Digital Mobile Research Articles

Digital manipulation and mass mobilization over the long run: evidence from Latin America

False information flows through social media are a worldwide phenomenon, affecting Latin America in particular, where more than 70% of internet users report growing concern regarding the circulation of fake news, especially through social media platforms. Although the academic literature has studied how governments may be incentivized to disseminate false information, it has concentrated in the electoral context mostly. In this sense, the impact of disinformation on mass mobilization patterns has been less explored, although it is relevant: manipulation through social media can reduce citizens' inclination to protest by directly influencing their preferences or beliefs about the government, acting as a preventive digital repression tool. In fact, governments have efficiently used it in the short run; however, it has not been established if this strategy could work in the long run. Hence, this article explores the long-term relationship between manipulation by the government through social media and the occurrence of mass mobilization to determine whether they are cointegrated. Drawing on the most recent literature on digital repression, manipulation, and mass mobilization and by applying a panel cointegration methodology in nine countries in Latin America (2000–2021), we find that the variables are cointegrated. In addition, we explore the causal (Granger) effect and find a unidirectional link that goes from social media manipulation to mass mobilization.

Gender and social inclusion: impact of mobile payment system on micro-entrepreneurs' perceived success and subjective well-being

PurposeThe study examines how adopting e-paisa technology (a mobile payment system) enhances micro-entrepreneurs' perceived success and subjective well-being during the COVID-19 global pandemic. The study also theorizes the moderating effects of gender through a moderated-mediation model.Design/methodology/approachThe data are collected from 282 micro-entrepreneurs in Pakistan using a two-week time-lagged approach to test the hypothesized framework. The analysis was conducted using the PROCESS macro moderated-mediation method.FindingsThe results affirm that adopting e-paisa technology positively relates to perceived entrepreneurial success, ultimately increasing the entrepreneur's subjective well-being. Furthermore, in hypothesized moderated-mediation paths, the moderation effect of gender was stronger for women than men.Practical implicationsFrom the perspective of diversity, equality and inclusion, adopting a digital mobile payment system can be regarded as a catalyst for the inclusion of women entrepreneurs in marginalized communities, enabling them to continue their micro-businesses in times of global crises. Further, it is also suggested that public–private sector partnerships are essential for promoting a sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem that subsequently leads to social and financial inclusion in marginalized communities.Originality/valueThe mediating role of perceived entrepreneurial success contributes to understanding the importance of psychological functioning among technology acceptance model (TAM) attributes and entrepreneurs' subjective well-being. In addition, theorizing gender differences in TAM and subjective well-being relationships revealed women's advantages, challenging the prevailing belief that women are less fortunate in entrepreneurial endeavors. This raises the need to reconsider and maybe change the perspective to consider women as a disadvantaged group in entrepreneurship.

Clip the blue bird: Discursive strategies of Hindutva digital mobilization against Twitter in India

Though early research suggested that right-leaning groups were a radicalized monolith, recent shifts in research are producing far more nuanced accounts. Our article contributes to this effort by spotlighting novel discursive strategies of right-leaning groups in India that leverage decolonization rhetoric, democratic governance, and other seemingly left-leaning rationales to mobilize right-wing groups against global technology companies, especially Twitter (now X). 1 We collected and analyzed publicly accessible data from Koo—an alternative social networking platform populated with discourses of India’s ideological right. We then used critical discourse analysis to identify the discursive strategies of right-leaning users on Koo deployed to challenge the power of global technology companies – calls for data localization, veiled suppression, and paternalism and responsibility.

Development of the intelligent knee osteoarthritis lifestyle app: a person-based approach

BackgroundKnee osteoarthritis is one of the most prevalent long term health conditions globally. Exercise and physical activity are now widely recognised to significantly reduce joint pain, improve physical function and quality of life in patients with knee osteoarthritis. However, prescribed exercise without regular contact with a healthcare professional often results in lower adherence and poorer health outcomes. Digital mobile health (mHealth) technologies offer great potential to support people with long-term conditions such as knee osteoarthritis more efficiently and effectively and with relatively lower cost than existing interventions. However, there are currently very few mHealth interventions for the self-management of knee osteoarthritis. The aim of the present study was to describe the development process of a mHealth app to extend the support for physical activity and musculoskeletal health beyond short-term, structured rehabilitation through self-management, personalised physical activity, education, and social support.MethodsThe development of the intelligent knee osteoarthritis lifestyle application intervention involved an iterative and interconnected process comprising intervention ‘planning’ and ‘optimisation’ informed by the person-based approach framework for the development of digital health interventions. The planning phase involved a literature review and collection of qualitative data obtained from focus groups with individuals with knee osteoarthritis (n = 26) and interviews with relevant physiotherapists (n = 5) to generate ‘guiding principles’ for the intervention. The optimisation phase involved usability testing (n = 7) and qualitative ‘think aloud’ sessions (n = 6) with potential beneficiaries to refine the development of the intervention.ResultsKey themes that emerged from the qualitative data included the need for educational material, modifying activities to suit individual abilities and preferences as well as the inclusion of key features such as rehabilitation exercises. Following a user-trial further changes were made to improve the usability of the application.ConclusionsUsing a systematic person-based, development approach, we have developed the intelligent knee osteoarthritis lifestyle application to help people maintain physical activity behaviour. The app extends the support for physical activity and musculoskeletal health beyond short-term, structured rehabilitation through personalised physical activity guidance, education, and social support.

Expotecnología 2022

Expotecnología 2022 was an event that took place in the city of Cartagena de Indias, from November 2 to 6, 2022, with the slogan “The future of engineering in the face of technological disruption” This eighteenth version was a meeting that brought together the scientific and academic community in spaces for the dissemination and transfer of knowledge, where innovation was the essence and a fundamental part of the event. Expotecnología was created in the Faculty of Engineering Sciences - FACI, of the Antonio de Arévalo University Foundation - UNITECNAR and in this version it maintained as mission, the development of the interaction between science, technology and society, through establishing of knowledge networks and academic and professional cooperation. The main objective was to address the challenges that emerge from the everyday life of the engineering community, the problems immersed in the development of projects and programs of Higher Education Institutions (IES), organizations and research centers at the national and international level. In the development of the day of presentations in a virtual way, it was possible to promote the dissemination of the research work of professionals, teachers and students from all areas of engineering, framed in four (4) thematic axes, as follows:• New technologies: Big data, Artificial Intelligence, Business Intelligence, Software Engineering, Education and new technologies and Mobile Applications.• Petrochemicals and process control: Materials Science, Instrumentation and Control Systems, Robotics and Automation and Industrial Maintenance.• Electricity, electronics and telecommunications: IoT, Fiber optics, Digital Signal Processing, Wireless Networks, Mobile Communications, Power Systems, Energy Storage, Smart Grids, Renewable Energies, Operation and Distribution, Energy Dispatch, Energy Markets• Construction Summit: Modern Building Systems and Computational Modeling.On this occasion, the event was attended by 512 people, representatives from 25 national and 6 international universities. 32 presentations were made, of which 32 articles were selected for this volume of the IOP Conference Cycle: Materials Science and Engineering and 13 articles for the book Engineering, Innovation and the fourth industrial revolution., After a process of Peer Review. The plenary conferences were in charge of 2 national and 8 international speakers .List of Invited speakers, Organizing Committee, Special thanks are available in this pdf.

Digital Skills Mobilization within Incumbent Organizations: The Agentic Role of Digital Champions

AbstractIn a world increasingly influenced by digital technologies, incumbent organizations are urged to equip their employees with digital skills to unlock the transformative power of digitalization for their strategy and business model. Yet, extant research lacks guidance on how to mobilize and implement effective initiatives to develop digital skills in incumbents. Therefore, through an in‐depth case study of a utility company, this paper explores how an incumbent can mobilize its digital skills to embrace digital transformation. Based on the process perspective of resource mobilization, we shed light on the mechanisms for searching, accessing and transferring digital skills, namely: (i) unearthing dormant digital skills; (ii) awakening digital skill‐holders; and (iii) disseminating digital skills. In the investigation of these mechanisms, we uncover the agentic role of digital champions, who become an organizational capability for mobilizing digital skills in incumbents. We also document how digital technologies, as operant resources, can transversally support all stages of the mobilization of digital skills aimed at developing and leveraging digital skills in incumbents. In doing so, we explore the role of digitalization, both as the content of resource mobilization, in terms of digital skills, and as the means through which mobilization is enacted, in terms of digital assets and initiatives. Based on the findings of this study, we contribute to knowledge at the interface between digitalization and resource mobilization in the broader context of digital transformation.

Making new technology understandable through multimodal orientations: A digital exercise stick in customer training interaction

With a variety of smart technologies on the market, health technologies have become an increasingly everyday phenomenon. This paper focuses on customer training in the use of a new technological device, a digital mobility stick, which is an exercise stick with a built-in haptic component. It can be used as a measuring and training tool to analyze the body’s ability to balance, bend, and rotate and to guide the trajectory of one’s exercise movements. We focus on the mobility stick as a training tool, investigating how the haptic technology is introduced to the customer in instructional interaction, and what roles the technology obtains in the process. The paper uses video-recorded customer training interaction data from a health technology company. It draws on multimodal conversation analytic research on instructions and instructed actions, objects, technologies, and touch in interaction. We show that the company representative’s specific orientation to the mobility stick was consequential to the instructed actions of the customers and their learning. The analyzed cases also illustrate that the mobility stick gained different roles in the interaction, ranging from a technological and sensorial object to a technology representing information to an active participant in interaction guiding human action. The study thus contributes to our understanding of the multimodality of instructional interaction and the potentially varied roles of technology in such interaction.

Showcasing a digital twin for higher educational buildings: developing the concept toward human centricity

Digital twin technology is an emerging technology within the built environment. Yet, there are many unexplored opportunities to utilize digital twins for facilitating the transformation toward a climate-neutral building stock while also meeting the expectations from the building occupants. This article presents a case study of a digital twin, developed for an existing commercial building stock of campus areas in Sweden. The overarching purpose of the digital twin is to support both building occupants and building operators. This two-fold human-centric approach represents a novel approach for building digital twins. The digital twin is based on 3D scanning, and together with geospatial data, a real-like navigational indoor environment is created. Three innovative features are presented: the building analysis module, the digital twin mobile application, and the building operations module. The results show that the digital twin improves the building occupant’s experience by supporting navigation and providing access to the room booking system via this dedicated interface. Building management is also benefited by the digital twin through easier access to building data aggregated into one platform and a state-of-the-art analysis tool for optimizing the use of indoor space. The digital twin holds future potential to achieve operational excellence by incorporating feedback mechanisms and utilizing artificial intelligence to enable intelligent fault detection and prevention.

Exploring Journalists’ Intentions Towards Digital Mobile Technologies

In recent years, the use of digital mobile technologies for journalistic practice has gained much popularity among Ghanaian journalists. In this study, we explored three original Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) variables (perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and social influence) and two additional variables, (the cost of smartphones, and the cost of mobile data) to predict the relationship between the five variables, and journalists’ intention to use Digital Mobile Technologies (DMTs). A structured questionnaire was used to solicit data from 281 Ghanaian frontline journalists through an online survey. The respondents were selected by purposive sampling. Structural Equation Modelling analysis of the data showed that, as the cost of smartphones, and the cost of mobile data increases, journalists’ intention to use technology decreases in Ghana. Thus, mobile data and the cost of smartphones had a negative relationship with journalists’ intention to use DMTs. The testing of perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and social influence, however, reported a positive relationship with the use intention. The findings from this study have implications for policy change on the reduction of the prices of both mobile data and smartphones to enhance the use of DMTs among journalists in Ghana. Also, the findings from this study could be considered a template for the proper regulation of the use of DMTs for enhanced practice of journalism in Ghana and other developing countries.

Wireless mobile communication systems: current status, application fields and challenges

The article analyzes the current state of mobile communication systems, and highlights development perspectives from the past to the present, vulnerabilities in security systems and application fields. At the same time, it provides information about the possible threats that may occur during an attack on the data entering the network from intelligent devices. For many years, numerous research centers have been conducting intensive research on the direct communication between various devices through mobile communication systems. These studies are realized to manage mobile communication systems and computers, mobile devices and other equipment. Therefore, special attention is paid to the development of mobile communication systems both in Azerbaijan and in the world, and it is considered one of the most promising fields of application of information technologies. The article also provides information about the fifth-generation mobile communication system, which is a new generation of wireless network technology for digital mobile networks. The results of research conducted on the fifth-generation mobile communication system in the world and the technological innovations to be brought to the healthcare and energy fields, agriculture, smart cities, smart villages and transport sectors are reported.

The Impact of COVID on Kerala Fish-vending Women

This article discusses women’s role in Kerala’s small-scale marine fishing industry and changes that took place during COVID-19. Pandemic conditions enabled and accelerated the restructuring of Kerala’s fishing industry practices, leaving marginal groups even more marginal. Small-scale producers and sellers were edged out by larger players in a new wholesale market. Meanwhile, female vendors who utilised public transport and face-to-face sales methods found themselves locked out from new retail methods introduced during the pandemic, which made use of smartphone apps, online platforms, and private light vehicles. Underemployed workers with access to digital technology and mobility moved in to fill the lockdown retail gap. The Gulf states’ continuing squeeze on jobs and resultant migration slow-down contributed to these trends. Female fish-vending activity has also been affected by Kerala’s acceleration of bourgeois respectability norms. The state government’s modernisation and centralisation policies also led to the shrinking of women’s spaces in fish auction markets. Recent inequalities in digital and mobility access sit on top of longstanding entrenched class and status inequities and conservative gender norms, while the enduring chronic ‘wicked problem’ of Kerala’s unemployment levels demands urgent attention.

A Digital Sexual Health Intervention for Urban Adolescent and Young Adult Male Emergency Department Patients: User-Centered Design Approach.

Adolescents and young adults frequently present to the emergency department (ED) for medical care and continue to have many unmet sexual health needs. Digital interventions show promise to improve adolescent and young adult sexual health; yet, few interventions focus on male ED patients, despite their infrequent use of contraceptives and rising rates of sexually transmitted infections. This paper describes the design and development of Dr. Eric (Emergency Room Interventions to Improve Care), a digital app focused on promoting condom use among sexually active adolescent and young adult male ED patients. This study followed 4 phases of app development, which were based on user-centered design and the software development lifecycle. In phase 1, define, we explored our target population and target health problem (infrequent condom use among male ED patients) by collecting key stakeholder input and conducting in-depth interviews with male patients and urban ED medical providers. In phase 2, discover, we partnered with a digital product agency to explore user experience and digital strategy. In phase 3, design, we refined Dr. Eric's content, a 5-part sexual health educational module and a 10-week SMS text messaging program that focuses on condom use and partner communication about effective contraceptives. We conducted semistructured interviews with male adolescent and young adults to gather feedback on the app and perform usability testing, editing the app after each interview. We also interviewed informatics experts to assess the usability of a high-fidelity prototype. Interviews were recorded and analyzed via descriptive thematic analysis; informatic expert feedback was categorized by Nielsen's heuristic principles. In phase 4, develop, we created the technical architecture and built a responsive web app. These findings were gathered leading to the final version of the digital Dr. Eric program. Using data and key stakeholder input from phases 1 and 2, we iteratively created the Dr. Eric prototype for implementation in the ED setting. Interviews with 8 adolescent and young adult male ED patients suggested that users preferred (1) straightforward information, (2) a clear vision of the purpose of Dr. Eric, (3) open-ended opportunities to explore family planning goals, (4) detailed birth control method information, and (5) games presenting novel information with rewards. Five usability experts provided heuristic feedback aiming to improve the ease of use of the app. These findings led to the final version of Dr. Eric. Following these mobile health development phases, we created a digital sexual health mobile health intervention incorporating the principles of user experience and interface design. Dr. Eric needs further evaluation to assess its efficacy in increasing condom use among adolescent and young adult male ED patients. Researchers can use this framework to form future digital health ED-based digital interventions.

Security Vulnerabilities in 5G Non-Stand-Alone Networks: A Systematic Analysis and Attack Taxonomy

5G networks, pivotal for our digital mobile societies, are transitioning from 4G to 5G Stand-Alone (SA) networks. However, during this transition, 5G Non-Stand-Alone (NSA) networks are widely used. This paper examines potential security vulnerabilities in 5G NSA networks. Through an extensive literature review, we identify known 4G attacks that can theoretically be applied to 5G NSA. We organize these attacks into a structured taxonomy. Our findings reveal that 5G NSA networks may offer a false sense of security, as most security and privacy improvements are concentrated in 5G SA networks. To underscore this concern, we implement three attacks with severe consequences and successfully validate them on various commercially available smartphones. Notably, one of these attacks, the IMSI Leak, consistently exposes user information with no apparent security mitigation in 5G NSA networks. This highlights the ease of tracking individuals on current 5G networks.

Human Freedom from Algorithmic Bias: What is the role of Accountability in addressing Health Disparities?

While there are many causes of health disparities, the application of Artificial Intelligence tools in healthcare may have mixed results. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of human freedoms and accountability to achieving digital inclusion. It discovers the role of algorithmic bias in mediating the relationship between human freedom and mobile health. The following research questions are investigated: 1) How do human freedoms effect digital inclusion and mobile health? 2) Do human freedoms effect mobile health? And 3) Does AI accountability mediate the relationship between human freedoms and mobile health? The findings suggest that human freedoms are central to digital inclusion and mobile health. Accountability does affect the extent to which digital inclusion can be achieved through human freedoms. AI accountability significantly mediates the relationship between human freedoms and the mobile index. This offers an important contribution in uncovering the role of algorithmic bias in human freedom and mobile health, and of accountability between human freedom and digital inclusion.

Digital measurement of mobility in pulmonary arterial hypertension: A structured review of an emerging area.

This review examined literature that has examined mobility in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) using digital technology. Specifically, the review focussed on: (a) digital mobility measurement in PAH; (b) commonly reported mobility outcomes in PAH; (c) PAH specific impact on mobility outcomes; and (d) recommendations concerning protocols for mobility measurement in PAH. PubMed, Scopus, and Medline databases were searched. Two independent reviewers screened articles that described objective measurement of mobility in PAH using digital technology. Twenty-one articles were screened, and 16 articles met the inclusion/exclusion criteria and were reviewed. Current methodologies for mobility measurement in PAH with digital technologies are discussed. In brief, the reviewed evidence demonstrated that there is a lack of standardisation across studies for instrumentation, outcomes, and interpretation in PAH. The validity and reliability of digital approaches were insufficiently reported in all studies. Future research is required to standardise digital mobility measurement and characterise mobility impairments in PAH across clinical and real-world settings. The reviewed evidence suggests that digital mobility outcomes may be useful clinical measures and may be impaired in PAH, but further research is required to accurately and robustly establish findings. Recommendations are provided for future studies that encompass comprehensive reporting, validation, and measurement.

The impact of digital advertising channels on the customer buying behavior: The moderating task of advertising strategies

Regulators and recent academics are now paying attention to digital marketing because it has become a complete marketing resource that might propel a firm toward success. As a result, the current study explores the impact of several digital advertising channels, including mobile, e-mail, and digital retargeting, on customer purchasing behavior in the Information Technology (IT) business in the UAE. The current research also examines the moderating effects of marketing tactics at the intersection of mobile advertising, digital retargeting, e-mail marketing, and customer purchasing choices in the IT sector of the UAE. To collect data for this study quantitatively, questionnaires were employed to solicit information from respondents, which was then analyzed using smart-PLS. The findings showed that digital retargeting, mobile, and e-mail marketing positively affect customer purchasing behavior in the UAE's IT sector. The results also demonstrated that marketing tactics drastically reduced the associations between mobile, e-mail, and consumer purchasing decisions in the UAE's IT sector. This study gave policymakers recommendations on better focusing on digital advertising, which could boost the organization's success.

Cybersecurity of digital museum application

This article explores the growing importance of cybersecurity for digital museum mobile applications. The ever-increasing reliance on digital technologies necessitates robust security measures to protect sensitive information and user privacy. The work discusses the benefits of digital museums, including their ability to reach a global audience and provide engaging, enriching experiences. It then highlights key cybersecurity challenges faced by digital museums, such as data breaches and malware attacks. The conclusion emphasizes the need for a multi-layered approach to cybersecurity, encompassing secure development practices, user education, and adherence to data privacy regulations.

Digital Twin-empowered Green Mobility Management in Next-Gen Transportation Networks

Digital Twin-empowered Green Mobility Management in Next-Gen Transportation Networks

DP-ACT: Decentralized Privacy-Preserving Asymmetric Digital Contact Tracing

Digital contact tracing substantially improves the identification of high-risk contacts during pandemics. Despite several attempts to encourage people to use digital contact-tracing applications by developing and rolling out decentralized privacy-preserving protocols (broadcasting pseudo-random IDs over Bluetooth Low Energy---BLE), the adoption of digital contact tracing mobile applications has been limited, with privacy being one of the main concerns. In this paper, we propose a decentralized privacy-preserving contact tracing protocol, called DP-ACT, with both active and passive participants. Active participants broadcast BLE beacons with pseudo-random IDs, while passive participants model conservative users who do not broadcast BLE beacons but still listen to the broadcasted BLE beacons. We analyze the proposed protocol and discuss a set of interesting properties. The proposed protocol is evaluated using both a face-to-face individual interaction dataset and five real-world BLE datasets. Our simulation results demonstrate that the proposed DP-ACT protocol outperforms the state-of-the-art protocols in the presence of passive users.

Развитие организационной модели труда в современных условиях: тенденции и эффекты

The results of effective work organization improve safety and the workers’ quality of life, and increase productivity. Globalisation and digitalization are dramatically changing and meaningfully affecting the organization of work. However, there is currently a lack of research in terms of the foundation of the labor process and its organization – co-operative activity. The article analyses how co-operative activity has a significant impact on the evolution of work organization and the factors influencing its development in a digitized environment. The results show that with the introduction of digital mobile technologies, the work organization model goes beyond the traditional management concept based on rigid hierarchy and managerial control. The implementation of flexible models of labor organization is possible only on the basis of new methods of management and development of employees, particularly in the practice of platform employment, which is gaining rapid traction around the world. In the absence of these conditions, there are many fears about future work related to the features of industry 4.0, which is based on digital technologies.