bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The link between guanxi and customer–salesperson collusion
Authors: Tseng Lu-Ming
Published: July 2016

Purpose

In the insurance industry, it is common for the insurance salespeople to sell insurance products to friends, relatives and associates. However, permitting (or encouraging) salespeople to sell insurance through personal relationships may result in some ethical conflicts. For example, some insurance salespeople may help relatives or friends with pre-existing medical conditions buy the health insurance. Previous studies on insurance fraud have rarely focused on this problem. Thus, this study aims to investigate the effects of guanxi (guanxi refers to the durable social connections and relationships a Chinese person uses to exchange favors for a specific purpose) on the salespeople’s acceptance of customer–salesperson collusions. Two types of guanxi are discussed in the research. The author further focuses on how the ethical attitudes and intentions are affected by the salespeople’s guanxi considerations, consequence evaluations, perception of peers’ attitudes, perceived harm to other policyholders and perceived probability of being caught.

Design/methodology/approach

Full-time life insurance salespeople from Taiwan were surveyed, and partial least squares method was used in the study.

Findings

The results showed that the types of guanxi, guanxi considerations, consequence evaluations, perception of peers’ attitudes and perceived harm to other policyholders were important in forming the salespeople’s ethical decision-making in the customer–salesperson collusions.

Originality/value

This is the first time that guanxi has been studied as the factor influencing collusive behaviors in the problems of insurance fraud. The results challenged an established belief that the insurance salespeople should first target close relations as they build their portfolio of customers.
Conflict management and age in service professions
Authors: Beitler Lena Aline , Machowski Sabine , Johnson Sheena , Zapf Dieter
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper was to examine age differences in conflict management strategy use, effectiveness and in exposure to customer stressors in service interactions.

Design/methodology/approach

Moderated regression and mediation analyses were conducted to test hypotheses in a sample of 444 German service employees from different service branches with frequent customer contact.

Findings

Results revealed that older service employees experienced fewer customer stressors. Customer stressors mediated the negative relationship between age and burnout. Age was associated with use of passive avoidant (avoiding) and active constructive (problem solving) conflict management strategies. Furthermore, older employees used those strategies more effectively. Especially when avoiding conflicts, older employees reported more professional efficacy than younger colleagues. In contrast, younger employees benefited considerably less from strategy use and reported higher levels of burnout in general. Thus, results suggest older employees’ effective conflict management and their positive perception of customer stressors contribute to lower levels of burnout.

Practical implications

Results speak against a general deficit model for older workers as they show specific strengths of older employees in social conflicts. Their expertise in dealing with negative social interactions represents an important resource for organizations and training interventions, such as mentoring programs.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first to examine age-related conflict management skills with regard to customer conflicts, employee health and effectiveness of strategy use. It replicates existing findings on age and conflict management and extends them in several ways thereby ruling out alternative explanations for age effects.
Structural equation test of relationship quality
Authors: Izogo Ernest Emeka
Published: July 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine how companies can influence customers’ repurchase intention and willingness to recommend through relationship quality (RQ hereafter) constructs by leveraging customer orientation, expertise and information sharing.

Design/methodology/approach

– The research informants were recruited from a Southeastern Nigerian city. Data analysis was based on 303 qualified cases extracted from the 332 valid responses retrieved from the customers of retail banking services through a bank-intercept method and online survey.

Findings

– Except customer orientation, all the antecedents of RQ were directly related to trust and satisfaction. Whereas satisfaction was both directly and indirectly related to repurchase intention and willingness to recommend, trust was directly and indirectly related to repurchase intention but was not directly related to willingness to recommend. It was only indirectly related to willingness to recommend through satisfaction and repurchase intention. Trust and satisfaction mediate the link between RQ antecedents and repurchase intention and willingness to recommend. The research model explained 67 per cent of the total variance in willingness to recommend.

Research limitations/implications

– The mediating role of RQ in the link between customer orientation, expertise and information sharing and repurchase intention and willingness to recommend remains largely untested in the literature. This provides an avenue for future studies to extend RQ research to the nature of the construct’s behaviour when it is tested as a mediator in the relationship between its antecedents and consequences especially in West Africa where substantive research is scarce.

Practical implications

– One of the key measures that retail banks can use to keep customers’ patronage and spur them into making business referrals is to build trust and deliver pleasurable satisfaction by leveraging customer orientation, expertise and information sharing.

Originality/value

– As far as could be established, this paper represents the first attempt to simultaneously explore the indirect effects of customer orientation, expertise and information sharing on repurchase intention and willingness to recommend through the constructs of RQ. The paper further demonstrates that the relationships estimated within the model are not moderated by gender and occupation differences.
The determinants of location choice
Authors: Lv Ping , Spigarelli Francesca
Published: July 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to analyze the role of institutional distance and host country attractiveness in location determinants of Chinese Foreign investments in EU in the renewable energy sector, taking into account bilateral political and economic relations.

Design/methodology/approach

– A firm-level Ministry of Commerce (MofCom) database of greenfield and non-greenfield Chinese investments abroad is used. A six fixed-effects logit analysis is performed.

Findings

– Chinese firms tend to invest in EU countries with reduced rule of law; market affluence is an attraction factor for them, but they do not seem to be human capital asset-seekers. Countries with politically stable environment are most attractive to sales/services subsidiaries; while countries with good control of corruption, low trade barriers and encouraging foreign ownership are most attractive to manufacturing subsidiaries. A large market is the most attractive factor for R & D subsidiaries, and a rich market is the most attractive factor for manufacturing subsidiaries. Manufacturing subsidiaries are more technological asset-seekers. R & D subsidiaries are the most non-human capital asset-seekers.

Research limitations/implications

– The study extends the state of the art of the literature by developing a theoretical framework, grounded on the influence of host country institutional factors and on endowment of resources on the location choice of Chinese investors. Further variables should be included in the future (industrial specialization of host country, cultural distance, bilateral ties).

Practical implications

– Policy implications are relevant. They are related both to outward foreign direct investment attraction policies and to Europe-China cooperation dialogue. With reference to attraction policies, as Chinese green firms are technological asset-seekers, more than human capital asset-seekers, EU countries interested in partnering with Chinese investors should develop specific measures targeting encouraging technology spillover. Even R & D subsidiaries should be tempted with technology-oriented measures. With reference to Europe-China cooperation, the paper findings support suggestions for a more active European position on foreign investments in key European energy sectors.

Originality/value

– The paper is grounded on an improved theoretical model, tested through a unique Mofcom firm-level database. Originality lies in the fact that the authors provide a sectoral insight. The need for sectoral analysis is fundamental as Chinese industrial development and internationalization path vary extensively across industry, due to policy interventions, supportive measures and prioritized initiatives. Zhanget al.(2011, p. 229) found that – specifically – the energy sector is highly sensitive to host country institutional context, therefore Chinese foreign direct investment are more likely to be exposed to regulatory and competitive pressure compared to other industries.
The role of personalization, engagement, and trust in online communities
Authors: Kang Minjeong , Shin Dong-Hee , Gong Taeshik
Published: July 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore whether brand community characteristics (perceived personalization and familiarity among members) affect brand community engagement through customer-to-customer (C2C) interaction.

Design/methodology/approach

– A survey questionnaire was distributed to members of online brand communities to test the research hypotheses.

Findings

– The findings showed that the relationships among the brand community constructs are significant. C2C interaction mediates the relations between the characteristic variables and brand community engagement. Furthermore, the findings revealed that brand community trust moderates the effects of perceived personalization on the quality of C2C interaction and on brand community engagement. It also moderates the relations between perceived familiarity among community members and each of brand community engagement and the quality of C2C interaction.

Practical implications

– Marketers should utilize a brand community’s C2C interaction for its marketing strategies. Moreover, managing brand communities by focussing on perceived personalized service and the familiarity of members can also ultimately increase community engagement by enhancing the quality of C2C communication.

Originality/value

– This study argues that firms need to manage online brand communities intuitively in order to increase members’ community engagement. To do so, they need to allocate spaces in which C2C communication can actively occur within brand communities, for example, in a discussion forum.
Contributive roles of multilevel organizational learning for the evolution of organizational ambidexterity
Authors: Yan Mengling , Yu Yan , Dong Xiaoying
Published: July 2016

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to reveal how organizational learning at the strategic and operational levels (i.e. strategic learning and business learning, respectively) contribute to the development of organizational ambidexterity along the growth of enterprises from an evolutionary view.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors conducted a longitudinal single case study on Huawei – a leading Chinese firm in the telecommunication industry. Data were collected from various sources including interviews, senior speeches, scholarly publications, company magazines and other documents, and was analyzed in line with the principles of grounded theory.

Findings

– This research reveals that the case company (Huawei) constructed organizational ambidexterity with different foci during different development stages. The organization’s ambidextrous capability evolves over time, shifting from one domain to another. Such ambidexterity development was largely beneficial from the multilevel organizational learning at both the strategic level (focussing on the whole organization and long-term goals) and operational level (focussing on local interests and short-term goals).

Originality/value

– This paper represents one of the earliest works to uncover the ambidexterity building process from an evolutionary approach that requires the collection of longitudinal data. Also, the paper proposes a multi-level learning framework for ambidexterity building in practice. This framework distinguishes strategic learning from business learning and projects the two types of learning into learning at four levels-individual, team, intra-organizational, and inter-organizational, which can be leveraged to guide division of labor among hierarchical levels during the progressive development of ambidexterity.
Modeling Lean implementation for manufacturing sector
Authors: Sharma Vikram , Dixit Amit Rai , Qadri Mohd. Asim
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this research paper is to identify the enablers for Lean implementation in the manufacturing sector, to establish a relationship among them using interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and to rank them using interpretive ranking process (IRP).

Design/methodology/approach

The research paper presents a blend of theoretical framework and practical applications. In the paper, eight enablers of Lean production are identified from literature survey and experts’ opinion. These include 5S, value stream mapping (VSM), just in time, single minute exchange of die, computer-integrated manufacturing, concurrent engineering, training and enterprise resource planning. ISM is used to obtain a structural relationship among these enablers of Lean. MICMAC analysis is used to identify the driving power and dependence of the variables. Further, IRP is used to rank the lean enablers with respect to key performance areas.

Findings

The ISM- and IRP-based models indicate that “training” is the most significant factor for the Lean implementation process in manufacturing sector. The MICMAC analysis also shows that “training” has the maximum driving power and the least dependence and hence has strong managerial significance. The management should place high priority on tackling this criterion. VSM occupies the top level in the ISM hierarchy, indicating that all other Lean enablers should act in unison to make VSM implementation a success.

Originality/value

Enablers are the building blocks for deployment of the Lean concept. To know the key enablers and relationship among them can help many organizations to develop Lean competencies. This study is perhaps among the first few that focuses on two modeling procedures based on interpretive logic, i.e. ISM and IRP. The paper provides useful insights to the Lean production implementers, consultants and researchers.
Impact of bias in the estimation of American-style options by Monte Carlo simulation
Authors: Chiralaksanakul Anukal
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of bias error resulted from using Monte Carlo simulation in evaluating the American-style option value.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors develop an analytical approximation formula to quantify the bias error under the assumption of conditionally independent and identically distributed samples of asset prices. The bias arises from the nested optimization and expectation calculation. The formula is then used to numerically quantify the bias and as an objective function for bias minimization for a given budget of samples.

Findings

Monte Carlo methods used in valuation of American-style options can results in bias error ranging from 2 to 10 per cent of the option value. The bias error can be reduced up to 50 per cent either by performing a better scheme for sampling or by efficiently allocating sample size.

Research limitations/implications

The running time of the proposed procedure can be improved by using a specialized algorithm to solve the sample size allocation problem instead of using a commercially available subroutine MINOS. Other sampling procedures for bias reduction may be extended and applied to this multi-stage problem.

Practical implications

The methodology can help to more accurately approximate the option value.

Originality/value

The paper provides a method to develop an analytical approximation for bias error and provide a numerical experiment to test the methodology.
A novel hybrid MCDM approach for outsourcing supplier selection
Authors: Rezaeisaray Maedeh , Ebrahimnejad Sadoullah , Khalili-Damghani Kaveh
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine the criteria weights of outsourcing and their key role in ranking outsourcing suppliers.

Design/methodology/approach

A new hybrid multi-criteria decision-making approach merges three tools, namely, decision making trial and evaluation (DEMATLE), fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) and ordinal/cardinal data envelopment analysis (DEA) model. Afterwards, experts’ opinions were gathered from a Pipe and Fittings company. Finally, their opinions were incorporated in three-stage approach for outsourcing suppliers’ selection.

Findings

The findings of this study show that among the selective criteria for outsourcing, business development, focus on basic activities and order delays are the three most important criteria. Also, the proposed approach ranks suppliers to facilitate decision making for selection.

Research limitations/implications

The number of suppliers, selection criteria and the number of members of the respondents’ team have been identified as some of the limitations of the present study.

Practical implications

The study has significant and practical implications for the managers and for the organizations which have to choose top suppliers, particularly in the case of dealing with numerous and qualitative/quantitative criteria.

Originality/value

This paper proposed a new three-stage approach that incorporates outputs of previous as inputs of next stage to increasing results accuracy. Also, it showed that by incorporating results of FANP method into DEA model, key role of experts’ opinions as a qualitative and quantitative criteria can be caused by increasing flexibility of decision process.
A unique index with the explicit cost related to forecast
Authors: Sharma Sanjay
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The present paper aims to draw an attention towards the inclusion of forecast related costs. Its main purpose is to initiate a new line of research/practice including the forecasting expenditure.

Design/methodology/approach

After a relevant review of supply chain/procurement/production planning related literature, it has been observed that the existing work lacks an explicit inclusion of the cost concerned with forecast. The increased cost of forecasting is expected to enhance the forecasting accuracy. At a higher level, product family is considered for the analysis. However, a basic unit of analysis is always a single item production/procurement situation. Therefore, this situation has been discussed analytically with the use of the fundamental equations and an explicit inclusion of forecasting cost for the first time in the relevant literature. Numerous practical applications have been discussed at strategic and operational level. A framework is also presented for future research in this area.

Findings

A specific contribution of the present paper is an approach towards a unique index for relative forecasting expenditure. The suggested index will be useful for comparison purpose. Also, it can be used as a benchmark that can be improved in future.

Practical implications

The case is explained when cycle time is invariant after discussing the other potential applications. Usefulness of the proposed methodology and the index is discussed for the business organizations operating independently or in the supply chains.

Originality/value

On the basis of the forecast, a production or procurement plan is generated in many of the industrial or business situations. In the context of supply chain/production/inventory management, focus is more on demand forecasting techniques or generation of the forecasts in the existing literature. However, the increased costs concerning forecasts are expected to provide more accurate prediction. Therefore, the originality lies in an inclusion of forecast related costs.
A causal analytic model to evaluate the impact of researchers’ individual innovativeness on their collaborative outputs
Authors: Cimenler Oguz , Reeves Kingsley A. , Skvoretz John , Oztekin Asil
Published: July 2016

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a model that tests to what extent researchers’ interactions in the early stage of their collaborative network activities affect the number of collaborative outputs (COs) produced (e.g. joint publications, joint grant proposals and joint patents).

Design/methodology/approach

Using self-reports from 100 tenured/tenure-track faculty at a US-based university, partial least squares (PLS) path models are run to test the extent to which researchers’ individual innovativeness (Iinnov) affects the number of COs they produced taking into account the tie strength (TS) of a researcher to other conversational partners. Iinnov is determined by the specific indicators obtained from researchers’ interactions in the early stage of their collaborative network activities.

Findings

The results indicate that researchers’ Iinnov positively affects the volume of their COs. Furthermore, TS negatively affects the relationship between researchers’ Iinnov and the volume of their COs, which is consistent with the famous “Strength of Weak Ties” theory.

Practical implications

By investigating the degree of impact of researchers’ Iinnov on their CO, college administration could be informed regarding the extent that the social cohesion formed by interpersonal ties affects or drives the collaboration activity that results in COs. When this paper is extended to the entire university, university administration would know the capability of the different colleges, or even the university as a whole, in transforming the ideas embedded in researchers’ networks into a productive work in a collaborative manner.

Originality/value

It is one of the foremost attempts to investigate the relationship between researchers’ Iinnov during ideation phase and their CO. Moreover, this paper contributes to the literature regarding the transformation of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge at a university context.
Standardized but flexible information exchange for networked public administrations
Authors: Folmer Erwin , Matzner Martin , Räckers Michael , Scholta Hendrik , Becker Jörg
Published: July 2016

Purpose

Governmental institutions must cooperate with other organizations across institutional boundaries to achieve high-quality service offerings. The required cooperation may lead to complex networks, including several of the thousands of public administrations in the many federal layers of a single country. This paper aims to address the key challenge of the proper management of the information exchange between networked actors, which is generally conducted by means of forms.

Design/methodology/approach

Following the design science research paradigm, this research develops a method that assists in the design and maintenance of forms in public administrations.

Findings

Discussions in the project’s focus groups add evidence to the researchers’ expectation that the method developed in this study improves the quality of forms while reducing the effort required for their design and maintenance.

Research limitations/implications

This paper includes an evaluation of the approach based on qualitative feedback from the project’s stakeholders, although the implementation of the workflows and procedures is subject to future work that evaluates the approach in a variety of practical settings.

Practical implications

The method developed in this paper allows public administrations and legislative authorities to design and manage forms in a cooperative way. Software developers can assume the existence of information structures. The approach extends the BOMOS standardization framework to the operational level.

Originality/value

The main contribution of this paper is the development of a novel method that will change how information exchange is managed in public administrations.
Cattle sharing and rental contracts in an Agrarian economy: evidence from Ethiopia
Authors: Tadesse Million A. , Holden Stein T. , Øygard Ragnar A. , McPeak John
Published: July 2016

Empirical evidence on the role of cattle sharing and rental contracts in agrarian economies is limited. This article is an investigation of different types of cattle sharing and rental contracts producers in rural Ethiopia adopt. It also investigates why households in rural Ethiopia rely on these contracts that are vulnerable and therefore subject to potential moral hazard problems described in earlier literature. We apply random effect probit and control function econometric methods to household panel data collected in 2005 and 2007 from two agro‐ecological zones in Ethiopia. Controlling for the endogeneity of access to livestock credit, we find that contracts are spatially fragmented and better developed where population density is high and credit and insurance markets are poorly developed. We also find that contracts help cash poor and credit constrained households to improve their herd dynamics, to get access to nonlivestock resources (land, labor and cash) and share risks that could have been difficult without the contract. We show that contracts are rational responses of residents in rural communities characterized by imperfect credit and insurance services, since households with better access to credit are less likely to rely on contracts.
Are rural and remote patients, families and caregivers needs in life‐limiting illness different from those of urban dwellers? A narrative synthesis of the evidence
Authors: Kirby Sue , Barlow Veronica , Saurman Emily , Lyle David , Passey Megan , Currow David
Published: July 2016

This review aimed to assess the evidence to answer the question whether palliative end‐of‐life care needs of patients and caregivers in rural and remote communities differs from those of urban dwellers. Peer‐reviewed studies from 1996 to the present dealing with the experience of rural and remote patients and caregivers at the end‐of‐life compared with that of urban people were extracted for narrative synthesis. The eight studies included showed that palliative needs of rural and remote residents are related to context. Diagnosis and treatment are less well managed in rural areas. Rural differences include: people are more accepting of death and less likely to intervene to delay death; caregivers tend to be younger and include friends as well as family and local support networks are important. Rural and remote end‐of‐life needs are shaped by reduced access and availability of services which has a negative influence on outcomes. This is counterbalanced by an acceptance of death and local support networks. Well‐designed longitudinal studies with samples comprised of rural and urban residents for comparison are required to monitor how end‐of‐life need might change with the approach of death. Clinicians, health services and policy makers need a better understanding of rural attitudes and of how rural community networks mobilise to support end‐of‐life care in their rural and remote communities.
Comparing Large Covariance Matrices under Weak Conditions on the Dependence Structure and its Application to Gene Clustering
Authors: Chang Jinyuan , Zhou Wen , Zhou Wen-Xin , Wang Lan
Published: July 2016

Comparing large covariance matrices has important applications in modern genomics, where scientists are often interested in understanding whether relationships (e.g., dependencies or co-regulations) among a large number of genes vary between different biological states. We propose a computationally fast procedure for testing the equality of two large covariance matrices when the dimensions of the covariance matrices are much larger than the sample sizes. A distinguishing feature of the new procedure is that it imposes no structural assumptions on the unknown covariance matrices. Hence, the test is robust with respect to various complex dependence structures that frequently arise in genomics. We prove that the proposed procedure is asymptotically valid under weak moment conditions. As an interesting application, we derive a new gene clustering algorithm which shares the same nice property of avoiding restrictive structural assumptions for high-dimensional genomics data. Using an asthma gene expression dataset, we illustrate how the new test helps compare the covariance matrices of the genes across different gene sets/pathways between the disease group and the control group, and how the gene clustering algorithm provides new insights on the way gene clustering patterns differ between the two groups. The proposed methods have been implemented in an R-package HDtest and are available on CRAN.
Nonparametric Inference on Quantile Lost Lifespan
Authors: Balmert Lauren , Jeong Jong-Hyeon
Published: July 2016

In this article, the existing concept of reversed percentile residual life, or percentile inactivity time, is recast to show that it can be used for routine analysis of time-to-event data under right censoring to summarize “life lost,” which poses several advantages over the existing methods for survival analysis. An estimating equation approach is adopted to avoid estimation of the probability density function of the underlying time-to-event distribution to estimate the variance of the quantile estimator. Additionally a K-sample test statistic is proposed to test the ratio of the quantile lost lifespans. Simulation studies are performed to assess finite properties of the proposed K-sample statistic in terms of coverage probability and power. The proposed method is illustrated with a real data example from a breast cancer study.
Time Series Modeling of Pathogen-Specific Disease Probabilities with Subsampled Data
Authors: Fisher Leigh , Wakefield Jon , Bauer Cici , Self Steve
Published: July 2016

Many diseases arise due to exposure to one of multiple possible pathogens. We consider the situation in which disease counts are available over time from a study region, along with a measure of clinical disease severity, for example, mild or severe. In addition, we suppose a subset of the cases are lab tested in order to determine the pathogen responsible for disease. In such a context, we focus interest on modeling the probabilities of disease incidence given pathogen type. The time course of these probabilities is of great interest as is the association with time-varying covariates such as meteorological variables. In this set up, a natural Bayesian approach would be based on imputation of the unsampled pathogen information using Markov Chain Monte Carlo but this is computationally challenging. We describe a practical approach to inference that is easy to implement. We use an empirical Bayes procedure in a first step to estimate summary statistics. We then treat these summary statistics as the observed data and develop a Bayesian generalized additive model. We analyze data on hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) in China in which there are two pathogens of primary interest, enterovirus 71 (EV71) and Coxackie A16 (CA16). We find that both EV71 and CA16 are associated with temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed, with reasonably similar functional forms for both pathogens. The important issue of confounding by time is modeled using a penalized B-spline model with a random effects representation. The level of smoothing is addressed by a careful choice of the prior on the tuning variance.
Modeling of Successive Cancer Risks in Lynch Syndrome Families in the Presence of Competing Risks Using Copulas
Authors: Choi Yun-Hee , Briollais Laurent , Win Aung K. , Hopper John , Buchanan Dan , Jenkins Mark , Lakhal-Chaieb Lajmi
Published: July 2016

In this article, we propose an association model to estimate the penetrance (risk) of successive cancers in the presence of competing risks. The association between the successive events is modeled via a copula and a proportional hazards model is specified for each competing event. This work is motivated by the analysis of successive cancers for people with Lynch Syndrome in the presence of competing risks. The proposed inference procedure is adapted to handle missing genetic covariates and selection bias, induced by the data collection protocol of the data at hand. The performance of the proposed estimation procedure is evaluated by simulations and its use is illustrated with data from the Colon Cancer Family Registry (Colon CFR).
Recommendations for the diagnosis and initial evaluation of patients with Waldenström Macroglobulinaemia: A Task Force from the 8th International Workshop on Waldenström Macroglobulinaemia
Authors: Castillo Jorge J. , Garcia‐Sanz Ramon , Hatjiharissi Evdoxia , Kyle Robert A. , Leleu Xavier , McMaster Mary , Merlini Giampaolo , Minnema Monique C. , Morra Enrica , Owen Roger G. , Poulain Stephanie , Stone Marvin J. , Tam Constantine , Varettoni Marzia , Dimopoulos Meletios A. , Treon Steven P. , Kastritis Efstathios
Published: July 2016

The diagnosis of Waldenström macroglobulinaemia (WM) can be challenging given the variety of signs and symptoms patients can present. Furthermore, once the diagnosis of WM is established, the initial evaluation should be thorough as well as appropriately directed. During the 8th International Workshop for WM in London, United Kingdom, a multi‐institutional task force was formed to develop consensus recommendations for the diagnosis and initial evaluation of patients with WM. In this document, we present the results of the deliberations that took place to address these issues. We provide recommendations for history‐taking and physical examination, laboratory studies, bone marrow aspiration and biopsy analysis and imaging studies. We also provide guidance on the initial evaluation of special situations, such as anaemia, hyperviscosity, neuropathy, Bing‐Neel syndrome and amyloidosis. We hope these recommendations serve as a practical guidance to clinicians taking care of patients with a suspected or an established diagnosis of WM.
Gender Differences in Child Aggression: Relations With Gender‐Differentiated Parenting and Parents’ Gender‐Role Stereotypes
Authors: Endendijk Joyce J. , Groeneveld Marleen G. , van der Pol Lotte D. , van Berkel Sheila R. , Hallers‐Haalboom Elizabeth T. , Bakermans‐Kranenburg Marian J. , Mesman Judi
Published: July 2016

This longitudinal study examines the association between child gender and child aggression via parents’ physical control, moderated by parents’ gender‐role stereotypes in a sample of 299 two‐parent families with a 3‐year‐old child in the Netherlands. Fathers with strong stereotypical gender‐role attitudes and mothers were observed to use more physical control strategies with boys than with girls, whereas fathers with strong counterstereotypical attitudes toward gender roles used more physical control with girls than with boys. Moreover, when fathers had strong attitudes toward gender roles (stereotypical or counterstereotypical), their differential treatment of boys and girls completely accounted for the gender differences in children's aggressive behavior a year later. Mothers’ gender‐differentiated parenting practices were unrelated to gender differences in child aggression.
Triglyceride‐rich lipoprotein metabolism in women: roles of apoC‐II and apoC‐III
Authors: Ooi Esther M. , Chan Dick C. , Hodson Leanne , Adiels Martin , Boren Jan , Karpe Fredrik , Fielding Barbara A. , Watts Gerald F. , Barrett P. Hugh R.
Published: July 2016

Background

Experimental data suggest that apolipoprotein (apo) C‐II and C‐III regulate triglyceride‐rich lipoprotein (TRL) metabolism, but there are limited studies in humans. We investigated the metabolic associations of TRLs with apoC‐II and apoC‐III concentrations and kinetics in women.

Material and methods

The kinetics of plasma apoC‐II, apoC‐III and very low‐density lipoprotein (VLDL) apoB‐100 and triglycerides were measured in the postabsorptive state using stable isotopic techniques and compartmental modelling in 60 women with wide‐ranging body mass index (19·5–32·9 kg/m2).

Results

Plasma apoC‐II and apoC‐III concentrations were positively associated with the concentrations of plasma triglycerides, VLDL1‐ and VLDL2‐apoB‐100 and triglyceride (all P < 0·05). ApoC‐II production rate (PR) was positively associated with VLDL1‐apoB‐100 concentration, VLDL1 triglyceride concentration and VLDL1 triglyceride PR, while apoC‐II fractional catabolic rate (FCR) was positively associated with VLDL1 triglyceride FCR (all P < 0·05). No significant associations were observed between apoC‐II and VLDL2 apoB‐100 or triglyceride kinetics. ApoC‐III PR, but not FCR, was positively associated with VLDL1 triglyceride, and VLDL2‐apoB‐100 and triglyceride concentrations (all P < 0·05). No significant associations were observed between apoC‐III and VLDL‐apoB‐100 and triglyceride kinetics. In multivariable analysis, including homoeostasis model assessment score, menopausal status and obesity, apoC‐II concentration was significantly associated with plasma triglyceride, VLDL1‐apoB‐100 and VLDL1 triglyceride concentrations and PR. Using the same multivariable analysis, apoC‐III was significantly associated with plasma triglyceride and VLDL1‐ and VLDL2‐apoB‐100 and triglyceride concentrations and FCR.

Conclusions

In women, plasma apoC‐II and apoC‐III concentrations are regulated by their respective PR and are significant, independent determinants of the kinetics and plasma concentrations of TRLs.
Effect of ultrasound and heat on percutaneous absorption of l‐ascorbic acid: human in vitro studies on Franz cell and Petri dish systems
Authors: Jung E. C. , Zhu H. , Zou Y. , Elmahdy A. , Cao Y. , Hui X. , Maibach H. I.
Published: July 2016

Objective

Percutaneous absorption of l‐ascorbic acid (LAA) is limited due to its high hydrophilicity and low stability. Here, we investigated the effect of post‐dosing sonophoresis (329 kHz, 20 mW cm−2) and heat (36°C) on transdermal delivery of LAA.

Methods

Ultrasound/heat, heat and control treatments were applied on skin surface for 2 and 5 min after topical application of C14‐labelled LAA aqueous solution. After 15 min post‐exposure, radioactivity was measured in tape‐striped stratum corneum (TS‐SC), epidermis, dermis and receptor fluid. As Franz diffusion cell model may have different acoustic response than in vivo human tissues, a novel Petri dish model was developed and compared with Franz cell model on the effects of ultrasound/heat treatment on the skin permeability.

Results

Five‐min ultrasound/heat treatment significantly accelerated skin absorption/penetration of LAA; 2‐min treatment showed no enhancement effect on Franz diffusion cell model at the end of experiment. The use of Petri dish model significantly increased LAA concentrations in epidermis after 5 min of ultrasound/heat treatment, compared to the results of Franz cell model.

Conclusion

Combination of ultrasound (329 kHz, 20 mW cm−2) and heat (36°C) significantly enhanced LAA transdermal penetration, when the time of treatment was sufficient (5 min). As Petri dish model was designed to simulate acoustic respond of dense human tissue to ultrasound, the difference between Franz cell and Petri dish models suggests that the enhancement effect of ultrasound/heat on skin penetration in vivo may be greater than that determined on in vitro Franz cell model.
Exploring the influence of mothers’ attitudes toward advertising on children's consumption of screen media
Authors: Kowalczyk Christine M. , Royne Marla B.
Published: July 2016

This study explores mothers’ attitudes toward advertising in general, attitudes toward advertising to their young children aged 2‐ to 7‐year old, and how these attitudes relate to parental restrictive mediation of screen media usage, specifically television, videogames, and the Internet. A structural equation model was used to test the proposed relationships. Results indicate that mothers’ attitudes toward advertising may influence the level of restrictive mediation of children's television and videogame usage.
Transnuclear CD8 T cells specific for the immunodominant epitope Gra6 lower acute‐phase Toxoplasma gondii burden
Authors: Sanecka Anna , Yoshida Nagisa , Dougan Stephanie K. , Jackson John , Shastri Nilabh , Ploegh Hidde , Blanchard Nicolas , Frickel Eva‐Maria
Published: July 2016

We generated a CD8 T‐cell receptor (TCR) transnuclear (TN) mouse specific to the Ld‐restricted immunodominant epitope of GRA6 from Toxoplasma gondii as a source of cells to facilitate further investigation into the CD8 T‐cell‐mediated response against this pathogen. The TN T cells bound Ld‐Gra6 tetramer and proliferated upon unspecific and peptide‐specific stimulation. The TCR beta sequence of the Gra6‐specific TN CD8 T cells is identical in its V‐ and J‐region to the TCR‐β harboured by a hybridoma line generated in response to Gra6 peptide. Adoptively transferred Gra6 TN CD8 T cells proliferated upon Toxoplasma infection in vivo and exhibited an activated phenotype similar to host CD8 T cells specific to Gra6. The brain of Toxoplasma‐infected mice carried Gra6 TN cells already at day 8 post‐infection. Both Gra6 TN mice as well as adoptively transferred Gra6 TN cells were able to significantly reduce the parasite burden in the acute phase of Toxoplasma infection. Overall, the Gra6 TN mouse represents a functional tool to study the protective and immunodominant specific CD8 T‐cell response to Toxoplasma in both the acute and the chronic phases of infection.
Vehicle scheduling based on variable trip times with expected on‐time performance
Authors: Shen Yindong , Xu Jia , Wu Xianyi
Published: July 2016

The vehicle scheduling problem (VSP) is concerned with determining the most efficient allocation of vehicles to carry out all the trips in a given timetable. The duration of each trip (called trip time) is normally assumed to be fixed. However, in practice, the trip times vary due to the variability of traffic, driving conditions, and passengers’ behavior. It is therefore difficult to adhere to the compiled schedule. This paper proposes a new VSP model based on variable trip times. Instead of being a fixed value, the duration of a trip falls into a time range that can be easily set based on the schedulers’ experience or the data collected by automatic vehicle location systems. Within this range, an expected trip time is provided according to the schedulers’ expectation of on‐time performance. This new model can reduce schedulers’ pressure on setting fixed scheduled trip times. Moreover, computational results generated using CPLEX show that this model can increase the on‐time performance of resulting schedules without increasing the fleet size.
Two‐year clinical comparison of a flowable‐type nano‐hybrid composite and a paste‐type composite in posterior restoration
Authors: Hirata‐Tsuchiya Shizu , Yoshii Shinji , Ichimaru‐Suematsu Miki , Washio Ayako , Saito Noriko , Urata Mariko , Hanada Kaori , Morotomi Takahiko , Kitamura Chiaki
Published: July 2016

Aim

The purpose of the present study was to compare the clinical efficacy between a flowable‐type nano‐hybrid composite and a paste‐type composite for posterior restoration.

Methods

Of 62 posterior teeth in 33 patients (mean age: 34.1 years), 31 were filled with a paste‐type composite (Heliomolar [HM] group), and another 31 with a flowable nano‐hybrid composite (MI FIL [MI] group). Clinical efficacy was evaluated at 2 years after the restoration.

Results

There were no differences for retention, surface texture deterioration, anatomical form change, deterioration of marginal adaptation, and secondary caries, while a statistical difference was found for marginal discoloration, which was significantly greater in the HM group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, color matching in the MI group was superior to that in the HM group immediately after the restoration throughout the study period.

Conclusions

The present 2‐year clinical evaluation of different composites showed that the flowable nano‐hybrid composite could be an effective esthetic material for posterior restoration.
GIS‐based Analysis of Vienna's Material Stock in Buildings
Authors: Kleemann Fritz , Lederer Jakob , Rechberger Helmut , Fellner Johann
Published: July 2016

The building stock is not only a huge consumer of resources (for its construction and operation), but also represents a significant source for the future supply of metallic and mineral resources. This article describes how material stocks in buildings and their spatial distribution can be analyzed on a city level. In particular, the building structure (buildings differentiated by construction period and utilization) of Vienna is analyzed by joining available geographical information systems (GIS) data from various municipal authorities. Specific material intensities for different building categories (differentiated by construction period and utilization) are generated based on multiple data sources on the material composition of different building types and combined with the data on the building structure. Utilizing these methods, the overall material stock in buildings in Vienna was calculated to be 380 million metric tonnes (t), which equals 210 t per capita (t/cap). The bulk of the material (>96%) is mineral, whereas organic materials (wood, plastics, bitumen, and so on) and metals (iron/steel, copper, aluminum, and so on) constitute a very small share, of which wood (4.0 t/cap) and steel (3.2 t/cap) are the major contributors. Besides the overall material stock, the spatial distribution of materials within the municipal area can be assessed. This research forms the basis for a resource cadaster, which provides information about gross volume, construction period, utilization, and material composition for each building in Vienna.
Characterization and reconstruction of 3D stochastic microstructures via supervised learning
Authors: BOSTANABAD R. , CHEN W. , APLEY D.W.
Published: July 2016

The need for computational characterization and reconstruction of volumetric maps of stochastic microstructures for understanding the role of material structure in the processing–structure–property chain has been highlighted in the literature. Recently, a promising characterization and reconstruction approach has been developed where the essential idea is to convert the digitized microstructure image into an appropriate training dataset to learn the stochastic nature of the morphology by fitting a supervised learning model to the dataset. This compact model can subsequently be used to efficiently reconstruct as many statistically equivalent microstructure samples as desired. The goal of this paper is to build upon the developed approach in three major directions by: (1) extending the approach to characterize 3D stochastic microstructures and efficiently reconstruct 3D samples, (2) improving the performance of the approach by incorporating user‐defined predictors into the supervised learning model, and (3) addressing potential computational issues by introducing a reduced model which can perform as effectively as the full model. We test the extended approach on three examples and show that the spatial dependencies, as evaluated via various measures, are well preserved in the reconstructed samples.