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Integrated intelligent framework for e-learning
E-learning is the primary method of learning for most learners after regular academics studies. Knowledge delivery through e-learning technologies increased exponentially over the years because of the advancement in internet and e-learning technologies. Knowledge delivery to some people would never have been possible without the e-learning technologies. Most of the working professionals do focused studies for carrier advancement, promotion, or for improving domain knowledge. These learners can find many E-learning is the primary method of learning for most learners after regular academics studies. Knowledge delivery through e-learning technologies increased exponentially over the years because of the advancement in internet and e-learning technologies. Knowledge delivery to some people would never have been possible without the e-learning technologies. Most of the working professionals do focused studies for carrier advancement, promotion, or for improving domain knowledge. These learners can find many free e-learning web sites from the internet easily in the domain of interest. However, it is quite difficult to find the best e-learning content suitable for their learning based on their domain knowledge level. Users spent most of the time figuring out the right content from a plethora of available content and end up learning nothing. A framework using machine learning algorithms with Random Forest Classifier is proposed to address the issue, which classifies the e-learning content based on its difficulty levels and provides the learner the best content suitable based on the knowledge level. The framework is trained with the data set collected from multiple popular e-learning web sites. The model is tested with real-time e-learning web site links and found that the e-contents in the web sites are recommended to the user based on its difficult levels as beginner level, intermediate level, and advanced level. -
Key factors elevating omni-channel retail experience : A study of critical capability dimensions
Increasing digital disruption is driving the necessity for Omni-Channel Retailing, compelling the integration of online and offline channels. The line between online and physical retailing is blurring as retailers intend to deliver a unified experience anytime anywhere, than a mere channel specific experience. As customer expectation for seamless experience intensifies, and retailers organizational, operational and technical barriers persist, it would be vital to formulate a suitable strategy towards e levating Omni-Channel Retail Experience. Though prior studies have observed the need for realigning the strategy around blended advantages of multiple channels, there is a limited understanding with regards to Omni-Channel Capabilities influencing customer experience elements. Besides, it is challenging to adopt all the capabilities within a competitive timeframe. Thus, the importance of prioritizing these capabilities remains fairly underexplored. This research aims to close this gap by ascertaining key Omni-Channel Dimensions and Capabilities influencing experiential aspects, pertaining to Apparel and Fashion retail, which is a leading category in India. The research first employs a qualitative study to corroborate the appropriateness of the Omni-Channel constructs identified from literature review, in the context of Indian retail market, followed by a quantitative study to validate their influence on Omni- Channel Retail Experience. The research determines key capabilities and dimensions from a retailers perspective that underpin key experience elements. The findings established new knowledge in terms of top priority capabilities towards Omni- Channel adoption, and accordingly designed a novel framework termed Capability Priority Framework as a plausible approach to elevate Omni-Channel Retail Experience. The framework is an original contribution of this research serving as an accelerator for retailers to build and reinforce key Omni-Channel capabilities. The research provides a novel perspective of extending The Dialectic Theory of retailing to a modern context such as Omni-Channel. It serves as a basis for organized retailers in India to realign their strategy towards Omni-Channel adoption, as they embark on this path. Finally, it adds to the knowledge base on Omni-Channel, providing a conceptual background towards strategic retailing and further research in this domain. -
A Study towards constructing a reproductive health account as sub-account of health at sub-district level of india
Reproductive health is a state where everyone of the reproductive age cohort can make newlineinformed choices based on their reproductive health needs and reach a state of bliss and newlinewell-being. Informed choices are a possibility only if there is awareness regarding options of healthcare available. Awareness further indicates capacity to measure the worth of the options available in hand. One major aspect of measuring this worth is dominated by the financial aspect of awareness. In other words, expenditures incurred on reproductive health should be an information for all stakeholders to understand, analyse and arrive at informed newlinechoices. It has been unanimously felt that this domain of health needs more sustained efforts in terms of research into the specific components of expenditures. One such instrument which has been suggested is to construct a system of reproductive health accounts which TOVCI can track the fund movements among the different actors operating in the sector of reproductive health. Reproductive health accounts at local and contextual levels, has to conform to the existing national framework of health accounting so as to lend itself to inter and intra-regional comparisons. It consists of a group of matrices which capture origin of funds from financial sources to the destination where funds will ultimately be used on health functions, based on accounting boundaries of space, activity and time. This study attempted to construct a reproductive health account at sub-district levels in the district of Ramanagara in the state of Karnataka, India. Two sub-districts, Ramanagara and Channapatna were chosen for this purpose based on their health and reproductive health indicators. Primary data was collected from a household survey based on probability proportional to size sampling method. Questionnaires for data collection were borrowed from World Health Organization Guide to producing Reproductive Health Account. -
Development and standardiztion of a tool to assess spirituality in families for family based interventions
The aim of the study was to develop and standardize a tool for family spiritual assessment. The sample consisted of 1502 Indian participants which included members from three religious backgrounds namely: Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. The data collected through face-to-face interview was analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), t-test and ANOVA. A five-item Likert-type tool developed was named as Family Spiritual Assessment Scale (FSAS) through a process of item development. EFA revealed that the 26-item tool with 5-factor solution had an excellent internal consistency of and#945;= .816. Religious factor, Spiritual factor, Mental health factor I (Positive emotions), Mental health factor II (Forgiveness) and Mental health factor III (Negative emotions) are the five important factors of the scale. Gender differences were found in the Spiritual factor, Mental Health, and Total newlinescore of the Scale, where females had higher scores than males. Post-hoc analysis newline(Bonferroni) revealed that total scores of all the three religions differed significantly. The results provide a sound foundation for the future research on spirituality. Family Spiritual newlineAssessment Scale, being the first in India, can be very beneficial to mental health newlineprofessionals and practitioners. -
Academic leader behaviour influence tactics in relation to organizational commitment and work engagement of faculty in higher educational institutions
The importance of academic leader behaviour and influence tactics needs to be overemphasized, as these are the most essential components of practically every newlineeducational institution. A clear understanding of educational institution requires a thorough analysis of academic leader behaviour and influence tactics as main features. Academic leaders regularly acquire and use power. They do so newlinedeliberately and consciously as well as intuitively and unconsciously. Leadership newlineand power do differ in goal compatibility, direction of influence on one s newlinesubordinates and research emphasis. This study attempts to reduce drastically these newlinedifferences and focus on the positives of influence tactics and leadership processes newlineto be exercised by higher authorities for enhancing institutional effectiveness. newlineThe present investigation focused on understanding the leader s behaviour and influence tactics adopted by individuals when they hold power positions, how it hinders the growth of individuals and institutions goals. Faculty Organisational Commitment, Work Engagement and the intention of stay/leave the institution of both academic leaders and faculty members working for higher educational institutions (Engineering, MBA and MCA colleges) were involved in thorough newlineinvestigation. The dependent variables were work engagement and Organisational newlinecommitment. Five tools were adopted to collect data. Leader Behaviour Description Questionnaire (1962) developed by staff members of Fisher College of Business, Ohio State Leadership Studies, Influence Behaviour Questionnaire (2002) developed by Gary Yukl, Organizational Commitment Questionnaire newline(1991) developed by Meyer and Allen, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (2003) developed by Schaufeli et al., and Intention to stay/leave tool developed by Dilyis Robinson. The Cronbach Alpha reliability for Leadership Behaviour Description Questionnaire (LBDQ) was 0.907; Influence Behaviour Questionnaire (IBQ) was 0.677 for academic leaders. -
Development and effectveness of a screening measure and a computerized cognitive remediation program for children with reading and arithmetic difficulties
Reading and arithmetic skills are considered as the foundation skills necessary for educational and vocational success. Research has outlined the important role of specific cognitive functions for efficient reading, comprehension of text and arithmetic processes. Learning difficulties have been shown to have a tremendous impact on later life, both in academics and social relationships. It therefore becomes newlineimperative that we identify, as early as possible, children at risk for learning newlinedifficulties and attempt to assess the relevant cognitive skills and plan and execute intervention programs to improve the efficacy of these cognitive skills. This present study has attempted to do this, keeping the Right to Intervention (RTI) model as the rationale and has focussed on designing an assessment tool along with a remediation program based on the cognitive viewpoint.The two objectives of this research were: development of a screening measure newlinefor identification of children with reading and arithmetic difficulties and development newlineof a computer based cognitive intervention program for improving reading and newlinearithmetic skills. The research was conducted in two stages. Stage one involved the newlinecompiling of the screening measure which consisted of three domains: cognitive newlineabilities, reading comprehension and arithmetic ability. The assessment measure was administered on 1091, third, fourth and fifth grade children from English medium newlineschools in South Bangalore, following the ICSE syllabus. The data obtained was newlinesubjected to item analyses and the final screening tool - Arithmetic and Reading Test newline(ART) - was developed, which comprised of tests for reading comprehension, arithmetic ability and cognitive functions, i.e., attention and concentration, visual newlineperception, visuo-spatial ability, processing and working memory. Psychometric properties were established and the ART was found to be reliable and valid. Test-retest reliability of the ART was 0.76. -
Organizational Sustainability:A Study of Corporate Organizations in the Indian Context
Creating and Sustaining an Organization is an all time challenge. The primary research question is mainly of an explorative nature, seeking to comprehend how the Indian companies view and act upon sustainability. The study focused on the Corporate Organization, meaning Multi National Corporations, Public Sector Undertakings and other Private Organizations. The findings of the study facilitate recommendations to the various organizations to improve the managerial practice and guide them to the ways of sustainability. The aim of the study is to examine the different stages of development of various organizations that best describes the organization and strategy of the organization in sustaining the organization. This study is guided to analyze and understand the capacity of the organizations to respond to changing environments (Sustainability). The scope of sustainability are, the Environment and the Social dimension, Institutional / organizational dimension, Profit making / Economic dimension. Sustainability is a contestable concept that can be examined from the dimensions mentioned above. Organizational Sustainability is often guided by vision, mission, policy, planning, financial situation , human resource management, marketing activities, business ethics, organizational culture, organizational climate, business practices, employee treatment, community engagement ( social responsibility practices) etc. The design of the study is based on the Management and Organizational Sustainability Tool (MOST). The first objective of the study is, to investigate if there is a relationship between the vision and mission with strategy, structure and systems in the organizations. newlineIndia, a land of rich culture and heritage, has to an extent made it possible for its firms to have a culture passed to the employees and have them engaged in the organizational sustainability practices, and being socially responsible. The culture of an organization is intertwined with the philosophy, purposes, functions and structures. -
Empirical Analysis of Antecedents and Mediators of Student Loyalty Among Undergraduate Business Students in Bangalore,India
The higher education sector has undergone major changes throughout India which has led to increase in competition for institutions in this sector. Thus, there is a need to find ways to attract and retain the potential and current students. Student loyalty is crucial to createsustainable competitive advantage. Student loyalty is widely accepted as a critical factor in the long term economic success of an educational institution that aims at positive recommendation (word of mouth) by students and attracting the students back to newlinethe institution for further studies. Review of literature reveals that service quality, price fairness, customer value, customer satisfaction and affective commitment are key newlineantecedents to customer loyalty. newlineObjectives - The objectives of this research study are based on theoretical underpinnings in the literature. The main objectives of the study are: 1. To empirically test the proposed structural model of relationships among six constructs: educational service quality, perceived fee fairness, perceived value, student satisfaction, affective commitment, and student loyalty in the undergraduate business programs. 2. To analyze the influence of educational service quality and perceived fairness on student loyalty (ultimate dependent variable). 3. To examine the mediating effect of perceived value, student satisfaction, and affective newlinecommitment on the relationship between educational service quality and student loyalty. 4. To find out the mediating effect of perceived value and student satisfaction on the relationship between perceived fee fairness and student loyalty. 5. To find out the perceptual dimensions of student assessments of educational service quality, fee fairness, value, satisfaction, commitment and student loyalty. Variables of the Study newline1. Educational Service Quality Independent Variable (Exogenous variable) 2. Perceived Fee Fairness Independent Variable (Exogenous variable) 3. Perceived Value Mediating variable (Endogenous Variable) -
Development of Efficient Biometric Recognition algorithms based on Fingerprint and Face
The reliable verification systems are required to verify and confirm the identity of an individual requesting their service. Secure access to the buildings, laptops, cellular phones, ATM etc. is an example of such applications. In the absence of robust verification systems, these systems are vulnerable to the wiles of an impostor. The traditional ways of authentications are passwords (knowledge based security) and the ID Cards (token based security). These methods can be easily breached due to the chance of stolen, lost or forget. The development and progress of biometrics technology, the fear of stolen, lost or forget can be eliminated. Biometrics refers to the automatic identification (or verification) of an individual (or a claimed identity) by using certain physiological or newlinebehavioral traits associated with the person. newlineThe biometrics identifies the person based on features vector derived from physiological or behavioural characteristics such as uniqueness, permanence, accessibility, collectability with minimum cost. The newlinephysiological biometrics are Fingerprint, Hand Scan, Iris Scan, Facial Scan and Retina Scan etc., and behavioural biometric are Voice, Keystroke, Gait, Signature etc., The physiological biometrics measures the specific part of the structure or shape of a portion of a subject s body. But the behavioural biometric are more concerned with mood and environment.Chapter one presents the introduction to biometrics and its various newlinetraits. Further description like structure of the biometric system, different newlineapproaches are discussed. Also the design issues in biometric system such as universality, collectability, distinctiveness, permanence, acceptability, newlineuniqueness, performance, circumvention etc., are discussed. Chapter two gives a detailed survey of biometric techniques. It includes the literature survey of fingerprint and face biometric traits and various approaches. -
Purchase intention of deconstructed end-of-lifecycle fashion products in an online and offline retail environment
Obsolete or slow-moving inventory is one of the major influencers for the bottom line of any business today. Surplus stock- be it from overbuys, returns, defects or simply merchandise hitting the end of their lifecycle- need to be accounted, accommodated and dealt with in a manner that can least affect the planned margins. For the fashion newlinebusiness, such merchandise poses greater challenges. The business is ground by seasonal preferences, fast-changing trends, short lead-times and shorter shelf-lives. With rising costs of traditional retail businesses, the associated costs of carrying such inventory are something that the newlineretailer can easily do without. At the retailers end, such merchandise is newlineoften subjected to traditional liquidation methods such as Markdowns, carry forwards, or selling at lowered prices to discount stores or factory outlets. From a manufacturer s perspective, overruns from production newlineare either sold at discounted costs to the retailer or are diverted to other sources of sales. In either case, such decisions do affect the margins of the business, and retailers often account for these necessary evils while planning their pricing strategy. Liquidation methods for such obsolete merchandise also need to meet the additional challenge of maintaining the perceived value of the products, and to not adversely newlineaffect planned margins due to lowered price points. This study seeks to explore fashion consumers acceptance of Deconstructed or up-cycled fashion for such obsolete or EOLC (End-of-lifecycle) merchandise that newlineremain unsold. It also maps the Perceived value of such merchandise and explores the other factors that may affect the Purchase Intention of the merchandise, like the Internal reference price, Perceived monetary newlinesacrifice and Perceived quality. Through an experimental study, a comparative analysis is built across consumers in an E-commerce vs newlineOffline store purchase scenario, to derive if the method of presentation of such products affects the Purchase intention. -
Study of substituion effectson structure and properties of high temperature superconductors and isostructure compounds
The thesis mainly describes the investigation of the structural formation of higher order members of bismuth system of superconductors Bi1.6sPb0.35Sr2CazCu4Oy (n = 4, 2234 phase), Bi1.6sPb0.35Sr2Ca4CusOy (n = 5, 2245 phase) and Bi1.65Pb0.35Sr2CasCu,Oy (n = 9, 2289 phase). The samples were synthesized by solid state reaction technique. Micro-structural and morphological features of the synthesized samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDS). The XRD pattern of all the samples revealed the presence of Bismuth 2212 and 2223 phases of which 2223 phase was found to be the predominant. Superconducting transition temperature (Tc) of the samples measured by self-inductance method and dc four probe method showed Tc value around 110 K. There was no signature of the formation of 2234, 2245 or 2289 phases in this investigation. newlineFormation of Bi-2245 compound was further investigated by preparing the sample in a new matrix route. The Tc on set of this sample was found to be 127 K which was the highest reported ever in bismuth system superconductors. The complete replacement of copper by nickel in bismuth system superconductor Bi2SraCu06 (2201) was ttempted by preparing the sample in air by solid state reaction method under open and closed environment. Morphological and microstructural features of the synthesized sample Bi2Sr2Ni0g was investigated by X-ray diffraction, SEM and EDAX. The analysis of X-ray diffraction pattern revealed that nickel can replace copper completely and form a single phase Bi2Sr2Ni06 only when prepared in a closed environment in air. This phase formation of BizSr2NiOo was reported first time. -
Development and Implementation of Algorithm for Image Preprocessing of Microorganism
The digital revolution has changed most aspects of modern life. Nowhere has the change been more fundamental than in the field of microscopy. Researchers who use the microscope in their investigations have been newlineamong the pioneers who applied digital processing techniques to images. Vision is most powerful of the five senses of human being. Digitized visual information provides high impact on the subject. Digital image processing is concerned with the extraction of useful information from images. Visual newlineinformation from microscopic images of microorganisms is analyzed regularly. This has resulted in a need to understand and implement digital processing on microscopic images. The purpose of this thesis is to bring new digital image processing techniques for the noise removal of microscopic image of microorganisms. The digitized image processing includes image representation; improving image quality by removing noise; newlineand enhancing the quality of microscopic images. At the outset, the thesis elaborates on the concepts around microscopic images and their digital image processing. Various existing algorithms are studied for their efficacy. This thesis gives three different techniques of image processing based on the noise level in microscopic images. The thesis newlinedevelops the techniques of image processing through Simulation , which is well accepted tool in the field of engineering. MATLAB has been used in this study to simulate the image processing algorithms. The algorithms developed in the study will be helpful in everyday life through better analysis of microscopic images of microorganisms. The thesis is a contribution to the medical field with better analytical techniques. This research work overviews different image processing techniques used in the analysis of microscopic images and other type of images. After reviewing, use of microscopic imaging is presented. Special emphasis is on two types of noise called Gaussian noise and Impulsive noise is given. -
Motivational Behaviour of Tourism Employees in Relation to Organisational Culture and Career Orientations
The productivity and effectiveness of any organisation depends mainly on the performance level of the employees in the organisation. Human behaviour scientists over the years have conducted various studies and have concluded that, the performance of employees in any organisation depends largely on their motivational behaviour. Reviews of related literature confirm the role of various factors in the motivational behaviour of employees including organisational culture and career orientation of employees. The title of the present study is Motivational Behaviour of Tourism Employees in Relation to Organisational Culture and Career Orientations. The major objectives included ascertaining the relationship between motivational behaviour and organisational culture and career orientations of tourism employees and finding out whether differences in demographic variables would account for significant differences in motivational behaviour. The population of the study consisted of 323 employees of public sector, private sector and multinational companies working in travel agencies, tour operations, airlines and hotels and resorts in Bangalore. The sampling technique employed was judgment sampling. For the present study three tools namely: Motivational Analysis of Organisations- Behaviour (MAO-B) by Pareek (2003), Organisational Culture Survey by Pareek (2003) and Career orientations Inventory by Schein (1990) were used to collect data. The findings of the study show that while two aspects of organisational culture namely internal and future oriented influence the motivational behaviour of employees working in the private sector, no aspect of organisational culture has any influence on the motivational behaviour of employees working in the public sector. Further, only ambiguity tolerant aspect of organisational culture influence the motivational behaviour of employees working in multinational companies.