Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Capital Structure across Italian Regions: The Role of Financial and Economic Differences

The objective of this article is to analyse how regional financial and economic differences influence the capital structure decisions of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Specifically, this paper considers the regional financial and economic differences in four ways: the development of the financial sector in the region, bank market concentration, the financial cost of obtaining funds, and regional economic development. For this purpose, we used unbalanced panel data from 26,504 SMEs across the 20 Italian regions and over the period from 2004 to 2010. This work is completed with an analysis of a no-crisis (2004–2007) and a crisis period (2008–2010). The results show that the regional differences in the degree of financial sector development, banking concentration, and local economic situations have a significant impact on the leverage level of SMEs, while the cost of obtaining funds is only relevant during a period of economic stability. These results suggest that insights can be derived from data disaggregation at the regional level inside the same country. These regional divergences in the capital structure of SMEs could influence regional economic resilience.
The Impact of China’s Outward Foreign Direct Investment on Trade Intensity with Belt and Road Countries

ABSTRACT This study uses country-level panel data covering 64 countries in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for the period 2003–2015 and employs a dynamic panel system generalized method of moments (GMM) model with instrumental variable regression techniques to investigate empirically the impact of China’s outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) on trade intensity with BRI countries. The study finds that China’s OFDI on average has a positive impact on import intensity and a negative impact on export intensity with BRI countries. However, the impact of China’s OFDI on its trade intensity with BRI countries varies by country groups of resource-rich, high-income, and low-income countries in different periods. The regression results for different periods show that since the BRI was launched in 2013, China’s OFDI has strengthened bidirectional trade relations between China and BRI countries.
Omnichannel approach: Factors affecting consumer acceptance

Abstract The omnichannel approach is a new commercial opportunity that aims to offer consumers a unique and satisfying experience through any touch point. This research aims to understand the factors that might lead consumers to accept and use this new approach. The conceptual model was tested empirically using primary data collected from 210 Portuguese participants. The results reported suggest that perceptions of usefulness, ease of use, and compatibility have a positive effect on brand experience, which strongly affects the behavioral intention to use. Additionally, a moderation analysis, using user status as a moderator, shows that while usefulness is important to uniquely explain use intention for low frequency, ease of use is only a good predictor of use intention for high-frequency users. This research provides useful insights for academic research by shedding light on this new phenomenon, and simultaneously for businesses by deriving some implications for defining their omnichannel strategies.
The Deferred ‘Democracy Dividend’ of Citizen Journalism and Social Media: Perils, Promises and Prospects from the Zimbabwean Experience

The efficacy of digital media on politics, and society at large, has long been a subject of intense scholarly debate. This paper examines the democratisation potential of social media within Zimbabwe’s historically repressive political environment. Since the early 2000s, technological determinists in Zimbabwe saw citizen journalism and social media as a ‘game-changer’ in propping up a democratic project against the ruling regime. Two decades later, and as the country grapples with governance challenges, the prospects for meaningful political participation enabled by social media have remained elusive. The current study uses a contextual analytic lens informed by critical political economy of media and broader media effects theoretical concepts to probe the political impact of social media activism. Social media are technological tools whose role in society is contingent on human agency. While Zimbabwe has had significant protests employing social and digital media, their political impact, this paper argues, should not be overstated. Deterministic views have tended to create solutionist approaches to social media, undermining a nuanced understanding of their transformative potential.
The relationship between excess returns, firm size and earnings on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange

While considerable empirical work has been conducted in the United States concerning excess returns and the relationship of these returns to firm size and E/P ratio, thus far, there have been few similar empirical studies conducted using Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) data. Evidence of firm size or E/P ratio effects has been ascribed by various authors to either model misspecification or market inefficiencies. In this article the evidence is examined for the South African market using 1370 company years of data over the period 1978 to 1988, and a significant earnings effect is found, but no size effect. In the analysis the problem of data bias is considered with particular emphasis on thin trading issues, and a methodology for future empirical work is described. Finally, it is suggested that the evidence can be better explained by market inefficiencies than model misspecification.
Russian Nationalism Shifting: The Role of Populism Since the Annexation of Crimea

Abstract:This article focuses on the ongoing conflict in Eastern Ukraine (Donbass) that started with the events on the Euromaidan and the swift annexation of Crimea by Russia. Our analysis of key speeches by Vladimir Putin regarding the annexation of Crimea and the war in Donbass demonstrates that in this case, populism extends beyond the dichotomy of the people against the establishment, since it relies on complex notions of enmity and alliance. We argue that the Russian political leadership deployed a discourse of Russian identity based on an overstretched definition of the Russian nation, a new discursive division of the political space, and the introduction of new and the reaffirmation of old symbols of unity. We also conclude that populism and nationalism were used interchangeably depending on the audience: the Russian leadership has used discursive strategies associated with populism to articulate this new vision of identity to residents of Crimea and nationalist ones when addressing domestic audiences.
Quantitative Assessment of Environmental Soil Functions in Volcanic Zones from Mexico Using S&E Software

Making quantitative evaluations of the environmental functions of the soil in a quantitative way is an urgent necessity for transitioning towards the sustainable use of soils. The objective of this work was to use and improve the Soil and Environment software for soils of volcanic areas, for which the software was not designed to work on. The study was conducted in the volcanic area of Michoacan, Mexico. Nine soil profiles were described; samples were taken from each horizon and the physical and chemical properties of each sample were analyzed. The Soil and Environment software was used to conduct pedoecological evaluations of the soil samples and, subsequently, an evaluation of the environmental functions of the soils and the modeling of scenarios was carried out. The soil profiles studied showed variable properties of hydraulic conductivity, field capacity, air capacity, effective cation exchange capacity, and soil organic carbon. The soils showed very high nutrient retention, high naturalness and sorption of heavy metals, and low cultural and natural archive properties. The Soil and Environment software generally works well with soils of volcanic areas; however, we suggest improvements in the evaluation method of the following functions: naturalness and agricultural quality. Additionally, the estimating method of aeration capacity and hydraulic conductivity should be calibrated for the properties of the volcanic soils. The modeling of scenarios allowed us to identify the soil profiles that are most vulnerable to degradation. The modeling of scenarios provided a clear idea of the negative and positive effects that a change in soil use would have.
Fungus Infection of Scalp and Hair - a Study of Thirty Cases

The present work is related to clinical and mycological studies of thirty cases of tinea capitis. Of 600 clinically diagnosed cases of dermatomycosis collected during last one and half years, 30 cases were of tinea capitis. Of 30 cases, 28 were children are below the age of 13 years and two were adults. Sex incidence showed 21 were males and 9 were females. Typical "Blackdot" lesions were present in 13 cases like others showed variety of clinical picture. In one case kerion type lesion was observed. Itching was noted in 18 cases. Duration of disease ranged from 2 months to 2 years. Similar disease was present in family members of two cases.
The Effects of Changes in Minimum Wage on Wages, Employment and Hours Worked in Indonesia.

This thesis examines the effects of changes in minimum wage on wages, employment and hours worked in Indonesia. This study is important for Indonesia as a part of the policy evaluation relating to the minimum wage policy changes since the end of 1980s. Based on the standard competitive model, an increase in minimum wage is predicted to decrease the level of employment. More specifically, under the two-sector model, an increase in minimum is predicted to decrease employment in the covered sector and to increase employment in the uncovered sector, given a high proportion of uncovered sector employment in developing countries. Three main empirical analyses are conducted in this thesis. Firstly, using a regional panel data method, this study examines the effects of changes in minimum wage on wages and employment in Indonesia. Although the findings vary across different minimum wage measures and panel data methods, the result suggests that an increase in minimum wage increases wages and reduces paid employment in the covered sector, as predicted by the standard competitive model. The result shows that there is no significant impact on total paid employment because of the non-compliance problem in Indonesia. Secondly, extending the analysis, this thesis examines the effects of changes in minimum wage on employment in the covered and uncovered sectors using an individual micro-level data. The results suggest that an increase in minimum wage is more likely to decrease the covered sector employment and to inrease the uncovered sector employment. These results also indicate a displacement effect from the covered sector to the uncovered sector, as suggested by the two-sector model. Thirdly, providing a complete analysis of any adjustments in labour demand, this thesis examines the effects of changes in minimum wage on hours worked as an alternative measure of employment. Using a selection biased correction method based on multinomial logit, the empirical results suggest that an increase in minimum wage increases paid employment hours worked. However, compared to the minimum wage effects on employment, this hours effect is relatively small. The main reason is because the Indonesian minimum wage is set based on monthly term, suggesting a greater change in per-worker cost than in per-hour cost.
Commenting on Top Spanish YouTubers: “No Comment”

The aim of this paper was to analyze commenting activity and sentiment (polarity and subjectivity) in interactions in response to videos by Spain’s most-subscribed YouTubers. An exploratory study was conducted on the content of the comments, their relationship with other social media actions, subjectivity, and polarity, as well as from the perspective of the participatory culture. The results show that commenting is a potential option for interaction that is underused by the communities of users. Replies to comments are found to be limited to the user–user level, while YouTubers themselves and the moderators that YouTube allows them to designate rarely comment or reply on social networks. However, creators do monitor comments and provide feedback to a limited selection thereof in subsequent videos. There thus appears to be a strategic, exploitative use of comments, marked by a delayed response aimed at attracting audiences to new content.
Korean exchange rate forecasts using Bayesian variable selection

ABSTRACT Using Bayesian variable selection, we demonstrate that economic variables forecast Korea-US exchange rates better than random walk or random walk with drift model at a short horizon. It implies that the failure of out-of-sample exchange rate forecasts is due to the uncertainties associated with selecting proper predictors, rather than the lack of relationship between the exchange rate and its theoretical determinants. Our results also suggest that time-variant and asymmetric weights on predictors should be taken into account to understand exchange rates dynamics. (JEL classification: C11, C53, F31)
Employer Perceptions of Entry-Level Master's Degree Physical Therapy Graduate's Ability to Practice in a Direct Access Environment

The purpose of this study was to determine if employers in physical therapy outpatient facilities believed entry-level Master's degree graduates were adequately prepared to practice in a direct access environment. Three-hundred surveys were sent to employers in facilities in Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio. A Likert Scale was utilized to determine opinions regarding physical therapy skills a new graduate may have after graduating from an entry-level Master's degree program. Analysis of variance was used to determine differences in opinion based on skill and employer categorization. Results indicated that employers did not believe physical therapy graduates have adequate skills to recognize diagnoses beyond the scope of physical therapy, understand disease processes which may mimic orthopaedic disorders, or recognize when diagnostic testing is indicated. A majority of employers did not believe that entry-level Master's degree physical therapy graduates were adequately prepared to practice under direct access.
Die Janusköpfigkeit von Verhandlungsdemokratien. Zur Wirkung von Konkordanz, direkter Demokratie und dezentralen Entscheidungsstrukturen auf den öffentlichen Sektor der Schweizer Kantone

Dieser Beitrag analysiert die Varianzen der quantifizierbaren Staatstatigkeit in den 26 Schweizer Kantonen der 1980er und 1990er Jahre. Im Mittelpunkt der erklarenden Grossen stehen dabei Formen der Verhandlungsdemokratie, insbesondere der Konkordanz, dezentraler Entscheidungsstrukturen und direktdemokratischer Beteiligungsrechte. Wir zeigen, dass die Erweiterung des Konzeptes der Verhandlungsdemokratie auf weitere Staatsorgane neben der Regierung zur analytischen Unscharfe fuhrt, da die verschiedenen Auspragungen der politischen Machtteilung mit unterschiedlichen Wirkungen auf den Umfang des offentlichen Sektors verbunden sind. Wahrend die Konkordanz im Sinne der parteiformigen Organisation politischer und sozialer Konflikte tendenziell die staatliche Intervention begunstigt, zugeln konstitutionelle Vetospieler die Staatstatigkeit, indem direktdemokratische Mitwirkung und dezentrale Machtteilung dem Staat Fesseln auf der Einnahmen- und Ausgabenseite anlegen.
A Note on Uniqueness of Clearing Prices in Financial Systems

The Eisenberg and Noe (2001) model of the financial system is general- ized to the case where default is solved by means of a bankruptcy rule. For regular financial networks a unique vector of clearing prices exists if only the bankruptcy rule is strongly monotonic. This shows uniqueness of the clear- ing prices on regular financial networks for the class of equal sacrifice rules by Young (1988), and many variations of the proportional rule as in Csoka and Herings (2018). This paper disentangles the role of network topology from the way defaults are solved.
Yield and Quality Performance of Traditional and Improved Bread and Durum Wheat Varieties under Two Conservation Tillage Systems

The increasing spread of conservation agriculture demands that the next generation of wheat varieties includes cultivars capable of maintaining satisfactory yields with lower inputs and under uncertain climate scenarios. On the basis of the genetic gains achieved during decades of selection oriented to yield improvements under conventional crop management, it is important that novel breeding targets are defined and addressed. Grain yield, yield-related traits, and phenological and morphological characteristics, as well as functional quality parameters have been analyzed for six varieties each of bread and durum wheat, under minimum tillage and no-tillage. During the three-year experiment, the climatic conditions at the field trial site were characterized by low rainfall, although different degrees of aridity—from moderate to severe—were experienced. Differences were found between these two soil management practices in regard to the varieties’ yield stability. A positive influence of no-tillage on traits related to grain and biomass yield was also evidenced, and some traits among the examined seemed involved in varietal adaptation to a particular non-conventional tillage system. The study also confirmed some breeding targets for improved performance of wheat genotypes in conservation agroecosystems. These traits were represented in the small set of traditional varieties analysed.
Trends in Global Tourism Studies: A Content Analysis of the Publications in Tourism Management

ABSTRACT The article examines 2024 papers published in Tourism Management from 2001 to 2017. Overall bibliometric and thematic analysis are conducted to reveal the current trend in tourism studies. Findings reveal that key authors in Asia have become the leading researchers in tourism and a tight collaboration network among them has been formed as well. Tourism journals influence tourism studies, and six major themes (management, satisfaction, performance, seasonality, word of mouth, and perception) are discussed in detail. The conclusion from this study can shed light on the future direction of tourism research and industry practice in general.
The effect of brand diversification on IPO returns: An examination of restaurant IPOs

ABSTRACT This study examines whether pre-IPO brand diversification is related to IPO returns in the restaurant industry. More precisely, the study examines whether brand-diversified restaurant firms experience a lower underpricing in their IPO relative to non-diversified (focused) restaurant firms. Second, the study investigates whether pre-IPO brand diversification affects long-run returns of restaurant IPOs. The sample of study is 106 restaurant firms that completed an IPO between 1981 and 2015. For primary analyses, t-test and ordinary least square regression are used. Findings of the study reveal that pre-IPO brand diversification is a significant firm attribute for a restaurant firm that goes through an IPO. Brand-diversified restaurant firms’ shares are more accurately priced by the investors, therefore they experience underpricing to a significantly lesser degree than focused restaurant firms. The study finds mixed evidence for the long-run returns. In most part, multivariate analyses suggest that pre-IPO brand diversification does not affect the long-run IPO returns of restaurant firms.
The 2011 break in the part-time indicator and the evolution of wage inequality in Germany

German social security records involve an indicator for part-time or full-time work. In 2011, the reporting procedure was changed suggesting that a fraction of worker recorded to be working full-time before the change were in fact part-time workers. This study develops a correction based on estimating the probability of being a part-time worker before and after the break. Using the correction, the paper confirms that the rise in wage inequality among full-time workers in West Germany until 2010 is not a spurious consequence of the misreporting of working time.
Women in Spanish Municipal Councils and Budgetary Policies

As men and women are sociologically different, scientific literature attempts to explain differences in public outcomes in terms of the gender of elected representatives. In the municipal sphere, few studies have analyzed the short- and long-run effects of the gender of the mayor and the councillors on global budgetary policy. Our research aims to fill this gap. One of our main findings is that a change from a male to a female mayor, or a change in the proportion of female councillors ideologically alienated from a female mayor, has a significant impact on budgetary policy. We have also verified that the presence of female politicians with a right-wing ideology on a municipal council leads the municipality to lower levels of current expenditure with respect to non-social spending in both the short and the long term.
From Information Availability to Factual Accountability

Theories of democracy in communication studies have emphasized the importance of citizens encountering quality political information and incorporating that information into their views. These emphases on exposure tend to take the truth of the information being consumed for granted. Today, the problem of truth has become more visible, inviting reconsideration of how we expect truth to operate in democratic society. In this chapter, we suggest the need to consider not only the availability of information but also the conditions under which leaders and other communicators are held accountable for the veracity of their claims—a process we call factual accountability. We argue that members of the political elite, news media, and citizens each have roles to play in establishing factual accountability, but trends in each of these realms pose challenges to a truth-driven information order. We conclude with suggestions for reconstructing factual accountability as a basis for public conversation.
Home (not so) sweet home

Purpose This paper aims to elaborate on the crucial effects that a seemingly detrimental policy change in Spain has had on the international entrepreneurial activities of domestic renewable energy (RE) firms. Design/methodology/approach Primary data were collected from nine RE companies in Spain and then triangulated with secondary data and interviews from informants in other local institutions. Findings Domestic RE firms, due to an institutional scape driver action, reacted to an increasingly uncertain and generally more adverse renewable energy policy framework in this country by preferring to internationalise towards foreign markets that had lower political uncertainty than the domestic one. Research limitations/implications This paper complements previous research primarily on firm-specific factors that enhance internationalising firms’ survival and growth through a focus on the impact of a changing institutional-political environment at the home country-level. Practical implications Practitioners in the RE sector should analyse the risk of focusing only on the home market, as it can be too dependent on uncontrolled variations in domestic energy policy. Social implications The findings indicate that a more stable and supportive, long-term perspective in the domestic RE policy is essential for the sustained growth and development of this emerging industry. Originality/value To analyse the strategy by which a number of purposefully selected companies were able to use international expansion as a survival-seeking strategy against a drastic policy-level change in the domestic RE market.