Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Exploring the dimensions of brand reputation in higher education – a case study of a Finnish master’s degree programme

This exploratory study examines the dimensions that are relevant to brand reputation, particularly in the context of master’s degree programmes. The data analysis is based on Vidaver-Cohen’s ‘Business school quality dimensions and reputational attributes’. The qualitative data for the case study comprise a student questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with other internal and external stakeholders of the multidisciplinary programme in question. The results yield theoretical and practical implications in the area of higher education, and make it clear that brand reputation in this context is a complex and multidimensional construct.
Dating violence.

Dating violence presents many challenges to pediatric health care providers. It spans an age range from early high school to early adult years. Prevalence of dating violence appears to be greater than for violence among married couples. In addition, both males and females appear to be at risk for perpetration and victimization. Therefore, physicians and other health care providers need to screen all adolescent and young adult patients for dating violence. Primary prevention at the community level is also an important task to stem the tide of dating violence.
Booms, Busts, and Babies' Health

This paper documents a counter-cyclical pattern in the health of children, and examines whether this pattern is due to selection among women choosing to give birth or to behavioral changes. We study the relationship between the unemployment rate at the time of a baby? s conception and parental characteristics, parental behaviors, and babies? health. Using national data from the Natality Files from 1975 onward, we find that babies conceived in times of high unemployment have a reduced incidence of low and very low birth weight, fewer congenital malformations, and a reduced rate of post-neonatal mortality. These health improvements are attributable both to selection (changes in the type of mothers that conceive during recessions) and to changes in behavior during recessions. Black mothers tend to be higher socio-economic status (as measured by education and marital status) in times of high unemployment, whereas white mothers are less educated. Health behaviors also appear to improve among all pregnant women, although we cannot reject the hypothesis that all health improvements among black women are due to selection.
Testing for Long Memory in Potentially Nonstationary Perturbed Fractional Processes

In this article, we propose new tests for long memory in stationary and nonstationary time series possibly perturbed by short-run noise. The tests are all based on semiparametric estimators and exploit the self-similarity property of long memory processes. We offer simulation results that show good size properties of the tests, with power against spurious long memory. To improve the potential size distortion in small samples from using temporal aggregation we use a bootstrap procedure. An empirical study of daily log-squared returns series of exchange rates and DJIA30 stocks shows that indeed there is long memory in exchange rate volatility and stock return volatility. (JEL C14, C22, C43)
Innovation and knowledge-intensive business service: the contribution of knowledge-intensive business service to innovation in manufacturing establishments

It is well established that knowledge-intensive business service (KIBS) firms can be innovators in their own right. It is also well established that KIBS can contribute to innovation in their client firms. This role of KIBS has been theorised, and some of the processes by which KIBS contribute to innovation have been scrutinised by way of case studies. However, there are few, if any, large-scale analyses that permit the two following questions to be addressed: (i) Do firms that use KIBS systematically introduce more innovations than those that do not? (ii) Is recourse to certain types of KIBS associated with certain types of innovation? Our survey of KIBS use across 804 manufacturing establishments in Quebec shows that KIBS contribute to their client's innovation – thereby confirming in a more general way what has been observed in case studies – but also that different types of KIBS contribute to different types of innovation.
Neoliberal Urbanism: Models, Moments, Mutations

In this article, we analyze the connections between neoliberalization processes and urban transformations. Cities have become strategically central sites in the uneven, crisis-laden advance of neoliberal restructuring projects. However, in contrast to neoliberal ideology, our analysis draws attention to the path-dependent interactions between neoliberal projects of restructuring and inherited institutional and spatial landscapes. Accordingly, we emphasize the geographically variable, yet multiscalar and translocally interconnected, nature of neoliberal urbanism. We also suggest that cities are sites of serial policy failure as well as resistance to neoliberal programs of urban restructuring. For these reasons, urban regions provide an important reference point for understanding some of the limits, contradictions and mutations of the neoliberal project since the 1990s.
The influences of internal service quality and job standardization on job satisfaction with supports as mediators: flight attendants at branch workplace

Service organizations commonly achieve job satisfaction through internal service quality (ISQ), job standardization, and enhanced customer orientation. However, unlike employees working at headquarters, branch employees do not have access to timely responses and organizational support. This study, using flight attendants working offsite as research samples, looked at how workplace supervisor and co-worker support mediate ISQ and job standardization that contribute to job satisfaction. The results indicated that ISQ and job standardization in branch offices may, directly or indirectly, affect job satisfaction through support from supervisors and co-workers, which strengthened customer orientation. ISQ had a higher impact on supervisor support than on co-worker support, and job standardization had a higher impact on co-worker support than on supervisor support. Based on these findings, a customer-oriented model was established for the branches, and a number of suggestions on theory and managerial implementation were proposed.
How does the non-profit economy affect entrepreneurship?

How and on what basis can we can analyse the entrepreneurial process in the non-profit sector? This article is based on a critical discussion of four paradigms â€“ value creation, innovation, business opportunity and creation of organisation â€“ analysed by Verstraete and Fayolle (2005). We examine how these four paradigms can help analyse social entrepreneurship. We suggest that the non-profit sector challenges these four paradigms of entrepreneurship. They suffer from limitations due to assumptions that are not compatible with the non-profit sector. Lastly we conclude that a new set of assumptions should be introduced to provide new insight into social entrepreneurship.
Infrastructure, Long-Run Economic Growth and Causality Tests for Cointegrated Panels

We investigate the consequences of various types of infrastructure provision in a panel of countries from 1950 to 1992. We develop new tests which enable us to isolate the sign and direction of long-run effects in a manner that is robust to the presence of unknown heterogeneous short-run causal relationships. We show that while infrastructure does tend to cause long-run economic growth, there is substantial variation across countries. We also provide evidence that each infrastructure type is provided at close to the growth-maximizing level on average globally, but is under-supplied in some countries and over-supplied in others.
When does third-degree price discrimination reduce social welfare, and when does it raise it?

Sufficient conditions are developed for third-degree price discrimination by a monopolist serving all markets to reduce and raise social welfare. Welfare falls if the demand function in the market whose price is higher with discrimination is at least as convex as that in the other market (at the non-discriminatory price). Welfare rises if inverse demand in the low-price market is more convex (at the discriminatory price) than inverse demand in the high-price market and the discriminatory prices are close together, so the cost of misallocation is less than the benefit of higher output.
Relationships between Childhood Traumatic Experiences, Early Maladaptive Schemas and Interpersonal Styles.

INTRODUCTION Cognitive theories of psychopathology have generally proposed that early experiences of childhood abuse and neglect may result in the development of early maladaptive self-schemas. Maladaptive core schemas are central in the development and maintenance of psychological symptoms in a schema-focused approach. Psychosocial dysfunction in individuals with psychological problems has been consistently found to be associated with symptom severity. However, till date, linkages between psychosocial functioning, early traumatic experiences and core schemas have received little attention. The aim of the present study was to explore the relations among maladaptive interpersonal styles, negative experiences in childhood and core self-schemas in non-clinical adults. METHODS A total of 300 adults (58% women) participated in the study. The participants completed a socio-demographic questionnaire, Young Schema Questionnaire, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and Interpersonal Style Scale. RESULTS Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that the Disconnection and Rejection and Impaired Limits schema domains were significant antecedents of maladaptive interpersonal styles after controlling for demographic characteristics and childhood abuse and neglect. Associations of child sexual abuse with Emotionally Avoidant, Manipulative and Abusive interpersonal styles were mediated by early maladaptive schemas. Early maladaptive schemas mediated the relations of emotional abuse with Emotionally Avoidant and Avoidant interpersonal styles as well as the relations of physical abuse with Avoidant and Abusive interpersonal styles. CONCLUSION Interpersonal styles in adulthood are significantly associated with childhood traumatic experiences. Significant relations between early traumatic experiences and maladaptive interpersonal styles are mediated by early maladaptive schemas.
Organisational justice and customer citizenship behaviour of retail industries

Previous research has concerned itself more with customers' purchasing behaviours but not non-purchasing behaviour. Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate the organisational justice (OJ) and customer citizenship behaviour (CCB), including the mediating role of organisational trust. A survey was conducted on a sample of 447 fast-food restaurant customers in Taiwan in order to test the proposed model. The findings showed that the customers who have higher perceptions of justice have higher levels of trust and CCB. Positive relationship was found between trust and CCB. In addition, trust has a partially significant mediating effect between OJ and CCB. The findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical implications, and also provide some suggestions for managerial practice and further research.
Reversal of soft-tissue local anesthesia with phentolamine mesylate in adolescents and adults.

BACKGROUND The authors conducted two multicenter, randomized, double-blinded, controlled Phase III clinical trials to study the efficacy and safety of phentolamine mesylate (PM) in shortening the duration and burden of soft-tissue anesthesia. The study involved 484 subjects who received one of four commercially available local anesthetic solutions containing vasoconstrictors for restorative or scaling procedures. METHODS On completion of the dental procedure, subjects randomly received a PM or a sham injection (an injection in which a needle does not penetrate the soft tissue) in the same site as the local anesthetic injection. The investigators measured the duration of soft-tissue anesthesia by using standardized lip- and tongue-tapping procedures every five minutes for five hours. They also evaluated functional measures and subject-perceived altered function, sensation, appearance and safety. RESULTS Median recovery times in the lower lip and tongue for subjects in the PM group were 70 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively. Median recovery times in the lower lip and tongue for subjects in the sham group were 155 minutes and 125 minutes, respectively. Upper lip median recovery times were 50 minutes for subjects in the PM group and 133 minutes for subjects in the sham group. These differences were significant (P < .0001). Recovery from actual functional deficits and subject-perceived altered function, sensation and appearance also showed significant differences between the PM and the sham groups. CONCLUSIONS PM was efficacious and safe in reducing the duration of local anesthetic- induced soft-tissue numbness and its associated functional deficits. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS Clinicians can use PM to accelerate reversal of soft-tissue anesthesia and the associated functional deficits.
Underlying Motivations of Organic Food Purchase Intentions

ABSTRACT There has been a great deal of increase in the production and consumption of organic foods. As a result, many researchers have attempted to explain the motivations and marketing issues dealing with the topic. Many of the previous studies provide conflicting results. With this in mind, we attempt to perform a comprehensive study of organic food consumption by examining the roles of a variety of factors on intention to purchase organic foods through a survey of consumers in a large metropolitan area in Europe by utilizing the scales developed in earlier studies. The results indicate that socially responsible consumption, health orientation, utilitarian, and hedonic consumption patterns are significant predictors of intention to purchase organic foods and consumption while controlling for demographical variables. In addition, environmental responsibility acts as a moderating factor in the relationship between socially responsible consumption behavior and intention to purchase. [JEL classifications: M30, M31, M48, Q56, Q57]
Office Building Investment and the Macroeconomy: Empirical Evidence, 1973–1985

Given the recent concern about overbuilding in the office sector, this paper considers the influence that macroeconomic factors have upon office construction. Because office construction is volatile and because the "time to build" problem requires construction to change with a lag, the paper employs a different methodology, vector autoregressions, to model the office building sector. The findings indicate that anticipated output has a large and direct effect. This effect depends on the predictive content of nominal interest rates, suggesting that the declines in nominal rates over the past five years explains the recent overbuilding. Copyright American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association.
The Determinants of the Cost Efficiency of Electric Generating Plants: A Stochastic Frontier Approach

This article provides a detailed analysis of generation plant operating cost efficiency over the period 1988–1997. I estimate a stochastic frontier cost function together with a model of plant inefficiencies to measure the operating efficiencies of individual plants and identify factors that are associated with variations in plant efficiencies. I find evidence that plant efficiencies are associated with capacity utilization of the plant, the number of plants under utility management, and ownership form. I also find that regulatory restructuring activity in certain states is associated with improvements in plant operating performance.
Service specialization and operational performance in hospitals

The purpose of this paper is to examine the link between service specialization and operational performance in hospitals. Existing literature has mostly been concerned with the performance effects of operational focus, which can be seen as an extreme form of specialization. It is not clear, however, whether an effect similar to the focus effect can be observed also in cases where specialization takes on less extreme forms. The authors analyze this effect up to and above the effects of volume, learning and patient selection. Design/methodology/approach - Ordinary least squares (OLS) and two-stage regression models were used to analyze patient data from 142 Austrian hospitals over the 2002-2006 period. The sample contains 322,193 patient groups (841,687 patient group-year observations). Findings - The authors find that increased specialization in a service leads to a more efficient provision of this service in terms of shorter length of stay. The analysis shows that this effect holds even after controlling for volume, learning, and patient selection effects. The authors suggest that the pure specialization effect is due to the increased administrative and medical attention that is given to a service when the relative importance of that service increases. Practical implications - The paper's results indicate hospital managers should pay attention to the impact of specialization when making service-mix decisions. If two services have the same or a similar level of operational performance, then this does not mean that hospital managers should be indifferent as to the relative volume of these services. Originality/value - The paper provides additional insights into the impact of service-level specialization not examined in prior literature.
Nanoarchaeum equitans failed to maintain the balance between DNA stability and melting potential.

Nanoarchaeum equitans is a tiny archaeon discovered in 2002(Huber et al., 2002)and lives in an extremely high-temperature environment near boiling. They are known to coexist with the crenarchaeon Ignicoccus hospitalis. The reason why N. equitans cannot be cultivated in the absence of I. hospitalis is not yet clear, but the latter can be cultivated well. N. equitans genome DNA of 490,885 nucleotides in length has been completely sequenced (Waters et al., 2003) and some interesting features have been revealed. One of the current interesting topics is that N. equitans creates functional tRNAs from a combination of separate genes (Randau et al., 2005). On the other hand, recently published was the report on the genome of I. hospitalis (Podar et al., 2008)that allows a genomic analysis. Furthermore, fermentation studies (Jahn et al., 2008) and studies by using electron micrographic techniques (Junglas et al., 2008) unveiled some interactions involved in the association between N. equitans and I. hospitalis. It may be possible to get some clues which explain the parasitic/symbiotic partnership. In addition to the N. equitans/I. hospitalis relation, there are some interesting questions on N. equitans itself. One of them is that even though N. equitans lives in an extreme high-temperature environment of 90°C, its averaged genome G-C content is only 31.6% (Table 1). This value of G-C content corresponds to the DNA melting temperature of 82.3°C, which means that at least more than half the region of the genome DNA is always in a “melting” state if there is no specifi c mechanism to maintain the genome DNA in its double helix. Since additional data on Escherichia coli DNA in cells and T4 phage DNA in the head shells obtained with the heat leakage scanning calorimeter indicate that DNA melting is completed within a temperature range of about 10°C (Kawai, 1999), it may be stated that N. equitans genome DNA is, in fact, in a single-stranded state in its high-temperature environment near 90°C. Though the melting temperature, Tm, of a doublestranded oligonucleotide is a function of sequence, the relation between Tm and G-C content (Marmur and Doty, 1962) gives a complete feature since, for long DNAs of heterogeneous sequence, the detailed sequence effects are almost completely averaged out (Cantor and Schimmel, 1980). It is, however, interesting to see more detailed or local features along the genome DNA because N. equitans genome DNA is covalently closed, circular DNA (cccDNA) that is topologically constrained. Unfortunately we cannot see the genome DNA state in N. equitans cells living in a hightemperature environment of 90°C. Therefore, it may be worthwhile to theoretically examine thermal stability along N. equitans genome DNA instead of direct observation of the genome. To discuss thermal stability, it J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol. , 57, 123‒128 (2011)
Neuro linguistic programming: A key to business excellence

In the present scenario of rapid change and technological advancement, academicians and management professionals around the world are in a dilemma as to how to achieve a competitive edge to promote performance in this era of stiff competition. The globalization of the economy has opened up floodgates of knowledge and opportunities for them but globalization has also brought new challenges as to how to manage. Probably the greatest challenge that is presented by globalization is the management of the human resource pools. This is true at a macro (overall staffing levels) and micro (delegation of work to labor pools) level. Human resource management is now assuming a greater role to strategic business partners. Successful companies realize that true competitive advantage lies in their people. They have been forced to redefine their responsibilities and develop a compelling response for critics who dispute human resource's value to the bottom-line. The aim of the present study is to examine the role of Neuro Linguistic Programming in building up the organizational capabilities and paving the way to business excellence. The data were collected through the use of questionnaire and structured interviews conducted with different clients of select companies based in the southern part of India. The results was further analyzed and compared with the findings of secondary research undertaken to study the genesis of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP). It was revealed that NLP gives the managers and staff a significant improvement in the efficiency to work with, understand and motivate other people, both individually and in groups. An NLP-oriented manager is sound in all aspects, especially with the human factor, which is the vital element in this scenario.