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Purpose Entrepreneurship is a phenomenon strongly associated with economic growth, development and employability, leading countries to compete and often produce reforms to ensure good levels of entrepreneurship. In this sequence, this study aims to know which types of economies present favourable institutional environments for entrepreneurs, exploring the link between the ease of doing business and the three levels of economic development (innovation-driven, efficiency-driven and factor-driven) of 137 economies. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative methodology through an analysis of variances was adopted, gathering data from the ten pillars proposed by the World Bank in the Doing Business 2019 – training for reforms report, and economic development levels, provided by Global Competitiveness Report (2017–2018). Findings In the light of institutional theory, the results showed that innovation-driven economies are more competitive, presenting more robust institutional environments for entrepreneurs than factor-driven and efficiency-driven. There is only one exception in the Getting Credit pillar. Originality/value This study clarifies some assumptions in the previous literature that developed economies have better business environments, being the first one to establish this relationship directly. Some practical implications, especially for international entrepreneurs in the decision-making phase on which type of economies to carry out their investments and policymakers and researchers, were provided in this study.

The telecommunications industry is particularly competitive and characterized by very high churn rates. The literature on the topic is vast, but studies on the determinants of churn behavior are dispersed, failing to provide a comprehensive view of the state of the art. Based on this research gap, this article aims to contribute to developing the literature on customer churn in the telecommunications sector by summarizing the current state of research, and identifying the main determinants of churn and switching intentions. It provides a systematic literature review (SLR) of 37 articles on the topic published between 1999 and 2022. The results reveal the existence of two research streams. The first, in which the studies are based on surveys examining the alleged intentions of subscribers to change operators, with criteria such as satisfaction and attitudes as predictors, and the second, dealing with subscribers’ actual switching behavior and relating this to behaviors and characteristics extracted from internal customer management systems. All independent variables used to explain switching intention or real churn were mapped. It was found that age, gender, satisfaction, switching costs and barriers, and service quality are the most important determinants highlighted by the literature. Our study also outlines some insightful practical implications, which could be extended to other service sectors. The paper ends with a research agenda for future studies according to the gaps detected by the study’s results. Among its limitations, this research excludes papers related to predictive models and studies not in English.

Resumo Tendo em vista o crescente volume de recursos investidos em tecnologia da informação a cada ano, as organizações do setor público devem cada vez mais ter a capacidade de reunir, integrar e implementar recursos de TI, a fim de atender às necessidades dos processos organizacionais. Além disso, as organizações públicas são cada vez mais exigidas a serem mais ágeis e flexíveis para atender às demandas dinâmicas das sociedades. Nesse sentido, as organizações públicas devem ser capazes de administrar e aplicar adequadamente os recursos de TI de que dispõem, bem como criar ambientes organizacionais que permitam e estimulem o florescimento da inovação. Ou seja, devem aprender a cultivar as capacidades de TI e a inovação, com o objetivo de melhor cumprir sua missão e criar valor público. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo é identificar as relações existentes entre inovatividade, capacidades de TI, capacidade de reconfiguração de TI e desempenho organizacional, no contexto do setor público. Para tanto, dados de 254 organizações públicas brasileiras, dos mais diversos portes e setores, foram analisados por meio de uma abordagem de equações estruturais (SEM). Os resultados indicaram que a capacidade de reconfigurar TI deve ser listada entre as capacidades de TI das organizações públicas, bem como que as capacidades de TI desempenham um papel no fomento da inovação das organizações e que ambas (as capacidades de TI e a inovatividade) têm um impacto positivo no desempenho das organizações. Ao testar proposições teóricas identificadas no contexto do setor privado, mas insuficientemente avaliadas no setor público, o estudo acrescenta um bloqueio na construção do conhecimento sobre capacidade de inovação e capacidades de TI, além de apontar caminhos para gestores públicos sobre como eles podem tornar suas instituições mais bem preparadas para enfrentar ambientes em constante mudança.

Much attention has been paid to the care workforce and care home residents during the COVID-19 crisis, whereas the impact on informal caregivers has remained speculative. In Austria, like in other European countries, informal care is carried out overwhelmingly by (non-cohabiting) relatives. Limited care services available during the crisis, social-distancing, economic uncertainty and competing care needs within households may have changed the profile of informal caregiving and/or increased the psychological strain experienced by caregivers. Focusing on Austria, this study aims to empirically analyse the following research questions: how has the pandemic affected the incidence and intensity of informal caregiving? How has the psychological wellbeing during the first wave of the pandemic compared across different groups of informal caregivers, depending on their gender and parental status? We use a novel representative survey carried out in Austria after the implementation of lockdown measures (June 2020, N=2000). Bivariate and multivariate statistical analysis is applied to a set of survey items dedicated to respondent’s informal caregiving before and after the start of the pandemic and psychological wellbeing. Findings suggest a tightening of care networks, with new carers likely to have stepped in to provide low intensity care to relatively autonomous people. Overall, both prevalence and intensity of informal care did not change significantly (compared to pre-crisis levels). Caregiving was associated with poor psychological outcomes, especially among those without children. Findings are discussed in relation to the emerging literature on the impact of the pandemic and to the policy measures implemented in Austria.

As new technologies pave the way to increasingly sophisticated and academically relevant experiences, gamification of the learning process, regardless of the field of expertise, becomes more and mo...

The role that the resources and capabilities of agricultural entrepreneurs play on both environmental performance (EP) and financial performance (FP) is still unclear. This study analyzes how small farms enhance EP and FP in an inland Portuguese region through the relationship between dynamic capabilities (DCs), entrepreneurial orientation (EO), and environmental sustainability commitment (ESC). Based on a sample of 160 fresh fruit farms and applying a partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS‐SEM), our study concludes that EO and ESC influence EP and FP positively. Hence, farms can achieve competitive advantage through mitigating their profound impacts on the environment as proposed by the natural resource‐based view (NRBV). Farms are also improving DCs, but farmers respond to the higher environmental requirements of agricultural markets primarily through research and development (R&D) capabilities and not through marketing capabilities. Having as theoretical supports the NRBV and the DCs, our study contributes to a better understanding of the mechanisms through which entrepreneurs enhance EP and FP in sectors with high environmental impacts such as agriculture. The findings suggest that entrepreneurship training projects may enable farmers to approach food security as a market opportunity and not only as rules they must follow.

The literature is full of works that highlight the positive effects of the application of information technology on business processes, including gains in terms of transparency, efficiency and effectiveness. However, there is a growing number of studies showing that, in parallel with technological innovation, phenomena occur that cause distress and malaise to the workers, with studies on technostress being highlighted, that is, the difficulty of adapting to technological innovations in the work environment. However, few studies have been carried out to understand the negative effects of this technological transformation on public servants. Thus, the objective of this study is to identify the role of technostress on job satisfaction and organizational commitment in the context of the public sector. The technique of analysis of structural equations (CB-SEM) to analyze data collected with users of information technology from a Brazilian public organization. We have identified that the technostress negatively affects the satisfaction, which, in turn, positively impacts the commitment. In a complementary way, the relation between the demographic characteristics of the workers and the creators of technostress are presented in detail. As a result, several theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.

Entrepreneurship tends to add value to products and services, enables the creation of new jobs, enhances productivity and consequently economic development. The objective of this paper is to study the phenomenon of entrepreneurship through understanding of the effect of several variables in Entrepreneurial Intensions. Based on variables extracted from Global Entrepreneurship Monitor databases and in order to analyze the association between the variables, the Pearson Correlation was performed, followed by a Multiple Linear Regression model to list which variables explain the entrepreneurial intentions in a significant way. The results of correlations show significant positive correlation between Perceived Capabilities, Entrepreneurship as a Good Career Choice, High Status to Successful Entrepreneurs and Total Early-Stage Entrepreneurial Activity and Entrepreneurial Intentions. The significant predictors found for Entrepreneurial Intentions were the Perceived Capabilities, Entrepreneurial Activity in the Initial Phase, High Status for Successful Entrepreneurs, and Motivation. Variables concerning behavior and attitudes are the best explanatory for entrepreneurial intentions in the world; none of the variables considering framework conditions entered in the model.

With the growth in political, ethnic, and religious conflicts across the globe, intolerance is manifested across different societies especially in the context of (forced) migration and refugees. The purpose of this study is to examine intolerance as a complex social problem. Specifically, this research seeks to explore the perceptions and conceptions of (in)tolerance between refugees from Syria and host communities in Lebanon identifying the degree and the different forms in which tolerance and intolerance materialize. This will allow different agents such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), policymakers, and relevant authorities to develop adequate interventions to tackle this phenomenon through a social marketing approach and improve (refugee) crisis response plans. The situation has emerged following the Syrian conflict (2011–present) and the arrival of 1.5 million refugees into Lebanon. This number thus constitutes a challenge to both the hosts and the refugees in Lebanon, a small country. A qualitative study was conducted based on semi-structured interviews to investigate the perceptions and conceptions of the target audiences, citizens, refugees, leaders, and NGO staff/volunteers. Results show the existence of a phenomenon of intolerance; its relevant aspects, namely discrimination, prejudice, stereotypes, racism, and scapegoating; and the rise of violence–tension and fear as emerging themes of intolerance manifestations in the context of the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon.

espanolEste estudio aplico la Escala de Motivacion Academica (AMS) de Vallerand et al. (1992), adaptado para la Escala de Motivacion Academica de Contabilidad y Marketing (AMAMS) con el fin de analizar cual es el nivel de motivacion de los estudiantes de pregrado portugueses que asistian a las Unidades Curriculares (CU) de Contabilidad y Marketing, a comienzos y a finales del ano academico 2017/2018. Este estudio empirico longitudinal muestra el nivel de evolucion de la motivacion de los estudiantes que estudiaron areas de conocimiento de contabilidad y marketing en dos momentos temporales diferentes, con y sin recurso de ensenanza gamificado. El objetivo final de este estudio es analizar la evolucion de la motivacion con y sin la aplicacion de los recursos gamificados en el proceso de ensenanza. El estudio incluyo una muestra total de 1923 estudiantes divididos en dos grupos: el Grupo Gamified (GG) y el Grupo de Control (CG) con sus motivaciones sujetas a evaluacion antes del comienzo de las clases (Momento 1 - M1) y al final de las clases programadas (Momento 2 - M2). Los resultados permiten verificar que los estudiantes de GG experimentaron un aumento en su Motivacion para Aprender (IMTK) entre M1 y M2 mayor que los estudiantes de CG. EnglishThis study applied the Academic Motivation Scale (AMS) by Vallerand et al. (1992), adapted for the Accounting and Marketing Academic Motivation Scale (AMAMS) in order to analyse who is the motivation level of Portuguese undergraduate students who were attending the Curricular Units (CUs) of Accounting and Marketing, in the beginning, and in the end of 2017/2018 academic year. This longitudinal empirical study reports motivation evolution level of students who studied Accounting and Marketing knowledge areas at two different temporal moments, with and without gamified teaching resource, during the classes. The final goal of this study is to analyse the motivation evolution with and without application of the gamified resources in the teaching process.The study included a total sample of 1923 students divided into two groups: the Gamified Group (GG) and the Control Group (CG) and with their motivations subject to evaluation prior to the beginning of classes (Moment 1 – M1) and at the end of the scheduled classes (Moment 2 – M2). The results enable the verification that the GG students experienced an increase in their Motivation to Learn (IMTK) between M1 and M2 greater than the CG students.

This study aims to analyze the impact of business sophistication on marketing knowledge. The research combines bibliometric literature review, preferred reporting items for systematic and meta-analyses (PRISMA), and empirical approach to collect extensive sample data GII (Global Innovation Index) of 50 countries' business sophistication technologic input-output framework. Furthermore, the research uses multiple linear regression analysis to test the proposed hypotheses. Business sophistication impacts positively on marketing knowledge. However, each technological input pillar behaves differently. This study derives managerial strategies and policies from marketing knowledge.

Synapse stabilization Early in brain development, neurons connect to each other enthusiastically. With development, an overabundance of synapses is winnowed down to refine efficiently connected circuits. Inactive synapses are prime targets for elimination, whereas active synapses tend to be retained. Gomez-Castro et al . took a closer look at how those choices are made (see the Perspective by Blum and Lopes). When postsynaptic adenosine receptors are muted or do not find enough extracellular adenosine, synapses get eliminated. Neurotransmitter-dependent signaling pathways drive protein kinase A to phosphorylate the postsynaptic scaffolding molecule gephyrin. Together with a partner synaptogenic membrane protein, gephyrin is required for the stabilization of γ-aminobutyric acid receptors. Adenosine receptors thus detect synaptic activity and in turn drive the stabilization of synapses that produce such activity. —PJH

Physical Activity (PA) is considered a coadjutant factor in the control of hypertension, helping to control this societal burden. This study investigates the factors that may influence the adoption of PA recommendations by hypertensive individuals by comparing physical activity patterns among hypertensives and normotensives and the importance placed on PA by both groups. Data from 966 Portuguese participants aged between 18 to 90 years old, representing hypertensives (n=144) and normotensives (n=822) were collected using a face-to-face questionnaire. The results show significant differences between the two groups in terms of causes of non-participation and dropping out, preferred PA activities, perceived knowledge, and information-seeking behaviour. The main barriers to exercise reported by hypertensives were the perception that PA is not adequate or even dangerous to their health. Doctors must be considered a key factor in promoting exercise. When compared to normotensives, hypertensives feel that PA information available is not appropriate (p=.0006). Hypertensives consider that existing programmes will not meet their needs and do not like traditional fitness classes, such as those in gyms. The fear of risks associated with exercise seems to be a significant barrier that impairs PA participation.

The processes of neural genesis, namely neurogenesis, astrogliogenesis, and oligodendrogenesis, that is, the formation of new neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes start with embryonic developm...

The application of gamification to the teaching-learning process across different fields of knowledge constitutes an emerging practice applied across all levels of education, from primary school up to university. This article, in keeping with the importance of the applications of this type of tool, holds the general objective of undertaking the mapping of research articles that approach the application of gamification techniques to teaching-learning processes in general education of all areas and the teaching of management in particular. In order to achieve this, this article describes the organisational structure of the field research in terms of publications, authors and journals as well as identifying and classifying the research articles about adopting gamification methods. Hence, the subject of analysis encapsulates scientific articles published in either the ISI Web of Science (WOS) or Scopus (SCO) databases related to the application of gamification to the teaching process in general and to management in particular. The present research focused on the mapping of the literature related to the application of gamification to the management field because we didn’t find an article in the literature addressing this particular area. The existence of this GAP motivated the authors to conduct a research directed to the analysis of scientific studies in which gamification had been applied in this area.

Aim To evaluate whether haemoglobin (Hb) levels are influenced by the restitution volume (RestVol) at the end of the dialysis session, independently of erythropoiesis‐stimulating agents (ESA) and iron doses. Design Over 12 months, 4,386 haemodialysis patients from 34 centres were enrolled in this observational descriptive study according to the checklist STrengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE). Method RestVol, Hb levels, ESA and iron doses of every patient were assessed on a monthly basis. To determine the ideal RestVol, the clinics were classified into three groups according to the restitution volumes at the end of the dialysis sessions. Results Mean age was 69 ± 14 years, and 58.9% were men. The evaluation of 665,712 treatments revealed that RestVol of 380 ml seems to be the most efficient, since the clinics in this group managed to reduce ESA consumption with a negligible reduction in Hb levels.

This research studies the formation of tourist expectations around a tourist destination and the existence of a knowledge gap between this group and perceptions of tourism service providers. We propose a five-construct theoretical model: tourism expectations, destination image, social media, word-of-mouth communication and past experiences. We thus implemented two questionnaires, with tourists (n = 373) and with tourism service providers (n = 460). Structural equation modelling results identify social media and destination image as influencing visitors’ expectations, and that this image arises out of word-of-mouth communication and tourists’ past experiences. The results also indicate that local actors may be neglecting the influence of word-of-mouth destination recommendations and the relationship between the destination image and the prevailing expectations.

This study aims to investigate if engaging in physical activity (PA) and gender influences people’s entrepreneurial intention (EI). A survey for measuring EI and PA was developed and administered to the general population. The data were collected with a questionnaire distributed across all continental Portuguese regions. A two-way analysis of variance was used to test the influence of PA level and gender in EI. The results highlight that PA and gender have an impact on EI. This study’s main practical implication is that evidence was found that people need to be involved in more PA, especially in high PA level, because the results show that there is an association with increased levels of EI. This paper contributes to filling a gap in the literature by identifying the importance of PA for the increase of EI. This relationship may be a consequence of skills promoted by the practice of PA and also the development of some personal psychological and cognitive characteristics such as autonomy, risk tolerance, and leadership. The main implication resulting from this study is that it is essential to develop and booster PA into society, namely through PA programmes in organisations, not only for improving persons’ health condition but also as a social benefit, that can promote social innovation and entrepreneurship.

Through a Systematic Literature Review, this study aims to analyse how the research in agricultural entrepreneurship is approached in the period until 2012 and compare it with the period 2013–2017, which was found by Dias et al. (2019). This comparison allows identifying which research topics are underlined in each period as well as examine different perspectives on the same topic in both periods. Based on articles from the Scopus database, this review identifies two main thematic areas in the period until 2012: “Entrepreneurial Skills and Income Sources”; and “Market and Resources”. Researchers state that farmers can be considered as entrepreneurs and as decision-makers who aim to maximize profits, developing various typologies of agricultural diversification, although conclude that entrepreneurial skills required for diversified farming are different from the ones required in conventional farming. Attending to the increasingly liberalisation of agricultural markets, the literature also focuses on the ways how farmers had recombined existing farm resources into new uses namely land, human, financial and natural resources. In both periods, we conclude that entrepreneurial skills are underlined but, in the period 2013–2017, new research topics were introduced.

The premises of the resource-based theory, hypothesising that valuable and rare resources and capabilities, contribute to a firm’s competitive advantage and, consequently, superior performance, see...

Addictive use of the Internet among adolescents has been linked to a negative psychosocial development, but more detailed information about Internet addiction (IA) profiles is warranted. The aim of this study was to identify IA profiles in adolescents based on psychometric properties from the Internet Addiction test (IAT), and to assess the associations between the profiles and personal/social behaviors.A cross-sectional study was performed at public schools from a Portuguese region, using a survey that included the IAT. We performed a latent profiling analysis to identify the profiles of adolescent based on the six IAT dimensions.From the 1915 responses, students' mean age was 15 ± 1.82 years, 53% were female. IA was found in 16.5%. Four models were estimated with latent profiling analysis. Analysis of the models by fit statistics, integrated completed likelihood and Lo-Mendell-Rubin likelihood ratio test, indicated a better solution with four profiles: Profile 1 - Worrisome lack of control users, Profile 2 - Balanced users, Profile 3 - Worrisome anticipation users, Profile 4 - Problematic users.This study provides a characterization of different patterns in adolescents' traits and behaviors associated with Internet addiction. Preventive approaches may be useful to reduce IA.Introdução: A dependência da Internet em adolescentes tem sido associada a problemas no seu desenvolvimento psicossocial. Porém, a literatura carece de dados sobre diferentes perfis do uso de Internet. Este estudo pretendeu identificar perfis de dependência de Internet (DI), baseado nas características psicométricas do Internet Addiction test (IAT), verificando associações entre os perfis e comportamentos sociais. Material e Métodos: Estudo transversal realizado em escolas públicas de uma região Portuguesa mediante questionário que incluiu o IAT. Realizou-se uma análise de perfis latentes (APL) para identificar perfis de adolescentes, com base nos seis domínios do IAT. Resultados: Dos 1915 participantes, a idade média foi 15 ± 1,82 anos; 53% eram do sexo feminino. Identificou-se DI em 16,5%. A análise de modelos por qualidade de ajuste e rácio de verossimilhança de Lo-Mendell-Rubin revelou um modelo adequado com 4 perfis: 1 – Utilizadores com dificuldade de controlo; 2 – Utilizadores equilibrados; 3 – Utilizadores com problemas de antecipação; 4 – Utilizadores problemáticos. Conclusão: Este estudo permitiu a caracterização de diferentes padrões e comportamentos de adolescentes na DI, pelo que se alerta para uma abordagem preventiva na redução da DI.

The objective of this study is to investigate a possible difference in entrepreneurial intention between developed and developing countries. For this purpose, we used the data of the year 2014 of the Adult Population Survey, made available by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM). The intentional sample was defined based on two groups: developed countries belonging to the G7 and developing countries, belonging to BRICS. To test the hypotheses, we used non-parametric tests for categorical data. The results show that BRICS countries have greater entrepreneurial intention when compared to the G7 countries. In addition, the BRICS countries do not have the same perception and entrepreneurial intention; finally, we found that men have a greater entrepreneurial intention when compared to women. The study contributes to the literature of entrepreneurship, more particularly when it comes to entrepreneurial profile and intention, advancing with comparative studies between countries with different economic, cultural and social characteristics.

Cortical interneurons born in the subpallium reach the cortex through tangential migration, whereas pyramidal cells reach their final position by radial migration. Purinergic signaling via P2Y1 receptors controls the migration of intermediate precursor cells from the ventricular zone to the subventricular zone. It was also reported that the blockade of A2A receptors (A2AR) controls the tangential migration of somatostatin+ interneurons. Here we found that A2AR control radial migration of cortical projection neurons. In A2AR-knockout (KO) mouse embryos or naïve mouse embryos exposed to an A2AR antagonist, we observed an accumulation of early-born migrating neurons in the lower intermediate zone at late embryogenesis. In utero knockdown of A2AR also caused an accumulation of neurons at the lower intermediate zone before birth. This entails the presently identified ability of A2AR to promote multipolar–bipolar transition and axon formation, critical for the transition of migrating neurons from the intermediate zone to the cortical plate. This effect seems to require extracellular ATP-derived adenosine since a similar accumulation of neurons at the lower intermediate zone was observed in mice lacking ecto-5′-nucleotidase (CD73-KO). These findings frame adenosine as a fine-tune regulator of the wiring of cortical inhibitory and excitatory networks., European Regional Development Fund, through the Centro 2020 Regional Operational Programme (CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-000008; BrainHealth2020); COMPETE 2020-Operational Programme for Competitiveness and Internationalization and Portuguese national funds via FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (PTDC/NEU-NMC/3567/2014 to R.J.R.; POCI-01-0145-FEDER-028160 to J.M.M.); Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007440; UIDB/04539/2020); Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (PGC2018/096631-B-100 to G.L-B.).

The objective of this study is to analyze the relationship between personal values and job satisfaction. For this, a multiple linear regression was made, whose independent variables were personal values and the dependent variable, job satisfaction. The data for this test were collected from the European Social Survey database (ESS, 2012) with a valid sample of 820 people (portugueses) who participated in a social survey which is applied annually in 20 European countries. From 4 assumptions made in the study, 3 were rejected, revealing that personal values and conservation of self-transcendence Don’t have positive relation with job satisfaction, as well as the self-promotion of value does not have a negative and significant relation as suggested. The value of openness to change, however, showed a negative and significant relationship at 5%. The results suggested that personal values did not possess relevant explanatory power on job satisfaction, in this sample. Therefore, we suggest the inclusion of other variables in the model to provide better contribution to the literature about this theme, as well as for managers where they consider relevant employee satisfaction with their work.