bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Seeing cells smell: Dynamic optical measurements of Ca2+and cAMP signaling from Olfactory Receptors transiently expressed in HEK293TN cells
Authors: Pietraszewska-Bogiel A , van Weeren L , Goedhart J
Published: September 2019

Olfactory receptors (ORs) constitute the largest family of G-protein coupled receptors. They are responsible for the perception of odor (olfaction) and also play important roles in other biological processes, including regulation of cell proliferation. Their increasing diagnostic and therapeutic potential, especially for cancer research, requests the ongoing development of methodologies that would allow their robust functional expression in non-olfactory cells, and dynamic analysis of their signaling pathways. To enable realtime detection of OR activity, we use single cell imaging with genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors, Yellow Cameleon or EPAC, which are routinely used for kinetic measurements of Ca2+or cAMP signaling downstream of various G-protein coupled receptors. We demonstrate that the co-expression of Lucy-Rho tagged variants of ORs together with an accessory protein, RTP1s, in HEK293TN cells is sufficient to detect the activity of a panel of ORs. Using this methodology, we were able to detect both Ca2+and cAMP signaling downstream of twelve ORs within 2 minutes from the application of odorant.
Multi-Region Brain Stimulation Optimization Using Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
Authors: Xu Ziliang , Sun Jinbo , Chen Yao , Yu Yang , Yang Xuejuan , Liu Peng , Chen Badong , Qin Wei
Published: September 2019

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a type of noninvasive transcranial electrical brain stimulation. By optimizing the current distribution of each electrode on the scalp, the stimulation can be guided to a target brain region using a tDCS dense electrode array system. However, previous studies have yielded simple results using optimization schemes in single target stimulation cases. The detailed parameter settings for each optimization scheme and the associated simulation results have not been comprehensively assessed. In this study, we investigated parameter settings of optimization schemes in detail in both single target and multi-target cases. Two optimization schemes, minimum least squares (MLS) and maximum electrical field strength (ME), were examined in this study. MLS minimizes the squared errors between the expected electrical field and the estimated electrical field, whereas ME maximizes the electrical field strength in the target region. We constructed a five layer finite-element head model with 64 electrodes placed on the scalp according to the EEG 10/10 system for simulation. We evaluated the effects of stimulation using these two schemes under three conditions, 1) single target stimulation, 2) multi-target stimulation, and 3) multi-target stimulation under specific task activation, which shown that directly using MLS and ME scheme in multi-target stimulation case may lead to a wrong result. We also reported the improved results fixed by our proposed weighted MLS and weighted ME schemes which take detailed parameter settings into consideration. Our results indicate that the parameter settings in each optimization scheme greatly affected the final stimulation results, especially in the case of multi-target stimulation, and thus, indicate that the parameter settings of each optimization scheme should be carefully considered according to the expected stimulation mode. Our results also suggest that, by calculating the parameters through our proposed methods, the weighted ME and weighted MLS scheme can precisely distribute energy into each target brain region.
Multiple-site diversification of regulatory sequences enables inter-species operability of genetic devices
Authors: Hueso-Gil Angeles , Nyerges Ákos , Pál Csaba , Calles Belén , de Lorenzo Víctor
Published: September 2019

The features of the light-responsive cyanobacterial CcaSR regulatory node that determine interoperability of this optogenetic device between Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas putida have been examined. For this, all structural parts (i.e. ho1 and pcyA genes for synthesis of phycobilin, the ccaS/ccaR system from Synechocystis and its cognate downstream promoter) were maintained but their expression levels and stoichiometry diversified by [i] reassembling them together in a single broad host range, standardized vector and [ii] subjecting the non-coding regulatory sequences to multiple cycles of directed evolution with random genomic mutations (DIvERGE), a recombineering method that intensifies mutation rates within discrete DNA segments. Once passed to P. putida, various clones displayed a wide dynamic range, insignificant leakiness and excellent capacity in response to green light. Inspection of the evolutionary intermediates pinpointed translational control as the main bottleneck for interoperability and suggested a general approach for easing the exchange of genetic cargoes between different species i.e. optimization of relative expression levels and upturning of subcomplex stoichiometry.
Microtubule binding of the kinesin-4 KIF7 and its regulation by autoinhibition
Authors: Blasius T. Lynne , Yue Yang , Verhey Kristen
Published: September 2019

KIF7 is a member of the kinesin-4 family and plays critical roles in Hedgehog signaling in vertebrate cells. KIF7 is an atypical kinesin as it binds to microtubules but is immotile. We demonstrate that, like conventional kinesins, KIF7 is regulated by autoinhibition as the full-length motor cannot bind to microtubules whereas truncated versions bind statically to microtubules in cells. Previous work suggested that truncated KIF7 motors bind preferentially to the plus ends of microtubulesin vitro, however, we find that truncated KIF7 does not bind preferentially to or track the plus ends of growing microtubules in mammalian cells or in cell extracts. Although the truncated KIF7 did alter microtubule dynamics in cells, this property is not specific to KIF7 as expression of an active kinesin-1 motor also altered microtubule growth rates. The immotile behavior of KIF7 is not due to the extended neck linker domain as its deletion does not activate KIF7 for motility and its presence in a KIF5C/KIF7 chimeric motor does not prevent processive motility. Together this work indicates that the atypical kinesin KIF7 is regulated by autoinhibition to prevent binding to microtubules and alteration of microtubule dynamics in cells.
Transcriptional and Spatial Resolution of Cell Types in the Mammalian Habenula
Authors: Hashikawa Yoshiko , Hashikawa Koichi , Basiri Marcus L. , Liu Yuejia , Johnston Nathan L. , Ahmad Omar R. , Stuber Garret D.
Published: September 2019

The habenula complex is appreciated as a critical regulator of motivated and pathological behavioral states via its output to midbrain nuclei. Despite this, transcriptional definition of cell populations that comprise both the medial (MHb) and lateral habenular (LHb) subregions in mammals remain undefined. To resolve this, we performed single-cell transcriptional profiling and highly multiplexed in situ hybridization experiments of the mouse habenula complex in naïve mice and those exposed to an acute aversive stimulus. Transcriptionally distinct neuronal cell types identified within the MHb and LHb, were spatially defined, and differentially engaged by aversive stimuli. Cell types identified in mice, also displayed a high degree of transcriptional similarity to those previously described in zebrafish, highlighting the well conserved nature of habenular cell types across the phylum. These data identify key molecular targets within habenula cell types, and provide a critical resource for future studies.
Regulation of expression site and generalizability of experience-dependent plasticity in visual cortex
Authors: Lantz Crystal L. , Murase Sachiko , Quinlan Elizabeth M.
Published: September 2019

The experience-dependent decrease in stimulus detection thresholds that underly perceptual learning can be induced by repetitive exposure to a visual stimulus. Robust stimulus-selective potentiation of visual responses is induced in the primary mouse visual cortex by repetitive low frequency visual stimulation (LFVS). How the parameters of the repetitive visual stimulus impact the site and specificity of this experience-dependent plasticity is currently a subject of debate. Here we demonstrate that the stimulus selective response potentiation induced by repetitive low frequency (1 Hz) stimulation, which is typically limited to layer 4, shifts to superficial layers following manipulations that enhance plasticity in primary visual cortex. In contrast, repetitive high frequency (10 Hz) visual stimulation induces response potentiation that is expressed in layers 4 and 5/6, and generalizes to novel visual stimuli. Repetitive visual stimulation also induces changes in the magnitude and distribution of oscillatory activity in primary visual cortex, however changes in oscillatory power do not predict the locus or specificity of response potentiation. Instead we find that robust response potentiation is induced by visual stimulation that resets the phase of ongoing gamma oscillations. Furthermore, high frequency, but not low frequency, repetitive visual stimulation entrains oscillatory rhythms with enhanced sensitivity to phase reset, such that familiar and novel visual stimuli induce similar visual response potentiation.
The Integrator complex cleaves nascent mRNAs to attenuate transcription
Authors: Tatomer Deirdre C. , Elrod Nathan D. , Liang Dongming , Xiao Mei-Sheng , Jiang Jeffrey Z. , Jonathan Michael , Huang Kai-Lieh , Wagner Eric J. , Cherry Sara , Wilusz Jeremy E.
Published: September 2019

Cellular homeostasis requires transcriptional outputs to be coordinated, and many events post-transcription initiation can dictate the levels and functions of mature transcripts. To systematically identify regulators of inducible gene expression, we performed high-throughput RNAi screening of the Drosophila Metallothionein A (MtnA) promoter. This revealed that the Integrator complex, which has a well-established role in 3′ end processing of small nuclear RNAs (snRNAs), attenuates MtnA transcription during copper stress. Integrator complex subunit 11 (IntS11) endonucleolytically cleaves MtnA transcripts, resulting in premature transcription termination and degradation of the nascent RNAs by the RNA exosome, a complex also identified in the screen. Using RNA-seq, we then identified >400 additional Drosophila protein-coding genes whose expression increases upon Integrator depletion. We focused on a subset of these genes and confirmed that Integrator is bound to their 5′ ends and negatively regulates their transcription via IntS11 endonuclease activity. Many noncatalytic Integrator subunits, which are largely dispensable for snRNA processing, also have regulatory roles at these protein-coding genes, possibly by controlling Integrator recruitment or RNA polymerase II dynamics. Altogether, our results suggest that attenuation via Integrator cleavage limits production of many full-length mRNAs, allowing precise control of transcription outputs.
Visualising a “good game”: analytics as a calculative engine in a digital environment
Authors: Lassila Erkki M. , Moilanen Sinikka , Järvinen Janne T.
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to concern the use of analytics as a calculative engine enabling coordination and control for the development process in a creative digital business environment.

Design/methodology/approach

This research employs an explorative field study approach, using interview data from professionals working with free-to-play mobile game development. Drawing on the concepts of cycles of accumulation, accounting as an engine and mediating instruments, this study examines how organisational actors using the analytics in a digital business environment participate in the data generation that accumulates knowledge about and new insights into the desired outcome.

Findings

The real-time metrics provided the means for organisational actors to continually monitor, visualise and if necessary intervene in the creative “good game” development process. Timely quantification and visualisation of user actions, collected as digital traces, enhanced the cycle of information accumulation. This new knowledge resulted in a desire for improvement and perfection, which directed the actions towards the organisational objectives.

Originality/value

This study furthers our understanding of the performativity of accounting as an engine and the user behavioural data trace as its “fuel” in a digital product development. It highlights the role of analytics as a “fact-generating” device, capable of transforming the raw user behavioural data, the fuel, into powerful explanations through visualisations of ideals. The real-time metrics, understood as mediating instruments, enable the generation of new insights and accumulation of knowledge guiding the further development towards the desired outcome, the “good game”.
Fluid flow effects on CO2 corrosion: a review of applications of rotating cage methodology
Authors: Arismendi Florez Jhonatan Jair , Ferrari Jean Vicente
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Among the many influencing effects that the medium has on the CO2 corrosion of carbon steel, flow is one of the most important because it can determine the formation of corrosion product scales and its stabilisation, thus influencing the attack morphology and corrosion rate. This paper aims to summarise some factors affecting aqueous CO2 corrosion and the laboratory methodologies to evaluate one of the most important, the flow, with an emphasis on less costly rotating cage (RC) laboratory methodology.

Design/methodology/approach

Regarding the key factors affecting CO2 corrosion, both well-established factors and some not well addressed in current corrosion prediction models are presented. The wall shear stress (WSS) values that can be obtained by laboratory flow simulation methodologies in pipelines and its effects over iron carbonate (FeCO3) scales or inhibition films are discussed. In addition, promising applications of electrochemical techniques coupled to RC methodology under mild or harsh conditions are presented.

Findings

More studies could be addressed that also consider both the salting-out effects and the presence of oxygen in CO2 corrosion. The RC methodology may be appropriate to simulate a WSS close to that obtained by laboratory flow loops, especially when using only water as the corrosive medium.

Originality/value

The WSS generated by the RC methodology might not be able to cause destruction of protective FeCO3 scales or inhibition films. However, this may be an issue even when using methodologies that allow high-magnitude hydrodynamic stresses.
Festivals and re-ethnicization of China’s Miao migrant community
Authors: Cheung Siu-woo
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the efforts of an ethnic Miao migrant worker association to recreate and engage with festivals both in the host society of the Pearl River Delta and back home in Southeastern Guizhou province of Southwest China. It analyzes how and under what conditions the disadvantaged migrant workers collectively demonstrate and assert their cultural identity in festival activities, rekindling and strengthening their ethnic consciousness.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on ethnographic field data, this study focuses on the connections between migrant workers’ lives in modern host societies and their traditional culture back home. Special attention is paid to the temporal dynamics of migrant workers’ cultural identity and socio-economic development.

Findings

The leaders of the Miao migrants’ association created network linkages to channel the flow of labor, capital and culture between the host society and the migrants’ hometown, and made efforts to secure institutional embeddedness at both ends of the flow. Their use of festivals and related heritage as cultural capital has facilitated the cultivation of network linkages and institutional embeddedness for economic advancement and overcoming ethnic prejudices and institutional disadvantages.

Originality/value

By illustrating how the economic development has been imbricated with culture, this research enhances understanding about the role of network linkage and institutional embeddedness in the flow of labor, capital and culture between host society and home place of migrant communities.
Examining consumer affective goal pursuit in services
Authors: Wang Cheng Lu , Jiang Ying
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how consumers’ affective goal pursuit influences the relationship between their affect and satisfaction in services. In particular, it examines when affect can directly influence satisfaction and when such an impact is mediated by perceived service quality.

Design/methodology/approach

This research explores consumers’ consumption goals in three different service contexts, i.e., a primarily pleasure-seeking hedonic service context, a primarily arousal-seeking hedonic service context and a utilitarian (non-affect-seeking) service context.

Findings

Results from two studies show that the primary affective consumption goal determines which specific affect can directly influence satisfaction. Other desirable non-primary affect influences satisfaction through the mediation of perceived service quality.

Research limitations/implications

This research focuses on the service contexts in which consumers’ primary consumption goals vary. Further research may focus on the priority and strength of a consumer’s various consumption goals in different services and study how the priority and strength of different consumption goals determine how affect influences quality and satisfaction.

Practical implications

The study provides several insights for service providers and retailers to recognize that consumers’ primary consumption goals may vary in different service contexts, for different consumers, and even at different usage situations. Accordingly, marketers need to develop different strategies for consumer with different goal pursuit in services.

Originality/value

While the literature has documented that consumer affect influences consumer satisfaction in general, it is unclear how different consumption goals influence the impact of affect on satisfaction. This research contributes to the consumer goal literature by demonstrating the importance of primary consumption goals in the post-consumption evaluation of services.
Factors that trigger bullying amongst subcontractors toward intention to quit in the construction projects
Authors: Jalali Alireza , Hidzir Nur Izzati , Jaafar Mastura , Dahalan Norziani
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between three key factors that cause workplace bullying among subcontractor managers toward intention to quit the undertaken project within the context of Malaysia.

Design/methodology/approach

This study utilized the simple sampling method to select its study sample, while the questionnaire survey approach was implemented amidst 500 G6 and G7 contractor managers across Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 210 completed questionnaires were returned. Partial least square-structural equation modeling was administered to analyze the data via SmartPls 3.0 software.

Findings

This study discovered three significant factors (main contractor leadership, construction culture, work organization and job design) that displayed positive effect on workplace bullying among subcontractor managers toward intention to quit. The study outcomes can serve as a direction for policy makers to reduce bullying within the construction project environment.

Practical implications

This study serves as an instruction for main contractors to reinvent their style of management in overcoming bullying in construction projects. This paper guides that collaborative relationship among various parties in construction projects, including the representatives of main contractors and subcontractor managers, may assist in addressing the hostile environment of construction project, in order to create a constructive relationship between them that leads to overall project success.

Originality/value

Recognition of the three key factors that lead to workplace bullying among subcontractor managers in the construction industry, which are bound to enhance intention to quit based on the data set with strong statistical results, has made the research original.
How to communicate healthy products inside grocery stores
Authors: Grandi Benedetta , Cardinali Maria Grazia , Bellini Silvia
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the importance of nutritional information in the selection of healthy food products and test the effects of different communication stimuli on people with different levels of self-control (NFC used as a proxy). Specifically, the authors posit that easy-to-process and intuitive nutritional information can lead to a substantial change in the shopping behaviour. Furthermore, this work wants to test the effect on behaviours, emotions and judgements of two different communication signs (stars and silhouettes) in the promotion of healthy food products inside grocery stores.

Design/methodology/approach

After the development of a new nutritional display, the authors identified two different communication stimuli (stars and silhouettes) in order to test their impact on emotions evoked, judgements and behaviours. First, a pre-test was conducted using neuro-marketing tools (Face Reader) to detect the emotions aroused by the communications and then a main online between-subjects experiment involving 222 participants was carried out to understand the impact on choices and attitudes. Data were analysed using SPSS.

Findings

Results showed that communication plays a key role in helping customers choosing healthier products. Concerning the different communication stimuli, the authors found a significant difference in the emotion evoked by the different signs used. This difference translates into a judgemental change but not necessarily into a behavioural one.

Originality/value

To the authors’ knowledge, previous researchers have focused their attention only on the nutritional values communicated at a product level through different product labels, while nobody has tried to implement and test a category/segment level communication strategy.
Developing strategies to improve agility in the project procurement management (PPM) process
Authors: Rane Santosh B. , Narvel Yahya Abdul Majid , Bhandarkar Bhaskar M.
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The ability of an organization to observe varying demands and efficiently meet them can be described as agility. Project procurement management (PPM) in the past was stable as things did not change very often and were very predictable. Due to hyper-competition, less predictable market and exponential innovation, the existing PPM becomes very unstable which marks the requirement of an agile model to manage procurement projects effectively. The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

For achieving the improvements, various barriers to improving agility in PPM were identified from the literature and experts’ review, followed by obtaining quantified impacts of identified barriers from the experts using the Delphi technique. Finally, interpretive structural modeling along with Matrice d’ Impacts Croises Multiplication Appliqué an Classement analysis was used to analyze the interactions among barriers to prioritize and strategize their mitigation.

Findings

As per the analysis, the lack of top management alignment and commitment, lack of digital strategy, lack of new technology competencies and inefficiencies of financial factors were the most critical barriers that would come across while improving agility in PPM for any organization. Industries should have a stable, well-established and supportive top management that has a vision for digital transformation along with upgrading the companies’ technology layer for automating most of the manual processes to have intelligent decision-making capability.

Originality/value

Industries need to be agile in their operations for being more competitive and responsive to the market. PPM being the most critical part of the entire value chain needs to be agile in the first place. The strategies developed as an output of this research can be utilized by industries for improving agility in their business processes.
The meaning of international experience for the development of cultural intelligence
Authors: Ott Dana L. , Iskhakova Marina
Published: September 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to contribute to international business research by critically analyzing and evaluating the use of the “international experience” (IE) construct within the specific context of developing cultural intelligence (CQ).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on 30 studies selected through a systematic literature review, the IE construct is critically analyzed and evaluated with respect to the terminology, definitions, conceptualizations and measurements used.

Findings

Findings indicate that the existing body of knowledge on the construct of IE is fragmented, uses inconsistent terminology, does not uniformly rely on any underlying conceptual frameworks and uses a variety of measures for investigating IE. Additionally, scholars have largely relied on quantitative measures of IE to explain the development of CQ, despite theoretical arguments specifying conditions and circumstances that must occur for learning and development to take place.

Research limitations/implications

To move forward with using the IE construct, the authors emphasize the critical need for scholars to pay greater attention to and explicate how they define, conceptualize and measure it. Based on the identified issues, recommendations to improve future research are provided.

Originality/value

Although IE is frequently assumed to influence the development of CQ, contrary to conventional wisdom and some theoretical arguments, research evidence has demonstrated that the impact of IE on CQ is suggestive rather than conclusive. To understand why this may be the case, the use of the IE construct within previous research is critically analyzed and evaluated.
Does employees’ psychological capital buffer the negative effects of incivility?
Authors: Al-Zyoud Mohammad Fahmi , Mert İbrahim Sani
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Workplace relationship has widely been recognized as an important factor to shaping employees’ workplace experience. Workplace incivility, a low-intensity form of deviant behavior, is deemed to have an adverse effect on both businesses and their employees. However, the role of individuals’ positive psychology in buffering the adverse effects of workplace incivility remains unclear even though social stressors like incivility are prevalent among Jordanian heath care workers. Applying the conservation of resources (COR) theory and social exchange theory (SET), the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between coworker incivility and psychological distress as moderated by psychological capital (PsyCap).

Design/methodology/approach

Survey data were collected from a sample of Jordanian health workers and a structural equation modeling technique was utilized.

Findings

The findings show that coworker incivility predicts higher levels of psychological distress, and employee PsyCap moderates the link between incivility and psychological distress.

Originality/value

Although research concerning the link between incivility and unwanted work or personal outcomes has been established, studies examining the variables that can buffer these effects are largely lacking. This study fills this void in the literature. The implications for practice and theory are discussed.
Multimodal biometric system combining left and right palmprints
Authors: Taouche Chérif , Belhadef Hacene
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Palmprint recognition is a very interesting and promising area of research. Much work has already been done in this area, but much more needs to be done to make the systems more efficient. In this paper, a multimodal biometrics system based on fusion of left and right palmprints of a person is proposed to overcome limitations of unimodal systems.

Design/methodology/approach

Features are extracted using some proposed multi-block local descriptors in addition to MBLBP. Fusion of extracted features is done at feature level by a simple concatenation of feature vectors. Then, feature selection is performed on the resulting global feature vector using evolutionary algorithms such as genetic algorithms and backtracking search algorithm for a comparison purpose. The benefits of such step selecting the relevant features are known in the literature, such as increasing the recognition accuracy and reducing the feature set size, which results in runtime saving. In matching step, Chi-square similarity measure is used.

Findings

The resulting feature vector length representing a person is compact and the runtime is reduced.

Originality/value

Intensive experiments were done on the publicly available IITD database. Experimental results show a recognition accuracy of 99.17 which prove the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed multimodal biometrics system than other unimodal and multimodal biometrics systems.
Predicting miRNA-disease interaction based on recommend method
Authors: Chen Qingfeng , Zhao Zhe , Lan Wei , Zhang Ruchang , Liang Jiahai
Published: September 2019

Purpose

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been proved to be a significant type of non-coding RNAs related to various human diseases. This paper aims to identify the potential miRNA–disease interactions.

Design/methodology/approach

A computational framework, MDIRM is presented to predict miRNAs-disease interactions. Unlike traditional approaches, the miRNA function similarity is calculated by miRNA–disease interactions. The k-mean method is further used to cluster miRNA similarity network. For miRNAs in the same cluster, their similarities are enhanced, as the miRNAs from the same cluster may be reliable. Further, the potential miRNA–disease association is predicted by using recommend method.

Findings

To evaluate the performance of our model, the fivefold cross validation is implemented to compare with two state-of-the-art methods. The experimental results indicate that MDIRM achieves an AUC of 0.926, which outperforms other methods.

Originality/value

This paper proposes a novel computational method for miRNA–disease interaction prediction based on recommend method. Identifying the relationship between miRNAs and diseases not only helps us better understand the disease occurrence and mechanism through the perspective of miRNA but also promotes disease diagnosis and treatment.
Understanding brand equity in hotel firms. What is the role of brand loyalty and satisfaction?
Authors: Šerić Maja , Gil-Saura Irene
Published: September 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to focus on examining the relationships between hotel brand equity (BE), brand satisfaction (BS) and brand loyalty, considering both behavioral loyalty (BL) and attitudinal loyalty (AL). These relationships are tested through seven causal models, i.e. one proposed model (PM) and six alternative models (AMs).

Design/methodology/approach

The fieldwork was conducted among 360 hotel guests in Spain in 2016.

Findings

The findings reveal that the PM, which considers BL, AL and BS as direct antecedents of BE, performed better than the alternative ones. AL is confirmed as the most significant driving factor of hotel BE, followed by brand image and perceived quality.

Research limitations/implications

More rigorous measurement of brand image could be used as some of its indicators did not result significantly.

Practical implications

AL needs to be highly encouraged, as concerning customers’ subjective disposition and appraisal of a brand helps them maintain preference for the brand over alternatives. In addition, a positive brand image and superior perceived quality should be considered by hotel marketers as a basis for BE building.

Originality/value

The models proposed in this study can be used to examine how hotel BE results from its potential antecedents and outcomes. The significant insight lies in identifying key drivers of BE and in considering the causal relationships between BE, satisfaction and loyalty in hotel firms.
The role of export promotion programs in the internationalisation of female-owned enterprises
Authors: Rosenbaum Gitte Ohrt
Published: September 2019

Purpose

While the role of government-funded export promotion programs (EPPs) on the international activities of small ventures has been previously documented, they do not appear to have been hitherto studied in a gendered context. This is unfortunate given the evidence suggesting growing numbers of female entrepreneurs with strong international orientation. Thus, this study aims to provide a better understanding of the experiences and practices of women entrepreneurs with regard to EPPs.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is based on personal interviews with eight female-owned international entrepreneurial ventures in the fashion design industry in Denmark. A qualitative research design was used to explore the experiences of the women entrepreneurs regarding different types of EPPs and their various providers, and the data were analysed and interpreted using the NVivo software program.

Findings

The results show that while the level of awareness of EPPs was generally high, the programs were overwhelmingly perceived to be overly expensive, excessively time-consuming, insufficiently specific and largely irrelevant. When the women business owners had availed themselves of their services, the usefulness of the EPPs was deemed to be largely imperceptible. Plausible explanations for these results may be found in the gendered entrepreneurial literature. The study’s findings provide important gendered insights to government support agencies charged with promoting the internationalisation of female-owned small businesses.

Originality/value

This study presents novel gendered findings of the experiences of female entrepreneurs regarding the role played by EPPs in the growth of their firms on international markets. It contributes to the literature on the growing phenomenon of female international entrepreneurs.
In pursuit of supply chain fit
Authors: Sabri Yasmine
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop exploratory propositions and a conceptual framework on the interaction between organisational structure (decision-making centralisation and internal coordination) and the relationship between supply chain fit and firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a case study, two corporate groups with distinctive organisational structures were examined; both are undergoing a critical moment of changes to their top management and are reshaping their corporate and supply chain strategies. Data on decision-making centralisation, internal coordination mechanisms, supply, demand and innovation uncertainties, and supply chain strategies were collected from key respondents.

Findings

The analysis conducted suggests the need to consider the joint interaction between organisational structure and supply chain fit in offsetting the implications of a potential misfit on firm performance. Furthermore, the context sensitivity of a supply chain is often overlooked, hence simply modifying supply chain strategy does not necessarily lead to a variation in firm performance.

Practical implications

This research is of particular importance to most organisations in the testing times of uncertainty in the global landscape. It guides supply chain practitioners to better understand which elements of the organisational structure interact with the uncertainty of supply, demand and innovation.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first to investigate the interaction between elements of organisational structure and supply chain fit and identify decision-making centralisation and coordination as the internal uncertainty factors that are most relevant to supply chain fit research. A conceptual framework has been built for future testing, in which the organisational structure moderates the relationship between supply chain fit and firm performance.
Depreciation of human capital: a sectoral analysis in OECD countries
Authors: Lentini Valeria , Gimenez Gregorio
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate which sectors are more vulnerable to human capital depreciation, with an emphasis on potential differences in skills and in ICT intensities.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors estimate an extended Mincerian earnings equation based on Neuman and Weiss’s (1995) model using the EU-KLEMS international database for 15 sectors for the period from 1980 to 2005. The authors also test structural ruptures in earnings and human capital depreciation in the labor market per decade controlling by technological intensity.

Findings

Human capital depreciation ranges from 1 to 6 percent. It is mainly significant in skill-intensive sectors regardless of the sector’s technological intensity. The analysis of structural breaks shows that human capital value indeed changed from decade to decade. It even appreciated in low skill-intensive sectors in the 1980s and in the high skill-intensive during the 1990s. Appreciation though, was mainly skill-biased.

Research limitations/implications

Information about on-the-job-training and non-cognitive skills that can also affect human capital depreciation are not included due to lack of data.

Practical implications

To prevent human capital from depreciating in particular sectors and periods educational systems should provide the tools for ongoing lifelong learning at all skills levels. Education is subject to dynamic effects that should be addressed to increase the potential benefits of technological change.

Originality/value

First, instead of using cross-section analysis which is considered to be a pitfall in studying the depreciation of knowledge, the authors observe its dynamic on a longitudinal basis. Second, the international macro-sectoral approach goes beyond limited micro-sectoral analysis in certain countries.
Economic burden of gastric cancer in the first six months after diagnosis
Authors: Jalilian Habib , Doshmangir Leila , Ajami Soheila , Mir Habibeh , Siraneh Yibeltal , Hasanpoor Edris
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Gastric cancer is the fourth most common cancer and the leading cause of death after lung cancer in the world. Considering the economic burden of cancers and their impact on household welfare, this study aims to estimate the cost of gastric cancer in Tabriz (Northwest city of Iran) in 2017.

Design/methodology/approach

This was an incidence-based cost of illness study which was conducted from the perspective of society with a bottom-up costing approach. The inclusion criteria for the study were all patients (n = 118) with gastric cancer at the period of the first six months after diagnosis that 102 patients participated. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 22.

Findings

The mean medical direct cost was US$3288.02, 18.19 per cent paid by the patient and 81.81 per cent paid by insurance organizations and governmental subsidies. The estimated out of pocket rate was 18.19 per cent. The mean non-medical direct cost estimated at US$377.54. The mean total direct cost was US$3665.56, 26.61 per cent paid by the patient. The mean indirect cost estimated at US$505.41 and the mean total cost was US$4170.97, 35.5 per cent which imposed on the patient. The mean total cost of gastric cancer within the first six months after diagnosis was equivalent to 0.81 GDP per capita.

Originality/value

Based on the findings, gastric cancer is a highly costly disease that despite insurance coverage imposes a high economic burden on the patients and their families.
Impact of information and communication technology on marketing of rice
Authors: Majumdar Kakali , Singh Rajeev Kumar
Published: September 2019

Purpose

The lack of proper dissemination of market information is observed as the main reason of poor marketing of the agricultural produce in India. Application of information and communication technology (ICT) can bridge this information gap by means of dissemination of required marketing information specifically targeted at the farmers. The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of ICT on marketing of rice in Uttar Pradesh, one of the biggest northern states of India.

Design/methodology/approach

As rice is the dominant crop of Uttar Pradesh, the impact of ICT on net price received (NPf) by rice producers of the state is studied. An attempt is also made to identify the factors that influence the use of ICT. Primary data are collected through a multistage sampling technique. Single, multiple dummy and binary logistic regression models are used in the present work.

Findings

A significant difference is observed in theNPfof the farmers using ICT than that of non-users. Education and land holding type also have a positive and significant impact on ICT use.

Originality/value

In the existing literature, the study related to the impact of ICT on agricultural marketing is almost absent for India in general, and Uttar Pradesh in particular. ICT has created impact in almost all directions of life. It is expected that the implementation of ICT will create a notable impact on the income level of the farmers. The present study will give a direction in this regard. The study is based on primary data and original work of the authors.
Do pro-social students care more for the environment?
Authors: Bhattacharya Haimanti
Published: September 2019

Purpose

This study aims to use pro-social and pro-environment attitudes as indicators of social and environmental sustainability to empirically examine the relationship between the two pillars of sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

Self-reported survey responses of undergraduate students of the University of Utah are used for conducting a two-stage quantile regression analysis wherein social support serves as an instrument for identifying pro-social attitude for estimating the relationship between pro-social and pro-environment attitudes.

Findings

The estimates show that students who receive more social support tend to be more pro-social, and more pro-social students are more pro-environment.

Research limitations/implications

University students may not necessarily be representative of the broader human society. Studies need to examine this question for different segments of the society.

Originality/value

These results reiterate that universities can enhance sustainability education by adopting a more holistic approach wherein social and environmental sustainability are co-integrated. Additionally, by strengthening their role as a vital source of social support for students, universities can further enhance the synergistic relationship between pro-social and pro-environment attitudes of university students.
A self-tuning trajectory tracking controller for wheeled mobile robots
Authors: Panahandeh Pouya , Alipour Khalil , Tarvirdizadeh Bahram , Hadi Alireza
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Trajectory tracking is a common problem in the field of mobile robots which has attracted a lot of attention in the past two decades. Therefore, besides the search for new controllers to achieve a better performance, improvement and optimization of existing control rules are necessary. Trajectory tracking control laws usually contain constant gains which affect greatly the robot’s performance.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, a method based on neural networks is introduced to automatically upgrade the gains of a well-known trajectory tracking controller of wheeled mobile robots. The suggested method speeds up the convergence rate of the main controller.

Findings

Simulations and experiments are performed to assess the ability of the suggested scheme. The obtained results show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Originality/value

In this paper, a method based on neural networks is introduced to automatically upgrade the gains of a well-known trajectory tracking controller of wheeled mobile robots. The suggested method speeds up the convergence rate of the main controller.
Seven mistakes to avoid in launching and scaling digital platforms
Authors: Mancha Rubén , Gordon Steven , Stoddard Donna
Published: September 2019

Purpose

Many startups and incumbents seek to benefit from a platform business model, but the literature on digital platforms has primarily focused on the success of a few blockbuster companies such as Facebook, Uber and Airbnb, offering little insights into how to launch and scale platform business in the current competitive business environment. This paper aims to provide managerial insights to help platform leaders successfully launch and scale their businesses.

Design/methodology/approach

The study relies on 16 emergent, successful and failed digital platform cases.

Findings

The paper organizes platform strategy in a coherent framework and identifies seven mistakes frequently made when managing digital platforms.

Originality/value

Drawing from the authors' experience teaching platform entrepreneurs, advising digital platform startups, and studying and consulting for incumbent organizations seeking to launch or grow platform ventures, the authors extend research on the difficulties of executing a digital platform strategy.