bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and Risk Factors for Acquisition of Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae in the Setting of Endemicity
Authors: Swaminathan Mahesh , Sharma Saarika , Blash Stephanie Poliansky , Patel Gopi , Banach David B. , Phillips Michael , LaBombardi Vincent , Anderson Karen F. , Kitchel Brandon , Srinivasan Arjun , Calfee David P.
Published: June 2013

Objective.

To describe the epidemiology of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) carriage and acquisition among hospitalized patients in an area of CRE endemicity.

Design.

Cohort study with a nested case-control study.

Setting.

Two acute care, academic hospitals in New York City.

Participants.

All patients admitted to 7 study units, including intensive care, medical-surgical, and acute rehabilitation units.

Method.

Perianal samples were collected from patients at admission and weekly thereafter to detect asymptomatic gastrointestinal carriage of CRE. A nested case-control study was performed to identify factors associated with CRE acquisition. Case patients were those who acquired CRE during a single hospitalization. Control subjects had no microbiologic evidence of CRE and at least 1 negative surveillance sample. Clinical data were abstracted from the medical record.

Results.

The prevalence of CRE in the study population was 5.4% (306 of 5,676 patients), and 104 patients met the case definition of acquisition during a single hospital stay. Mechanical ventilation (odds ratio [OR], 11.5), pulmonary disease (OR, 5.2), days of antibiotic therapy (OR, 1.04), and CRE colonization pressure (OR, 1.15) were independently associated with CRE acquisition. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis analysis identified 87% of tested Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates as sharing related patterns (greater than 78% similarity), which suggests clonal transmission within and between the study hospitals.

Conclusions.

Critical illness and underlying medical conditions, CRE colonization pressure, and antimicrobial exposure are important risk factors for CRE acquisition. Adherence to infection control practices and antimicrobial stewardship appear to be critical components of a CRE control program.
A label for peer‐reviewed books? Some critical reflections
Authors: BORGHART Pieter
Published: June 2013

The recently established quality label for peer‐reviewed publications in Flanders has lately aroused some interest in the international literature on scholarly communication. Although the so‐called GPRC‐label is in principle a welcome initiative, its implementation, from 2010 onwards, has already engendered several unexpected side‐effects. This article discusses these pitfalls and traces their origin in the Flemish performance‐based research funding system. It also points to a number of hard‐to‐solve practical problems if the quality label were to be implemented in an international context. In this way, it aims to temper the enthusiasm with which the label has been welcomed, both in Flanders and internationally.
‘Héloïse’: towards a co‐ordinated ecosystem approach for the archiving of scientific publications?
Authors: DILLAERTS Hans , CHARTRON Ghislaine
Published: June 2013

With the continued development of open access policies, it is important to promote consensus‐building projects with the various stakeholders. This article gives an account of how such collaboration has facilitated the construction of the project Héloïse. This project is a French information service dedicated to describing the policies of French publishers on the self‐archiving of scientific publications. Héloïse represents a real tool of mediation whose development involved much debate between publishers and research stakeholders. This article seeks to demonstrate that the development of trust between the actors involved in the project was a major component of its success.
Plantwise knowledge bank: delivering plant health information to developing country users
Authors: LEACH Margo C. , HOBBS Shaun L.A.
Published: June 2013

The Plantwise knowledge bank is an open access, online resource that provides information to users involved in plant health systems in the developing world. The challenge was to deliver dependable information that could serve users with widely differing needs and understanding and to get actionable knowledge to subsistence farmers in particular. This was met by bringing together resources across CABI, particularly by supplementing core publishing capabilities with the knowledge, skills and understanding of the internationally based scientific staff and their network of collaborators. An iterative development process, with scoping, wireframes and prototype delivery, was undertaken with constant feedback from global users. Content needed to be repurposed from CABI's own databases, brought in from international partners and freshly created, and then delivered to each user in a structure that was easy to navigate and had easy‐to‐use tools to add value. The product has been widely well received and ongoing development will be guided by lessons learned and new requirements as the Plantwise programme expands.
Using Genome Query Language to uncover genetic variation
Authors: Kozanitis Christos , Heiberg Andrew , Varghese George , Bafna Vineet
Published: June 2013

Motivation: With high-throughput DNA sequencing costs dropping <$1000 for human genomes, data storage, retrieval and analysis are the major bottlenecks in biological studies. To address the large-data challenges, we advocate a clean separation between the evidence collection and the inference in variant calling. We define and implement a Genome Query Language (GQL) that allows for the rapid collection of evidence needed for calling variants.

Results: We provide a number of cases to showcase the use of GQL for complex evidence collection, such as the evidence for large structural variations. Specifically, typical GQL queries can be written in 5–10 lines of high-level code and search large datasets (100 GB) in minutes. We also demonstrate its complementarity with other variant calling tools. Popular variant calling tools can achieve one order of magnitude speed-up by using GQL to retrieve evidence. Finally, we show how GQL can be used to query and compare multiple datasets. By separating the evidence and inference for variant calling, it frees all variant detection tools from the data intensive evidence collection and focuses on statistical inference.

Availability: GQL can be downloaded from http://cseweb.ucsd.edu/~ckozanit/gql.

Contact:  ckozanit@ucsd.edu or vbafna@cs.ucsd.edu

Supplementary information:  Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Epigenetic Regulation of Spinal CXCR2 Signaling in Incisional Hypersensitivity in Mice
Authors: Sun Yuan , Sahbaie Peyman , Liang De-Yong , Li Wen-Wu , Li Xiang-Qi , Shi Xiao-You , Clark J. David
Published: June 2013

Background:

The regulation of gene expression in nociceptive pathways contributes to the induction and maintenance of pain sensitization. Histone acetylation is a key epigenetic mechanism controlling chromatin structure and gene expression. Chemokine CC motif receptor 2 (CXCR2) is a proinflammatory receptor implicated in neuropathic and inflammatory pain and is known to be regulated by histone acetylation in some settings. The authors sought to investigate the role of histone acetylation on spinal CXCR2 signaling after incision.

Methods:

Groups of 5–8 mice underwent hind paw incision. Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid and anacardic acid were used to inhibit histone deacetylase and histone acetyltransferase, respectively. Behavioral measures of thermal and mechanical sensitization as well as hyperalgesic priming were used. Both message RNA quantification and chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis were used to study the regulation of CXCR2 and ligand expression. Finally, the selective CXCR2 antagonist SB225002 was administered intrathecally to reveal the function of spinal CXCR2 receptors after hind paw incision.

Results:

Suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid significantly exacerbated mechanical sensitization after incision. Conversely, anacardic acid reduced incisional sensitization and also attenuated incision-induced hyperalgesic priming. Overall, acetylated histone H3 at lysine 9 was increased in spinal cord tissues after incision, and enhanced association of acetylated histone H3 at lysine 9 with the promoter regions of CXCR2 and keratinocyte-derived chemokine (CXCL1) was observed as well. Blocking CXCR2 reversed mechanical hypersensitivity after hind paw incision.

Conclusions:

Histone modification is an important epigenetic mechanism regulating incision-induced nociceptive sensitization. The spinal CXCR2 signaling pathway is one epigenetically regulated pathway controlling early and latent sensitization after incision.
Does Goal-directed Fluid Therapy Affect Postoperative Orthostatic Intolerance?
Authors: Bundgaard-Nielsen Morten , Jans Øivind , Müller Rasmus G. , Korshin André , Ruhnau Birgitte , Bie Peter , Secher Niels H. , Kehlet Henrik
Published: June 2013

Background:

Early mobilization is important for postoperative recovery but is limited by orthostatic intolerance (OI) with a prevalence of 50% 6 h after major surgery. The pathophysiology of postoperative OI is assumed to include hypovolemia besides dysregulation of vasomotor tone. Stroke volume–guided fluid therapy, so-called goal-directed therapy (GDT), corrects functional hypovolemia, and the authors hypothesized that GDT reduces the prevalence of OI after major surgery and assessed this in a prospective, double-blinded trial.

Methods:

Forty-two patients scheduled for open radical prostatectomy were randomized into standard fluid therapy (control group) or GDT groups. Both groups received a fixed-volume crystalloid regimen supplemented with 1:1 replacement of blood loss with colloid, and in addition, the GDT group received colloid to obtain a maximal stroke volume (esophageal Doppler). The primary outcome was the prevalence of OI assessed with a standardized mobilization protocol before and 6 h after surgery. Hemodynamic and hormonal orthostatic responses were evaluated.

Results:

Twelve (57%) versus 15 (71%) patients in the control and GDT groups (P = 0.33), respectively, demonstrated OI after surgery, group difference 14% (CI, −18 to 45%). Patients in the GDT group received more colloid during surgery (1,758 vs. 1,057 ml; P = 0.001) and reached a higher stroke volume (102 vs. 89 ml; P = 0.04). OI patients had an increased length of hospital stay (3 vs. 2 days; P = 0.02) and impaired hemodynamic and norepinephrine responses on mobilization.

Conclusion:

GDT did not reduce the prevalence of OI, and patients with OI demonstrated impaired cardiovascular and hormonal responses to mobilization.
Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography in the Pediatric Population Is Safe and Efficacious
Authors: Enestvedt Brintha K. , Tofani Christina , Lee Dale Y. , Abraham Maíre , Shah Pari , Chandrasekhara Vinay , Ginsberg Gregory G. , Long William , Ahmad Nuzhat , Jaffe David L. , Mamula Petar , Kochman Michael L.
Published: June 2013

Background:

Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is increasingly being used in the evaluation and management of biliary and pancreatic disorders in children. The aim of this study was to review the pediatric ERCP experience of a large academic referral center affiliated with a tertiary care children's hospital.

Methods:

This is a retrospective review of medical records, endoscopic and operative reports, and radiography of those patients ages 0 to 21 years who underwent ERCP for any indication between 1993 and 2011 at a tertiary referral center affiliated with a large urban pediatric hospital. ERCP technical success was defined as cannulation of the desired duct. Serious adverse events included bleeding, perforation, pancreatitis, or death.

Results:

Four hundred twenty‐nine ERCPs were performed on 296 patients. The mean age was 14.9 ± 4.8 years (3 months–21 years); 51.1% were boys. Patients with a history of previous liver transplant comprised 13.1% (56) of all ERCPs. Abnormal liver chemistries or suspected choledocholithiasis accounted for half of the indications. A therapeutic intervention was performed in 64.1%. Technical success was achieved in 95.2% of ERCPs. Serious adverse events occurred in 7.7%.

Conclusions:

Pediatric ERCP is highly efficacious in the pediatric population, with the rates of technical success and use of therapeutic interventions mirroring those in adults. There is a low overall rate of serious adverse events. The overall efficacy and safety support the performance of pediatric ERCP by experienced endoscopists at high‐volume centers.
Energy, genes and evolution: introduction to an evolutionary synthesis
Authors: Lane Nick , Martin William F. , Raven John A. , Allen John F.
Published: June 2013

Life is the harnessing of chemical energy in such a way that the energy-harnessing device makes a copy of itself. No energy, no evolution. The ‘modern synthesis’ of the past century explained evolution in terms of genes, but this is only part of the story. While the mechanisms of natural selection are correct, and increasingly well understood, they do little to explain the actual trajectories taken by life on Earth. From a cosmic perspective—what is the probability of life elsewhere in the Universe, and what are its probable traits?—a gene-based view of evolution says almost nothing. Irresistible geological and environmental changes affected eukaryotes and prokaryotes in very different ways, ones that do not relate to specific genes or niches. Questions such as the early emergence of life, the morphological and genomic constraints on prokaryotes, the singular origin of eukaryotes, and the unique and perplexing traits shared by all eukaryotes but not found in any prokaryote, are instead illuminated by bioenergetics. If nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution, nothing in evolution makes sense except in the light of energetics. This Special Issue of
Philosophical Transactions
examines the interplay between energy transduction and genome function in the major transitions of evolution, with implications ranging from planetary habitability to human health. We hope that these papers will contribute to a new evolutionary synthesis of energetics and genetics.
The inevitable journey to being
Authors: Russell Michael J. , Nitschke Wolfgang , Branscomb Elbert
Published: June 2013

Life is evolutionarily the most complex of the emergent symmetry-breaking, macroscopically organized dynamic structures in the Universe. Members of this cascading series of disequilibria-converting systems, or engines in Cottrell's terminology, become ever more complicated—more chemical and less physical—as each engine extracts, exploits and generates ever lower grades of energy and resources in the service of entropy generation. Each one of these engines emerges spontaneously from order created by a particular mother engine or engines, as the disequilibrated potential daughter is driven beyond a critical point. Exothermic serpentinization of ocean crust is life's mother engine. It drives alkaline hydrothermal convection and thereby the spontaneous production of precipitated submarine hydrothermal mounds. Here, the two chemical disequilibria directly causative in the emergence of life spontaneously arose across the mineral precipitate membranes separating the acidulous, nitrate-bearing CO
2
-rich, Hadean sea from the alkaline and CH
4
/H
2
-rich serpentinization-generated effluents. Essential redox gradients—involving hydrothermal CH
4
and H
2
as electron donors, CO
2
and nitrate, nitrite, and ferric iron from the ambient ocean as acceptors—were imposed which functioned as the original ‘carbon-fixing engine’. At the same time, a post-critical-point (milli)voltage pH potential (proton concentration gradient) drove the condensation of orthophosphate to produce a high energy currency: ‘the pyrophosphatase engine’.
Beating the acetyl coenzyme A-pathway to the origin of life
Authors: Nitschke Wolfgang , Russell Michael J.
Published: June 2013

Attempts to draft plausible scenarios for the origin of life have in the past mainly built upon palaeogeochemical boundary conditions while, as detailed in a companion article in this issue, frequently neglecting to comply with fundamental thermodynamic laws. Even if demands from both palaeogeochemistry and thermodynamics are respected, then a plethora of strongly differing models are still conceivable. Although we have no guarantee that life at its origin necessarily resembled biology in extant organisms, we consider that the only empirical way to deduce how life may have emerged is by taking the stance of assuming continuity of biology from its inception to the present day. Building upon this conviction, we have assessed extant types of energy and carbon metabolism for their appropriateness to conditions probably pertaining in those settings of the Hadean planet that fulfil the thermodynamic requirements for life to come into being. Wood–Ljungdahl (WL) pathways leading to acetyl CoA formation are excellent candidates for such primordial metabolism. Based on a review of our present understanding of the biochemistry and biophysics of acetogenic, methanogenic and methanotrophic pathways and on a phylogenetic analysis of involved enzymes, we propose that a variant of modern methanotrophy is more likely than traditional WL systems to date back to the origin of life. The proposed model furthermore better fits basic thermodynamic demands and palaeogeochemical conditions suggested by recent results from extant alkaline hydrothermal seeps.
Energy, ecology and the distribution of microbial life
Authors: Macalady Jennifer L. , Hamilton Trinity L. , Grettenberger Christen L. , Jones Daniel S. , Tsao Leah E. , Burgos William D.
Published: June 2013

Mechanisms that govern the coexistence of multiple biological species have been studied intensively by ecologists since the turn of the nineteenth century. Microbial ecologists in the meantime have faced many fundamental challenges, such as the lack of an ecologically coherent species definition, lack of adequate methods for evaluating population sizes and community composition in nature, and enormous taxonomic and functional diversity. The accessibility of powerful, culture-independent molecular microbiology methods offers an opportunity to close the gap between microbial science and the main stream of ecological theory, with the promise of new insights and tools needed to meet the grand challenges humans face as planetary engineers and galactic explorers. We focus specifically on resources related to energy metabolism because of their direct links to elemental cycling in the Earth's history, engineering applications and astrobiology. To what extent does the availability of energy resources structure microbial communities in nature? Our recent work on sulfur- and iron-oxidizing autotrophs suggests that apparently subtle variations in the concentration ratios of external electron donors and acceptors select for different microbial populations. We show that quantitative knowledge of microbial energy niches (population-specific patterns of energy resource use) can be used to predict variations in the abundance of specific taxa in microbial communities. Furthermore, we propose that resource ratio theory applied to micro-organisms will provide a useful framework for identifying how environmental communities are organized in space and time.
Tribological behaviors of novel crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids as lubricants for steel/aluminum contacts
Authors: Jiang Dong , Hu Litian , Feng Dapeng
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to synthesize a novel kind of crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids with better tribological properties for steel/Al system. The anions of crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids contain no F element, which are non‐corrosive to metal.

Design/methodology/approach

To improve the tribological properties of ionic liquid lubricants for the extremely difficult system of the steel‐against‐aluminum metal couple, novel crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids were prepared. The tribological properties of the crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids were evaluated at different loads and frequencies on an Optical SRV oscillating friction and wear tester. The morphology and chemical compounds of the wear scars were investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).

Findings

Compared with conventional ionic liquids, the novel crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids prepared in the present work exhibit a more excellent anti‐wear ability for steel/Al2024 contact at different loads and frequencies. By the morphological analysis with SEM, less debris was observed in the worn surface lubricated with crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids, though more debris was observed when lubricated with LB106 and LP106. By the XPS analysis, boundary lubrication film composed of aluminum (III) oxide, organometallic compounds, and silicon aluminum phosphate were found in the worn surface. Namely, the tribological behaviors of the crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids could be attributed to their stronger adsorption and tribochemical interactions with the Al alloys.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the higher mean friction coefficients of crown‐type phosphate ionic liquids in the research, researchers are encouraged to modify their structure for better tribological properties.

Practical implications

The crown‐type phosphate ionic liquid exhibited better anti‐wear performance for steel/aluminum contact than the conventional ionic liquids containing F element. This will expand the application of high strength aluminum alloys.

Originality/value

The phosphate ionic liquid is a non‐corrosive liquid and would not cause metal corrosion. Also, the tribological properties of crown‐type phosphate ionic liquid with steel/aluminum contact are better than that of conventional ionic liquids. By the designing of molecular structure, new phosphate ionic liquids will exhibit excellent tribological properties: lower wear volume and lower friction coefficient.
Tool wear investigation whilst turning BS970‐080A15 carbon steel using TiCN‐Al2O3 CVD coated carbide tooling in gaseous and liquid nitrogen environments
Authors: Stanford M. , Lister P.M. , Kibble K.A. , Morgan C. , Sihra T.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this work is to investigate the performance of non‐contaminating metal cutting environments and investigate the associated tool chip interface conditions. The work benchmarks flood coolant characteristics and considers gaseous cutting environments as possible alternatives.

Design/methodology/approach

Cutting trials were undertaken for a range of cutting environments. Flood coolant was investigated as was dry cutting, compressed air, room temperature nitrogen and liquid nitrogen environments. A range of cutting variables was measured in order to document the effect of cutting environment.

Findings

The gaseous component of the liquid nitrogen environment limited the adhesion on the tool face to a region along the flank edge of the tool, shifting rake face conditions from seizure to that of sliding. Tighter chip curl, shorter contact lengths, reduced adhesion and lower feed forces are evidence that liquid nitrogen is acting as a “liquid inert barrier” beneath the chip within the tool/chip interface.

Research limitations/implications

Only one tool work combination has been investigated. More tool work combinations will need to be investigated.

Practical implications

The work demonstrated that it is possible to use environmentally safe environments during metal cutting operations. This reduces the exposure of the environment and machine tool operatives to compounds which have been shown to have detrimental effects on the environment and human health.

Originality/value

The work has led to presenting a hypothesis that liquid nitrogen acts as a “liquid inert barrier” beneath the chip within the tool/chip interface.
Effect of surface roughness on pure squeeze EHL motion of circular contacts
Authors: Chu Li‐Ming , Hsu Hsiang‐Chen , Lin Jaw‐Ren , Chang Yuh‐Ping
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the pure squeeze elastohydrodynamic lubrication motion of circular contacts with surface roughness under constant load conditions. The proposed model can reasonably calculate the effects of surface roughness on the transient pressure profiles, film shapes, and normal squeeze velocities during the pure squeeze process.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on Christensen's stochastic theory, the transient modified Reynolds equation is derived in polar coordinates to consider the effects of surface roughness. The finite difference method and the Gauss‐Seidel iteration method are used to solve the transient modified Reynolds equation, the elasticity deformation equation, load balance equation, and lubricant rheology equations simultaneously.

Findings

The simulation results reveal that the circular type roughness possesses storage oil capacity. Comparatively, the radial type roughness possesses leak oil capacity. Therefore, the film thickness is found with circular type roughness, followed by smooth, and then radial type roughness. In additional, the central dimensionless pressure is found with radial type roughness, followed by smooth, and then circular type roughness.

Originality/value

A numerical method for general applications with surface roughness was developed to investigate the pure squeeze action in an isothermal EHL spherical conjunction under constant load conditions, but without asperities contact.
An algorithm to prioritize welding quality deterioration factors
Authors: Chandima Ratnayake R.M.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present and implement an algorithm to prioritize welding quality deterioration factors for improving welding personnel performance. A case study is carried out in a piping components fabrication process which supplies these components to oil and gas production and processing facilities on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS).

Design/methodology/approach

The quality deterioration factors' prioritization is carried out using statistical methods in conjunction with the data recorded in the welding inspection database (WIDB) of the case study company. Data cleaning and rearrangements were performed to reflect final objective. Based on the welding procedure specifications (WPSs) and quality imperfection groups classified in NS‐EN ISO 6520‐1, the analysis is performed to prioritize the welding quality deterioration factors.

Findings

Based on the WPSs and quality imperfection groups classified in NS‐EN ISO 6520‐1, it is possible to prioritize the welding quality deterioration factors. These factors are possible to use for improving the performance of welding personnel to assure the quality of welds in steel fabrications.

Practical implications

The factors prioritized are possible to use for improving the performance of welding personnel to assure the quality and reliability of welds in a steel fabrication.

Social implications

Assuring quality as proposed in the manuscript, the catastrophic failures that are potential in production and process plants can be mitigated. This enhances health, safety and environmental performance of welds in steel fabrications.

Originality/value

The value of this paper is to illustrate an innovative approach to a real life quality problem; it demonstrates how the application of qualitative and quantitative quality instruments in accordance with technical specification can help in increasing and maintaining product compliance and in optimizing the management of resources.
Reversed variance residual life function and its properties in discrete lifetime models
Authors: Khorashadizadeh M. , Rezaei Roknabadi A.H. , Mohtashami Borzadaran G.R.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

In reliability studies, interests in discrete failure data came relatively late in comparison to its continuous analogue. Also, discrete failure data arise in several common situations. So, in this paper the authors try to study some reliability concepts such as reversed variance and reversed mean residual life functions based on discrete lifetime random variable.

Design/methodology/approach

Supposed T be a non‐negative discrete random variable, then based on reversed residual random variable Tk*=(k−T|T≤k), some useful and applicable relations and bounds are achieved.

Findings

In this paper, the authors study the reversed variance residual life in discrete lifetime distributions, the results of which are not similar to the continuous case. Its relationship with reversed mean residual life and reversed residual coefficient of variation are obtained. Also, its monotonicity and the associated ageing classes of distributions are discussed. Some characterization results of the class of increasing reversed variance residual life, which is denoted by IRVR, are presented and the upper bound for reversed variance residual life under some conditions is obtained.

Practical implications

There are many situations where a continuous time is inappropriate for describing the lifetime of devices and other systems. For example, the lifetime of many devices in industry, such as switches and mechanical tools, depends essentially on the number of times that they are turned on and off or the number of shocks they receive. In such cases, the time to failure is often more appropriately represented by the number of times they are used before they fail, which is a discrete random variable.

Originality/value

All the results based on discrete reversed residual lifetime, such as the relationships among reversed mean, variance and coefficient of variation residual lifetime and also their monotonicity ageing classes, are new.
TQM, strategy, and performance: a firm‐level analysis
Authors: Yunis Manal , Jung Joo , Chen Shouming
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose is to examine the role of TQM in a strategy‐TQM‐performance model. More specifically, it seeks to investigate whether TQM has a driving role in the formation of strategy or has a mediating effect in the strategy‐performance relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was used to collect data. The instrument was assessed for its validity and reliability. Structural equation modelling was employed.

Findings

TQM influences strategy formulation process and it is a dynamic resource that contributes to the achievement of a sustainable competitive advantage. In addition, soft TQM has a higher impact than hard TQM on competitive strategy formulation and on performance.

Research limitations/implications

The model developed and tested can be enriching to the TQM, strategic management, and quality management fields. Future research is recommended to use methods other than self‐report questionnaires and to account for certain behavioral factors that can influence the relationships investigated in the study.

Practical implications

The findings provide insights to the need to integrate TQM with the various stages of the strategy formulation process, with an emphasis on the soft elements of TQM, including customer satisfaction, management and leadership, and employee relations.

Originality/value

Despite the remarkable contributions of existent research, there is a lack of substantive research that examines the relationship between the hard and soft components of TQM on one hand and the two types of competitive strategy – differentiation and cost leadership – on the other. This gap is filled by this study.
The association between earnings management and asset misappropriation
Authors: Song Dan‐Bee , Lee Ho‐Young , Cho Eun‐Jung
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether earnings management is related to incidence of fraud and the amount of misappropriated assets. By examining the research question, this study seeks to improve our understanding of using the accrual basis of accounting in identifying the misappropriation of assets.

Design/methodology/approach

This study analyzes 173 sample firms that announced asset misappropriation in the period from 2006 to 2010 in Korea. The study utilizes logistic and linear regressions to test the hypothetical relations set up in the study using discretionary accruals as a proxy of the earnings management. Additionally, the authors performed the robustness test using estimated accruals as a supplementary proxy of the earnings management.

Findings

The authors find that misappropriation of assets has a significant positive association with discretionary accruals. Interestingly, this relationship only holds for firms with negative discretionary accruals. The results suggest that the accrual basis of accounting provides a clue towards uncovering management's misappropriation of assets and thus, plays an important role in reducing existing information asymmetry.

Practical implications

The authors' findings would assist practitioners in detecting asset misappropriation through financial reporting quality and investors and auditors should be more alert to negative discretionary accruals.

Originality/value

There are some studies that examine asset misappropriation. However, most of them are focused on the relation between asset misappropriation and corporate governance. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that examines the association between financial reporting quality (i.e. discretionary accruals) and asset misappropriation. The authors' findings provide evidence of the usefulness of accrual basis of accounting in detecting fraud and enhance the understanding of income‐decreasing earnings management.
Theorising missionary education: the Bolivian Indian Mission 1908‐1920
Authors: Morrison Hugh
Published: June 2013

Purpose

Education was an enduring feature of the modern Protestant missionary movement. Historiographically, however, scholarship on the subject is often fragmented geographically and focused on the micro contexts in which missionary education occurred. The purpose of this paper is to explore the nuances of the missions‐education relationship, using a particular case study, in order to indicate alternative ways of conceptualising that relationship. It focuses on a small New Zealand evangelical mission working in Bolivia from 1908 and utilises the concept of “sites” to indicate the complexities that need to be considered in any particular study of missions and education.

Design/methodology/approach

Educational activities and explanatory factors pertaining to the Bolivian site of missionary education are re‐constructed from missionary archives. Different voices, agendas and readings are acknowledged in this re‐construction. In this way the article moves from a plain narrative about the mission and its educational activities to a more conceptual attempt to explain the application of education in the Bolivian context. The archives are read in the light of both historiography and theory.

Findings

The article indicates that a simple or monochrome reading of the missions‐education relationship is deficient. It grapples with the reasons why an explicitly evangelistic mission invested considerable energy and resources in education. Using the concept of “sites” it argues that this emphasis on education can be explained by a set of complex and overlapping factors reflecting historical timing, evangelical culture ormentalité, missionary geographical origins and local socio‐political context. While this will not explain all “sites” of missionary education, the approach is a model of how to construct a complex reading that enables us to discern multiple voices and motivations.

Originality/value

This article addresses a lacuna of conceptual scholarship on missionary education. Furthermore it attempts to shift the focus onto four relatively neglected aspects in missions‐education scholarship: missionary projects from colonial contexts, the South American context, the early twentieth century, and conservative evangelicalism.
Being special: memories of the Australian public high school, 1920s‐1950s
Authors: May Josephine , Proctor Helen
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The first state high schools in New South Wales (NSW) were restricted to children with high academic ability. The purpose of this paper is to explore the lived experience of over 70 former students from three such schools, one coeducational, the other two single‐sex, with special attention to academic and social curricula.

Design/methodology/approach

The study investigates memories of a particular moment in the history of secondary schooling in NSW before the establishment of mass secondary education. The authors utilise theoretical concepts from recent oral history studies regarding memory communities and intersectionality.

Findings

In bringing ex‐students’ memories of both single‐sex and coeducational academically‐selective high schooling together, the study reports on the homogeneity of the memories of this type of schooling despite the different sexual structures of the schools. The respondents, it is argued, constitute a “memory community” in that they recalled their selection for high school as marking them out as intellectually superior, “special”. Their main differentiating feature arose from their sex and gender socialisation. Females were made more consistently conscious of their responsibilities within their schools’ gender regime.

Originality/value

The approach in this paper adjusts the focus of traditional oral history research in the history of education to “history from within” (rather than “from below”); to experiences of both academic and socialcurriculum (not “formal/informal”); to a gendered approach incorporating both sexes; and to a comparative approach across academically‐selective coeducational and single‐sex high schools.
From illusion to reality: schools as learning organizations
Authors: Schechter Chen , Mowafaq Qadach
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The notion of organizational learning remains murky and difficult to comprehend, and it is rarely translated into sustained operational structures and processes in school reality. The purpose of this article is to lay out the mystifying concept of organizational learning and, then, to suggest an alternative framework for schools’ development as learning organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

After discussing the profound confusion about what organizational learning is and its feasibility, the article presents the notion of organizational learning mechanisms as a possible framework for analyzing schools as learning organizations.

Findings

The article presents limitations, implications, and avenues for future research regarding organizational learning mechanisms.

Originality/value

The framework of organizational learning mechanisms may help schools develop processes, strategies, and structures that would enable them to learn and react effectively in uncertain and dynamic environments.
Introduction to the special issue on adaptation and fidelity
Authors: Hansen William B.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The editorial aims to provide a brief overview of the individual contributions to this special issue, and a commentary on the contributions in terms of their contribution to the broader issue relating fidelity and adaptation to health promotion research, policy and practice.

Design/methodology/approach

This is the first special issue with a focus on fidelity and adaptation. Researchers who have recently examined these issues were invited to submit papers that described recent findings to this special issue of Health Education. Following the traditional double blinded peer review process, five submissions were accepted for publication.

Findings

The papers in this issue contribute each in their distinctive way to advancing our understanding of the relative influence that fidelity and adaptation have on moderating outcomes of health education programmes. Fidelity and adaptation must be thought of as independent constructs, each of which influences the outcomes of interventions delivered in school and community settings.

Originality/value

This compilation of papers is the first to systematically address both fidelity and adaptation. Practitioners and researchers alike will gain increased understanding of the potential for fidelity and adaptation to affect outcomes.
Understanding the art and science of implementation in the SAAF efficacy trial
Authors: Berkel Cady , McBride Murry Velma , Roulston Kathryn J. , Brody Gene H.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the importance of considering both fidelity and adaptation in assessing the implementation of evidence‐based programs.

Design/methodology/approach

The current study employs a multi‐method strategy to understand two dimensions of implementation (fidelity and adaptation) in the Strong African American Families (SAAF) program. Data were video recordings of program delivery and pre‐test and post‐test interviews from the efficacy trial. Multilevel regression in Mplus was used to assess the impact of fidelity to the manual, coded by independent observers, on racial socialization outcomes. One activity on racial socialization, a core component of the program, was selected for an in‐depth examination using conversation analysis (a qualitative method of analyzing talk in interactions).

Findings

Results of the quantitative analyses demonstrated that fidelity of the selected activity was associated with increases in parent's use of racial socialization from pre‐test to post‐test, but only when participant attendance was included in the model. Results of the qualitative analyses demonstrated that facilitators were making adaptations to the session and that these adaptations appeared to be in line with cultural competence.

Research limitations/implications

The development of quantitative fidelity measures can be problematic, with many decision points to consider. The current study contributes to the evidence base to develop a quantitative measure of adaptation for family‐based parenting programs.

Originality/value

Many researchers examining implementation of evidence‐based programs consider fidelity and adaptation to be polar ends of a single spectrum. This paper provides evidence for the importance of examining each independently.
Thermal model for friction stir welding of mild steel
Authors: Selvaraj M. , Murali Vela , Koteswara Rao S.R.
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose a three‐dimensional thermal model for friction stir welding of AISI 1018 mild steel to predict the thermal cycle, temperature distribution, the effect of welding parameters on power required, heat generation and peak temperature during the friction stir welding process.

Design/methodology/approach

The mathematical expressions for heat generation during the friction stir welding process were derived. The simulations for various welding and rotational speeds were carried out on ANSYS software employing temperature and radius dependent moving heat source and applying the boundary conditions.

Findings

The predicted thermal cycle, torque required and temperatures were found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. The heat generation and peak temperatures were found to be directly proportional to rotational speed and inversely proportional to welding speed. The rate of increase in heat generation and peak temperature were found to be higher at lower rotational speeds and lower at higher rotational speeds. The heat generation during friction stir welding was found to be 71.4 per cent at shoulder, 23.1 per cent at pin side and 5.5 per cent at bottom of the pin.

Originality/value

A new temperature dependent slip factor has been used to determine the contribution of slipping and sticking on total heat generation. A temperature and radius dependent moving heat source has been employed.
Methods to increase research output: some tips looking at the MENA region
Authors: Stephens Balakrishnan Melodena
Published: June 2013

Purpose

Business, management and accounting (BMA) papers published from The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, account for less than 1 per cent of the total papers published. As nations in MENA try and compete on the national competitive index, there is a tendency to adopt performance appraisal criteria from more established research nations. MENA accounts for 6 per cent of world population, and has one of the world's highest growth rates at 3 per cent. Since over one‐third of the population is under 15, if factors that hider and encourage research are identified, the research output can be increased. As it is clear that research on this region and from researchers in MENA is low, the purpose of this paper is to focus on how to increase research on this region.

Design/methodology/approach

Since there is very little information from this region, the research was exploratory in nature. Interviews with academics, officers in charge or research grants, publishers and senior managers from industry using and conducting research were used as a basis to identify research barriers and methods to overcome barriers. This was triangulated with secondary data from existing academic research, industry and NGO reports and research seminars and discussions.

Findings

The barriers and strategies to overcome research can be classified into three categories based on key stakeholders: the government (or policy makers); the industry or market conditions; and the institutions. Strategies at the individual academic level are also identified, which may overcome more macro environmental limitations.

Originality/value

This paper is the first of its kind in this region that consolidates many aspects and helps new researchers manage and improve research productivity. The paper is of value to any researcher but especially to policy makers, academics, promotion boards and universities that have doctoral programs.
The determinants of foreign direct investment in the Middle East North Africa region
Authors: Rogmans Tim , Ebbers Haico
Published: June 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to test the determinants of foreign direct investment (FDI) into countries of the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region.

Design/methodology/approach

The research is based on an econometric model that includes factors that potentially drive FDI flows into countries in the MENA region.

Findings

Energy endowments have a negative impact on FDI flows into a country. GDP per capita, openness to trade and oil prices have a positive impact on FDI inflows, while aggregate measures of environmental risk are not a differentiating factor among countries in the region.

Originality/value

This paper demonstrates that the “Dutch disease” concept applies to FDI in resource rich countries in the MENA region. Countries with large amounts of oil and gas have are more likely to have policies and institutions that inhibit FDI. Countries that value the spillover effects from FDI need to reconsider legislative and institutional hurdles that remain.