Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Financial statements play a critical role in business decision-making by providing a complete view of the financial structure of the company. Prior research has established a relationship between a firm's life cycle stage and factors such as dividend policy, capital intensity, inventory management, and the firm age. The objective of this study is to determine the characteristics that increase the probability that a company is in a life cycle stage, analyzing financial statements of 609 manufacturing companies in Ecuador in the period 2017 to 2019. A cluster study is conducted to determine whether the companies present differential characteristics according to the specific stage of the life cycle. Furthermore, the determinants of the life cycle stages are analyzed through a logistic regression model. Finally, using financial indicators, we examine the financial management of each group. The results reveal that companies in early stages (introduction and growth) face high levels of debt, while those that reach maturity prioritize dividend payments. Finally, companies in the decline phase present major challenges that compromise their level of income and their longevity over time. Although age shows a linear relationship with the different stages of the business life cycle, it should not be considered as the only explanatory variable.

Public institutions across the world use technology to meet new society’s needs. Citizens are connected now, they have access to information in real time, they demand new types of services.  Governments need digital tools to meet these new challenges and to contribute to their nation’s development, enabling the delivery of technological services and solutions that lead to a digital transformation. This research aims to determine the impact of perceived usefulness and the usability of e-government concerning citizen’s trust when using public online services. We applied a questionnaire to 361 citizens users of public online services in Tamaulipas, Mexico, using SmartPLS statistical software. The main results indicate that perceived usefulness, ease of use as well as trust have a strong influence in the citizens’ intention to use public online services, which could be considered by the administrations in the design of e-government online services projects or initiatives. We consider the present study findings may help the public and academic sector in the study and design of strategies that help them in the development of e-government public policies focused on building effective e-government solutions allowing for the future development of nations.

The purpose of this document is to analyze the accumulation of technological capabilities and their interrelation with the spheres of context in a Mexican turbo parts company called Omega. The methodological design was that of a case study conducted with semi-structured interviews. The results show the accumulation of technological capabilities as driven by the catalyst of business and management capabilities, with R&D playing a relevant role at different levels of innovation. Regarding the spheres of context, the link with universities, research centers, CONAHCYT (National Commission for Humanities, Science and Technology), clients and suppliers has been a valuable resource for Omega. In the economic sphere, the perception of an unserved market and the drive to get ahead of the competition stand out. In the environmental sphere, the influence of client-requested environmental regulations, and in the political sphere, the effect of international industrial safety standards, have been a determining factor in several innovation decisions of the company. Finally, in the social and cultural spheres, the business environment of Querétaro stands out and the links with research centers, access to the PEI (Program of Economic Incentives) and the accumulated technological capabilities of the founder and the R&D director were the key elements for the birth and positioning of Omega as one of the main technology-based companies in Mexico and the world specialized in its field.

This study explores the intersection between incremental risks introduced by sustainable sourcing practices in procurement and the role of Smart Digitalization Technologies (SDT) in mitigating these risks while enhancing operational efficiency, organizational effectiveness, and resilience. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining a structured survey of procurement professionals with in-depth interviews with SDT providers. This methodology allowed for both quantitative validation of SDT's perceived effectiveness and qualitative insights into their strategic applications. Findings reveal that while SDT significantly contribute to risk identification and mitigation particularly through supply chain visibility, automation, and data-driven decision-making challenges remain. Poor data quality, unrealistic leadership expectations, and ineffective change management limit their full potential. Additionally, SDTs have yet to prove effective in managing crises, particularly unpredictable disruptions. This research highlights SDT as a catalyst for sustainable procurement maturity, reinforcing the relationship between sustainability and operational efficiency. However, successful implementation depends on organizational readiness and strategic alignment. A practical evaluation tool is provided to assess known risks and mitigation mechanisms.

Considering the possible impacts of technostress on individuals and organizations and the remote work regime imposed on education employees during the pandemic that intensified the use of technologies, the aim of this paper was to analyze underlying factors related to role ambiguity, their effects and forms of mitigation. The final sample is comprised of 691 complete responses. The data were collected electronically between August, 2021 and November, 2021. To test the study hypotheses, we adopted the Structural Equation Modeling. According to the main results, Computer Self-Efficacy can mitigate the effects of Role Ambiguity and, indirectly, Computer Self-Efficacy also has a negative effect on Cognitive Load. We also observed that Role Ambiguity presented a positive effect on Cognitive Load. The variable Resilience moderated the relationships: i) between Computer Self-Efficacy and Role Ambiguity; and ii) between Role Ambiguity and Cognitive Load.

Internal social media offers companies an internal communications channel that incorporates the participatory functionalities inherent to external social networking sites. The tool allows companies to foster social relationships and meet emotional needs in the workplace, while at the same time fulfilling the traditional functions associated with internal communications. This research aims to analyze the acceptance process by assessing an extended model based on the Technology Acceptance Model. The research model incorporates the perception of being surveilled as an inhibitor in the intention to use the application. Structural equation modeling was performed to test the model on the data collected from 360 employees of two companies that have adopted the Happÿdonia application as an internal communications channel. The perceived ease of use and the perceived usefulness of this tool positively influenced the intention to use it, whereas the perceived surveillance had a negative influence. The article makes several proposals for those responsible for internal communications as well as for developers who have to build these platforms.

This study conducts a systematic review of the literature on the infodemic phenomenon among students. The review analyzes 34 peer-reviewed papers and identifies four main analytical axes: informational behavior of the students, the consequences of the infodemic, coping strategies, and the interplay of digital culture and structural inequalities that shape students’ informational vulnerabilities. The results reveal that students’ digital information practices are strongly influenced by speed and accessibility, often at the expense of reliability and critical assessment. This behavior leads to frequent exposure to misinformation, with significant implications for mental health, academic performance, and institutional trust. The results also show that informational inequalities are more evident in regions with poor digital infrastructure. Strategies to mitigate this phenomenon include educational interventions, digital tools, and institutional communication policies, but these remain fragmented and context-specific. This review suggests that the infodemic should be understood not only as a crisis of information overload but also as a manifestation of systemic inequities and insufficient media literacy. The findings call for integrated policies and educational practices to promote critical and emotional competencies to navigate in the digital environment.

The concern of intellectuals about the preservation of language, as an identity product that reflects a social reality, is part of a trend in which different authors are inserted in the late nineteenth century and on the eve of the twentieth century. In this sense, we find José Manuel Montenegro, journalist, lawyer, liberal leader, parliamentarian and civil servant, who, between 23 October 1903 and 7 April 1904, published in Los Ecos de Cojedes: ‘Barbarismos que se usan en Venezuela. Obra inéditaa por el Doctor José Manuel Montenegro’. Given Montenegro's significance as a journalist, lawyer, liberal leader, parliamentarian, and civil servant, and the limited scholarship on his ideology, this research offers a concise overview of his political and intellectual contributions, alongside a modest lexicographical analysis of his glossary: ‘Barbarismos que se usan en Venezuela’. The study describes purist attitudes evident in the commentary on various entries within the work. Methodologically, this is a documentary study drawing upon Haensch's (1997) lexicographical criticism, analyzing a corpus of 223 lexicographical articles. The findings indicate that Montenegro not only illustrates linguistic variations within the socio-historical transformations of his era but also captures and reflects the public's perception of language as an identity marker. A review of the lexicon reveals a pronounced prescriptivist stance against perceived deviations from linguistic norms. The acknowledgement and dissemination of contemporary "barbarisms" through the press likely fostered linguistic awareness, navigating between an embrace of novelty and adherence to tradition.

The Bildungsroman or didactic novels have played a pedagogical, social and personal role through the fictionalization of human development. In these novels, the central character goes through an inner and outer journey in which he faces the trials of society until he reaches adulthood. In other types of formative novels, which can be classified as didactic novels with a homosexual theme (NFTH), the journey is crueller and is marked by humiliations, social crushing and denial. To study this phenomenon, an analysis of three Colombian novels was carried out with the objective of proposing literary criteria for homosexual-themed formative novels. International, Latin American and Colombian works were examined to detect characteristics of themes, characters and narrative purposes. Macro- categories were elaborated and then a hermeneutic analysis method was applied to the corpus of analysis constituted by Un beso de Dick by Fernando Molano Vargas, Los hombres no van juntos al cine by Manuel Valdivieso and Ruega por nosotros by Alfonso Carvajal. Finally, five criteria that characterize the formative novels with a homosexual theme were formed: 1) the NFTH as an element of study of a country; 2) vigor of homoeroticism and corporeality; 3) spiritual commotion of the protagonist; 4) presence of insult and, finally, 5) subalternity in the canon. Our contribution aims to favor flexibility in the study of literature, to search for critical paradigms and to learn to work with novel proposals in the field of pedagogical reading.

This study addresses the critical gap in early childhood education concerning phonological awareness, aiming to evaluate the impact of a targeted intervention on the development of pre-reading skills in preschool children. A total of 21 children, aged 4 to 6 years, attending an educational center in Cuenca, Ecuador, participated in an intervention consisting of 22 sessions designed to stimulate phonological awareness. Employing a quantitative approach with a pre-experimental pretest-posttest design, the study utilized the Phonological Knowledge Test (PECO, Ramos and Cuadrado, 2006) and the Initial Reading Test (PLEI, Duchimasa and Bojorque, 2020), both validated for the Ecuadorian child population. Statistical analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between enhanced phonological awareness tasks and improved pre-reading skills following the intervention. Furthermore, the intervention demonstrably improved scores on the phonological awareness test and its sub-dimensions, underscoring its potential efficacy in pedagogical practice for fostering early reading foundational skills. This research concludes that the deliberate development of phonological awareness in young children is a crucial contributor to the successful acquisition of emergent literacy, thereby benefiting their overall early learning trajectory.