bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Multidimensional engagement and store performance
Authors: Suhartanto Dwi , Brien Anthony
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of multidimensional engagement (job engagement and organization engagement) on retail stores’ performance directly and indirectly through job performance and job satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from frontline retail store employees. A variance-based structural equation modeling (PLS) is used to examine the relationships between multidimensional engagement, job performance, job satisfaction, and store performance. The bootstrap method was applied to examine the mediation role of job performance and job satisfaction.

Findings

This study supports the existence of a multi-dimension engagement consisting of job engagement and organization engagement and the relationship between these engagements. Further, this study reveals that job engagement and organization engagement are important determinants of store performance.

Practical implications

This study provides an avenue for retail store managers to increase their store performance through the development of employee engagement. To improve the store performance, this study suggests that store managers provide a challenging job and encourage employees to use their creativity in serving customers. It is also important to store managers to support employees in performing their jobs, including procedural fairness in stores.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first attempts to examine the effect of multidimensional engagement on organization performance at a business unit level (retail store).
Hospital healthcare service quality, patient satisfaction and loyalty
Authors: Fatima Taqdees , Malik Shahab Alam , Shabbir Asma
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explain the patients’ views towards private healthcare service providers. The study focussed on hospital service quality and analysed the relative significance of quality measurements in anticipating the patients’ satisfaction and loyalty. The mediating role of patient satisfaction is assessed between quality of hospital healthcare services and patient loyalty.

Design/methodology/approach

A total 611 patients (both indoor and outdoor) participated in a questionnaire survey from the six private hospitals of capital city, Islamabad, Pakistan. Data were analysed through descriptive statistics, common method variance, reliability, correlation and regression in order to investigate customer perceived service quality and how the quality of services stimulates loyalty intentions towards private service suppliers.

Findings

Findings depict that private healthcare service providers are attempting to deliver well improved healthcare services to their customers. Results confirmed that better quality of healthcare services inclines to build satisfaction and loyalty among patients. The healthcare service quality aspects (i.e. physical environment, customer-friendly environment, responsiveness, communication, privacy and safety) are positively related with patient loyalty which is mediated through patient satisfaction.

Practical implications

Findings will help the hospital managers to articulate effective strategies in order to ensure superior quality of healthcare services to patients. The study will induce hospital management to deliver attentions towards the quality of private healthcare service systems and improvements towards the deficient healthcare services. Furthermore, the study will present a clear picture of patient’s behavioural attitudes; satisfaction and loyalty intentions towards the quality of healthcare services.

Originality/value

The study provides the views and perceptions of patients towards the quality of healthcare services. The healthcare service quality dimensions, i.e., physical environment, customer-friendly environment, responsiveness, communication, and privacy and safety were assessed. Hospital healthcare service quality was examined in order to find out its effect on patient satisfaction and patient loyalty.
Corporate governance quality of Islamic banks: measurement and effect on financial performance
Authors: Ajili Hana , Bouri Abdelfettah
Published: April 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to assess the measurement of the Corporate Governance (CG) quality of Islamic Banks (IBs) and its effect on financial performance.

Design/methodology/approach

In the applied part of this study, a sample of 44 IBs operating in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were investigated according to information provided by the national central bank websites of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. To measure the governance quality, CG-index was constructed based on three sub-indices which are the Board of Directors (BOD), the Audit Committees (AC) and the Shariah Supervisory Board (SSB) indices.

Findings

Findings revealed that CG quality of IBs in GCC countries adhere to 74 per cent of the attributes addressed in the CG-index. The results also showed that IBs in GCC countries valued the effectiveness of SSB much more than the conventional CG mechanisms. Using multiple regression models, findings suggested no statistically significant relation between CG quality and financial performance which would imply that good CG had an insignificant association with high performance in GCC IBs.

Originality/value

The current paper may serve to assist IBs stakeholders to better understand the CG practices of IBs. In addition, the observed insignificant relation between the quality of CG practices and performance should sensitize the IBs regulators in the GCC countries to the necessity of improving the existing CG requirements.
Forming and transforming shared services: the performativity of management devices
Authors: Harritz Daniel
Published: April 2018

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the role of management devices in transformation processes. This was done by analysing how devices persuaded people into actions, resulting in drifts that both led to the creation of a Shared Service Centre (SSC) and transformed it into a cost centre, something resembling an internal joint venture, followed by a profit centre and, finally, a centre of expertise.

Design/methodology/approach

A longitudinal case-based approach inspired by Latour’s (2005) ideas on attachments. The aim was to show how links between humans and non-humans in the form of management devices brought about drifts leading to the formation and transformation of a SSC.

Findings

Attachments between devices and humans fuelled the formation and transformation of the SSC. Such innovations were revealed to be a series of drifts, which demonstrates that an SSC is not a static object but rather an ever-evolving innovation.

Research limitations/implications

On the basis of Latour (2005), the study reveals how socio–technical constellations are involved in organisational transformation, resulting in a SSC taking on new and unanticipated roles.

Practical implications

The findings facilitate a deeper understanding of the factors that initiate organisational development and transformation in SSCs. In addition, the study identifies the role different devices play in such transformation processes.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the literature by analysing how a SSC is created and then transformed over time.
ERP systems and management accounting
Authors: Spraakman Gary , O’Grady Winnie , Askarany Davood , Akroyd Chris
Published: April 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to show how our understanding of the effects of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems on management accounting are influenced through “nudging” by researchers in their preamble before interviews begin.

Design/methodology/approach

There were two groups of comparable respondents. Each group received a different preamble to the same questions. The differences in group responses were analyzed.

Findings

When the impact of ERP implementation on the physical, transactional and information flows within the firm were nudged, the responses focused on how the chart of accounts had to be expanded to account for the additional data introduced by transaction processing. When the IT and ERP system knowledge and skills were nudged, the responses tended to emphasize analyses or the use of new information through the use of drill down functionality. This research provides new insights and contributions to understanding how nudging affects or directs respondent assessments of the impact of ERP systems on management accounting.

Research limitations/implications

The research is limited by the relatively small samples and by the fact that these were different research projects.

Practical implications

Nudging has an obvious impact on research that should not be ignored.

Social implications

Unintentional nudging should be considered with all research projects.

Originality/value

This paper makes explicit that nudging occurs in research whether intentional or unintentional.
Are mobile devices a blessing or a curse? Effects of mobile technology use on salesperson role stress and job satisfaction
Authors: Román Sergio , Rodríguez Rocío , Jaramillo Jorge Fernando
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Mobile technologies have become indispensable in sales. However, there is a lack of agreement about whether mobile technology use facilitates the sales job or contributes to the salesperson’s stress and reduced job satisfaction. To address this controversy, this study aims to examine the effect of mobile technology use (smartphones, laptop computers and tablets) on salespeople’s role stress and job satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

Hypotheses are tested using responses of 265 sales employees working for a broad range of industries in Spain.

Findings

This study shows that mobile technology use during working hours has a positive effect on job satisfaction through a mediating process that involves role stress. In addition, the impact of mobile technology use on role stress is strengthened by technological compatibility.

Originality/value

The current study extends previous research by moving beyond a focus on technology-centric outcomes (i.e. sales performance) to understanding broader, more psychological outcomes, namely, role stress and job satisfaction. Importantly, previous research reporting that salespeople feel “plugged in” to a device all day have not made the distinction about when the mobile device is used. One important difference in this study is that it exclusively focuses on mobile technology use during working hours.
The influences of relational benefits on repurchase intention in service contexts: the roles of gratitude, trust and commitment
Authors: Chou Shihyu , Chen Chi-Wen
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to develop and examine an integrated mediating model that contains relationship benefits as the relationship antecedents; trust, relationship commitment and gratitude as mediators; and repurchase intention as the relationship consequence in a service business context.

Design/methodology/approach

The study recruited 253 respondents to test the proposed model. A partial-least-square-based structural equation modeling was adopted to evaluate the measurement of research constructs and test the research hypotheses that underpinned a proposed conceptual model.

Findings

The results show that confidence benefits increase trust more than social and special treatment benefits; social benefits have the most influence on relationship commitment; and special treatment benefits most greatly enhance feelings of gratitude. Thus, depending on the improvement objectives, marketers can accordingly choose the proper relationship benefits as a primary approach. Furthermore, both the direct and indirect effects of confidence benefits and social benefits on repurchase intention were significant.

Research limitations/implications

The main limitation of this study is that all research variables were measured at a static point rather than as they were developing. Ignorance of the temporal sequence may incur the concern of possible spurious causal relationship inferences.

Practical implications

The study’s findings offer several important implications for service providers, which, in this study, were separated into high (e.g. such as hairdressing, beauty and massage) and low personal contact service groups (e.g. telecommunications and equipment maintenance). First, social benefits are more effective at increasing gratitude in the low personal contact service group, and at boosting trust in the high-contact group. Second, special treatment benefits increase gratitude much more in the high-contact group than in the low personal contact group. Third, gratitude has a much stronger effect on repurchase intention in the high personal contact group than in the low-contact group.

Originality/value

The interactions among relationship benefits, mediators (i.e. trust and relationship commitment) and outcomes remain unclear. Although the importance of gratitude as a mediator in relationship marketing (RM) has been shown, little research has examined how relational benefits influence repurchase intention through the combined mediating effects of commitment, trust and gratitude. Therefore, this study advances RM theory by examining the degree of additional explaining power that gratitude contributes to the commitment–trust model. The study also makes a practical contribution by building a research model to understand the nature of mediating roles played by relationship commitment, trust and gratitude in the service industry.
Governance mechanisms and total relationship value: the interaction effect of information sharing
Authors: Luu Ngoc , Cadeaux Jack , Ngo Liem Viet
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purposes of this study are to examine how contractual and relational governance mechanisms influence total value created in a buyer–supplier relationship and to investigate how supplier’s information sharing and information sharing asymmetry between two exchange parties differentially moderate these associations.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is conducted with a sample of 110 buyer–supplier matched dyads in various industries in Vietnam.

Findings

This study confirms that contractual governance and relational governance have curvilinear effects on total relationship value. Governance mechanisms have distinct interactions with supplier’s information sharing and information sharing asymmetry to influence total relationship value.

Research limitations/implications

Future study could expand the sample to various countries to investigate the role of cultural factors in the effects of contractual and relational governance.

Practical implications

This study draws implications for supplying managers about how to govern a relationship with a buying firm with which they are sharing information. It also provides implications about how to use contractual and relational governance to control the effects of supplier’s information sharing and information sharing asymmetry, on total relationship value.

Originality/value

This study extends the information sharing literature by looking into the effect of supplier’s information sharing on both parties’ relationship value. It contributes to the governance literature by investigating curvilinear effects of contractual and relational governance on relationship performance.
From external information to marketing innovation: the mediating role of product and organizational innovation
Authors: Ramirez F. Javier , Parra-Requena Gloria , Ruiz-Ortega Maria J. , Garcia-Villaverde Pedro M.
Published: April 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to further understand how firms transform external information into marketing innovation. The specific aim is to analyse the mediating role of product innovation and organizational innovation in the relationship between external information and marketing innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

The study builds on the 2012 database Technological Innovation Panel (PITEC) with a sample of 994 manufacturing firms. The data are analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).

Findings

The results show how external information obtained about relationships with suppliers, customers and competitors leads to marketing innovation. The study demonstrates the mediating effects of product innovation and organizational innovation on the relationship between external information and marketing innovation.

Practical implications

Firms should utilize external information flows to innovate in both their products and organization as a prerequisite to marketing innovation.

Originality/value

This paper provides linkages between perspectives of networks, innovation and marketing to better understand the background of the least studied dimension of innovation – marketing innovation. The main contribution is to explain how firms use external information to achieve marketing innovation through product and organizational innovation.
Democracy, information, and libraries in a time of post-truth discourse
Authors: Lor Peter Johan
Published: April 2018

Purpose

To serve their clients in a time of post-truth discourse and fake news, librarians need to understand the post-truth phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to examine it, what is being done in response to it, and specifically what libraries can do.

Design/methodology/approach

Recent literature on the post-truth phenomenon was examined. Traditional assumptions about the role of libraries in promoting democracy were questioned and an alternative view was put forward. Libraries’ responses to the post-truth phenomenon were examined and critically discussed.

Findings

Traditional assumptions about the role of libraries and information and democracy are outdated. The susceptibility of people to false beliefs and the persistence of these beliefs in spite of corrective information, is the product of many factors, including the evolving media ecosystem and psychosocial processes which are the subject of ongoing empirical research. It not primarily an information or knowledge deficit, hence there are no simple antidotes to fake news. Libraries need to rethink their responses.

Research limitations/implications

The paper deals with very recent developments and relies heavily on informal online resources.

Practical implications

Relevant library activities are examined and suggestions are made for developing appropriate library responses.

Originality/value

At the time of writing this was the first attempt in the library management literature to engage in a systematic and thoughtful manner with the literature on the post-truth phenomenon.
Democracy and libraries: symbol or symbiosis?
Authors: Byrne Alex
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Libraries are frequently claimed to be essential to the functioning of a democratic society and to be symbols of intellectual freedom. The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between libraries, public libraries in particular, and democracy.

Design/methodology/approach

Data from the Democracy Index produced by the Economist Intelligence Unit and the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions World Library Map are analysed to test the claimed symbiotic relationship between libraries and democracy.

Findings

The findings confirm that there is an identifiable symbiotic relationship between libraries and democracy as claimed, at least for public libraries, and considers some implications of that finding.

Originality/value

First analysis of worldwide data to test this hypothesis.
Organizational motivation, employee job satisfaction and organizational performance
Authors: Pang Kelvin , Lu Chin-Shan
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of motivation on job satisfaction and organizational performance in the context of container shipping companies in Taiwan. Four motivation dimensions were identified based on an exploratory factor analysis, including remuneration, job achievement, job security and job environment. In addition, five job satisfaction dimensions were identified, namely: job policy, job autonomy, job workload, job performance and job status. Organizational performance dimensions included financial and non-financial performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Factor analysis was used to summarize a large number of motivation, job satisfaction and organizational performance attributes to identify the crucial factors. Reliability tests based on Cronbach’s alpha and corrected item-total correlation coefficients was used to test the internal consistency of questionnaire responses. ANOVA tests were subsequently used to test for differences in respondents’ perception of these factors according to selected demographics. Finally, a multiple regression model analysis was conducted to examine the relationships between motivation, job satisfaction and organizational performance.

Findings

Results indicated that remuneration and job performance had a positive effect on financial performance dimensions such as return on assets, turnover growth rate and profitability while job environment and job autonomy had a positive effect on non-financial performance dimensions, such as customer service, employee productivity and service quality.

Originality/value

This study has drawn attention to the importance of the relationships between motivation, job satisfaction and organizational performance in the container shipping context. The findings have significant implications for researchers and shipping practitioners. Despite the existence of research on the inter-relationships between motivation, job satisfaction and organizational performance in other disciplines, no empirical study was discussed in previous shipping or transportation-related research.
Prioritizing operational risks in container shipping systems by using cognitive assessment technique
Authors: Nguyen Son , Wang HaiYan
Published: April 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to propose a technique based on cognitive assessments to quantify identified operational risks from the perspective of container shipping or logistics system administrators. The results derived from the risk quantification could be used to prioritize risks as well as support the decision-making process in risk prevention and mitigation.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper identified container shipping operational risks (CSORs) from a logistics perspective. A multivariate risk evaluation mechanism by fuzzy rules Bayesian network (FRBN) was established. An improved two-level parameter set based on the failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) was used to support the input extraction process. By feeding cognitive assessments into the model, the identified risks are evaluated based on their utility values. An illustration example and a sensitivity analysis were carried out to justify and validate the proposed model.

Findings

The highest positions in the prioritized list of CSORs in the case study are dominated by risks in the physical flow with the first three are piracy and terrorism, force majeure and port congestion. The results derived from the case study with the satisfaction of all pre-defined axioms proved the feasibility and illustrated the functionality of the proposed risk assessment and prioritization technique.

Originality/value

Controlling risk is irrefutably a significant issue of container shipping and logistics management because of the inconsistency of risk definitions and the involvement of uncertainties. The proposed risk evaluation mechanism and the identified list of CSORs could be beneficial in system management, decision-making and reliability performance.
Dark open innovation in a criminal organizational context: the case of Madoff’s Ponzi fraud
Authors: Manning Paul , Stokes Peter John , Visser Max , Rowland Caroline , Tarba Shlomo Yedida
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the processes of open innovation in the context of a fraudulent organization and, using the infamous Bernie L. Madoff Investment Securities fraud case, introduces and elaborates upon the concept of dark open innovation. The paper’s conceptual framework is drawn from social capital theory, which is grounded on the socio-economics of Bourdieu, Coleman and Putnam and is employed in order to make sense of the processes that occur within dark open innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

Given the self-evident access issues, this paper is necessarily based on archival and secondary sources taken from the court records ofMadoff v. New York– including victim impact statements, the defendant’s Plea Allocution, and academic and journalistic commentaries – which enable the identification of the processes involved in dark open innovation. Significantly, this paper also represents an important inter-disciplinary collaboration between academic scholars variously informed by business and history subject domains.

Findings

Although almost invariably cast as a positive process, innovation can also be evidenced as a negative or dark force. This is particularly relevant in open innovation contexts, which often call for the creation of extended trust and close relationships. This paper outlines a case of dark open innovation.

Research limitations/implications

A key implication of this study is that organizational innovation is not automatically synonymous with human flourishing or progress. This paper challenges the automatic assumption of innovation being positive and introduces the notion of dark open innovation. Although this is accomplished by means of an in-depth single case, the findings have the potential to resonate in a wide spectrum of situations.

Practical implications

Innovation is a concept that applies across a range of organization and management domains. Criminals also innovate; thus, the paper provides valuable insights into the organizational innovation processes especially involved in relation to dark open innovation contexts.

Social implications

It is important to develop and fully understand the possible wider meanings of innovation and also to recognize that innovation – particularly dark open innovation – does not always create progress. The Caveat Emptor warning is still relevant.

Originality/value

The paper introduces the novel notion of dark open innovation.
Guanxi deviant behaviour in the Chinese cultural context
Authors: Guo Wenchen , Sun Shaosheng , Dai Rong
Published: April 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to define the concept of guanxi deviant behaviour (GDB) initially on the basis of a theoretical study of guanxi, guanxi behaviour and workplace deviant behaviour and to analyse the influence of GDB and the relationship between GDB and counterproductive work behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach

This study collects interview data from 30 enterprise executives, summarises relevant literature from four major databases (two in English and two in Chinese) and applies a grounded theory methodology to refine and further define the core category of GDB, and the main category is interpreted and validated using triangulation.

Findings

The three dimensions of GDB are guanxi bribery behaviour, irregular connected transaction behaviour and guanxi allied behaviour. There are links amongst the three dimensions, no dimension has an independent existence and that is not the end of the GDB issue. Generally, the occurrence of a kind of GDB can be construed to be a preparation for the implementation of another kind, and the latter is the real purpose of the perpetrators.

Social implications

This paper is expected to attract the attention of managers and improve the ability of recognising, preventing and punishing GDB.

Originality/value

This study not only enriches organisational behaviour theory but also enhances the awareness of, and insights into, the negative effects of guanxi.
Mental Health Service Utilization before and after Receipt of a Service‐Connected Disability Award for PTSD: Findings from a National Sample
Authors: Sripada Rebecca K. , Hannemann Claire M. , Schnurr Paula P. , Marx Brian P. , Pollack Stacey J. , McCarthy John F.
Published: April 2018

Objective

To determine patterns of mental health service use before and after VA disability compensation awards for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Data Sources

A 10 percent random sample of VHA‐enrolled Veterans with new or increased PTSD service connection between 2012 and 2014 (n = 22,249).

Study Design

We used latent trajectory analysis to identify utilization patterns and multinomial logistic regression to assess associations between Veteran characteristics and trajectory membership.

Data Extraction Methods

We assessed receipt of VHA mental health encounters in each of the 52 weeks prior to and following PTSD disability rating or rating increase.

Principal Findings

The best fitting model had five groups: No Use (36.6 percent), Low Use (37.7 percent), Increasing Use (9.4 percent), Decreasing Use (11.2 percent), and High Use (5.1 percent). Adjusting for demographic characteristics and compared with the No Use group, Veterans in the other groups were more likely to reside closer to a VHA facility, receive a higher PTSD disability rating, and screen positive for military sexual trauma.

Conclusions

Service use remained stable (80 percent) or increased (9 percent) for the vast majority of Veterans. Service utilization declined for only 11 percent. Data did not indicate substantial service discontinuation following rating. Low VHA service utilization suggests opportunities to enhance outreach for Veterans with PTSD‐related disability benefits.
Heritability estimates from genomewide relatedness matrices in wild populations: Application to a passerine, using a small sample size
Authors: Perrier C. , Delahaie B. , Charmantier A.
Published: April 2018

Genomic developments have empowered the investigation of heritability in wild populations directly from genomewide relatedness matrices (GRM). Such GRM‐based approaches can in particular be used to improve or substitute approaches based on social pedigree (PED‐social). However, measuring heritability from GRM in the wild has not been widely applied yet, especially using small samples and in nonmodel species. Here, we estimated heritability for four quantitative traits (tarsus length, wing length, bill length and body mass), using PED‐social, a pedigree corrected by genetic data (PED‐corrected) and a GRM from a small sample (n = 494) of blue tits from natural populations in Corsica genotyped at nearly 50,000 filtered SNPs derived from RAD‐seq. We also measured genetic correlations among traits, and we performed chromosome partitioning. Heritability estimates were slightly higher when using GRM compared to PED‐social, and PED‐corrected yielded intermediate values, suggesting a minor underestimation of heritability in PED‐social due to incorrect pedigree links, including extra‐pair paternity, and to lower information content than the GRM. Genetic correlations among traits were similar between PED‐social and GRM but credible intervals were very large in both cases, suggesting a lack of power for this small data set. Although a positive linear relationship was found between the number of genes per chromosome and the chromosome heritability for tarsus length, chromosome partitioning similarly showed a lack of power for the three other traits. We discuss the usefulness and limitations of the quantitative genetic inferences based on genomic data in small samples from wild populations.
CLADES: A classification‐based machine learning method for species delimitation from population genetic data
Authors: Pei Jingwen , Chu Chong , Li Xin , Lu Bin , Wu Yufeng
Published: April 2018

Species are considered to be the basic unit of ecological and evolutionary studies. As multilocus genomic data are increasingly available, there have been considerable interests in the use of DNA sequence data to delimit species. In this study, we show that machine learning can be used for species delimitation. Our method treats the species delimitation problem as a classification problem for identifying the category of a new observation on the basis of training data. Extensive simulation is first conducted over a broad range of evolutionary parameters for training purposes. Each pair of known populations is combined to form training samples with a label of “same species” or “different species”. We use support vector machine (SVM) to train a classifier using a set of summary statistics computed from training samples as features. The trained classifier can classify a test sample to two outcomes: “same species” or “different species”. Given multilocus genomic data of multiple related organisms or populations, our method (called CLADES) performs species delimitation by first classifying pairs of populations. CLADES then delimits species by maximizing the likelihood of species assignment for multiple populations. CLADES is evaluated through extensive simulation and also tested on real genetic data. We show that CLADES is both accurate and efficient for species delimitation when compared with existing methods. CLADES can be useful especially when existing methods have difficulty in delimitation, for example with short species divergence time and gene flow.
Brexit and the UK‐Africa Caribbean and Pacific Aid Relationship
Authors: Price Sophia
Published: April 2018

Debates about Brexit draw on powerful discursive mechanisms that have important implications for the UK–Africa, Caribbean and Pacific aid relationship. Some of these narratives can be characterized in the following ways: first, that Brexit is an opportunity to recreate a Global Britain after a period of EU membership that saw the UK neglect its former partners, particularly the Commonwealth. Second, the costs of EU membership are profligate and these funds could be better utilized by the national government. Third the Brexit ‘divorce bill’ is a penalty exacted by the EU for the UK's decision to leave. This article explores these claims via the EU‐ACP relationship, and proposes three counter arguments. First, the discourse of ‘neglect’ overlooks the external relationships the UK has maintained through EU membership. Second, these relationships have provided ‘value for money’ for the UK. Third, these contributions represent a significant proportion of the Brexit ‘divorce bill’ and are on‐going financial commitments that the UK was central in establishing. The article then reviews the potential impact of Brexit on UK aid, arguing that rather than reinvigorating Global Britain Brexit threatens to undermine the UK's position in global development, current levels of aid and longstanding commitments to eradicate poverty.
R2ucare: An r package to perform goodness‐of‐fit tests for capture–recapture models
Authors: Gimenez Olivier , Lebreton Jean‐Dominique , Choquet Rémi , Pradel Roger
Published: April 2018

Assessing the quality of fit of a statistical model to data is a necessary step for conducting safe inference.

We introduce R2ucare, an r package to perform goodness‐of‐fit tests for open single‐ and multi‐state capture–recapture models. R2ucare also has various functions to manipulate capture–recapture data.

We remind the basics and provide guidelines to navigate towards testing the fit of capture–recapture models. We demonstrate the functionality of R2ucare through its application to real data.
Grass greenness flush can influence breeding phenology and fertility in equatorial thoroughbred mares in the absence of photoperiod variation
Authors: Carranza Juan , Yoong Washington A. , Vergara Belén Caño , Briones Abel , Mateos Concha
Published: April 2018

Reproductive phenology is an important trait subjected to natural selection. Current horses in America belong to the Palearctic original populations after being introduced by European colonizers. Photoperiod variation is the main environmental factor for the adjustment of reproductive timing in horses, but is absent in equatorial areas. Here we hypothesize that seasonality of green‐grass availability may influence breeding phenology in equatorial regions. We used data of 929 services to mares from 2006 to 2011 in a thoroughbred equine exploitation in Ecuador that experienced strong grass seasonality. Actual births could not be used to infer natural phenology because they were influenced by management decisions. Instead, we used variations in the probability of pregnancy after a service as a measure of the natural tendency of mares to show breeding phenology. We found that although managers tended to schedule pregnancies in two periods within the year, mares were more prone to become pregnant after the increase in grass greenness that takes place at the beginning of the year (February). Our finding has potential applications to improve the success of services and the welfare of animals, by providing green‐grass stimuli in the appropriate season.
A platinum era for dermatology therapeutics?
Authors: Galloway J. , Walsh S.
Published: April 2018

Linked Article: Gonzalez et al. Br J Dermatol 2018; 178:965–968.
Stress and more stress: the importance in skin disease of worrying about what others think
Authors: Thompson A.R. , Montgomery K.
Published: April 2018

Linked Article: Dixon et al. Br J Dermatol 2018; 178:951–957
Herbal interventions: make the grass greener!
Authors: Samimi M. , Chosidow O.
Published: April 2018

Linked Article:  Ornelas et al. Br J Dermatol 2018; 178:889–896.
Photodynamic therapy is more effective than imiquimod for actinic keratosis in organ transplant recipients: a randomized intraindividual controlled trial
Authors: Togsverd-Bo K. , Halldin C. , Sandberg C. , Gonzalez H. , Wennberg A.M. , Sørensen S.S. , Wulf H.C. , Hædersdal M.
Published: April 2018

Recipients of organ transplants such as a kidney must take strong drugs to prevent organ rejection. These drugs also reduce the body's defences against the development of cancer. This is particularly important in the skin, where damage from ultraviolet light from the sun leads to precancerous changes (solar keratoses) on exposed sites. These changes can be extensive and are more likely to develop into aggressive skin cancers than in normal healthy individuals. This Scandinavian study compares the effectiveness and acceptability of two established treatments for solar keratoses in a group of 35 organ transplant patients. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is administered at a hospital visit. It involves applying a light-sensitising cream to the skin which is later activated by a red light. This triggers intense inflammation in the skin which destroys abnormal but not normal tissue. Another treatment is imiquimod cream which is applied three times a week for four weeks by the patient at home. It stimulates the body's own defence mechanisms to fight off abnormal tissue changes. Each patient had two similarly affected areas of skin. These were randomly allocated to be treated either with PDT or imiquimod. PDT was repeated after three, and imiquimod after two months if necessary. Response rates were calculated at three and six months. This study showed that photodynamic therapy was more effective than imiquimod at reducing the number of persistent solar keratoses in this group of high-risk patients. Although PDT was more painful than imiquimod, patients did not prefer one treatment over the other for this reason.
Use of the hCONSORT criteria as a reporting standard for herbal interventions for common dermatoses: a systematic review
Authors: Ornelas J. , Routt E. , Kallis P. , Lev-Tov H.
Published: April 2018

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been increasing in popularity in western countries for various conditions, including those that affect the skin. Alternative medicine is defined as treatment approaches that are outside the realm of western medicine and complimentary medicine combines the use of such treatments with western medicine. Despite this increase in prevalence, western healthcare providers have not integrated CAM into their practice due to a lack of reliable scientific studies that support its use. One way to close the gap between prevalence of public use and lack of reliable data is to improve the way studies are reported in medical journals. In 2006 guidelines were published to help scientific researchers conduct quality research regarding the use of herbal medications. These guidelines were called the CONSORT extension criteria on reporting herbal interventions (hCONSORT) and were published in 2006. We wanted to examine how well these guidelines we adopted in dermatology. As part of our research, based in the U.S., we reviewed scientific studies that investigated the use of plant-based medications for the use of three common skin conditions: acne, atopic eczema, and psoriasis. We focused on articles published between 2009 and 2014 and graded their adherence to the hCONSORT guidelines. Surprisingly, we found that the majority of these scientific studies adhered to less than 50% of the hCONSORT guidelines. Based on these findings, we recommend that scientists adhere to these guidelines when conducting studies regarding the use of herbal medications and that editors of scientific journals encourage adherence to these guidelines when presented with articles that assess the use of herbal medications. Doing so will help western healthcare practitioners safely and effectively integrate CAM into conventional medicine.
综合评估和分类防晒服的方法
Authors: Downs N.J. , Harrison S.L.
Published: April 2018

过度暴露于阳光中会导致皮肤癌,这是人类最常见的癌症。在澳大利亚,约有80%的黑色素瘤(皮肤癌最致命的形式)病例可以通过减少阳光曝晒进行预防。衣服可以作为防护屏障,有效地减少到达皮肤的太阳紫外辐射(UVR)。1996年,澳大利亚的研究人员根据UVR穿透衣料的情况(称为紫外线防护系数(UPF))主导了一项衣服的防晒能力相对等级研究。UPF服装吊牌作为此项初始标准(AS/NZS 4399:1996)的一部分引入,这一做法被业界广泛采用。然而,这项研究并未考虑到服装覆盖的人体皮肤表面积(BSA)。一些标准(例如欧盟,2003年;澳大利亚/新西兰,2017年)中加入了对躯体和四肢的最低身体覆盖面积要求,而其他标准(例如美国)则未有改动。鉴于有最新证据表明,衣服覆盖对预防在幼年时期形成的色素痣(黑色素瘤的重要风险因素)起着重要的作用,因此,防晒服评级方案除了考虑衣料UPF之外,还必须考虑服装的BSA覆盖面积。我们开发了一项用于评级防晒服的新指标“服装防护系数(GPF)”,其中包含了上述两项重要因素。BSA覆盖面积是通过比较穿衣服和未穿衣服的模特身上可见的线条数量决定的。GPF随着服装的BSA覆盖面积和衣料UPF的增加而提高,共分为3个类别:GPF 0至< 3,表示此类服装“满足”最低标准;3至< 6,表明此类服装拥有“良好”的防晒能力;而GPF ≥ 6,则表明防晒能力“出色”。采用这种评级方案有助于鼓励制造商设计超出BSA覆盖面积和衣料UPF的最低标准的防晒服装,并为消费者提供充足的信息进行选择,从而有效的预防皮肤癌。
压力与皮肤病生活质量:焦虑敏感性社会关注的缓和作用
Authors: Dixon L.J. , Witcraft S.M. , McCowan N.K. , Brodell R.T.
Published: April 2018

“压力”一词用于形容一个人感到紧张或在压力下的状态。一个有趣的事实是,压力可以使某些皮肤病恶化,甚至引起一些皮肤病。这会导致患者产生恶性循环,他们的皮肤病会引发更多压力,压力会转而恶化其症状,如此循环。关于在压力和皮肤病之间的关联中起作用的心理风险因素却鲜为人知,但业界普遍认为其中一个相关因素是“焦虑敏感性(AS)社会关注”。这会在一个人因担心社会后果(其他人的反应,例如拒绝或羞耻)而惧怕焦虑相关的感觉(例如出汗、脸红)时发生。因此,这个人是在担心焦虑症的可视迹象。在这项于美国开展的研究中,237名带有皮肤病症状的患者完成了一些调查问卷,用以评估压力、AS社会关注、皮肤病生活质量和皮肤症状的严重程度。研究发现,具有AS社会关注症状的患者更有可能注意和惧怕因压力或皮肤病引起的体征所产生的社会反响(例如其他人会如何反应),进而恶化皮肤病对其情绪健康和日常生活的影响。但是,具有高度AS社会关注症状的患者并未反应其皮肤病的体征影响了其生活质量,这表示压力与症状的严重程度并无关联。
异位性皮炎与手部湿疹之间的关联:一项系统综述与元分析
Authors: Ruff S.M.D. , Engebretsen K.A. , Zachariae C. , Johansen J.D. , Silverberg J.I. , Egeberg A. , Thyssen J.P.
Published: April 2018

异位性皮炎(AD,一种常见的湿疹类型)是一种儿童皮肤病。它会引起剧烈瘙痒和皮肤干燥问题。大部分儿童和成人会在皮肤褶皱处(膝盖和手肘的弯曲处)出现湿疹,但一些成人患者的面部、手部和足部也会出现湿疹。传统的异位性手部湿疹(HE)出现在手背上,这可能是因为手背的皮肤比手掌部位要薄。然而,AD还会提高因刺激物(例如肥皂和水)而导致产生HE的风险,这就是所谓的“刺激性接触性皮炎”。这种子类型的HE通常最开始出现在手指之间或旁边的皮肤上,但随后可能会出现在手部的任何位置,包括手掌。重要的是,HE会妨碍人们的工作并降低他们的生活乐趣和质量。目前的研究旨在通过回顾已发布的文献和科学研究来寻找AD和HE之间的关联。在每项研究中,我们都会搜索与AD和HE之间的关联有关的数据。我们结合了26项研究的结果,在查看HE的一年和终身发病率(意思是,在某一年或到目前为止的人生中的任何时候患上HE的患者,即使患者目前已痊愈)时发现,当前或过去患有AD的患者患上HE的风险会提高3至4倍。在研究与当前HE的关联时发现了较弱的相关。而在研究在不同职业中因暴露在刺激物中而患上HE和一般人群中报告的HE时发现了类似的正相关。结论是,我们的分析表明,AD患者患上HE的可能性大大增加。临床医生应继续指导AD患者尽可能避免从事HE高风险的职业。此外,未来的研究还应关注于确定AD和不同类型的HE之间的关联的重要性。
使用杜匹鲁单抗和伴随局部皮质类固醇(LIBERTY AD CHRONOS)对中度至重度异位性皮炎的长期治疗:一项严格评价
Authors: Thomson J. , Wernham A.G.H. , Williams H.C.
Published: April 2018

异位性皮炎(AD)是一种常见的慢性炎症性皮肤病。主要的治疗方法是每天涂抹保湿剂和抗炎霜,通常是局部用皮质类固醇(TCS)。严重病例中使用的免疫抑制药物会引起副作用(不良副作用)。去年,《柳叶刀》上发表了一项针对AD的全新免疫抑制疗法的试验,称为杜匹鲁单抗。在本文中,来自英国诺丁汉的皮肤科医生严格评价了该研究。该项研究由业界赞助,检查了杜匹鲁单抗的长期疗效和安全性,这种”生物”药物会选择性地抑制AD中涉及的免疫细胞。这项随机、双盲、安慰剂对照试验在全球161个诊所中开展。每周(319名患者)或每两周(106名患者)为中度至重度AD成人患者注射300mg杜匹鲁单抗,共注射52周。所有患者(包括315名接受安慰剂的患者)均根据需要继续使用TCS。研究人员发现,杜匹鲁单抗+ TCS的耐受性良好(意思是,患者能够持续治疗)并且对AD的改善情况要好于单独使用TCS,但会引起更多的副作用(尤其是结膜炎)。而每周和每两周注射的疗法在疗效上未报告任何差异。这在总体上是一项组织妥善的研究,但评论家对此有所保留。还需要招募更多的参与者才能进行合理的统计:也就是”播种”,需要广泛的测试才能精通并信任该药物。评论家的再分析表明,每两周剂量比每周剂量更加有效,而费用只有后者的一半。大部分参与者患有中度AD,但生物制剂通常是为重度病患准备的。应将该药物与另一种系统性免疫抑制剂相比较,而非安慰剂。这些因素可能使结论倾向于该药物。
Galantamine is not a positive allosteric modulator of human α4β2 or α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
Authors: Kowal Natalia M , Ahring Philip K , Liao Vivian W Y , Indurti Dinesh C , Harvey Benjamin S , O'Connor Susan M , Chebib Mary , Olafsdottir Elin S , Balle Thomas
Published: April 2018

Background and Purpose

The alkaloid galantamine was originally isolated from the green snowdrop Galanthus woronowii and is currently marketed as a drug for treatment of mild to moderate dementia in patients with Alzheimer's disease. In addition to a well‐documented proficiency to inhibit acetylcholinesterase, galantamine has been reported to increase neuronal nicotinic ACh (nACh) receptor function by acting as a positive allosteric modulator. Yet there remains controversy regarding these findings in the literature. To resolve this conundrum, we evaluated galantamine actions at α4β2 and α7, which represent the nACh receptors most commonly associated with mammalian cognitive domains.

Experimental Approach

α4β2 [in (α4)3(β2)2 and (α4)2(β2)3 stoichiometries] and α7 nACh receptors were expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes and subjected to two‐electrode voltage‐clamp electrophysiological experiments. Galantamine (10 nM to 100 μM) was evaluated for direct agonist effects and for positive modulation by co‐application with sub‐maximally efficacious concentrations of ACh. In addition, similar experiments were performed with α7 nACh receptors stably expressed in HEK293 cells using patch‐clamp electrophysiology.

Key Results

In concentrations ranging from 10 nM to 1 μM, galantamine did not display direct agonism nor positive modulatory effects at any receptor combination tested. At concentrations from 10 μM and above, galantamine inhibited the activity with a mechanism of action consistent with open‐channel pore blockade at all receptor types.

Conclusion and Implications

Based on our data, we conclude that galantamine is not a positive allosteric modulator of α7 or α4β2 receptors, which represent the majority of nACh receptors in mammalian brain.
Inorganic hydrogen polysulfides: chemistry, chemical biology and detection
Authors: Liu Heng , Radford Miles N , Yang Chun‐tao , Chen Wei , Xian Ming
Published: April 2018

Recent studies suggest that inorganic hydrogen polysulfides (H2Sn, n ≥ 2) play important regulatory roles in redox biology. Modulation of their cellular levels could have potential therapeutic value. This review article focuses on our current understanding of the biosynthesis, biofunctions, fundamental physical/chemical properties, detection methods and delivery techniques of H2Sn.

Linked Articles

This article is part of a themed section on Chemical Biology of Reactive Sulfur Species. To view the other articles in this section visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.v176.4/issuetoc