Preference for utilitarian or hedonic value options during a pandemic crisis: The moderation effects of childhood socioeconomic status and sensation-seeking.

This research investigated hospitality consumers' relative preferences for utilitarian or hedonic value under COVID-19 pandemic conditions. A series of four experiments and one secondary data analysis showed that the salience of the infectious disease threat increased consumers' preferences for hospitality options that provide relatively more utilitarian than hedonic value. Additionally, we identified two individual differences (i.e., childhood socioeconomic status (SES) & sensation-seeking) that moderated the effect of the infectious disease threat on the preferred hospitality consumption value. Specifically, the higher the childhood SES, the higher was the preference for the utilitarian value option, and the lower the level of sensation-seeking, the greater was the preference for the utilitarian value option. This research extends our understanding of the influence of the infectious disease threat on preference changes in hospitality decisions.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on travelers' preference for crowded versus non-crowded options.

Crowding is a critical determinant of consumers' satisfaction with and preferences for different shopping and travel situations. When considering a selection of travel and hospitality options, travelers are influenced by perceived crowding. This research examined how the current health crisis (i.e., the COVID-19 pandemic) affects travelers' preferences for crowded and non-crowded options. Specifically, we predicted that travelers would have a diminished preference for crowded (vs. non-crowded) travel and hospitality options when the ongoing pandemic is salient. We demonstrated that the primary effect of the salience of the threat was persistent across different travel categories and contexts. We also found that travelers with high levels of sensation seeking and a high need for uniqueness show the opposite pattern, suggesting a possible recovery strategy from the pandemic. Five experimental studies provide several theoretical and managerial implications for travel and hospitality business marketers.

Preference for robot service or human service in hotels? Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Robots and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are becoming more prominent in the tourism industry. Nowadays, consumers are faced with multiple options involving both human and robot interactions. A series of experimental studies were implemented. Four experiments demonstrated that consumers had a more positive attitude toward robot-staffed (vs. human-staffed) hotels when COVID-19 was salient. The results were different from previous studies, which were conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the moderating role of perceived threat in consumers' preference for robot-staffed hotels was significant, the respondents' preference was attributed to the global health crisis. This research provides a number of theoretical and managerial implications by improving the understanding of technology acceptance during a health crisis.

How the COVID-19 pandemic affected hotel Employee stress: Employee perceptions of occupational stressors and their consequences.

This study sought to examine the impacts of the global coronavirus pandemic on hotel employees' perceptions of occupational stressors and their consequences. Paired t-tests and structural equation modeling were applied to examine the responses of 758 hotel employees in the United States. The findings showed that occupational stressors after the outbreak of the pandemic consisted of three domains: traditional hotel-work stressors, unstable and more demanding hotel-work-environment stressors, and unethical hotel-labor-practices-borne stressors. The impacts of these stressors differed from the hypothesis that traditional hotel-work stressors positively affect job satisfaction and organizational commitment. The findings showed that job satisfaction and organizational commitment significantly explained job performance, subjective well-being, and prosocial behavior, but they did not significantly influence turnover intention. Hotel employees' pre-pandemic perceptions of occupational stressors and their consequences also differed significantly from their perceptions after the pandemic had broken out.

(CF3CO)2O/CF3SO3H-mediated synthesis of 1,3-diketones from carboxylic acids and aromatic ketones.

A very simple and convenient reaction for 1,3-diketone preparation from carboxylic acids and aromatic ketones in TFAA/TfOH system is described. When the ß-phenylpropionic acids were used as starting materials, they initially gave 1-indanones and then underwent further acylation with the formation of 2-(ß-phenylpropionyl)-1-indanones as the main reaction products. In addition, the application of the proposed protocol allowed for the synthesis of selected polysubstituted pyrazoles in a one-pot procedure directly from acids and ketones.

Artificial Intelligence and Declined Guilt: Retailing Morality Comparison Between Human and AI.

Several technological developments, such as self-service technologies and artificial intelligence (AI), are disrupting the retailing industry by changing consumption and purchase habits and the overall retail experience. Although AI represents extraordinary opportunities for businesses, companies must avoid the dangers and risks associated with the adoption of such systems. Integrating perspectives from emerging research on AI, morality of machines, and norm activation, we examine how individuals morally behave toward AI agents and self-service machines. Across three studies, we demonstrate that consumers' moral concerns and behaviors differ when interacting with technologies versus humans. We show that moral intention (intention to report an error) is less likely to emerge for AI checkout and self-checkout machines compared with human checkout. In addition, moral intention decreases as people consider the machine less humanlike. We further document that the decline in morality is caused by less guilt displayed toward new technologies. The non-human nature of the interaction evokes a decreased feeling of guilt and ultimately reduces moral behavior. These findings offer insights into how technological developments influence consumer behaviors and provide guidance for businesses and retailers in understanding moral intentions related to the different types of interactions in a shopping environment.

The impact of COVID-19 on consumer evaluation of authentic advertising messages.

This study investigates the relationship between the COVID-19 threat and consumer evaluation of a product with authenticity appeals in advertisements. We propose that threatening situations like COVID-19 motivate consumers to lower their uncertainty and increase their preference for products with authentic advertising messages. Because individuals react differently to threatening environments according to their early-life experiences, commonly reflected in childhood socioeconomic status, we examined whether childhood socioeconomic status moderates the relationship between threat and consumer evaluation of authenticity in advertisements. First, secondary data from Google Trends provided empirical support for our predictions. In additional experimental studies, participants evaluated different target products in four studies that either manipulated (Studies 2 and 3) or measured (Studies 4 and 5) COVID-19 threat. Our results provide converging evidence that consumers positively evaluate products with authentic advertising messages under the COVID-19 threat. Consumers' motivation to lower their uncertainty underlies the effect of COVID-19 threat on their evaluation of authentic messages (Study 3). This attempt to reduce uncertainty is more likely to occur for consumers with relatively higher childhood socioeconomic status (Studies 4 and 5). These findings suggest that using authenticity appeals during a pandemic could effectively reduce consumers' perceived uncertainty and generate positive consumer evaluations.

Hierarchical helical assembly of conjugated poly(3-hexylthiophene)-block-poly(3-triethylene glycol thiophene) diblock copolymers.

We report on the solution-state assembly of all-conjugated polythiophene diblock copolymers containing nonpolar (hexyl) and polar (triethylene glycol) side chains. The polar substituents provide a large contrast in solubility, enabling formation of stably suspended crystalline fibrils even under very poor solvent conditions for the poly(3-hexylthiophene) block. For appropriate block ratios, complexation of the triethylene glycol side chains with added potassium ions drives the formation of helical nanowires that further bundle into superhelical structures.

Mesoscale surface patterning of a laterally-grafted rod amphiphile: rings and fibers.

An aromatic amphiphilic molecule based on branched oligo(ethylene oxide) was synthesized. Evaporation-driven ring formation and Langmuir-Blodgett films are investigated by utilizing this rigid-flexible block molecule. The size of the rings is strongly dependent on the solvent evaporation rate and the concentration of the molecule. In case of fast evaporation, volcano-like rings are formed by evaporating solution of high concentration. Perfectly symmetrical rings with diameters in the range of 2-6 microm are obtained by evaporating solution of low concentration. The formation mechanism of the ring is briefly discussed. The molecule at the air-water interface exhibits excellent amphiphilic properties. Upon transferring the monolayer onto solid substrates, AFM revealed the formation of fine and long, straight fibers. By combining the data obtained from the isotherms, AFM, water contact angle measurements, and UV/Vis and fluorescence spectra, the fibers are suggested to be formed by pi-pi stacking interaction of the aromatic rod segments as the oligo(ethylene oxide) branches are submerged in the water subphase upon compression. The fiber formation is associated with the transformation of the aromatic rod segments from the face-on conformation to the edge-on conformation.

Interconversion of planar networks and vesicles triggered by temperature.

Dumbbell-shaped amphiphiles based on an elongated rod segment can self-assemble into planar networks with in-plane hexagonally ordered pores in aqueous solution. On increasing temperature, the 2D networks change into hollow capsules passing through the closed sheets as an intermediate structure due to a LCST behavior of the oligoether dendritic exterior. The primary driving force for this interesting feature seems to originate from a consequence of the energy balance between hydrophobic interactions of anisotropic rod segments and alkyl chains, and repulsive interactions between dissimilar blocks. This dynamic structural variation triggered by external stimuli in a self-assembling system can provide a useful strategy to create smart supramolecular materials and biomimetic systems.

Synthesis of Aromatic Macrocyclic Amphiphiles and their Self-Assembling Behavior in Aqueous Solution.

A triblock amphiphilic macrocycle consisting of a macrocyclic aromatic segment, a hydrophilic oligo(ethylene oxide) branch, and a hydrophobic alkyl dendron is successfully synthesized and characterized. The resulting cyclic amphiphile is observed to self-assemble into hollow double-layered capsules in aqueous solution, as confirmed by dynamic light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy investigations. The capsules are able to encapsulate hydrophobic guest molecules through aromatic interactions with high stability.

Tubular stacking of water-soluble toroids triggered by guest encapsulation.

Coassembly of laterally grafted rod amphiphiles gives rise to the formation of water-soluble toroids with a hydrophobic interior. The toroids stack on top of each other to form a tubular container upon triggering by fullerene encapsulation.

Reversible transformation of helical coils and straight rods in cylindrical assembly of elliptical macrocycles.

We have demonstrated that, as the molecular length of elliptical macrocycle is increased, the self-assembled structure changes from spherical micelles to helical coils and finally to monolayered vesicles, in the order of decreasing interfacial curvature. Notably, the helical coils reversibly transform into straight rods upon heating while maintaining the supramolecular chirality. This structural transition is accompanied by conformational change of the elliptical macrocycles from a boat conformation to a more planar conformation.

Reversible scrolling of two-dimensional sheets from the self-assembly of laterally grafted amphiphilic rods.

Deep-water scrolls: It is demonstrated that amphiphilic rods containing lateral flexible chains self-assemble into two-dimensional sheets in aqueous solution (see picture). Remarkably, the sheets roll up reversibly into tubular scrolls upon heating, as confirmed by cryo-transmission electron microscopy and fluorescence microscopy.

Interfacial organization of Y-shaped rod-coil molecules packed into cylindrical nanoarchitectures.

The behavior at the air/water interface and the structures of Langmuir-Blodgett monolayers at different surface pressures of rod-coil molecules, which consist of a Y-shaped rigid aromatic segment containing peripheral tetradecyloxy groups and a flexible poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) chain with 17, 21, 34, or 45 repeating ethylene oxide units (Y17, Y21, Y34, and Y45), were investigated. For the Y21 and Y34 molecules, AFM images revealed two kinds of cylindrical nanoarchitectures formed upon compression. The nanostructured films were further investigated by UV/Vis and FTIR spectroscopy. The formation of the cylindrical nanoarchitectures was due to different tilting angles offered by the mismatch of the cross-sectional areas of the PEO chain and the benzene ring with attached alkyl chains, and the different PEO contents of the molecules. The multiple pi-pi stacking and hydrophobic interactions provide exceptional stability of the nanostructures and allow them to be preserved in the course of flipping. For the shortest PEO chain of the Y17 molecule, spontaneous aggregation occurred. The Y45 molecule revealed the formation of 2D circular domains caused by entanglement of the longest PEO chains and coiling at the air/water interface. In addition, an interesting vortical morphology was obtained for the Y21 molecule upon deposition of the film onto a mica substrate, which indicates that the substrate chemistry also has an effect on the morphologies during the film-transfer process.

Modulatory Functionalization of Gold Nanorods Using Supramolecular Assemblies.

Supramolecular-assembly-mediated functionalization of gold nanorods (GNRs) has been developed by reversible phase transfer between water and oils, which offers a facile method for fabricating robust GNRs with surface-charge tunability. In this regard, trimethylammonium (TMA) GNRs were initially prepared from conventional cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) GNRs by means of a ligand-exchange reaction in the presence of an excess amount of TMA ligands. To further expand their functionality and potential applications, electrostatic assemblies of positively charged TMA-GNRs with negatively charged oleate ions were prepared. These assemblies (OA-GNRs) can undergo facile phase transfer from water to hexane. Interestingly, the reversible electrostatic assembly between the TMA and OA ions fabricated onto GNRs can be easily disrupted by treatment with HCl, which removes the OA ions from the GNRs to re-form the TMA-GNRs, which can be made soluble in aqueous media again. In addition, OA-GNRs can be further used for the synthesis of negatively charged GNRs such as 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) GNRs, which are hard to prepare directly from CTAB-GNRs. This versatile method for phase transfer and functionalization on GNRs is expected to broaden the scope of their applications in sensing, biomedical imaging, photothermal therapies, and drug delivery systems.

Suppressive effect of AIF, a water extract from three herbs, on collagen-induced arthritis in mice.

AIF has been formulated using three herbs known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-osteolytic effects. In this study, the potential therapeutic effects of AIF for rheumatoid arthritis were assessed in vitro and in vivo. The effects of AIF on the inflammation (TNF-alpha, IL-1, iNO), cartilage protection (MMP-13), and selective killing of activated T cells were examined, in vitro. In addition, the therapeutic effect of AIF was evaluated using a collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mouse model. DBA/1 mice were immunized with type II collagen. Following booster immunization, mice were treated with the oral administration of 276 mg/kg/d AIF once a day for 18 days, then, the severity of CIA was evaluated by macroscopic scoring and histopathological assessment. AIF significantly inhibited the production of TNF-alpha, IL-1, iNO, and MMP-13 in a dose dependent manner in vitro. Also, AIF killed activated T cells selectively, conserving naïve T cells. The oral administration of AIF in CIA mice suppressed the progression of CIA significantly and decreased synovial hyperplasia, cartilage destruction, and bone erosion. AIF showed potent anti-inflammatory effects in vitro and substantial protective effect for the progression of CIA in vivo. These results suggest that AIF contains effective compound(s) which may modify the progression of rheumatoid arthritis.