Stress in Dairy Farming and the Adoption of New Technology.

Previous studies have identified a number of different farm stressors and have reported gender and age differences in levels of stress. This study aimed to determine stress experienced by New Zealand dairy farmers, particularly in relation to adoption of new technology and its relationship to age and gender. Measures of farm stress and adoption of technology were completed by 985 dairy farmers. The highest levels of stress were reported for time pressures, machinery breakdown, weather, and government policies. Stress related to new technologies occurred rarely. Women reported more stress and higher levels of stress for understanding new technologies. There was also an increase in severity of stress with age related to new technologies. Overall, stress levels were moderate and may reflect favorable economic conditions. The findings suggest a need to tailor stress interventions to meet specific needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Exploring teachers' perceptions on different CSCL script editing tools

Despite the apparent maturity of the learning design field, and the variety of tooling available to support it, adoption among the teacher community (one of its alleged main targets) is still low. There is a lack of research on teachers' perception and use of different technological learning design tools, as existing evaluations are often restricted to a single tool. In order to explore whether there are common factors hampering teacher adoption, and which tool features might appeal to different teachers, more studies involving multiple authoring tools are needed. This paper provides a first step in this direction, describing a mixed methods study performed around a professional development workshop with 18 university teachers from multiple disciplines. This workshop exposed teachers to two different authoring tools (WebCollage and EDIT2), as they learned to create computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) designs and implement them. The findings of our interpretive study (which included questionnaires, observations, or group discussion recordings) support the idea that there is no single tool or set of features that are globally perceived as better, although our evidence also highlights certain factors as important for participant teachers – amongst others, the integration of learning designs with the ICT platforms for enactment, as well as with other tools that they already use in their everyday practice.     

Attitudes towards mobile banking: are there any differences between users and non-users?

Extant research has focused on monitoring the behaviour of people who use mobile banking (MB) but it has paid little attention to understanding the impact of information technology usage behaviour due to cultural differences. Humans are the weakest link in information technology adoption; past research has shown that not all users are predisposed to change their behaviour radically and adopt new channels of banking. This paper examines the demographic patterns of users and non-users of MB. The paper also investigates the attitudinal influences of users and non-users of MB based on innovation attributes. Using empirical research, the study identifies constructs of innovation attributes that were perceived to be significantly different among the users and non-users of MB. The study provides valuable insights into MB in Saudi Arabia that have not been previously investigated. From a practical point, findings of this study will be particularly useful to banks, financial institutions and telecommunication service providers.     

Distinguishing the adoption of business intelligence systems from their implementation: the role of managers’ personality profiles

For decades, the marketing guidelines of enterprise software providers have focused on those managers who are likely to be more innovative in adopting new information systems. The current study argues that this approach demands improvements for two reasons: (1) this tactic may be biased, since past studies have only examined the single trait of innovativeness and its impact on an individual adoption intention and (2) the organisational implementation intention might be more important than the individual adoption intention, but the former has been largely ignored in the existing literature. Based on the case of business intelligence (BI) systems and data from 62 senior managers, this study is a pioneer in that it empirically reveals that managers’ individual adoption intention is distinct from their organisational implementation intention. Further, while managers’ innovativeness may be a significant determinant of their individual adoption intention towards BI systems, the issue of whether managers actually implement BI systems in their organisations is dominated by their involvement characteristics. Fruitful suggestions are proposed for practitioners and scholars.     

A Study of Bruneian Corporate Customers＇ Uses of Mobile Services： An Application of Value-Based Adoption Model

This pioneering study investigates the seventy Bruneian corporate customers＇ adoption intentions towards using the mobile services. The study uses and validates the VAM （value-based adoption model） for investigating mobile service in different geographical setting contrary to the original study for Mobile Interact. The study combines four external variables such as perceived usefulness, perceived enjoyment, technicality and perceived fee with perceived value in predicting the adoption intentions of using mobile services. The study results indicate that only perceived usefulness is significant predictor of perceived values which are significant indicator of adoption intentions of using mobile services. Based on the results, some recommendations are made for the managerial implications.     

鄂东南沿江湖区“灌江纳苗”的认知度调查

本文对拟开展＂灌江纳苗＂工作的目标湖区进行实地调查和深度访谈,调查了大冶湖、网湖、海口湖、朱婆湖四个不同通江湖泊受访人群对＂灌江纳苗＂的知晓率和支持率,并采用问卷调查的方式研究了四个目标湖泊养殖鱼类年产量的变化情况以及四湖受访人群对养殖鱼类品种了解程度。结果显示,在目标湖区开展灌江纳苗工作有一定的群众基础,但也存在一定的工作难度;目标湖区的经济鱼类品种在减少,实施灌江纳苗工作已迫在眉睫。     

认知任务驱动的fMRI脑功能网络构建方法

针对脑功能网络的构建受到特定大脑图谱对兴趣点描述准确度及覆盖度的限制,提出了基于认知任务信息和神经影像数据的脑功能网络构建方法。首先计算fMRI体素对于认知任务的敏感度,然后在此基础上选取兼顾分布均衡和去中心化的大脑兴趣点,从而构建任务驱动的脑功能网络。实验通过在人脸情绪识别认知任务相关的梭状回构造任务驱动的脑功能网络,其度中心性、聚类系数、全局效率、局部效率这四个复杂网络指标均优于典型大脑图谱梭状回中兴趣点构成的网络。结果表明,计算得到的大脑兴趣点具有更强的整合性,更适合用于表征特定认知任务下的脑功能网络。     

Adoption of travel information in user-generated content on social media: the moderating effect of social presence

Travel patterns have gradually changed from group travel to individual travel. An increasing number of people acquire travel information through various types of media. One of the alternative information sources is social media, which enables users to exchange information among members. However, one of the characteristics of social media is information sharing, not information search, which involves both giving (i.e. posting) and taking (i.e. selective reading, forwarding, replying, linking, and liking) information. Compared to the ‘giving’ side of information-sharing research, less effort has been spent on the ‘taking’ side of information research. Therefore, we investigate travel information adoption in social media as well as how individuals communicate with each other. We use the elaboration likelihood model, which measures the impact of central (e.g. argument quality) and peripheral (e.g. credibility) cues on traveller information-sharing behaviour corresponding with social presence on social media. The results of an empirical analysis of 527 respondents, who were experienced in travel information adoption via social media, were examined. Our findings revealed that argument quality had a positive effect on perceived usefulness and source credibility positively affected perceived usefulness and social relationships. Perceived usefulness had a significant positive effect on social relationships. Both perceived usefulness and social relationships affected travel information adoption. Lastly, the levels of argument quality and source credibility perceived by social media members were found to differ according to the level of social presence.     

Upgrading the Computer

Abstract

Until recently, hardware was upgraded simply by ordering a larger, faster, more expensive computer. Now, upgrading a system is more complex but potentially more rewarding. The complexity results from the many alternative approaches available, the advent of distributed processing with its networking implications, the proliferation of microcomputers and office systems and the potential need to integrate them, and the options available for obtaining equipment. An understanding of an organization's needs and careful planning can make an equipment upgrade successful.     

Enterprise Social Networks as Digital Infrastructures - Understanding the Utilitarian Value of Social Media at the Workplace

ABSTRACT

In this study, we first show that while both the perceived usefulness and perceived enjoyment of enterprise social networks impact employees’ intentions for continuous participation, the utilitarian value significantly outpaces its hedonic value. Second, we prove that the network’s utilitarian value is constituted by its digital infrastructure characteristics: versatility, adaptability, interconnectedness and invisibility-in-use. The study is set within a software engineering company and bases on quantitative survey research, applying partial least squares structural equation modeling.