Ageing population poses new social, technological, and research challenges. It is anticipated that, by 2080, Poland will be in the group of counties that will have one-third of their population aged over 65. Different strategies aim at dealing with the mentioned demographic challenge, including widespread use of humanoids in the care of older people. As this research was the first of its kind in Poland, this article aims to identify the perceived key benefits that could shape positive attitudes toward humanoids in the care of older people. Based on the specific attributes of a humanoid technology, the model hypothesizes that an attitude toward a technology can be directly shaped by four kinds of perceived benefits, namely an impact on the quality of life, functional aspects, ethical problems, and a social impact. Also, a theoretical model assumes that a user attitude toward a humanoid technology is predicted to have an indirect influence on the future intended use. A survey method was used to collect research data. An electronic questionnaire was used to conduct confidential interviews of Polish citizens. All in all, 643 questionnaires were filled. Results received using structural equation modeling confirmed that the most important factor shaping human attitudes was a perceived social impact received from the use of humanoids in the care of the lonely people and making life more enjoyable for the elderly. Results also confirmed that men had a more positive attitude toward humanoids than women. Among different age groups of respondents, people between 26–40 years of age had the most relatively positive attitude toward humanoids.

Emerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services. Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation.

This study aims to examine the role of entrepreneurial orientation (entrepreneurship orientation) in innovation level among Small and Medium Size Enterprises (SMEs). A questionnaire survey was conducted among 137 firms in the Podlaskie Region. Three hypotheses related to entrepreneurial orientation and innovativeness level were examined by Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The relation between two constructs of entrepreneurial orientation and innovativeness, that is proactiveness and risk taking were analyzed. The research results show that proactiveness has a significant positive total effect on improving innovativeness. The findings suggest, in contrast to the strategic orientation literature, that risk taking deters enterprises from organizational innovation. The results confirmed the significantly higher impact of the risk taking as an intermediate variable on the innovation through the mediator of proactivity. This work examines the relations between entrepreneurial orientation and innovativeness, thus contributes to the strategic orientation literature.

No abstract

No abstract

Construction of modern and durable asphalt and cement pavements requires high quality materials and suitable technologies that take into account sustainability concerns which are related to the environmental protection, mitigation and compensation for road construction effects on surface water and groundwater, soil, air, wildlife, landscape, vibration and noise. The objectives of this paper are to identify possible development directions of materials and technologies in road construction in the time perspective of approximately 30 years. In order to achieve that goal a nationwide Delphi survey with 150 invited experts was deployed. The study concluded that binding materials with improved viscoelastic range – and often with specific modifications – would continue to play a leading role. Furthermore, technologies that enable monitoring the state of road pavement condition in a continuous manner would be used to a greater range. Introduction of sensors into the pavement network would lead to the construction of “smart” roads while spreading of nanomaterial technology would improve the durability and reliability of road pavement construction.

The dynamic development of e-learning technologies caused by the global epidemiological situation during the last year has prompted the rapid adaptation of the education sector to new challenges. At the same time, many barriers and challenges have emerged, especially at the initial period of e-learning implementation. The identification of factors determining the adoption of e-learning should be the source of information needed to improve the methods and tools used by educational institutions. In the era of strong competition, higher education institutions need to improve their business models or build new ones e.g. based on remote learning. The article aims to identify the essential success factors and their interlinks that explain the initial stages of adoption of an e-learning system by university students in Poland. The author built three regression models which explain relationships between six input variables, i.e., the perceived usefulness (PU), the perceived ease of use (PEU), facilitating conditions (FC), computer self-efficacy (CSE), the preparedness level (PL), and previous experience (PE); and three output variables, i.e., satisfaction and personal development (SPD), attitude toward e-learning (AT), and intention to use (IU). The variable “satisfaction and personal development” (SPD) was newly added to the model. Data was collected with the help of a survey, which was conducted using the CAWI (computer-assisted web interview) technique. In total, 982 completed questionnaires were received. Results achieved using a regression analysis confirmed that the perceived usefulness played a crucial role in building the attitude of students toward e-learning and achieving satisfaction and personal development of the users. Only in the case of two analyzed variables, the obtained results confirmed statistically significant differentiation within the two gender groups. Results confirmed that men had declared a high level of computer self-efficacy. The variable “facilitating conditions” received higher marks from women. The research carried out and the results obtained may form the basis for building strategies for the development of universities and building business models in which e-learning plays an important role.

No abstract