bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Patterns of photoprotective behavior, cumulative sun-exposure and skin cancer risk among solid organ transplant recipients: a dermatology transplant clinic experience
Authors: Lonsdorf Anke S. , Enk Alexander H. , Hartmann Julia
Published: June 2022

Background

The risk for keratinocyte cancer is dramatically increased in solid organ transplant recipients (OTR) with a first post-transplant keratinocyte cancer conferring a high risk for subsequent keratinocyte cancer arising with accelerated dynamics. Despite cumulative ultraviolet radiation (UVR) being the primary responsible environmental carcinogen reduced compliance with photoprotective measures among OTR has been reported. Risk assessment tools could help guide clinical decision-making and targeted prevention strategies for patients at particularly high risk for post-transplant keratinocyte cancer.

Objectives

To evaluate cumulative sun exposure by means of an assigned total sun burden (TSB) score, sunscreen use and associated risk factors for keratinocyte cancer in the post-transplantation phase of OTR.

Methods

A retrospective single-center cohort study analyzing medical records and standardized questionnaires of 290 OTR cared for at a German dermatology transplant clinic.

Results

Significantly lower TSB scores were noted in OTR not developing a first keratinocyte cancer compared to OTR developing keratinocyte cancer during their follow-up period (P = 0.005). Regression analysis assigned a significantly higher risk for the development of first keratinocyte cancer to OTR with TSB scores >10. In total 70.7% of OTR with a history of ≥1 keratinocyte cancer reported intermittent sunscreen use, while daily sunscreen use was overall associated with female gender (21.3%) and age >30 years (17.6%).

Conclusions

The risk of OTR for developing keratinocyte cancer is reflected by their UV-exposure patterns, which may be assessed by the TSB-score, a scored risk assessment tool. Complementing clinical data, the TSB score may help clinicians to identify OTR at particularly high risk for keratinocyte cancer and to endorse intensified prevention strategies and dermato-oncologic care.
Evolution of human papilloma virus prevalence in a highly vaccinated region in Belgium: a retrospective cohort study in Flemish women (2010–2019)
Authors: Huyghe Evelyne , Abrams Steven , Bogers John-Paul , Verhoeven Veronique , Benoy Ina
Published: June 2022

Objective

In order to lower the incidence of cervical cancer, vaccines against high-risk types of the human papilloma virus (hrHPV) were approved and brought on the market in 2007, with a partial reimbursement for Belgian citizens younger than 18 years old. Since 2010, a school-based vaccination program ensures a high vaccination coverage in young women. In this study, the impact of the Belgian vaccination program on the prevalence of HPV 16/18 is studied, together with the evolution of the prevalence of other hrHPV types and precancerous lesions.

Methods

Results of HPV typing and cytology in papanicolaou-smears from women aged 20–23 years taken between 2010 and 2019 were used. An older, nonvaccinated group of women of 40–45 years old served as a control group.

Results

A significant decrease in prevalence of HPV types 16 and 18 was found in the 20–23-years-old women, whereas no decrease was found in the age group 40–45. Alongside this decrease, a significant decrease in prevalence of subtypes 6, 11 and 31 was observed, whereas type 31 is not included in the administered vaccines. Remarkably, there was no decrease in prevalence of cytological abnormalities in the study group during this study. There was even an increase in prevalence of high-risk types 53, 58 and 67.

Conclusion

These findings emphasise the need to maintain the screening programs, even in areas with high vaccination coverage.
Review of Corneal Graft Registries
Authors: Bergeron Emilie , Kyrillos Ralph , Laughrea Patricia-Ann
Published: June 2022

Purpose:

Corneal graft registries are organized systems that collect and analyze outcome data (such as long-term graft survival and visual outcomes) after keratoplasty procedures. The aim of this review was to identify existing corneal graft registries and to describe their characteristics.

Methods:

A search of the PubMed database was performed on June 1, 2021, for articles pertaining to corneal graft registries.

Results:

The PubMed literature search yielded 958 publications, of which 116 met all the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Among these articles, 15 corneal graft registries were identified, including 6 regional registries, 8 national registries, and 1 multinational registry. This article provides an overview of their characteristics and discusses the main advantages and pitfalls of clinical registries.

Conclusions:

Clinical registry data are increasingly recognized as a valuable tool to monitor corneal transplant outcomes to improve health care services and optimize resource management.
“What Matters Most” to Older Adults With Cancer
Authors: Vonnes Cassandra , Parrish Lauren , El-Rady Rosalie , Patterson Dorothy , Mason Tina M.
Published: June 2022

Approximately 1 in 3 adults have some type of advance directive. Advance care planning (ACP) is associated with greater use of supportive care services and decreased patient and family stress. Despite this, organizations continue to have difficulty in implementing effective programs for increasing ACP. Increasing knowledge and comfort of the health care team with end-of-life discussions and ACP is essential. Educational efforts should focus on decreasing known barriers to ACP discussions such as discomfort, unclear role, lack of experience, and limited education. Role playing and case discussions taught by geriatric resources nurses can help increase staff knowledge and comfort regarding ACP. Role playing allows staff to think about their own mortality and what will happen in various situations if ACP is not complete. Team members find that once they have completed their own ACP, they are more comfortable discussing ACP with patients and caregivers. Nurses should collaborate with social workers and chaplains for ACP education and discussing what matters most to them. Patients are encouraged to make sure that they provide advance directives to their health care providers. This article shares an interprofessional team approach to improving processes for ACP as a component of “what matters most” to older adults with cancer.
Where Are We on Proprioception Assessment Tests Among Poststroke Individuals? A Systematic Review of Psychometric Properties
Authors: Jamal Karim , Penisson Adrien , Rostagno Stephan , Duclos Cyril
Published: June 2022

Background and Purpose:

Proprioception is often impaired in poststroke individuals. This is a significant issue since altered proprioception is associated with poorer physical function outcomes poststroke. However, there is limited consensus on the best tools for assessing proprioception and support for their widespread use by clinicians. The objective is to appraise the psychometric properties of each test used to assess proprioception in poststroke individuals.

Methods:

A systematic search was performed according to PRISMA guidelines using the databases MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, PEDro, DiTa, and BioMedicalCentral for articles published up to January 2021.

Results:

Sixteen studies of low methodological quality were included. Sixteen different proprioception assessment tests were extracted. The proprioception portion of the Fugl-Meyer Assessment Scale was found to be the most valid and reliable tool for screening patients in clinical settings. Although no real gold standard exists, the technological devices demonstrated better responsiveness and measurement accuracy than clinical tests. Technological devices might be more appropriate for assessing proprioception recovery or better suited for research purposes.

Discussion and Conclusions:

This review revealed low-quality articles and a paucity of tests with good psychometric properties available to clinicians to properly screen and assess all subcomponents of proprioception. In perspective, technological devices, such as robotic orthoses or muscle vibration, may provide the best potential for assessing the different subcomponents of proprioception. Further studies should be conducted to develop and investigate such approaches.

Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, available at:
http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A388
Assessment of Walking Speed and Distance Post-Stroke Increases After Providing a Theory-Based Toolkit
Authors: Salbach Nancy M. , MacKay-Lyons Marilyn , Howe Jo-Anne , McDonald Alison , Solomon Patricia , Bayley Mark T. , McEwen Sara , Nelson Michelle , Bulmer Beverly , Lovasi Gina S.
Published: June 2022

Background and Purpose:

While underutilized, poststroke administration of the 10-m walk test (10mWT) and 6-minute walk test (6MWT) can improve care and is considered best practice. We aimed to evaluate provision of a toolkit designed to increase use of these tests by physical therapists (PTs).

Methods:

In a before-and-after study, 54 PTs and professional leaders in 9 hospitals were provided a toolkit and access to a clinical expert over a 5-month period. The toolkit comprised a guide, smartphone app, and video, and described how to set up walkways, implement learning sessions, administer walk tests, and interpret and apply test results clinically. The proportion of hospital visits for which each walk test score was documented at least once (based on abstracted health records of ambulatory patients) were compared over 8-month periods pre- and post-intervention using generalized mixed models.

Results:

Data from 347 and 375 pre- and postintervention hospital visits, respectively, were analyzed. Compared with preintervention, the odds of implementing the 10mWT were 12 times greater (odds ratio [OR] = 12.4, 95% confidence interval [CI] 5.8, 26.3), and of implementing the 6MWT were approximately 4 times greater (OR = 3.9, 95% CI 2.3, 6.7), post-intervention, after adjusting for hospital setting, ambulation ability, presence of aphasia and cognitive impairment, and provider-level clustering. Unadjusted change in the percentage of visits for which the 10mWT/6MWT was documented at least once was smallest in acute care settings (2.0/3.8%), and largest in inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation settings (28.0/19.9% and 29.4/23.4%, respectively).

Discussion and Conclusions:

Providing a comprehensive toolkit to hospitals with professional leaders likely contributed to increasing 10mWT and 6MWT administration during inpatient and outpatient stroke rehabilitation.

Video Abstract available for more insights from the authors (see the Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, available at: http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A390).
Effect of Motor Intervention for Infants and Toddlers With Cerebral Palsy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Authors: Baker Aubrey , Niles Natalie , Kysh Lynn , Sargent Barbara
Published: June 2022

Purpose:

To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis on the effect of motor intervention on motor function of infants and toddlers with cerebral palsy (CP).

Methods:

Four databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of motor interventions for children with or at high risk of CP younger than 36 months. Studies were excluded if less than 50% of children developed CP.

Results:

Eleven RCTs included 363 children; 85% diagnosed with CP. Very low-quality evidence supports that: (1) task-specific motor training was more effective than standard care for improving motor function (small effect), (2) constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) may be more effective than bimanual play or massage for improving function of the more affected hand (moderate effect), and high-intensity treadmill training is no more effective than low-intensity for improving walking.

Conclusions:

Very low-quality evidence supports that task-specific motor training and CIMT may improve motor function of infants and toddlers with CP.

The Supplemental Digital Content Video Abstract is available at: http://links.lww.com/PPT/A382.
The preliminary results of physiotherapy scoliosis-specific exercises on spine joint position sense in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Akyurek Elcin , Zengin Alpozgen Ayse , Akgul Turgut
Published: June 2022

Background:

It has been observed that there are difficulties in maintaining spinal harmony in the absence of proprioceptive information, which has an important role in achieving postural control in scoliosis. One of the tests used to evaluate proprioceptive mechanisms is joint position reproduction.

Objective(s):

The main aim of our study was to investigate the effect of physiotherapy scoliosis-specific exercise (PSSE) on spine joint reposition (JR) sense. The second aim was to determine the effects of PSSE on the angle of trunk rotation (ATR), posture, and deformity perception in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

Methods:

Twenty-nine patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (mean age 13.79 ± 1.82 years) were randomly allocated to two groups. “Schroth” exercises were applied to the PSSE group for 8 weeks (16 sessions). The control group was placed on the waiting list. Patients' JR error (dual inclinometer), ATR (scoliometer), posture parameters (PostureScreen Mobile, Posterior Trunk Asymmetry Index, and Anterior Trunk Asymmetry Index), and deformity perception (Walter Reed Visual Assessment Scale [WRVAS]) were assessed at the first session and at the end of 8 weeks.

Results:

The initial demographic characteristics, Cobb (thoracal: 19.41 ± 7.03 degrees; lumbar: 20.76 ± 7.24 degrees) and ATR (thoracal: 5.86 ± 3.98 degrees; lumbar: 5.66 ± 3.33 degrees) and clinical test parameters of the groups (JR, posture parameters, and WRVAS) were similar (P > .05). According to the findings, thoracal and lumbar JR error values (P < .05), ATR (P ≤ .001), posture parameters (P ≤ .001), and WRVAS (P = .048) were significantly improved in the PSSE group. Besides, when the groups were compared, a significant difference was found in favor of PSSE except for the deformity perception (P < .05).

Conclusions:

Schroth exercises have a positive contribution for improving JR sense of the spine, vertebral rotation, and posture.
Long-term ovarian cancer survivors: spatial transcriptomics depict ligand-receptor crosstalk heterogeneity at the tumor-stroma interface
Authors: Ferri-Borgogno Sammy , Zhu Ying , Sheng Jianting , Burks Jared K. , Gomez Javier , Wong Kwong Kwok , Wong Stephen T.C. , Mok Samuel C.
Published: June 2022

Advanced high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) is an aggressive disease that accounts for 70% of all ovarian cancer deaths. Nevertheless, 15% of patients diagnosed with advanced HGSC survive more than 10 years. The identification of predictive markers associated with tumors developed from these long-term survivors (LTS) is crucial to identifying therapeutic targets for the disease, and thus improving patient survival rates. Reports to date have not fully established the stromal heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment (TME) in ovarian cancer and its association with clinical outcomes. We used a spatial transcriptomics platform to generate spatially resolved transcript profiles in treatment naïve advanced HGSC from LTS and short-term survivors (STS), and determined whether cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) heterogeneity is associated with survival in patients with advanced HGSC. We integrated spatial transcriptomics with single-cell RNA sequencing data to distinguish tumor and stroma regions, and developed a method to investigate spatially resolved ligand-receptor interactions between various tumor and CAF subtypes in the TME. In addition, we used multiplex immunohistochemistry techniques to validate our findings. We found that a specific subtype of CAFs and its spatial location relative to a particular ovarian cancer cell subtype in the TME correlate with long-term survival in advanced HGSC patients. We also demonstrated that significant APOE-LRP5 crosstalk occurred at the stroma-tumor interface in tumor tissues from STS compared to LTS, suggesting that such crosstalk plays a crucial role in modulating the malignant phenotype of HGSC, and could serve as a predictive biomarker of patient survival.
Clinical symptoms, cognitive performance and cortical activity following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI)
Authors: Coyle Hannah L. , Bailey Neil W. , Ponsford Jennie , Hoy Kate E.
Published: June 2022

Objective

To investigate clinical symptoms, cognitive performance and cortical activity following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

Methods

Thirty individuals in the sub-acute phase post mTBI and 28 healthy controls with no history of head injury were compared on clinical, cognitive and cortical activity measures. Measures of cortical activity included; resting state EEG, task related EEG and combined transcranial magnetic stimulation with electroencephalography (TMS-EEG). Primary analyses investigated clinical, cognitive and cortical activity differences between groups. Exploratory analyses investigated the relationships between these measures.

Results

At 4 weeks’ post injury, mTBI participants exhibited significantly greater post concussive and clinical symptoms compared to controls; as well as reduced cognitive performance on verbal learning and working memory measures. mTBI participants demonstrated alterations in cortical activity while at rest and in response to stimulation with TMS.

Conclusions

The mTBI group demonstrated neurophysiological markers of altered excitatory and inhibitory processes which impact neural function. Further research is needed to explore the relationship between these pathophysiologies and clinical/cognitive symptoms in mTBI.
Implications of Spike Protein Interactions with Zn-bound form of ACE2: A Computational Structural Study
Authors: Fatouros Peter R. , Roy Urmi , Sur Shantanu
Published: June 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a major interest in designing inhibitors to prevent SARS-CoV-2 binding on host cells to protect against infection. One promising approach to such research utilizes molecular dynamics (MD) to identify potential inhibitors that can prevent the interaction between spike (S) protein on the virus and angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor on the host cells. In these studies, many groups have chosen to exclude a zinc (Zn) ion bound to the ACE2 molecule which is critical for enzymatic activity. While the relatively distant location of Zn ion from the S protein binding site (S1 domain), combined with the difficulties in modeling this ion have motivated the decision of exclusion, Zn can potentially contribute to the structural stability of the entire protein, and thus, may have implications on spike protein interaction. In this study, we explored the effects of excluding Zn on the structural stability and binding free energy of the ACE2-S1 protein complex. We generated two versions of an experimentally-derived structure of the ACE2-S1 protein complex: one with Zn and one without. Examining the differences between these two complexes during MD simulation, we found that the Zn-bound complex exhibited greater instability at nearly all residues except for the interacting residues, which were more stable in the Zn-bound complex. Additionally, the Zn-bound complex had a stronger binding free energy at all internal dielectric constants greater than one. Since binding free energy is often used to score inhibitors' performances, excluding Zn could potentially have implications on inhibitor selection and performance, both in the ACE2-S1 protein system and other protein complexes that include the Zn ion.
Technologically-Assisted Communication Attenuates Inter-Brain Synchrony
Authors: Schwartz Linoy , Levy Jonathan , Endevelt-Shapira Yaara , Djalovski Amir , Hayut Olga , Dumas Guillaume , Feldman Ruth
Published: June 2022

The transition to technologically-assisted communication has permeated all facets of human social life; yet, its impact on the social brain is still unknown and the effects may be most notable during key developmental transitions. Applying a two-brain perspective, the current pre-registered study measured mother-child brain-to-brain synchrony using hyperscanning EEG at the transition to adolescence during live face-to-face interaction versus technologically-assisted remote communication. The live interaction elicited 9 significant cross-brain links between densely inter-connected frontal and temporal areas in the beta range [14-30 Hz]. Mother’s right frontal region connected with child’s right and left frontal, temporal, and central regions, suggesting its regulatory role in organizing the two-brain dynamics. In contrast, the remote interaction elicited only 1 significant cross-brain-cross-hemisphere link, attenuating the robust right-to-right-brain connectivity during live social moments that communicates socio-affective signals. Furthermore, while the level of social behavior was comparable between the two interactions, brain-behavior links emerged only during the live exchange, suggesting that remote interactions yield a somewhat thinner biobehavioral experience. Mother-child right temporal-temporal synchrony linked with moments of shared gaze and the degree of child engagement and empathic behavior was associated with right frontal-frontal synchrony. Our findings indicate that human co-presence is underpinned by specific neurobiological processes, suggest potential reasons for "zoom fatigue", and open a much-needed discussion on the cost of social technology for brain maturation, particularly among youth.

Highlights

Technologically-assisted communication is prevalent; yet, its impact on the social brain is unknown

We measured mother-child brain-to-brain synchrony during live and technologically-assisted remote interaction

The live interaction elicited 9 cross-brain links between densely inter-connected frontal and temporal areas in the beta range

The remote interaction yielded only 1 significant cross-brain cross-hemisphere link

Brain-behavior linked emerged only during the live interaction

Further research should examine the cost of social technology to brain maturation, particularly among youth.
Interpretable deep learning of myelin histopathology in age-related cognitive impairment
Authors: McKenzie Andrew T. , Marx Gabriel , Koenigsberg Daniel , Sawyer Mary , Iida Megan A. , Walker Jamie M. , Richardson Timothy E. , Campanella Gabriele , Attems Johannes , McKee Ann C. , Stein Thor D. , Fuchs Thomas J. , White Charles L. ,   The PART working group, Farrell Kurt , Crary John F.
Published: June 2022

Age-related cognitive impairment is multifactorial, with numerous underlying and frequently co-morbid pathological correlates. Amyloid beta (Aβ) plays a major role in Alzheimer’s type age-related cognitive impairment, in addition to other etiopathologies such as Aβ-independent hyperphosphorylated tau, cerebrovascular disease, and myelin damage, which also warrant further investigation. Classical methods, even in the setting of the gold standard of postmortem brain assessment, involve semi-quantitative ordinal staging systems that often correlate poorly with clinical outcomes, due to imperfect cognitive measurements and preconceived notions regarding the neuropathologic features that should be chosen for study. Improved approaches are needed to identify histopathological changes correlated with cognition in an unbiased way. We used a weakly supervised multiple instance learning algorithm on whole slide images of human brain autopsy tissue sections from a group of elderly donors to predict the presence or absence of cognitive impairment (n = 367 with cognitive impairment, n = 349 without). Attention analysis allowed us to pinpoint the underlying subregional architecture and cellular features that the models used for the prediction in both brain regions studied, the medial temporal lobe and frontal cortex. Despite noisy labels of cognition, our trained models were able to predict the presence of cognitive impairment with a modest accuracy that was significantly greater than chance. Attention-based interpretation studies of the features most associated with cognitive impairment in the top performing models suggest that they identified myelin pallor in the white matter. Our results demonstrate a scalable platform with interpretable deep learning to identify unexpected aspects of pathology in cognitive impairment that can be translated to the study of other neurobiological disorders.
Xenopus Tadpole Craniocardiac Imaging Using Optical Coherence Tomography
Authors: Deniz Engin , Mis Emily K. , Lane Maura , Khokha Mustafa K.
Published: June 2022

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging can be used to visualize craniocardiac structures in the Xenopus model system. OCT is analogous to ultrasound, utilizing light instead of sound to create a gray-scale image from the echo time delay of infrared light reflected from the specimen. OCT is a high-speed, cross-sectional, label-free imaging modality, which can outline dynamic in vivo morphology at resolutions approaching histological detail. OCT imaging can acquire 2D and 3D data in real time to assess cardiac and facial structures. Additionally, during cardiac imaging, Doppler imaging can be used to assess the blood flow pattern in relation to the intracardiac structures. Importantly, OCT can reproducibly and efficiently provide comprehensive, nondestructive in vivo cardiac and facial phenotyping. Tadpoles do not require preprocessing and thus can be further raised or analyzed after brief immobilization during imaging. The rapid development of the Xenopus model combined with a rapid OCT imaging protocol allows the identification of specific gene/teratogen phenotype relationships in a short period of time. Loss- or gain-of-function experiments can be evaluated in 4–5 d, and OCT imaging only requires ∼5 min per tadpole. Thus, we find this pairing an efficient workflow for screening numerous candidate genes derived from human genomic studies to in-depth mechanistic studies.
pyXPCSviewer: an open-source interactive tool for X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy visualization and analysis
Authors: Chu Miaoqi , Li Jeffrey , Zhang Qingteng , Jiang Zhang , Dufresne Eric M. , Sandy Alec , Narayanan Suresh , Schwarz Nicholas
Published: June 2022

pyXPCSviewer, a Python-based graphical user interface that is deployed at beamline 8-ID-I of the Advanced Photon Source for interactive visualization of XPCS results, is introduced. pyXPCSviewer parses rich X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) results into independent PyQt widgets that are both interactive and easy to maintain. pyXPCSviewer is open-source and is open to customization by the XPCS community for ingestion of diversified data structures and inclusion of novel XPCS techniques, both of which are growing demands particularly with the dawn of near-diffraction-limited synchrotron sources and their dedicated XPCS beamlines.
Crystal structure and Hirshfeld surface analysis of 2-chloro-N-(4-methoxyphenyl)acetamide
Authors: Missioui Mohcine , Guerrab Walid , Nchioua Intissar , El Moutaouakil Ala Allah Abderrazzak , Kalonji Mubengayi Camille , Alsubari Abdulsalam , Mague Joel T. , Ramli Youssef
Published: June 2022

In the title molecule, C9H10ClNO2, the methoxy group lies very close to the plane of the phenyl ring while the acetamido group is twisted out of this plane by 28.87 (5)°. In the crystal, a three-dimensional structure is generated by N—H...O, C—H...O and C—H...Cl hydrogen bonds plus C—H...π(ring) interactions. A Hirshfeld surface analysis of the intermolecular interactions was performed and indicated that C...H/H...C interactions make the largest contribution to the surface area (33.4%).
2,6-Dibromo-4-methylaniline
Authors: Brihi Ouarda , Medjani Meriem , Bougueria Hassiba , Djedouani Amel , Francois Michelle , Fleutot Solenne , Boudjada Ali
Published: June 2022

In the title compound, C7H7Br2N, the C—C—C bond angles of the benzene ring are notably distorted and two short intamolecular N—H...Br contacts occur. In the crystal, the molecules are linked by N—H...N hydrogen bonds to generate C(2) chains propagating in the [100] direction.
Challenges of digital advertising from the study of the influencers' phenomenon in social networks
Authors: Borau-Boira Elena , Pérez-Escoda Ana , Ruiz-Poveda Vera Cristina
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to study the challenges of digital advertising from the characterization of the influencer phenomenon based on the perceptions of two different and non-consecutive generations, explored from the perspective of parasocial relationships

Design/methodology/approach

Using a quantitative methodology design and a descriptive approach, a study is presented on a sample of 449 individuals belonging to two generational niches, generation Z (N = 227) and generation X (N = 222). For the study, characterization parameters have been defined based on existing literature, defining five-dimension conceptualization: strength, fairness, engagement, trustworthiness and social role.

Findings

The results point to a different perception of the phenomenon in some aspects that allow an intergenerational portrait of the figure of the influencer to be made. The findings of the study are innovative because they were not previously available and transcend academia to serve the companies that proliferate in the representation and management of influencers, as the characterization of this figure is important for the identification of key aspects in the adjustment of products and messages offered to a certain public of a specific population niche, both for advertising companies and for media and institutions.

Originality/value

The study reveals interesting challenges for digital advertising from the audience's perceptions about influencers, highlighting the relevance of influencers which clearly contributes to a better understanding of more efficient strategies on digital advertising.
How emotional regulation and conscientiousness break the reciprocal circle between customer mistreatment and surface acting: an experience sampling study
Authors: Lan Junbang , Gong Yuanyuan , Liu Tao , Wong Man-Nok , Yuan Bocong
Published: June 2022

Purpose

Drawing on the conservation of resource theory and emotional contagion perspective, this study aims to propose that customer mistreatment has an indirect effect on subsequent customer mistreatment by triggering high levels of surface acting. In other words, there is a vicious circle formed as a result of customer mistreatment and surface acting. This paper further argues that emotional regulation and conscientiousness are effective in breaking this vicious circle.

Design/methodology/approach

An experience sampling study was conducted on 97 frontline service employees in a hotel chain’s restaurants in China, with two daily surveys for ten consecutive days. Multilevel path analyses were used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The results indicate that employees experiencing customer mistreatment in the morning would adopt the surface acting strategy more frequently in the afternoon, which in turn induces more customer mistreatment in the afternoon. Further, this indirect effect can be mitigated by high (versus low) levels of emotional regulation and conscientiousness.

Originality/value

Recently, there has been growing recognition of the vital links between customer mistreatment and negative employee outcomes. However, these studies have failed to consider the carryover effect of customer mistreatment. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first pioneer study on whether and how customer mistreatment can affect subsequent instances of customer mistreatment, thereby offering a more comprehensive understanding of the consequences of customer mistreatment.
Use of social media for information seeking and sharing during floods in rural Sarawak
Authors: Yap Ching Seng , Keling William , Abdullah Shamsul Kamariah
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This study aims to examine the information acquired and shared by floods victims in Sarawak, Malaysia, and the individuals’ perception of social media information quality and awareness of social media emergency services.

Design/methodology/approach

The research data were gathered from 118 victims in two flood-ravaged villages with a researcher-administered questionnaire survey. Meanwhile, the research instrument was adopted from Reuter and Spielhofer (2017).

Findings

Resultantly, 93% of the respondents employed social media for information-seeking and sharing during floods. For example, Facebook was the most extensively employed digital platform. The most highly sought and exchanged information involved eyewitness pictures or videos, road or traffic conditions and weather conditions or warnings. Although social media information quality reflected faster obtainability, higher accessibility and enriched content, respondents’ viewpoints of social media information quality regarding accuracy and reliability proved negative. Notably, over half of the respondents were unaware of the two social media emergency services: Twitter Alerts and Facebook Safety Check.

Originality/value

This study denoted one of the rare empirical works that explored social media usage for information-seeking and sharing by the flood victims in Sarawak based on the boundary object perspective.
Linking environmental scanning and organizational learning with organizational resilience of Egyptian SMEs: the moderating role of environmental uncertainty
Authors: YahiaMarzouk Yasmine , Jin Jiafei
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This study aims to examine the impact of environmental scanning on organizational resilience through organizational learning based on organizational information processing theory (OIPT) in Egyptian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, this study aims to examine the moderating role of environmental uncertainty in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

The data for the mediation analysis was obtained using a cross-sectional design. Using a self-administered questionnaire, the authors collected data from a sample of 249 Egyptian SMEs. The authors tested the hypotheses using the smart partial least square structural equation modeling approach.

Findings

Organizational learning affects organizational resilience. Environmental scanning does not have a direct effect on organizational resilience. However, organizational learning fully mediates the relationship between environmental scanning and organizational resilience. Furthermore, environmental uncertainty does not moderate the indirect relationship between environmental scanning and resilience.

Research limitations/implications

The sample included only Egyptian manufacturing SMEs. The results in the service sector and in other countries may differ. This study was cross-sectional, which was limited in its ability to trace the long-term effects of environmental scanning and organizational learning on organizational resilience.

Practical implications

Egyptian SMEs’ managers should experience organizational learning as a pathway for environmental scanning to build organizational resilience.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to investigate the role of environmental scanning in building organizational resilience through organizational learning and the moderating role of environmental uncertainty in this relationship.
A binding tie: why do customers stick to omnichannel retailers?
Authors: Lin Sheng-Wei , Huang Eugenia Y. , Cheng Kai-Teng
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This study employed the commitment–trust theory in social psychology and relationship marketing to explore female customers' perception of channel integration quality in omnichannel retailing and its influence on their relationship commitment to and trust in the relationship with retailers, and thus on their stickiness. Channel integration quality consists of two dimensions: channel service configuration (channel choice breadth and channel service transparency) and integrated interactions (content consistency, process consistency and perceived fluency).

Design/methodology/approach

The study was carried out via a questionnaire survey, to which 868 valid responses were collected. The partial least squares technique was used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

Channel service transparency and perceived fluency influence relationship commitment; content consistency, process consistency and perceived fluency all have significant effects on trust. Interestingly, although less influential than integrated interactions, channel service configuration is the foundation of channel integration quality, testifying to its significant role.

Originality/value

This study provides strong evidence on how channel integration quality affects customer stickiness. Moreover, this study replicates the finding of significant relationships among relationship commitment, trust and stickiness in omnichannel retailing.
Agency costs and auditor choice: moderating role of board’s expertise and internal control
Authors: Behbahaninia Parisa Saadat
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This study aims to examine the effects of agency cost on auditor choice. This paper also deals with the moderating role of the board’s financial expertise (Bfe) and the status of the internal control (Intecon) system on the relationship between agency cost and auditor selection.

Design/methodology/approach

This study’s sample consists of 1,040 firm-year observations of Iranian nonfinancial companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from 2012 to 2019. The information required for this research is mainly extracted from Comprehensive Database of All Listed Companies (in Iran Stock Exchange). Data from 130 companies were obtained during the research period. This study used logistic regression to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The findings indicate that companies with higher agency costs choose the auditor from lower classes. As the proportion of financial expert members on the board increases, the intensity of this relationship will be reduced. Companies with higher agency costs choose the auditor from the lower classes, but the higher the ratio of financial expert board members, the more these companies will choose high-quality auditors. However, findings showed that the status of the Intecon system has no moderating effect on the relationship between agency costs and auditor selection.

Originality/value

The results of this study can expand the existing literature on the relationship between auditor selection and agency costs and the factors affecting this relationship, especially the Bfe and Intecon. This research has significant suggestions for regulators, stakeholders, shareholders and analysts in emerging economies that may encounter similar contextual implications.
Becoming an “owner” in a learner-centred context: a Sri Lankan experience at a postgraduate taught course in management and technology
Authors: Gunatilaka Hemamalie , Jayawickrama Withanage Dushan
Published: June 2022

Purpose

There is a need for a shift of the pedagogy to student-centeredness in the teaching–learning process of the higher education sector in countries such as Sri Lanka, where the education system is still identified with the dominant “teacher-centeredness” pedagogy. Within this backdrop, this study aims to understand whether a learner-centred teaching (LCT) can be practised effectively within a postgraduate taught course in Sri Lankan public sector university system.

Design/methodology/approach

Ontologically, this study is placed within the interpretivist paradigm and adopted qualitative methodology. Reflections and experiences of 2 facilitators and 63 participants were thematically analysed.

Findings

Four themes emerged from the data as key phases of LCT-based learning process, namely: “changing role of the facilitators,” “emerging a collaborative learning environment,” “creating a platform for contextualising the knowledge gained in class” and “becoming an owner of the learning.”

Originality/value

Within the learning process, participants became “owners” rather than “renters” because of facilitators maintaining low power distance and participants developing a sense of empowerment, leading to engaging in the learning process willingly. Further, this study shows how the classroom shifted from the state of learner-centred to learner-driven. These novel findings become the main theoretical contribution of this research to existing knowledge.
The permanency of temporality: how grassroots festivals in Indonesia create places in informal settlements
Authors: Akbar Poeti Nazura Gulfira , Jachnow Alexander
Published: June 2022

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the impact of place-making on the quality of place through community-organised art festivals, with two case studies in urban informal settlements or kampungs in Indonesia.

Design/methodology/approach

Findings presented here are based on data collected and 39 in-depth interviews conducted in 2017 in two kampungs, namely, Kampung Dago Pojok, Bandung and Kampung Bustaman, Semarang.

Findings

This paper argues that place-making can happen through temporary practices, such as festivals, and improve the quality of place in informal settlements. It indicates and analyses the kinds of activities that increase the aesthetic value of spaces and build a positive image of the kampungs. The study concludes with the finding that place-making through temporary interventions has the potential to permanently change and reshape public space. At the core of these activities is the collective and voluntary work known as kerja bakti that is done by the kampung communities and the civil society organizations involved.

Originality/value

The paper offers a fresh perspective in the context of understanding the implications of place-making in the Global South. Assessing the development of public space, the paper provides insights into the use of grassroots festivals as a tool to permanently reshape urban spaces and engage the local community throughout the process.
Effects of abnormally shaped fruits and vegetables on consumer’s willingness to buy: a meta-analytic study
Authors: Campos Ana Carolina , De Oliveira Santini Fernando , Perin Marcelo G. , Ladeira Wagner Junior
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this meta-analytic study is to investigate the possible influence of food shape abnormality on consumer’s willingness to buy fruits and vegetables. This research also investigates some possible moderators (methodological, cultural, socio-economic and contextual) that could influence the direct effects.

Design/methodology/approach

This study applied the meta-analysis approach to understand the effect of food shape abnormality on willingness to buy fruits and vegetables. In this research, 16 empirical articles were examined, with a total of 54 effect sizes.

Findings

The results showed consistent negative effects between food shape abnormality and consumers’ willingness to buy fruits and vegetables. This study also found significant effects related to culture (Hofstede’s cultural dimensions) and to socio-economic (Human Development Index) moderators. The findings demonstrated that cultures with higher power distance levels promoted stronger effects in the relationship between abnormally shaped food and willingness to buy. Additionally, related to social–economy aspects of a nation, the negative effects between abnormally shaped food and willingness to buy are stronger in countries with low human development rates.

Practical implications

Public policymakers can benefit from the main findings by implementing interventions strategies and education campaigns based on different cultural dimensions. In cultures characterized by high levels of aversion to uncertainty, social communication campaigns can build trust and provide the consumer more knowledge about abnormally shaped fruits and vegetables, whereas in cultures characterized by low levels of masculinity, related to higher levels of sustainability, local producers can benefit from the “local food” positioning to sell abnormally shaped fruits and vegetables.

Originality/value

This research advances studies about consumer behaviour in relation to food waste, highlighting factors beyond aesthetic issues, such as a nation’s culture and its economic context. These results open the way for new work in this area.
Real-time contact angle’s measurement of molten solder balls in laboratory conditions
Authors: Dzivy Daniel , Pietrikova Alena
Published: June 2022

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to show a possibility to measure a change of a contact angle during the melting in real-time and to reveal significant factors of a wettability. Influence of the flux with combination of plasma on copper surface was investigated in experiment as well.

Design/methodology/approach

Laboratory equipment consists of heating and optical part that was developed and tested for real-time contact angle’s measurements. Solder balls based on Sn96.5/Ag3/Cu0.5 and Sn63Pb37 spread out on a copper substrate during a melting process. The wettability of pure copper surface was compared with copper surface treated with flux or combination plasma–flux. The contact angle and spreading rate of a melted solder balls observed by the charged-coupled device camera were analyzed in real-time and measured using the JavaScript.

Findings

Laboratory equipment allows for analysis of contact angle and spreading rate in real-time during the melting process. The contact angle decreases more noticeable after applying the plasma-flux treatment in contrast to no flux or flux treatment only. Using the plasma treatment before application of the flux improves the wettability and the effectivity of the flux activity on the copper surface during the melting process.

Originality/value

The interpretation of the results of such a comprehensive measurement leads to a better understanding of the mutual relation between flux and combination plasma–flux of the wetting during the melting process. The simple, cheap, fast and accurate laboratory equipment, which consists of the heating and the optical part, allows for the wettability evaluation of the melting process in real-time.