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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of the digitalization phenomenon in the development of innovative business models that are sustainability oriented. Thus, the authors aim to understand whether the presence of digitalization forces companies to create, capture and deliver value in new ways, focusing on their social impact. Design/methodology/approach Through the analysis of a case study in the automotive sector, the authors provide evidence that both digitalization and sustainability need to be considered to adequately innovate business models. Moreover, these two dimensions are interrelated, and therefore digitalization sustains sustainability and vice versa. Findings By inductively investigating the evolutionary path along which companies tend to adapt their business models to digitalization and sustainability trends, the authors found that this innovative transformation needs to be as sustainable as possible in order to offer benefits to organizations, customers and society at large. Furthermore, the authors revealed that, at least in the automotive sector, companies and customers are aware of the remarkable consequences of digitalization; however, they are still uncertain regarding the actual adoption of new technologies. Originality/value The literature on business model innovation is quite extensive. However, the role of digitalization in developing sustainable business models to achieve a competitive advantage has been overlooked. This study suggests that, within a specific context, forging a value network of stakeholders is helpful when innovating a business model with a sustainability orientation.
Chiara Acciarini; Fernando Borelli; Francesca Capo; Francesco Cappa; Chiara Sarrocco. Can digitalization favour the emergence of innovative and sustainable business models? A qualitative exploration in the automotive sector. Journal of Strategy and Management 2021, ahead-of-p, 1 .
AMA StyleChiara Acciarini, Fernando Borelli, Francesca Capo, Francesco Cappa, Chiara Sarrocco. Can digitalization favour the emergence of innovative and sustainable business models? A qualitative exploration in the automotive sector. Journal of Strategy and Management. 2021; ahead-of-p (ahead-of-p):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleChiara Acciarini; Fernando Borelli; Francesca Capo; Francesco Cappa; Chiara Sarrocco. 2021. "Can digitalization favour the emergence of innovative and sustainable business models? A qualitative exploration in the automotive sector." Journal of Strategy and Management ahead-of-p, no. ahead-of-p: 1.
Start-ups need investor funding to overcome the early stages of their life, during which they are more vulnerable and exposed to failure. They need to convince investors to fund their business ideas by signaling the potential success of their entrepreneurial venture, through a demonstration of cohesion, shared views, and determination. The educational background of the founders of start-ups can be a strong driver of start-up performance, as it is a visible signal for investors. However, education is composed of two different dimensions (i.e. its depth and its heterogeneity), and their configurations should be carefully considered. To clarify this aspect, in this study we discuss the impact that these two education dimensions have on funds raised by start-ups in the early stages of their life. Results show that highly educated cofounders have improved access to external funding as long as they do not have highly heterogeneous educational backgrounds; in a parallel fashion, cofounders educated in different disciplines also have improved access to funding, as long as they have less advanced levels of education. These findings are relevant to start-up founders and indicate the best team configurations to guarantee better access to capital in the initial stages of their life.
Stefano Franco; Francesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli. Founder Education and Start-Up Funds Raised. IEEE Engineering Management Review 2021, PP, 1 -1.
AMA StyleStefano Franco, Francesco Cappa, Michele Pinelli. Founder Education and Start-Up Funds Raised. IEEE Engineering Management Review. 2021; PP (99):1-1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleStefano Franco; Francesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli. 2021. "Founder Education and Start-Up Funds Raised." IEEE Engineering Management Review PP, no. 99: 1-1.
This article explores the impact of different types of products and rewards on the amount of funds raised in reward-based crowdfunding (RBCF). Specifically, we have analyzed two different product types, i.e., based on individual ownership or temporary use, and four types of rewards, i.e., prototype, branded promotional item, special edition, and discount. Results of a within-subject survey-based experiment indicate that individual ownership products obtain more funds than temporary use products. In addition, depending on the product type, some rewards are more effective in attracting funds from backers. These outcomes extend the application of Signaling Theory in the context of RBCF, as backers respond to multiple signals connected to both product and reward types because they are related to the likelihood of project realization, and of Self-Determination Theory, as backers are nonprofessionals and contribute their money mainly for the satisfaction of supporting what they consider valuable entrepreneurial projects. The findings of this article advance the scientific understanding of RBCF and provide advice for entrepreneurs on how to properly craft their call for money depending on the type of product proposed to the crowd.
Francesco Cappa; Stefano Franco; Edoardo Ferrucci; Riccardo Maiolini. The Impact of Product and Reward Types in Reward-Based Crowdfunding. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management 2021, PP, 1 -12.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Stefano Franco, Edoardo Ferrucci, Riccardo Maiolini. The Impact of Product and Reward Types in Reward-Based Crowdfunding. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. 2021; PP (99):1-12.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Stefano Franco; Edoardo Ferrucci; Riccardo Maiolini. 2021. "The Impact of Product and Reward Types in Reward-Based Crowdfunding." IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management PP, no. 99: 1-12.
Consumers and organizations often rely on permissions requested during the installation of mobile applications (apps) and on official privacy policies to determine how safe an app is and decide whether the app producer is acting ethically or not. This research raises several concerns about the collection and sharing of personal data conducted by mobile apps without the knowledge or consent of the user. The findings of this case study research clearly demonstrate that permissions and privacy policies are not enough to determine how invasive an app is. By analysing six popular mobile apps we demonstrate how extensive amounts of data, which go well beyond the permissions requested of the user, are commonly collected. This study illustrates the effectiveness of our proposed approach, which is based upon a static and dynamic analysis, in addition to a review of privacy policy statements. From a corporate perspective, the outcomes of this study are important to understand how many mobile apps put employees, and intellectual property, at risk. Furthermore, we have highlighted how sensitive information being collected may eventually be used in public or private investigations. Moreover, we have also evidenced how the data being collected is contrary to the developers' privacy policies. The results of this study will assist policymakers who may be concerned with consumer privacy and data collection practices.
Darren Hayes; Francesco Cappa; Nhien An Le-Khac. An effective approach to mobile device management: Security and privacy issues associated with mobile applications. Digital Business 2020, 1, 100001 .
AMA StyleDarren Hayes, Francesco Cappa, Nhien An Le-Khac. An effective approach to mobile device management: Security and privacy issues associated with mobile applications. Digital Business. 2020; 1 (1):100001.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDarren Hayes; Francesco Cappa; Nhien An Le-Khac. 2020. "An effective approach to mobile device management: Security and privacy issues associated with mobile applications." Digital Business 1, no. 1: 100001.
Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), i.e. the initial offer of a crypto-token, represent an increasingly popular method to raise money. However, the determinants of ICOs’ returns for investors are still overlooked. Following this cue, the empirical outcomes of our study based on crypto-tokens issued between 2017 and 2018 evidence the main determinants of ICOs’ returns: first, crypto-tokens returns are positively associated to Ether’s returns; second, ICO price is negatively associated to later price increases; third, crypto-tokens returns are lower when they are offered in presale; finally, the more a crypto-token price increases between the ICO and the listing-date on the secondary-market and the more its price rises in the following month. In so doing, we contribute to a better understanding of the ICO phenomenon and highlight which aspects may benefit fund raising, which are relevant for the establishment of new startups and more broadly for the economic development of a country.
Francesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli. Collecting money through blockchain technologies: first insights on the determinants of the return on Initial Coin Offerings. Information Technology for Development 2020, 27, 561 -578.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Michele Pinelli. Collecting money through blockchain technologies: first insights on the determinants of the return on Initial Coin Offerings. Information Technology for Development. 2020; 27 (3):561-578.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli. 2020. "Collecting money through blockchain technologies: first insights on the determinants of the return on Initial Coin Offerings." Information Technology for Development 27, no. 3: 561-578.
Despite significant academic and managerial interest in big data, there is a dearth of research on how big data impacts long‐term firm performance. Reasons for this gap include a lack of objective indices to measure big data availability and its impact, and the tendency of studies to ignore the costs associated with collecting and analyzing big data, assuming that big data automatically delivers benefits to firms. Focusing on how firms create and capture value from big data about customers, we use the resource‐based view (RBV) and three dimensions of big data (i.e., volume, variety and veracity) to understand when the benefits outweigh the costs. Relying on the number of downloads of mobile device applications, we find that volume of big data has a negative effect on firm performance. This result suggests that the ‘bigness’ of big data alone does not ensure value creation for a firm, and could even constitute a ‘dark side’ of big data. Because big data variety – measured as the number of types of information taken per each application – moderates the negative effects of big data volume, simultaneous high values of volume and variety allow firms to create value that positively affects their performance. In addition, high levels of veracity (i.e., a high percentage of employees devoted to big data analysis), are linked to firms benefiting from big data via value capture. These findings shed light on the circumstances in which big data can be beneficial for firms, contributing to a better theoretical understanding of the opportunities and challenges and providing useful indications to managers.
Francesco Cappa; Raffaele Oriani; Enzo Peruffo; Ian McCarthy. Big Data for Creating and Capturing Value in the Digitalized Environment: Unpacking the Effects of Volume, Variety, and Veracity on Firm Performance*. Journal of Product Innovation Management 2020, 38, 49 -67.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Raffaele Oriani, Enzo Peruffo, Ian McCarthy. Big Data for Creating and Capturing Value in the Digitalized Environment: Unpacking the Effects of Volume, Variety, and Veracity on Firm Performance*. Journal of Product Innovation Management. 2020; 38 (1):49-67.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Raffaele Oriani; Enzo Peruffo; Ian McCarthy. 2020. "Big Data for Creating and Capturing Value in the Digitalized Environment: Unpacking the Effects of Volume, Variety, and Veracity on Firm Performance*." Journal of Product Innovation Management 38, no. 1: 49-67.
While past research on minority acquisitions has ignored how agency conflicts could prevent acquirers from realizing value creation opportunities, this study investigates whether principal–agent and principal–principal conflicts with the target’s managers and controlling shareholder hinder acquirers’ ability to capture value from acquisitions of non-controlling equity stakes. Using archival data from a global sample of 443 minority acquisitions announced between 2011 and 2019, we found that cumulative abnormal returns are positively associated to minority shareholder protection and negatively associated to the presence of a strong controlling shareholder in the target firm. We also found that acquisitions of small non-controlling equity stakes amplify the negative effect of the strong controlling shareholder, which instead weakens if acquirers purchase large non-controlling equity stakes. This study contributes to the development of our understanding of the conditions that expose acquirers to value losses from minority acquisitions by examining the intricate bundle of agency conflicts with the target’s managers and controlling shareholder. In so doing, this study also provides useful insights to business practice.
Michele Pinelli; Francesco Cappa; Enzo Peruffo; Raffaele Oriani. Acquisitions of non-controlling equity stakes: Agency conflicts and profitability. Strategic Organization 2020, 1 .
AMA StyleMichele Pinelli, Francesco Cappa, Enzo Peruffo, Raffaele Oriani. Acquisitions of non-controlling equity stakes: Agency conflicts and profitability. Strategic Organization. 2020; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMichele Pinelli; Francesco Cappa; Enzo Peruffo; Raffaele Oriani. 2020. "Acquisitions of non-controlling equity stakes: Agency conflicts and profitability." Strategic Organization , no. : 1.
Nudging is a framework for directing individuals toward better behavior, both for personal and societal benefits, through heuristics that drive the decision-making process but without preventing any available choice. Considering the Grand Challenges that our society faces today, nudging represents an effective framework to tackle some of these pressing issues. In this work, we assessed the effectiveness of informational nudges in the form of detailed, customized feedback, within an energy-demand-management project. The project aligns energy production and demand, thereby reducing greenhouse gases and pollutant emissions to mitigate climate change. We also offered evidence that this kind of feedback is efficacious in involving individuals as citizen scientists, who volunteer their efforts toward the success of the environmentally-related aim of the project. The results of this research – based on surveys, electroencephalography measurements and online participation measures – indicate that feedback can be an effective tool to steer participants’ behavior under the libertarian paternalistic view of nudging, increase their motivation to contribute to citizen science, and improve their awareness about environmentally-related issues. In so doing, we provide evidence that nudging and citizen science can be jointly adopted toward the mitigation of pressing environmental issues.
Francesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Luca Giustiniano; Maurizio Porfiri. Nudging and citizen science: The effectiveness of feedback in energy-demand management. Journal of Environmental Management 2020, 269, 110759 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Federica Rosso, Luca Giustiniano, Maurizio Porfiri. Nudging and citizen science: The effectiveness of feedback in energy-demand management. Journal of Environmental Management. 2020; 269 ():110759.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Luca Giustiniano; Maurizio Porfiri. 2020. "Nudging and citizen science: The effectiveness of feedback in energy-demand management." Journal of Environmental Management 269, no. : 110759.
This study examines how the success of reward-based crowdfunding (RBCF) is affected by two narrative styles—namely “results in progress” (RIP) and “ongoing journey” (OJ)—and by the entrepreneur’s RBCF experience. Our findings reveal that greater success in collecting funds is achieved by RBCF campaigns that are communicated through RIP narrative styles rather than OJ styles. Moreover, we have underscored the positive effect brought about by an entrepreneur’s RBCF experience. In addition, we highlight how these two factors interact with each other in their overall effect on successful fundraising through RBFC, showing that entrepreneurs with extensive experience in RBCF attract more pledges by adopting OJ narratives rather than RIP narratives. The outcomes of this study advance the theoretical understanding of success factors in RBCF and provide RBCF entrepreneurs with suggestions regarding the most appropriate narrative style to adopt, depending on their level of experience.
Francesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli; Riccardo Maiolini; Maria Isabella Leone. “Pledge” me your ears! The role of narratives and narrator experience in explaining crowdfunding success. Small Business Economics 2020, 57, 953 -973.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Michele Pinelli, Riccardo Maiolini, Maria Isabella Leone. “Pledge” me your ears! The role of narratives and narrator experience in explaining crowdfunding success. Small Business Economics. 2020; 57 (2):953-973.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Michele Pinelli; Riccardo Maiolini; Maria Isabella Leone. 2020. "“Pledge” me your ears! The role of narratives and narrator experience in explaining crowdfunding success." Small Business Economics 57, no. 2: 953-973.
As organizations are increasingly involving individuals across their boundaries in the generation of new knowledge, crowd involvement can also be beneficial to cultural heritage organizations. We argue that in an “Open Innovation in Science” approach, visitors can contribute to generate new scientific knowledge concerning their behavior and preferences, by which museum managers can re-design the cultural offerings of their institutions in ways that generate major economic and social impacts. Accordingly, we advance visitor-sensing as a novel framework in which museum managers leverage digital technologies to collect visitors’ ideas, preferences, and feedback in order to improve path design and the organization of artwork in exhibitions, and to shape a more satisfying museum experience for visitors. We contend that visitor-sensing has the potential to yield higher numbers of visitors, with positive impacts in terms of increased revenues and increased literacy of the general public, thus benefiting the economic and social sustainability of cultural organizations towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals outlined in the Agenda 2030.
Francesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Antonio Capaldo. Visitor-Sensing: Involving the Crowd in Cultural Heritage Organizations. Sustainability 2020, 12, 1445 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Federica Rosso, Antonio Capaldo. Visitor-Sensing: Involving the Crowd in Cultural Heritage Organizations. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (4):1445.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Antonio Capaldo. 2020. "Visitor-Sensing: Involving the Crowd in Cultural Heritage Organizations." Sustainability 12, no. 4: 1445.
Hospitality firms are increasingly investing in corporate social responsibility (CSR) to generate strong relationships with stakeholders while aiming to benefit their own performance. However, CSR may bring both costs and benefits to the focal firm. We analyze how corporate financial performance (CFP) is affected by CSR, finding that the impact of CSR on CFP has a U-shaped form, where CSR is a cost that translates into higher benefits only when it generates solid relationships between firms and their stakeholders. Furthermore, we adopt a contingency approach, assessing the role of quality management (QM) on the CSR-CFP relationship. We find that the simultaneous implementation of CSR and QM is less beneficial to CFP than the isolated implementation of CSR due to the redundancy of different activities aimed at similar goals, i.e., stakeholders’ satisfaction. In doing so, we advance academic understanding of the impact of CSR and QM on CFP.
Stefano Franco; Matteo Giuliano Caroli; Francesco Cappa; Giacomo Del Chiappa. Are you good enough? CSR, quality management and corporate financial performance in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management 2019, 88, 102395 .
AMA StyleStefano Franco, Matteo Giuliano Caroli, Francesco Cappa, Giacomo Del Chiappa. Are you good enough? CSR, quality management and corporate financial performance in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management. 2019; 88 ():102395.
Chicago/Turabian StyleStefano Franco; Matteo Giuliano Caroli; Francesco Cappa; Giacomo Del Chiappa. 2019. "Are you good enough? CSR, quality management and corporate financial performance in the hospitality industry." International Journal of Hospitality Management 88, no. : 102395.
Francesco Cappa; Raffaele Oriani; Michele Pinelli; Alfredo De Massis. When does crowdsourcing benefit firm stock market performance? Research Policy 2019, 48, 1 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Raffaele Oriani, Michele Pinelli, Alfredo De Massis. When does crowdsourcing benefit firm stock market performance? Research Policy. 2019; 48 (9):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Raffaele Oriani; Michele Pinelli; Alfredo De Massis. 2019. "When does crowdsourcing benefit firm stock market performance?" Research Policy 48, no. 9: 1.
The impact of corporate strategy decisions on capital structure has attracted substantial scholarly and managerial attention from decades, although leading to mixed and inconclusive results until now. While previous studies have focused on the effect brought about by a single strategy at a time, this study tries to reconcile the overall picture of the impact of strategic decisions on capital structure. Based on the Strategy Hierarchy Theory, we estimated the effect brought about by the three strategies determined at the corporate level: internationalization, diversification and integration. The results provide empirical evidence that the above-mentioned strategies impact firms’ capital structure both simultaneously and independently. Integration and internationalization are negatively related with debt ratio while diversification is positively related with debt ratio. The findings of our paper contribute to enrich the strategy/capital-structure literature, and provide academics and managers a clearer understanding of the effect brought about by the capital structure on corporate strategy.
Francesco Cappa; Giorgio Cetrini; Raffaele Oriani. The impact of corporate strategy on capital structure: evidence from Italian listed firms. The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance 2019, 76, 379 -385.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Giorgio Cetrini, Raffaele Oriani. The impact of corporate strategy on capital structure: evidence from Italian listed firms. The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance. 2019; 76 ():379-385.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Giorgio Cetrini; Raffaele Oriani. 2019. "The impact of corporate strategy on capital structure: evidence from Italian listed firms." The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance 76, no. : 379-385.
Crowdsourcing of inventive activities is a particular form of crowdsourcing that helps firms to innovate by involving dispersed individuals to exploit “crowd wisdom”. In this context, the greater the number of contributions, the greater the possibility to gather extremely valuable ideas to produce innovative products and services. While monetary and social rewards can be an effective means to boost contributors’ extrinsic and intrinsic motivations to contribute, a theoretical understanding and empirical evidence of their effects are lacking. This paper focused on the crowdsourcing of inventive activities, initiated by listed companies worldwide, from 2007 to 2014. Our findings shed light on the influence of monetary and social rewards on the number of ideas collected. In particular, we analyzed the impact on the number of contributions brought about by monetary rewards and noted a positive influence related to its presence and also a negative effect related to the amount of the compensation. Moreover, we have demonstrated how the presence of a social cause is beneficial to the number of contributions. Consequently, we contribute to a scholarly understanding of the crowdsourcing phenomenon and we have provided guidance to managers seeking to initiate crowdsourcing campaigns.
Francesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Darren Hayes. Monetary and Social Rewards for Crowdsourcing. Sustainability 2019, 11, 2834 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Federica Rosso, Darren Hayes. Monetary and Social Rewards for Crowdsourcing. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (10):2834.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Darren Hayes. 2019. "Monetary and Social Rewards for Crowdsourcing." Sustainability 11, no. 10: 2834.
Advances in information technology (IT) have prompted tremendous growth in security issues for companies. Increasingly, cyberattacks represent a threat to companies and national security; to prevent them, firms should routinely perform risk assessments of their IT infrastructure and employees. This article highlights the importance of open-source intelligence (OSINT) tools in conducting risk assessments to prevent cyberattacks. More specifically, we performed a vulnerability assessment on the critical infrastructure of a company operating on the U.S. electrical grid. We successfully profiled the company’s network software, hardware, and key IT personnel—using OSINT—and detailed potential vulnerabilities associated with these findings. The results of our study provide empirical evidence for the efficacy of OSINT in improving the security posture of organizations. Our research findings were subsequently used to produce tactical and strategic recommendations for organizations based on the use of OSINT to identify vulnerabilities, mitigate risks, and formulate more robust security policies to prevent cyberattacks.
Darren R. Hayes; Francesco Cappa. Open-source intelligence for risk assessment. Business Horizons 2018, 61, 689 -697.
AMA StyleDarren R. Hayes, Francesco Cappa. Open-source intelligence for risk assessment. Business Horizons. 2018; 61 (5):689-697.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDarren R. Hayes; Francesco Cappa. 2018. "Open-source intelligence for risk assessment." Business Horizons 61, no. 5: 689-697.
The involvement of citizens in research projects led by professional scientists, a phenomenon known as citizen science, is rapidly increasing. While the advancements in information technology in the past few decades have fostered online participation, motivating participants is still a critical aspect that needs further attention. In fact, intense participation is crucial to achieve of the scientific aim of the project, and to increase the scientific awareness of the general public. In this research, the use of feedbacks, i.e. detailed information not commonly available to people, to increase motivations, nudge participants and increase their awareness, are analyzed in the field of an energy demand management project. Results of the experiments collected through surveys and electroencephalography measurements show that feedbacks are effective in increasing citizen scientists’ motivations to contribute. Furthermore, the framework of nudging, intended as feedback to drive participants’ decisions, proved to be effective also in the context of citizen science. Finally, it was verified that feedbacks are able to increase participants’ awareness about the project environmentally concerned topics and aim. The outcomes of this study are of academic and policymakers interests in that it offer evidence of how to increase motivations, to influence decisions, and to advance the awareness of citizen scientists, thus benefiting the achievement of the social aim of the project.
Francesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Luca Giustiniano; Gianluca Squarcia. Nudging Citizen Scientists: Motivation, Behavior and Awareness in Energy Demand Management. Academy of Management Proceedings 2018, 2018, 1 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Federica Rosso, Luca Giustiniano, Gianluca Squarcia. Nudging Citizen Scientists: Motivation, Behavior and Awareness in Energy Demand Management. Academy of Management Proceedings. 2018; 2018 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Federica Rosso; Luca Giustiniano; Gianluca Squarcia. 2018. "Nudging Citizen Scientists: Motivation, Behavior and Awareness in Energy Demand Management." Academy of Management Proceedings 2018, no. 1: 1.
The success of the Silk Road has prompted the growth of many Dark Web marketplaces. This exponential growth has provided criminal enterprises with new outlets to sell illicit items. Thus, the Dark Web has generated great interest from academics and governments who have sought to unveil the identities of participants in these highly lucrative, yet illegal, marketplaces. Traditional Web scraping methodologies and investigative techniques have proven to be inept at unmasking these marketplace participants. This research provides an analytical framework for automating Dark Web scraping and analysis with free tools found on the World Wide Web. Using a case study marketplace, we successfully tested a Web crawler, developed using AppleScript, to retrieve the account information for thousands of vendors and their respective marketplace listings. This paper clearly details why AppleScript was the most viable and efficient method for scraping Dark Web marketplaces. The results from our case study validate the efficacy of our proposed analytical framework, which has relevance for academics studying this growing phenomenon and for investigators examining criminal activity on the Dark Web.
Darren R. Hayes; Francesco Cappa; James Cardon. A Framework for More Effective Dark Web Marketplace Investigations. Information 2018, 9, 186 .
AMA StyleDarren R. Hayes, Francesco Cappa, James Cardon. A Framework for More Effective Dark Web Marketplace Investigations. Information. 2018; 9 (8):186.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDarren R. Hayes; Francesco Cappa; James Cardon. 2018. "A Framework for More Effective Dark Web Marketplace Investigations." Information 9, no. 8: 186.
The adoption of open innovation and peer production, powered by 3D printing technology, is transforming traditional manufacturing methods towards a “third industrial revolution”. The purpose of this research is to provide empirical evidence for an integrated approach, based on collaborative product development and peer production, combined with 3D printing, to deliver more sustainable, yet competitive, marketable products. In particular, this experimental study is conducted in the context of mobile forensics, an emerging market where limited expensive products exist and alternative solutions are needed. The technical viability and economic feasibility of the prototype developed in this research validate the proposed integrated approach, which could be a game-changer in the field of mobile forensics, as well as in other sectors. The sustainability improvements with this approach are a reduction of the total cost, thereby making it affordable for lower income users, and a decrease in energy consumption and pollutant emissions. The validated integrated approach offers start-up opportunities to develop and deliver more sustainable, marketable products, towards the paradigm of Open Sustainable Innovation. While the device developed and tested in this research has similar features to existing products, the methodology, implementation, and motivation are original.
Francesco Cappa; Fausto Del Sette; Darren Hayes; Federica Rosso. How to Deliver Open Sustainable Innovation: An Integrated Approach for a Sustainable Marketable Product. Sustainability 2016, 8, 1341 .
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Fausto Del Sette, Darren Hayes, Federica Rosso. How to Deliver Open Sustainable Innovation: An Integrated Approach for a Sustainable Marketable Product. Sustainability. 2016; 8 (12):1341.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Fausto Del Sette; Darren Hayes; Federica Rosso. 2016. "How to Deliver Open Sustainable Innovation: An Integrated Approach for a Sustainable Marketable Product." Sustainability 8, no. 12: 1341.
The use of crowds in research activities by public and private organizations is growing under different forms. Citizen science is a popular means of engaging the general public in research activities led by professional scientists. By involving a large number of amateur scientists, citizen science enables distributed data collection and analysis on a scale that would be otherwise difficult and costly to achieve. While advancements in information technology in the past few decades have fostered the growth of citizen science through online participation, several projects continue to fail due to limited participation. Such web-based projects may isolate the citizen scientists from the researchers. By adopting the perspective of social strategy, we investigate within a measure-manipulate-measure experiment if motivations to participate in a citizen science project can be positively influenced by a face-to-face interaction with the scientists leading the project. Such an interaction provides the participants with the possibility of asking questions on the spot and obtaining a detailed explanation of the citizen science project, its scientific merit, and environmental relevance. Social and cultural factors that moderate the effect brought about by face-to-face interactions on the motivations are also dissected and analyzed. Our findings provide an exploratory insight into a means for motivating crowds to participate in online environmental monitoring projects, also offering possible selection criteria of target audience.
Francesco Cappa; Jeffrey Laut; Oded Nov; Luca Giustiniano; Maurizio Porfiri. Activating social strategies: Face-to-face interaction in technology-mediated citizen science. Journal of Environmental Management 2016, 182, 374 -384.
AMA StyleFrancesco Cappa, Jeffrey Laut, Oded Nov, Luca Giustiniano, Maurizio Porfiri. Activating social strategies: Face-to-face interaction in technology-mediated citizen science. Journal of Environmental Management. 2016; 182 ():374-384.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFrancesco Cappa; Jeffrey Laut; Oded Nov; Luca Giustiniano; Maurizio Porfiri. 2016. "Activating social strategies: Face-to-face interaction in technology-mediated citizen science." Journal of Environmental Management 182, no. : 374-384.
Citizen science projects are becoming increasingly popular, yet they typically rely on only a small portion of users for the majority of contribution. In this paper, we propose a model for citizen scientist contribution in an online image tagging task. The model describes participant contribution in response to the performance of a virtual peer, the behavior of which can be controlled by the experimenter. Experimental trials where the virtual peer behaves independent of the participant are used to calibrate the model. The model’s ability to predict participant performance is then verified in a closed-loop condition, where the behavior of the virtual peer is explicitly dependant on the performance of the participant. We foresee this model being a useful tool in the design of web-based citizen science projects, where the behavior of a virtual peer can be used to modulate the performance of contributors in an effort to increase overall levels of contribution.
Jeffrey Laut; Francesco Cappa; Oded Nov; Maurizio Porfiri. A Model for Citizen Scientist Contribution in an Image Tagging Task. Volume 2: Mechatronics; Mechatronics and Controls in Advanced Manufacturing; Modeling and Control of Automotive Systems and Combustion Engines; Modeling and Validation; Motion and Vibration Control Applications; Multi-Agent and Networked Systems; Path Planning and Motion Control; Robot Manipulators; Sensors and Actuators; Tracking Control Systems; Uncertain Systems and Robustness; Unmanned, Ground and Surface Robotics; Vehicle Dynamic Controls; Vehicle Dynamics and Traffic Control 2016, 1 .
AMA StyleJeffrey Laut, Francesco Cappa, Oded Nov, Maurizio Porfiri. A Model for Citizen Scientist Contribution in an Image Tagging Task. Volume 2: Mechatronics; Mechatronics and Controls in Advanced Manufacturing; Modeling and Control of Automotive Systems and Combustion Engines; Modeling and Validation; Motion and Vibration Control Applications; Multi-Agent and Networked Systems; Path Planning and Motion Control; Robot Manipulators; Sensors and Actuators; Tracking Control Systems; Uncertain Systems and Robustness; Unmanned, Ground and Surface Robotics; Vehicle Dynamic Controls; Vehicle Dynamics and Traffic Control. 2016; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJeffrey Laut; Francesco Cappa; Oded Nov; Maurizio Porfiri. 2016. "A Model for Citizen Scientist Contribution in an Image Tagging Task." Volume 2: Mechatronics; Mechatronics and Controls in Advanced Manufacturing; Modeling and Control of Automotive Systems and Combustion Engines; Modeling and Validation; Motion and Vibration Control Applications; Multi-Agent and Networked Systems; Path Planning and Motion Control; Robot Manipulators; Sensors and Actuators; Tracking Control Systems; Uncertain Systems and Robustness; Unmanned, Ground and Surface Robotics; Vehicle Dynamic Controls; Vehicle Dynamics and Traffic Control , no. : 1.