Centralization and innovation performance in an emerging economy: testing the moderating effects

Fighting rumors to fight COVID-19: Investigating rumor belief and sharing on social media during the pandemic

The outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, a significant health threat, influenced information-related behaviors and induced increased rumor-sharing behaviors on social media. Fighting COVID-19 thus entails the need to fight the rumors as well, providing a strong motivation to explore rumor-related behavior during this extraordinary period. From the perspective of information acquisition, we predicted that information acquisition from social and traditional media would interactively influence rumor-related decisions (i.e., rumor belief and sharing) and that critical thinking would shape this relationship. Through a survey of 2424 individuals who used social media during the pandemic, we found that information acquisition from social media was negatively related to rumor sharing and that rumor belief mediated this relationship. Meanwhile, information acquisition from traditional media weakened the negative effect of information acquisition from social media on rumor belief, and critical thinking alleviated the positive effect of rumor belief on rumor sharing. This study contributes to the literature by explaining the diffusion of COVID-19 rumors on social media from an information perspective and revealing how different information sources and thinking styles come into conflict in rumor decisions.

Executive poverty experience and innovation performance: A study of moderating effects and influencing mechanism

This paper analyzes the impact mechanism of executive poverty experience on innovation performance from the two logics of “innate endowment” and “endogenous power.” It then explores the moderating role of executive characteristics, firm nature, and market competition from the perspective of heterogeneity, and finally proves the influence mechanism. Using the data of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2012 to 2020, the empirical results show that executives’ poverty experience improves corporate innovation performance. Further studies find that female executives with poverty experience have a more significant impact on innovation performance. Additionally, state-owned enterprises (SOEs) weaken the positive effects of executives with poverty experiences on innovation performance. The impact of executive poverty experience on innovation performance is more significant in fierce market competition. The mediating result suggests that executive poverty experience improves innovation performance partly by inhibiting R&D manipulation. The findings remain valid through Propensity Score Matching (PSM) tests, the Heckman two-stage, and alternative indicator measures. Using the early life poverty experience of executives, this study promotes research on the factors influencing corporate innovation. It also provides empirical evidence for improving corporate innovation performance through a study of moderating effects and influencing mechanisms.

Public Sector Downsizing and Public Sector Performance: Findings from a Content Analysis

The current literature suggests that downsizing is a popular strategy among public sector managers to improve organizational efficiency, effectiveness, and performance. To extend this line of research, this study aims to empirically examine the effects of public sector downsizing on organizational performance in the context of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. To determine the effects of the subdimensions of public sector downsizing on the subdimensions of public sector performance, a conceptual model is developed and examined based on qualitative data collected from a sample of 20 public sector managers in various organizations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Content analysis of the interviews reveals that, as a subdimension of public sector downsizing, privatization is suggested to link to the subdimensions of public sector performance. Implications of the findings for theory and practice are discussed, and avenues for future research are recommended.

How Team Structure Can Enhance Performance: Team Longevity's Moderating Effect and Team Coordination's Mediating Effect

Teams are more or less structured in function. Whether team structure is beneficial or harmful for the teams entail debates in current literature. Past studies mainly investigate the effects of team structure through learning or creativity. In this study, we tend to examine the effect of team structure on team performance through team coordination. We conducted two independent field studies with samples of 56 and 67 work teams to test our hypotheses. In both two substudies, we found team structure positively affect team performance by improving team coordination. Moreover, we found team longevity was able to moderate the relationship between team structure and team performance through team coordination, such that the positive relationship between team structure and team coordination were more significant when team longevity was high rather than low.

Optimal levels of (de)centralization for resilient supply chains

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how centralization and decentralization of supply chains (SCs) play a major role in creating organizational resilience.

Design/methodology/approach

Starting with the basic tenets of contingency theory and applying a grounded theory approach, results from exploratory qualitative and quantitative studies are combined to investigate the impact of (de)centralization on SC resilience capabilities.

Findings

The findings from a comprehensive literature review combined with two empirical surveys indicate that four important organizational capabilities are needed in order to cope with internal and external disruptions: fast reactions to unforeseen disturbances, reducing the number of negative external forces, reducing the impact of negative external forces and the quick return to normal operating processes. Furthermore, it is illustrated how (de)centralization activities can support these capabilities and thus maximize the SC resilience.

Originality/value

This paper presents 12 measures for (de)centralization and shows how they can support the four major capabilities of resilient companies. The results from qualitative and quantitative surveys allow for a holistic understanding of the organization and provide a basis for future SC resilience research.