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- ItemDIGITAL INEQUALITY AND USAGE GAP IN THE V4 REGION(Technická Univerzita v Liberci, ) Vallušová, Anna; Kuráková, Ivana; Lacová, Žaneta; Ekonomická fakultaThe V4 countries have achieved different levels of digital transformation due to distinctions in their individual technical infrastructure and human capital characteristics. The success of digital transformation cannot be measured solely by the achieved level of digitalization; the distribution of favorable outcomes of internet use within a country should also be considered. The level of digital skills and usage patterns differ among social groups, therefore capability to translate internet access and use to tangible (offline) benefits varies. The aim of our paper is twofold. Firstly, we quantify the extent of the digital inequality in terms of usage gap in the V4 countries. We indicate the dynamics of inequality by comparing the development of such inequality between the years 2015 and 2019. Secondly, we identify socioeconomic and sociodemographic factors, which are connected to differences in internet usage patterns and therefore affect the capability of an individual to benefit from internet use. In common with other studies carried out in the Western world, we show that internet access and possession of formal digital skills are not the most important determinant of probability of being a digital beneficiary; individual characteristics, especially education and age, predict the probability of being a digital beneficiary to a higher degree of accuracy. As to the extent of digital inequality in the individual countries, we come to conclusion that although the V4 countries are relatively homogeneous concerning socioeconomic inequalities, the level of digital inequality among them differs – Hungary being somewhat unequal as compared to the most equal Czechia. In all four countries, equality increased within an observed period.
- ItemDIFFERENCES IN THE CAPACITY OF ADOPTION OF THE ENABLING ICTs FOR INDUSTRY 4.0 IN CHILE(Technická Univerzita v Liberci, ) Gatica-Neira, Francisco; Ramos-Maldonado, Mario; Ekonomická fakultaIn the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution this paper analyzes the factors that explain the degree of diffusion of some Information Technologies (ICTs) enabling Industries 4.0 in Chilean companies. In this group we find technologies such as: Big data, RIFD (Radio frequency identification), Cloud computing, ERP (Enterprise requirements planning), CRM (Customer relationship management), SCM (Supply chain management) and Computer security. Through the analysis of clusters, orderly logistic regression and decision tree, based on 2,081 companies reported in the Survey of Access and Use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in Companies 2018 (MINECON, 2020). It is concluded that there is an important difference in technological adoption based on size from the volume of sales and the amount of direct labor. It is also noted that companies that subcontract and at the same time have ICT professionals are more likely to invest in this type of technology. We detected a “technological staggering” where companies begin by incorporating Cloud Computing and ERP and then increase in the number and complexity of the technologies used, achieving greater synergies and benefits in digital transformation. It is necessary to implement mechanisms for monitoring technical change to generate public policies aimed at leveling technological adoption in small and medium-sized enterprises. This work provides a global and intersectoral view of the process of diffusion of enabling technologies for Industry 4.0 through multivariate analysis techniques and data science, being a contribution to what is currently worked on focused on the study of business cases, on the monitoring of a specific technology or on an analysis of a specific productive sector.
- ItemEXAMINING TREKKERS’ ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY BEHAVIOR USING AN EXTENDED MODEL OF GOAL-DIRECTED BEHAVIOR (MGB) AND A NEW ECOLOGICAL PARADIGM SCALE (NEP)(Technická Univerzita v Liberci, ) Paudel, Tulsi; Li, Wen Ya; Kim, Yeong Gug; Ekonomická fakultaTourism has a substantial environmental impact, and nature-based tourism is particularly vulnerable to tourists’ activities. Individuals must be aware of the consequential ecological effects during nature-based tourism activities such as trekking. Trekking is a widespread nature-based tourism activity in fragile mountainous and hilly regions. The trekkers’ activities extensively affect the conservation of vegetation along the trail. Therefore, it is essential to study trekkers’ attitudes, intentions, and behavior towards the environment. The objective of this study is to investigate the pro-environmental behaviors of trekkers. The goal-directed behavior (MGB) model framework and a new ecological paradigm scale (NEP) were integrated to examine trekkers’ environmental decision-making process. The new ecological paradigm (NEP) scale measured trekkers’ environmental concerns, whereas the model of goal-directed behavior (MGB) explored environmentally friendly trekking intentions. The extended model analyzed 310 responses from trekkers who had trekking experience in Nepal. Statistical analyses, such as confirmatory factor analysis, descriptive analysis, reliability, and validity test, were performed with SPSS 24.0. Furthermore, structural equation modeling was conducted using AMOS 22.0 to test the significance of the developed hypotheses. This study revealed that trekkers are concerned about the environment and are aware of the earth’s resource limitations. Moreover, the significant role of emotion in the decision-making process was identified. The perceived behavioral control influenced both the desire and intention of environmentally friendly trekking. Additionally, desire significantly influenced the intention to perform environmentally friendly activities. However, the trekker’s attitude and subjective norms did not correlate substantially with desire. The obtained results indicate that the proposed extended model helps to understand the environmental behavior of trekkers. The theoretical and practical implications of this study are also discussed.
- ItemTHE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON ONLINE CONSUMER BEHAVIOR FOR THE BOOK MARKET IN ROMANIA(Technická Univerzita v Liberci, ) Dincă, Violeta Mihaela; Dima, Alina Mihaela; Ekonomická fakultaThe COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown, along with the social distancing rules imposed by governments around the world, have caused major changes in the publishing industry and, therefore, in the book consumption patterns. The main goal of this paper is to identify the changes in the purchasing habits of book consumers within two different frameworks of motivations: utilitarian and hedonic – both studied during the COVID-19 pandemic. A model was developed to study the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as a circumstantial impact, because it implicated the temporary shutdown of physical bookshops, the uncertainty of contracting the virus by visiting the shops once they re-opened along with the upgrades that online bookshops developed during the pandemic to attract customers. Data were gathered from 410 Romanian consumers by applying an online survey. Multivariate data analysis applied to the model showed that the COVID-19 pandemic context had a positive and significant influence on the customers’ intents of online book purchasing. Moreover, while hedonic reasons exerted a compelling influence on the customers’ intents to buy books online, the association between utilitarian reasons and online buying intents is positive, but insignificant. These results could support all stakeholders within the book market, such as publishing firms and online bookshops to strengthen their online presence – to develop their websites, their social media pages, as well as expand their advertising operations through different channels. The outcomes of this research are important and useful also for the academic environment, as the changes within the book market and the evolution of book consumption behavior influence research and academic writing overall.
- ItemMINSKY MEETS PORTER(Technická Univerzita v Liberci, ) Erkut, Burak; Ekonomická fakultaHyman P. Minsky and Michael E. Porter have developed theories of economic development independently from each other, both being influenced by Joseph A. Schumpeter in different ways. In this contribution, the author focuses on understanding the similarities and differences between these two approaches based on their epistemological, ontological and ethical-political perspectives, also by identifying how they are related to each other in a particular type of economic development named as ‘money-manager capitalism’ in Minsky’s framework and ‘wealth-driven competitive stage’ in Porter’s. The approach starts by describing the Porterian and Minskyan perspectives, moves on to analyzing them from their epistemological, ontological and ethical-political perspectives, and it also questions how these two phenomena are related by pointing out to the common Schumpeterian perspectives as well as fundamental differences between the two. The contribution concludes by stating that even though differences are present, both approaches are Schumpeterian in their own way – and describe a similar end to competitive development, one that is based on managing accumulated wealth. This is related to two distinctive areas in economics and administrative sciences: Firstly, it shows how the two scholars’ ideas are related with a possible source of influence, contributing to history of economic thought. Secondly, it shows the fate of economies once they innovate and become innovation driven; over time, income generated from innovation becomes a source of concern, and influences the risk-taking behavior of the economic system for the sake of protecting the income. In this way, the approach contributes to countries’ competitive positions and how two important scholars of economics and administrative sciences observe the start of the decline.
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