bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The quality of reported numbers by the management
Authors: Goel Sandeep
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The present article aims to test the fairness of reported numbers by the management and examine the magnitude of earnings management in Indian corporate enterprises by testing the Beneish profit model. This paper contributes by further verifying the results of the Beneish model by applying the concept of “quality of earnings and revenue” to the sample units. Quality of reported numbers by the management has always been a concern for a common shareholder on account of the underlying proposition of earnings management. There are numerous models available to test the quality of these numbers, i.e. presence of earnings management. Most of these models are accrual based which have been subject to significant criticism due to estimate-based approach. The Beneish profit model, which combines accruals and financial ratios and/or indexes, is one such alternative to the accruals approach.

Design/methodology/approach

– A “case-based” research approach has been followed here for analyzing Indian corporate enterprises on select basis. The Beneish profit model, developed specifically for testing earnings quality and detecting earnings management, has been used in the present study. The data analysis has been well supported by “quality measurement tools”.

Findings

– An examination of the units shows the need for improvement in the quality of earnings in the sample units, and there is a presence of earnings management in them.

Research limitations/implications

– The present study could be confined to only top 12 profit-making corporate enterprises in the private sector in India, leaving all other enterprises due to data non-availability. Of 25 enterprises, there were public sector undertakings too which had to be excluded.

Practical implications

– The present study was confined to only 12 profit-making corporate enterprises in the private sector due to sampling requirements; the scope of the units can be extended to other units in diverse sectors with different size and scale of operations. It would further verify the present discussion and also provide future enlightenment on the issue of earnings management.

Originality/value

– It is an original article which explores creative accounting practices for better shareholders’ interest.
Brand authenticity: model development and empirical testing
Authors: Schallehn Mike , Burmann Christoph , Riley Nicola
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to develop a model of brand authenticity and analyze the antecedents and effects of the construct. Although there is no doubt about the relevance of authenticity in personal relationships, published research has yet not thoroughly explored the concept’s meaning in reference to brands.

Design/methodology/approach

– Based on socio-psychological attribution theories and grounding on the identity-based brand management approach, a causal model of brand authenticity is developed. The hypothesized relationships are analyzed using the partial-least-squares approach. The primary data are based on an online survey conducted in Germany (n = 600). The respondents were asked about fast-food and beer brands.

Findings

– The data show that brand authenticity positively impacts on brand trust. Furthermore, the key antecedents in the model (consistency, continuity and individuality of a brand) drive the perception of brand authenticity as hypothesized.

Research limitations/implications

– The model should be tested in further product categories and moderators should be integrated.

Originality/value

– The findings suggest that authenticity is perceived when a brand is consistent, continuous and individual in its behavior. Nevertheless, the empirical results indicate that the factor individuality has the lowest influence on perceived brand authenticity. This is an interesting finding, as being “unique” is commonly regarded as an important success factor in branding. Although the study’s findings confirm its relevancy, they relativize its importance: being consistent, meaning that a brand fulfills its brand promise at every brand-touch point, and being continuous, meaning that the brand promise reflects the essential core of the brand, are of major importance.
Designers’ wooden furniture ecodesign implementation in Scandinavian country-of-origin (COO) branding
Authors: Lähtinen Katja , Alina Samaniego Vivanco Dora , Toppinen Anne
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to identify links between the components involved in ecodesign orientations (EDOs) and the integration of ecological criteria into Scandinavian wooden furniture industries. The purpose of identifying these links is to recognize possibilities and gaps in wooden furniture product development and branding opportunities to deepen customer engagement with the Scandinavian country-of-origin (COO) brand.

Design/methodology/approach

– The application of ecodesign in Scandinavian wooden furniture industries was studied using survey data gathered from Nordic wood furniture designers. Factor analysis was used to identify the general types of Scandinavian design styles (SDSs) and EDOs implemented in the Scandinavian wooden furniture industry. The SDS and EDO impacts on the integration of ecological design criteria were modelled using logistic regression analysis.

Findings

– The integration of ecological criteria by Nordic designers influences both the perspectives on material and process optimization and the end use of wooden furniture as well as the recycling of these products. In contrast, our results showed no statistical evidence of connections between different SDS types and the integration of ecological criteria in design. Recognition of special needs of customers valuing both high Scandinavian design and EDO could provide strategic opportunities for wooden furniture industries to recognize new global market potential and enhance their competitiveness.

Practical implications

– Developing business opportunities for wooden furniture marketed under the Scandinavian COO brand, and forming a better understanding of customer expectations on the ecological information related to different wooden furniture SDS types, is needed. This would support developing new ecodesign strategies across the whole industry and enhancing value proposition of Scandinavian wooden furniture within different customer groups.

Originality/value

– Research findings on the intersection of industrial brand design and ecodesign are still scarce, especially with a special focus on strategic management and sustainability marketing of companies. The results of our study provide entirely new insights on the topic especially in the context of Scandinavian wooden furniture industry.
Developing a structural brand equity model for cultural destinations
Authors: Kladou Stella , Kehagias John
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to investigate the structural relationships between the brand equity (BE) dimensions, when the fifth dimension of cultural brand assets is incorporated. The paper seeks to establish and validate a five-dimensional BE measure for cultural urban destination, by comparing findings in two destinations.

Design/methodology/approach

– The structural model was tested from the perspective of 399 international tourists visiting Athens. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling analysis are used to test and validate an integrated BE model for cultural destinations. Findings are compared with respective ones in the case of Rome.

Findings

– Findings reveal the significance of cultural brand assets for the BE of cultural urban destinations. Further, the study provides useful insight into the theory of reasoned action by investigating the structural relationships developed between BE dimensions and their impact on loyalty.

Research limitations/implications

– The study argues that the summative valence of associations, as described in the theory of reasoned action, can be applied in the case of a cultural destination as well. Research directions, including additional place brand dimensions, additional destinations, stakeholders groups or multi-group analysis, are advised to verify and generalise the application of the five-dimensional BE model.

Practical implications

– Findings reveal those cultural brand assets which can help practitioners build up coherent and successful proprietary brand assets. Quality is a necessary pre-requisite to enhance loyalty. In the case of Athens, associations influence only indirect loyalty through their impact on quality.

Originality/value

– This study offers to the limited literature concerning structural relationships developed among all five BE dimensions and consumer decision-making models in a tourism context. Moreover, the study contributes to the under-researched dimension of cultural brand assets.
Matching tourism type and destination image perceptions in a country context
Authors: Kladou Stella , A. Giannopoulos Antonios , Assiouras Ioannis
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The aim of this paper is to investigate the possible options for matching country destination image with different types of tourism to explain general attributes towards specific forms of tourism, based on previous research on country of origin effects.

Design/methodology/approach

– A quantitative research design is used for the purpose of the study.

Findings

– Data analysis demonstrates that the perception of the destination image in a country context varies across various types of tourism in most of the cases investigated. Moreover, the research outcomes portray a close relationship between the match of country image – tourism type and the willingness to visit a destination.

Practical implications

– The study assists tourism practitioners and policy makers in gaining a better understanding of whether tourists conceive all forms of tourism in a specific country favourably, simply because they link favourable dimensions to that particular country, or whether they perceive only certain types of tourism favourably.

Originality/value

– This study is among the first to empirically demonstrate the effect of match/mismatch of country destination image with the type of tourism on the willingness to visit, based on specific primary travel motives.
Understanding police use of force
Authors: Frank Klahm IV Charles , Frank James , Liederbach John
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The study of police use of force remains a primary concern of policing scholars; however, over the course of the last several decades, the focus has shifted from deadly and excessive force to a broader range of police behaviors that are coercive in nature, but not necessarily lethal, violent, or physical. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the critical disjuncture between the conceptualization of police use of force and operationalizations of the construct throughout policing literature.

Design/methodology/approach

– The current study provides a thorough, systematic review of 53 police use of force studies published in peer-reviewed outlets. These manuscripts were reviewed to determine whether authors cited a conceptualization of use of force and explained how the construct was operationalized, as well as the police behaviors captured in measures of force across studies, and how the data were collected.

Findings

– The findings suggest that police use of force is conceptually ambiguous, as 72 percent of the studies failed to cite a conceptual definition of the construct. Moreover, there is little consistency in the types of police behaviors operationalized as force across studies.

Originality/value

– The authors illustrate that problems associated with poorly conceptualized constructs make it more difficult for researchers to interpret empirical findings. That is, conceptual ambiguity has resulted in a line of literature that includes inconsistent and contradictory findings, making it difficult to summarize in a meaningful way and inform policy.
Police members perception of their leaders’ leadership style and its implications
Authors: Swid Amr
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine transformational and transactional leader behavior influence on the leader/follower dyad with respect to organizational commitment (OC) and satisfaction with leader in military setting.

Design/methodology/approach

– The research is quantitative, where multiple regressions assessed the hypothesized relationships between the transformational leadership, transactional leadership and laissez-faire leadership as the independent variables and the subordinates’ satisfaction with their leader, and organization commitment as the dependent variables. The sample studied includes 154 police members in two Middle East (ME) countries.

Findings

– The results indicated that there were positive linear relationship between some dimensions of transformational and transaction leadership and satisfaction with leadership. There was a negative linear relationship between laissez-faire leadership and satisfaction with leader. The leaders-outcome correlations showed higher scores between transformational leadership style and OC than between transactional leadership style and OC.

Research limitations/implications

– Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack generalizability on military institutions in other countries, and/or private institutions. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further. The research includes implications for the development of a satisfaction with leaders, and development of organization commitment in military organizations in the ME.

Originality/value

– This research fulfills an identified need to study how military organization commitment can be enabled in ME countries.
Fatigue and burnout in police officers: the mediating role of emotions
Authors: Aleksandra Basinska Beata , Wiciak Izabela , Maria Dåderman Anna
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The policing profession is associated with psychosocial hazard. Fatigue and burnout often affect police officers, and may impair the functioning of the organization and public safety. The relationship between fatigue and burnout may be modified by job-related emotions. While negative emotions have been extensively studied, the role of positive emotions at work is relatively less known. Additionally, there is insufficient knowledge about the role of the intensity of emotions. The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of job-related emotions in the relationship between fatigue and burnout in police officers.

Design/methodology/approach

– In all, 169 police officers (26 women) completed a test battery that assessed acute fatigue, burnout (Oldenburg Burnout Inventory: exhaustion and disengagement), and emotions (Job-related Affective Well-being Scale).

Findings

– Acute fatigue was associated more strongly with exhaustion than with disengagement. Low-arousal negative emotions partially mediated the relationship between fatigue and exhaustion. High-arousal positive and negative emotions were partial mediators between fatigue and disengagement experienced by police officers.

Research limitations/implications

– The results show that high-arousal emotions were associated with changes in work motivation, while low-arousal negative emotions reduced energetic ability to work.

Originality/value

– This paper enhances understanding of burnout among police officers and the mediating role of emotions. The patterns of the relationships between fatigue, burnout and emotions are discussed in the context of the conservation of resources theory and the tripartite model of anxiety and depression.
The legacy of LEMAS
Authors: C. Matusiak Matthew , A. Campbell Bradley , R. King William
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– Since 1987, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) has periodically collected data from police agencies in the USA and disseminated these data as the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) series. The purpose of this paper is to outline LEMAS's impact on criminal justice scholarship by describing the nexus between policing scholarship and LEMAS, and by analyzing the LEMAS constructs and variables used by researchers in refereed journal articles.

Design/methodology/approach

– A systematic review of the literature is undertaken to better comprehend how scholars use LEMAS variables and constructs. In total, 114 peer-reviewed journal articles were analyzed to parcel out variables and constructs derived from LEMAS data.

Findings

– The paper's analysis reveals that LEMAS is the second-most used BJS data series and the majority of authors use LEMAS to measure elements of organizational structure but not organizational behaviors, outcomes, or outputs.

Originality/value

– The study is the first to systematically identify all peer-reviewed journal articles that utilize LEMAS data. Police organizational research is unique in the fact that most authors agree on the operationalization of variables and constructs.
Factors affecting health of the police officials: mediating role of job stress
Authors: Tyagi Akansha , Lochan Dhar Rajib
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of stress among police officers and the impact of it on their health.

Design/methodology/approach

– A survey was conducted in randomly selected four cities from the state of Uttarakhand, India. A total of 444 police officers below the inspector-level ranks from eight police stations participated in this study. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the inter-relationship between the factors affecting health and assessing the mediating role of stress.

Findings

– Findings revealed that organization politics and work overload held a positive relationship whereas perceived organization support had an inverse relation with stress. Work overload was found to be the highest contributor in causing stress with a strong positive relationship value of 0.52 with stress. Further, stress had a strong impact on the health of the police officers, indicated by the direct relation with a value of 0.55.

Research limitations/implications

– The study is limited to the geographical area of Uttarakhand. Findings revealed that the health of the policemen was highly affected by the stressful work environment and work overload. Hence, higher authorities of the police department are required to pay attention on the welfare activities of the force to improve the prevailing situation.

Originality/value

– This study would be contributing to the literature available in Indian context by discussing the various antecedents of stress among the police officers.
Fracking in the UK: planning and property issues
Authors: Jones Peter , Hillier David , Comfort Daphne
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– Large-scale shale gas reserves have recently been identified under many parts of the UK and development pressure for detailed exploration and possibly the exploitation of these reserves by hydraulic fracturing, popularly described as fracking is growing rapidly and seems to have UK Government support. With this in mind the purpose of this paper is to offer a general review of the possible development of shale gas reserves by fracking within the UK and to explore a number of the planning and property issues associated with such development.

Design/methodology/approach

– The briefing note begins with an outline of the characteristics of shale oil and the fracking process and of the initial developments within the UK and discusses some of the planning and property issues associated with such developments. The note is based upon information drawn from the internet sources, principally national and local governments, business organisations and environmental and community pressure groups and on visits to a small number of sites of exploratory fracking.

Findings

– The note reveals that planning applications for exploratory and production fracking will be determined at local authority level rather as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects determined by the Secretary of State. In determining planning applications local authorities have received planning guidance from the UK Government and will need to consider a wide range of environmental factors but some critics suggest that the guidance is not comprehensive and that it is weighted in favour of granting permission. A number of property issues are also identified possible effects of fracking on property prices, the availability of mortgages and the insurance of properties.

Originality/value

– This paper provides an accessible review of the development of shale gas resources by fracking within the UK and as such it will be of value to planners, developers, land and property professionals and students.
Satisfaction of occupiers with management of rented commercial properties in Nigeria
Authors: Oyedokun T.B. , Oletubo A. , Adewusi A.O.
Published: July 2014

Purpose

– Occupier satisfaction has received noticeable attention in recent years due to the perceived relationship between satisfaction and investment performance which has led to property investors giving an increased priority to creating good landlord-tenant relationship. The purpose of this paper is to assess the occupier satisfaction on management of commercial properties in Nigeria using Akure as the research site.

Design/methodology/approach

– Based on a total population of 160 and employing random sampling technique, 142 questionnaires were administered on the occupiers of shopping complexes along the major routes of the city namely Oba-Adesida and Oyemekun, out of which 98 were returned and found adequate for analysis. Data analysis were done using weighted mean score and paired t-test.

Findings

– The result revealed that there is significant difference between occupiers’ expected and actual satisfaction. The paper recommends a tenant-oriented management style for better performance.

Originality/value

– The most important contribution of the paper is to underline the need for pragmatic and tenant-oriented management as a means to achieving increased occupier satisfaction in commercial properties.
Fortification of reconstituted skim milk powder with different calcium salts: Impact of physicochemical changes on stability to processing
Authors: Crowley Shane V , Kelly Alan L , O'Mahony James A
Published: July 2014

Reconstituted skim milk powder (RSMP) was fortified with 12.5 mM/L calcium (Ca) using soluble [Ca chloride (CChlor), Ca gluconate (CGluc) or Ca hydroxide (CHyd)] or insoluble [Ca carbonate (CCarb), Ca phosphate (CPhos) or Ca citrate (CCit)] salts. CPhos and CCit decreased heat stability moderately at 140 °C, while CCarb had no effect. Soluble salts had a pronounced destabilising effect at 140 °C due to increased ionic Ca levels. After a laboratory‐scale high‐temperature short‐time heating process, CHyd‐fortified RSMP had a lower viscosity than all other samples. CChlor and CGluc increased sedimentation during accelerated physical stability testing, with CHyd causing greater sedimentation than CChlor or CGluc.
Streams and stages: Reconciling Kingdon and policy process theory
Authors: Howlett Michael , McConnell Allan , Perl Anthony
Published: July 2014

Use of metaphors is a staple feature of how we understand policy processes – none more so than the use of ‘policy stages’/'cycles’ and ‘multiple streams’. Yet even allowing for the necessary parsimony of metaphors, the former is often criticised for its lack of ‘real world’ engagement with agency, power, ideology, turbulence and complexity, while the latter focuses only on agenda‐setting but at times has been utilised, with limited results, to understand later stages of the policy process. This article seeks to explore and advance the opportunities for combining both and applying them to the policy‐formation and decision‐making stages of policy making. In doing so it examines possible three, four and five stream models. It argues that a five stream confluence model provides the highest analytical value because it retains the simplicity of metaphors (combining elements of two of the most prominent models in policy studies) while also helping capture some of the more complex and subtle aspects of policy processes, including policy styles and nested systems of governance.
From savannah to farmland: effects of land‐use on mammal communities in the Tarangire–Manyara ecosystem, Tanzania
Authors: Kiffner Christian , Wenner Carolyn , LaViolet Adam , Yeh Karen , Kioko John
Published: July 2014

Land‐use change is considered a major driver of biodiversity loss. In the western part of the Tarangire–Manyara ecosystem, we assessed large mammal species richness along a land‐use gradient (national park, uninhabited pastoral area and settled pastoral‐ and farmland). We found the highest species richness in the national park and in the pastoral area and lowest species richness in the settled and farmed area. There was little evidence of seasonal changes in species diversity. Except for top‐order carnivores, all functional feeding guilds were still represented in pastoral and settled areas. Although we did not find significant differences in body mass distributions and species’ representation of feeding guilds between the study sites, there was a trend that omnivores, mesopredators and top‐order carnivores tended to occur at lower species richness in agricultural areas than in the pastoral and fully protected areas. These results indicate that areas used for livestock keeping can maintain high wildlife species richness and that direct and indirect effects of agricultural and settlement expansions are the main drivers of species richness loss in the Tarangire–Manyara ecosystem and possibly other African savannah ecosystems. These results are useful for informed land‐use planning that aims to maintain species diversity and ecological connectivity between protected areas.
Eye Contact Modulates Cognitive Processing Differently in Children With Autism
Authors: Falck‐Ytter Terje , Carlström Christoffer , Johansson Martin
Published: July 2014

In humans, effortful cognitive processing frequently takes place during social interaction, with eye contact being an important component. This study shows that the effect of eye contact on memory for nonsocial information is different in children with typical development than in children with autism, a disorder of social communication. Direct gaze facilitated memory performance in children with typical development (n = 25, 6 years old), but no such facilitation was seen in the clinical group (n = 10, 6 years old). Eye tracking conducted during the cognitive test revealed strikingly similar patterns of eye movements, indicating that the results cannot be explained by differences in overt attention. Collectively, these findings have theoretical significance and practical implications for testing practices in children.
The Ser680Asn polymorphism in the follicle‐stimulating hormone receptor gene is associated with the ovarian response in controlled ovarian hyperstimulation
Authors: Huang Xianliang , Li Lu , Hong Ling , Zhou Weijin , Shi Huijuan , Zhang Huiqin , Zhang Zhaofeng , Sun Xiaoxi , Du Jing
Published: July 2014

Objective

Polymorphisms in the follicle‐stimulating hormone receptor (FSHR) gene are reported to be associated with the ovarian response in controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH), although there remains some discordance between studies. Here, using the largest patient sample to date, we evaluated the association of the p.Ser680Asn (S680N) polymorphism in the FSHR gene with the outcome of COH.

Design

Cohort study.

Setting

Medical academy and hospital.

Patients

A total of 1250 infertile Chinese women undergoing IVF/ICIS‐ET treatment were included.

Measures

The association between an FSHR polymorphism (S680N) and the ovarian response was analysed. Genotyping was performed by utilizing direct sequencing and the Sequenom MassARRAY iPLEX platform. Follicular fluid oestradiol (E2) and follicle‐stimulating hormone (FSH) concentrations were determined using electrochemiluminesence immunoassays. The ovarian response parameters were analysed based on the FSHR genotypes. The odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated for the risk genotypes and alleles.

Results

There were linear correlations between the basal FSH level, exogenous gonadotropin consumption, and oocytes retrieved and the Ser680 alleles. Patients in the homozygous SS group demonstrated higher basal FSH levels, required more dosage of exogenous gonadotropin for ovarian stimulation, and had fewer numbers of oocytes retrieved compared with patients in the homozygous NN and heterozygous groups. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the OR of a poor ovarian response for the NS genotype was 1·79 (95% CI 1·28–2·61; P < 0·001), whereas that for the SS genotype was 2·25 (95% CI 1·40–3·58; P < 0·001) after adjusting for age, BMI and basal FSH level. The concentration of E2 in the follicular fluid was significantly higher in subjects with the NN genotype than the SS genotype (772 ± 545 ng/ml vs. 1299 ± 504 ng/ml).

Conclusions

Follicle‐stimulating hormone receptor gene polymorphism at position 680 is associated with different ovarian responses to controlled ovarian hyperstimulation.
Germline BAP1 mutations predispose also to multiple basal cell carcinomas
Authors: de la Fouchardière A. , Cabaret O. , Savin L. , Combemale P. , Schvartz H. , Penet C. , Bonadona V. , Soufir N. , Bressac‐de Paillerets B.
Published: July 2014

The BRCA1‐associated protein 1 (BAP1) gene encodes a nuclear deubiquitin enzyme which acts as a tumour suppressor. Loss of function germline mutations of BAP1 have been associated with an enhanced risk of uveal and cutaneous melanomas, mesothelioma, clear cell renal cancer and atypical cutaneous melanocytic proliferations. In two independent BAP1 families, we noticed an unusual frequency of basal cell carcinomas (BCCs). Indeed, 19 BCCs were diagnosed in four patients, either of superficial (13/19) or nodular (6/19) subtype; they were all located in chronic sun‐exposed areas (limbs, head or neck). Immunohistochemistry (IHC) identified in the 19 tumours, complete or partial loss of BAP1 protein nuclear expression, restricted to the BCC nests. A control study was conducted in 22 sporadic BCCs in 22 subjects under 65 without known associated BAP1 tumours: no loss of BAP1 expression was found. Overall, our observations suggest that BCCs are part of the BAP1 cancer syndrome, perhaps in relation with chronic sun exposure and melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) variants. In conclusion, cutaneous follow‐up of BAP1 carriers should not only aim to detect melanocytic neoplasms but also BCCs.
Results of retrospective classification of thyroid FNAs according to the Bethesda system: would this have improved accuracy?
Authors: Srbova L. , Gabalec F. , Ryska A. , Cap J.
Published: July 2014

Objectives

To retrospectively reclassify the results of fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology at our institution according to the Bethesda system for reporting thyroid cytopathology (TBSRTC), and to determine whether the introduction of the new classification system would have influenced the diagnostic accuracy compared with our existing system in which suspicious/indeterminate categories (categories III–IV) are managed according to clinical findings and cytopathologists' recommendations.

Methods

FNAs performed under ultrasound guidance between 2001 and 2012, and subsequently verified by histology or repeat FNA and follow‐up, were reviewed and retrospectively reclassified according to TBSRTC.

Results

Among a total of 1310 histologically verified FNAs, the positive predictive values (%) for malignancy and neoplasia (carcinoma + follicular adenomas) for category I–VI according to the TBSRTC were 5.7/11.3, 2.6/5.5, 14.4/34.2, 23.6/55.0, 57.0/64.5 and 92.2/94.2, respectively. Although all the categories predict malignancy closely, the difference in malignancy rate between categories III and IV was not statistically significant; however, the difference in total neoplasia rate reached statistical significance. When patients with cytological and clinical follow‐up were included, the malignancy rated dropped in category I to 2.4%, whereas, in category III, it remained at 13%. Repeat FNA instead of direct surgery spared half of the patients from surgery. The cytopathologists' recommendations for histological verification in category III were associated with an insignificant increase in malignancy rate, but the total neoplasia rate reached 57.5%.

Conclusions

At our institution, the application of the TBSRTC did not improve the diagnostic accuracy for the detection of malignancy compared with current practice. In selected cases with cytological results falling into category III (according to clinical data and cytopathologists' opinions), direct lobectomy seems to be justified.
Non‐equilibrium in plant distribution models – only an issue for introduced or dispersal limited species?
Authors: Menuz Diane R. , Kettenring Karin M. , Hawkins Charles P. , Cutler D. Richard
Published: July 2014

Species distribution models rely on the assumption that species' distributions are at equilibrium with environmental conditions within a region – i.e. they occur in all suitable habitats. If this assumption holds, species occurrence should be predictable from measures of the environment. Introduced species may be poor candidates for distribution models due to their presumed lack of equilibrium within the landscapes they occupy, although predicting their potential distributions is often of critical importance to natural resource managers. We determined if the accuracy of species distribution models differed between 17 native and 17 introduced riparian plant species in the western United States. We also assessed if model accuracy was associated with both environmental and biological factors that can influence dispersal. We used Random Forests to model species distributions and linear regression to determine if model accuracy was associated with dispersal‐related traits. Model accuracy for introduced species was higher than that for native species. Dispersal‐related traits did not affect model accuracy or improvement, though two other traits, family affiliation and rarity on the landscape, did have an effect. Distance‐based measures of dispersal potential improved model fit equally for both native and introduced species and for species with a variety of dispersal traits, suggesting that the importance of regional propagule pressure is relatively constant across species with different dispersal opportunities. Several lines of future questioning are suggested by our results, including why introduced species may in some cases produce more accurate distribution models than native species and how species dispersal traits relate to distribution model accuracy at different spatial scales.
Alate production in an aphid in relation to ant tending and alarm pheromone
Authors: TEGELAAR KAROLINA , LEIMAR OLOF
Published: July 2014

1. Winged dispersal is vital for aphids as predation pressure and host plant conditions fluctuate.

2. Ant‐tended aphids also need to disperse, but this may represent a cost for the ants, resulting in an evolutionary conflict of interest over aphid dispersal.

3. The combined effects of aphid alarm pheromone, indicating predation risk, and ant attendance on the production of winged aphids were examined in an experiment with Aphis fabae (Homoptera: Aphididae) (Scopoli 1763) aphids and Lasius niger (Formicidae: Formicinae) (Linné, 1758) ants.

4. This study is the first to investigate the joint effects of alarm pheromone and ant attendance, and also the first to detect an influence of alarm pheromone on the production of winged morphs in A. fabae.

5. After a period of 2 weeks, it was found that aphid colonies exposed to intermittent doses of alarm pheromone produced more winged individuals, whereas ant tending had the opposite effect. The effects were additive on a log scale, and ant attendance had a greater proportional influence than exposure to alarm pheromone. A tentative conclusion is that ants have gained the upper hand in an evolutionary conflict about aphid dispersal.
The role of ecological availability and host plant characteristics in determining host use by the bogus yucca moth Prodoxus decipiens
Authors: ALTHOFF DAVID M. , FOX KELLY A. , FRIEDEN TAL
Published: July 2014

1. Specialisation in host plant use is strongly correlated with speciation in many plant‐feeding insects. Specialised taxa, however, could be restricted in host range due to limits in ecological availability of host plant species rather than trade‐offs in using alternate host species.

2. Moths in the genus Prodoxus are extreme specialists on Yucca and speciation is closely tied to host plant shifts. However, many Yucca ranges are allopatric. This study examined whether the bogus yucca moth Prodoxus decipiens is limited in host range because of biogeographic factors or due to differences in the characteristics of host plant species.

3. In a common garden, local P. decipiens moths that use Yucca filamentosa were exposed to individuals of five Yucca species, two that are known hosts of P. decipiens in other parts of its range and three that are used by its sister species, Prodoxus quinquepunctellus.

4. Local moths were attracted to flowers of all Yucca species and females attempted oviposition in the flowering stalks of all species. However, larvae successfully completed development to diapause in only one of the five host plant species. Larval development on non‐natal Yucca species was significantly reduced compared with the local host.

5. The results suggest that differences in host plant characteristics among Yucca species would result in strong natural selection during a host shift. Thus, specialisation in host plant use is probably due to trade‐offs involved with using novel host plant species as well as ecological availability.
Brain serotonin determines maternal behavior and offspring survival
Authors: Angoa‐Pérez M. , Kane M. J. , Sykes C. E. , Perrine S. A. , Church M. W. , Kuhn D. M.
Published: July 2014

Maternal care is an indispensable component of offspring survival and development in all mammals and necessary for reproductive success. Although brain areas regulating maternal behaviors are innervated by serotonergic afferents, very little is known about the role of this neurotransmitter in these behaviors. To evaluate the contribution of serotonin to maternal care, we used mice with a null mutation in the gene for tryptophan hydroxylase‐2 (TPH2), which results in a genetic depletion of brain serotonin, and tested them in a wide range of maternal behavior paradigms. We found that litters born to and reared by TPH2−/− mothers showed decreased survival, lower weaning weights and increased cannibalization. In addition, TPH2−/− mothers performed poorly in pup retrieval, huddling, nest construction and high‐arched back nursing. Aggression in TPH2−/− dams was not triggered by lactation and was steadily high. Survival and weaning weight deficits of TPH2−/− pups were rescued by cross‐fostering and in litters of mixed genotype (TPH2−/− and TPH2−/+). However, the maternal behaviors of TPH2−/− dams did not improve when rearing either TPH2+/+ pups or mixed‐genotype litters. In addition, TPH2−/− pups significantly worsened the behavior of TPH2+/+ dams with respect to cannibalism, weaning weight and latency to attack. Olfactory and auditory functions of TPH2−/− females or anxiety‐like behaviors did not account for these maternal alterations as they were equal to their TPH2+/+ counterparts. These findings illustrate a profound influence of brain serotonin on virtually all elements of maternal behavior and establish that TPH2−/− pups can engender maladaptive mothering in dams of both genotypes.
A Second Wave of Hopi Migration
Authors: Gilbert Matthew Sakiestewa
Published: July 2014

The current issue in the History of Education Quarterly is significant for various reasons. For the first time in the journal's history, scholars from several disciplines have converged to address topics relating to the history of American Indian education. The essays challenge historians to think of research methodologies that go beyond the traditional sources of documents retrieved from archives and other depositories. This is perhaps most clearly seen in KuuNUx TeeRIt Kroupa's essay on the Arikara Cultural Center and his attempt to understand their educational history through an Arikara lens of understanding. It is also evident in Adrea Lawrence's idea of “epic learning” and her inclusion of “Native” stories and their relationship to “place” as a frame to interpret American Indian education histories. Each of these articles, including Donald Warren's piece on Native history as education history, urges historians to think more broadly on how to create Indian education narratives. However, my intention here is not to provide a comprehensive response to all three essays. Rather, I want to briefly apply key topics in each text to help enlighten my own research on Hopis and the off-reservation Indian boarding school experience, and to offer some direction on how these issues might be applied to current and future studies.
Negotiating the History of Education: How the Histories of Indigenous Education Expand the Field
Authors: Cervera Yesenia Lucia
Published: July 2014

Today many historians of education reference Bernard Bailyn'sEducation in the Forming of American Societyand Lawrence Cremin's three-book seriesAmerican Educationas important works that created a turning point in the field. Yet, few have constructed histories of education as narratives in the transmission of culture across generations and even fewer have taken time to critically analyze the possible meanings, implications, and limitations of proposals set forth by Bailyn and Cremin. Thus, while the definition of education was broadened, research has not advanced new research topics and designs. This special issue frames histories of American Indian cultures as education histories thereby bringing this pressing conversation into critical analysis and pushing the field toward new agendas and frameworks. The authors demonstrate that constructing American Indian histories requires new methods and concepts be employed and advocate for the dismissal of Euroamerican frameworks. Accepting their proposals, historians of education can hope to gain fresh histories of teaching and learning that can expand research in new and exciting ways.
A cross‐national study of the ecological worldview of senior consumers
Authors: Sudbury‐Riley Lynn , Hofmeister‐Toth Agnes , Kohlbacher Florian
Published: July 2014

This paper presents the results of a cross‐national study into the ecological worldview of senior consumers using the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) scale. It was designed to examine the extent to which senior respondents in the UK, Germany, Japan and Hungary are endorsing the NEP scale and which factors determine NEP in the four countries under study. Our study is the first of its kind to measure the ecological worldview of older consumers across different nations. Examinations of the overall frequency and mean distributions of the NEP scale showed that the majority of seniors in each country support the NEP statements, but there is no general support for pro‐NEP orientation. The relationship between values [using list of values (LOV) scale] and environmental attitudes was tested through a series of regression analyses calculated separately for each country. According to the results, a very weak relationship between some of the LOV values and the NEP scale was found in all the samples. Our study contributes to both cross‐cultural environmental attitude research and to consumer studies in general.
Outcomes following Sonothrombolysis in Severe Acute Ischemic Stroke: Subgroup Analysis of the CLOTBUST Trial
Authors: Barlinn Kristian , Tsivgoulis Georgios , Barreto Andrew D. , Alleman John , Molina Carlos A. , Mikulik Robert , Saqqur Maher , Demchuk Andrew M. , Schellinger Peter D. , Howard George , Alexandrov Andrei V.
Published: July 2014

Background

Sonothrombolysis is safe and may increase the likelihood of early recanalization in acute ischemic stroke patients.

Aims

In preparation of a phase III clinical trial, we contrast the likelihood of achieving a sustained recanalization and functional independence in a post hoc subgroup analysis of patients randomized to transcranial Doppler monitoring plus intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (sonothrombolysis) compared with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator alone in the CLOTBUST trial.

Methods

We analyzed the data from all randomized acute ischemic stroke patients with pretreatment National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores ≥ 10 points and proximal intracranial occlusions in the CLOTBUST trial. We compared sustained complete recanalization rate (Thrombolysis in Brain Ischemia flow grades 4–5) and functional independence (modified Rankin Scale 0–1) at 90 days. Safety was evaluated by the rate of symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage within 72 h of stroke onset.

Results

Of 126 patients, a total of 85 acute ischemic stroke patients met our inclusion criteria: mean age 71 ± 11years, 56% men, median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale 17 (interquartile range 14–20). Of these patients, 41 (48%) and 44 (52%) were randomized to intravenous tissue plasminogen activator alone and sonothrombolysis, respectively. More patients achieved sustained complete recanalization in the sonothrombolysis than in the intravenous tissue plasminogen activator alone group (38·6% vs. 17·1%; P = 0·032). Functional independence at 90 days was more frequently achieved in the sonothrombolysis than in the intravenous tissue plasminogen activator alone group (37·2% vs. 15·8%; P = 0·045). Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage rate was similar in both groups (4·9% vs. 4·6%; P = 1·00).

Conclusions

Our results point to a signal of efficacy and provide information to guide the subsequent phase III randomized trial of sonothrombolysis in patients with severe ischemic strokes.
Mesenchymal stem cell therapy in treatment of erectile dysfunction: Autologous or allogeneic cell sources?
Authors: Mangir Naside , Akbal Cem , Tarcan Tufan , Simsek Ferruh , Turkeri Levent
Published: July 2014

Objective

To compare the efficacy of intracavernosal injection of autologous and allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells as potential treatment of erectile dysfunction in an experimental rat model.

Methods

Mesenchymal stem cells were isolated from rat paratesticular fat tissue. Bilateral cavernous nerve injury was carried out followed by immediate intracavernosal injection of either autologous or allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells or mesenchymal stem cell lysates. One month after injection, erectile function was evaluated by means of intracavernosal pressure measurement. All rats were eventually killed, and penile tissues were taken for immunhistochemical and molecular investigation.

Results

A total of 36 Sprague–Dawley rats were used. The mean maximum intracavernosal pressure in the sham‐operated, autologous and allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell injection groups were significantly better compared with the vehicle injection group (80.5 [3.56], 71.1 [2.9] and 69.2 [3.2] vs 40.33 [4.4], respectively). Mean maximum intracavernosal pressure to mean arterial pressure ratios in the autologous and allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell and mesenchymal stem cell lysate injection groups were not significantly different.

Conclusions

Intracavernosal injection of both autologous or allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells improve erectile functions in a rat model of cavernous nerve injury. Allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells might provide clinicians with ready to use, standardized and, in certain cases, more effective products. More studies focusing on long‐term immunological aspects of allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells are required.