of racial discrimination, access to material resources (i.e., health-promoting resources and economic resources), and Black children’s behavioral functioning during the pandemic. Through the application of ordinary least squares regression analysis, we find that inadequate material resources (both health-related risks and economic hardship) during the pandemic were associated with heightened caregiver report that their child was frequently fussy or defiant (externalizing) and frequently anxious or fearful (internalizing). The study found no significant links between caregivers’ experiences of discrimination during the pandemic and children’s behavioral functioning. However, the study found a significant link between caregivers’ concern for their children’s experiences of discrimination and their children’s externalizing behaviors. Findings from this study offer an important contribution to understanding how factors rooted in systemic racism—access to material resources—and experiences of discrimination affect Black children’s well-being during COVID-19.

Introduction

     While countless studies demonstrate the positive relationship between access to material resources (e.g., health-promoting resources and economic resources) and children’s externalizing (e.g., impulsivity, noncompliance, and aggression) and internalizing (e.g., depression, anxiety, and social withdrawal) behaviors, there is a stark reality that access to these much-needed resources is differentially patterned across children and families of various racial and ethnic backgrounds. Inequities in material resources directly affect children’s early developmental outcomes (Duncan, Magnuson & Votruba-Drzal, 2015). For instance, difficulty paying for basic needs (e.g., food, housing, utilities, health care, etc.) and economic insecurity have also been linked to children’s externalizing and internalizing behaviors. Specifically, researchers note that developing in financially stressed environments has the potential to alter positive caregiver behaviors associated with children’s positive cognitive, emotional, and behavioral development (e.g., Longo, McPherran Lombardi & Dearing, 2017). Furthermore, health-related risks, conceptualized broadly to include threats such as mental health symptomology and lack of health insurance coverage, among both caregivers and children pose threats to children’s development. Caregiver depressive symptoms, which are heightened among families possessing low-income socioeconomic resources (Silva, Loureiro & Cardoso, 2016), have shown deleterious links with children’s behavioral functioning (e.g., Trapolini, McMahon & Ungerer, 2007). Additionally, children who lack health insurance coverage are more likely to experience delayed or unmet physician care, such as well-baby and well-child visits (Lave et al., 1998). When children miss well-baby or well-child visits, their caregivers also miss opportunities to receive support and guidance about their children’s behavioral and emotional functioning (Weitzman et al., 2015). These threats to children’s development are particularly pronounced during early childhood, when children’s biology and behavior are rapidly shaped by their environments and experiences (e.g., Shonkoff et al., 2012).

Conclusion

     Early childhood is a sensitive period for children’s development impacted by biological, neurological, and environmental contexts. However, not all children are afforded the same opportunities to meet their potential due to their socio-demographics (i.e., skin color, socioeconomic status). The findings from this study offer an important contribution to understanding how factors rooted in systemic racism—access to material resources (health-promoting resources and economic resources) — and experiences of discrimination, affect young Black children’s well-being during COVID-19, a global pandemic that disproportionately impacts Black children and their families and communities. While interventions in the early years cannot address all problems, especially problems due to historical racism, equitable opportunities during the first year of life could stymie disparities later in life.

     The structural determinants of early learning must be placed at the center of policy decision making to ensure equitable access, experiences, and outcomes for Black children and their families (Iruka, 2020). Addressing the challenges faced by young Black children and their families requires attending to social policies that impact their daily lives from housing, education, and labor, policies that impact families’ socioeconomic position and upward mobility. Families’ socioeconomic status greatly influences their access to resources, opportunities, time, and functioning to meet their children’s needs, critical in the early years (McLoyd, 1990). Families’ socioeconomic position also influences the experiences children have inside and outside the home, such as access to high quality early care and education and health care services. The findings from this study underscore the importance of delivering on the promise for Black children and their families as they remain resilience in the face of 2 pandemics – COVID-19 and racism.

Abstract

The rate of child abuse has sharply increased worldwide, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the media’s role in addressing child abuse cases is crucial, several international and formal organizations have established child abuse reporting guidelines. This study investigated how closely journalists follow reporting guidelines in addressing child abuse cases. Five major Korean presses and 189 articles from January 1, 2018, to January 31, 2021, were selected using the keyword “child abuse.” Each article was analyzed using a guideline framework consisting of 13 items regarding the five principles of the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare and Central Child Protection Agency reporting guidelines.

This study identified a radical growth in media reporting on child abuse cases in South Korea; almost 60% of the articles analyzed came from 2020 and 2021. More than 80% of the articles analyzed did not provide abuse resources, and 70% did not provide factual information. 57.1% of the articles instigated negative stereotypes, and about 30% explicitly mentioned certain family types in the headlines. Nearly 20% of the articles provided excessive details about the method used. Approximately 16% exposed victims’ identities. Some articles (7.9%) also described victims as sharing responsibility for the abuse.

Introduction

According to the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare (2020), the number of child abuse cases in South Korea has been increasing annually. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of child abuse has increased owing to the heightened stress and social isolation of children and their families (Rosenthal & Thompson, 2020). The number of child abuse cases has increased sharply in South Korea since the beginning of the pandemic. According to the Korean National Policy Agency (2020), the number of child abuse reports in families between February and March 2020 was 1558, up 13.8 % from 2019. Additionally, according to the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare’s (2022) analysis of child abuse cases in Korea the total number of reported child abuse cases tallied in 2021 was 53,932, a significant increase of about 27.6 % compared to the previous year.

Of the 37,605 cases judged as child abuse, the age range of 13–15 years accounted for the largest portion of victims with 8693 cases (23.1 %), followed by those aged 10–12 years with 8657 cases (23.0 %), and 7–9 years old with 7219 cases (19.2 %) (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2022). In terms of family types of child abuse victims, 23,838 cases (63.4 %) occurred in families with biological parents, 4618 cases (12.3 %) in mother-and-child families, 3707 cases (9.9 %) in father-and-child families, and 1980 cases (5.3 %) in remarried families (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2022). Regarding the relationship between assailants and victims, parents accounted for the highest number of cases, with 31,486 cases (83.7 %), followed by 3609 cases (9.6 %) involving surrogate caregivers, and 1517 cases (4.0 %) involving relatives (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2022). Among the confirmed reports of child abuse, 45.1% were reported by fathers (16,944 cases), 35.6% by mothers (13,380 cases), and 3.2% by childcare teachers (1221 cases) (Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2022).

Conclusions

This study is meaningful because there is a lack of analysis on child abuse reporting guidelines in South Korea although the coverage of child abuse cases is increasing at an alarming rate. These findings indicate that the current guidelines have not been followed effectively. Our research urges the importance of avoiding detailed, biased, and sensational descriptions and providing factual information and abuse resources to enhance social awareness of child abuse and to prevent and intervene in child abuse cases. We expect our results to arouse attention toward establishing more realistic and effective child abuse reporting guidelines and monitoring systems.

Abstract

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Abstract

In recent years, the world’s population living in cities has been rapidly increasing. Cities are transforming their infrastructure in a smarter and more efficient way so that sustainable development forms part of their long-term strategy. However, this transformation does not always result in expected benefits due to a variety of factors such as an absence of social acceptance, a lack of holistic design and the development of unilateral interventions. An analysis of the scientific literature related to the evaluation of the impact of smart city actions revealed a gap in the holistic methods for their assessment. To this end, an accurate evaluation of implemented smart solutions focusing on the energy domain is necessary in order to assess the expected and realized impact of each solution. This paper proposes a seven-step methodology for assessing the impact of smart city interventions and presents a use case for the city of Espoo. A number of major findings were the outcome of our research and development work, such as the need for a thorough analysis of the long-term vision of the city, a combined top-down and bottom-up approach and the ongoing cooperation between all stakeholders involved in urban planning and transformation, in which necessary Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are defined.

1. Introduction

1.1. The Necessity of Impact Assessment
According to the United Nations [1] 68% of the world’s population is projected to live in urban areas by the year 2050; cities, therefore, are anticipated to face new challenges in sustainably integrating further populace, such as a lack of appropriate infrastructure for sustainable energy and automated systems, applications and commercial arrangements, digital security, network connectivity and data capacity [2]. Cities will be required to transform their infrastructures in a smarter, more efficient and resilient way so that sustainable development forms part of their long-term strategy and a better quality of life is assured to their citizens. The concept of the smart city is multidimensional [3], with the aim of increasing urban sustainability and quality of life while pursuing economic development among its citizens [4]. Additionally, sustainability has gained popularity among scholars, environmental policy makers and government agencies [5]. However, a smart city is not just about creating technically viable urban areas and stimulating economic growth; it requires a multifaceted and multidimensional approach that promotes a structural transformation in the urban ecosystem, directing the development of cities towards their “smartness” in areas such as economy, governance, social, environment, mobility and ICT [6].

Abstract

1. Introduction

2. Data and methods

3. Results

4. Discussion

5. Conclusion

Funding

Declaration of competing interest

APPENDIX

References

Abstract

     This study examined associations between characteristics of the residential neighbourhood and the school and adolescent mental health, including the moderating role of family socioeconomic status (SES) and family support. Nationally representative Dutch data from adolescents aged 12–16 (N = 6422) were analysed through cross-classified multilevel models. Findings showed that school characteristics are more strongly linked to adolescent mental health than residential neighbourhood characteristics. More specifically, higher levels of school SES were associated with more hyperactivity-inattention problems, while higher levels of school social disorder were related to more conduct problems and more peer relationship problems. Further, higher levels of school SES were associated with more emotional symptoms only for adolescents with a relatively low family SES. Higher levels of neighbourhood SES were associated with fewer peer relationship problems. Overall, there was little evidence for the moderating role of family SES or family support.

Introduction

     With a global prevalence of about 13% of adolescents suffering from mental health problems (Polanczyk et al., 2015), it is of vital importance to identify both risk and protective factors for these mental health problems. In addition to person-level characteristics such as gender and socioeconomic status (Afifi, 2007; Rivenbark et al., 2019), there is increasing evidence that contextual factors matter. Ecological theory posits that environmental contexts influence mental health problems among adolescents (Bronfenbrenner, 1977; Cohen et al., 2009; Minh et al., 2017). The residential neighbourhood and school context represent the most important out-of-home environmental contexts, within which adolescents spend a substantial amount of their daily life given compulsory education and mobility restrictions (Allison et al., 1999).

     Two often studied contextual characteristics within these contexts include physical factors such as the amount of greenspace and air pollution (Jennings and Bamkole, 2019; Mueller et al., 2019; Vanaken and Danckaerts, 2018; Zhang et al., 2020) and social factors, particularly socioeconomic status (SES), social environment and social disorder (Aldridge and McChesney, 2018; Visser et al., 2020). It is important to consider both physical and social factors, not only because these are both related to adolescent mental health, but also because they are interrelated (Sugiyama et al., 2008). For instance, nearby greenspace can stimulate social activities within neighbourhoods (Ruijsbroek et al., 2017).

Results

     Descriptive statistics for the variables are displayed in Table 1. Correlations between the variables are provided in the Appendix (Table A1). With a largest variance inflation factor (VIF) of 8.04, all VIF values were below the critical value of 10 (Hair et al., 1995), indicating no multicollinearity (Table A2).

3.1. Associations on the neighbourhood and/or school level

     Table 2 showed the results of the school-only and neighbourhood-only MLMs and the CCMM per mental health indicator. The school-only and neighbourhood-only MLM showed comparable and significant ICC values at the neighbourhood and school level (e.g., for hyperactivity-inattention problems ICCneighbourhood = 2.7% and ICCschool = 3.1%), indicating that the proportion of variance in adolescent mental health was rather similar at both levels. However, when assessing both contexts simultaneously using CCMMs, the neighbourhood-level ICCs for all mental health indicators were considerably smaller than the school-level ICCs, implying that the between-level variance in adolescent mental health was largely driven by schools rather than neighbourhoods. Furthermore, for all mental health outcomes, the ICCneighbourhood values decreased when including the school level, indicating an omitted context bias. Additionally, the CCMM for emotional symptoms and hyperactivity-inattention problems revealed that the neighbourhood variances were nonsignificant. Although these results suggested that we could drop the neighbourhood level from the models and use MLMs with only the school level context for both emotional symptoms and hyperactivity-inattention problems, we performed CCMM for all four mental health outcomes for reasons of consistency.

Abstract

     The rapid development of information and communication technology (ICT) has resulted in several improvements in diverse aspects of the organizational structures, including the introduction of virtual teams (VTs). Organizations rely on VTs since they bring a lot of benefits, such as the enhancement of organizational performance. However, effective VTs cannot exist without the proper implementation of decision-making processes. There is a lack of scientific research that attempts to understand the factors affecting decision-making processes in VTs. Studies in this area have only been conducted in the United States and Europe. However, such research has not been conducted in the Middle East, where specific scientific solutions are still required to improve the performance of VTs. Therefore, this study is conducted in the Middle East to gain scientific knowledge on this region’s specificity. Thus, the objective of this study is to identify the factors that affect VT decision-making processes. An online survey was used to collect data (Google forms) from companies in the IT industry in UAE, which are engaged in VTs. A literature review, survey methods, and structural equation modeling were used. The results showed that culture intelligence (CQ), transformational leadership (TL), and task conflict have a positive effect on VT decision-making processes, and relationship conflict has a negative impact on VT decision-making processes, which provides the management teams with a guideline on what to concentrate on in the measuring and enhancement of the effectiveness of VT decision making.

Introduction

     The most important changes that face organizations are caused by information and communication technology (ICT) (Al Majzoub and Davidaviˇciene˙ 2018). ICT has caused the formation of a new type of team work called virtual teams. The use of virtual teams is important for organizations because they allow team members to communicate, despite distance and time constraints. They allow organizations to hire the most talented people regardless of the location, which increases the efficiency of the team (Schmidtke and Cummings 2017). VTs are defined as “groups of people who are geographically and/or organizationally dispersed and who rely on collaboration technologies to carry out tasks” (Lowry et al. 2015). VTs bring advantages to organizations, such as the presence of diverse staff, innovation allocation of resources, flexible organizational structure, enhanced decision making and an increase in organizational performance (Bhat et al. 2017). Even though VTs provide benefits to the organization, they impose challenges to perform effectively. One of the essential factors that affects VT performance is decision-making processes (Wei et al. 2017). To date, there exists a case of scarcity in academic research in the field of decisionmaking processes in virtual teams (Davidaviciene et al. 2020; Drouin and Bourgault 2013; Tan 2019; Zakaria 2017). Most of the research is conducted on university students instead of actual organizational virtual teams (O’Neill et al. 2016; Organ and Flaherty 2018; Paul and Dennis 2018). From the literature review, it could be concluded that there is a lack of research that examines the effect of these three factors—conflict, culture and leadership—on the decision-making process in UAE.

Conclusions

     VT decision making is an important key indicator of VT performance, and hence organizational performance. Organizations must understand and measure the key factors that affect decision making and team performance in an organization and work to enhance it to be able to obtain its market share and be competitive. This article aimed to identify the following factors—CQ, TL, and task and relationship conflict—that affect VT decisionmaking processes. Based on the empirical research conducted, it can be concluded that CQ, TL, and task and relationship conflict are important factors to consider when measuring VT decisions, as the results show that culture intelligence (CQ), transformational leadership (TL), and task conflict are positively correlated with decision-making processes, and relationship conflict is negatively correlated with decision-making processes in VTs. This article provides a guideline for management in an organization to measure VT decision making. For example, when measuring decision making in VT, management should concentrate on how to enhance the following factors—cultural intelligence, transformational leadership, and task conflict—and how to eliminate or reduce relationship conflict factors between members in VTs. Measuring and controlling these factors will help an organization to enhance its VT decisions, which in turn will improve VT performance. In addition, this study proposes a framework for future studies to add factors to these models and create new models, not only to measure but also to implement strategies that can be used to enhance the VT decision-making process and hence improve VT performance. As all research does, this study has limitations. The first limitation of this study is the use of four factors affecting decision-making processes. However, there are other factors that affect decision making that were not included in this study, such as trust, ICT, etc. Second, the study was conducted among organizations in the IT industry. Future studies should include other industries. Third, this study was conducted in the U.A.E. Future studies should include countries in the Middle East in comparison with other regions. Future studies also should include all the mentioned limitations

Abstract

Previous studies on health tourism were limited to a small range of topics related to medical tourism. At present, the concept of health tourism has become profound because medical care has been altered from “disease-centered” to “health-centered”. The main purpose of this study is to identify the key factors influencing the development of health tourism in China. To this end, in the first stage, an intra-industry trade theory was introduced and quantitative methods were applied to discover the important factors. In the second stage, multiple sources, including empirical studies, official data, research reports, and notably field investigations and case studies were incorporated to take in-depth discussions. The results indicated the foremost factors affecting the health tourism trade were total health expenditure per capita and the number of domestic health consumers. Notably, health tourism was substantially determined by the “willingness to spend on health” of domestic health consumers. In addition, Chinese health tourists were more likely to positively accept health tourism services in China. An important conclusion is that China should diversify health tourism offerings for different consumer groups. Once diversified products for health tourism are provided, the number of health tourism consumers will soar accordingly, which thus contributes to forming economies of scale, lowering the average costs of health treatment, increasing health tourism profit, and stimulating economic development.

Introduction

“Sustainable health tourism” can be broadly defined as tourism that involves medical and wellness activities that enhance both physical and mental health (Hei and Xiang, 2020). However, health tourism is a dynamic phenomenon, that is to say, there is no uniform standard for the concept. Before exploring health tourism in more depth, it is important to note that early studies in tourism were not attentive to the role of health—this is not surprising given that for many years most tourism-related businesses (e.g., hotels) and destinations have primarily provided regular tourism resources. During this period, medical services and facilities did not play a meaningful role in attracting tourists (Goodrich and Goodrich, 1987). However, of late, the role of healthcare is becoming increasingly important, with travelers “specifically seeking treatment for diseases and travel health services from other countries” (Goodrich, 1993). This trend has clarified the concept of the “health traveler”, which represents the collection of all phenomena associated with temporarily leaving one’s place of residence to seek health services for the purpose of maintaining and promoting health (Mueller and Kaufmann, 2001). This gradual expansion of the cognitive boundary of health tourism has given rise to “a commercial phenomenon of improving health tourism services” (Hall, 2003).

Conclusions

From the perspective of health globalization, health tourism balances high-quality medical resources, broadens people’s access to health, gives patients a fairer choice, and speeds up competition in the health tourism trade between countries. In this sense, this study is novel and of great practical importance. Using the intra-industry trade theory and the empirical model, our study uncovered the most critical factors affecting health tourism trade in China, which, under the conditions of open trade, are total health expenditure per capita and the number of domestic health consumers. Generally, we found that health tourists would seek a diversity of products on a global scale to maximize their health benefits. Domestic demand would enable domestic enterprises to gain comparative advantages in the production of health tourism products, and domestic trade could drive international trade and attract more foreign tourists to earn foreign exchange income.

Abstract

Introduction

Nancy Fraser’s conceptualization of justice

Affirmative versus transformative remedies for injustices

Justice in critical literature on smart cities

Redistribution

Recognition

Representation

From the smart to the just city in the digital age

From affirmative to transformative strategies

Retaining and regaining technological sovereignty

Conclusions

Acknowledgements

References

Abstract

     The smart city is the most emblematic contemporary expression of the fusion of urbanism and digital technologies. Critical urban scholars are now increasingly likely to highlight the injustices that are created and exacerbated by emerging smart city initiatives and to diagnose the way that these projects remake urban space and urban policy in unjust ways. Despite this, there has not yet been a comprehensive and systematic analysis of the concept of justice in the smart city literature. To fill this gap and strengthen the smart city critique, we draw on the tripartite approach to justice developed by philosopher Nancy Fraser, which is focused on redistribution, recognition, and representation. We use this framework to outline key themes and identify gaps in existing critiques of the smart city, and to emphasize the importance of transformational approaches to justice that take shifts in governance seriously. In reformulating and expanding the existing critiques of the smart city, we argue for shifting the discussion away from the smart city as such. Rather than searching for an alternative smart city, we argue that critical scholars should focus on broader questions of urban justice in a digital age.

Introduction

     We live in an age where digitization, digital networks, big data, and internet-based infrastructures are ‘mediating and augmenting the production of space’ and in so doing, are ‘transforming socio-spatial relations’ (Ash, Kitchin, and Leszczynski 2018, 29). The smart city is an emblematic expression of these transformations where data, sensors, and algorithms are presented as technical solutions for urban problems. After initially being dominated by affirmative perspectives, since about 2014 an increasing number of critical views on the smart city have been published by geographers and urban scholars (amongst by now many others, see Cardullo and Kitchin 2019; Cugurullo 2018; Greenfield 2013; Hollands 2008, 2015; Kitchin 2016; Leszczynski 2016; Rose 2020; Söderström, Paasche, and Klauser 2014; Wiig and Wyly 2016), with some of the earliest and most cited critiques being published precisely in this journal (Hollands 2008; Söderström, Paasche, and Klauser 2014).

     Most of these critiques directly or indirectly invoke questions of justice; however, they rarely define its meaning. Consequently, the meaning of justice in critical smart city debates remains elusive and theoretically underdeveloped. This is despite the fact that critical urban geographers have of course long engaged with concepts of social justice, from Lefebvre’s (2003 [1970]) call for the right to the city, further developed for example by Marcuse et al. (2009) and Brenner, Marcuse, and Mayer (2009), to questions of spatial justice (Soja 2010; Marcuse 2009; Fainstein 2009), to Harvey’s (1973) seminal work on justice and the city, to interventions like Fainstein (2010) which highlight the importance of participatory engagement to expand understandings of urban justice (for on overview on some of them with reference to the smart city see Kitchin, Cardullo, and Di Feliciantonio 2019; for an application of David Harvey’s social justice theory on questions of the smart city see Vanolo 2019).

Conclusions

     We are currently observing the increasing centrality of digital technologies in public discourse, proposed as responses to current social and political problems of the city. In this article, we presented a comprehensive definition and framework of justice to guide progressive efforts in assessing and reimagining smart city initiatives and argued for transformative remedies for injustice. Building on Fraser’s tripartite framework, we examined justice in critical smart city literature along economic, social, and political lines. We observed notable tensions, marked by a recognition on the one hand of the ways in which digital practices mediate and reinforce domination, dispossession, disenfranchisement, and social differentiation, and on the other, a desire to exploit the emancipatory potential of digital practices as sites of generative possibility for thinking, acting, and being otherwise. In assessing visions of alternative smart cities, we highlighted the need for transformational change, for instance, through technology sovereignty movements which provide collective ownership of data-intensive digital and algorithmic platforms and services.