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This study assesses the information search behaviour of medical students when searching for a medical type task. Previous research provide information on the general search traits of medical students. This study shows how medical students search for medical information online for specific medical tasks. It examines the demographic variables that influence medical students search behaviour when searching across varying levels of task difficulty. Detailed aspects of a search session are analysed to examine this effect. Search sessions are broadly classified into: (a) querying details, (b) search results interaction details and (c) querying versus clicking behaviour and task completion time. An interactive information retrieval experiment type methodology (IIR) is used to study the interactive searching behaviour. A total of sixty (60) medical students participated in this study. Personal task and simulated situations were used to invoke the information search process. Results indicate that medical students issued long queries, were active in locating results and were slow and unproductive when searching on a difficult task. Demographic variables did not influence the search behaviour of medical students when searching across varying levels of task difficulty. Results of this study provide an understanding of the information search behaviour of medical students when searching for medical information online across varying levels of task difficulty. It also shows that demographic variables did not influence search behaviour when searching across varying level of task difficulty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employees' information security policy (ISP) violations are a major problem that plagues organizations worldwide, particularly in the banking/financial sector. Research shows that employees use neutralization techniques to rationalize their ISP violating behaviors; it is therefore important to understand what leads to and influences these neutralization techniques. The authors' study draws upon social exchange theory to develop a set of factors that drive employees' neutralization of ISP violations. The model specifies previously untested relationships between job satisfaction, organizational commitment, role conflict, role ambiguity, and neutralization techniques. Using a sample of Malaysian banking employees, the authors found a positive relationship between role conflict and neutralization of ISP violations, whereas organizational commitment was negatively related to neutralization in this context. The authors' findings offer fresh insights for scholars and practitioners in dealing with the problem of employees' intentional ISP violations while extending the reach of neutralization theory beyond North American and European cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging somatosensory technology offers unprecedented opportunities for researchers and industrial practitioners to design a touchless smart home system. However, existing touchless smart home systems often fail to attract a satisfying level of acceptance among home owners. The experience users have with the touchless system is key to making somatosensory technology a pervasive computing home application, yet little research has been conducted to assess the influence of direct and indirect experience on user's behavioral intention to use somatosensory technology. To address this research gap, this paper set up an experimental design to investigate the influence of direct and indirect experience in user technology acceptance. Using an in-house developed touchless system, two experimental studies (i.e., video observation versus product trial) were conducted with sixty-two participants to investigate whether the user experience has an impact on the adoption decision. Our findings indicate that direct experience has an impact on a user's acceptance of somatosensory technology. We found a significant difference in the relationships between perceived complexity and usage intentions. Perceived complexity was a significant predictor of an individual's behavioral intention to use the touchless system after video observation, while its relationship to usage intention was insignificant after the user had direct experience with touchless system. Our study reveals an important implication for somatosensory technology marketers, in which product trial (direct experience) engenders more reliable inferences than does exposure to video demonstration (indirect experience). Based on this, companies should devise marketing programme involving direct experience (e.g., product trial and showroom visit) to promote new somatosensory-enabled smart home systems. The results of the study also demonstrate that user experience in research design may influence the results of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Feedback is widely acknowledged as the crux of a learning process. Multiplicities of research studies have been advanced to address the common cri de coeur of teachers and students for a constructive and effective feedback mechanism in the current higher educational settings. Nevertheless, existing pedagogical approaches in feedback are fragmented and ad hoc in nature. Taken in isolation, each approach fails to capture the full role and complexity of assessment feedback in the learning process. The paper provides a synthesis of existing practices in the field of assessment feedback and identifies the core guiding elements to develop a holistic and integrated feedback system. The 360 degree (360°) feedback system is proposed and its systematic implementation is demonstrated via the interplay between self-, peer and teacher assessment. It is concluded that the elements of 360° system when combined and integrated help to maximise the functions of feedback to enhance learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the potential of a qualitative middle-range research approach to contribute to the advancement of operations management (OM) field. Design/methodology/approach –To better signify such contribution, it takes insight from Merton's (1968) notion of middle-range theory as a means to create pathways of propositions that link substantive concepts and practices of OM in both context-specific and context-free operational environments. Findings – The paper brings to the fore the argument that achieving the primary objective of filling the “theory-methods” void in OM can be achieved through adoption of a qualitative middle-range approach. Originality/value – The originality of this paper hinges on the premise that theory-oriented qualitative field research that is able to incorporate experiences of different stakeholders of the OM intervention is highly likely to benefit OM theory advancement as well as OM practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper are twofold: first, develop a novel concept of a mobiquitous home application (Near Field Communication Smartphone Entertainment Systems (NFC SES)) with the use of photo interface and NFC smartphone. Second, examine age-group differences in relation to the influence of intuitive, convenience and perceived usefulness on users’ behavioural intention to use NFC SES. Design/methodology/approach – Using design science research, NFC SES is developed and a survey of 52 users is conducted to evaluate NFC SES. Findings – There are age differences in individual behavioural intention to use NFC technology. Convenience appears to be the primary factor for the youths. The adult cohort, in contrast emphasizes intuitive and perceived usefulness as two significant determinants of their behavioural intention to use NFC SES. Practical implications – This study offers a fresh insight for mobile device manufacturer and application developers to focus their design efforts around three aspects (intuitive, convenience and usefulness) that are desired by different age-group users. Social implications – The development of NFC SES bridges the gap of cyber-physical spaces by enabling users to automate multiple heterogeneous digital appliances without imposing undue technological effort and inconvenience. NFC SES, operating through a touch-driven interaction between NFC smartphone and photo interface, is likely to be useful for many home users, especially for people with disabilities. Originality/value – NFC SES contributes in itself as a novel innovation. Additionally, studies on mobile technology largely focus on students as users, and often neglect the adult segment. This study entails a new model for evaluation of NFC technology, by uncovering age differences impacts on new technology adoption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on Deci and Ryan’s self-determination theory, this study examines the impact of an individual’s motivation in pursuing higher education towards university service quality perception, with the individual’s learning style posited as the moderator of the proposed relationship. The consequent effects upon satisfaction and behavioural intentions are also assessed. From a large-scale questionnaire survey with a sample of 1919 business undergraduate students in Malaysia, this study found that those who are more self determined to participate in higher education tend to have a more favourable university service quality perception, which then leads to a greater level of satisfaction and student loyalty. The moderating effect of learning style was also found in the interaction between a student’s motivation to participate in higher education and university service quality evaluation. The implication of this study underscores the complexity of the service quality construct as well as the effect of motivational differences and learning style upon university service quality evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Information retrieval is not about providing users with multiple pages of results but providing users with relevant results. Relevant results can only be provided if search engine strategies are able to discern a user's information need. Collaborative personalization is an information retrieval strategy designed to provide users with relevant results. In this paper, we introduce the personalization process and review collaborative personalization features used in three feedback settings. We focus on the evolution of the following core features in collaborative personalization systems: group size, membership type, personalization technique, trust and privacy within each feedback setting. Finally, we conclude the paper by providing ideas for future development of personalization system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]