Comparison of Audience Behavior between eSports and Authentic Sports Fans.

This study analyzed how the behavioral patterns of esports and authentic sports viewers differ, adopting user and gratification theory and media transportation theory. In particular, it was investigated whether there was a difference in behavioral patterns according to the experience of playing the sport even among authentic sports viewers. As a result of analyzing the relationship between viewers' motivation and media transportation outcomes through structural equation modeling and multigroup structural equation modeling, it was observed that cognitive motivation was more important for esports viewers than for authentic sports viewers. A second analysis of comparisons among fans of authentic sports showed that viewers with sports experience had greater cognitive needs. This result shows that there is a difference between the viewer behaviors of esports and traditional sports, but it is concluded that the presence or absence of sports participation experience rather than content is the factor that separates the difference.

Athletic justice: Scale development and validation.

The current study aimed to create a reliable and valid scale to measure athletes' perception of fairness regarding coaches' behaviors. The study utilized a scale development process, including three steps: (a) item generation, (b) scale development, and (c) scale evaluation. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches were utilized to generate items and achieve content validity. In developing the AJ scale, elite athletes from 29 different sports in Saudi Arabia were recruited for two rounds of data collection. The first data set (n = 279) was collected using an initial 35-item AJ scale developed from existing justice scales and interviews with elite athletes, while the second data collection (n = 503) was performed using a refined 12-item scale based on the analysis of the first data set. The results of ESEM showed an appropriate model fit for the scale with 12 items including four dimensions. In addition, the criterion validity was supported as each dimension of AJ was positively associated with athlete satisfaction. The newly developed AJ scale will help researchers measure perceived fairness toward coaches' behaviors based on the unique culture, climate, and environment that exists in the context of sports and explore the relationships between AJ and important attitudinal and behavioral outcomes that impact team performance.

Impact of Met-Expectation of Athletic Justice on Athletic Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment via Leader-Member Exchange among Elite Saudi Arabian Athletes.

Athletes' perceptions of fairness toward coaching behaviors and decisions can play a crucial role in the development and maintenance of a strong coach-athlete relationship. However, scholars have given limited attention to athletes' perceptions of fairness. Therefore, the current study aimed to explore the relationship between coaches and athletes by applying the concept of organizational justice based on met-expectation theory. The primary objective of the study was to empirically examine the direct and indirect relationships between the met-expectation of athletic justice and athletes' attitudinal outcomes, such as athletic satisfaction and organizational commitment, through leader-member exchange (LMX). Data were collected from 289 elite athletes (238 men and 51 women) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia using a mixed-mode approach (paper-and-pencil and online surveys). The results of Structural Equation Modeling indicated that when athletes perceive that their expectations of fair treatment are met, it positively affects their satisfaction. This relationship is partially influenced by the quality of their relationship with their leader. However, the findings also suggest that while the athletes' met-expectation of athletic justice has a positive effect on their satisfaction, it does not have a significant impact on their commitment to the team. The findings provide insight about important work-related outcomes by validating the coach-athlete relationship based on met-expectation of athletic justice. The findings can be utilized to improve athlete satisfaction and commitment, leading to positive team and individual outcomes.

Analyzing factors affecting risk aversion: Case of life insurance data in Korea.

This research employs machine learning analysis on extensive data from a prominent Korean life insurance company to substantiate the insurance demand theory, which posits that insurance demand increases with risk aversion. We quantitatively delineate the traits of risk-averse individuals. Our study focuses on a cohort of 94,306 individuals who have filed insurance claims due to illness. To forecast prospective insurance consumers inclined toward additional purchases, we construct a predictive model using a machine learning algorithm. This model incorporates 19 demographic and socioeconomic factors as independent variables, with additional insurance acquisition as the dependent variable. Consequently, we uncover the distinctive characteristics of consumers predicted to acquire supplementary insurance products. Our findings reveal a significant association between the independent variables and the likelihood of purchasing additional insurance. Notably, 10 out of the 19 independent variables exert a substantial influence on additional insurance acquisitions. These characteristics encompass residence in rural areas, a higher likelihood of being female, advanced age, increased assets, a higher likelihood of being blue-collar workers, lower education levels, a greater likelihood of being married or divorced/separated, a history of cancer, and a predisposition for existing policyholders with prior subscriptions to actual loss insurance or substantial insurance contract amounts. Our study holds academic significance by addressing limitations observed in prior research, which predominantly relied on questionnaires to qualitatively assess risk aversion. Instead, we offer specific insights into individual characteristics associated with risk aversion. Moreover, we anticipate that Korean insurance companies can leverage these insights to attract new clientele while retaining existing members through predictive risk aversion analysis. These findings also offer valuable insights across a spectrum of disciplines, including business administration, psychology, education, sociology, and sales/marketing, related to individuals' risk preferences and behaviors.

Self-Serving Bias in Performance Goal Achievement Appraisals: Evidence From Long-Distance Runners.

While working with a long-distance running event organizer, the authors of this study observed considerable differences between event participants' official finish time (i.e., bib time) and their self-reported finish time in the post-event survey. Drawing on the notion of self-serving bias, we aim to explore the source of this disparity and how such psychological bias influences participants' event experience at long-distance running events. Using evidence of 1,320 marathon runners, we demonstrated how people are more likely to be subject to a biased self-assessment contingent upon achieving their best finish time at the event. The study samples were split into record-high-achieved and record-high-missed groups, and the self-serving biases of each group were explored. Results from the t-test comparing record-high-achieved and -missed groups showed that runners in the record-high-missed group were significantly more likely to report a positively biased finish time than runners in the record-high-achieved group (p < 0.01). Additionally, results from logistic regression showed that as runners missed their best finish time by a wider margin, the probability of reporting a positively biased incorrect finish time increased. Lastly, we conducted an additional t-test and revealed that runners who are subject to self-serving bias showed a lower level of overall event satisfaction. The current study suggests one way to bypass the adverse effects of participant sport event participants' worse-than-expected athletic performance. We specifically suggest that the event organizers target runners who had worse-than-expected performance and make extra efforts on non-race service attributes (e.g., finish line experience, rest and recovery area, and transportation after the event) because these runners are more likely to be unsatisfied with the event.

Patterns of Weight Change in a Commercial Weight Loss Program.

Objectives: In this study, we examined compliance and progress factors associated with weight loss and maintenance, individual patterns of weight trends following weight loss, and impact of early weight loss on longer-term weight change. Methods: We conducted secondary analysis of pre-post data. Participants were 8769 persons (mean age = 47.63 ± 13.78 years; 77.74% women; mean weight = 97.20 ± 22.82 kilograms; BMI = 34.09 ± 6.84) in a commercial weight management program. We carried out multiple regression analyses on weight change and percentage, and used ANOVA and the Pearson chi-square test to examine participant characteristics, weight change patterns, and early weight loss success. Results: Participants were active in the program for 222 ± 158 days, completed 15 ± 13 appointments, achieving -8.53 ± 7.87 kilograms lost (-8.61% ± 7.64%). Greater weight loss was associated with appointment frequency (ß = -0.46) and total spending (ß = -2.89) (p < .01). We identified 5 weight change patterns (F = 37.56, p < .001) (total weight loss for each group was: Stable = -10.4% [N=2036]; Minimal Regain = -10.5% [N=3766]; Modest Regain = -8.8% [N=1476]; Large Regain = -7.3% [N=753]; No Loss/Gain = +3.7% [N=737]; all p < .05). Over 5000 participants achieved early weight loss (losing > 5%) within the first 2 months resulting in significantly greater final weight loss (-8.43% to -14.56% vs -1.18% to -3.15%). Conclusions: We identified several weight patterns; increased health coaching attendance was associated with greater weight loss.

Competitive balance trends in elite table tennis: the Olympic Games and World Championships 1988-2016.

Competitive balance is important because it enhances outcome uncertainty and therefore it promotes spectator interest, and encourages government investment in a sport. This article analyses the distribution of gold medals, medals, medal points and top eight points amongst nations in table tennis from 1988 to 2016 at the Olympic Games and the World Championships respectively. A normalised version of the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index and a coefficient of variation are calculated for each nation's share of these performance indicators. The key findings are that China dominates both events, with successful female players being more dominant than their male counterparts. The competitive balance for gold medals has declined, whilst there is a trend towards improved competitive balance for top eight points for women, suggesting that more teams are featuring in the top eight (but not necessarily the top three) placings. This research has implications for the development of table tennis competitions. Compared to other racket sports, the issue of competitive imbalance in table tennis is particularly thorny, which threatens the long-term development of this sport. Accordingly, some measures are recommended for the International Olympic Committee and the International Table Tennis Federation to propel a more balanced development of international table tennis.

Post annealing effects on the electrical characteristics of pentacene thin film transistors on flexible substrates.

This work studies the effect of post annealing of pentacene on a flexible substrate through the examination of electrical properties and surface morphologies. It is confirmed that the best performance of devices is achieved when the post annealing temperature is 60 degrees C, since the grain size increases, which decrease grain boundaries caused charge transport limit. We can also confirmed the large threshold voltage shift of device annealed at 60 degrees C that means the lower trap density between channel and insulator interface. The device annealed at 60 degrees C exhibits a saturation mobility of 1.99 cm2/V x s, an on/off ratio of 1.87 x 10(4), and a subthreshold slope of 2.5 V/decade.

Low-voltage-driven pentacene thin-film transistors with cross-linked poly(4-vinylphenol)/high-k Bi55b3O15 hybrid dielectric for phototransistor.

This paper describes the fabrication of pentacene thin-film transistors (TFTs) with an organic/inorganic hybrid gate dielectric, consisting of cross-linked poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVP) and Bi5Nb3O15. A 300-nm-thick Bi5Nb3O15 dielectric film, grown at room temperature, exhibits a high dielectric constant (high-k) value of 40 but has an undesirable interface with organic semiconductors (OSC). To form better interfaces with OSC, a cross-linked PVP dielectric was stacked on the Bi5Nb3O15 dielectric. It is shown that, with the introduction of a hybrid dielectric, our devices not only can be operated at a low voltage (- -5 V) but also have improved electrical characteristics and photoresponse, including a field-effect mobility of 0.72 cm2/V x s, current sub-threshold slopes of 0.29 V/decade, and a photoresponse of 4.84 at a gate bias V(G) = 0 V under 100 mW/cm2 AM 1.5 illumination.

Organic thin film transistor with poly(4-vinylbiphenyl) blended 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)pentacene on propyleneglycolmonomethyletheracetate dielectric surface.

This paper presents the latest results in the use of soluble materials, such as organic semiconductors (OSCs) and gate-dielectrics, for simplified processing of organic thin film transistors (OTFTs). In this work, the fabrication of a solution-processed OTFT, with 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)pentacene (TIPS-pentacene) and TIPS-pentacene mixed with poly(4-vinylbiphenyl) (PVBP) as the OSC, and propyleneglycolmonomethyletheracetate (PGMEA) as the gate-dielectric, is described. From electrical measurements, we observed exemplary I-V characteristics for these TFTs. Device performance characteristics have been obtained, including the charge carrier mobility (micro) of 1.47 x 10(-2) cm2Ns, threshold voltage (V(T)) of -11.36 V, current on/off ratio (I(ON/OFF)) of 1.08 x 10(4), sub-threshold swing (SS) of 2.13 V/decade for an OTFT with PVBP blended TIPS-pentacene and micro of 1.39 x 10(-4) cm2/Vs, V(T) of 0.7 V, I(ON/OFF) of 1.64 x 10(3), SS of 4.21 V/decade for an OTFT without polymer binder, individually.