Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Entrepreneurial orientation and international entrepreneurial business venture startup

Purpose – This study seeks to examine the interrelationships among three elements of an entrepreneurial orientation (proactiveness, innovativeness, and risk‐taking), age and education of the entrepreneur, and the international entrepreneurial business venture (IEBV) start‐up decision.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from a sample of 539 individuals from dynamic internationally focused South African firms. Since the dependent variable is non‐metric and the independent variables associated with the IEBV new entry decision are metric, multiple discriminant analysis was used to test new entry decisions.Findings – Results indicate that the start‐up decision is positively related to the proactiveness and risk‐taking components of an entrepreneurial orientation and the age of the lead entrepreneur and negatively related to the education of the lead entrepreneur. As predicted, the innovativeness component of entrepreneurial orientation is not a factor in the start‐up decision.Practical implicatio.
Access to paid in-home assistance among disabled elderly people: do Latinos differ from non-Latino whites?

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to compare the national prevalences and predictors of paid in-home functional assistance among disabled Latino and non-Latino elderly people who receive such assistance. METHODS Data were derived from the 1988 wave of the National Center for Health Statistics Longitudinal Study on Aging and the 1988 Commonwealth Fund Commission Survey of Elderly Hispanics. Logistic regression was used to model paid care use and to calculate estimated probabilities of such use. RESULTS Among Latino and non-Latino Whites 74 years of age and older who received functional assistance, similar proportions used paid assistance. Predictors of paid care coincided with established models for non-Latino Whites only. Disabled Latinos had a lower estimated probability of using paid assistance when they were highly disabled and socially isolated but had a higher estimated probability when their children lived nearby. CONCLUSIONS The effects of disability and social support differ among non-Latino White and Latino elderly people. Latino elderly people with high anticipated needs obtain less paid assistance than similar non-Latino Whites. In addition to a reduction in financial barriers, improving access to long-term care services requires addressing this diversity in service use patterns.
Evaluating distance education of a mindfulness-based meditation programme for chronic pain management

Summary Patients with chronic pain were recruited from two large urban hospitals and from rural hospitals in Ontario. Patients on the waiting list served as controls. The intervention was a Mindfulness-Based Chronic Pain Management course, delivered to patients for two hours per week for 10 weeks. Pre- and postcourse measures of quality of life, pain catastrophizing and usual pain ratings were collected over a period of two years. Patients received the course via traditional face-to-face, in-person teaching (Present site group) or via videoconferencing at their local hospital site (Distant site group). In all, there were 99 Present site participants, 57 at Distant sites and 59 waitlist controls. Patients at Present and Distant sites achieved similar gains in mental health (P < 0.01) and pain catastrophizing levels (P < 0.01) relative to controls. However, the Present site group obtained significantly higher scores on the physical dimension of quality of life (P < 0.01) and lower usual-pain ratings (P < 0.05) than the Distant site group. The results suggest that videoconferencing is an effective mode of delivery for the Mindfulness course and may represent a new way of helping chronic pain patients in rural areas manage their suffering.
Varieties of regional economic integration and labor internationalism: The case of Japanese trade unions in comparison

This article examines whether Japanese trade unions have developed greater levels of international cooperation as a result of increased regional integration, i.e. economic partnerships with Asian counterparts in the 2000s. Labor rights at the regional level or resources that allow workers to organize are absent in the Japanese case; therefore, its analysis enriches understanding of the impact of those elements on labor internationalism in varieties of international regional integration. Economic partnership agreements were found not to be an incentive for building relations among Japanese and fellow international trade unions. Instead, cooperation was found to be contingent on already established ties. The article also demonstrates a growing interest among Japanese and other trade unions in responding to regional projects of the East Asian Community and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).
Autologous keratinocyte suspensions accelerate epidermal wound healing in pigs.

BACKGROUND Tissue culture techniques enable in vitro expansion of keratinocytes that can be used to treat burns and chronic wounds. These keratinocytes are commonly grafted onto the wounds as differentiated sheets of mature epithelium. Less is however known about the effects of transplanting the cells as suspensions. This study evaluated epidermal regeneration in fluid-treated skin wounds treated with suspensions of cultured and noncultured autologous keratinocytes. MATERIALS AND METHODS Eighty-seven full-thickness excisional skin wounds were created on the back of 6 pigs and then transplanted with either cultured or noncultured autologous keratinocytes. The wounds were enclosed with liquid-tight chambers containing saline to provide a hydrated and standardized environment. RESULTS Keratinocyte transplantation resulted in several cell colonies within the granulation tissue of the wound. These colonies progressively coalesced and contributed to a new epithelium. The origin of the transplanted keratinocytes was confirmed by histochemical staining of wounds transplanted with transfected keratinocytes expressing beta-galactosidase. Transplantation of 0.125 x 10(6), 0.5 x 10(6), and 2.0 x 10(6) cultured keratinocytes, and 0.5 x 10(6) and 5.0 x 10(6) noncultured keratinocytes, increased reepithelialization dose dependently over saline-treated controls. The epithelial barrier function recovered faster in transplanted wounds as demonstrated by less protein leakage over the wound surface on Days 7-10 as compared to control wounds. Wound reepithelialization and the number of keratinocyte colonies observed in granulation tissue were significantly less in wounds transplanted with noncultured keratinocytes compared to wounds seeded with cultured keratinocytes. CONCLUSION Our study demonstrates successful transplantation of keratinocyte suspensions and their dose-dependent acceleration of wound repair. Selection of proliferative cells during culture and higher colony-forming efficiency may explain the greater effects observed with cultured keratinocytes.
Timely Decisions: The Effects of Past National Elections on Party Policy Change

Political parties in established democracies face a trade-off between changing their policy positions in pursuit of votes and adhering to their previous positions in order to reduce risks related to change. To reconcile this trade-off, parties seek information about public opinion. Past election performance is one such source of information. To date however, there is no consistent result on whether past elections affect party positioning. I highlight two factors that previous analysts have not considered: whether past election results affect the magnitude of parties’ policy shifts in the current election, and how the time elapsed since the last election moderates the relationship between past election results and party policy change. My analyses of 23 established democracies generate two conclusions with important implications for understanding party behavior and political representation: parties tend to shift their policies more when they have lost votes in the previous election than when they have gained votes; and the effect of past election results dissipates with the passage of time.
An Empirical Study of the Marketing Dynamics of the Fairtrade Towns Movement

Abstract This study explores the marketing dynamics of the Fairtrade Towns movement in the United Kingdom and presents unique, empirical insights and understandings of its place-based marketing dynamics. It recognises that Fairtrade Towns, despite their rapid growth and recognition as a major contributor to Fairtrade marketing, still remain significantly under-researched. It also argues that the activities of Fairtrade Towns need to be considered through a marketing lens and presents a comprehensive application of grounded theory, to empirically capture the marketing dynamics of Fairtrade Towns directly from the people and places that socially construct them. This study theorises that Fairtrade Towns have capitalised upon the significance of symbolic interactionism to develop their marketing dynamic. It argues that Fairtrade Towns have embraced consumer culture and have used media not necessarily associated with marketing practices to validate their actions. It theorises that the Fairtrade Towns movement has generated a marketing dynamic built upon both intrinsic and extrinsic validity. Intrinsic validation transpires from better quality products, increased availability and the development of the Fairtrade mark. Extrinsic validity emerges from the strengths, backgrounds, skills, situations and symbolic value of other people, places and social movements. Fairtrade Towns demonstrate an ability to identify spaces and places not normally recognised for their marketing potential. This study explores how Fairtrade Towns transform and develop these spaces and places into media capable of effectively marketing Fair trade products. Fairtrade Towns display increasing consumer citizenship sophistication, achieved through a marketing dynamic, emerging from a collision between sustainable/ethical consumption, place and responsibility. Fairtrade Towns are therefore presented as a place where marketing functions are socially constructed around a ‘unique to place’ ethos, in which people and places are developed to their full potential in their capacity and desire to increase Fair Trade consumption wherever and whenever possible.
Whose Urban Renaissance? An International Comparison of Urban Regeneration Strategies

Depending upon one’s point of view, Porter and Shaw’s text on gentrification masquerading as “urban renaissance” is either the right book at the right time or the wrong book at the wrong time. This review sides heavily with the former, though questions remain about the extent to which the question posed in the title is the right one, and whether the international perspectives can be suitably reconciled under this rubric. Notwithstanding this cautionary note, this contribution is a welcome new addition to the critical literature on urban studies and planning. Whose Urban Renaissance? An International Comparison of Urban Regeneration Strategies begins with an introductory chapter by the editors and immediately states its intention to explore the “dark side” of regeneration (p. 1). This shadowy aspect of regeneration is often overlooked as cities across the world are blinded by the alluring glare of the (Richard) Florida sun. Furthermore, it is argued, local people are lost in an urban policy mire which privileges middle-class, high-income development over traditional workingclass spaces. Hence, the authors combine their desire for a more critical analysis of the contemporary phenomena of “urban renaissance” with an international survey of how this plays out in 21 different cities. The authorship is pleasingly diverse, with contributions from Turkey, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, China and Brazil nestling among those better-known stories from Germany, England, the US and Australia. The 24 chapters are divided into five parts. Part I looks at contested regeneration, Part II looks at unexpected outcomes and Part III explores local struggles against urban regeneration strategies. In Part IV, some less obvious regeneration examples are provided, whereas Part V offers synthesis and considers lessons that could be learned. As a call to action, Porter and Shaw “urge readers to critically analyse the stories and consider the workings of the specific policies as well as how they are affected by, and perpetuate or counter, uneven development” (p. 7). From mega-projects in Riyadh, “museumization” in Florence and heritage tourism in Salvador da Bahia, to “equitable regeneration” in Berne and “planning from below” in Barcelona, this book provides something extremely valuable to the urban studies field: a rare overview of how the reinvention of space in different cities is played out in different national contexts. Despite the book’s title, however, this is not just a “comparison of urban regeneration strategies”; it is also a comparison of responses to these strategies, in their various forms. Again, this adds something new and valuable to the field and is a welcome contribution. There is a sense in which the greatest strength of the book European Planning Studies Vol. 17, No. 8, August 2009
A simple score for the identification of patients at high risk of organic diseases of the colon in the family doctor consulting room. The Local IBS Study Group.

In order to develop a scoring system for selecting patients at high risk of organic diseases of the colon, who would need a colonoscopy or a barium enema, we conducted a study with 14 GPs in the local health care district of Modena. Over one year, 254 consecutive patients who consulted their GP for chronic abdominal pain were asked to answer a guided questionnaire. A checklist of simple parameters suggestive of the presence of organic diseases of the colon was also registered by the GP. For the final diagnosis, the patients underwent either a colonoscopy or a barium enema. Data collected were analysed by means of a stepwise logistic regression analysis to obtain a weighted score for the diagnosis of either irritable bowel syndrome (score less than 0) or organic disease (score greater than 0). Out of the 25 parameters explored, six were significantly more common among patients with organic disease and weighted as positive score (namely ESR greater than 17 mm, first hour, history of blood in the stool, leukocytosis greater than 10,000 cm3, age greater than 45 years, slight fever and presence of neoplastic colonic diseases in first-degree relatives). On the contrary, five parameters were more frequent among patients with irritable bowel syndrome and weighted as negative score (namely visible distension of the abdomen, feeling of distension, presence of irritable bowel syndrome in first degree relatives, flatulence and irregularities of bowel movement). Our scoring system correctly classified 83.5% of the cases, and it was very sensitive (82.4%) for the diagnosis of organic disease. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Elites, Rent-Cycling and Development: Adjustment to Land Scarcity in Mauritius, Kenya and Côte D'Ivoire

According to rent-cycling theory, low rent aligns the interests of the elite and the majority in providing public goods and efficiency incentives to promote economic growth, while high rent risks deflecting the elite into self-enriching rent deployment, which distorts the economy and triggers a collapse from which recovery is protracted because rent recipients resist reform. The theory also predicts, however, that this collapse will self-correct by shrinking per capita rent, which strengthens incentives for wealth creation. This article tests the prediction in Mauritius, Kenya and Cote d'Ivoire where intensifying land scarcity has shrunk per capita rent; Mauritius meets the prediction, but Kenya and Cote d'Ivoire do not.
Growth inhibitory effects of gossypol and related compounds on fungal cotton root pathogens

The effect of the terpenoids gossypol, 6‐methoxygossypol, 6,6′‐dimethoxygossypol, gossypolone and apogossypolone on growth of fungal soil pathogens was investigated. The compounds were tested at a concentration of 100 μg ml−1 in a Czapek Dox agar medium at 25°C. Gossypol, gossypolone and apogossypolone demonstrated strong growth inhibitory activity (≥90%) against Pythium irregulare, Pythium ultimum and Fusarium oxysporum. These same terpenoids provided good growth inhibition against most Rhizoctonia solani isolates. Methylated gossypol derivatives generally yielded reduced growth inhibition against the tested fungi compared with gossypol. Dose–response effects of gossypol, gossypolone and apogossypolone were determined over a concentration range of 5–100 μg ml−1 against P. irregulare CR1, P. ultimum ATCC 56081 and R. solani CR15. At lower concentrations, gossypol proved to be a more potent growth inhibitor of P. irregulare (ED50 = 4 μg ml−1) and P. ultimum (ED50 = 13·2 μg ml−1) than the other tested compounds. Rhizoctonia solani CR15 was more resistant to growth inhibitory effects of all tested terpenoids (ED50 = 35–43 μg ml−1).
Are Superannuation Funds and other Institutional Investors in Australia Acting Like ‘Universal Investors’?

This study investigates whether Australian superannuation funds and other institutional investors are concerned with the human resource management (HRM) and industrial relations (IR) practices of companies. It examines whether they use indicators of HRM or IR practices in their investment decisions and whether they attempt to influence these types of practices through other means, in the same way that investors are now doing so regarding corporate governance issues. The study finds there are embryonic signs of investors doing both. However, the ad hoc nature of engagement as well as significant information barriers, reduce the efficacy of this engagement.
Determinants of online shoppers' satisfaction in Korea

The purpose of this article is to identify the factors that might lead to the customer satisfaction in the online shopping malls across Korea. It is hypothesized that customer's positive perception of usefulness of internet shopping, security, technical competence, customer support and the interface of shopping mall positively affects the customer satisfaction. It is also hypothesized that satisfied customer becomes loyal customer. The survey results confirm that customer satisfaction has a significantly positive impact on the customer loyalty, which reveals that internet shoppers show high loyalty when they are satisfied with the service. We also find that online customers' risk perception about the security of the transactions, customer support to the online shopping and interface of the shopping mall are positively related to the customer satisfaction.
Parental Work Arrangements and Child Development

This article synthesizes what we know and do not know about the links between family work arrangements and child development, drawing on research from Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The paper reviews the evidence about how parental employment affects children's cognitive development, social and emotional development, and health; summarizes knowledge gaps; and makes recommendations for future Canadian policy-oriented research.
A pragmatic randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of a facilitated exercise intervention as a treatment for postnatal depression: the PAM-PeRS trial

Background Postnatal depression affects about 10–15% of women in the year after giving birth. Many women and healthcare professionals would like an effective and accessible non-pharmacological treatment for postnatal depression. Method Women who fulfilled the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 criteria for major depression in the first 6 months postnatally were randomized to receive usual care plus a facilitated exercise intervention or usual care only. The intervention involved two face-to-face consultations and two telephone support calls with a physical activity facilitator over 6 months to support participants to engage in regular exercise. The primary outcome was symptoms of depression using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 6 months post-randomization. Secondary outcomes included EPDS score as a binary variable (recovered and improved) at 6 and 12 months post-randomization. Results A total of 146 women were potentially eligible and 94 were randomized. Of these, 34% reported thoughts of self-harming at baseline. After adjusting for baseline EPDS, analyses revealed a −2.04 mean difference in EPDS score, favouring the exercise group [95% confidence interval (CI) −4.11 to 0.03, p = 0.05]. When also adjusting for pre-specified demographic variables the effect was larger and statistically significant (mean difference = −2.26, 95% CI −4.36 to −0.16, p = 0.03). Based on EPDS score a larger proportion of the intervention group was recovered (46.5% v. 23.8%, p = 0.03) compared with usual care at 6 months follow-up. Conclusions This trial shows that an exercise intervention that involved encouragement to exercise and to seek out social support to exercise may be an effective treatment for women with postnatal depression, including those with thoughts of self-harming.
Bank relations, cash holdings, and firm value: evidence from Japan

This paper tests two views of bank’s role for Japanese firms. The views are confronted with the empirical evidence, allowing them to compete to explain firm’s cash holding decisions and the implication of cash holdings on firm value. We find that firms with closer bank relations hold less cash, but some of them are over‐borrowing. Our results show that banks do not monitor their client firms and are unlikely to push the managers of the firms to take efficient actions on maximizing firm value. We discover that cash holdings cause more severe agency conflicts for the firms who have the closer relations with the banks.
A New Cosmology of Risks and Crises: Time for a Radical Shift in Paradigm and Practice

Crisis management theory and practice was in the main elaborated in the late 70s and 80s and developed and implemented in the 90s. We now have a rich knowledge of crisis intelligence and best practices. But, even if we can be proud of that advance, a further challenge remains: crises in the 21st century differ? structurally? from those we had to deal with in the last century. By way of example, the disparity between now and then is equivalent to that which existed between the end of the Second World War and the beginning of the First. Thus, if we stick to former paradigms ? we are bound to be defeated in every battle? Even if it is extremely difficult to forge new routes into Terrae Incognitae, it is vital to do so ? or at least to try.
Organisational Factors Affecting the Quality of Hospital Clinical Coding

The influence of organisational factors on the quality of hospital coding using the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Health Related Problems, 10th Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM) was investigated using a mixed quantitative-qualitative approach. The organisational variables studied were: hospital specialty; geographical locality; structural characteristics of the coding unit; education, training and resource supports for Clinical Coders; and quality control mechanisms. Baseline data on the hospitals' coding quality, measured by the Performance Indicators for Coding Quality tool, were used as an independent index measure. No differences were found in error rates between rural and metropolitan hospitals, or general and specialist hospitals. Clinical Coder allocation to ‘general’ rather than ‘specialist’ unit coding resulted in fewer errors. Coding Managers reported that coding quality can be improved by: Coders engaging in a variety of role behaviours; improved Coder career opportunities; higher staffing levels; reduced throughput; fewer time constraints on coding outputs and associated work; and increased Coder interactions with medical staff.