Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Investigation of Entrepreneurial Orientation, Perceived Environmental Hostility, and Strategy Application among Chinese SMEs

Little is known about how Chinese small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) respond to their competitive environment. We predict that when industry competition is intense, entrepreneurial Chinese SMEs tend to perceive more environmental hostility than do their nonentrepreneurial peers. The perceived environmental hostility further drives these firms to choose marketing strategies but not cost control or innovation strategies. Data from 170 Chinese SMEs confirm our hypotheses, indicating that though some entrepreneurial orientation (EO) effects transcend different economy types, other EO effects differ significantly as the environment changes.
Temporary vascular access for first dialysis is common, undesirable and usually avoidable.

BACKGROUND When technically feasible, patients with end-stage renal failure should commence regular dialysis treatment with permanent access to the circulation (by arteriovenous fistula) or peritoneum (by soft peritoneal catheter) in situ, thus avoiding the need for initial hemodialysis employing temporary vascular access. We have examined the frequency, consequences and avoidability of temporary access in such patients. METHODS 178 patients commencing regular dialysis between August 1993 and April 1995 were analysed retrospectively using case notes. Patients were divided into those who had permanent dialysis access in situ when they commenced dialysis and those who required temporary access. If temporary access was required, the patients were further analysed into those who had been first seen by a nephrologist at least 12 weeks before the first dialysis, and those who had been referred "late". It was assumed that 12 weeks was sufficient time for permanent access to be instituted. Mortality within the first 90 days of commencing dialysis was recorded. RESULTS Seventy-four of 82 patients opting for regular hemodialysis and 53 of 96 opting for peritoneal dialysis required temporary vascular access. Late referral accounted for 47 and delays within the renal service for 35 of such patients. Late presentation to the medical profession or indecisiveness on the part of the patient accounted for the remainder. Twenty-five of 127 patients requiring temporary access but only one or 51 patients not requiring it died within 90 days of commencement of treatment. CONCLUSION Late presentation to a renal unit prior to first dialysis is associated with increased mortality. Late referral or late presentation are associated with an increased need for temporary vascular access for first dialysis. Many patients who require temporary access for first dialysis could have been better managed.
Formulation and in vitro and in vivo availability of diclofenac sodium enteric-coated beads.

Diclofenac sodium enteric-coated beads were prepared using the conventional pan coating technique. Eudragit L100 was used as a pH-dependent release-controlling polymer. The beads were evaluated for their particle size distribution, drug loading efficiency, flowability, in vitro release in 0.1 N HCl (pH 1.2) and phosphate buffer (pH 6.8), and bioavailability in beagle dogs relative to the commercial enteric-coated tablets Voltaren. The beads showed a narrow particle size distribution in which 83% of the beads were in the range of 1-2 mm. The actual yield of the beads was 90.5% and their drug loading was 92%. The beads released about 8% of the drug during 2 hr of dissolution in 0.1 N HCl, and the commercial tablets released no drug. In phosphate buffer (pH 6.8) both formulations released their drug content in 1 hr. Both formulations are, therefore, in compliance with the USP requirements for release from enteric-coated dosage forms. The in vivo availability study in six beagle dogs revealed that the formulated enteric-coated beads filled in hard gelatin capsules had a 197.54% bioavailability relative to that of the commercial Voltaren tablets. The tablets showed a significantly lower (p < 0.05) area under curve for 0-8 hr (AUC0-8 hr) of 13.44 +/- 15.02 micrograms hr/ml compared to 26.55 +/- 5.19 micrograms hr/ml for the capsules. The capsules showed a nonsignificantly (p > 0.05) higher peak plasma concentration (Cmax) of 6.77 +/- 0.67 micrograms/ml compared to 5.88 +/- 7.38 micrograms/ml for the tablets. The time to reach peak (Tmax) values were 2 +/- 1.48 and 2.25 +/- 1.08 hr for the capsules and tablets, respectively. The capsules showed less interdog variability with respect to Cmax (CV% 34.6) and AUC (CV% 19.55) compared to CV% 79.9 and 111.76, respectively, for the commercial tablets.
Selecting the party leader in Britain

Unlike most European countries, party leadership roles in Britain are largely concentrated into the hands of one person. The pattern was established in the nineteenth century, when the posts of Prime Minister and party leader were intertwined, and has been maintained by the modern parties. Each of the main British parties has changed its method of selecting its leader in the last thirty years and between them the parties use, or have used relatively recently, the four basic methods of selection—by the party elite, by parliamentarians, by activists and by party members. The broad trend has been for the parties to make their procedures more open and participatory. While this pattern has reflected the ‘spirit of the age’ the major reasons for the change have been political considerations. The Conservatives changed from selection by party elites to selection by MPs in an attempt to modernise their image. Labour adopted an electoral college as a result of power struggles between left and right in the party. The Liberals eventually accepted that it was not sensible for their leader to be selected by just a dozen or less MPs (and the Social Democrats and Liberal Democrats duly followed this logic). Despite the adoption of more open procedures the selectorates are still relatively small (with only the Liberal Democrats involving all members), while control over the process of nomination remains firmly in the hands of the MPs. One consequence of this is that British party leaders have been characterised, above all, by the extent of their parliamentary experience. Within that characteristic, however, the detailed rules of the different selection procedures have been crucial in determining which particular parliamentarians would emerge.
Sexual compulsivity, co-occurring psychosocial health problems, and HIV risk among gay and bisexual men: further evidence of a syndemic.

OBJECTIVES We evaluated whether sexual compulsivity fits into a syndemic framework, in which sexual compulsivity is one of a number of co-occurring psychosocial health problems that increase HIV risk among men who have sex with men (MSM). METHODS In 2003 and 2004, we conducted an anonymous cross-sectional survey of MSM in New York City (n = 669) by approaching attendees at gay, lesbian, and bisexual community events. We analyzed data by bivariate and multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS We found strong positive interrelationships among syndemic factors including sexual compulsivity, depression, childhood sexual abuse, intimate partner violence, and polydrug use. In bivariate analyses, all syndemic health problems except for childhood sexual abuse were positively related to HIV seropositivity and high-risk sexual behavior. Our multivariate models revealed an array of interrelationships among psychosocial health problems. We found amplified effects of these problems on HIV seropositivity and on the likelihood of engaging in high-risk sexual behavior. CONCLUSIONS Our findings support the conclusion that sexual compulsivity is a component of a syndemic framework for HIV risk among MSM. HIV prevention interventions should consider the overlapping and compounding effects of psychosocial problems, including sexual compulsivity.
Crypto-currency bubbles: an application of the Phillips–Shi–Yu (2013) methodology on Mt. Gox bitcoin prices

The creation of bitcoin heralded the arrival of digital or crypto-currency and has been regarded as a phenomenon. Since its introduction, it has experienced a meteoric rise in price and rapid growth accompanied by huge volatility swings, and also attracted plenty of controversies which even involved law enforcement agencies. Hence, claims abound that bitcoin has been characterized by bubbles ready to burst any time (e.g. the recent collapse of bitcoin’s biggest exchange, Mt Gox). This has earned plenty of coverage in the media but surprisingly not in the academic literature. We therefore fill this knowledge gap. We conduct an econometric investigation of the existence of bubbles in the bitcoin market based on a recently developed technique that is robust in detecting bubbles – that of Phillips et al. (2013a). Over the period 2010–2014, we detected a number of short-lived bubbles; most importantly, we found three huge bubbles in the latter part of the period 2011–2013 lasting from 66 to 106 days, with the last and biggest one being the one that ‘broke the camel’s back’ – the demise of the Mt Gox exchange.
The Timeline of Presidential Election Campaigns

Little is known about the evolution of electoral sentiment over the campaign cycle. How does the outcome come into focus as the election cycle evolves? Do voters' preferences evolve in a patterned and understandable way? What role does the election campaign play? In this article, we address these issues. We translate general arguments about the role of campaigns into a set of formal, statistical expectations. Then, we outline an empirical analysis and examine poll results for the 15 U.S. presidential elections between 1944 and 2000. Our analysis focuses specifically on two questions. First, to what extent does the observable variation in aggregate poll results represent real movement in electoral preferences (if the election were held the day of the poll) as opposed to mere survey error? Second, to the extent polls register true movement of preferences owing to the shocks of campaign events, do the effects last or do they decay? Answers to these questions tell us whether and the extent to which campaign events have effects on preferences and, if so, whether these effects persist until Election Day. The answers thus inform us about what we ultimately want to know: Do campaigns have any real impact on the election outcome? The results of our analysis suggest that they do.
Competitive intelligence and disclosure

type="main"> Competitive intelligence (CI) activities open new opportunities for firms to acquire and disclose information. We show that disclosure depends on the relative usefulness of information to the competing firms and is generally less (more) likely with Cournot (Bertrand) competition and when firms adopt product differentiation strategies. When CI costs are independent of information characteristics, each firm seeks information solely useful to itself and discloses it unless it is a Bertrand competitor with customer information. Only when the cost advantage is sufficiently great does each firm seek information useful to itself and its rival.
Factors Related to the Preference for a Female Gynecologist

Four hundred and nine female patients of both male and female physicians completed a self-administered questionnaire exploring their attitudes and practices regarding gynecologists and gynecological examinations. Responses to the question “Would you prefer a woman gynecologist? ” divided the sample into three groups: those responding “yes” (33.9%); those responding “no” (19.3%); and those responding “no difference” (36.2%). Results revealed that patients who preferred female gynecologists were most likely to find gynecological examinations difficult and to be critical of gynecologists' understanding of women's psychological and sexual problems. A subsample of patients in psychotherapy was especially apt to prefer female gynecologists. The “no difference” group had the most positive attitudes towards gynecological examinations and gynecologists. Demographic differences were insignificant. The importance of judging a gynecologist's competence without sexual bias, of re-evaluating stereotypes of women physicians, and of increasing the proportion of women in gynecology is stressed.
Optimal Monetary Policy Inertia

This paper considers the desirability of the observed tendency of central banks to adjust interest rates only gradually in response to changes in economic conditions. It shows, in the context of a simple model of optimizing private-sector behavior, that such inertial policy can be optimal. The reason is that small but persistent changes in short-term interest rates in response to shocks allow a larger effect of monetary policy on long rates and hence upon aggregate demand, for a given degree of overall interest-rate variability. The paper also considers two ways of achieving the desirable degree of inertia in the equilibrium responses to shocks. One is by assignment of a loss function that penalizes squared interest-rate changes (despite the fact that interest-rate changes do not affect the true social objective) to a central bank that is then expected to use discretion in the pursuit of the goal. The second is through commitment to an explicit instrument rule, a generalization of the Taylor rule' in which the funds rate is an increasing function of the lagged funds rate, as in estimated Fed reaction functions.
Cognitive–behavioral therapy with childhood anxiety disorders: Functioning in adolescence

We examined anxiety symptoms, anxiety‐related impairment, and further treatment in adolescents who received cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for childhood anxiety disorders 6–7 years previously. Forty‐three adolescents and their parents (14 boys, 29 girls; mean age 16.7 years) participated in structured telephone interviews. Participants (68% of initial sample of 63) did not differ in age, diagnostic profile, socioeconomic status, or initial severity from nonparticipants but more girls than boys participated. Indices based on child‐ and parent‐reported symptoms and impairment were calculated, and within‐sample comparisons by age, gender, diagnosis, and initial severity were done using t tests. Predictors of symptoms and impairment were also examined. On average, adolescents reported modest levels of anxiety‐related impairment. Further treatment for anxiety had occurred in 30% (13 of 43) of patients. Stepwise regressions found female gender and diagnosis other than generalized anxiety disorder predictive of increased symptoms by parent report, and initial severity predicted adolescent‐reported impairment. Adolescents showed limited internalizing symptomatology and impairment but almost one third had required further treatment. Studies comparing treated and untreated samples are needed to clarify whether CBT alters the natural history of childhood anxiety disorders and to replicate our findings regarding predictors of symptomatology and impairment. Depression and Anxiety 00:000–000, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Perceived organizational support and intention to stay in host countries among self-initiated expatriates: the role of career satisfaction and networks

Previous literature on self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) has mostly focused on an individual perspective and rarely on SIEs in an organizational context. This paper examines the effect of perceived organizational support (POS) on SIE employees' intention to stay in the host country, mediated by career satisfaction and moderated by career networks of host and home country nationals. Data from 112 SIE employees in Germany were collected and tested for moderated mediation. Results partially supported our proposed model: we found a direct positive effect between POS and intention to stay. However, there was a significant negative indirect effect between POS and intention to stay when the career network of home country nationals was large. Our study contributes to theories of POS, confirming its positive effect on SIEs' career satisfaction and intention to stay in the host country. For organizational practice, it provides insight to understand SIE employees' needs for support and mobility preferences.
Antimicrobial susceptibility of Acinetobacter strains identified by DNA‐DNA hybridization

The in vitro activity of 21 antimicrobial agents aginst 143 Acinetobacter strains (belonging to 12 different DNA hybridization groups) was studied. Of the antibiotics tested, ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, doxycycline and imipenem had the lowest MICs. For most antibiotics there was a considerable overlap of the MICs between the DNA groups; however, some differences in antimicrobial susceptibility between DNA groups were found. Strains of DNA groups 2 (A. baumannii) and 13 (unnamed) were most resistant, and strains of DNA groups 8 (A. Iwoffii) and 5 (A. junii) less resistant. Many DNA groups contain both saccharolytic and non‐saccharolytic strains but in the present study no differences in antimicrobial susceptibility were found between strains of a particular DNA group with regard to this property.
Glutathione S-transferase T1 null polymorphism and the risk for head and neck cancer

Conclusions. Inter-regional differences in the distribution of genetic polymorphisms in glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) exist, which may have significant effect on the outcome of other GST polymorphism studies. The GSTT1 null genotype appears to be involved in modulation of the risk for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Background. The risk of HNSCC is strongly associated with smoking of cigarettes and consumption of alcohol, resulting in a load of toxins/carcinogens. Detoxification of such exogenous harmful compounds often occurs by phase II enzymes such as GSTs. Proper functioning of these enzymes may be deficient due to the presence of particular genetic polymorphisms in these GSTs, and this may increase the risk for HNSCC. We compared the GSTT1, GSTM1 and GSTP1 genotype frequencies in two groups of healthy blood donors, collected from different but adjacent regions in the Netherlands, with those of a group of patients with HNSCC. Subjects and methods. The GSTM1,GSTT1 and GSTP1 genotype frequencies in two Dutch Caucasian control populations (n=207 and n=285) from different but adjacent geographical regions (Maastricht and Nijmegen; distance, 125 km) and 185 patients with HNSCC from the Maastricht region were determined by PCR-related methods. Results. For the occurrence of the GSTT1 null genotype we found a significant difference (p=0.003) between the two control groups (20.3% vs 33.0% null genotype in the Nijmegen and Maastricht control groups, respectively). Since the HNSCC patients were collected from the Maastricht area, comparison with the Maastricht controls reveals a significant difference for GSTT1 null rates, which are lower in patients vs controls (OR = 0.49, CI = 0.32–0.76).
The effect of a cardiovascular educational intervention on healthcare utilization and costs.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate healthcare utilization and costs following a cardiovascular disease (CVD) screening and educational special intervention (SI) compared with a control intervention (CIN) at 1 year in the Family-Based Intervention Trial for Heart Health. STUDY DESIGN Participants randomized to SI for screening and periodic lifestyle counseling were compared with participants randomized to CIN for resource utilization and associated costs at 1 year. METHODS A total of 421 participants (67% women and 37% minorities) were healthy family members of hospitalized patients with CVD who had 1-year follow-up resource utilization data. Resource utilization was systematically measured using a standardized questionnaire in both study groups and was validated by medical records in a subsample. Outcomes included provider visits, diagnostic studies, laboratory assessment, medication use, behavioral program enrollment, emergency department (ED) visits, hospital admissions, and healthcare costs. RESULTS At 1 year, there were significantly fewer overall provider visits (P = .04) and psychiatrist visits (P = .03) in SI versus CIN. There was a nonsignificant trend toward fewer ED visits, decreased hospital admissions, and shorter inpatient length of stay in SI versus CIN. Estimated healthcare expenditures for CIN exceeded those for SI by $590 per participant. The cost of the 1-year intervention was $95 per participant. CONCLUSIONS A 1-year standardized low-cost screening and educational intervention was associated with significantly fewer provider visits and with a nonsignificant trend toward reduced healthcare utilization for several parameters. The long-term effect on outcomes and costs deserves further study.
Corporate governance and the small and medium enterprises sector: theory and implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the extent to which the corporate governance framework can be applied to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and discuss these issues further within the Ghanaian context.Design/methodology/approach – After considering some of the key issues, the paper shows how relevant these issues are to the SME sector.Findings – It is clear that corporate governance brings new strategic outlook through external independent directors and enhances firms' corporate entrepreneurship and competitiveness. Again the problems of credit constraint and managerial incompetence in the Ghanaian SME sector could also be overcome with a good corporate governance structure in place.Research limitations/implications – The discussion mainly focuses on corporate governance within the context of Ghanaian SMEs.Originality/value – This paper provides conceptual insights on the application of corporate governance among SMEs.
Exchange Rate Volatility and Trade: An Empirical Investigation from Cross-country Comparison

: This paper investigates empirically the impact of exchange rate volatility on the trade flows of six countries over the quarterly period of 1980–2005. The impact of a volatility term on trade is examined by using an Engle-Granger residual-based cointegrating technique. The major results show that increases in the volatility of the real exchange rate, approximating exchange-rate uncertainty, exert a significant negative effect on trade for South Korea, Pakistan, Poland and South Africa and a positive effect for Turkey and Hungary in the long run.