Emerging case oriented agents for sustaining educational institutions going green towards environmental responsibility

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to design a system deployment model that integrates case-based agent technique to develop an eco-responsibility decision support tool for greening educational institutions toward environmental responsibility. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected through questionnaires distributed among a statistical population that comprised practitioners across educational institutions in Malaysia that implement green practices. The questionnaire measured the feasibility of the developed tool based on factors derived from the literature. Accordingly, descriptive, exploratory and factor analysis approach using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) was used to test the feasibility of the developed tool. Findings Results from descriptive analysis confirm the tool is feasible based on mean values that range from 4.1619 to 3.6508 on a five-point scale, indicating that the tool is effective in sustaining educational institutions going green. Besides, results from exploratory analysis verify the reliability of the tool based on the acceptable Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient score higher than 0.7 and Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin value being above 0.5. Finally, results from factor analysis reveal that the developed tool is usable, efficient, helpful, flexible and credible and supports educational institutions in going green at 88.44 per cent of the total variance, suggesting that the respondents are satisfied with the tool. Research limitations/implications The sample population in this study comprises only practitioners from educational institutions in Malaysia. Theoretically, this research provides feasibility factors and associated items that can be used in evaluating developed information systems. Practical implications Practically, this study develops an eco-responsibility decision support tool to facilitate green strategies and provides information on how practitioners in educational institutions can improve green growth. Social implications This study presents how case-oriented agents aid educational institutions in going green for environmental responsibility. Socially, this research provides the strategies for green practice improvement in educational institutions toward environmental responsibility. Originality/value The eco-responsibility decision support tool provides a Web-based platform for promoting ecological protection by supporting the measuring of practitioners’ current green practices for environmental responsibility. Thus, research findings from this study are expected to help decision-makers generate useful insights into environment-friendly strategies to be implemented in educational institutions. Lastly, the statistical tests adopted in this paper can be used to gauge the feasibility of information system application in future.

Big data-oriented energy prosumption service in smart community districts: a multi-case study perspective

“…Climate change is putting pressure on policy makers, governments, global industries, and the international community to deploy renewable energy sources and improve energy efficiency (Li et al 2017;Anthony Jr et al 2019). To attain the need for cleaner energy and comply with economic and ecologic demands, the electricity market structure is gradually transitioning from a centralized model to more decentralized and interactive approach based on smart grid technology where energy consumers may play a role as prosumers who produce, sell or share surplus energy (Wentland 2016).…”

Understanding the role of demand and supply integration in achieving retail supply chain agility: An information technology capability perspective

“…Again, diverse data sources ensure data complementarity and cross‐validation, thereby improving case validity (Noor, 2008). Specifically, we generalize data through descriptive analysis to characterize observed factors in a particular sample, and provide information about the overall sample representativeness which other researchers need to replicate the study (Anthony et al, 2019). The on‐site visits, the number of interviews and the data collection ways are described in Table 1.…”

Understanding and Predicting the Usage of Shared Electric Scooter Services on University Campuses

“…In the context of higher education, green practices are rising rapidly. However, achieving sustainability in Malaysian universities in this regard has yet remained an issue [32]. Malaysia has committed itself to buttress sustainability on university campuses after signing the Talloires Declaration.…”