Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
`Objective' vs `Subjective' Job Insecurity: Consequences of Temporary Work for Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment in Four European Countries

This contribution analyses whether temporary work and (the subjective perception of) job insecurity are associated with a reduction in job satisfaction and organizational commitment, as proposed in the literature. An interaction between temporary work and job insecurity is also tested. Data from four European countries (Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Sweden) are used to test the robustness of the hypotheses. The results show that temporary work is not associated with a reduction in job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Job insecurity is associated with a lower score on both outcome variables, as hypothesized. In two countries, an interaction was found: job insecurity was only associated with a reduction in job satisfaction and organizational commitment among workers with a permanent contract, suggesting that the psychological contract was violated for this category of workers.
World development report 2011 : conflict, security, and development

The 2011 World Development Report looks across disciplines and experiences drawn from around the world to offer some ideas and practical recommendations on how to move beyond conflict and fragility and secure development. The key messages are important for all countries-low, middle, and high income-as well as for regional and global institutions: first, institutional legitimacy is the key to stability. When state institutions do not adequately protect citizens, guard against corruption, or provide access to justice; when markets do not provide job opportunities; or when communities have lost social cohesion-the likelihood of violent conflict increases. Second, investing in citizen security, justice, and jobs is essential to reducing violence. But there are major structural gaps in our collective capabilities to support these areas. Third, confronting this challenge effectively means that institutions need to change. International agencies and partners from other countries must adapt procedures so they can respond with agility and speed, a longer-term perspective, and greater staying power. Fourth, need to adopt a layered approach. Some problems can be addressed at the country level, but others need to be addressed at a regional level, such as developing markets that integrate insecure areas and pooling resources for building capacity Fifth, in adopting these approaches, need to be aware that the global landscape is changing. Regional institutions and middle income countries are playing a larger role. This means should pay more attention to south-south and south-north exchanges, and to the recent transition experiences of middle income countries.
P2X7 receptor stimulation in primary cultures of rat spinal microglia induces downregulation of the activity for glutamate transport

It has been shown that spinal microglia expressing certain types of glutamate transporters function in the modulation of neuropathogenesis. In this study, the effect of ATP, potentially able to mediate the communication between neurons and glial cells in the spinal cord on the transport of glutamate in cultured spinal microglia, was investigated. Both GLAST and GLT‐1 were detected in the cells. Preincubation with ATP or 2′‐3′‐O‐(4‐benzoyl‐benzoyl) ATP (BzATP), a selective agonist for the P2X7 receptor, significantly blocked the uptake of glutamate. The effect of BzATP was reversed by pretreatment with brilliant blue G or oxidized ATP, each a selective antagonist for P2X7. The inhibitory effect of P2X7 receptor activation also occurred in the absence of extracellular Na+ or Ca2+, suggesting that the receptor regulates glutamate transport by a metabotropic pathway. Furthermore, pretreatment with inhibitors of mitogen‐activated protein kinase kinase, or antioxidants, significantly reversed the inhibitory effect of BzATP on the uptake of glutamate. Incubation with BzATP led to a marked decrease in the Vmax, but not the Km, of glutamate transport. However, treatment with BzATP did not induce the trafficking of glutamate transporters. These results suggest that the activation of P2X7 receptors in spinal microglia is important in the regulation of glutamate transport via activation of the extracellular signal‐regulated kinase cascade and production of oxidants. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Referendums in Western Europe – A Wave of Direct Democracy?

The aim of this article is to analyze the explanations for the increased number of referendums in Western European states. Bogdanor has explained this by the unfreezing of political alignments and institutions. After classifying referendums in 18 Western European states, it will be observed that especially the number of referendums introduced by citizens has increased wherever they are constitutionally provided, that is, in Italy and in Switzerland. Referendums in these two countries contribute most of the overall increase in the number of referendums in Western Europe. Moreover, the number of referendums concerning European integration have increased, also in states that do not have the referendum as an integral part of their political system. When it comes to the unfreezing of institutions, it must be pointed out that after the 1970s there have been no constitutional reforms which would have significantly increased the use of referendums.
Management of Earnings and Analysts' Forecasts to Achieve Zero and Small Positive Earnings Surprises

This paper corroborates the finding of prior studies that managers avoid reporting earnings lower than analyst forecasts (i.e., negative earnings surprises) and provides new evidence of actions contributing to this phenomenon. Specifically, we provide empirical evidence of both (1) upward management of reported earnings and (2) downward 'management' of analysts' forecasts to achieve zero and small positive earnings surprises. Further analysis of the components of earnings management suggests that both the operating cash flow and discretionary accruals components of earnings are managed. Copyright 2006 The Authors Journal compilation (c) 2006 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Rapid recurrent processing gates awareness in primary visual cortex

Visual awareness has been proposed to depend on recurrent processing in early visual cortex areas including the primary visual cortex (V1). Here, we address this hypothesis with high spatiotemporal resolution magnetoencephalographic recordings in subjects performing a substitution masking paradigm. Neural activity reflecting awareness is assessed by directly comparing the neuromagnetic response elicited by effectively and ineffectively masked targets after the proportion of trials leading to masking was individually adjusted to match the proportion of trials without masking. This revealed a modulation of recurrent activity in the primary visual cortex rapidly after the onset of the feedforward sweep of processing in striate and extrastriate areas but significantly before the onset of attention-dependent recurrent modulations in V1. Our data provide direct support for the notion that (i) recurrent processing in V1 correlates with visual awareness and (ii) that attention and awareness involve distinct recurrent processing operations.
Control of prestalk‐cell differentiation by transcription factors

Transcriptional control of developmental genes is important for cell differentiation and pattern formation. Developing Dictyostelium discoideum cells form a multicellular structure in which individual cells differentiate into either stalk cells or spores. This simplicity makes the organism an attractive model for studying fundamental problems in developmental biology. However, the morphogenetic process of forming a stalked fruiting body conceals a certain degree of complexity. This is reflected in the presence of multiple prestalk subtypes that have individual roles to generate the fruiting body. This review describes recent advances in understanding the molecular mechanisms, mediated by transcription factors that generate prestalk‐cell heterogeneity.
Party Politics in Russia: From Competition to Hierarchy

IN THE 1990S, POLITICAL PARTIES IN RUSSIA SUFFERED FROM THEIR underdevelopment. By contrast, in the 2000s they became major actors in the electoral and parliamentary arenas, both at the national and sub-national level. However, party competition—the very heart of democratic politics—virtually disappeared in Putin’s Russia. Instead, all political parties became effectively controlled by the Kremlin and incorporated into the formal and informal hierarchy of Russia’s government. While the major opposition parties were about to become extinct, the party of power, United Russia (Edinaya Rossiya), overwhelmingly dominated the landscape of party politics. Still, by the end of Putin’s second term Russia’s political regime combined some elements of both personalist and party-based authoritarianism. I will analyse the formation of the new party system in Russia in the 2000s, with a special emphasis on the role of political elites and institutional engineering in the building of the dominant party and centralised control. The prospects for a party-based authoritarian regime in Russia are also discussed.
The Use of Management Controls to Mitigate Risk in Strategic Alliances: Field and Survey Evidence

ABSTRACT: Transaction cost economics (TCE) theory is widely used to study the governance and management control practices used to mitigate interfirm alliance risk. Following Williamson (1985, 1991), empirical studies typically measure transaction characteristics that proxy for risk in alliances (e.g., asset specificity), and test for a relation between these measures and alliance management control choices. A common criticism of studies in this literature is that they typically focus on a narrow set of governance decisions (e.g., make versus buy) or control practices (e.g., specific contract terms). We posit that an equally limiting aspect of this literature is its reliance on risk proxies measured at the level of the individual transaction. These proxies fail to explicate specific alliance risks and, coupled with an undue focus on transactions rather than the totality of interfirm relationships, limit our understanding of how risks give rise to management controls more broadly defined. In this study we u.
Social entrepreneurship, social networks and social value creation: a quantitative analysis among social entrepreneurs

Social enterprises primarily strive to create social rather than financial value. However, depending on the social enterprises' underlying business model, financial value may be a secondary goal to help achieving the social mission. Qualitative research suggests that a social entrepreneurs' social network is vital to fulfil both missions, yet the literature at this inter-face is scarce and demands more quantitative research. Using an international dataset of 390 social enterprises, our study addresses this demand by empirically investigating the impact the different structural dimensions of the social entrepreneurs' social network have on the social as well as financial value creation. The main findings indicate that social networks mobilised through network quantity, network widespread and network diversity contribute to the social enterprises' social and financial success. In addition, our study shows that the underlying business models of social entrepreneurs also determine the achievement of social and financial success.
Endogenous Transportation Costs

Quantitative trade models used to evaluate the effects of policy changes have largely abstracted away from modeling the transportation industry. This paper extends a standard Armington trade model to incorporate an oligopolistically competitive transportation industry in which shippers endogenously choose a transportation technology. I collect detailed data on the containerized maritime transportation industry to calibrate the parameters of the model. I then conduct quantitative experiments in which there is a symmetric increase in tariffs. On average, changes in transportation costs account for almost half of the changes in welfare. These findings suggest that the endogeneity of transportation costs is an important mechanism determining the welfare effects of such a policy change.
Work-life flow: How individuals, Zappos, and other innovative companies achieve high engagement

Individuals, their coaches, and visionary leaders, including Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh, are aligning work and culture with the principles of flow to enrich careers, lives, and organizations. This article examines flow—an individual's state of maximum engagement—and the criteria for achieving it. It spells out methods for coaching people to achieve a state of flow at work, and then presents examples of how individuals have infused their jobs with flow. It also discusses several visionary leaders who incorporate flow states into their companies' culture, including an in-depth look at how Hsieh uses flow principles to create high engagement and deliver superior business results. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Managerial Ownership, Debt Policy, and the Impact of Institutional Holdings: An Agency Perspective

This study investigates the effects of' institutional ownership on the debt policy and managerial ownership of the firm. Earlier literature on the agency model of the firm widely recognizes that the use of managerial stock ownership and external debt play an important role in limiting agency conflicts and enhancing firm value. The literature also recognizes that external monitors, such as institutional investors, can serve a useful role in limiting agency problems in the firm. However, investigations into the usefulness of' these agency-conflict-reducing mechanisms have tended to treat each in isolation with little attempt to study the inter-relationships among them. This study examines the impact of institutional holdings on managerial ownership and debt policy in an integrated framework utilizing a simultaneous system of equations estimation procedure. The study hypothesizes that the use of debt and managerial stock ownership are inversely related to institutional ownership in the firm. The empirical evidence provided in this study is consistent with this hypothesis.
Liability Protection, Director Compensation, and Incentives

We examine the effect of liability protection on the compensation of directors and on takeover outcomes. Consistent with the hypothesis that directors require additional compensation if they bear liability, we find that director compensation is higher for firms that provide less liability protection. Examining takeovers, we find evidence that takeovers of firms with protected directors are less likely to succeed. Moreover, firms with protected directors are more likely to accept a lower bid premium, and this finding is consistent with protected directors having reduced incentives to negotiate for the highest possible price during the acquisition. Overall, the results are consistent with the notion that director liability provisions have a significant impact both on director compensation and director duty.
Anti-Inflammatory and Antimicrobial Roles of Secretory Leukocyte Protease Inhibitor

Human secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI) is an 11.7-kDa cationic protein and a member of the innate immunity-associated proteins. It is a nonglycosylated, highly basic, acid-stable, cysteine-rich, 107-amino acid, single-chain polypeptide ([50][1]). The SLPI gene, along with the elafin
Determinants of Performance for Mortgage-Backed Securities Funds

This article examines the performance of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) mutual funds from January 1987 to June 1995. As a group, the MBS mutual funds underperform both the "Salomon and Lehman Brothers" MBS market benchmarks. The relative underperformance of the MBS mutual funds is due to poor securities selection and timing decisions. Fund expenses also contribute significantly to the underperformance, while fund load, turnover, management fees and other fund characteristics do not materially affect performance. The underperformance is found to be concentrated in several exceptionally bad months during the sample period. Testing indicates that the MBS mutual funds underperform the MBS benchmark during months of rising interest rates, but match the MBS benchmark during months of falling interest rates. Copyright American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association.
Towards an understanding of the influence of sustainability culture on the accounting profession

While some previous research has critiqued accounting behaviour towards society and the environment, this paper points in a slightly different direction. With the aid of a chronological chart, it uses sustainability initiatives from the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) to demonstrate the accounting profession's positive response to societal sustainability culture. Applying the cultural theories of Gray and Hofstede, it argues that society is responsible for alleged negative behaviour in accounting and that society hampers progress in sustainability accounting through political and corporate manoeuvrings. It asserts that, at least within the Canadian context, the more society embraces deeper green culture, the more accounting will transform towards sustainability values. It provides a future research agenda towards extenuating accounting criticisms. The paper suggests some policy implications for government and highlights that the power to condition and moderate accounting behaviour resides within society, governments and the laws of nations; it follows therefore that attaining any goals in sustainable development depends on the choice and commitment of governments and institutions.
FGFR 2 gene polymorphisms are associated with breast cancer risk in the Han Chinese population

Aims and background: Breast cancer is one of the most common neoplasms among women in many developing countries including China, and is the leading cause of female cancer-related deaths worldwide. Methods: In the current study, we analyzed the relationship between 14 tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms (tSNPs) and breast cancer risk in the Han Chinese population including 185 breast cancer patients and 199 healthy women controls on the different types of breast cancer and menopausal status. Results: Overall, we found rs2981579 in the FGFR2 gene, and rs2380205 were associated with breast cancer susceptibility.
Faster Route to the CEO Suite

The aim of this article is to investigate the differences between the careers of CEOs in family and nonfamily firms and the differences between the careers of family and nonfamily CEOs within family firms. Extant literature focuses on the family or nonfamily nature of firm leadership, especially around CEOs’ transitions. It predicts that agency considerations prevail in favoring the appointment of family members and insiders as CEOs and in granting them faster and quicker careers. In contrast, detailed analysis of the entire careers of 100 CEOs—from their graduation to their first appointment as CEO—shows that the accumulation of human capital throughout a manager’s career prevails over agency considerations in predicting CEO appointments.
Performance Measurement System Use in Generating Psychological Empowerment and Individual Creativity

type="main" xml:id="acfi12059-abs-0001"> Individual creativity is essential to an organisation's ability to innovate (Amabile, 1988, 1996), and potentially, management control systems could be used to enhance or constrain this creativity in organisations (Amabile, 1988; Davila et al., 2009). The purpose of this study is to develop an understanding of how interactive performance measurement system (IPMS) use is implicated in the generation of individual creativity. A conceptual framework linking IPMS use to creativity is developed, incorporating psychological empowerment as an intervening variable. The results of a survey of middle-level managers confirm that IPMS use impacts on creativity through the psychological construct of psychological empowerment.
THERMODYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF MOLECULAR DYNAMICS SIMULATION OF EVAPORATION AND CONDENSATION

When a gas or vapour is flowing through a microchannel, the system can become too small for the Navier-Stokes approach to be valid: the Knudsen number becomes too large. Modelling techniques that include the particle nature of the fluids should be used. A particle simulation method is Molecular Dynamics (MD). MD-simulations have been shown to give accurate results both in the gas phase and in the liquid phase. In a two-phase flow, the phase transition between the liquid phase and gas phase is important. In MD simulations, this phase transition can be modeled. It is important that in the MD simulations, the phase at transition is modeled thermodynamically correct. The goal of this research is to develop a method to validate particle-based models, such as MD, by comparing simulation results to experimental results. This is done by simulating an equilibrium situation of evaporation and condensation. After an equilibrium situation has been established, the following properties are calculated: Temperature profile, density profile, pressure profile and enthalpy. The analysis for Molecular Dynamics was performed, using Argon-particles. After the simulations were run and shown to be in equilibrium, the thermodynamic properties are analyzed and shown to agree with experimental results from literature for the liquid and vapour phase. It is shown that the cut-o radius in Molecular Dynamics simulations should be chosen carefully: when the potential energy function is cut o after more than 4.5 molecular diameters, the simulation results for density, pressure and enthalpy agree with experimental results.
Investment in management training and development by small businesses

The topic of management training and development (MTD) in small businesses is relatively under‐researched, and an increased understanding of the factors influencing the purchase of MTD by small businesses is needed. Therefore, a survey of 551 small businesses in the Midlands region of the UK sought to: identify influences on MTD investment and preferred MTD activities; and establish whether small businesses perceive a link between investment in MTD and business success. Interviews were also conducted with 12 organisations. Results show that the organisational characteristics of ownership, size, number of managers and family management have a significant influence on MTD investment. Of the sample organisations, 85 per cent considered investment in MTD to be linked to business success and 80 per cent of organisations engaged in some form of MTD. However, promoters of MTD to small businesses need to recognise that organisations in this sector are not homogeneous and desire customised training.
Numerical modeling of an indoor wireless environment for the performance evaluation of WLAN systems

A site-specific numerical model, based on the finite-difference time-domain method, is developed in this paper for the indoor radio channel. The scenario of interest is concerned with wave propagation in a typical office environment, for which several simulations are performed considering different placements of the transmitting antenna. Both the 2- and 5-GHz bands are examined, where contemporary wireless local area networks operate. Important channel characteristics are evaluated via the estimation of received power levels, as well as the examination of small-scale fading and time dispersion