bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The trinity of extended service quality, distinct perceived value, and customer loyalty facilitators
Authors: Lee Dae Hui
Published: August 2022

Purpose

In line with rapidly developing digitalized marketing technologies, extended service quality has been actively investigated in the exhibition industry. The importance of distinct perceived value linked to service quality has also been emphasized for increasing customer satisfaction. Further, customer loyalty facilitators, such as trust, commitment, and inertia, have been actively discussed in building long-term relationships between firms and their customers. Because establishing an iterative customer loyalty journey is the key to a marketing strategy, the purpose of this study was to clarify how the trinity of extended service quality, distinct perceived value, and customer loyalty facilitators works in that journey.

Design/methodology/approach

Partial least squares-based structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to examine the model fit, composite reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity of the constructs. PLS-SEM was also used to assess direct and indirect (i.e. mediating) effects.

Findings

First, the conceptual framework necessary for establishing an iterative customer loyalty journey has been empirically identified. Second, service technology is a key construct of extended service quality as exhibitions transform into digitalized communication platforms. Third, both distinct perceived value and satisfaction act as significant mediators between extended service quality and customer loyalty facilitators.

Originality/value

An effective framework for the iterative customer loyalty journey is theoretically designed and empirically confirmed by drawing a complex but comprehensive map of the trinity (i.e. extended service quality, distinct perceived value, and customer loyalty facilitators).
Loan portfolio structure: the impact of foreign and Islamic banks
Authors: Tayem Ghada
Published: August 2022

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the role of bank ownership (foreign versus domestic) and the type of service (Islamic versus conventional) on bank lending to large enterprises and small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on previous literature, the study proposes that foreign banks lend more to large enterprises and less to SMEs than domestic banks do. It also proposes that Islamic banks lend more to SMEs than conventional banks do. It utilizes unique hand-collected data of Jordanian banks from 2007 to 2018 to carry out its investigation. It applies regression estimation methods and propensity score matching to test its hypotheses.

Findings

Consistent with prior empirical evidence, the findings show that foreign banks lend significantly less (more) to SMEs (large enterprises) than their domestic counterparts. However, the findings indicate that Islamic banks lend significantly less to SMEs than their conventional counterparts. Further analysis shows that Islamic banks operating in Jordan are ultimately owned by foreign investors hence their incentives to adopt full features of Islamic financial instruments are confounded by their incentives to utilize transaction lending technologies which in turn attenuates the expected positive impact of Islamic banking services on SMEs finance.

Originality/value

This research provides novel evidence on the impact of Islamic banks on SMEs finance as the results suggest that the success of Islamic finance in bridging the gap of SMEs finance is conditional on embracing its full features.
Innovating, exit or both? Strategic responses to crisis revisited from resource redeployment perspective: evidence from China
Authors: Jin Jun , Li Shijing , Chen Zan , Wang Liying
Published: August 2022

Purpose

Although scholars in strategic management have identified innovating and exit as firms’ two sequential strategic responses to long-run crisis, the potential interdependency has yet remained implicit. Specifically, in the context of Chinese Privately Owned Enterprises (POEs), this study investigates the interrelationship of these two strategic responses during long-run crisis. Building on resource redeployment perspective, the authors propose that firms tend to simultaneously leverage innovating and exit responses.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use the data from the 2010 Chinese POEs survey to verify how firms in the long-term crisis made strategic responses after the 2008 financial crisis. Besides, the authors utilize Probit regressions as the basic analysis and further employ bivariate Probit regressions to conduct robustness tests.

Findings

This study provides empirical evidence confirming that firms in the long-run period of the crisis tend to adopt both exit and innovating strategies at the same time, that is, the strategy of resource redeployment. Moreover, this study further finds that government subsidies, the degree of marketization and firm’s organizational capability could all accentuate the decision-making of firms’ resource redeployment.

Originality/value

The authors thus contribute to the study of strategic responses to crisis in strategic management by dynamically find out the interdependency of two responses and enrich the research on resource redeployment perspective by identifying three influential positive antecedents, adding to the ongoing investigation on positive drivers of resource redeployment.
Contribution of wheat and maize to soil organic carbon in a wheat‐maize cropping system: A field and laboratory study
Authors: Kan Zheng‐Rong , Chen Zhe , Wei Yu‐Xin , Virk Ahmad Latif , Bohoussou Yves N’Dri , Lal Rattan , Zhao Xin , Zhang Hai‐Lin
Published: August 2022

Retention of crop biomass is widely recommended to improve soil organic carbon (SOC). However, the magnitude of contribution of above‐ground residues and below‐ground roots from C3 and C4 crops to SOC is unclear.

Data from a 10‐year field experiment and a 60‐day laboratory incubation were synthesized to identify the respective contribution of C3 (e.g., wheat) and C4 (e.g., maize) residues and roots to SOC, as well as its underlying mechanisms under no‐till (NT) using 13C labelling trace in wheat‐maize rotations.

The field experiment showed that residue retention significantly increased SOC accumulation, and SOC derived from wheat was 126.0% higher than that from maize. Conversion to NT promoted SOC derived from wheat and thus accumulated 17.6% higher SOC stock compared with plough tillage (PT) under residue returning at 0–20 cm soil depth (p < 0.05). The data from laboratory incubation revealed the mechanisms that lower priming effects at 0–10 cm depth decreased total mineralization by 91.8% after inputs of wheat residues and roots compared with that of maize residues and roots, especially under NT compared with PT. Priming effects were negatively correlated with enzyme activities associated with the C recycle, SOC, and total nitrogen (TN) contents (p < 0.01). NT increased enzyme activities, SOC, and TN contents and thus reduced priming effects and improved residual carbon.

Synthesis and applications. These results suggested that wheat may contribute more to SOC accumulation than maize, and carbon increment efficiency in farmland could be enhanced by considering the crucial roles of C3 crops in SOC accumulation. NT practice sustains the benefits of C3 crops to SOC sequestration in the upper soil depths.
Evidence for synergistic cumulative impacts of marking and hunting in a wildlife species
Authors: LeTourneux Frédéric , Gauthier Gilles , Pradel Roger , Lefebvre Josée , Legagneux Pierre
Published: August 2022

Nonadditive effects from multiple interacting stressors can have unpredictable outcomes on wildlife. Stressors that initially have negligible impacts may become significant if they act in synergy with novel stressors. Wildlife markers can be a source of physiological stress for animals and are ubiquitous in ecological studies. Their potential impacts on vital rates may vary over time, particularly when changing environments impose new stressors.

In this study, we evaluated the temporal changes in the combined impact of two stressors, one constant (collar marking) and another one variable over time (hunting intensity), in greater snow geese (Anser caerulescens atlantica). Over a 30‐year period (1990–2019), hunting regulations were liberalized twice, in 1999 and 2009, with the instauration of special spring and winter hunting seasons respectively. We evaluated the effect of collars on goose survival through this period of changing hunting regulations. We compared annual survival of >20,000 adult females marked with and without neck collars using multi‐event capture–recapture models, and partitioned hunting from nonhunting mortality.

Survival of geese marked with or without collars was similar in 1990–1998, before hunting regulations were liberalized (average survival [95% CI]: 0.87 [0.86, 0.89]). However, absolute survival of collared geese was 0.05 [0.03, 0.07] lower than that of noncollared geese between 1999 and 2009, and 0.12 [0.09, 0.15] lower after hunting regulations were liberalized further in 2009. Hunting and nonhunting mortality probabilities were both higher in collared birds compared to those without collars.

The interaction between the effects of collars and hunting was synergistic because collars affected survival only after the hunting pressure increased significantly. These cumulated stresses probably reduced goose body condition sufficiently to increase their vulnerability to multiple sources of mortality.
Disease surveillance infrastructure and the economisation of public health
Authors: Decoteau Claire Laurier , Garrett Cal Lee
Published: August 2022

The city government of Chicago adopted a ‘racial equity’ approach to tackle racial disparities in COVID‐19 outcomes. Drawing on experience addressing core vulnerabilities associated with HIV risk, Chicago public health experts who designed COVID‐19 mitigation initiatives recognised that the same social determinants of health drive racial disparities for both HIV and COVID‐19. Yet, when building an infrastructure to respond to COVID‐19, disease surveillance and data collection became the priority for investment ahead of other forms of public health work or the provision of social services. The building of a disease surveillance infrastructure that responded to and supplied data took precedence over addressing social determinants of poor health. Community‐based organisations that might have otherwise organised for social service provision were incorporated into this infrastructure. Further, public health officials often failed to heed the lessons learned from their experience with HIV vulnerability. Based on qualitative analysis of 56 interviews with public health experts and policymakers in Chicago, we argue that the prioritisation of disease surveillance, coupled with a scarcity model of public health provision, undermined the city’s attempt to redress racial inequities in outcomes. We argue that the economisation of pandemic response exacerbates health disparities, even when racial equity frameworks are adopted.
Prevalence and outcome of abdominal wall hernia in patients with end‐stage renal disease on peritoneal dialysis
Authors: Girimaji Niveditha , Sunnesh Anapalli , Nagalakshmi Tandalam , Bethasaida Manuel Maria , Reddy Vutukuru Venkatarami , Rapur Ram , Vishnubhotla Sivakumar
Published: August 2022

Introduction

We aimed to study the prevalence, risk factors, management, and outcome of hernias in end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD) from India.

Methods

This was a retrospective study of ESRD‐PD patients who developed hernias over 11 years.

Results

Of 470 PD patients, 21 developed hernias (4.2%). Mean age of patients was 49.9 ± 15.36 years; 15 (66.66%) were males; 18 (85.71%) patients had umbilical hernia, 3 (14.28%) had inguinal hernia. Continuous ambulatory PD (CAPD) versus automated PD (APD) (OR: 11.623, 95% CI: 2.060–65.581, p = 0.005) was the independent risk factor identified. Incarcerated umbilical/inguinal hernia was managed surgically (6 [28.57%]); uncomplicated umbilical hernia (15 [71.42%]) managed conservatively (shift to (APD) [33.33%]; switch to low‐volume APD [20%], switch to low‐volume CAPD [46.66%]). None had postoperative hernia recurrences; 4 (19%) had PD technique failure; median PD survival was 36 (IQR 17–55) months.

Conclusion

Although complicated hernias in PD require surgical repair, uncomplicated umbilical hernias can be managed conservatively by switching to APD/low‐volume CAPD, with good long‐term PD technique survival.
The duality of HR analysts' storytelling: Showcasing and curbing
Authors: Fu Na , Keegan Anne , McCartney Steven
Published: August 2022

Given the increased popularity of HR analytics, a particular focus has been placed on its enactors ‐ HR analysts. Their capabilities are believed to entail analytical and storytelling skills. While we acknowledge the importance of analytical skills, this study utilises an exploratory and qualitative approach to extend our understanding on the storytelling of HR analysts, which remains less understood in the HR analytics research. Data from HR analysts shows they engage in storytelling as showcasing, incorporating a narrow approach to translating and selling. The latter is a broader form of institutional work to gain legitimacy for HR analytics on a general level. New insights are also offered on how HR analysts engage in storytelling as curbing, a form of institutional work linked with decoupling HR analytics policy from daily practices and projects. HR analysts engage with these two seemingly contradictory aspects of storytelling to develop sustainable and legitimate HR analytics.
Performance characterization of a traditional wood‐fired pizza oven
Authors: Falciano Aniello , Masi Paolo , Moresi Mauro
Published: August 2022

Neapolitan pizza, a renowned Italian food recognized as one of the traditional specialties guaranteed (TSG) by European Commission Regulation no. 97/2010, should be exclusively baked in wood‐fired ovens for approximately 90 s. Despite its extensive use in restaurants and rotisserie shops all around the world, such equipment has been very poorly studied thus far. The aims of this study were to characterize the operation of a pilot‐scale wood‐fired pizza oven from its start‐up phase to its baking operation and assess its thermal efficiency. To manage brick firing, the oven was lighted at a firewood feed rate (Qfw) of 3 kg/h for just 1 h on the first day, 2 h on the second day, 4 h on the third day, and approximately 8 h on the fourth day. Independent of its lighting frequency, after 4‐6 h, the oven vault or floor temperature approached an equilibrium value of 546 ± 53°C or 453 ± 32°C, respectively. The initial oven floor temperature gradient was linearly related to Qfw, while the maximum floor temperature tended to an asymptotic value of 629 ± 43°C at Qfw = 9 kg/h. The well‐known water boiling test was adapted to assess the heat absorbed by a prefixed amount of water when the pizza oven was operating in pseudosteady‐state conditions at Qfw = 3 kg/h. The thermal efficiency of this oven was 13 ± 4%, and this value was further confirmed by other baking tests with four different white and tomato pizza products.

Practical Application

Although wood‐fired pizza ovens are largely used all over the world, little is known about their transitory and pseudosteady‐state regime performance. This study shows how to perform the start‐up procedure of pilot‐scale equipment and, independent of the operator's ability, how to achieve pseudosteady‐state conditions using different firewood feed rates. Finally, its thermal efficiency was assessed by water heating and pizza baking tests, which allowed a rough estimation of firewood consumption.
Baogong decoction treats endometritis in mice by regulating uterine microbiota structure and metabolites
Authors: Ding He , Wang Youyuan , Li Zhiqiang , Li Qianqing , Liu Hongyu , Zhao Jing , Lu Wenfa , Wang Jun
Published: August 2022

Endometritis is persistent inflammation caused by bacteria, which can lead to infertility. Although traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used to treat endometritis, the underlying mechanism is still unclear. Here, Baogong Decoction (BGD), a TCM compound, was used to treat mouse endometritis induced byEscherichia coli(E. coli), and then 16S rRNA sequencing and non‐targeted metabolomics were used to investigate the change of uterine microbiota and metabolomes in serum and uterine after BGD treatment. Finally, the therapeutic effect of potential metabolites for treating mouse endometritis screened by combined omics analyses was verified using pathological model. The results showed that BGD treatment could effectively treat endometritis associated with the increasing relative abundance of Firmicutes,Bacteroides,LactobacillusandLactococcus, and the decreasing relative abundance ofCupriavidusand Proteobacteria. 133 and 130 metabolites were found to be potential biomarkers in serum and uterine tissue respectively. In serum and tissues, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and catechol were significantly increased in the BGD treatment versus the inflammation group. Results of combined omics analyses demonstrated that DHEA was positively correlated with changes in microbiota. Results of pathological model demonstrated that DHEA could cure endometritis effectively associated with the decreasing infiltration of inflammatory cells and expression of inflammatory factors in the uterus. In summary, our results demonstrated that BGD could cure endometritis in mice by modulating the structure of the uterine microbiota and its metabolites, in which DHEA may be one of the main components of the therapeutic effect of BGD.
Emerging role of EZH2 in rheumatic diseases: A comprehensive review
Authors: Xu Wang‐Dong , Huang Qi , Huang An‐Fang
Published: August 2022

Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) is a histone methylated enzyme. It trimethylates histone 3 lysine 27 (H3K27) to regulate epigenetic processes. Recently, studies showed excessive expression of EZH2 in rheumatic diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and systemic sclerosis. Moreover, epigenetic modification of EZH2 regulates differentiation and proliferation of different immune cells. Therefore, in this review, we comprehensively discuss the role of EZH2 in rheumatic diseases. Collection of the evidence may provide a basis for further understanding the role of EZH2 and give potential for targeting these diseases.
Fraud Firms' Non‐Implicated CFOs: An Investigation of Reputational Contagion and Subsequent Employment Outcomes*
Authors: Condie Eric R. , Convery Amanda M. , Zehms Karla M.
Published: August 2022

We investigate labor market consequences for CFOs employed by fraud firms, focusing on reputational contagion for those who are not implicated. These individuals provide an opportunity to understand reputational contagion and the nuanced meaning of “guilt” because the labor market may suspect complicity or infer negligence regardless of whether that is truly the case. We compare these CFOs to a matched sample of non‐fraud CFOs and track both turnover and subsequent employment positions. Non‐implicated CFOs are more likely to experience turnover compared to non‐fraud CFOs, driven in particular by the public revelation of fraud to the labor market. We further find that non‐implicated CFOs are more likely to obtain comparable subsequent employment than non‐fraud CFOs before the fraud is publicly revealed, but not after. In supplementary analyses, we find that turnover rates are highest for non‐implicated CFOs who started their employment with the firm before the fraud began as compared to non‐implicated CFOs who started their employment after the fraud began. These results highlight the labor market significance of the public revelation of fraud and imply that the labor market does not fully distinguish between fraud firm association and general firm performance when making executive hiring decisions.
Quality of life impact and treatment response in vulval disease: Comparison of 3 common conditions using the Vulval Quality of Life Index
Authors: Wu Michelle , Kherlopian Ashod , Wijaya Marlene , Fischer Gayle
Published: August 2022

Background/Objectives

To compare the quality of life in patients with vulval lichen sclerosus (VLS), vulval lichen planus (VLP) and chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis (CVVC), as measured by the Vulval Quality of Life Index (VQLI).

Methods

A retrospective, single‐centre cohort study was conducted at a combined dermatology and gynaecology practice from March 2018 to November 2021. VQLI scores and patient data were systematically collected and recorded in an online patient database. Treatment regimens were individualised and titrated to clinical response.

Results

Over 3 years, a total of 200 women were recruited: 59 with CVVC, 79 with VLP and 62 with VLS. The median duration of follow‐up for all patients was 45.43 (16.25–80.89) weeks. At baseline, the median (interquartile range [IQR]) VQLI score was 24.00 (19.00–31.00), 21.00 (12.00–26.00) and 14.00 (7.00–26.00) for CVVC, VLP and VLS, respectively. At follow‐up, the median (IQR) VQLI score for CVVC, VLP and VLS was 9.00 (3.00–15.00), 9.00 (3.00–16.00) and 5.00 (2.00–10.00), respectively. All three groups showed a significant improvement in VQLI score (p < 0.0001). At baseline, the highest scoring domains were ‘Sexual Function’ for CVVC and ‘Future Health Concerns’ for VLP and VLS. At follow‐up, the highest scoring domains were ‘Sexual Function’ for CVVC and VLP, and ‘Future Health Concerns’ for VLS.

Conclusions and Relevance

Vulval disease has an immense impact on QOL, especially in patients with CVVC. The VQLI is useful to clinicians in identifying the unique impact of each vulval condition on a patient's QOL in order to provide better patient‐focussed care.
The impact of hidradenitis suppurativa on quality of life is worse than inflammatory bowel disease and myocardial infarction
Authors: Mortimore Alexandra M. , Bullen Alison , McMeniman Erin K.
Published: August 2022

Quality of life is severely impacted by Hidradenitis Suppurativa. This cross‐sectional survey based study highlights that the impact of Hidradenitis Suppurativa on quality of life measured by the World Health Organisation Quality of Life (WHOQOL‐BREF) survey is worse than published data for atopic dermatitis and other acute and chronic medical conditions including myocardial infarction and inflammatory bowel disease.
Analysis of a national difficult airway database
Authors: Sajayan A. , Nair A. , McNarry A. F. , Mir F. , Ahmad I. , El‐Boghdadly K.
Published: August 2022

Difficult airway management continues to adversely affect patient care and clinical outcomes and is poorly predicted. Previous difficult airway management is the most accurate predictor of future difficulty. The Difficult Airway Society initiated a national airway database to allow clinicians to access details of previous difficult airway episodes in patients issued with a difficult airway alert card. We aimed to analyse this database, reporting patient characteristics, airway management and patient outcomes. We included all living adult patients reported in the first 5 years of the database (n = 675). Clinical airway assessment was reported in 634 (94%) patients, with three or more parameters assessed in 488 (72%). A history of difficult airway was known in 136 (20%) patients and difficult airway management was anticipated in 391 (58%). In all, 75 (11%) patients had an airway‐related critical incident, with 1 in 29 being awoken from anaesthesia, 1 in 34 requiring unplanned or prolonged stay in the intensive care unit and 1 in 225 needing an emergency front‐of‐neck airway or had a cardiac arrest/peri‐arrest episode. Airway‐related critical incidents were associated with out‐of‐hours airway management, but no other associations were apparent. Our data report the first analysis of a national difficult airway database, finding that unanticipated difficult airway management continues to occur despite airway assessment, and the rate of critical incidents in this cohort of patients is high. This database has the potential to improve airway management for patients in the future.
Understanding and treating ejaculatory dysfunction in men with diabetes mellitus
Authors: Desai Ankit , Chen Runzhi , Cayetano Axel , Jayasena Channa N. , Minhas Suks
Published: August 2022

Diabetes mellitus is a rapidly rising metabolic disorder with important systemic complications. Global figures have demonstrated the prevalence of diabetes mellitus has almost quadrupled from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014, with a current prevalence of over 525 million. Of the male sexual dysfunction resulting from diabetes mellitus, significant focus is afforded to erectile dysfunction. Nevertheless, ejaculatory dysfunction constitutes important sexual sequelae in diabetic men, with up to 35%–50% of men with diabetes mellitus suffering from ejaculatory dysfunction. Despite this, aspects of its pathophysiology and treatment are less well understood than erectile dysfunction. The main disorders of ejaculation include premature ejaculation, delayed ejaculation, anejaculation and retrograde ejaculation.

Although ejaculatory dysfunction in diabetes mellitus can have complex multifactorial aetiology, understanding its pathophysiological mechanisms has facilitated the development of therapies in the management of ejaculatory dysfunction. Most of our understanding of its pathophysiology is derived from diabetic animal models; however, observational studies in humans have also provided useful information in elucidating important associative factors potentially contributing to ejaculatory dysfunction in diabetic men. These have provided the potential for more tailored treatment regimens in patients depending on the ejaculatory disorder, other co‐existing sequelae of diabetes mellitus, specific metabolic factors as well as the need for fertility treatment.

However, evidence for treatment of ejaculatory dysfunction, especially delayed ejaculation and retrograde ejaculation, is based on low‐level evidence comprising small sample‐size series and retrospective or cross‐sectional studies. Whilst promising findings from large randomised controlled trials have provided strong evidence for the licensed treatment of premature ejaculation, similar robust studies are needed to accurately elucidate factors predicting ejaculatory dysfunction in diabetes mellitus, as well as for the development of pharmacotherapies for delayed ejaculation and retrograde ejaculation. Similarly, more contemporary robust data are required for fertility outcomes in these patients, including methods of sperm retrieval and assisted reproductive techniques in retrograde ejaculation.
Comparison of primiparous womenʼs childbirth experience in labor induction with cervical ripening by balloon catheter or oral misoprostol – a prospective study using a validated childbirth experience questionnaire (CEQ) and visual analogue scale (VAS)
Authors: Place Katariina , Kruit Heidi , Rahkonen Leena
Published: August 2022

Introduction

Primiparity and labor induction, especially when cervical ripening is required, are risk factors for a negative childbirth experience. Our aim was to compare childbirth experience in primiparous women with cervical ripening by balloon catheter or oral misoprostol using the validated Childbirth Experience Questionnaire (CEQ). We also wanted to compare assessment of a negative childbirth experience by visual analogue scale (VAS) and CEQ.

Material and methods

This is a prospective study of 362 primiparous women undergoing cervical ripening and labor induction by balloon catheter (67.4%) or oral misoprostol (32.6%) at Helsinki University Hospital, Finland, between January 1, 2019 and January 31, 2020. After delivery, the women assessed their childbirth experience using the CEQ, and patient records provided the patient characteristics, delivery outcomes and VAS ratings. We analyzed the results using IBM SPSS Statistics.

Results

Overall, the women experienced their labor and delivery rather positively, with a mean CEQ score of 2.9 (SD 0.6) (scale 1–4), and no differences were detectable when comparing women with cervical ripening by balloon catheter or misoprostol. However, women with balloon catheter were more often satisfied with the method chosen for them and would choose the same method in a future pregnancy. Compared with CEQ, VAS seems mainly to reflect the women's perception of their own capacity to give birth and the safety of the hospital setting, not the level of professional support or participation in decision‐making. According to our results, CEQ and VAS are comparable, but the usability of the CEQ is limited by its inability to distinguish the most negative and the most positive experiences, and the VAS is limited by its simplicity.

Conclusions

Women with cervical ripening by balloon catheter or oral misoprostol experienced their childbirth rather positively, results being similar in both groups. However, women with cervical ripening by balloon catheter were more content with their labor induction. The CEQ and VAS can both be used to assess the childbirth experience of primiparous women undergoing labor induction, but both methods have limitations.
Signalling, screening and costly misrepresentation
Authors: Deneckere Raymond , Severinov Sergei
Published: August 2022

When misrepresenting private information is costly and each type has a different “natural” least‐cost signal or message, the availability of multiple signals has a significant effect on signalling equilibria and on the set of implementable outcomes in a screening context. In particular, welfare losses associated with costly signalling disappear as the number of available signals increases, yet at the same time each type is identified with a high degree of precision in every equilibrium satisfying a dominance criterion. In the screening context, we establish conditions under which the principal can implement an arbitrary allocation profile at a small communication cost. This result helps to explain why employers often prefer to screen applicants via multiple interviews rather than via menus of contracts. We also derive an optimal screening mechanism in such a setting. A surprising property of this mechanism is the absence of exclusion.
Associations of alcohol consumption with the risk and surgical outcomes of chronic rhinosinusitis in China: A case–control study
Authors: Wang Xueping , Chen Yibin , Zhu Xiaoyuan , Zhou Yandong , Su Hongxia , Zhao Yulin
Published: August 2022

Objective

To investigate the associations between weekly alcohol consumption and the risk and surgical outcome of Chronic Rhinosinusitis (CRS).

Design

A case–control study.

Setting and Participants

The study population consisted of 1095 CRS patients and 909 healthy collected from the first affiliated hospital of Zhengzhou University between May 2018 and December 2019.

Main Outcome Measures

Unconditional multivariate logistic regression analysis and Cox proportional hazards regression analysis were performed to estimate the association of alcohol consumption with the risk and surgical outcomes of CRS. Odds ratios (OR) or hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated separately. The Kruskal–Wallis test was used to explore the possible molecular mechanisms.

Results

As compared with nondrinkers, the multivariable‐adjusted OR (95% CI) values of current drinkers consuming 7.5–22 drinks and >22 drinks per week were 2.158 (1.249–3.729) and 5.373 (2.912–9.911), respectively. The rate of mucosal epithelialization after CRS surgery for patients who drank 7.5–22 drinks and >22 drinks per week was lower than that of nondrinkers [HR (95% CI) = 0.487 (0.351–0.675) and 0.252 (0.184–0.346), respectively]. The association of alcohol consumption with the risk and surgical outcome of CRS was dose dependent (p < .01). Alcohol consumption increased the risk of CRS and extended the time of mucosal epithelialization after CRS surgery by possibly increasing serum IgE levels (p < .05).

Conclusion

Higher alcohol consumption of >7.5 drinks per week was an independent risk factor for CRS and extended the time of mucosal epithelialization after surgery. As a potential underlying mechanism, alcohol consumption increases serum IgE levels.
Manufacturing with pluripotent stem cells (PSConf 2021): Key issues for future research and development
Authors: Stacey Glyn N. , Cao Jingyi , Hu Baoyang , Zhou Qi
Published: August 2022

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) have the capability to deliver novel cell‐based medicines that could transform medical treatments for a wide range of diseases including age‐related degenerative disorders and traumatic injury. In spite of significant investment in this area, due to the novel nature of these hPSC‐based medicines, there are challenges in almost all aspects of their manufacturing including bioprocessing, characterization and delivery. The Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Society for Stem Cell Research have collaborated to create a new discussion forum called PSConf 2021 (Pluripotent Stem Cell Conference 2021), intended to promote exchanges in communication on cutting‐edge developments and international coordination in hPSC manufacturing. The PSConf 2021 addressed crucial topics in stem cell‐based manufacturing, including stem cell differentiation, culture scale‐up, product formulation and release. This report summarizes the proceedings and conclusions from the discussion sessions, and it is accompanied by publication of individual papers from the speakers at the PSConf 2021.

Significance Statement

The PSConf 2021 meeting has brought together speakers and delegates from more than 20 countries in an informal discussion forum focusing on the manufacture of cell‐based medicines using hPSCs. The conference discussion sessions enabled an open exchange of information on the latest developments, ideas on key challenges and their potential solutions. It also captured the experiences and lessons learnt by professionals who had been in the field from the earliest applications of human embryonic stem cells, and presented a diverse range of new potential pluripotent stem cell‐based medicines that are now under development, with some already in clinical trials.
Evaluation of the Iranian panel reactive antibody calculator and potential usefulness: A retrospective study
Authors: Mohammadzadeh Sahand , Jaladat Abdul Reza , Mohammadi Maryam , Geramizadeh Bita , Anbardar Mohammad Hossein , Soleimani Neda , Amirinezhad Fard Elahe , Tehrani Narges Jamshidian
Published: August 2022

Background and Objectives

There are several cPRA websites based on large enough samples in Eurotransplant, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), and the Canadian Transplant Registry (CTR). On the other hand, those calculators can differ based on the ethnicity to which they are applied. We developed the Iranian PRA calculator and compared it with UNOS and CTR calculators.

Methods

The allele and haplotype frequencies of the Iranian donor pool were estimated using the HLA typing of 523 deceased Iranian kidney donors. The Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network formula was used to generate cPRA (cPRA frequency). We also used a computer script to compare the undesirable antigens of patients with the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) phenotype of donors (cPRA filtering). A total of 100 anti‐HLA antibody profiles were determined in 100 sensitized individuals on the waiting list, and cPRA was estimated using various PRA calculators.

Results

Variable allelic frequencies were obtained from population heterogeneity in each calculator's donor panel. However, no significant changes in cPRA were identified between the Iranian calculator, UNOS, and the Canadian online calculators. Lin's concordance correlation coefficient of .98 showed that cPRA (freq) and cPRA (filter) values had almost perfect agreement.

Interpretation and Conclusion

The cPRA values from the Iranian calculator are comparable to those from UNOS and CTR calculators. The donor filtering method was more useful because of factors like cost and flexibility. It also makes it easier to update cPRA on a regular basis.
Supporting the Interpretive Validity of Student‐Level Claims in Science Assessment with Tiered Claim Structures
Authors: Student Sanford R. , Gong Brian
Published: August 2022

We address two persistent challenges in large‐scale assessments of the Next Generation Science Standards: (a) the validity of score interpretations that target the standards broadly and (b) how to structure claims for assessments of this complex domain. The NGSS pose a particular challenge for specifying claims about students that evidence from summative assessments can support. As a solution, we propose tiered claims, which explicitly distinguish between claims about what students have done or can do on test items—which are typically easier to support under current test designs—and claims about what students could do in the broader domain of performances described by the standards, for which novel evidence is likely required. We discuss the positive implications of tiered claims for test construction, validation, and reporting of results.
Early surrogates of outcome after thrombectomy in posterior circulation stroke
Authors: Kniep Helge , Bechstein Matthias , Broocks Gabriel , Brekenfeld Caspar , Flottmann Fabian , van Horn Noel , Geest Vincent , Faizy Tobias D. , Deb‐Chatterji Milani , Alegiani Anna , Thomalla Götz , Gellißen Susanne , Fiehler Jens , Hanning Uta , Meyer Lukas ,   for the German Stroke Registry‐Endovascular Treatment (GSR‐ET)
Published: August 2022

Background

Early surrogates for functional outcome in anterior circulation stroke have been described with the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) at 24 h being reported as the most accurate metric. We compare discriminatory power of established definitions of early neurological improvement (ENI) and NIHSS scores at admission and 24 h to predict functional outcome at 90 days after thrombectomy in posterior circulation stroke (PCS).

Methods

All patients enrolled in the German Stroke Registry (June 2015–December 2019) with PCS and at least vertebral or basilar artery occlusions were included. NIHSS admission, 24 h and ENI definitions (improvement of 8/10 NIHSS points or 0/1 NIHSS points at 24 h) were compared for predicting functional outcome at 90 days. Favourable and good outcome were defined as modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 0–2 and 0–3. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify factors impairing predictive power.

Results

Three hundred and eighty‐seven patients were included. NIHSS 24 h had the highest discriminative power with receiver operator characteristics area under the curve of 0.87 (95% confidence interval: 0.83; 0.90) for good and 0.89 (0.85; 0.92) for favourable outcome; optimal cut‐off values were ≤9 and ≤5. Higher age (odds ratio = 1.10 [1.05; 1.16]), adverse events during treatment (9.46 [1.52; 72.5]) and until discharge (18.34 [2.33; 172]) and high NIHSS scores at 24 h (1.29 [1.10; 1.53]) were independent predictors for turning the outcome prognosis from good (mRS ≤3) to poor (mRS ≥4).

Conclusions

NIHSS 24 h ≤9 points serves best as surrogate for good functional outcome after thrombectomy in PCS. Advanced age, severe neurological symptoms at admission and adverse events decrease its predictive value.
Corporate social responsibility and credit rating around the world: The role of societal trust
Authors: Chang Kiyoung , Li Ying , Shim Hyeongsop
Published: August 2022

We hypothesize that societal trust alleviates moral hazard concerns that undermine credit rating agencies’ perceived value of corporate social responsibility (CSR). We test our hypothesis using a large global sample and find a more salient relationship between CSR and credit rating only in countries with high societal trust. Our findings reconcile the mixed empirical worldwide evidence on this relationship. Additional tests provide further evidence that it is societal trust, not other country‐level factors, that drives our results.
Risk‐taking begets risk‐taking: Evidence from casino openings and investor portfolios
Authors: Liao Chi
Published: August 2022

We provide evidence that casino openings can have spillover effects on an individual's portfolio risk‐taking. Using investor‐level brokerage data and the initial legalization and opening of commercial casinos in the United States as a quasi‐natural experiment, we find that, after a casino opens in close geographical proximity to investors, those with a high propensity to gamble (PTG) increase their idiosyncratic portfolio risk by 12.88% relative to those unlikely to gamble. This effect lasts for approximately 3 months and does not affect systematic portfolio risk. These results suggest that increased access to gambling can temporarily increase portfolio risk‐taking for those with a PTG.
Commons, counterpublics and dissident urban space
Authors: DeVerteuil Geoffrey , Kiener Johannes
Published: August 2022

We put into conversation two conceptual approaches for understanding the dissident nature of urban space: the commons and the counterpublics. This novel conceptual conversation asks the following questions ‐ what is the interplay between them? Do they complement, build on, contradict, or ignore each other? What is urban about their particular interplays? These hypothetical matters are framed by a consideration of the fate of populations deemed surplus in urban space. Our conceptual conversation enables a new and productive way of understanding dissident urban spaces.
One ocean one temple: Alternative Chinese temple networks in Southeast Asia
Authors: Dean Kenneth
Published: August 2022

The continuing expansion of the Belt and Road Initiative (formerly known as One Belt One Road) has attracted considerable commentary, but little attention has been given to the formation of alternative networks in Southeast Asia or to the earlier history of trade and trust networks centred in the temples and regional association offices of the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia. This paper examines the formation and continuing expansion of a horizontal network of Chinese temples dedicated to the tutelary god (Earth God) of the port cities of Southeast Asia. The World Dabogong Federation was founded in 2017 and is now 5 years old. It currently includes over 160 temples from over 100 port cities. This paper explores the nature of this network and its relation to earlier temple and trust networks as well as its engagement with new media and technologies.
Convergence of Groundwater Discharge through the Hyporheic Zone of Streams
Authors: Mojarrad Brian Babak , Wörman Anders , Riml Joakim , Xu Shulan
Published: August 2022

Significant attention has been given to hyporheic water fluxes induced by hydromorphologic processes in streambeds and the effects they have on stream ecology. However, the impact of hyporheic fluxes on regional groundwater flow discharge zones as well as the interaction of these flows are much less investigated. The groundwater‐hyporheic interactive flow not only governs solute mass and heat transport in streams but also controls the retention of solute and contamination following the discharge of deep groundwater, such as naturally occurring solutes and leakage from geological waste disposal facilities. Here, we applied a physically based modeling approach combined with extensive hydrologic, geologic and geographical data to investigate the effect of hyporheic flow on groundwater discharge in the Krycklan catchment, located in a boreal landscape in Sweden. Regional groundwater modeling was conducted using COMSOL Multiphysics by considering geologic heterogeneity and infiltration constraint of the groundwater circulation intensity. Moreover, the hyporheic flow was analyzed using an exact spectral solution accounting for the fluctuating streambed topography and superimposed with the regional groundwater flow. By comparing the discharge flow fields with and without consideration of hyporheic flows, we found that the divergence of the discharge was substantially enhanced and the distribution of the travel times of groundwater was significantly shifted toward shorter times due to the presence of hyporheic flow. Particularly important is that the groundwater flow paths contract near the streambed interface due to the hyporheic flow, which leads to a phenomenon that we name “fragmentation” of coherent areas of groundwater upwelling in pinhole‐shaped stream tubes.
DISCIPLINING THE ANTHROPOCENE
Authors: Hesketh Ian
Published: August 2022

In this review essay, I examine Julia Adeney Thomas, Mark Williams, and Jan Zalasiewicz's The Anthropocene: A Multidisciplinary Approach. As indicated by the book's subtitle, the authors stress the necessity of approaching the Anthropocene from a multidisciplinary perspective as opposed to an interdisciplinary one. I consider how the authors do this by analyzing the different disciplinary approaches they adopt from fields ranging from geology and Earth system science to anthropology and history. What will become clear is that, rather than seeking to synthesize the relevant knowledge that is produced by these disciplines, the authors envision the Anthropocene as an analytical lens through which multiple forms of knowledge can be produced. Given the disparate timescales and complex phenomena that are implied by the Anthropocene, this multidisciplinary approach avoids many of the epistemic problems that have beset certain attempts to situate the Anthropocene within a grand synthetic framework that is governed by a singular theory and linear historical narrative. In addition to showing that the Anthropocene must be viewed from a range of different disciplinary perspectives in order to be understood, the book illustrates how it is possible to bring into conversation diverse forms of knowledge from the sciences and the humanities without undermining the disciplinary differences and methods that produced those forms of knowledge in the first place.
Differences in Korean adult inpatients' oral care behaviour in daily life and hospitals
Authors: Kim Soo‐Min , Noh Hie‐Jin , Mun So‐Jung , Han Sun‐Young
Published: August 2022

Objectives

The objectives of the study were to identify the differences in oral care methods between current and past hospitalizations and to investigate the need for inpatient oral care education for South Korean adults who have been hospitalized for more than 24 h.

Methods

This study employed a cross‐sectional design. Between 23 December 2019 and 4 May 2020, a questionnaire was administered to 200 adult inpatients awaiting treatment and their guardians at university hospitals or clinics. Of these, the data of 195 patients were analysed. Frequency analysis, descriptive statistics and chi‐square tests were used for data analysis.

Results

In daily life, the participants reported brushing their teeth thrice a day (52.3%) for 2 min (60%). A single product was the most used (51.3%). During hospitalization, 40% of the participants brushed their teeth thrice or more a day, 84.1% brushed for <1 min, and 83.6% did not use additional oral care products.

Conclusions

Differences were observed between South Korean adults' oral care behaviours in daily life and those performed in hospitals. Oral hygiene habits, the frequency and duration of tooth brushing, and the use of oral care products decreased during hospitalization. Our findings can be applied to the development of oral care interventions for inpatients, while considering changes in the hospitalization environment and physical activity levels during hospitalization.