Research Student Presentations

BMRI - Business and Management Research Institute

Study of banks' lending practices from an institutional theoretical perspective: a case of Myanmar

Sandar Win, Magdy Abdel-Kader, Georgios Sermpinis, Yongmei Bentley
BMRI
Contact: sandar.win@beds.ac.uk

Contributing to the bank lending literature by studying banks in Myanmar which have not been studied before

This research studies banks' lending practices and decision making from a sociological perspective instead of following traditional approaches: classical decision theory, psychological decision theory, and social-psychological judgement and attitude theory. According to Institutional theory, organisations' practices and behaviours in the same institutional environment are homogeneous as they are exposed to the same coercive, normative and mimetic pressures, therefore, their opportunities and actions are limited. In this paper, institutional theory is taken a step further by recognising technical controls from task environment to study heterogeneities in addition to homogeneities among banks' lending practices in Myanmar. Most of the research papers studying banks' financing are based on continental Europe and other well-established economies and no papers have been found that study banks in Myanmar. The results show that coercive or regulative pressures significantly shape bank's lending behaviour in Myanmar.

Understanding the critical factors influencing the dynamic process of emerging ICT adoption in UK service SMEs

Sunday Eze, Yanqing Duan, Stephen Jackson
BMRI
Contact: sunday.eze@beds.ac.uk

Helping UK service SMEs to benefit from the application of emerging ICT over time by examining the dynamic process of technology adoption.

This study reports on research in progress which aims to help service SMEs benefit from the application of emerging ICT by examining the dynamic process of technology adoption using Actor Network Theory (ANT). Traditional adoption theories have contributed to technology adoption studies in the past, but they have limitations in capturing the constant technology advancements and the evolutionary nature of technology adoption. This work investigates how service SMEs are engaged in emerging ICT adoption by focusing on the adoption process, the role of key actors and critical factors, and reports on the critical factors. 13 interviews in 10 service SMEs have been analysed using content analysis. Using ANT to examine the process of emerging ICT adoption in service SME, the preliminary findings suggest that: technology preparedness, degree of community engagement, performance expectation and value anticipation are among the critical factors influence the adoption of emerging ICT.

Factors affecting active participation in Business-to-Business online business communities: a conceptual Framework

Abid Ahmad, Elly Philpott, Yanqing Duan
BMRI
Contact: abid.ahmad@beds.ac.uk

Helping Online B2B Community owners and managers to develop better understanding of the factors affecting active participation in Online B2B Communities.

The importance of online communities (OCs) for businesses has been acknowledged and well documented in the current literature. The success of any OC largely depends upon the members' active participation. Researchers have attempted to investigate factors affecting active participation in various types of OCs. However, the factors affecting active participation in business-to-business online business communities (B2B OBCs) needs to be further examined, since research in this field is still evolving. Hence, the primary purpose of this paper is to develop a better understanding on factors affecting active participation in these types of communities. Toward that goal, a conceptual framework is developed based on the Social Exchange Theory, Use and Gratification theory, and the Information Systems Success Model. This framework was further explored and tested using semi structured interview with seven members of B2B OBCs. The proposed framework provides a comprehensive overview of the factors may affect active participation in B2B OBCs.

Performance management practices in NGOs; memoirs of Kenyan NGO leaders

Billy Wadongo, Magdy Abdel-Kader, Georgios Sermpenis
BMRI
Contact: billy.wadongo@beds.ac.uk

NGOs leaders value the importance of performance management in the effective delivery of services to beneficiaries

Despite continuous calls for performance management (PM) research in Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and importance of performance management to NGOs, systematic review of literature reveals limited strategic PM research in NGOs (compared to private and public organisations). We provide empirical evidence of PM Practices that influence NGOs performance in Kenya from memoirs of top Kenyan NGO executives. The data collected was from six semi-structured interviews with the NGO executives and a focus group discussion with eight NGO managers in April 2011 as part of a research project utilising mixed research approach. Preliminary results reveal diverse PM practices as understood and used by NGO leaders in Kenya in terms of definition, implementation, reporting and management of performance as well as factors and challenges influencing these practices and effectiveness. We conclude that despite the nature of their work and organisations, the NGO leaders understand the importance of effective performance management systems in achievement of their intrinsic missions.

Understanding inter-firm networks and types of innovation in SMEs: a social network perspective

Meysam Poorkavoos, Yanqing Duan, John Edwards
BMRI; Aston University
Contact: Meysam.Poorkavoos@beds.ac.uk

Relationships between characteristics of inter-firm knowledge transfer networks and different types of innovations

Innovation is one of the key drivers for gaining competitive advantages in any firms. Understanding knowledge transfer through inter-firm networks and its effects on types of innovation in SMEs is very important in improving SMEs innovation. This study examines relationships between characteristics of inter-firm knowledge transfer networks and types of innovation in SMEs. To achieve this, social network perspective is adopted to understand inter-firm knowledge transfer networks and its impact on innovation by investigating how and to what extend ego network characteristics are affecting types of innovation. A conceptual model and research hypotheses are proposed to establish the possible relationship between network properties and types of innovation. Semi-structured interviews with managers of five SMEs have been carried out, and a thematic qualitative analysis of these interviews has been performed. The interviews helped to revise the questionnaire and provided preliminary evidence to support the hypotheses.

How the big four firms in Egypt have been affected by the new changes in the audit environment

Mohamed Khaled Eldaly, Magdy Abdel-Kader
BMRI
Contact: mohamed.eldaly@beds.ac.uk

The new audit strategies of the big four firms in Egypt

Our theory suggests that governmental oversight is not the only threat that faces the big firms in Egypt; many factors affect the audit firms in Egypt since 2003. These factors could be grouped into two categories: global threats coming from outside Egypt and local threats related to the Egyptian economy. Accordingly, the big firms in Egypt established a set of strategies to mitigate the risk of these threats. Such strategies could be grouped into five categories: becoming more conservative toward their clients' portfolios, giving more attention toward audit quality, giving more attention toward independency, hiring higher skilled people, and gaining more audit fees and profits.

IASR - Institute for Applied Social Research

Effects of study habits counselling on locus of control among African senior secondary students in Nigeria

P O Ikiriko, J Adonu, A Guppy, A Gaitan
LIRANS
Contact: patricia.ikiriko@beds.ac.uk

Is Locus of Control amongst African students "bad"?

The lack of study habits due to locus of control is a problem that has affected academic performance of many students in Nigeria. Results of May/June 2008, West African Examination Council announced that 83% of candidate failed (Olugbile 2008). Department of Education Abuja, 2006 analysis report found that learning conditions in schools are alarming; many students who failed feared they will never have good academic success. This study will demonstrate the extent to which counselling can be used to alter students' locus of control and attitudes to studying. Cognitive Behavioural Techniques will be employed as the model to bring attitudinal change. It will use within- subjects design, four questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews on 50 participants, twenty five male and twenty five female students, ages 15 - 21, recruited from two schools for the pilot study. This proposed study intends to identify ways to bring improvement in students' study habits and academic performance.

IHR - Institute for Health Research

Who uses NHS Direct? Using geo-demographic profiling to investigate the geographical and socio- demographic characteristics of NHS Direct users

Erica Cook, Andy Guppy, Shirley Large, Gurch Randhawa
IHR; NHS Direct
Contact: erica.cook@beds.ac.uk

Enabling NHS Direct to become a more 'person centered' and accessible service for the population in England.

NHS Direct (NHSD) provides 24/7 telephone based health care information to the public in England. This research builds on existing research and uses a novel methodological approach to investigate the socio-demographic characteristics of NHSD users to determine equity of use. Unit postcodes were taken from the NHSD database NHS CAS for July 2010 and linked to Experian UK geo-demographic profiling was linked to determine call profiler characteristics. Results confirmed that the highest users were couples with young children, low income and diverse populations alongside young well-educated city dwellers. Lowest users of NHSD were characterised as professional wealthy individuals, alongside elderly people in retirement homes and reliant on state support. The findings suggest that although there is a wide use of NHSD there still may be inequity of use with older individuals underutilising the service. Further research should therefore adopt a qualitative approach to explore the underlying factors that contribute to low utilisation to help shape future promotional campaigns.

Cook E, Large S, Guppy A, Randhawa G (2010) Who uses NHS Direct? Geographical and socio-demographic characteristics of NHS Direct users. PsyPAG Quarterly, 76, 25-27

The gift, social capital, deceased organ donation and religion: how do they connect? A fledgling theory

Chloe Sharp, Gurch Randhawa
IHR
Contact: chloe.sharp@beds.ac.uk

A theory is currently being developed that connects the gift, social capital, deceased organ donation and religion.

The gift has been studied in many fields, particularly anthropology where gift-exchange theory was developed. This theory purports that there are three obligations when giving a gift; give, receive and repay. Its link with deceased organ donation is through the metaphor 'gift of life'. A modern manifestation of gift giving is social capital, this incorporates moral norms, trust, volunteering and social cohesion. Religion has been found in studies as a factor for influencing views towards deceased organ donation, volunteering time and money and community cohesiveness. This theory is multi-disciplinary and explores interactions of concepts that have not been explored before. In turn, this theory may contribute towards understanding the interaction between these concepts on individual and national levels.

http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk

IRAC - Institute for Research in Applicable Computing

Digital forensics and the legal framework.

Moniphia Hewling, Paul Sant
IRAC
Contact: moniphia.hewling@beds.ac.uk

A methodology that has at its core, legal dimensions, will adequately address issues regarding admissibility of digital evidence in courts.

Digital related criminal activities have increased as today's society becomes more 'digital'. The perpetrators of these crimes are sometimes not held accountable for their crimes due to a variety of reasons including that the evidence required to convict resides in the digital realm. This is in part because when one becomes a suspect in such cases the evidence required for prosecution is digital and must be acquired via the digital forensics process. This process includes the preservation and presentation of digitally acquired evidence that present issues of reliability and consistency in courts. The concerns rest on the fact that there are no widely accepted existing standards governing the acquisition of digital evidence by digital forensic practitioners. Additionally there is concern that this process often ignores legal procedures required to ensure admissibility of the evidence in a court proceeding.

Ricci I S C (2006) Digital Forensics Framework that incorporate legal issues. Available from www.sciencedirect.com

ISPAR - Institute for Sport and Physical Activity Research

Cardiorespiratory fitness, vigorous physical activity and clustered cardiometabolic risk in children and adolescents [the HAPPY study]

D P Bailey, C J Kerr, S A Denton, L A Savory
ISPAR
Contact: daniel.bailey@beds.ac.uk

Levels of cardiorespiratory fitness, but not time spent in vigorous physical activity, is associated with cardiometabolic risk in youth

Cardiometabolic risk factor clustering can occur during childhood and predisposes individuals to the development of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. This study therefore explored differences in clustered cardiometabolic risk according to varying degrees of cardiorespiratory fitness and vigorous physical activity (VPA) in youths. One-hundred and two 10-14 year- olds took part in a maximal fitness test to determine cardiorespiratory fitness and 7 days of accelerometry to measure time spent in VPA. A cardiometabolic risk score was computed as the mean of the standardised scores for several cardiometabolic risk factors. Differences between fit and unfit participants and between VPA tertiles were assessed using ANCOVA. Clustered risk was reduced (p<.001) in the fit group compared to the unfit group, while no differences (p>.05) were found between VPA tertiles. These results suggest a protective role of cardiorespiratory fitness against cardiometabolic risk factor clustering in youths.

Effect of exercise induced stress on leukocyte Hsp72, GRP78, Hsp90a and GRP94 mRNA expression

James Tuttle, Lee Taylor, Mark Lewis, Paul Castle
ISPAR; University College London; Cranfield University; Loughborough University
Contact: james.tuttle@beds.ac.uk

Heat shock protein (Hsp) gene expression is upregulated to the greatest extent by downhill running in the heat (Heat downhill intervention).

Hsp's maintain protein homeostasis, preventing cellular stress. Basal Hsp levels are elevated in response to exercise, downhill running and exertional heat stress (EHS) increasing protection against future stressors. However there is no information regarding the effect of downhill running and EHS combined on expression across the whole range of Hsps. With ethical approval 14 physically active students were allocated to either a temperate (20°C, 50%RH) or heat group (20°C, 50%RH). In a random order participants in the temperate group completed 30 min running (1% gradient) at lactate threshold (LT; temperate flat) and 30 min downhill running (-10% gradient) at LT (temperate downhill). Participants in the heat group completed the same protocols in the heat (heat flat and heat downhill). Hsp gene expression was measured in leukocytes via Quantitative PCR. Hsp72 mRNA (388 ± 159.7%), GRP78 mRNA (218.4±76.8%), Hsp90a mRNA (374.1±167.4%) and GRP94 mRNA (282.6±154.7%) were significantly (P < 0.05) upregulated to the greatest extent in the heat downhill intervention.

Examining the relationships between a revised Modified Social Learning Theory for children and objectively measured physical activity behaviours in 10-14 year olds [The HAPPY Study]

SJ Denton, CJ Kerr, LA Savory, DP Bailey, A Chater
ISPAR
Contact: sarah.denton@beds.ac.uk

Measuring the determinants of physical activity subjectively and objectively

This study examined the relationships between components of a revised Modified Social Learning Theory for children (MSLTc; Chater, Vögele, & Worrell, 2008) and moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) levels in 10-14 year old schoolchildren. A sample of 78 schoolchildren (boys n = 34, girls n = 44) participated in baseline measurements which included the completion of a health perceptions questionnaire measuring the components of the MSLTc (health locus of control, generalised self-efficacy, health value and perceived self-image) and physical activity monitoring, recorded objectively using RT3 ® triaxial accelerometers. Separate regression analyses were performed for each gender to assess the relationship between the components of MSLTc and weekday and weekend MVPA. For boys, the MSLTc significantly predicted weekday MVPA (R2 = 0.33 (5,33), p < 0.05) and weekend MVPA (R2 = 0.35 (5,33), p < 0.05). In contrast, the MSLTc was not able to significantly explain weekday and weekend MVPA for girls. This study found that cognitions from the MSLTc differ in their prediction of MVPA between girls and boys. Given the government's focus on children fulfilling 60 minutes of MVPA everyday, it is important that future research continues to explore the relationships between children's health cognitions and behaviours, while also considering potential gender differences.

RIMAD - Research Institute in Media, Art and Design

The impact of media reporting of war crimes trials on civil society in Sierra Leone and Liberia

Abou Bhakarr Muhammed Binneh-Kamara, Jon Silverman.
RIMAD
Contact: Abou.Binneh-Kamara@beds.ac.uk

In one of the most volatile regions of Africa, the media can play an important role in post-conflict justice and stability.

My PhD is part of a groundbreaking project being funded by the British Academy. The aim is to create a partnership between the University of Bedfordshire and two institutions in West Africa, while also promoting an original piece of research. I have already made one trip to Liberia to develop relationships there and to pave the way for a conference being organised in Monrovia by my supervisor, Professor Jon Silverman. I have been doing a literature review on reportage of war crimes trials and Truth Commissions and am embarking on a thorough content/framing analysis of newspaper coverage of two trials, one in the Hague and one conducted in Freetown by the Special Court for Sierra Leone. In a region with a low degree of literacy, radio coverage is particularly influential and I will be comparing radio reporting with that of the written press.

http://www.beds.ac.uk/research/rimad

Emergent methodologies: knowledge gained from praxis

Louise Douse, Helen Bailey
RIMAD
Contact: Louise.Douse@beds.ac.uk

This innovative methodology addresses the reciprocal, intersubjective relationship between choreographer and dancer.

This research aims to provide new methodologies within the practice-as-research context. The paper critiques the development of the debate surrounding embodied knowledge and performance by examining recent writing within the philosophy of phenomenology; flow studies, in positive psychology; and somatic practices in dance. Each area addresses embodiment in terms of the holistic experience that people engage in through action in the world. Phenomenology in particular is concerned with conscious experience through perception; the main notion of this philosophy is to define a qualitative approach to the lived experience. Flow, alternatively, addresses the state of mind one enters when totally immersed in an activity; the purpose of positive psychology is to achieve a scientific understanding and implement effective interventions for improving life. Somatic practices concurrently are those practical activities which are engaged in, which involve the whole being; mind and body.