bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The impact of 1080 bait removal by Lace Monitors (Varanus varius) on a Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) control programme
Authors: Woodford Luke Philip , Robley Alan , Maloney Paul , Reside Jim
Published: September 2012

The use of toxic bait over large areas is a cost‐effective and widely used technique for the management of wild canids in Australia. Lace Monitors are known to also take baits, and though unlikely to be lethal to these reptiles the effect on the efficacy of control operations is largely unknown. During a five year Red Fox control programme in eastern Victoria, Lace Monitors removed significantly higher numbers of toxic baits than canids during the warmer months, reducing the likelihood of foxes encountering bait and reducing the efficacy of the control programme. Suggestions are made to mitigate bait take by Lace Monitors.
Biology and monitoring of Dryocosmus kuriphilus on Castanea sativa in Southern Italy
Authors: Bernardo Umberto , Iodice Luigi , Sasso Raffaele , Tutore Valerio A. , Cascone Pasquale , Guerrieri Emilio
Published: September 2012

The cynipid gall wasp Dryocosmus kuriphilus Yasumatsu (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) is an invasive wasp in Europe and is one of the major pests of chestnuts worldwide. An investigation of this cynipid was started in Campania, Southern Italy, in 2008, with the aim of providing guidelines for its sustainable control.

The number of larvae/gall increased in the second year of colonization relative to the first one but thereafter decreased in the third year of colonization, whereas the volume of the galls after the initial increase in the second year of colonization became stable. Adult emergence generally peaked between the middle of June and July.

The only reliable method for assessing the presence of the pest at its earliest stage was through dissecting the buds because oviposition scars on the buds tended to disappear during the winter.

Yellow traps were shown to be an effective method for assessing the emergence of cynipid adults and could potentially be used to time chemical applications in those cases in which this control method is feasible.

No correlation was recorded between the relative durations of the final stages (pupae, pharate adults and emergence).

Possible control strategies for this invasive pest are discussed.
Bioclimatic analyses of distributions of a parasitoid Peristenus digoneutis and its host species Lygus spp. in Europe and North America
Authors: Haye Tim , Olfert Owen , Weiss Ross M. , Gariepy Tara D. , Broadbent Bruce , Kuhlmann Ulrich
Published: September 2012

Peristenus digoneutis Loan is a parasitoid of Lygus plant bugs, which was successfully introduced from Europe into North America in the 1980s for controlling native Lygus populations. Surveys confirmed that P. digoneutis populations have become established throughout eastern North America and that the spread of the parasitoid continues. For unknown reasons, previous releases of P. digoneutis in Western Canada were not successful.

A bioclimate (climex®; Hearne Scientific Software Pty Ltd, Australia) model for P. digoneutis in North America was developed, based on climate and ecological parameters, and then validated with actual distribution records. The current distribution of P. digoneutis in eastern North America was consistent with the predicted distribution. The model suggests that P. digoneutis will probably continue its spread westwards throughout the U.S.A. along the Great Lakes.

The southern distribution of P. digoneutis is expected to be limited by hot summer temperatures, whereas its northern range is limited by the number of Lygus host generations rather than cold stress.

Peristenus digoneutis has the potential to occur in the southern parts of the prairie ecozone of western Canada; however, Ecoclimatic Index values in the prairies indicate mainly marginal or unfavourable conditions, which may explain why earlier releases of P. digoneutis in Western Canada failed.
Emerging Multinationals from Mid‐Range Economies: The Influence of Institutions and Factor Markets
Authors: Hoskisson Robert E. , Wright Mike , Filatotchev Igor , Peng Mike W.
Published: September 2012

This paper revisits and extends our earlier work (in 2005) in the pages of this journal. We argue that there is a need for more fine‐grained understanding of the country context along two dimensions: (1) institutional development and (2) infrastructure and factor market development. Specifically, we propose an enriched typology of emerging economies with a focus on mid‐range emerging economies, which are positioned between traditional emerging economies and newly developed economies. Then we examine new multinationals from these mid‐range emerging economies that have internationalized both regionally and globally. We outline directions for further research based on this typology in terms of (1) government influence, (2) resource orchestration, (3) market entry, and (4) corporate governance regarding the internationalization strategy of these emerging multinationals from mid‐range economies.
R&DOutsourcing and the Effectiveness of Intangible Investments: Is Proprietary Core Knowledge Walking out of the Door?
Authors: Martinez‐Noya Andrea , Garcia‐Canal Esteban , Guillen Mauro F.
Published: September 2012

Intangible relationship‐specific investments can be double‐edged swords, as they facilitate not only the governance of business relationships but also undesired knowledge transfers. Building on transaction costs theory and the relational view of alliances, we analyse the effectiveness of these investments inR&Doutsourcing agreements from the viewpoint of the client. We argue that, when outsourcing to business firms, the safeguards adopted by the clients to prevent spillovers may reduce the effectiveness of the supplier's specialized investments. Using original survey data from 170European andUStechnology‐intensive firms, we find that the contribution of these investments to client performance decreases the more a client's core knowledge is required to perform the service, except when outsourcing to non‐profits. This suggests that as the appropriability hazards associated with outsourcing to business firms rise, the client is able to capture less value from the supplier's relationship‐specific investments.
The Baha Mousa Tragedy: British Army Detention and Interrogation from Iraq to Afghanistan
Authors: Bennett Huw
Published: September 2012

Research Highlights and Abstract

Describes the conduct and findings of a public inquiry into the death of an Iraqi civilian in British Army custody in 2003. Assesses the development of British military detention and interrogation policy in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars since 2003. Argues that serious failings in policy, doctrine and training led to the death of Baha Mousa in 2003. Finds that judicial intervention has been necessary to push reform and ensure military compliance with international law.

Baha Mousa died in September 2003 in British Army custody in Basra. A public inquiry reported in September 2011, and allows for the first assessment of British military detention and interrogation policy in the War on Terror. This article explains the Inquiry's remit and findings, showing how the failure to institutionalise a ban on interrogation methods in 1972 led to them re-appearing in 2003. Poor policy, doctrine and training meant soldiers were ill prepared for dealing with detainees when Iraq was invaded in 2003. The article assesses the army's efforts to learn from the mistakes of Iraq, including reforms to policy, doctrine and training on interrogation and detention. The article's final part assesses the limitations to these reforms in practice in Afghanistan, arguing that there are still important areas demanding improvement to prevent future abuses.
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL TEST SCORES AND ECONOMIC GROWTH
Authors: Atherton Paul , Appleton Simon , Bleaney Michael
Published: September 2012

Hanushek and Kimko's analysis of the relationship between growth and schooling quality, as measured by scores in international tests, suffers from potential endogeneity as schooling quality is not always measured at a date strictly prior to the observed growth. To address this problem we treat the data as a panel, relating growth only to test scores at earlier dates. The estimates of the effect of schooling quality on growth are similar to those obtained from cross‐section regressions.
Systems and Cascades in Cognitive Development and Academic Achievement
Authors: Bornstein Marc H. , Hahn Chun‐Shin , Wolke Dieter
Published: September 2012

A large‐scale (N = 552) controlled multivariate prospective 14‐year longitudinal study of a developmental cascade embedded in a developmental system showed that information‐processing efficiency in infancy (4 months), general mental development in toddlerhood (18 months), behavior difficulties in early childhood (36 months), psychometric intelligence in middle childhood (8 years), and maternal education either directly or indirectly (or both) contribute to academic achievement in adolescence (14 years).
Leaders' Perceptions and Nuclear Proliferation: A Political Psychology Approach to Proliferation
Authors: O'Reilly K. P.
Published: September 2012

Contributing to an emerging scholarship emphasizing ideational approaches for understanding nuclear proliferation, this work offers a new analytical framework focusing on leaders' perceptions about the international system and how their “perceived strategic context” may influence the decision of “going nuclear.” Rather than being an inevitable occurrence driven by abstract systemic factors, like the security dilemma, this actor‐specific, ideational approach offers a narrative depicting the fundamental role played by policy makers' perceptions about the international environment in which their proliferation decisions are made. Utilizing operational code analysis, leaders' unique perceived strategic contexts are identified and expectant strategies for self and other analyzed by using the theory of moves sequential game construct. Initial testing of the framework is performed by examining the debated nuclear proliferation cases of South Africa and India. The results highlight the important role of individuals' views concerning the strategic environment they inhabit when weighing proliferation decisions.
Should Candidates Smile to Win Elections? An Application of Automated Face Recognition Technology
Authors: Horiuchi Yusaku , Komatsu Tadashi , Nakaya Fumio
Published: September 2012

Previous studies examining whether the faces of candidates affect election outcomes commonly measure study participants' subjective judgment of various characteristics of candidates, which participants infer based solely on the photographic images of candidates. We, instead, develop a smile index of such images objectively with automated face‐recognition technology. The advantage of applying this new technology is that the automated process of measuring facial traits is by design independent of voters' subjective evaluations of candidate attributes, based on the images, and thus allows us to estimate “undiluted” effects of facial appearance per se on election outcomes. The results of regression analysis using Japanese and Australian data show that the smile index has statistically significant and substantial effects on the vote share of candidates even after controlling for other covariates.
Movement and Locality in Sundanese Wh‐Questions
Authors: Davies William D. , Kurniawan Eri
Published: September 2012

Abstract.  Nominal wh‐questions (nonprepositional arguments) in Indonesian‐type languages have received two principal analyses in recent years. Based on the three different surface strategies for forming these questions, Saddy (1991) has proposed distinct in situ, long‐distance‐movement, and partial‐movement analyses for Indonesian. Cole & Hermon (1998) adopt the same general proposal for Malay. Conversely, examining the three parallel structures, Davies (2003) has proposed that there is no interclausal wh‐movement in Madurese but that all nominal wh‐arguments are generated in situ. Sundanese presents the same basic structural options as the other three languages. Examining the grammatical characteristics of the long‐distance questions, we conclude that, as in Madurese, there is no evidence for interclausal A′‐movement in Sundanese and that the apparent cases of long‐distance movement are best analyzed as instances of A‐movement. These questions thus appear to share some characteristics of nominal wh‐questions in other western Austronesian languages, such as Malagasy (Keenan 2008) and Tagalog (Gerassimova & Sells 2008).
FDI and Growth: What Cross‐country Industry Data Say
Authors: Cipollina Maria , Giovannetti Giorgia , Pietrovito Filomena , Pozzolo Alberto F.
Published: September 2012

The theoretical literature has discussed different channels through which foreign direct investments (FDI) promote host country’s economic growth, but empirical analyses have so far been rather inconclusive. In this paper, exploiting the information of a disaggregated data set on a panel of 14 manufacturing sectors for (a sample of) developed and developing countries over the period 1992–2004, we are able to provide robust evidence on the positive and statistically significant growth effect of FDI in recipient countries. Moreover, we find that this effect is stronger in capital‐intensive and technologically advanced sectors. The growth enhancing effect comes primarily from an increase in total factor productivity (TFP) and from factors accumulation. Our results are robust to the inclusion of other determinants of economic growth and to controlling for potential endogeneity.
‘DIE UNVERHOFFTE WIRKUNG’: REVOLUTIONARY VIOLENCE, ‘BESCHRÄNKUNG’ AND THE REWRITING OF THE DOMESTIC IDYLL IN KLEIST'S WORKS
Authors: Griffiths Elystan
Published: September 2012

The article analyses the connections between revolutionary violence and the motif of the idyll in Heinrich von Kleist's works. It investigates Kleist's reworking of the newly developed form of the domestic idyll, which had originally served as a means of celebrating a progressive bourgeois milieu, but which was subsequently deployed as a bulwark against the instability arising from the French Revolution. Kleist's stories Die Verlobung in St. Domingo, Das Erdbeben in Chili and Der Findling are read as sceptical reworkings of the domestic idyll, as exemplified chiefly in Goethe's Hermann und Dorothea and Nevermann's Alonzo und Elvire. Kleist quotes and reworks key motifs from the domestic idyll in order to expose how the idyll genre obscures inequality and structural violence in relations between men and women, between parents and children and between colonial masters and slaves.

Dieser Aufsatz analysiert den Zusammenhang von revolutionärer Gewalt und Idyllenmotivik in den Werken Heinrich von Kleists. Untersucht wird Kleists Verarbeitung der neuen Form der häuslichen Idylle, die zunächst dem Lob eines progressiven bürgerlichen Milieus diente, aber in einem zweiten Schritt zur Abwehr der im Zuge der Französischen Revolution entstandenen Instabilität eingesetzt wurde. Anhand einer vergleichenden Analyse von Goethes Hermann und Dorothea und Nevermanns Alonzo und Elvire werden Kleists Erzählungen Die Verlobung in St. Domingo, Das Erdbeben in Chili und Der Findling als skeptische Umarbeitungen der häuslichen Idylle ausgelegt. Kleist, so die These, zitiert und verarbeitet Grundmotive der häuslichen Idylle, um die in der Gattung verschleierte Ungleichheit und strukturelle Gewalt in Verhältnissen zwischen Männern und Frauen, zwischen Eltern und Kindern und zwischen Kolonialisten und Sklaven aufzudecken.
YESTERDAY AND/OR TODAY: TIME, HISTORY AND DESIRE IN CHRISTA WINSLOE'S MÄDCHEN IN UNIFORM1
Authors: Fest Kerstin
Published: September 2012

This article discusses the role of temporality in the different versions of Christa Winsloe's Mädchen in Uniform. The stage play (1930), two films (1931 and 1958) and novel (1932) tell the story of an illicit love between a teacher and a student in a Prussian boarding school. While the 1931 film directed by Leontine Sagan, in particular, has been read in the light of German history, this article analyses the texts’ shifting temporal references as instances of queer time that resist the historical and teleological narrative. Tracing the treatment of time, history and desire in the different versions, this article shows that queer desire and identity cannot easily be subsumed into a heteronormative notion of time, which has its focus on chronology, reproduction and generationality, and sits equally uneasily within narratives driven by national history.

Dieser Artikel untersucht die verschiedenen Versionen von Christa Winsloes Mädchen in Uniform. Das Theaterstück (1930), die zwei Verfilmungen (1931 und 1958) und die Romanfassung (1932) handeln von der unerlaubten Liebe zwischen einer Lehrerin und ihrer Schülerin in einem preußischen Internat. Während viele frühere Interpretationen, insbesondere des unter der Regie Leontine Sagan enstandenen Films aus dem Jahr 1931, vor allem auf die Rolle der deutschen Geschichte fokussieren, wird hier die Darstellung von Zeit unter dem Blickwinkel von queer time analysiert, welche historische und teleologische Chronologien unterläuft. Die Bedeutung von Zeit, Geschichte und Begehren wird anhand der verschiedenen Textvarianten untersucht und es wird gezeigt, dass sich queere Identität und Begehren nicht einfach in heteronormative Zeit, die von Chronologie, Fortpflanzung und Generationenabfolge bestimmt ist, oder Narrative, die von nationalgeschichtlichen Diskursen geprägt sind, einordnen lässt.
AGAINST THE PULL OF CONVENTION: SUBVERSIVE LAUGHTER IN ANGELINA MACCARONE'S ALLES WIRD GUT
Authors: Mukhida Leila
Published: September 2012

The film Alles wird gut was groundbreaking when it was first broadcast on German television in 1998 in that it was the first German comedy film to feature non‐white protagonists; that the plot is driven by a lesbian love story between two Afro‐German women makes the film even more remarkable. Directed by Angelina Maccarone and co‐written with Fatima El‐Tayeb, the film was commissioned by NDR for television broadcast as part of its ‘Wilde Herzen’ series and was premiered at the New York Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in 1997. In this paper, I consider comedy as a genre that, on the one hand, can be construed as the lightest of entertainment forms, yet on the other hand serves as a mode of representation which performs a critical role by at once confirming and departing from that which we view as ‘normal’. By identifying the different types of ‘laughter’ in the film, I examine how Maccarone and El‐Tayeb look to tap the subversive potential of comedy in their exploration of racism in Alles wird gut.

Alles wird gut, der 1998 erstmals im deutschen Fernsehen lief, war bahnbrechend, denn zum ersten Mal zeigte eine deutsche Komödie nicht‐weiße Hauptdarsteller. Dass die Handlung von einer lesbischen Liebesgeschichte zwischen zwei afrodeutschen Frauen vorangetrieben wird, macht den Film nur noch bemerkenswerter. Als Auftragsarbeit für die ‘Wilde Herzen’‐Serie des NDR, unter der Regie von Angelina Maccarone und geschrieben von Maccarone gemeinsam mit Fatima El‐Tayeb, feierte der Film auf dem 1997 auf dem Lesbian and Gay Film Festival in New York Premiere. In dieser Arbeit betrachte ich das Genre der Komödie, welches einerseits als seichteste aller Unterhaltungsformen verstanden werden kann, andererseits jedoch eine kritische Funktion erfüllt, indem seine Darstellungsform das Normale sowohl bestätigt als auch überschreitet. Durch die Bestimmung der verschiedenen Formen des Lachens in Alles wird gut wird beleuchtet, wie Maccarone und El‐Tayeb das subversive Potential der Komödie für ihre Untersuchung von Rassismus erschließen.
‘(MORE) PROBLEMS WITH POSTMEMORY’: PERVERTIERTE ERINNERUNG IN MONIKA MARONS PAWELS BRIEFE (1999)
Authors: Reidy Julian
Published: September 2012

This paper explores what J. J. Long calls the ‘problems of postmemory’ in Monika Maron's novel Pawels Briefe (1999) and offers a more critical reading of the text. Unlike many other scholarly articles on Pawels Briefe, this paper does not just read Maron's novel as a paradigmatic example of contemporary ‘Generationenromane’: rather, it deconstructs Maron's postmemorial undertaking and exposes it as highly problematic.

Dieses Paper schließt an J. J. Longs Befund an, der als erster die ‘problems with postmemory’ in Monika Marons Roman Pawels Briefe (1999) konstatierte. Es bietet eine kritische und noch detailliertere Lektüre des Textes. Anders als die meisten existierenden Artikel zu Marons Roman liest diese Arbeit Pawels Briefe nicht nur als paradigmatisches Beispiel für zeitgenössische ‘Generationenromane’: vielmehr wird hier Marons postmemoriales Projekt dekonstruiert und als problematisch lesbar gemacht.
‘WAS GESAGT WERDEN MUSS’: GÜNTER GRASS'S ‘ISRAEL/IRAN’ POEM OF APRIL 2012
Authors: Taberner Stuart
Published: September 2012

Günter Grass's prose poem ‘Was gesagt werden muss’ caused immediate controversy upon its publication in the Süddeutsche Zeitung, La Repubblica und El País in April 2012. Grass's critics were appalled by his designation of a nuclear‐armed Israel as a threat to world peace. Some even accused him of anti‐Semitism or of trying to sublimate feelings of guilt or shame for his brief wartime service in the Waffen SS into a presentation of Germany's former victims as today's perpetrators. For his supporters, on the other hand, Grass had struck a blow against political correctness and voiced a truth that had all too long been repressed. This article steps back from the immediate political controversy surrounding the poem and examines the broader question of what it tells us about Grass's ‘intellectual posture’. Thus it discusses the text's hybrid genre as both poem and opinion piece and frames it as a reflection on ‘endings’, both potential and inevitable. How does the poem respond to the prospective ending of the tradition of littérature engagée and of Grass's authority as a public intellectual in the era of Facebook and Twitter, and, of course, to the elderly author's own ending as he approaches 85?

Günter Grass’ Prosagedicht ‘Was gesagt werden muss’ löste unmittelbar nach seiner Veröffentlichung in der Süddeutschen Zeitung, La Repubblica und El País eine heftige Kontroverse aus: Grass’ Kritiker äußerten sich bestürzt über seine Behauptung, die Atommacht Israel gefährde den Weltfrieden; von einigen Seiten wurde er des Antisemitismus beschuldigt oder es wurde seine Position als Versuch beschrieben, die aus seinem Dienst bei der Waffen‐SS gegen Ende des Krieges erwachsenen Schuldgefühle dadurch abzuwehren, dass er die früheren Opfer Deutschlands nun zu Tätern erkläre. Seine Befürworter hingegen begrüßten, dass Grass, indem er eine lange tabuisierte Wahrheit aussprach, dem herrschenden Geist der political correctness einen entscheidenden Schlag versetzt habe. Dieser Artikel soll über die unmittelbare politische Kontroverse hinausgehen, um stattdessen die weiteren Implikationen des Gedichts im Hinblick auf Grass’ Position als Intellektueller zu untersuchen. Im Vordergrund steht dabei sowohl die hybride literarische Form des Textes zwischen Gedicht und Leitartikel, als auch seine literarische Auseinandersetzung mit ‘endings’. Inwieweit lässt sich das Gedicht als eine Reaktion auf ein mögliches Ende der engagierten Literatur und damit auch eine veränderte Rolle des öffentlichen Intellektuellen im Zeitalter von Facebook und Twitter verstehen? Und in welchem Verhältnis steht es zum absehbaren Lebensende seines bald 85 Jahre alten Verfassers?
Exploring the Reliability and Validity of theSocial–MoralAwarenessTest
Authors: Livesey Alexandra , Dodd Karen , Pote Helen , Marlow Elizabeth
Published: September 2012

Background

The aim of the study was to explore the validity of the social–moral awareness test (SMAT) a measure designed for assessing socio‐moral rule knowledge and reasoning in people with learning disabilities. Comparisons between Theory of Mind and socio‐moral reasoning allowed the exploration of construct validity of the tool. Factor structure, reliability and discriminant validity were also assessed.

Materials and Methods

Seventy‐one participants with mild–moderate learning disabilities completed the two scales of theSMATand two False Belief Tasks for Theory of Mind.

Results

Reliability of theSMATwas very good, and the scales were shown to be uni‐dimensional in factor structure. There was a significant positive relationship between Theory of Mind and bothSMATscales.

Conclusions

There is early evidence of the construct validity and reliability of theSMAT. Further assessment of the validity of theSMATwill be required.
Robustness of Bayesian Multilocus Association Models to Cryptic Relatedness
Authors: Kärkkäinen Hanni P. , Sillanpää Mikko J.
Published: September 2012

Population‐based association analyses are more powerful than within‐family analyses in identifying genetic loci associated with a phenotype of interest. However, if the population or sample structure is omitted from the model, population stratification and cryptic relatedness may lead to false positive and negative signals caused by relatedness between individuals, rather than association due to close linkage of the marker and the trait loci. Therefore it is important to correct or account for these confounders in population‐based association analyses. However, there is cumulative evidence that when fitting a multilocus association model, the genetic relationships between the individuals can be captured by the markers themselves, bringing about a possibility to use the models without an additional correction for the population or sample structure. In this work we have further investigated this possibility in the Bayesian multilocus association model context using the extended Bayesian LASSO and the indicator‐based variable selection. In particular, we have studied whether these multilocus models benefit from an insertion of an additional polygenic term representing the genetic variation not captured by the markers and taking account of the residual dependencies between the individuals. We have found that although the models may benefit from the insertion of the polygenic component, omitting the component does not damage the model performance severely.
Willingness to act and environmentally conscious consumer behaviour: can prosocial status perceptions help overcome the gap?
Authors: Zabkar Vesna , Hosta Maja
Published: September 2012

Green marketing has not shown expected results in recent years in terms of real changes in behaviours, products and market structures as had been anticipated. Consumer behaviour plays an important role in making these changes happen, and drivers of environmentally conscious consumer behaviour still need to be examined. Concepts of ‘concern’, ‘information about environmental impact’ and ‘willingness to act’ are seen as the key predictors of environmentally conscious consumer behaviours. Although green marketing has been able to address genuinely concerned consumers, additional insights are needed regarding how to appeal to more mainstream consumers. Thus, this paper proposes an extended model of environmentally conscious consumer behaviour in which the gap between willingness to act and actual environmentally friendly consumption is addressed by the moderating role of ‘prosocial status’ perceptions. In the model, ‘concern’ is positively related to ‘willingness’ and both ‘willingness’ and ‘information’ are positively related to ‘behaviour’, while ‘prosocial status’ perceptions moderate ‘behaviour’. The model was verified using a quota sample of 319 general population respondents from a Central European country. According to data, ‘prosocial status’ perceptions increase the positive association between ‘willingness’ and ‘behaviour’ and could be incorporated into green products and advertising to signal personality traits like kindness and intelligence. One possible implication for marketers is that women have a higher average representation in groups of people with high prosocial status perceptions.
Microfinance: Development Intervention or Just Another Bank?
Authors: KORTH M. , STEWART R. , VAN ROOYEN C. , DE WET T.
Published: September 2012

This paper is based on a systematic review of evidence of the impact of microfinance on the lives of poor women, men and children in sub‐Saharan Africa. It focuses specifically on longer‐term non‐financial outcomes related to health and nutrition and education. The paper contrasts microfinance's early days' initially refreshing and encouraging promises of a development initiative that empowers people to help themselves while ‘paying for itself’ with a more gloomy picture that derives from the synthesis results of our systematic review. It presents two simple models that show the pathways from microfinance to increased investment in improved health and education, contrasting theory with our synthesis results. Our discussion highlights that thinking through microfinance makes it necessary to thoroughly investigate both the theory behind interventions and the evidence for their impact. It raises the essential question: Is microfinance about providing banking services to the unbanked, or is microfinance a development intervention that concerns itself with the attainment of long‐term sustainable responses to high levels of poverty?
Contests with the Probability of a Draw: A Stochastic Foundation*
Authors: Jia Hao
Published: September 2012

This article proposes a stochastic foundation for the contest success function (CSF for short) with a richer structure on the set of possible outcomes of the contest. Specifically, the analysis allows for the possibility of a draw, so that no contestant can claim a victory over all other players. Under plausible conditions, this article not only discovers new functional forms of CSFs, but also shows the newly derived CSFs have very different properties in equilibrium to those of conventional CSFs. For example, in contrast to the CSFs discussed in the contest literature, which always generate a unique pure strategy Nash equilibrium, the newly discovered CSFs admit the possibility of multiple equilibria.
HUMAN CAPITAL IN CHINA, 1985–2008
Authors: LI HAIZHENG , LIANG YUNLING , FRAUMENI BARBARA M. , LIU ZHIQIANG , WANG XIAOJUN
Published: September 2012

We estimated China's human capital stock from 1985 to 2008 based on the Jorgenson–Fraumeni (J–F) lifetime income framework. In order to accommodate the Chinese data and to capture human capital accumulation through both formal education and informal training, we modified the original J–F method by incorporating the Mincer model. We calculated total and per capita human capital stock for different population groups, and studied their trends and dynamics during the course of economic transition. We also constructed Divisia indexes of various orders to evaluate the contribution of different factors to the growth of human capital in China.
DO INSIDERS PRACTICE WHAT THEY PREACH? INFORMED OPTION EXERCISES AROUND MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
Authors: Bradley Daniel , Cline Brandon N. , Lian Qin
Published: September 2012

We examine executive stock option exercises around a sample of merger and acquisition announcements between 1996 and 2006, focusing on a subset we identify as potentially informed. For stock‐financed acquisitions, we find a surge in informed exercises by acquirer insiders in the year leading up to the acquisition announcement, but target insiders display no similar increase. We find the market reaction upon the announcement for acquirers is negatively related to extreme early exercises and find some evidence of long‐run underperformance. Overall, our evidence indicates that insiders knowingly bid for firms when they personally believe their own firm is overvalued.
WHY DO STOCK PRICES DECLINE IN RESPONSE TO EMPLOYEE LAYOFFS? UK EVIDENCE FROM THE 2008 GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS
Authors: Marshall Andrew , McColgan Patrick , McLeish Susan
Published: September 2012

Employee layoff decisions made during adverse economic conditions are expected to signal poor investment opportunities, but layoffs undertaken during prosperous markets should be efficiency enhancing. We examine layoffs during the global financial crisis of 2008 and compare this with an earlier period of economic prosperity. We find a positive market reaction to layoffs during rising financial markets but stock price declines following employee layoffs during the 2008 financial crisis. These price effects occur irrespective of the stated reason for the layoff and the industry of the announcing firm, and are mirrored in our robustness test of an earlier period.
THE IMPACT OF POLITICAL CONNECTIONS ON FIRMS’ OPERATING PERFORMANCE AND FINANCING DECISIONS
Authors: Boubakri Narjess , Cosset Jean‐Claude , Saffar Walid
Published: September 2012

We investigate the impact that the political connections of publicly traded firms have on their performance and financing decisions. Using a long‐term event study covering a sample of 234 politically connected firms headquartered in 12 developed and 11 developing countries from 1989 to 2003, we find that firms increase their performance and indebtedness after the establishment of a political connection. We also find that the political connection is more strongly associated with changes in leverage and operating performance for firms with closer ties to political power. Overall, our study confirms that politically connected firms gain easier access to credit and reap benefits in terms of performance from their ties with politicians.
A case study ofREDD+ challenges in the post‐2012 climate regime: The scenarios approach
Authors: Lu Heli , Liu Guifang
Published: September 2012

TheREDD+(ReducingEmissions fromDeforestation andForestDegradation) partnership works to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by protecting forests in developing countries through positive incentives. It is regarded as an essential component of the post‐2012 climate regime to stabilizeGHGemissions and engage developing countries in worldwide mitigation endeavours. This study focuses on the gap between agricultural revenue andREDD+compensation through the construction of several scenarios that explore the impacts of possible carbon price ranges.Three scenarios that reflect different potential policies are examined: (1) current carbon trading; (2) carbon trading with all forestry activities; and (3) carbon trading with all countries participating gradually over the coming decades. Data for developing the scenarios were obtained through a case study in central Kalimantan, Indonesia, by interrogating the potential for revenue by expanding agricultural land. The results indicate thatREDD+payments could not effectively compensate land users for their opportunity cost of deforestation, making it difficult for the governments to ensure thatREDD+money “reaches the ground” in terms of balancing the agricultural revenue of land users.
Bioenergy project appraisal in sub‐Saharan Africa: Sustainability barriers and opportunities in Zambia
Authors: Duvenage Ian , Taplin Ros , Stringer Lindsay
Published: September 2012

Although there is continuing debate surrounding biofuel cultivation (especially in developing nations) in relation to issues of exploitation, land grabbing, poverty alleviation and energy security, there is a lack of empirical evidence to assess how these debates are playing out in practice on the ground. Drawing on political ecology discourse, this paper examines case studies of biofuel production in Zambia and the effects they have on environmental and social sustainability. During April and May 2011, data were collected on two case study projects involving Jatrophacurcas feedstock cultivation in Zambia. Semi‐structured interviews were used to ascertain views from affected stakeholders (local farmers, local environmental, social, and agronomic experts, and investors) on the biofuel projects and their environmental and social impacts. The findings suggest that the uneven distribution of costs and benefits are brought about by imbalances in knowledge, access to resources and the allocation of social and political influence (often associated with broader discourses of development), and this provides a likely rationale for a lack of sustainability in biofuel projects. Drawing on these viewpoints, as well as on field observations, this paper outlines the barriers and opportunities linked to Jatrophacurcas project sustainability.
A theoretical overview of the relationship between the resource curse and genuine savings as an indicator for “weak” sustainability
Authors: Boos Adrian , Holm‐Müller Karin
Published: September 2012

This paper shows the strong relation between the factors that lead to the resource curse (RC) and factors that lead to a decline of genuine savings (GS). There is substantial empirical evidence that economies that rely predominantly on their natural resources are also characterized by slower economic growth. This so‐called RC is commonly traced back to the fact that natural resources' generate rents that are independent of a country's economic performance, which can lead to suboptimal reinvestments of this consumed natural capital. We argue that the factors responsible for the RC also have a negative effect on GS, a concept that measures “weak” sustainable development by considering reinvestment of natural capital rents in physical and human capital. We discuss whether the RC hampers possibilities for resource abundant countries to obtain sufficiently high rates of GS, and find indeed many reasons why resource‐dependent countries have problems achieving positive GS rates. We survey both areas of research, emphasizing the influence of the exogenous and endogenous determinants of economic growth, which are usually used to theoretically and empirically explain the RC on the three different forms of capital considered by GS. We specify why most countries suffering from the RC have negative GS rates and explain in detail where the linkages are. This overview could help with potential advancements in the explanation of GS through the inclusion of RC effects.
Association Between Headache and Serum 25‐Hydroxyvitamin D; the Tromsø Study: Tromsø 6
Authors: Kjærgaard Marie , Eggen Anne Elise , Mathiesen Ellisiv B. , Jorde Rolf
Published: September 2012

Background.— High prevalence of headache has been associated with high latitude, thus suggesting a relation with vitamin D. However, there are so far no reports on the association between serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) and headache.

Objective.— To investigate the association between headache and serum 25(OH)D in a general population.

Methods.— Cross‐sectional study based on questionnaires from 11,614 persons who participated in the sixth survey of the Tromsø Study (Tromsø 6) carried out in 2007‐2008. The data were stratified according to smoking status and analyzed with regard to migraine and non‐migraine headache. Adjustments were done for age, body mass index (BMI), gender, season, chronic diseases, education, physical exercise, and alcohol consumption.

Results.— Headache of non‐migraine type was associated with low levels of serum 25(OH)D with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.20 (1.04‐1.39) in the lowest quartile as compared to the highest serum 25(OH)D quartile. No significant association was found between migraine and serum 25(OH)D.

Conclusion.— Non‐migraine headache was associated with low levels of serum 25(OH)D. Although adjustment were done for possible confounders, this finding may still reflect lifestyle rather than causality, and further studies are needed to investigate this. No association was found between serum 25(OH)D and migraine.
Autonomic nervous system involvement in a new CMT2B family
Authors: Manganelli Fiore , Pisciotta Chiara , Provitera Vincenzo , Taioli Federica , Iodice Rosa , Topa Antonietta , Fabrizi Gian Maria , Nolano Maria , Santoro Lucio
Published: September 2012

We describe the first Italian family affected by CMT2B carrying a Val162Met substitution in the RAB7 gene. The clinical and electrophysiological features of our family are similar to those of previously reported families with RAB7 mutations, also for the higher occurrence of ulcers in males. However, in this family we evaluated the autonomic nervous system, never investigated in CMT2B, by means of skin biopsy and sudomotor and cardiovascular tests. Our findings provide both pathological and functional evidence of autonomic nervous system involvement in CMT2B and expand the phenotypic characterization of CMT2B disease.
Patterns of nerve injury and neuropathic pain in ischemic neuropathy after ligation‐reperfusion of femoral artery in mice
Authors: Lee Jing‐Er , Wang Kuo‐Chuan , Chiang Hou‐Yu , Hsieh Jung‐Hsien , Hsieh Sung‐Tsang
Published: September 2012

Ischemia is an important etiology of painful neuropathies. We generated a mouse system of ischemic neuropathy by ligation‐reperfusion of the femoral artery to mimic neuropathic pain and nerve injury patterns observed clinically. Mice exhibited spontaneous neuropathic pain behaviors, which were most obvious after ischemia for 5 h. Mechanical and cold allodynia developed by post‐operative day (POD) 7 and persisted through the experimental period up to POD 56. Neuropathic pain behaviors were alleviated with intraperitoneal gabapentin (50 and 100 mg/kg) in a dose‐dependent manner. Large‐fiber deficit assessed with nerve conduction studies was demonstrated by reduced amplitudes of the compound muscle action potential (CMAP) on POD 7 (48.4% of the control side, p < 0.001). Small‐fiber impairment was demonstrated by decreased epidermal nerve density (END) on POD 7 (29.1% of the control side, p < 0.001). Reductions in CMAP amplitudes and ENDs persisted through POD 56. Our system replicated the clinical manifestations of ischemic neuropathy: (1) neuropathic pain with cold and mechanical allodynia and (2) nerve injury to both large and small fibers with pathologic and physiologic evidence. This system produced by a simple procedure provides an opportunity to investigate mechanisms and further treatments of ischemic neuropathy on genetically engineered mice.
Prediabetes/early diabetes‐associated neuropathy predominantly involves sensory small fibres
Authors: Divisova Sarka , Vlckova Eva , Hnojcikova Maria , Skorna Miroslav , Nemec Martin , Dubovy Petr , Dusek Ladislav , Jarkovsky Jiri , Belobradkova Jana , Bednarik Josef
Published: September 2012

The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of prediabetes (preDM) and early (<3 years) diabetes mellitus type 2 (eDM2)‐associated neuropathy and the value of recently proposed diagnostic criteria for diabetic sensorimotor polyneuropathy (DSPN). A prospective case‐control study in a group of 48 consecutive patients with eDM2, 16 preDM patients and 40 age‐ and sex‐matched normoglycaemic controls was performed. Clinical and laboratory diagnostic tests were used to detect neuropathic abnormalities; these were further classified in terms of recent diagnostic criteria. Criteria for confirmed DSPN based on abnormal nerve conduction (NC) studies were met in 7 (14.6%) eDM2 patients compared to no control (p < 0.05), and the proportion significantly increased to 37.5% compared to 2.5% controls (p < 0.001), if intraepidermal nerve fibre density (IENFD) was used as an alternative criterion in addition to NC. The subclinical DSPN criteria based on NC abnormalities were met in 4.2% eDM2 patients, while the proportion of preDM and eDM2 cases with subclinical sensory small‐fibre involvement documented by IENFD reached 12.5% and 22.9% compared with 2.5% controls (p = 0.005 for eDM2). The absolute IENFD values from distal leg were significantly lower in both eDM2 (p < 0.0001) and preDM patients (p = 0.005) compared to controls. Neuropathy associated with preDM/eDM2 predominantly involves sensory small fibres.
Differences in the Profiles of DSM‐IV and DSM‐5 Alcohol Use Disorders: Implications for Clinicians
Authors: Dawson Deborah A. , Goldstein Risë B. , Grant Bridget F.
Published: September 2012

Background

Existing information on consequences of the DSM‐5 revision for the diagnosis of alcohol use disorders (AUD) has gaps, including missing information critical to understanding implications of the revision for clinical practice.

Methods

Data from Wave 2 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions were used to compare AUD severity, alcohol consumption and treatment, sociodemographic and health characteristics, and psychiatric comorbidity among individuals with DSM‐IV abuse versus DSM‐5 moderate AUD and DSM‐IV dependence versus DSM‐5 severe AUD. For each pair of disorders, we additionally compared 3 mutually exclusive groups: individuals positive solely for the DSM‐IV disorder, those positive solely for the DSM‐5 disorder, and those positive for both.

Results

Whereas 80.5% of individuals positive for DSM‐IV dependence were positive for DSM‐5 severe AUD, only 58.0% of those positive for abuse were positive for moderate AUD. The profiles of individuals with DSM‐IV dependence and DSM‐5 severe AUD were almost identical. The only significant (p < 0.005) difference, more AUD criteria among the former, reflected the higher criterion threshold (≥4 vs. ≥3) for severe AUD relative to dependence. In contrast, the profiles of individuals with DSM‐5 moderate AUD and DSM‐IV abuse differed substantially. The former endorsed more AUD criteria, had higher rates of physiological dependence, were less likely to be White individuals and men, had lower incomes, were less likely to have private and more likely to have public health insurance, and had higher levels of comorbid anxiety disorders than the latter.

Conclusions

Similarities between the profiles of DSM‐IV and DSM‐5 AUD far outweigh differences; however, clinicians may face some changes with respect to appropriate screening and referral for cases at the milder end of the AUD severity spectrum, and the mechanisms through which these will be reimbursed may shift slightly from the private to public sector.
Scientific Publications and Research Groups on Alcohol Consumption and Related Problems Worldwide: Authorship Analysis of Papers Indexed inPubMed andScopus Databases (2005 to 2009)
Authors: González‐Alcaide Gregorio , Castelló‐Cogollos Lourdes , Castellano‐Gómez Miguel , Agullo‐Calatayud Víctor , Aleixandre‐Benavent Rafael , Álvarez Francisco Javier , Valderrama‐Zurián Juan Carlos
Published: September 2012

Background

The research of alcohol consumption‐related problems is a multidisciplinary field. The aim of this study is to analyze the worldwide scientific production in the area of alcohol‐drinking and alcohol‐related problems from 2005 to 2009.

Methods

A MEDLINE andScopus search on alcohol (alcohol‐drinking and alcohol‐related problems) published from 2005 to 2009 was carried out. Using bibliometric indicators, the distribution of the publications was determined within the journals that publish said articles, specialty of the journal (broad subject terms), article type, language of the publication, and country where the journal is published. Also, authorship characteristics were assessed (collaboration index and number of authors who have published more than 9 documents). The existing research groups were also determined.

Results

About 24,100 documents on alcohol, published in 3,862 journals, and authored by 69,640 authors were retrieved fromMEDLINE andScopus between the years 2005 and 2009. The collaboration index of the articles was 4.83 ± 3.7. The number of consolidated research groups in the field was identified as 383, with 1,933 authors. Documents on alcohol were published mainly in journals covering the field of “Substance‐RelatedDisorders,” 23.18%, followed by “Medicine,” 8.7%, “Psychiatry,” 6.17%, and “Gastroenterology,” 5.25%.

Conclusions

Research on alcohol is a consolidated field, with an average of 4,820 documents published each year between 2005 and 2009 in MEDLINE andScopus. Alcohol‐related publications have a marked multidisciplinary nature. Collaboration was common among alcohol researchers. There is an underrepresentation of alcohol‐related publications in languages other thanEnglish and from developing countries, in MEDLINE andScopus databases.