bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Geographical and genospecies distribution of Borrelia burgdorferi
sensu lato DNA detected in humans in the USA
Authors: Clark Kerry L. , Leydet Brian F. , Threlkeld Clifford
Published: February 2014

The present study investigated the cause of illness in human patients primarily in the southern USA with suspected Lyme disease based on erythema migrans-like skin lesions and/or symptoms consistent with early localized or late disseminated Lyme borreliosis. The study also included some patients from other states throughout the USA. Several PCR assays specific for either members of the genus Borrelia or only for Lyme group Borrelia spp. (Borrelia burgdorferi
sensu lato), and DNA sequence analysis, were used to identify Borrelia spp. DNA in blood and skin biopsy samples from human patients. B. burgdorferi
sensu lato DNA was found in both blood and skin biopsy samples from patients residing in the southern states and elsewhere in the USA, but no evidence of DNA from other Borrelia spp. was detected. Based on phylogenetic analysis of partial flagellin (flaB) gene sequences, strains that clustered separately with B. burgdorferi
sensu stricto, Borrelia americana or Borrelia andersonii were associated with Lyme disease-like signs and symptoms in patients from the southern states, as well as from some other areas of the country. Strains most similar to B. burgdorferi
sensu stricto and B. americana were found most commonly and appeared to be widely distributed among patients residing throughout the USA. The study findings suggest that human cases of Lyme disease in the southern USA may be more common than previously recognized and may also be caused by more than one species of B. burgdorferi
sensu lato. This study provides further evidence that B. burgdorferi
sensu stricto is not the only species associated with signs and/or symptoms consistent with Lyme borreliosis in the USA.
How precise are reported protein coordinate data?
Authors: Konagurthu Arun S. , Allison Lloyd , Abramson David , Stuckey Peter J. , Lesk Arthur M.
Published: February 2014

Atomic coordinates in the Worldwide Protein Data Bank (wwPDB) are generally reported to greater precision than the experimental structure determinations have actually achieved. By using information theory and data compression to study the compressibility of protein atomic coordinates, it is possible to quantify the amount of randomness in the coordinate data and thereby to determine the realistic precision of the reported coordinates. On average, the value of each Cα coordinate in a set of selected protein structures solved at a variety of resolutions is good to about 0.1 Å.
Structural analysis of β-glucosidase mutants derived from a hyperthermophilic tetrameric structure
Authors: Nakabayashi Makoto , Kataoka Misumi , Mishima Yumiko , Maeno Yuka , Ishikawa Kazuhiko
Published: February 2014

β-Glucosidase from Pyrococcus furiosus (BGLPf) is a hyperthermophilic tetrameric enzyme which can degrade cellooligosaccharides to glucose under hyperthermophilic conditions and thus holds promise for the saccharification of lignocellulosic biomass at high temperature. Prior to the production of large amounts of this enzyme, detailed information regarding the oligomeric structure of the enzyme is required. Several crystals of BGLPf have been prepared over the past ten years, but its crystal structure had not been solved until recently. In 2011, the first crystal structure of BGLPf was solved and a model was constructed at somewhat low resolution (2.35 Å). In order to obtain more detailed structural data on BGLPf, the relationship between its tetrameric structure and the quality of the crystal was re-examined. A dimeric form of BGLPf was constructed and its crystal structure was solved at a resolution of 1.70 Å using protein-engineering methods. Furthermore, using the high-resolution crystal structural data for the dimeric form, a monomeric form of BGLPf was constructed which retained the intrinsic activity of the tetrameric form. The thermostability of BGLPf is affected by its oligomeric structure. Here, the biophysical and biochemical properties of engineered dimeric and monomeric BGLPfs are reported, which are promising prototype models to apply to the saccharification reaction. Furthermore, details regarding the oligomeric structures of BGLPf and the reasons why the mutations yielded improved crystal structures are discussed.
Notes of a protein crystallographer: the beauty of rose windows and the different meanings of symmetry
Authors: Abad-Zapatero Cele
Published: February 2014

The magnificent rose windows of the Gothic cathedrals provide artistic illustrations of many of the planar point groups of symmetry. It is suggested that the presence of certain symmetry elements and their selection by the artists could have been motivated to convey specific meaning to the resulting compositions.
Using CFD model of furnace for improvement of the quality of alumina-containing sinter
Authors: V. Aleksandrov Alexander , V. Aleksandrov Valera
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of the study is to improve the quality of alumina-containing sinter produced in a rotary kiln. Simulating sintering furnace assessment of technical solutions aimed at creating optimal phase composition of clinker.

Design/methodology/approach

– The computer model of the sintering furnace is developed. Influence of characteristics of material streams on thermal processes in the furnace was considered. Balance of energy, including heat conductivity, convection and radiant heat exchange has been solved in a stable state. Between actual and calculated variables of work of the furnace, good correlation was observed.

Findings

– The evaluation of the effect of increasing primary air and fuel burner extension to changes in temperature of the material. The modeling found that the most effective solution to reduce the temperature of the sinter is lengthening fuel burner to 5 m.

Practical implications

– The model can be applied to analyze and optimize the alteration of temperatures of materials and gases in an industrial furnace under various conditions.

Originality/value

– The article provides new information for specialists in the production of alumina. For the first time shows the influence of cooling conditions on the alumina-containing sinter quality. According to the results of computer modeling, it has been established that for creating of optimal cooling conditions of the sinter in the furnace, the length of coal burner must be not less than 5 m.
Comparison of different fracture modelling approaches to gravity dam failure
Authors: Pan Jianwen , Feng Yuntian , Jin Feng , Zhang Chuhan , Roger Jones Owen David
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– There is not a unified modelling approach to finite element failure analysis of concrete dams. Different behaviours of a dam predicted by different fracture methods with various material constitutive models may significantly influence on the dam safety evaluation. The purpose of this paper is to present a general comparative investigation to examine whether the nonlinear responses of concrete dams obtained from different fracture modelling approaches are comparable in terms of crack propagation and failure modes.

Design/methodology/approach

– Three fracture modelling approaches, including the extended finite element method with a cohesive law (XFEM-COH), the crack band finite element method with a plastic-damage relation (FEPD), and the Drucker-Prager (DP) elasto-plastic model, are chosen to analyse damage and cracking behaviour of concrete gravity dams under overloading conditions. The failure process and loading capacity of a dam are compared.

Findings

– The numerical results indicate that the three approaches are all applicable to predict loading capacity and safety factors of gravity dams. However, both XFEM-COH and FEPD give more reasonable crack propagation and failure modes in comparison with DP. Therefore, when cracking patterns are the major concern for safety evaluation of concrete dams, it is recommended that XFEM-COH and FEPD rather than DP be used.

Originality/value

– The comparison of cracking behaviours of concrete dams obtained from different fracture modelling approaches is conducted. The applicability of the modelling approaches for failure analysis of concrete dams is discussed, and from the results presented in this work, it is significant to consider the suitability of the selected fracture modelling approach for dam safety evaluation.
Diversity and inclusion in an emerging market context
Authors: Daya Preeya
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The extreme demographic misrepresentation of organisations is a key business and societal issue in South Africa (SA). The purpose of this paper is to provide organisations that are committed to the creation of a diverse and inclusive environment with key considerations that need to be managed in order to create more diverse drive transformation.

Design/methodology/approach

– This research uses a combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques to gain an understanding of the elements that need to be managed to enhance perception of inclusion in the SA workplace.

Findings

– The study finds that key inclusion elements that need to be transformed at an organisational level include “senior leadership”, “organisation climate”, “organisational belonging”, “communication” and “transparent recruitment, promotion and development”. At an interpersonal level or relational level, inclusion components include respect and acceptance, the “line manager/subordinate relationship” (which includes the subordinates experience of dignity, trust and recognition), “engagement” which includes decision-making authority and access to information, and finally the “individual's relationship with the organisation's vision and values”. Finally, at an individual level, factors which influenced inclusion, and therefore required attention in recruitment or management were “personality”, “locus of control”, self-confidence which includes self-esteem and “power”.

Research limitations/implications

– While this research facilitated “deep” insight into the diversity and inclusion components, this study could have been enriched through exploring diversity and inclusion in other organisational contexts. Second, while the InclusionIndex™ survey provided a useful base measure of inclusion for this research, the use of a survey as the primary research tool might have been leading to the respondents. Third, because the InclusionIndex™ survey was used as the exploratory tool, and was the respondents’ first exposure to the diversity and inclusion terminology, the survey became the informal frame of reference for diversity and inclusion, and thus might have influenced the focus group discussion and semi-structured interview responses.

Practical implications

– Using these diversity and inclusion considerations, leaders of pluralistic and multicultural organisations can focus their attention on developing inclusion areas that are weak and require more consideration. Second, this research aims to establish that inclusion extends beyond recruitment of diverse individuals to a process driven at organisational, interpersonal and individual levels.

Originality/value

– These management considerations are important and valuable because they can be used to guide systemic change in organisations, driven at organisational, interpersonal and individual levels. This approach will help organisations to move beyond employment equity compliance, to a commitment to multicultural diverse and inclusive organisations.
Employer brand trust and affect: linking brand personality to employer brand attractiveness
Authors: Viktoria Rampl Linn , Kenning Peter
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The importance of employer branding to attract talent in organizations is increasing rapidly. Brand personality traits, particularly, have been shown to explain considerable variance in employer brand attractiveness. Despite such awareness, little is known about the underlying processes of this effect. The purpose of the authors is to close the research gap by drawing on a consumer brand model of brand affect and trust as a means of explaining employer brand attractiveness.

Design/methodology/approach

– Students interested in working in the consultancy industry completed a survey designed to evaluate consultancy employer brands. Established scales for brand personality, trust, and affect, and employer brand attractiveness were used to test the conceptual model.

Findings

– The results indicate that employer brand trust and affect are both influenced by the brand personality trait sincerity. Further, employer brand affect was positively affected by the traits excitement and sophistication, while negatively affected by ruggedness. Together, employer brand affect and trust explain 71 per cent of the variance in employer brand attractiveness.

Research limitations/implications

– While the results show the importance of branding an organization as a sincere, exciting, and sophisticated employer, future research is needed to identify adequate marketing tools to achieve this goal, also in other industries besides the one investigated here.

Originality/value

– This study is the first to apply a model that includes brand personality, trust, and affect to employer branding. By doing so, the variance explained in employer brand attractiveness could be increased substantially.
Eye for an eye
Authors: Vidal David
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this research is to examine why a buying firm in a marketing channel may retaliate against its supplier. The objective of this paper is thus to understand the individual and organizational variables that may prompt a buying company to retaliate against its supplier following negative critical incidents (NCI).

Design/methodology/approach

– Data was collected from 171 retailers associated with one focal manufacturer and analyzed through PLS path modeling procedures.

Findings

– Results demonstrate that retaliation is the outcome of individual factors related to a buyer's cognitive (causal attributions) and emotional (anger) processes triggered by NCI as well as organizational forces (trust and dependence) related to more stable characteristics of the interfirm relationship.

Originality/value

– Compared with existing contributions, the proposed model adopts a multilevel approach and considers retaliation as the outcome of individual as well as organizational forces. On the individual level, echoing the rapidly growing idea that emotions, not just cognitions, are a relevant object of study within interorganizational relationships, this paper empirically investigates the effect of one negative emotion (anger) and of causal attributions in buyer-seller partnerships. On the organizational level, this research examines the influence of trust and dependence, two central variables in business-to-business marketing theory, which seem closely related to retaliation.
The effects of perceived service recovery justice on customer affection, loyalty, and word-of-mouth
Authors: Choi Beomjoon , Choi Beom-Jin
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This research aims to examine the consequences of customer justice perception and the role of customer affection in the context of service failure and recovery.

Design/methodology/approach

– Survey data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

Findings

– The authors' findings indicate that procedural and interactional justice perceptions significantly influence customer affection, with distributive justice perception being significant only if the failure severity is high. The present research also provides evidence for the links between customer affection and loyalty, and customer affection and word-of-mouth respectively, indicating that strengthening the emotional tie between customers and companies is crucial after service failure and recovery.

Research limitations/implications

– The present research makes a significant contribution by demonstrating the relationship between customer affection and other key constructs such as justice perception, customer loyalty, and word-of-mouth intention.

Practical implications

– Customers' distributive justice perception has a significant impact on customer affection especially in a severe service failure situation. Therefore, managers may need to provide monetary compensation for service recovery in a timely manner along with apologies to enhance customer affection when customers experience a high-magnitude service failure. On the other hand, in the case of a low-magnitude service recovery, providing apologies and prompt response to service failures may be enough to win customers back.

Originality/value

– The current findings highlight the importance of customer affection in service recovery. The effect of customers' distributive justice perception on customer affection, which is moderated by service failure severity, is also highlighted.
Factors enhancing word-of-mouth influence: positive and negative service-related messages
Authors: Sweeney Jill , Soutar Geoff , Mazzarol Tim
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This study aims to examine the effects interpersonal, service product and message factors has on positive and negative word of mouth's (WOM) influence. The study also sought to address the impact WOM had on changes in people's willingness to use a service provider.

Design/methodology/approach

– A total of 495 consumers who had received positive WOM and 505 who had received negative WOM in the prior 12 months completed an online survey. The sample was recruited through a national online consumer panel provider.

Findings

– Positive WOM was more effective and positive WOM messages had a greater effect on people's willingness to use a service than did negative WOM. Paradoxically, the strength of WOM and interpersonal factors had more impact on the influence of negative WOM, while brand equity enhanced positive WOM and acted as a buffer to negative WOM.

Research limitations/implications

– The study was conducted in a services context and may not necessarily be generalizable to product contexts. Further, the factors enhancing WOM in online contexts need to be examined, although the present model's constructs (e.g. homophily) are not equivalent in this context.

Practical implications

– Different circumstances may enhance or detract from the influence of positive and negative WOM. Managers should maximise the verbal strength of positive WOM messages and generate positive brand equity perceptions, as this offers a buffer to negative WOM. Recommendations also include addressing customer education and socialisation to enhance WOM message influence.

Originality/value

– The study extended prior WOM research by addressing interpersonal, service product and message factors, as well as the change in intended behaviour for positive and negative WOM.
Exploring consumers' motivations to engage in innovation through co-creation activities
Authors: Roberts Deborah , Hughes Mathew , Kertbo Kia
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to explore what factors motivate consumers to engage in co-creation innovation activities. The authors propose that motivations differ across types of activities, whether working independently, as part of a community or directly with the firm. They offer theoretical explanations as to why this might be the case.

Design/methodology/approach

– Adopting an exploratory research design, the study consists of a series of online interviews with participants in the gaming and video games industry.

Findings

– Motivations appear to differ across types of co-creation efforts. Innovating independently of the firm appears to be driven by egocentric motives; innovating as part of a community appears to be driven by altruistic motives; and innovating directly in collaboration with the firm appears to be driven by opportunity- (or goal-)related motives.

Practical implications

– Understanding the factors that motivate consumers to engage in co-creation activities enables firms to strategically manage their co-creation relationships and innovation processes.

Originality/value

– The study shows that although motivations diverge across types of co-creation activities, a set of common motivators exist that underpin engagement regardless of the form of co-creation. However, these overarching motivators differ in how they can be successfully used towards co-creation. The study draws on theories of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, tension-reducing, self-efficacy and expectancy theories, to explain why differences persist. This enables researchers to consider how value might be optimised across varying forms of co-creation, and build better studies into the management and performance implications of consumer value co-creation.
Career advancement or teacher development? Teachers’ perceptions of writing publications in China
Authors: L.N. Wong Jocelyn
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– Studies in teacher research have seldom discussed the effects of writing publications and teachers’ views on it. This paper aims to examine how teachers in China regard the purpose of writing up research papers and its impact on their professional practice. It also investigates facilitating factors in preparing and writing publications.

Design/methodology/approach

– This is a qualitative study which mainly analyses interview data gathered from 14 teachers, who have experience in writing publications, from three schools in Shanghai, China. Documentary analysis includes selected published journal papers and book chapters of the interviewees.

Findings

– Findings show that teachers perceive producing publications as serving both an instrumental purpose of career advancement and a developmental purpose of enhancing their individual professional competency which in turn improves the quality of the teaching profession through knowledge transfer and knowledge transportation.

Research limitations/implications

– Contributing factors to help teachers to write include the provision of systematic training courses for teachers and the development of network and research partners.

Originality/value

– Findings of this study help school leaders and teacher educators better their understanding of improving the quality of practice of teachers through equipping them with a “stance of inquiry”. Findings suggest ways to provide relevant support to enhance the writing capacity of teachers. More importantly, a revision of the existing teacher promotion system may make the practice of writing publications of more direct value to teachers’ daily practice.
Chinese multi-cultural education: possibilities and paths
Authors: Jin Yu-le , Li Ling , Luo Sheng-quan
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to reform the multi-cultural education in China so as to construct a homogenous education model.

Design/methodology/approach

– Based on the appeal for multi-ethnic culture development of the era and the possibilities for constructing multi-cultural education in China, this paper proposed paths to construct multi-cultural education in China.

Findings

– First, this paper explains the reasons to construct a multi-cultural education in china: the intrinsic appeals for multi-ethnic culture development; the increasing culture exchange during economy transformation; foreign culture shock in the setting of globalization. Second, it indicates the possibilities for establishing multi-cultural education in China: the arrival of the multi-cultural era and the education ideal of “Unity without Uniformity.” Third, it points out the paths to construct Chinese multi-cultural education: to establish an educational policy with core socialist value; to perfect Chinese multi-cultural education policies; to construct a multi-cultural education model.

Practical implications

– This paper points out the paths to construct Chinese multi-cultural education: to establish an educational policy with core socialist value; to perfect Chinese multi-cultural education policies; to construct a multi-cultural education model.

Originality/value

– This paper analyzes the possibilities and paths for constructing multi-cultural education in China and would be helpful for reforming multi-cultural education in China.
Service provision for co-creation of value
Authors: Hammervoll Trond
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to consider inter-organisational issues in supply chain relationships (SCRs) with a view to advancing research on co-creation of value in the service dominant logic (SDL) field.

Design/methodology/approach

– The study presents a conceptual analysis of current ideas on purchasing and SCRs with special emphasis on inter-organisational collaboration as viewed from exchange- and production economy perspectives. Important types of service buyers and sellers provide in order to co-create value in SCRs are explored.

Findings

– Both exchange- and production economy perspectives offer useful insights for the study of co-creation of value in SCRs. The exchange economy perspective recognises service provision in terms of information sharing, adaptation and commitment, while the production economy perspective recognises service provision in terms of production proficiency, craftsmanship and entrepreneurship.

Research limitations/implications

– SDL researchers should recognise the relevance of both exchange- and production economy perspectives in further study of co-creation of value in SCRs. Future research should consider how specific types of service provision are affected by operant resources as well as other important SDL concepts, such as trust, buyer involvement and relational orientation.

Originality/value

– This paper considers specific types of service provision in SCRs for the purpose of co-creation of value.
From goods to solutions: how does the content of an offering affect network configuration?
Authors: Chakkol Mehmet , Johnson Mark , Raja Jawwad , Raffoni Anna
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to adopt service-dominant logic (SDL) to empirically explore network configurations resulting from the provision of goods, goods and services, and solutions.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper uses a single, in-depth, exploratory case study in a truck manufacturer and its supply network. An abductive approach is adopted. In total, 54 semi-structured interviews were conducted.

Findings

– Three value propositions are clearly discernible within the truck provider. These range from a truck to a “solution”. These propositions have different supply network configurations: dyadic, triadic and tetradic. The extent to which different network actors contribute to value co-creation varies across the offerings.

Research limitations/implications

– This paper is based on a single, in-depth case study developed in one industrial context. Whilst this represents an appropriate approach given the exploratory nature of the study, further empirical investigation is needed across different industries.

Originality/value

– This paper is one of the first to empirically examine supply networks using SDL. A rich understanding of the challenges faced by a truck manufacturer in providing different value propositions and the resulting network configurations are discussed. In so doing, evidence is provided of a more complex, tetradic network configuration for solutions, with varying degrees of interplay between actors in the flow of operand and operant resources to create value.
Fuel subsidy in Nigeria: contexts of governance and social protest
Authors: Akanle Olayinka , Adebayo Kudus , Adetayo Olorunlana
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– Fuel subsidy removal has become a recurring issue in Nigeria. Successive governments in the country have interfaced with this issue as they attempted to reform the economy and the petroleum downstream to reduce corruption and waste and make the sector more effective. Importantly however, fuel subsidy removals have always met opposition from the citizens and civil society organisations. The remit of this article is to bring original and current perspectives into the issue and trajectories of fuel subsidy, which has become a major problem in Nigeria's development struggles. Previous works were dated and did not capture most recent popular uprising. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– Purely primary, empirica and normative with primary insight.

Findings

– A major mechanism that must be put in place is popular and unpoliticized anti-corruption mechanisms and networks especially to sanitize the oil sector in the minimum. Also, government must demonstrate transparency and accountability across sectors and spending including at the government house. Sufficient palliatives like public transport and dedicated social services for the really poor is important before subsidy is implemented. Until these are done, government's intention to successfully Remove Subsidy For Development (RS4D) may be a mirage!

Research limitations/implications

– This paper presents details of an international work with evolving issues.

Originality/value

– The paper argues that subsidy removal that will lead to high fuel prices appears unjustified given the wide income gap between workers in Nigeria and those in other oil-producing nations.
Reliability and validity of the masculine subordination stress scale in a rural Bangladesh sample
Authors: Rabiul Karim K.M.
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the masculine subordination stress (MSS) scale in a rural Bangladesh population.

Design/methodology/approach

– The scale was validated using a sample of 342 Bangladeshi married men from five northwest villages of the country.

Findings

– Exploratory factor analysis revealed a single-factorial structure of the scale: MSS. The MSS also showed adequate reliability and concurrent validity. It appears that the MSS is a reliable and valid instrument to measure MSS for rural Bangladeshi men.

Originality/value

– The current study provides empirical support for the validity and reliability of the MSS in the rural Bangladesh context. Academicians and researchers who are seeking an instrument to assess masculine subordination-to-women stress may find it useful. Moreover, it may stimulate researchers to think about strategies for helping men to cope up with masculine stress from a positive viewpoint. It may also help practitioners to improve men's mental health at different settings.
Linking population heterogeneity with poverty
Authors: R. Wagle Udaya
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This paper aims to examine how population heterogeneity contributes to poverty in 17 high-income Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries during 1980-2005.

Design/methodology/approach

– The operational strategy involves linking poverty with heterogeneity directly as well as indirectly through welfare state policies as a latent variable in a structural equation framework.

Findings

– Findings support the widely held poverty-reducing roles of welfare state policies. Ethno-racial and religious diversities are found to positively contribute to welfare state policies and, through them, lower poverty, whereas immigration assumes opposite roles.

Research limitations/implications

– Data limitations on population and especially ethno-racial and religious heterogeneity caution against definitiveness.

Originality/value

– The findings are useful in understanding the heterogeneity connection of welfare state policies and poverty.
A tale of two economies: the political and the moral in neoliberalism
Authors: Whitehead Philip , Crawshaw Paul
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This article aims to critically explore current forms of neoliberalism and their impact upon the moral economy. The authors examine how the dominant neoliberal political economy impacts upon three overlapping registers: individual subjectivity, national reconstructions and organizational transformations. These three registers are fashioned by, and subsequently help to reproduce, the contours of the prevailing politico-economic system. The market-driven ethic of neoliberalism, however, is diametrically opposed to that of a moral economy concerned with universalism and equality in meeting human need.

Design/methodology/approach

– This is a conceptual theoretical piece.

Findings

– The result is that the latter have been replaced by competitive individualism as societies reconstruct themselves in the image of the market place. This profound cultural shift is well known, but in this article, the authors will claim that it has in turn had a profound impact upon individual subjectivities and the key institutions and organisations that have long formed the basis of the Western social democratic consensus.

Originality/value

– It is original because it theorises the impact of neoliberalism on organisations.
Participatory design as ethical practice – concepts, reality and conditions
Authors: Carsten Stahl Bernd
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to provide a response to Christiansen's paper, Ellen Christiansen (2014) “From ‘ethics of the eye’ to ‘ethics of the hand’ by collaborative prototyping”,Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, Vol. 12 No. 1.

Design/methodology/approach

– Reflection and critique of Christiansen's position.

Findings

– The paper raises questions about the conceptual basis, the realisation of participation and the conditions required for participative practice to be more broadly employed.

Originality/value

– It is an original response.
Branding Pakistan as a “Sufi” country: the role of religion in developing a nation's brand
Authors: Yousaf Salman , Huaibin Li
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– This paper seeks to explore the influential role of religion in developing a nations brand and discusses the possibility of re-positioning the brand Pakistan as a “Sufi country” that is coherent with the cultural values and social realities of the country.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper follows a case study approach in delineating the image problem encountered by Pakistan and describing how governments in Pakistan related country branding efforts with the religious sentiments to foster their motives. This paper also follows an inductive approach in making a theoretical explanation about promoting Pakistan's image as a “Sufi country”.

Findings

– The negative image of Pakistan is gaining worldwide currency due to the absence of proactive management by government and relevant stakeholders. Pakistan as a Sufi brand has a potential to grow into a strong country brand. Branding Pakistan as a Sufi country would not only pave the way for forming a different set of associations that would be positively contradictory to the current militancy and extremism oriented perceptions associated with Pakistan, but it would also benefit her as a tourism destination.

Practical implications

– This paper is basically a policy recommendation regarding the reconstruction of brand Pakistan around the Sufi theme that is fairly consistent with the prevailing disposition of Pakistani society, in contrast to the current image of Pakistan cultivated in the World's media as a country with the terrorist roots. With thousands of Sufi Khanqahs, tombs and shrines spread throughout the country conforming to the ancient Islamic architecture with shades of Mughal artifacts presents with a significant ‘spiritual tourism’ opportunity provided with proper management and planning.

Originality/value

– The present study makes significant contribution to the theory of nation's branding by discussing the potential role of religion in developing a nation's brand, a topic that hasn't been profoundly inquired. Moreover it discusses the reputation management of a country brand in a crisis, a topic that hasn't been adequately studied.
Recreational experiences in parks and gardens, Ibadan, Nigeria
Authors: Akinlabi Fadamiro Joseph , Joseph Adedeji Adeniran
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The recreational benefits of urban parks and gardens have been documented in the literature. However, the extent to which the mechanism behind this is reliant on demographic variables and sites' quality, among others, is not clear. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of these variables on recreational experiences in Ibadan, Nigeria, towards recommending the best practices.

Design/methodology/approach

– A questionnaire was carried out with a random sample of users (n=232) of the three most prominent parks and gardens in the city. The content was grouped into three broad themes – the overall design of urban natural landscape, meeting people's needs, and the nature of space management. These three streams of parameters were investigated on a five-point Likert scale. The questionnaire was designed to elicit information on personal, physical and psychological issues.

Findings

– Based on the hypotheses that recreational experiences do not depend on the variables, results indicate no correlation between recreational experience and age, education, marital status, income and schedule of visits. However, there are positive significant correlations with gender, sites' quality, company and frequency of visit.

Practical implications

– The results of the study suggest policy indication that planning for parks and gardens in cities should consider gender, sites' quality, company and frequency of visit variables further beyond age, education, marital status, income and schedule of visits.

Originality/value

– The study was carried out in May 2011, and it has capacity to guide planning for urban eco-recreation places in developing nations.
Maintenance and repair injuries in US mining
Authors: Pollard Jonisha , Heberger John , G. Dempsey Patrick
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to identify key tasks, tools, and equipment associated with maintenance and repair injuries at US mines and to provide some mitigation strategies to reduce these types of injuries.

Design/methodology/approach

– This study analyzed incidents resulting in injuries reported to the US Mine Safety and Health Administration from 2002 to 2011. Incident reports were limited to those occurring at mining plants, shops, yards, and aboveground locations. Incident reports were analyzed to determine which activities contributed to injuries and were due to machine maintenance and repair, non-powered hand tools, and powered hand tools. An in-depth analysis of the root causes of these injuries was then performed.

Findings

– Maintenance and repair in mining is associated with a significant number of hand and finger injuries with a range of severities and averaging over 20 amputated fingers, 180 fractured hands and fingers, and 455 hand and finger lacerations per year. Many of these injuries are caused by hands being struck by or caught in tools and equipment. Back and shoulder strains are found to be associated with the most days lost from work and are mostly attributed to materials handling.

Practical implications

– Occupational injuries and fatalities still occur with high incidences in the mining sector. The mission of the Office of Mine Safety and Health Research (OMSHR; part of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, NIOSH) is to “eliminate mining fatalities, injuries, and illnesses through research and prevention.” As part of this work, OMSHR acquires surveillance data from MSHA to quantify the types and sources of injuries at US mining facilities. The authors evaluated maintenance- and repair-related injuries at US mining sites (excluding underground coal mines). Results of this study suggest a need for improved design of machine guarding, improved hand protection through gloves and equipment design/redesign, and manual materials handling solutions.

Originality/value

– The findings indicate that maintenance and repair in mining include occupational risks that may be managed through modifications to machines, proper usage of hand tools and hand protection, and improved manual materials handling processes.
Improvement of industrial performance with TPM implementation
Authors: Bartz Teonas , Cezar Mairesse Siluk Julio , Paula Barth Bartz Ana
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to show the implementation of a maintenance management model based on total productive maintenance (TPM) in a production line of a metallurgical company, with high-precision equipment requiring effective maintenance to maintain the quality of the production process.

Design/methodology/approach

– Has been proposed a model for conducting the activities, emphasizing the training activities of the teams involved in the implementation, collection and analysis of industrial performance indicators from a year before the implementation of TPM. The development followed the timetable of activities and the results of these performance indicators were collected again after the application of the model.

Findings

– It observed that after the implementation of TPM, and the results of these performance indicators were collected again after the application of the model. Thus, it is concluded that the TPM assists in improving industrial performance and competitiveness of the production line studied.

Originality/value

– The angle, from which the paper approaches the TPM problem, is original for the studied company and shows positives results. It allows the company to apply the model in their others production lines and factories to achieve an improvement in industrial performance and competitiveness.
SoN-KInG: a digital eco-system for innovation in professional and business domains
Authors: Grifoni Patrizia , Ferri Fernando , D'Andrea Alessia , Guzzo Tiziana , Praticò Caterina
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– An open question in the advanced economies, and in the current crisis even more, is to widely improve knowledge sharing as a driver of innovation and creativity processes. The need of addressing knowledge, creativity and innovation is co-generating new knowledge sharing tools, attempting to create new network linkages among professionals (such as engineers, researchers, professors, architects, creative designers, etc.), among financial/business companies and, between professionals and financial/business companies. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– To achieve this goal, during the Knowledge Intelligence and Innovation for a sustainable Growth (KnowInG) project (2010-2013), the Social Network KnowInG (SoN-KInG) model and framework consisting in a digital eco-system were created. The benefits and the potentialities of the SoN-KInG as knowledge sharing tool both for professionals and businesses are discussed in the paper.

Findings

– SoN-KInG unifies the innovative aspects provided by three different social networks (Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter) both, in professional and business domains, giving a holistic tool for knowledge sharing and knowledge management for online communities of interest.

Originality/value

– SoN-KInG provides an original model based on a holistic vision of social networking in the innovation and business domain and a framework, which consists in a web platform functioning as a hub of communities of interest where each member can converge creating new communities and also embedding communities where s/he is already involved in.
Stakeholder pressure and hotel environmental performance in Accra, Ghana
Authors: Mensah Ishmael
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which primary and secondary stakeholders influence the environmental performance of hotels in Accra and whether size of hotel moderates stakeholder influence on the environmental performance of hotels.

Design/methodology/approach

– Environmental performance of the hotels was based on 33 variables in ten key areas of environmental management in the literature. Survey questionnaires were self-administered to a stratified random sample of managers of different categories of hotels in Accra.

Findings

– The findings point to the fact that primary stakeholders such as customers and board of directors had a more significant influence on the environmental performance of hotels while size of hotel moderates the effect of stakeholders on the environmental performance of hotels.

Research limitations/implications

– Future research should focus on unearthing other drivers of environmental performance of especially small to medium hotels as well as the obstacles to environmental management in such organizations.

Practical implications

– It is vital for hotels to manage the pressures exerted by stakeholders.

Originality/value

– In the context of a developing country like Ghana, experiencing sustained growth in hotel investment, governments should encourage voluntary environmental programmes to enhance environmental performance of hotels instead of regulations by state agencies.
The effect on the performance of listed family and non-family firms
Authors: F. Simões Vieira Elisabete
Published: February 2014

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the ownership of public firms is related to accounting and market performance, comparing family and non-family listed firms.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper uses regression analysis, considering a sample of Portuguese family and non-family firms (NFF) for the period between 1999 and 2010.

Findings

– Overall, the results show that family firms (FF) are older, are more indebted and have higher debt costs than NFF. However, they present lower levels of risk. The evidence suggests that FF outperform NFF when the author considers a market performance measure. The market performance of family-controlled firms is more sensitive to the crisis periods and age, compared to their counterparts. The empirical findings suggest that under economic adversity, the performance is especially compromised by the firms' age.

Research limitations/implications

– A limitation of this study is the small size of the sample, which derives from the small size of the Portuguese stock market, the Euronext Lisbon.

Originality/value

– This paper offers some insights on the ownership of public firms and firm performance by investigating a small European economy. The study also contributes to the stream of firm performance, considering new independent variables as determinants of firm performance, such as operational risk. Finally, the study examines the interaction between ownership and performance under both steady and adverse economic conditions, giving the opportunity to analyze whether firm performance differs according to market conditions.