The double-edged effects of data privacy practices on customer responses

Requesting personal information in frontline service encounters raises privacy concerns among customers. The proximity contact tracing that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic provides an intriguing context of information requests. Hospitality venues required contact tracing details from customers, and customer cooperation varied with concerns about privacy. Drawing on gossip theory, we investigate the roles of businesses’ data privacy practices and government support in driving customers’ responses to contact tracing. Our findings show that perceived transparency of a business’s privacy practices has a positive effect on customers’ commitment to the business, while perceived control exerts a negative effect on commitment. These effects are mediated by customers’ information falsification rather than disclosure, because the former is a sensitive behavioral indicator of privacy concerns. The results also reveal the moderating roles of government support. This research contributes to the customer data privacy literature by demonstrating the distinct effects of perceived transparency and control on commitment and revealing the underlying mechanism. Moreover, the research extends the conceptual understanding of privacy practices from online contexts to face-to-face contexts of frontline service. The findings offer implications for the management of customer data privacy.     

Information ethics in the context of smart devices

In this paper, we employ Extended Cognition as a background for a series of thought experiments about privacy and common used information technology devices. Laptops and smart phones are now widely used devices, but current privacy standards do not adequately address the relationship between the owners of these devices and the information stored on them. Law enforcement treats laptops and smart phones are potential sources of information about criminal activity, but this treatment ignores the use of smart devices as extensions of users’ cognitive capability. In Philosophy of Mind, Extended Cognition is a metaphysical theory about the relationship between consciousness or cognitive activity and various external tools or aids that agents employ in the service of cognition. Supporters of Extended Cognition argue that mental activity must be understood as taking place both within the brain and by way of tools such as a logician’s pen and paper, a mathematician’s calculator, or a writer’s word processing program. While Extended Cognition does not have universal support among philosophers of mind, the theory nevertheless describes how agents interact with their “smart devices.” We explore the the implications of taking Extended Cognition seriously with regard to privacy concerns by way of a series of thought experiments. By comparing the differences in expectations of privacy between a citizen and the government, between an employee of a corporate firm, and between citizens alone, we show that expectations of privacy and injury are significantly affected by taking the cognitive role of smart devices into account.     

Big data governance of personal health information and challenges to contextual integrity

Pervasive digitization and aggregation of personal health information (PHI), along with artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced analytical techniques, hold promise of improved health and healthcare services. These advances also pose significant data governance challenges for ensuring value for individual, organizational, and societal stakeholders as well as individual privacy and autonomy. Through a case study of a controversial public-private partnership between Royal Free Trust, a National Health Service hospital system in the United Kingdom, and Alphabet’s AI venture DeepMind Health, we investigate how forms of data governance were adapted, as PHI data flowed into new use contexts, to address concerns of contextual integrity, which is violated when personal information collected in one use context moves to another use context with different norms of appropriateness.     

Negotiating autonomy and responsibility in military robots

Central to the ethical concerns raised by the prospect of increasingly autonomous military robots are issues of responsibility. In this paper we examine different conceptions of autonomy within the discourse on these robots to bring into focus what is at stake when it comes to the autonomous nature of military robots. We argue that due to the metaphorical use of the concept of autonomy, the autonomy of robots is often treated as a black box in discussions about autonomous military robots. When the black box is opened up and we see how autonomy is understood and ‘made’ by those involved in the design and development of robots, the responsibility questions change significantly.     

Intelligent information retrieval: Part IV. Testing the timing of two information retrieval devices in a naturalistic setting

This article is Part IV in a series of articles that report the results of a two year research program the purpose of which is to design and test intelligent information retrieval (IR) devices for undergraduates researching a social science term paper. The devices are task-facilitating, helping the undergraduate perform the task of researching and writing a term paper, and they provide a mold which takes the students’ amorphous conception of their information need, turning it into an effective query to the IR system. The present article reports the results of two studies which tested an uncertainty expansion IR device and an uncertainty reduction IR device in naturalistic settings. The devices are designed to be given at different stages of Kuhlthau’s information search process (ISP). In both studies, undergraduates were randomly assigned to either the test group, who received the device intervention, or a comparison group. In Study 1, we found that the comparison group received a higher mean mark than students in the uncertainty expansion group. In Study 2, we found that the uncertainty reduction group received a higher mean mark than the comparison group when the device was given later in the student’s ISP. We conclude that the timing of the device interventions is crucial to their potential efficacy.     

为何“君命不受”？：违命创新行为的影响因素及模式——基于科技型企业新生代员工的实证研究

以AMO理论为基础探讨违命创新行为的影响因素及模式,采用回归分析和模糊集定性比较分析法对491份科技型企业新生代员工问卷进行分析,得出如下结论:员工创造力自我效能感对其违命创新行为有正向影响,员工自恋主义倾向对其违命创新行为不存在显著影响,员工工作自主性对其违命创新行为具有正向影响;触发员工违命创新行为的前因构型有两类,即"创造力自我效能感×工作自主性"和"工作自主性×自恋主义倾向",其中机会要素是关键因素,工作自主性在能力要素、动机要素和机会要素三者的协同效应中起着决定性的作用。研究得到的主要管理启示包括:给予员工更多的工作自主权;重视培养和提升员工的创造力自我效能;正确认识员工的自恋主义倾向。     

Informational privacy, data mining, and the Internet

Privacy concerns involving data mining are examined in terms of four questions: (1) What exactly is data mining? (2) How does data mining raise concerns for personal privacy? (3) How do privacy concerns raised by data mining differ from those concerns introduced by ‘traditional’ information-retrieval techniques in computer databases? (4) How do privacy concerns raised by mining personal data from the Internet differ from those concerns introduced by mining such data from ‘data warehouses?’ It is argued that the practice of using data-mining techniques, whether on the Internet or in data warehouses, to gain information about persons raises privacy concerns that (a) go beyond concerns introduced in traditional information-retrieval techniques in computer databases and (b) are not covered by present data-protection guidelines and privacy laws.     

Game on! How gamified loyalty programs boost customer engagement value

Though gamified loyalty programs (GLPs), or loyalty programs that deploy gamified elements, are increasingly adopted, academic acumen of customer engagement with GLPs lags behind, thus exposing an important research gap. Based on this gap, we review the gamification-, loyalty program-, and customer engagement literature, from which we derive important insight. First, extending the customer engagement literature, we develop the concept of GLP engagement (GLPE), defined as members’ GLP-related behavior, expressed through direct- (i.e., purchase) and/or indirect (e.g., GLP-related learning/advocating) contributions, which we argue are critical to GLP effectiveness. Extending prior research, we also classify members’ indirect GLP contributions as autonomous (vs. interdependent)-, selfless (vs. self-seeking)-, control (vs. laissez-faire)-based-, collaborative (vs. competitive)-, individual (vs. generic)-, and calculated (vs. non-calculated) contributions. Second, we develop a self-determination theory-informed framework that proposes members’ intrinsic/extrinsic motivation as major drivers of GLPE, which in turn impacts customer brand engagement value (CBEV). Third, formalizing the framework’s associations, we develop a set of Propositions that serve as a springboard for further GLPE research. We conclude by discussing major implications that arise from this research.     

Mobile users’ information privacy concerns and the role of app permission requests

Recent privacy-related incidents of mobile services have shown that app stores and providers face the challenge of mobile users’ information privacy concerns, which can prevent users from installing mobile apps or induce them to uninstall an app. In this paper, we investigate the role of app permission requests and compare the impact on privacy concerns with other antecedents of information privacy concerns, i.e., prior privacy experience, computer anxiety, and perceived control. To test these effects empirically, we conducted an online survey with 775 participants. Results of our structural equation modeling show that prior privacy experience, computer anxiety, and perceived control have significant effects on privacy concerns. However, concerns for app permission requests have approximately twice as much predictive value than the other factors put together to explain mobile users’ overall information privacy concerns. We expect that our findings can provide a theoretical contribution for future mobile privacy research as well as practical implications for app stores and providers.     

企业管理者人格类型与个体学习能力关系研究

摘要：回顾了个体学习理论和MBTI人格类型测量工具在组织背景下应用的研究成果,探索性地对企业管理者的人格类型与个体学习能力之间的关系进行实证研究,结果表明N/S维度与个体学习能力关系显著;除T/F维度以外的三个维度对个体学习的九种分能力也存在一定的影响。这些结论不仅丰富了企业环境下个体学习的研究,同时也为企业人力资源管理实践提供启示。     

Crowdfunding as Donations to Entrepreneurial Firms

The bulk of today's (“preorder-,” “reward-,” “gift-,” and “donation-based”) crowdfunding raises funds for small, private entrepreneurial ventures without granting funders private claims to the projects’ income or the ability to guarantee the realization and delivery of project outcomes. We theorize and show empirically – via a mixed-method approach applied to a representative and remarkably informative case – that the payoff structure for crowdfunders, akin to a public good contribution problem, leads to the tangible value of main project outputs exerting little influence on contributions to crowdfunding. This then raises the question of which funder motivations fund seekers may have to address to crowdfund their projects. We demonstrate the especially large role of non-pecuniary motivations and pinpoint three particular motivations that profit-seeking entrepreneurs may stimulate to be financed through crowdfunding. The findings hold important implications for entrepreneurs’ crowdfunding strategies, platform design, and our understanding of how this funding institution works in general. The study also adds to emerging research on the implications of the public good nature of crowdfunding.     

民族乡模糊性法律地位的影响及对策

因民族乡法律地位模糊,导致其在城镇化进程中出现撤并不规范的现象,影响少数民族权益,出现民族政策贯彻不实、撤并后待遇不一、民族乡自治与村民自治难以衔接等问题。为解决上述问题,我们应在法律中规定民族镇,并将民族乡镇列入民族区域自治地方,制定《中华人民共和国民族乡（镇）法》,以便全面发挥民族乡价值。     

移动学习在大学英语自主学习能力培养中的应用

大学英语的教学不应只把重点放在向学生传授英语知识上,而是要教会学生如何学习和应用这门语言,帮助学生学会学习,形成自主学习的能力。基于现代化教学手段的移动学习打破了固有的教学思维,以其丰富的教学资源、弹性的学习方式、个性化的学习模式,完美地融入到传统的课堂教学模式中,并对传统的教学模式进行了恰当的补充。本文试图找出二者的关联,在大学英语教学中引入移动学习法,将移动学习与自主学习有机结合起来,探讨其对大学生英语自主学习能力的培养和促进作用。     

面向公共政策的网络媒体内容文本分析应用框架与实证——以新能源汽车政策为例

【目的/意义】随着互联网的迅速发展,网络媒体成为反映社会舆论的主要载体。如何有效地从网络媒体获取公共政策相关的社情民意以引导公共政策的传播议程设置是政府职能部门所关注的重要问题之一。【方法/过程】本文基于网络媒体数据,应用数据挖掘、机器学习等数据分析技术,提出了一个面向公共政策的网络媒体内容文本分析框架。利用文本语义分析方法,从主题识别、情感分析等角度对网络主流媒体的公共政策传播议程设置与社交媒体网民舆论进行挖掘和对比,并以新能源汽车政策为例对该分析框架的有效性进行了验证。【结果/结论】通过实证发现当下网络媒体报道的议题与社交媒体上公众对有关公共政策的关注焦点之间存在较大偏差,就新能源汽车政策为例,公众对于其政策的关注偏向于衡量自身获利的多少,而网络媒体报道更多以描述政策传递信息为主。建议政府职能机构针对公共政策使用网络媒体进行传播时,可根据公众关注焦点话题进行议程的设置和调整,以增强公众对此政策的认可度。     

技术行为的自主性原则：在预防在先原则和行动在先原则之间

科技实践活动应该遵循预防在先原则还是行动在先原则,这是学术界讨论的一个热点问题。技术行为过程及影响存在的风险和不确定性,使得这两种原则出现了局限性。因此,技术主体在进行技术行为时,应该遵从自己的自由意志,根据具体情境和特定形势在预防在先原则和行动在先原则之间找到平衡点,即应遵循自主性原则。倡导技术行为应该遵循自主性原则,除了是为了保证技术主体的技术行为和伦理责任相一致外,还具有更深层次的哲学意涵,包括维护技术主体的尊严、保障技术主体实践智慧的发挥及有助于技术行为成为道德的行为等。     

村镇农业个性化信息服务体系的研究

我国村镇农业信息化建设远没有达到其推进农业发展的要求。村镇农业个性化信息服务理念是根据我国现阶段的国情提出的,它是利用我国村镇现有的信息设备条件,向农民提供不同方式和不同内容的农业信息服务。     

Controlling Smart Devices in the Home

Domestic appliances have replaced much human labor in the home. But how human do we want these devices to be, and how much autonomy do we want to give them? To throw some light on these questions, first the use and limitations of conversational agents (natural language interfaces) are discussed. Then some aspects of the experience of families living in a smart house are described, and compared with that of employers of servants in 19th-century Britain. On the basis of this research it appears that people do not want household devices to be very human, and do not want to give them much autonomy. Designers are recommended to observe two rules: Smart domestic devices should put people firmly in control and should as far as possible be unseen and unheard.     

Studying transitions: Past,present, and future

The domain of transition studies has been drawing more and more scholarly attention and, as a result, its body of knowledge is rapidly growing. This raises new challenges as well as opportunities, not the least regarding the methodological and philosophical underpinnings of research in this domain. In this respect, transition research, as a relatively young field of inquiry, has been little concerned with methodological investigation and reflection. We propose a framework that enables this reflection: the so-called ‘transition research onion’. Subsequently, we utilize this framework to systematically assess 217 peer-reviewed papers in the field of transition studies, to distill key methodological patterns and trends of the field. The findings suggest that the methodology of transition studies, in terms of depth and diversity, is underdeveloped. These insights serve to guide future research on transition processes.     

Wearing multiple hats—The role of working group chairs’ affiliation in standards development

Standards Development Organizations (SDO) make critical decisions shaping the direction of technological innovation. SDOs are usually considered to offer a neutral venue for the collaborative efforts of different stakeholders, which often pursue competing particular interests. Nevertheless, individuals acting on behalf of the SDO, such as working group chairs, are themselves often employees of individual SDO stakeholders. Recently, there have been concerns that over-representation of the employees of certain powerful stakeholders in SDO leadership positions may undermine the objectivity of SDO decision making. Nevertheless, to date, there exists no empirical evidence to corroborate these concerns. We find that being affiliated with one of the largest SDO stakeholders significantly increases an individual’s likelihood of being appointed to a leadership position at IETF, but not at 3GPP. At the same time, in both SDOs, working groups whose chairs are affiliated with leading stakeholders produce standards that are less cited and less referenced than standards produced by other working groups, in particular those chaired by university affiliates. Our findings suggest that the commercial interests of individuals’ employers may facilitate these individuals’ ascension to SDO leadership positions, but the potential for conflicts between these commercial interests of chairs’ employers and the organizational goals of the SDO may negatively impact the success of the working group’s standards.     

We are in it together: Communitarianism and the performance-innovation relationship✰

The relationship between firm performance and innovation behavior has been widely studied, yet theoretical and empirical findings still widely diverge. We investigate this inconsistency through the lens of informal institutions, specifically communitarianism, the degee to which group goals are considered more important than individual goals. We do this through an analysis of a firm-level dataset covering 31,860 firms across 56 countries. We find evidence for a ‘cushion effect’, where firms in highly communitarian settings benefit from informal insurance in order to engage in innovation activity when their performance is below their aspirational value. Firms experiencing performance above aspirational value are also more likely to engage in innovation activity in highly communitarian settings due to a ‘pay-it-forward’ mechanism, using innovation activities to contribute to community challenges. Both effects are conditional on firms being sufficiently embedded in their direct business environment. We discuss the direct and wider implications for the literature on performance-innovation behavior and provide guidance for policy makers and practitioners.