bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Segmentation-Enhanced CycleGAN
Authors: Januszewski Michał , Jain Viren
Published: February 2019

Algorithmic reconstruction of neurons from volume electron microscopy data traditionally requires training machine learning models on dataset-specific ground truth annotations that are expensive and tedious to acquire. We enhanced the training procedure of an unsupervised image-to-image translation method with additional components derived from an automated neuron segmentation approach. We show that this method, Segmentation-Enhanced CycleGAN (SECGAN), enables near perfect reconstruction accuracy on a benchmark connectomics segmentation dataset despite operating in a “zero-shot” setting in which the segmentation model was trained using only volumetric labels from a different dataset and imaging method. By reducing or eliminating the need for novel ground truth annotations, SECGANs alleviate one of the main practical burdens involved in pursuing automated reconstruction of volume electron microscopy data.
Variation in filamentous growth and response to quorum-sensing compounds in environmental isolates ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae
Authors: Lenhart B. Adam , Meeks Brianna , Murphy Helen A.
Published: February 2019

In fungi, filamentous growth is a major developmental transition that occurs in response to environmental cues. In diploidSaccharomyces cerevisiae, it is known as pseudohyphal growth and presumed to be a foraging mechanism. Rather than normal unicellular growth, multicellular filaments composed of elongated, attached cells spread over and into surfaces. This morphogenetic switch can be induced through quorum sensing with the aromatic alcohols phenylethanol and tryptophol. Most research investigating pseudohyphal growth has been conducted in a single lab background, Σ1278b. To investigate the natural variation in this phenotype and its induction, we assayed the diverse 100-genomes collection of environmentalS. cerevisiaeisolates. Using computational image analysis, we quantified the production of pseudohyphae and observed a large amount of variation. Unlike ecological niche, population membership was associated with pseudohyphal growth, with the West African population having the most. Surprisingly, most strains showed little or no response to exogenous phenylethanol or tryptophol. We also investigated the amount of natural genetic variation in pseudohyphal growth using a mapping population derived from a single, highly-heterozygous clinical isolate that contained as much phenotypic variation as the environmental panel. A bulk-segregant analysis uncovered five major peaks with candidate loci that have been implicated in the Σ1278b background. Our results indicate that the filamentous growth response is a generalized, highly variable phenotype in natural populations, while response to quorum sensing molecules is surprisingly rare. These findings highlight the importance of coupling studies in tractable lab strains with natural isolates in order to understand the relevance and distribution of well-studied traits.
Sequencing and Imputation in GWAS: Cost-Effective Strategies to Increase Power and Genomic Coverage Across Diverse Populations
Authors: Quick Corbin , Anugu Pramod , Musani Solomon , Weiss Scott T. , Burchard Esteban G. , White Marquitta J. , Keys Kevin L. ,   NHLBI Trans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) Consortium, Cucca Francesco , Sidore Carlo , Boehnke Michael , Fuchsberger Christian
Published: February 2019

A key aim for current genome-wide association studies (GWAS) is to interrogate the full spectrum of genetic variation underlying human traits, including rare variants, across populations. Deep whole-genome sequencing is the gold standard to capture the full spectrum of genetic variation, but remains prohibitively expensive for large samples. Array genotyping interrogates a sparser set of variants, which can be used as a scaffold for genotype imputation to capture variation across a wider set of variants. However, imputation coverage and accuracy depend crucially on the reference panel size and genetic distance from the target population.

Here, we consider a strategy in which a subset of study participants is sequenced and the rest array-genotyped and imputed using a reference panel that comprises the sequenced study participants and individuals from an external reference panel. We systematically assess how imputation quality and statistical power for association depend on the number of individuals sequenced and included in the reference panel for two admixed populations (African and Latino Americans) and two European population isolates (Sardinians and Finns). We develop a framework to identify powerful and cost-effective GWAS designs in these populations given current sequencing and array genotyping costs. For populations that are well-represented in current reference panels, we find that array genotyping alone is cost-effective and well-powered to detect both common- and rare-variant associations. For poorly represented populations, we find that sequencing a subset of study participants to improve imputation is often more cost-effective than array genotyping alone, and can substantially increase genomic coverage and power.
Biochemical characterization of the methylmercaptopropionate:cob(I)alamin methyltransferase fromMethanosarcina acetivorans
Authors: Fu He , Goettge Michelle N. , Metcalf William W.
Published: February 2019

Methanogenesis from methylated substrates is initiated by substrate specific methyltransferases that generate the central metabolic intermediate methyl-coenzyme M. This reaction involves a methyl-corrinoid protein intermediate and one or two cognate methyltransferases. Based on genetic data, theMethanosarcina acetivoransMtpC (corrinoid protein) and MtpA (methyltransferase) proteins were suggested to catalyze the methylmercaptopropionate(MMPA):Coenzyme M (CoM) methyl transfer reaction without a second methyltransferase. To test this, MtpA was purified after overexpression in its native host and characterized biochemically. MtpA catalyzes a robust methyl transfer reaction using free methylcob(III)alamin as the donor and mercaptopropionate (MPA) as the acceptor, withkcatof 0.315 s-1and apparentKmfor MPA of 12 μM. CoM did not serve as a methyl acceptor, thus a second, unidentified methyltransferase is required to catalyze the full MMPA:CoM methyl transfer reaction. The physiologically relevant methylation of cob(I)alamin with MMPA, which is thermodynamically unfavorable, could also be demonstrated, but only at high substrate concentrations. Methylation of cob(I)alamin with methanol, dimethylsulfide, dimethylamine and methyl-CoM was not observed, even at high substrate concentrations. Although the corrinoid protein MtpC was poorly expressed alone, a stable MtpA/MtpC complex was obtained when both proteins were co-expressed. Biochemical characterization of this complex was not feasible because the corrinoid cofactor of this complex was in the inactive Co(II) state and could not be reactivated by incubation with strong reductants. The MtsF protein, comprised of both corrinoid and methyltransferase domains, co-purifies with the MtpA/MtpC, suggesting that it may be involved in MMPA metabolism.

IMPORTANCE

MMPA is an environmentally significant molecule produced by degradation of the abundant marine metabolite dimethylsulfoniopropionate, which plays a significant role in the biogeochemical cycles of both carbon and sulfur, with ramifications for ecosystem productivity and climate homeostasis. Detailed knowledge of the mechanisms for MMPA production and consumption is key to understanding steady state levels of this compound in the biosphere. Unfortunately, the biochemistry required for MMPA catabolism under anoxic conditions is poorly characterized. The data reported here validate the suggestion that the MtpA protein catalyzes the first step in methanogenic catabolism of MMPA. However, the enzyme does not catalyze a proposed second step required to produce the key intermediate methyl-CoM. Therefore, additional enzymes required for methanogenic MMPA catabolism await discovery.
Automated high-throughput heart rate measurement in medaka and zebrafish embryos under physiological conditions
Authors: Gierten Jakob , Pylatiuk Christian , Hammouda Omar , Schock Christian , Stegmaier Johannes , Wittbrodt Joachim , Gehrig Jochen , Loosli Felix
Published: February 2019

Rationale

Accurate and efficient quantification of heartbeats in small fish models is an important readout to study cardiovascular biology, disease states and pharmacology at large scale. However, dependence on anesthesia, laborious sample orientation or requirement for fluorescent reporters have hampered the establishment of high-throughput heartbeat analysis.

Objective

To overcome these limitations, we aimed to develop a high-throughput assay with automated heart rate scoring in medaka (Oryzias latipes) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos under physiological conditions designed for genetic screens and drug discovery and validation.

Methods and Results

We established an efficient screening assay employing automated label-free heart rate determination of randomly oriented, non-anesthetized specimen in microtiter plates. Automatically acquired bright-field data feeds into an easy-to-useHeartBeatsoftware, a MATLAB algorithm with graphical user interface developed for automated quantification of heart rate and rhythm. Sensitivity of the assay and algorithm was demonstrated by profiling heart rates during entire embryonic development. Our analysis pipeline revealed acute temperature changes triggering rapid adaption of heart rates, which has implications for standardization of experimental layout. The approach is scalable and allows scoring of multiple embryos per well resulting in a throughput of >500 embryos per 96-well plate. In a proof of principle screen for compound testing, our assay captured concentration-dependent effects of nifedipine and terfenadine over time.

Conclusion

A novel workflow andHeartBeatsoftware provide efficient means for reliable and direct quantification of heart rate and rhythm of small fish in a physiological environment. Importantly, confounding factors such as anesthetics or laborious mounting are eliminated. We provide detailed profiles of embryonic heart rate dynamics in medaka and zebrafish as reference for future assay development. Ease of sample handling, automated imaging, physiological conditions and software-assisted analysis now facilitate various large-scale applications ranging from phenotypic screening, interrogation of gene functions to cardiovascular drug development pipelines.
Measles vaccine virus RNA in children more than 100 days after vaccination
Authors: McMahon Jamie , Mackay Ian M , Lambert Stephen B
Published: February 2019

Measles vaccines have been in use since the 1960s with excellent safety and effectiveness profiles. Limited data are available on detection of measles vaccine virus (MeVV) RNA in human subjects following vaccination. Available evidence suggests MeVV RNA can be identified up to 14 days after vaccination, with detection beyond this rare. In routine diagnostic testing, we used two real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-rPCR) assays for identifying measles virus (MeV) and MeVV RNA, followed by sequence confirmation of RT-rPCR positives by a semi-nested conventional RT-PCR. We report detection and confirmation of MeVV RNA from the respiratory tract of 11 children between 100 and 800 days after most recent receipt of measles-containing vaccine. These novel preliminary findings emphasize the importance of genotyping all MeV detections and highlight the need for further work to assess whether persistent MeVV RNA represents viable virus and if transmission to close contacts can occur.
Crystal structure, shape analysis and bioactivity of new LiI, NaI and MgII complexes with 1,10-phenanthroline and 2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetic acid
Authors: Shah Syed Raza , Shah Zarbad , Ullah Najeeb , Hussain Javid , Al-Harrasi Rashid , Khan Ajmal , Rawson Jeremy M. , Al-Harrasi Ahmed , Anwar Muhammad U.
Published: February 2019

Reactions of 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) and 2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetic acid (dcaH) with Mn
(CO3) (M = LiI, NaI and MgII; n = 1 and 2) in MeOH yield the mononuclear lithium complex aqua[2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetato-κO](1,10-phenanthroline-κ2
N,N′)lithium(I), [Li(C8H5Cl2O2)(C12H8N2)(H2O)] or [Li(dca)(phen)(H2O)] (1), the dinuclear sodium complex di-μ-aqua-bis{[2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetato-κO](1,10-phenanthroline-κ2
N,N′)sodium(I)}, [Na2(C8H5Cl2O2)2(C12H8N2)2(H2O)2] or [Na2(dca)2(phen)2(H2O)2] (2), and the one-dimensional chain magnesium complex catena-poly[[[diaqua(1,10-phenanthroline-κ2
N,N′)magnesium]-μ-2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetato-κ2
O:O′] 2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)acetate monohydrate], {[Mg(C8H5Cl2O2)(C12H8N2)(H2O)2](C8H5Cl2O2)·H2O}
n
or {[Mg(dca)(phen)(H2O)2](dca)·H2O}
n
(3). In these complexes, phen binds via an N,N′-chelate pocket, while the deprotonated dca− ligands coordinate either in a monodentate (in 1 and 2) or bidentate (in 3) fashion. The remaining coordination sites around the metal ions are occupied by water molecules in all three complexes. Complex 1 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P\overline{1} with one molecule in the asymmetric unit. The Li+ ion adopts a four-coordinated distorted seesaw geometry comprising an [N2O2] donor set. Complex 2 crystallizes in the triclinic space group P\overline{1} with half a molecule in the asymmetric unit, in which the Na+ ion adopts a five-coordinated distorted spherical square-pyramidal geometry, with an [N2O3] donor set. Complex 3 crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group P212121, with one Mg2+ ion, one phen ligand, two dca− ligands and three water molecules in the asymmetric unit. Both dcaH ligands are deprotonated, however, one dca− anion is not coordinated, whereas the second dca− anion coordinates in a bidentate fashion bridging two Mg2+ ions, resulting in a one-dimensional chain structure for 3. The Mg2+ ion adopts a distorted octahedral geometry, with an [N2O4] donor set. Complexes 1–3 were evaluated against urease and α-glucosidase enzymes for their inhibition potential and were found to be inactive.
Just another Chinese city? Hong Kong’s post-1997 role to the European Union
Authors: Lai Suetyi
Published: February 2019

Purpose

By overviewing the role of Hong Kong to the European Union (EU), the world’s largest economic bloc and a key global actor, the purpose of this paper is to understand any change in international prominence and status of Hong Kong after two decades of its sovereignty return.

Design/methodology/approach

It is based on analysis of statistics, government discourses and official documents.

Findings

Main findings are that although the function of Hong Kong as an entrepot of China–EU trade and the ranking of the city as the EU’s trade partners have both diminished, the city sustains its roles as a platform to enter Mainland China, a regional hub in Asia, a major international capital market, a diplomatic counterpart and a partner in socio-cultural aspects to the EU. This paper agrees with the EU’s view that continuous well-functioning of Hong Kong under “One Country, Two System” serves stake of the Union which is keen on helping the SAR to ensure its high autonomy. Yet, the determinants remain Hong Kong and Beijing Governments, which have been and should continue to make use of Hong Kong’s closer tie with the mainland to promote international importance of both the city and China.

Originality/value

Research on relations between Hong Kong and the EU has been few, especially so in the past decades. This paper serves as a stock-take of the most recent developments in Hong Kong–EU relation.
Teaching classics as moral and civic education
Authors: Leung Cheuk-Hang , Chan Hin Yan
Published: February 2019

Purpose

In light of the concerns of declining value education in higher education and the debates on the role of general education in current university setting, the purpose of this paper is to discuss the relation between general education and moral and civic education by examining the effectiveness of a compulsory classics reading general education program in cultivating civic literacy in Asia-Pacific context.

Design/methodology/approach

Mixed-method approach in the form of survey assessment and focus group studies was employed to examine the degree of students’ development in abilities and virtues relevant to civic literacy in the course.

Findings

Data analyses reveal a promising development on students’ civic literacy in the classics reading general education course. Statistical analysis on surveys indicated students experienced a significant development on democratic skills and critical thinking, acquisition of civic knowledge and cultivation of democratic virtues after taking the course. Focus group analysis illustrated a relation between classics reading and students’ acquisition of knowledge of socio-political institutions, cultivation of open-mindedness and sense of tolerance for diversity and willingness of seeking reasonableness and engaging in social debates.

Originality/value

This paper discusses the successful experience of a newly formulated General Education program in Hong Kong. The program is the first attempt in East Asia to launch values education through the teaching and learning of classics in Asia-Pacific context. This could be an example of launching values education at the level of undergraduate education for other local universities.
Changing Hong Kong university students’ national identity through studying abroad
Authors: Cheng Annie , Szeto Elson
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore whether there are any effects on Hong Kong university students’ national identity after short-term study abroad. If so, what sources of influence from the short-term study abroad programme contribute to the students’ change in national identity?

Design/methodology/approach

Using the case study approach, 85 students completed a questionnaire, and a small group of 12 students were invited to individual interviews for further investigation.

Findings

Results show that the students’ perceptions of national identity are multiple and complicated through the lens of four components of national identity. The responses of students’ perceptions of change in identity were pointed to three statements: “feeling prouder of being Chinese”, “Hongkongers are very different from mainland Chinese” and “no change in my views of national identity”. The influences of study abroad experiences on national identity varied, dependent on the students’ interaction with the local and non-local people, and reflection on their own identity, whether on the cultural or political differences or on national achievements.

Research limitations/implications

The findings of this study can inform educators and administrators to enhance profound short-term study abroad experience for the students. The limitation of this case study is that it is concerned with understanding how small numbers of students construct meaning from their individual experience. It is recommended that studies with larger sampling sizes be conducted to investigate students’ perceptions of their national identity before and after studying abroad.

Originality/value

Considering the increasing number of Hong Kong youths who have participated in these short-term study-abroad programmes in higher education, the findings of this study are significant in terms of awakening the students’ taken-for-granted national identity, if any. The programme serves as a means of triggering the students’ feelings and emotions regarding their identity in different national, social and cultural contexts. This can inform policy makers, educational administrators and teachers to formulate an appropriate national education curriculum for the youth.
Walls all around: barriers women professionals face in high-tech careers in Bangladesh
Authors: Saifuddin Samina , Dyke Lorraine , Hossain Md Sajjad
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to create a nuanced understanding of the barriers women high-tech professionals face in Bangladesh. The main aim is to identify the extent to which these barriers are common across different contexts and to explore the barriers that are unique and situated in the local socio-cultural context.

Design/methodology/approach

In-depth interviews with high-tech professionals were conducted to identify and explore the barriers.

Findings

Although some of the barriers are common across different contexts, most of the barriers women professionals face arise due to the interaction between situated socio-cultural practices and gender. The dynamics of socio-cultural and patriarchal norms reinforce gender biases and gendered practices that afford men with greater control over resources and systematically limit women’s access to opportunities.

Research limitations/implications

The study recruited 35 participants using snowball sampling. From a methodological perspective, future research could benefit from recruiting a larger, more varied sample using random sampling.

Practical implications

Women experience barriers due to both internal organizational features and external contextual barriers. The findings suggest that some of these barriers can be removed through governmental and organizational policies and through appropriate intervention strategies delivered in partnership with governmental and non-governmental organizations.

Originality/value

The study makes a unique contribution by using a macro-social lens to analyze the meso-organizational practices and micro-individual phenomena thereby providing a holistic view of the barriers faced by women professionals in Bangladesh.
Building information modelling to support maintenance management of healthcare built assets
Authors: Wanigarathna Nadeeshani , Jones Keith , Bell Adrian , Kapogiannis Georgios
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate how digital capabilities associated with building information modelling (BIM) can integrate a wide range of information to improve built asset management (BAM) decision-making during the in-use phase of hospital buildings.

Design/methodology/approach

A comprehensive document analysis and a participatory case study was undertaken with a regional NHS hospital to review the type of information that can be used to better inform BAM decision-making to develop a conceptual framework to improve information use during the health-care BAM process, test how the conceptual framework can be applied within a BAM division of a health-care organisation and develop a cloud-based BIM application.

Findings

BIM has the potential to facilitate better informed BAM decision-making by integrating a wide range of information related to the physical condition of built assets, resources available for BAM and the built asset’s contribution to health-care provision within an organisation. However, interdepartmental information sharing requires a significant level of time and cost investment and changes to information gathering and storing practices within the whole organisation.

Originality/value

This research demonstrated that the implementation of BIM during the in-use phase of hospital buildings is different to that in the design and construction phases. At the in-use phase, BIM needs to integrate and communicate information within and between the estates, facilities division and other departments of the organisation. This poses a significant change management task for the organisation’s information management systems. Thus, a strategically driven top-down organisational approach is needed to implement BIM for the in-use phase of hospital buildings.
Missed opportunities: two case studies of digitalization of FM in hospitals
Authors: Koch Christian , Hansen Geir Karsten , Jacobsen Kim
Published: February 2019

Purpose

Digital practices of facility management (FM) are undergoing transformation. Several Nordic countries have ambitious hospital-building projects, driven by large public clients with long-term experience of operating complex building campuses. There is thus an opportunity for creating state-of-the-art digital FM. This paper aims to investigate the role of digital FM in new hospital projects in Scandinavia.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a literature review, a framework of understanding of digital FM in hospital operation is established. Two longitudinal cases are presented and analysed, one for a greenfield hospital and the other for an extension of an existing hospital.

Findings

The literature highlights the importance of integration between technical digitalization, competences, organization and management of digital FM. The projects are in different phases and represent quite advanced preparations for digital FM. State-of-the-art computer-aided FM systems are prepared before operation. External consultants are involved, posing a dilemma of in-house/outsourced human resources in the future digital FM operation.

Research limitations/implications

Two case studies provide insights, but they have limited generalizability.

Practical implications

The study underscores the importance of preparation of management, organization and competences for digitalization.

Originality/value

Documented research on building information modelling (BIM) integrations in FM is still scarce. This article adds to the few empirical studies in the area. The findings illustrate that real estate administrators investing in FM software for new hospital buildings face challenges of aligning BIM models from design and construction to the FM system.
A systematic literature review of persuasive architectural interventions for stimulating health behaviour
Authors: Hammink Coosje , Moor Nienke , Mohammadi Masi
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This systematic literature review focusses on original research that examines the effect of persuasive architectural interventions on stimulating health behaviour. This paper gives an overview of the empirical evidence and aims to examine the evidence for health behaviour change through architectural interventions and the underlying theoretical pathways and mechanisms using social cognitive theory.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reviewed 40 peer-reviewed articles found through Scopus, Google Scholar, Web of Science, PubMed and a supplementary hand search and examined for effect, type of interventions, type of behaviour and underlying mechanisms using social cognitive theory.

Findings

This review shows that architectural interventions can stimulate healthy behaviour. However, much of the research focusses on specific health behaviours (physical activity), in specific target groups (children or older adults) and with specific types of interventions (supplying provisions). Furthermore, the effect of the physical environment on cognitive factors should be taken into consideration.

Research limitations/implications

Hardly any research on smart architectural interventions for health behaviour change exists, but combining insights from product design and built environment has the potential to impact designing for health behaviour change.

Originality/value

Stimulating certain types of health behaviour can positively contribute to health goals and has been the focus of many health promotion practitioners over the years. The focus of health promotion interventions has primarily been on social and psychological factors. However, current research shows the importance of the physical environment as an influence on health behaviour. Potentially, with the use of smart technology, this effect could be enhanced.
Analyzing the impact of consumer innovativeness and perceived risk in internet banking adoption
Authors: Chauhan Vikas , Yadav Rambalak , Choudhary Vipin
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand consumers’ intention to adopt internet banking. The study adopted the technology acceptance model with additional constructs (i.e. consumer innate innovativeness (II), domain-specific innovativeness (DSI) and perceived security risk (PR)).

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected through a questionnaire-based survey (487 usable responses) from Indian consumers. A two-step SEM approach (i.e. measurement model and structural model) was used to analyze the data.

Findings

The findings show the significant positive influence of perceived usefulness, ease of use, attitude, II and DSI on consumer’s intention to adopt internet banking. The PR was found to have a significant negative influence on consumers’ intention to adopt internet banking, and DSI was found to negatively influence PR.

Research limitations/implications

The study is limited to users of a particular region of India. Furthermore, the study limits itself in determining consumers’ intention only, not actual usage.

Originality/value

The study is a preliminary attempt to examine consumer’s intention to adopt internet banking in India by analyzing innovativeness and perceived risk.
Modelling customer-based bank reputation: the moderating role of uncertainty avoidance
Authors: Ruiz Belén , García Juan A.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the moderating role of culture in terms of uncertainty avoidance in the antecedents of customer-based bank reputation in two countries with different cultural patterns.

Design/methodology/approach

This study was carried out by surveying 910 bank customers of the main banks in the UK and Spain. The hypotheses employed in this research were developed by contrasting the moderating role of uncertainty avoidance in the relationships between bank reputation and its antecedents, and were then tested through the use of partial least squares modelling.

Findings

Significant differences between British and Spanish bank customers were found with regard to the impact of innovation, workplace and leadership on bank reputation. However, the results obtained when considering uncertainty avoidance as a continuous moderator variable suggested that only the differences found as regards workplace and leadership were owing to this variable, thus providing empirical support for two out of the eight hypotheses developed on the basis of cultural theories.

Originality/value

This is the first study to analyse whether the relative importance of the antecedents of bank reputation differ with regard to customers’ uncertainty avoidance patterns, which is the cultural variable that is most closely linked in literature to customers’ banking decisions. This study contributes towards reputation research by showing that cultural differences in terms of uncertainty avoidance should be used with caution when establishing business guides for bank managers.
Factors affecting customers’ attitude towards Islamic banking in UAE
Authors: Kaakeh Abdulkader , Hassan M. Kabir , Van Hemmen Almazor Stefan F.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of the following factors: image, awareness, Shariah compliance and individualism, on the attitude and intention of customers to use Islamic banking among Bank customers in UAE, and the mediating role of attitude in that model, using a theoretical model based on the multi-attribute attitude model, the theory of reasoned actions and the theory of planned behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach

The research will focus on surveying bank customers living in UAE. The researcher will use structural equation modelling to analyse the data.

Findings

Results show that attitude and awareness affect intention directly, while image, awareness, Shariah compliance and individualism affect attitude directly and intention indirectly mediated by attitude.

Research limitations/implications

The sample size includes 178 bank customers living in three cities in UAE, hence, the rest of the country is not included.

Practical implications

The research shows the importance of Shariah compliance, individualism and image on attitude and intention and provides suggestions for banks to benefit from these aspects to widen their customer base.

Social implications

The study provides an insight into individuals’ decision making and the importance of a social approach by banks when advertising.

Originality/value

The research is the first empirical attempt to test new factors affecting attitude towards Islamic banking in UAE.
Understanding and evaluating teaching effectiveness in the UK higher education sector using experimental design
Authors: Antony Jiju , Karamperidis Stavros , Antony Frenie , Cudney Elizabeth A.
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the power of experimental design as a technique to understand and evaluate the most important factors which influence teaching effectiveness for a postgraduate course in a higher education (HE) context.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology involves the execution of a case study in the form of an experiment in a business school setting. The experiment was carried out with the assistance of over 100 postgraduate students from 26 countries. The data were collected over a two year period (2015 and 2016) from a postgraduate course offered by the same tutor for repeatability reasons.

Findings

The key findings of the experiment have clearly indicated that students’ perceptions of teaching effectiveness based on intuition and guesswork are not identical to the outcomes from a simple designed experiment. Moreover, the results of the experiment provided a greater stimulus for the wider applications of the technique to other processes across the case study HE sector.

Research limitations/implications

One of the limitations of the study is that the experiment was conducted for a popular postgraduate course. It would be beneficial to understand the results of the experiment for less popular postgraduate courses in the university in order to drive improvements. Moreover, this research was conducted only for postgraduate courses and the results may vary for undergraduate courses. This would be an interesting study to understand the differences in the factors between undergraduate and postgraduate teaching effectiveness.

Practical implications

The outcome of this experiment would help everyone who is involved in teaching to understand the factors and their influences to improve students’ satisfaction scores during the delivery of teaching.

Originality/value

This paper shows how experimental design as a pure manufacturing technique can be extended to a HE setting.
Reliability-based preventive maintenance strategies of road junction systems
Authors: Tee Kong Fah , Ekpiwhre Ejiroghene
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a study of reliability-centred maintenance (RCM), which is conducted on the key sub-assets of a newly constructed road junction infrastructure in Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

The classical RCM methodology, a type of RCM, which has a top down, zero-based approach for maintenance analysis, is implemented in this study.

Findings

The implementation of the classical RCM is successful in its application of various PM policies assigned to the assets and it shows that its application in the highway industry could reduce excessive maintenance backlog and frequent reactive maintenance by effective optimisation of its preventive maintenance (PM) intervals.

Practical implications

Road junctions are originators of more than 70 per cent of road traffic congestion and account for high accident rate. The traditional methods of reliability assurance used in the highway industry such as reactive maintenance and routine maintenance are often inadequate to meet the round the clock usage demands of these assets, thus the consideration for the application of a systematic RCM process for maintaining the system function by selecting and applying effective PM tasks.

Originality/value

It uses an approach that critically develops and analyses thoroughly preventive and continuous maintenance strategy in a new circumstance with environment of uncertainty and limited operating data. The case-based reasoning cycle has been applied in the RCM approach with real-time data obtained from a UK-based network maintenance management system for highway infrastructures.
Research in EE and ESD in Portuguese public universities
Authors: Borges Francisco , Benayas Javier
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to outline the scientific production in Portuguese universities in environmental education (EE) and education for sustainable development (ESD). It takes doctoral theses presented in public universities as reference, assuming that, in Higher Education, the production of doctoral theses is a key beacon of the scientific development in academic fields of knowledge.

Design/methodology/approach

The theses selected were subject to documentary and content analyses.

Findings

The results allow the identification of research trends and the recognition of detached aspects, such as the influence of the UN Decade of ESD in the research themes and the clear preponderance of a qualitative-led research tradition.

Originality/value

This paper provides an original and extensive review of PhD studies on EE and ESD in Portuguese public universities.
Brand communities’ relational outcomes, through brand love
Authors: Coelho Arnaldo , Bairrada Cristela , Peres Filipa
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to identify the impacts of brand communities on relational outcomes such as word-of-mouth, advocacy and loyalty through the mediating effects of brand love.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 510 valid questionnaires were collected from Portuguese consumers. Structural equation modeling was used to test the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

This investigation shows how brand communities may contribute to reinforce the bonds between brands and customers by introducing love in these relationships. The results of this study show that the identification dimension of brand communities has an important effect on brand love, word-of-mouth, advocacy and brand loyalty. Building on the foundations of previous studies, this research also highlights the role of brand love on word-of-mouth, brand advocacy and brand loyalty and the impact of brand loyalty on word-of-mouth, brand advocacy and brand loyalty.

Originality/value

This investigation makes two major contributions: first, investigating the impacts of brand communities, and second, using the mediating effects of brand love on relational outcomes.
Deliberating change
Authors: Lockton Marie
Published: February 2019

Purpose

How teachers collectively address conflicting beliefs about reforms and come to privilege some over others is critically important in understanding instructional change and stability. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on in-depth qualitative data gathered in interviews and observations of teachers’ formal collaboration time, this study focuses on teacher dialogue to examine the voicing and debate of teachers’ beliefs about reform efforts in their schools. Specifically, in two urban middle schools engaged in math instructional reforms, what are the conditions of teachers’ collaboration time that shape their dialogue about the feasibility of these reforms?

Findings

The findings reveal that the beliefs teachers voice vary widely depending on the topic of conversation. Teachers’ conversations about student achievement data and tracking elicited doubts about the possibility of instructional change, and conversations about other forms of student data and instructional strategies elicited a wider range of beliefs. Further, opportunities to meet with trusted colleagues as well as with wider groups provide teachers with different, but both useful experiences in exploring their own conflicting beliefs.

Practical implications

Avenues for shifting institutionalized beliefs about instruction in schools that have struggled to embrace equitable instructional practices for struggling students are discussed, along with implications for future research.

Originality/value

There is considerable research highlighting the characteristics of productive collaboration, but this paper provides a deeper understanding of the way teachers collectively negotiate beliefs about instructional changes in schools struggling to meet that mark.
Servant leadership
Authors: Qiu Shaoping , Dooley Larry
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop and validate an instrument intended to measure servant leadership behavior in the Chinese hospitality industry.

Design/methodology/approach

After reviewing the literature, a scale of nine dimensions with 81 items was generated and then subjected to exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using a sample of 600 participants from a polytechnic college and hospitality industry, resulting in 6-factor-33-item solution. The derived measure was then shortened to 24 items by using item response theory (IRT). Drawing on the data from 440 respondents in the hospitality industry, this 6-factor-24 item measure was subsequently validated with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and the test of construct validity.

Findings

Difference in factors has been found between this instrument and western-developed scales. This study resulted in 6-dimension-24-items scale. These dimensions were named integrity, self-sacrifice, building community, empowering people, emotional healing and visioning. This servant leadership scale was demonstrated to have good internal consistency reliability and strong construct validity.

Originality/value

This is the first study that used IRT as a statistic tool to shorten a servant leadership scale and also this study provided additional support to cultural psychology theory.
Innovation in the teaching-learning process: the case of Kahoot!
Authors: Guardia Juan José , Del Olmo José Luis , Roa Iván , Berlanga Vanesa
Published: February 2019

Purpose

In recent years, a process of reform and innovation in higher education has been witnessed. A change in the evaluation of student learning in universities is necessary for new teaching-learning proposals to be developed. The authors propose implementing a learning assessment process based on the idea of participatory evaluation, verifying the benefits of this method in the acquisition of cross-disciplinary skills.

Design/methodology/approach

The method implemented follows the principles of action research.

Findings

The Kahoot! app has an effect on the teaching-learning process and on the training skills and academic performance measured through the student’s grades.

Originality/value

This paper presents an innovation proposal that aims to observe how students acquire more competences.
Determinants of the academic performance of undergraduate students in statistics bachelor’s degree program
Authors: Yousef Darwish Abdulrahman
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The present study aims to investigate the effects of a number of demographic and academic factors, such as gender, age, nationality (Emirati vs non-Emirati), high school major (arts vs science) and high school score, on the academic performance – measured by overall grade point average – of undergraduate students majoring in statistics at United Arab Emirates University.

Design/methodology/approach

This study includes 188 undergraduate statistics students (142 female and 46 male) for the academic years 2012-2013 to 2015-2016. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the collected data.

Findings

The results indicate that gender, age and nationality have no significant impacts on the academic performance of undergraduate students in statistics bachelor’s degree program, while high school major and high school score do.

Research limitations/implications

This study had several limitations. First, only students of one university were included in this study, which would have limited the generalizability of the results. Second, the study focused on the impact of a limited number of factors on academic performance of undergraduate statistics students. But, the study has a number of implications for students, educators and university policy-makers.

Originality/value

The present study is the first attempt to explore the factors that might affect the academic performance of undergraduate students in statistics bachelor’s degree program in an Arabic setting.
Making the business case for AI in HR: two case studies
Authors: Altemeyer Boris
Published: February 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to analyse two large-scale business case studies for the benefits of using AI, computer science and machine learning to assess, recruit and retain staff.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors interrogate two large-scale case studies, including metrics on the success of AI in relation to user experience, compatibility, psychometric benchmarking.

Findings

The authors conclude that AI removes bias from assessment, recruitment and training processes and can save businesses significant time and resources as well as improve the cultural fit and diversity of their recruits. There is a balance to be struck, though, as the systems used are only as good as the science supporting the selection – and humans must ultimately retain the role of decision makers.

Originality/value

These business case studies are examined in detail for the first time in this paper.
Testing the readiness of an organisational culture profile to a TQM implementation
Authors: Tenji Tibor , Foley Andrea
Published: February 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to apply an existing theoretical model of organisational culture contextualised for total quality management (TQM) as a means of assessing the readiness for implementing TQM in the workplace. The “Amalgamated Model” is a hybrid that encapsulates organisational culture traits and their relative contribution as indictors of effective TQM implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

A questionnaire that would test the theoretical model was devised and administered to a sample population in a production facility located in Central Europe, Organisation X.

Findings

A profile of the organisation was derived which revealed the strengths and weaknesses of the organisation in relation to the cultural traits of the theoretical model.

Research limitations/implications

The research population comprised management/supervisory staff only and thus provides a partial view of Organisation X.

Practical implications

For practitioners, particularly those who specialise in quality management, the practical implications of this research are twofold: first, it provides insights into aspects of organisational culture and TQM implementation; and second, it demonstrates how a theoretical framework may be applied in the workplace to assess readiness for TQM implementation.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the subject area body of knowledge by applying a recent theoretical model to assess readiness for implementing TQM.
Relationship between dermoscopy and pathology in a case of clonal‐type pigmented Bowen's disease: Observation with vertical‐view dermoscopy
Authors: Yamanaka‐Takaichi Mika , Ozawa Toshiyuki , Kusutani Nao , Sowa‐Osako Junko , Tanaka Masaru , Murata Yozo , Kubo Yuki , Ohsawa Masahiko , Tsuruta Daisuke , Sakai Hiroshi
Published: February 2019

Pigmented Bowen's disease (pBD) is a subtype of Bowen's disease, which presents clinically as a well‐circumscribed, hyperpigmented plaque. Its clinical manifestations are not fully characterized, and differential diagnoses include various pigmented skin lesions. Dermoscopy could be useful for the diagnosis, although nothing has been reported on the dermoscopic features of clonal‐type pBD. We herein report a first case of clonal‐type pBD on the sole and its dermoscopic features. Dermoscopy showed brown to blue‐gray dots/globules and focally anastomosing lines on the non‐weight‐bearing area, while the weight‐bearing area had a brown to blue‐gray fibrillar‐like pattern. To investigate the relationship between dermoscopy and histopathology, we focused on the melanin distribution in the horny layer of the epidermis, and used vertical dermoscopy observation. We investigated the relationship between dermoscopy and pathology by melanin depth estimation using a color lightness value.