Negative Moderating Effect Research Articles

Exploring Chinese Millennials’ Minimalist Consumption Behavior in the Context of Global Economic Downturn: A PLS-SEM Analysis Based on Symbolic and Simulacrum Consumption Perception

In the context of a global economic downturn, Millennials—who represent the emerging primary consumer demographic—are increasingly adopting a minimalist consumption model. To understand this phenomenon, this study employed a partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis of 554 survey responses from Chinese Millennials. Building on the Theory of Reasoned Action, we explored the effects of consumption orientation, perceived economic pressure, self-expression, and perceived consumption risk on symbolic and simulacrum consumption perceptions. Furthermore, we investigated how these perceptions shape minimalist consumption awareness and behavior. The findings indicate the following: (1) consumption orientation significantly and positively influences symbolic consumption perception; (2) self-expression and perceived consumption risk positively affect both symbolic and simulacrum consumption perceptions; (3) symbolic consumption perception has a positive impact on minimalist consumption awareness; and (4) upward social comparison exerts a significant negative moderating effect on the relationship between minimalist consumption awareness and behavior. This study is the first to integrate symbolic and simulacrum consumption into the analytical framework of Millennials’ minimalist consumption behavior, shedding light on the nuanced relationship between self-expression and consumption behavior under economic pressure. The findings contribute a novel theoretical perspective for future research on minimalist consumption and offer practical insights for businesses aiming to devise effective marketing strategies amidst economic challenges.

The Impact of Social Media Dependency on Chinese Netizens' Willingness to Forward Health Rumors: The Moderating Role of Social Media Literacy

In the digital era, the forwarding of false health rumors by netizens causes secondary dissemination of information, leading to its fission-like spread and bringing serious social problems. Based on an empirical survey of Chinese netizens, this paper aims to explore how social media dependency and media literacy affect netizens' willingness to forward health rumors. Data analysis found that social media dependency has a significant positive impact on forwarding willingness, social media literacy has a significant negative impact, and social media literacy has a negative moderating effect on the relationship between social media dependency and forwarding willingness. As the level of netizens' social media literacy changes, the impact of social media dependency on the forwarding willingness is no longer a simple linear positive correlation. High social media literacy will weaken its positive promoting effect and even make it show a negative change.

The Moderating Effect of Cultural Orientation on the Relationship Between Growth Mindset and Learning Self-Efficacy: A Dimension-Specific Pattern

Building on the theoretical perspectives of mindset theory and cultural orientation framework, this study explores the moderating role of cultural orientation in the relationship between individuals’ growth mindset and learning self-efficacy, addressing the contextual dependency of mindset theory. A total of 307 Chinese undergraduates (61% female; age range = 18–22 years) from a university in Hong Kong were recruited for this cross-sectional study. Cultural orientation, growth mindset, and learning self-efficacy were assessed via the Chinese version of the Cultural Values Scale (CVScale), Growth Mindset Inventory (GMI), and Learning Self-Efficacy Scale (LSES), respectively. Linear multiple regression analysis was conducted to examine the hypothesized moderation effects. The results revealed an interesting dimension-specific pattern among the five dimensions of cultural orientation. While one dimension (i.e., long-term orientation) had a positive moderating effect on the relationship between growth mindset and learning self-efficacy, two dimensions (i.e., power distance and uncertainty avoidance) had negative moderating effects on that relationship. The two remaining cultural dimensions (i.e., individualism/collectivism and motivation towards achievement and success) did not exhibit any significant moderating effects. These findings underscore the interplay between a growth mindset, cultural orientation, and learning self-efficacy, emphasizing the influence of cultural factors on the outcomes of mindset interventions. This study highlights the need for culturally tailored educational practices and interventions to maximize the effectiveness of growth mindset theories in diverse contexts.

Unveiling the Enigma of Blind Box Impulse Buying Curiosity: The Moderating Role of Price Consciousness

This study explores the causes of curiosity-driven impulse buying in blind boxes using the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) model and adaptation level theory. It examines how store environment and product factors contribute to customer curiosity, incorporating price consciousness into the overall framework. Insights from an online survey of 306 Chinese respondents indicate that environmental factors and specific product characteristics positively influence consumer curiosity, while price consciousness has a negative moderate effect. The findings also show that customer curiosity stimulates impulse buying behavior and mediates the relationship between store atmosphere, surprise, and perceived novelty. This study identifies both objective and subjective factors behind blind box impulse buying and offers relevant suggestions for governments and consumers on managing impulse buying.

Does performance appraisal fairness alleviate police officers’ organizational silence? -Considering the moderating effect of trust-

This study investigated the effect of police officers’ perception of fairness in their performance evaluation on their employee silence, moderated by trust. The perception of fairness is divided into distributive justice and procedural justice and employee silence is divided into acquiescent silence and Defensive silence. Trust, the moderated variable, was divided into supervisor trust and organizational trust. Survey data were collected from police officers in Seoul, and quantitative analysis was conducted on them. Perceptions of fairness in performance evaluations had a negative effect on employee silence. Distributive justice had a strong negative effect on defensive silence, and procedural justice had a strong negative effect on acquiescent silence. The interaction between trust in superiors, organizational trust, and distributive justice and that between organizational trust and procedural justice had negative moderating effects on defensive silence but no moderating effect appeared for acquiescent silence.

Community Perception on the Effect of Cultural Livelihoods on the Environment in Kogi State, Nigeria

This study examines the cultural livelihood of Kogi State and its effects on the environment. The study describes some of the cultural livelihood practices found in Kogi State, considering the contemporary condition of cultural livelihood and its effects on the environment. Secondary and primary data were employed, which include archives and internet search engines. Using a 4-stage sampling procedure, data were collected from a 120-person sample through an interview, field observation, a focus group discussion, and a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics using frequencies, percentages, and charts were used for the analyses. The results were compiled using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Findings show that about 85% of the participants discovered crop farming, arable farming, weaving, blacksmithing, fishing, and festivals of harvest, such as the New Yam Festival, among others, as the predominant cultural livelihoods. The local farming implements were made of local materials, like stones and wood. They have indigenous crop production, protection, and harvest techniques. The farming tools were economical in terms of labor, affordability, and time savings in the subsistence farming system. The study discovered that cultural livelihoods are 4% very efficient and 56% on the verge of extinction. Analyses of the effect of cultural livelihood show that 78% have a high negative effect on the economic environment, 57% have a moderate negative effect on the social environment, 51% hurt the political environment, and 22% have a low negative effect on the political environment. The intervention of the various tiers of government with the cooperation of the various communities is needed for the provision of a conducive environment for the practice of cultural livelihood, particularly in the aspect of insecurity. Adequate provision of modern equipment, funding, and social welfare services is also recommended to enhance cultural livelihoods.

Green Technology Innovation and Corporate Reputation: Key Drivers of ESG and Firm Performance

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) performance and firm performance within China's manufacturing sector, with a novel focus on the mediating effect of green technology innovation and the moderating influence of corporate reputation. Using a 2011-2022 dataset from A-share listed manufacturing companies on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges, the study employs multiple regression analysis with a two-way fixed-effects model to examine these relationships. Findings indicate that robust ESG practices significantly enhance company performance, mediated by green technological innovation. However, a negative moderating effect of corporate reputation suggests that higher corporate reputation weakens the ESG-financial performance relationship. Further analyses reveal that privately-owned firms, those in China's eastern region, and environmentally sustainable industries benefit most from strong ESG initiatives. This study addresses the challenge of disentangling key variables by analyzing their interconnected effects. The findings fill a gap in the existing literature by contributing to a deeper understanding of the relationship between ESG and corporate success, particularly through the mediating role of innovation and the moderating influence of reputation. Additionally, the study provides practical recommendations for managers and policymakers to enhance ESG strategies, promote growth, and support sustainable development. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2024-08-06-021 Full Text: PDF

Performance returns from aligning front-end digital technologies and Just-in-Time practices: empirical findings from the Brazilian manufacturing industry

PurposeThe integration of front-end technologies such as automation, process simulation and augmented reality with Just-in-Time (JIT) practices can yield unforeseen outcomes in manufacturing due to complex dynamics. This study examines this integration’s impact on manufacturing firms' performance.Design/methodology/approachWe design a survey questionnaire and distributed it among 353 Brazilian manufacturing firms to conduct our investigation. We utilize a combination of factorial and regression analyses with moderation within our final sample, composed of 262 manufacturing firms. Our goal is to examine the impact of aligning front-end technologies and JIT on the operational and economic performance of these manufacturing firms. We adopt complexity theory as our theoretical framework, recognizing and accommodating the intrinsic unpredictability and uncertainty inherent in complex scenarios such as technology adoption and its interplay with firm culture, adoption time and technology adoption resistance.FindingsOur findings indicate that JIT influences the use of front-end technologies both positively and negatively. Regarding operational performance, JIT has a positive moderation effect on automation and a negative moderation effect on process simulation. Conversely, for economic performance, JIT positively moderates process simulation and negatively moderates automation.Practical implicationsWe provide empirical evidence for managers to carefully assess the compatibility of technology adoption strategies with existing organizational culture and operational practices to maximize performance outcomes.Originality/valueOur study advances complexity theory by elucidating the impacts of integrating front-end digital technologies with JIT practices within the unique scenario of the Brazilian manufacturing industry. More specifically, our theoretical framework offers a new perspective on the unpredictable nature of performance outcomes regarding technology adoption in operations.

Inward internationalization and cross border acquisitions by emerging economy multinational enterprises: The moderating role of family and institutional ownership

Mergers and acquisitions are a complex and persistent global phenomenon. Theoretical cross-fertilization enhances our understanding of their behavior, especially in different contexts. We use organizational learning theory and institutional logic perspective to hypothesize the direct effect of inward internationalization, the negative moderating effect of family ownership and domestic institutional ownership, and the positive moderating effect of foreign institutional ownership on cross-border acquisitions (CBAs) by emerging economy multinational enterprises (MNEs). Based on data from 199 Indian MNEs over nine years consisting of an unbalanced panel with 1619 observations, our findings supported all the hypotheses except the moderating effects of domestic institutional ownership. Our findings explain that the impact of learning from inward internationalization on CBAs is not similar for all firms; rather, it depends upon ownership groups because of their institutional logic. We have proposed socioemotional wealth logic for family ownership, cautious fosterer logic for domestic institutional ownership, and yield maximizer logic for foreign institutional ownership. Our findings enhance our understanding of firms’ CBA behavior by utilizing theoretical cross-fertilization and examining CBAs in an emerging economy context.

During and after COVID-19: understanding entertainment consumption shifts through habit and customer value perspectives

Purpose As situational changes result in changing consumption patterns, this study aims to understand the entertainment consumption shifts during and after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Particularly, how users’ habits and use behavior have changed and how these constructs subsequently impact their continuance intention has been investigated. The study proposes a research model based on customer value and habit theory. Design/methodology/approach The study proposes a research model based on customer value and habit theory. The data collected during (n = 192) and after (n = 138) COVID-19 situation in the over-the-top (OTT) platforms setting through purposive sampling was analyzed using partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings The study elucidates that customer perceived value (utilitarian and hedonic values) impacts habit and continuance intention in different situations: during and after COVID-19. It was also shown that habit partially mediates the influence of utilitarian and hedonic values on continuance intention. Further, the extent of use had a negative moderation effect on the habit-continuance intention relationship during COVID-19 but did not moderate the relationship in the post-COVID-19 situation. Finally, it was demonstrated that the effect of utilitarian value increased, whereas that of hedonic value decreased on the continuance intention of OTT platforms in the after-COVID-19 situation compared to during COVID-19. Practical implications Although set up in the OTT context, the practitioners from other online entertainment services, and any online service in general, may utilize the study findings to reinforce habit and continuance intentions to address unwanted consequences due to situational changes. The study suggests to the OTT service providers ways to facilitate the habit formation of OTT users. The study recommends constant monitoring of the extent of the use of OTT consumers and user engagement tactics for nurturing the OTT consumption habits of heavy users. The recommendations for maintaining and strengthening the perceived value-continuance intention relationship were also made, which would help the OTT service providers immensely. Originality/value The study establishes the mediation effect of habit and the robustness of perceived value in determining continuance intention in varying situations. The results also highlighted the changes in the impact of perceived value and habit on the continuance intention of OTT platforms. The study also advances the literature by demonstrating the differential influence of the extent of use on the habit-continuance intention relationship during and after COVID-19.

How to improve the consistency of consumers’ food waste reduction intentions and behaviors? An analysis based on the expanded Motivation–Opportunity–Ability framework

The increasingly serious problem of food waste in China has become an important bottleneck constraining sustainable development, posing a great challenge to food security, resource and the environment. Therefore, it is urgent to reduce food waste. However, the inconsistency between consumers’ intention to reduce food waste and their behavior weakens the effectiveness of anti-food waste efforts to some extent. Based on the extended MOA model, this study examines consumers’ intention-behavior gap in reducing food waste and explores the moderating effects of opportunity, ability and face consciousness on the conversion of food waste reduction intention into actual behavior in the context of China. In addition, we further categorize consumers into high and low face consciousness groups to explore the differences in the moderating effects of opportunity and ability. The results show that there is indeed a gap between consumers’ food waste reduction intention and behavior. In terms of the moderating effects, the factors of external environment, emotional information, and ability have a significant positive moderating effect on the conversion of food waste reduction intention into actual behavior, while rational information has no significant moderating effect. Notably, face consciousness plays a significant negative moderating effect. For the high face consciousness group, only emotional information has a significant positive moderating effect; while for the low face consciousness group, external environment, emotional information, and ability have a significant positive moderating effect. What’s more, rational information has a non-significant moderating effect on both the high and low face consciousness groups.

Empathetic concern and social entrepreneurial intention: a moderated mediation model of social entrepreneurial self-efficacy and perceived cultural support

Purpose This study aims to explore whether social entrepreneurial self-efficacy (SESE) mediates the empathetic concern (EC)–social entrepreneurial intentions (SEIs) relationship. In addition, drawing on institutional theory, the authors propose that the EC–SESE–SEI relationship is contingent upon perceptions of cultural support (PCS) towards social entrepreneurship in a society. Design/methodology/approach Data from 232 Taiwanese business and management undergraduates were used to test the proposed relationships. Findings SESE was found to mediate the relationship between EC and SEI. However, cultural support towards social entrepreneurship in society had a negative moderating effect on the EC–SESE–SEI relationship, suggesting that the EC–SESE–SEI relationship was stronger under conditions of low, rather than high PCS. Originality/value This paper provides further insights into not only the link between EC and SEI but also the conditions under which EC is translated into SEI. It also enhances the recent limited knowledge about how context and cultural attitudes and values towards social entrepreneurship shapes SEI.

Performance Shortfall, Top Management Team Faultlines, and R&D Investment: Evidence from China

With the increasing uncertainty of the world economic situation, enterprises are facing the pressure of downward performance, and R&D has been an important strategic choice to solve the performance fall problem of high-tech enterprises. The article tries to explore the changes in the R&D investment intensity of enterprises under different performance lag levels and investigate the influence of the combination of characteristics of top management team(TMT) members on the strategic decision-making process. It is found that the relationship between the degree of performance disparity and R&D investment intensity is inverted U-shaped; the strength of the fracture faultline of the top management team negatively regulates the relationship between the degree of performance disparity and R&D investment and makes the inverted U-shaped curve flat. A further study of specific characteristic fracture bands revealed that team fracture bands based on tenure characteristics had a significant negative moderating effect, while professional and functional background fracture bands had a significant positive moderating effect. This study not only theoretically expands the understanding of the performance shortall and TMT disconnection on the deep-seated motivation of enterprise R&D investment, but also provides practical references for solving the problem of performance gap, optimizing the allocation of TMT human resources, and rationally promoting enterprise R&D investment to achieve transformation.

The Effect of Corporate Social Responsibility Characteristics on Employee Green Behavior: A Moral Emotions Perspective.

Shaping green employees is a source of sustainable competitive advantage for enterprises. However, previous studies have lacked consideration of the moral aspects of employee green behavior (EGB), thus ignoring the mechanism of employee moral psychology, especially the important impact of moral emotions on EGB. Based on the affective events theory, we built a moderated mediation model to test how corporate social responsibility characteristics (CSRCs) affect EGB and to explore the role of organizational pride (OP) and the environmental passion climate (EPC) in this process. SPSS25.0 and Mplus8.0 were used to analyze data from 267 valid questionnaires. The results show that CSRCs' positive effect required EGB and OP to play a mediating role in the relationship between them. In addition, EPC had a negative moderating effect on the effect of OP on required EGB. These results expand the theoretical territory of EGB from the perspective of moral emotions. In practice, the results provide a moral motivation for cultivating employees' ecological literacy and stimulating EGB as well as management strategies for organizational environmental protection practice and green sustainable development.

Environmental and Social Moderating Effect on Corporate Governance in Brazilian Companies

The study aims to analyze the moderating effects of environmental and social performance (pillars of ESG performance) on the relationship between corporate governance mechanisms (board size, CEO duality, board independence, and gender diversity) and company performance. The sample consisted of 96 Brazilian companies organized in an unbalanced panel. The analysis period covered the years 2016-2020 and was conducted using robust panel data regression. The main results revealed that environmental and social performance have a negative moderating effect on the relationship between CEO duality and accounting performance and a positive moderating influence on the relationship between board independence and market performance, while for accounting performance, only environmental moderation shows an effect. A positive moderating effect of social performance was observed in the relationship between board gender diversity and accounting performance. As contributions, this research aimed to incorporate new evidence on the effects of corporate governance mechanisms on performance by exploring the impact of environmental and social performance in this relationship. In practical terms, the study demonstrates that in Brazilian companies, larger boards and CEO duality can enhance organizational performance, challenging the traditional practice of avoiding power concentration. Furthermore, the research contributes by exploring new angles regarding environmental and social practices that have proven essential for moderating the relationship between governance and performance, suggesting that companies should strengthen their ESG initiatives to maximize returns and attract investors.

Does two-way FDI promote technological innovation? — Evidence from China

Two-way FDI indicates that China's technological catch-up process has entered a new stage. Mechanisms and conditions through which two-way FDI affects technological innovation require urgent attention. Based on China's provincial panel data, by using 2SLS tests, negative binomial model, and GMM estimation, this study finds that two-way FDI has a significant promoting effect on technological innovation, absorptive capacity has a positive moderating effect on the relationship between two-way FDI and technological innovation, and IPR protection has a negative moderating effect on the relationship between two-way FDI and technological innovation. The heterogeneity test shows that the interaction effect of IFDI, OFDI, and the moderating effect of absorptive capacity increase with the regional economic development and the passage of time. In contrast, the negative moderating effect of IPR protection decreases. This study contributes to the understanding of the two-way FDI at play in the technological innovation of emerging markets. It emphasises the promoting and restricting factors of two-way FDI in this process.

How Does Industrial Agglomeration Drive High-Quality Green Development in China? New Evidence from a Financial and Manufacturing Co-Clustering

We examine the effect of financial and manufacturing co-clustering on high-quality green development in China’s 30 provinces from 2005 to 2020. The nexus between financial and manufacturing co-clustering and high-quality green development has been comprehensively investigated from linear and non-linear perspectives. We find that financial and manufacturing co-clustering significantly fosters high-quality green development. Mechanism analysis shows that formal environmental regulation has a significant negative moderating effect on high-quality green development, whereas informal environmental regulation plays a significantly positive moderating role. However, empirical results only show the mediation effect of formal environmental regulation in the incentive role of financial and manufacturing co-clustering to high-quality green development. A dynamic panel threshold model also certifies the non-linear effect between financial and manufacturing co-clustering and high-quality green development. Lastly, the promotion effect of financial and manufacturing co-clustering on high-quality green development creates significant heterogeneity.

Mastery goal, task value, and self-efficacy as joint predictors of self-regulation in EFL learning: A conditional process modeling

This study attempted to examine the patterns of factors and their interplay involved in EFL learning through the lens of self-regulated learning. 285 grade-one senior high students from three Chinese middle schools completed a questionnaire which was designed to assess motivation (mastery goal, task value, and self-efficacy) and self-regulated learning (cognitive and meta-cognitive strategy use) in classroom context. The results of conditional process modeling of the data show that mastery goal is a positive predictor of task value and self-regulated learning effort, and that task value positively mediated the relationship between mastery goal and self-regulation. In addition, the current study provides evidence that is partially against the general assumption showing that self-efficacy belief exerts a negative moderator effect on the mastery goal, task value, and self-regulated learning relationship. The findings have implications for second language teaching and learning. It is suggested that due care be exercised in designing and selecting EFL learning tasks and materials so as for students to judge them as with high value in terms of interest, importance, and usefulness; educators should treat the issue of self-efficacy with subtlety so as to reduce the possible debilitating effects on learners.

Childhood Emotional Trauma and Flourishing in Female College Students.

There are few studies that measure the effects of childhood emotional trauma on female college students' positive perceptions and attitudes toward their present lives. Therefore, this study analyzes how female college students' emotional trauma induced by child emotional abuse influences their flourishing as adults. To this end, a descriptive survey via an online platform was conducted from November 26 to December 3, 2022. The participants were 318 female college students aged 18 to 35 in South Korea, who experienced parental emotional abuse when they were younger than 18 years old. The survey was conducted to validate the moderating effects of resilience and cognitive emotion regulation strategies on the relationship between female college students' childhood emotional trauma and flourishing. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and Hayes' PROCESS macro. Self-blame, other-blame, and positive refocusing factors of the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire were found to moderate the relationship between childhood emotional trauma and flourishing. Specifically, the self-blame strategy intensified the negative moderation effect. As flourishing depends on the degree of self-blame, fostering optimism by mitigating self-blame is necessary. The other-blame strategy attenuated the negative impact of childhood emotional trauma on flourishing. Nevertheless, this strategy can weaken emotions if individuals fail to regulate them independently. A positive refocusing strategy also effectively moderated the relationship between childhood emotional trauma and flourishing by alleviating the former's adverse effects. By contrast, resilience lacked a moderation effect. To overcome past emotional adversities and lead a flourishing life, interventions that actively utilize relational resources within the campus and regulate irrational beliefs, such as self-blame and blame toward others are necessary. These findings provide critical foundational data for the development of programs aimed at fostering a forward-thinking cognitive framework, thus enabling them to focus on future plans despite memories of emotional abuse.

“Give me some flexibility and I will perform better”: longitudinal lessons on the antecedents of job performance

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the longitudinal relationships between the intensity of remote work (IRW) and job performance (JP) with the mediation effect of work–life balance (WLB) and moderation by work overload (WO).Design/methodology/approachA three-wave longitudinal survey, covering pre-pandemic period, the pandemic itself and the post-pandemic period, was conducted among 291 employees. The authors applied linear regression analysis with a moderated mediation effect and the cross-lagged structural equation model with longitudinal mediation using Mplus 8.FindingsThe results show that relationships between IRW and WLB and WLB and JP are negative in the short term; yet over time, employees are able to adapt and benefit from the flexibility offered by remote work (RW). WLB can contribute to better JP in the long run. Furthermore, WLB plays a moderating role in the long-term relationship between RW and JP. There is the second-stage negative moderation effect on this relationship by WO.Practical implicationsThis study recommends a proactive approach toward flexible solutions for employees. It explains that the positive effects of IRW for WLB and JP appear in the longer perspective. Support from organizations to mitigate negative short-term effects is required. Organizations can leverage the mediating role of WLB between IRW and JP in the long term by providing resources and support to help employees achieve WLB in RW settings.Originality/valueThis study extends the research on the antecedents of JP of employees and enriches the extant literature that shows inconsistent findings in terms of the relationships among RW, WLB and JP. It also focuses on the rarely explored intensity of RW. It fills the gap in previous research using a longitudinal research approach. The longitudinal data provide unique and innovative insights into the antecedents of JP of employees and explain complex relationships between them in both the short and long term.