bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Confusion Matrices and Rough Set Data Analysis
Authors: Düntsch Ivo , Gediga Günther
Published: May 2019

A widespread approach in machine learning to evaluate the quality of a classifier is to cross – classify predicted and actual decision classes in a confusion matrix, also called error matrix. A classification tool which does not assume distributional parameters but only information contained in the data is based on rough set data model which assumes that knowledge is given only up to a certain granularity. Using this assumption and the technique of confusion matrices, we define various indices and classifiers based on rough confusion matrices.
Mobile Phone Sales Forecast Based on Support Vector Machine
Authors: Duan Zekun , Liu Yanqiu , Huang Kunyuan
Published: May 2019

In this paper, we select price, wear resistance, resistance to fall, charging interval, battery life, communication stability, photo effect, appearance design, memory size and whether to buy again as input variables, take different mobile phone sales foreground grade as output variables based on the survey data of all kinds of mobile phone users in the current Chinese market, using support vector machine regression algorithm (SVMR), BP Neural Network Algorithms and K-Nearest Neighbor Algorithms to establish models and predict the sales prospects of various kinds of mobile phones in China. The prediction results show that the predicted value of the mobile phone sales prediction model constructed by SVMR is basically consistent with the actual sales of all kinds of mobile phones in the market, which can provide some guidance for the manufacture and sale of various of mobile phones.
Store Sign Text Recognition for Wearable Navigation Assistance System
Authors: Xiang Kaite , Wang Kaiwei , Fei Lei , Yang Kailun
Published: May 2019

With the development of computer vision, wearable computing technologies not only have changed our lifestyle, but also have provided much convenience for vulnerable road users, especially the Visually Impaired (VI) pedestrians. VI people have difficulties in locating and socializing due to the limitations of traditional assistive tools, e.g., the inability to recognize text. Text plays a significant role in various aspects, which can convey abundant semantic information of the scene. In recent years, text detection and recognition has made huge progress which makes it possible for VI people to understand the surroundings by using scene text information. In this paper, a text recognition system is proposed to help VI people to perceive store sign text. Firstly, we locate the text on the sign with the aim of leading VI pedestrian to reach the destination store. Towards this end, an objection detection network is integrated into the system to extract Regions of Interest (ROI) in complex real-world scenarios. In order to fulfil real-time assistance, an efficient detection network named Single Shot MultiBox Detector (SSD) has been made light-weight and embedded in the wearable system. Secondly, we leverage an open-source optical character recognition (OCR) instrument to recognize the detected text. Afterwards, we introduce the collected dataset and critical training tips for the task. Finally, a comprehensive set of experiments on our dataset demonstrates that our approach significantly improves the precision and make the recognition robust even in real-world settings. Based on our approach, the wearable system can feedback the recognized text in real time and assist the VI people during their every independent navigation.
Thalamocortical Connection Topography Mapping in Human by Co-clustering
Authors: Cheng Hewei , Liu Jie , Tao Yiying
Published: May 2019

Connection topography mapping is crucial for understanding how information is processed in the brain, which is an essential precursor for revealing principles of brain organization. However, existing connectopic mapping methods are dependent on prior knowledge, or not completely driven by data. Accordingly, the constructed connection topographies by these methods are biased towards hypotheses, or deviate from data. For these challenges, we propose a novel co-clustering based method for connection topography mapping in a fully data-driven manner. The proposed method aims to construct the connection topography between two ROIs of a certain neural circuit in consideration by leveraging the power of co-clustering. More precisely, the proposed method parcellates one ROI into subregions and identified their respective connected subregions from the other ROI simultaneously. The effectiveness of our method was validated on the mapping of the human thalamocortical system for 57 subjects based on their resting state fMRI data. The validation experiment results have demonstrated that our method can construct neurobiologically meaningful thalamocortical connection topography. Compared with existing methods, our method yields more meaningful and interpretable connection topography.
Gated Time Delay Neural Network for Speech Recognition
Authors: Chen Kaibin , Zhang Weibin , Chen Dongpeng , Huang Xiaorong , Liu Boji , Xu Xiangmin
Published: May 2019

In deep neural networks, the gate mechanism is a very effective tool for controlling the information flow. For example, the gates of Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) help alleviate the gradient vanishing problem. In addition, these gates preserve useful information. We believe that it will benefit if the system learns to explicitly focus on the relevant dimensions of the input. In this paper, we propose Gated Time Delay Neural Networks (Gated TDNN) for speech recognition. Time-delay layers are utilized to model the long temporal context correlation of speech signal while the gate mechanism enables the model to discover the relevant dimensions of the input. Our experimental results on the Switchboard and the Librispeech data sets demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.
An induction theorem for groups acting on trees
Authors: Weissman Martin
Published: May 2019

If

G
G

is a group acting on a locally finite tree

X
X

, and

S

\mathscr {S}

is a

G
G

-equivariant sheaf of vector spaces on

X
X

, then its compactly-supported cohomology is a representation of

G
G

. Under a finiteness hypothesis, we prove that if

H
c
0

(
X
,

S

)

H_c^0(X, \mathscr {S})

is an irreducible representation of

G
G

, then

H
c
0

(
X
,

S

)

H_c^0(X, \mathscr {S})

arises by induction from a vertex or edge stabilizing subgroup.

If

G

\boldsymbol {\mathrm {G}}

is a reductive group over a nonarchimedean local field

F
F

, then Schneider and Stuhler realize every irreducible supercuspidal representation of

G
=

G

(
F
)

G = \boldsymbol {\mathrm {G}}(F)

in the degree-zero cohomology of a

G
G

-equivariant sheaf on its reduced Bruhat-Tits building

X
X

. When the derived subgroup of

G

\boldsymbol {\mathrm {G}}

has relative rank one,

X
X

is a tree. An immediate consequence is that every such irreducible supercuspidal representation arises by induction from a compact-mod-center open subgroup.
A counterexample in quasi-category theory
Authors: Campbell Alexander
Published: May 2019

We give an example of a morphism of simplicial sets which is a monomorphism, bijective on

0
0

-simplices, and a weak categorical equivalence, but which is not inner anodyne. This answers an open question of Joyal. Furthermore, we use this morphism to refute a plausible description of the class of fibrations in Joyal’s model structure for quasi-categories.
Moving in Sync: Hourly Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior are Synchronized in Couples
Authors: Pauly Theresa , Keller Jan , Knoll Nina , Michalowski Victoria I , Hohl Diana Hilda , Ashe Maureen C , Gerstorf Denis , Madden Kenneth M , Hoppmann Christiane A
Published: May 2019

Background

Overall time spent in moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary behavior are both correlated in couples. Knowledge about the nature and psychosocial correlates of such dyadic covariation could inform important avenues for physical activity promotion.

Purpose

The present study investigates hour-by-hour covariation between partners (i.e., synchrony) in MVPA and sedentary behavior as partners engage in their daily lives and links it with person-level MVPA/sedentary behavior, temporal characteristics, and relationship variables.

Methods

We used 7-day accelerometer data from two couple studies (Study 1, n = 306 couples, aged 18–80 years; Study 2, n = 108 couples, aged 60–87 years) to estimate dyadic covariation in hourly MVPA and sedentary behavior between partners. Data were analyzed using coordinated multilevel modeling.

Results

In both studies, hourly MVPA and sedentary behavior exhibited similarly sized dyadic covariation between partners in the low-to-medium range of effects. Higher MVPA synchrony between partners was linked with higher individual weekly MVPA and higher individual weekly sedentary levels, whereas higher sedentary synchrony between partners was associated with higher individual weekly MVPA but lower individual weekly sedentary levels. MVPA and sedentary synchrony were higher in the morning and evening, more pronounced on weekends, and associated with more time spent together, longer relationship duration, and time-varying perceptions of higher partner closeness.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that MVPA and sedentary behaviors do not occur in a social vacuum. Instead, they are linked with close others such as partners. Thus, capitalizing on social partners may increase the effectiveness of individual-level physical activity interventions.
The Canadian Geography of Intergenerational Income Mobility
Authors: Corak Miles
Published: May 2019

Intergenerational income mobility varies significantly across Canada, with the 266 Census Divisions in the 1986 Census clustering into five non-contiguous regions. Nine complementary indicators are calculated for each Census Division using administrative data on a cohort of men and women born between 1963 and 1970. Collectively these indicators underscore the importance of simultaneously examining different dimensions of intergenerational mobility and also show that higher mobility is most strongly associated with less income inequality in the bottom half of the income distribution.
Is China's Pollution the Culprit for the Choking of South Korea? Evidence from the Asian Dust
Authors: Jia Ruixue , Ku Hyejin
Published: May 2019

This paper studies the impact of air pollution spillover from China to South Korea. To isolate the effects of cross-border pollution spillover from that of locally generated pollution, we exploit within-South Korea and over-time variation in the incidence of Asian dust—a meteorological phenomenon exogenous to district–time cells in South Korea—together with temporal variations in China's air quality. We find that conditional on being exposed to Asian dust, increased pollution in China leads to increased mortality from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases in South Korean districts, with the most vulnerable being the elderly and children under five.
Anti-TNF Therapy in Pregnant Women With Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Effects of Therapeutic Strategies on Disease Behavior and Birth Outcomes
Authors: Julsgaard Mette , Hvas Christian L , Gearry Richard B , Gibson Peter R , Fallingborg Jan , Sparrow Miles P , Bibby Bo M , Connell William R , Brown Steven J , Kamm Michael A , Lawrance Ian C , Vestergaard Thea , Svenningsen Lise , Baekdal Mille , Kammerlander Heidi , Walsh Alissa , Boysen Trine , Bampton Peter , Radford-Smith Graham , Kjeldsen Jens , Andrews Jane M , Subramaniam Kavitha , Moore Gregory T , Jensen Nanna M , Connor Susan J , Wildt Signe , Wilson Benedicte , Ellard Kathrine , Christensen Lisbet A , Bell Sally J
Published: May 2019

Discontinuation of anti-TNF before gestational week 30 did not increase the risk of relapse in the third trimester. Relapse and continuation of anti-TNF throughout pregnancy were each independently associated with lower birth weight, a marker associated with long-term adverse outcomes.
Exploring high temperature responses of photosynthesis and respiration to improve heat tolerance in wheat
Authors: Posch Bradley C , Kariyawasam Buddhima C , Bramley Helen , Coast Onoriode , Richards Richard A , Reynolds Matthew P , Trethowan Richard , Atkin Owen K
Published: May 2019

The high temperature responses of photosynthesis and respiration in wheat are an underexamined, yet potential avenue to improving heat tolerance and avoiding yield losses in a warming climate.
Arabidopsis heat shock transcription factor HSFA7b positively mediates salt stress tolerance by binding to an E-box-like motif to regulate gene expression
Authors: Zang Dandan , Wang Jingxin , Zhang Xin , Liu Zhujun , Wang Yucheng
Published: May 2019

Plant heat shock transcription factors (HSFs) are involved in heat and other abiotic stress responses. However, their functions in salt tolerance are little known. In this study, we characterized the function of a HSF from Arabidopsis, AtHSFA7b, in salt tolerance. AtHSFA7b is a nuclear protein with transactivation activity. ChIP-seq combined with an RNA-seq assay indicated that AtHSFA7b preferentially binds to a novel cis-acting element, termed the E-box-like motif, to regulate gene expression; it also binds to the heat shock element motif. Under salt conditions, AtHSFA7b regulates its target genes to mediate serial physiological changes, including maintaining cellular ion homeostasis, reducing water loss rate, decreasing reactive oxygen species accumulation, and adjusting osmotic potential, which ultimately leads to improved salt tolerance. Additionally, most cellulose synthase-like (CSL) and cellulose synthase (CESA) family genes were inhibited by AtHSFA7b; some of them were randomly selected for salt tolerance characterization, and they were mainly found to negatively modulate salt tolerance. By contrast, some transcription factors (TFs) were induced by AtHSFA7b; among them, we randomly identified six TFs that positively regulate salt tolerance. Thus, AtHSFA7b serves as a transactivator that positively mediates salinity tolerance mainly through binding to the E-box-like motif to regulate gene expression.
Resolution of quantitative resistance to clubroot into QTL-specific metabolic modules
Authors: Wagner Geoffrey , Laperche Anne , Lariagon Christine , Marnet Nathalie , Renault David , Guitton Yann , Bouchereau Alain , Delourme Régine , Manzanares-Dauleux Maria J , Gravot Antoine
Published: May 2019

Genetic metabolomics identifies a series of QTL-specific metabolic modules associated with quantitative resistance to clubroot, and highlights the possible roles of gluconasturtiin, citric acid, and two unknown compounds in partial resistance.
Cayman Islands foundation companies
Authors: Pursall Tony
Published: May 2019

Foundation companies have now been available in the Cayman Islands for over 16 months. In addition to a summary of the main provisions of the legislation and upcoming legislative developments, this article takes the opportunity to consider how successful the legislation has been and the uses to which foundation companies have been put over that period.
Continuous, objective measurement of physical activity during chemotherapy for breast cancer: the Activity in Treatment pilot study
Authors: Nelson Sandahl H , Weiner Lauren S , Natarajan Loki , Parker Barbara A , Patterson Ruth E , Hartman Sheri J
Published: May 2019

Despite many potential benefits of physical activity during and after breast cancer treatment, activity levels typically decline from pre- to posttreatment. Most previous research has relied on self-reported activity. The purpose of this study were to assess patterns of daily, to objectively measured physical activity throughout chemotherapy for breast cancer, and to identify predictors of physical activity patterns. Participants were given a Fitbit before starting chemotherapy and asked to wear it throughout chemotherapy. Restricted cubic splines assessed nonlinear patterns of Fitbit measured total physical activity (TPA) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) throughout the duration of chemotherapy (mean = 17 weeks, standard deviation [SD] = 6.3). Mixed-effects regression models assessed the rate of physical activity decline. Regressions of subject-level random slope assessed predictors of the rate of physical activity decline on participant and cancer characteristics and self-reported physical and cognitive functioning. Participants (n = 32) were on average 50 years old; the majority had stage II breast cancer. MVPA declined linearly at a mean rate of 1.4 min/day (p = .002) for every 10% of chemotherapy completed, whereas TPA declined linearly at an average rate of 13.4 min/day (p = .0007) for every 10% of chemotherapy completed, until around halfway through chemotherapy, when activity rates leveled off. HER+ receptor status was associated with a greater rate of MVPA decline, β = 13.3, p = .04. This novel study of objectively measured daily MVPA throughout chemotherapy showed that most reductions in activity occurred during the first half of a course of chemotherapy. Targeting this early period of chemotherapy may be important for preventing declines in activity levels throughout chemotherapy.
The Small Talk Matters
Authors: Boyarsky Katherine
Published: May 2019

Improving patient care with multilingual health care providers.
A mathematical model for a biphasic DNA amplification reaction
Authors: Ciesielski Danielle , Özay Burcu , McCalla Stephanie , Gedeon Tomas
Published: May 2019

Isothermal DNA amplification reactions are a prevalent tool with many applications, ranging from analyte detection to DNA circuits. Exponential amplification reaction (EXPAR) is a popular isothermal DNA amplification method that exponentially amplifies short DNA oligonucleotides. A recent modification of this technique using an energetically stable looped template with palindromic binding regions demonstrated unexpected biphasic amplification and much higher DNA yield than EXPAR. This ultrasensitive DNA amplification reaction (UDAR) shows high-gain, switch-like DNA output from low concentrations of DNA input. Here we present the first mathematical model of UDAR based on four reaction mechanisms and show the model can reproduce the experimentally observed biphasic behaviour. Furthermore, we show that three of these mechanisms are necessary to reproduce biphasic experimental results. The reaction mechanisms are (i) positively cooperative multistep binding spurred by two trigger binding sites on the template; (ii) gradual template deactivation; (iii) recycling of deactivated templates into active templates; and (iv) polymerase sequestration. These mechanisms can potentially illuminate the behaviour of EXPAR as well as other nucleic acid amplification reactions.
Experimental and numerical study of ship-to-ship interactions in overtaking manoeuvres
Authors: Yu Dongchi , Wang Lu , Yeung Ronald W.
Published: May 2019

The study on close-quarter manoeuvring of vessels is of great importance for the safety and efficiency of maritime operations. In this paper, the hydrodynamic interactions between two vessels in moderate-speed overtaking manoeuvres are studied. Computational investigation by free-surface panel method is performed, and the results are assessed against experimental measurements from towing-tank model tests. The influences of overtaking speed and the speed difference between vessels on the hydrodynamic loads are studied. It is found that the free-surface deformation, on account of the blockage effects of the bodies, wave-making properties of the vessels, and the interference of unsteady wave patterns between the vessels, considerably affects the hydrodynamic interactions. In addition, it is also discovered that the influence from the unsteady heave and pitch motions of the hulls on the hydrodynamic loads can be non-negligible. Furthermore, it is found that the slower vessel to be overtaken generally experiences larger loads with more variation than the overtaking vessel. The loads on both vessels become more similar to those of a steady-state di-hull system when the speed difference between vessels is small.
Interplay of electro-thermo-solutal advection and internal electrohydrodynamics governed enhanced evaporation of droplets
Authors: Jaiswal Vivek , Dhar Purbarun
Published: May 2019

The article experimentally examines and theoretically establishes the influence of electric field on the evaporation kinetics of pendant droplets. It is observed that the evaporation of saline-pendant droplets can be augmented by the application of an external alternating electric field. The evaporation behaviour is modulated by an increase in the field strength and frequency. The classical diffusion driven evaporation model is found insufficient in predicting the improved evaporation rates. The change in surface tension due to field constraint is also unable to explain the observed physics. Consequently, the internal hydrodynamics of the droplet is investigated through particle image velocimetry. The electric field is found to induce enhanced internal advection, which improves the evaporation rates. A scaled analytical model is proposed to quantify the role of internal electrohydrodynamics, electro-thermal and electro-solutal effects. Stability maps reveal that the advection is caused nearly equally by the electro-solutal and electro-thermal effects within the droplet. The model is able to illustrate the influence played by the governing thermal and solutal Marangoni number, the electro-Prandtl and electro-Schmidt number, and the associated electrohydrodynamic number. The magnitude of the internal circulation can be predicted by the proposed model, which validates the proposed mechanism.
Bee pathogen transmission dynamics: deposition, persistence and acquisition on flowers
Authors: Figueroa Laura L. , Blinder Malcolm , Grincavitch Cali , Jelinek Angus , Mann Emilia K. , Merva Liam A. , Metz Lucy E. , Zhao Amy Y. , Irwin Rebecca E. , McArt Scott H. , Adler Lynn S.
Published: May 2019

Infectious diseases are a primary driver of bee decline worldwide, but limited understanding of how pathogens are transmitted hampers effective management. Flowers have been implicated as hubs of bee disease transmission, but we know little about how interspecific floral variation affects transmission dynamics. Using bumblebees (
Bombus impatiens
), a trypanosomatid pathogen (
Crithidia bombi
) and three plant species varying in floral morphology, we assessed how host infection and plant species affect pathogen deposition on flowers, and plant species and flower parts impact pathogen survival and acquisition at flowers. We found that host infection with
Crithidia
increased defaecation rates on flowers, and that bees deposited faeces onto bracts of
Lobelia siphilitica
and
Lythrum salicaria
more frequently than onto
Monarda didyma
bracts
.
Among flower parts, bracts were associated with the lowest pathogen survival but highest resulting infection intensity in bee hosts. Additionally, we found that
Crithidia
survival across flower parts was reduced with sun exposure. These results suggest that efficiency of pathogen transmission depends on where deposition occurs and the timing and place of acquisition, which varies among plant species and environmental conditions. This information could be used for development of wildflower mixes that maximize forage while minimizing disease spread.
Social group signatures in hummingbird displays provide evidence of co-occurrence of vocal and visual learning
Authors: Araya-Salas Marcelo , Smith-Vidaurre Grace , Mennill Daniel J. , González-Gómez Paulina L. , Cahill James , Wright Timothy F.
Published: May 2019

Vocal learning, in which animals modify their vocalizations based on social experience, has evolved in several lineages of mammals and birds, including humans. Despite much attention, the question of how this key cognitive trait has evolved remains unanswered. The motor theory for the origin of vocal learning posits that neural centres specialized for vocal learning arose from adjacent areas in the brain devoted to general motor learning. One prediction of this hypothesis is that visual displays that rely on complex motor patterns may also be learned in taxa with vocal learning. While learning of both spoken and gestural languages is well documented in humans, the occurrence of learned visual displays has rarely been examined in non-human animals. We tested for geographical variation consistent with learning of visual displays in long-billed hermits (Phaethornis longirostris), a lek-mating hummingbird that, like humans, has both learned vocalizations and elaborate visual displays. We found lek-level signatures in both vocal parameters and visual display features, including display element proportions, sequence syntax and fine-scale parameters of elements. This variation was not associated with genetic differentiation between leks. In the absence of genetic differences, geographical variation in vocal signals at small scales is most parsimoniously attributed to learning, suggesting a significant role of social learning in visual display ontogeny. The co-occurrence of learning in vocal and visual displays would be consistent with a parallel evolution of these two signal modalities in this species.
Prepubertal gonadectomy reveals sex differences in approach-avoidance behavior in adult mice
Authors: Delevich Kristen , Hall Christopher , Boivin Josiah R. , Piekarski David , Zhang Yuting , Wilbrecht Linda
Published: May 2019

Adolescence is a developmental period that is associated with physical, cognitive, and affective maturation and a time when sex biases in multiple psychiatric diseases emerge. While puberty onset marks the initiation of adolescence, it is unclear whether the pubertal rise in gonadal hormones generates sex differences in approach-avoidance behaviors that may impact psychiatric vulnerability. To examine the influence of peripubertal gonadal hormone exposure on adult behavior, we removed the gonads or performed sham surgery in male and female mice just prior to puberty onset and assessed performance in an odor-guided foraging task and anxiety-related behaviors in adulthood. We observed no significant sex differences in foraging or anxiety-related behaviors between intact adult male and female mice but found significant differences between adult male and female mice that had been gonadectomized (GDX) prior to puberty. GDX males failed to acquire the odor-guided foraging task, showed reduced locomotion, and exhibited increased anxiety-like behavior, while GDX females showed the opposite pattern of behavior. These data suggest that similar approach-avoidance phenotypes are achieved in male and female mice via different mechanisms mediated by the sex-specific hormonal milieus during pubertal maturation.
Impact of deviation from target working capital on firm profitability: evidence from India
Authors: Prasad Punam , Sivasankaran Narayanasamy , Shukla Ankur
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of deviation from the target investment in working capital (WC) (measured by net trade cycle (NTC)) on the profitability (measured by gross operating income (GOI) and net operating income (NOI)) of the listed non-financial Indian firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The study is based on the data collected on NTC, GOI, NOI and other variables pertaining to 242 listed non-financial Indian firms that form part of the Bombay Stock exchange 500 Index for the period 2012–2017 (1,452 firm-year observations). Following Banos-Caballero et al. (2010), the authors use a firm fixed effect regression as the benchmark regression for finding out the determinants of NTC of the sample firms. Furthermore, this study explores the impact of deviation (above and below target) from the target investments in WC on the firm profitability (GOI and NOI) employing fixed effect regression.

Findings

The result of this study reveals that Indian firms maintain a target NTC and try to converge in case of any deviations to it. Furthermore, the profitability of the sample firms was observed to be influenced by the deviation from the target NTC irrespective of whether the deviation was above or below the target investment level in WC.

Practical implications

This study highlights the importance of good WC management for firms due to the negative impact of the over- and under-investments in WC and contributes to the existing body of knowledge by suggesting that managers should keep close to the target WC and not deviate from this in order to maximize the firms’ profitability.

Originality/value

To the best of the knowledge of the researchers, this is perhaps the first study to examine the impact of firms’ deviation from their target investment in WC on the profitability for non-financial firms listed and operating in India.
The myriad meanings of cultural identities
Authors: Strizhakova Yuliya , Coulter Robin
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide the authors’ response to three commentaries (Batra and Wu, 2019; Papadopoulos, 2019; Westjohn and Magnusson, 2019) on Strizhakova and Coulter (2019), “Consumer cultural identities: local and global cultural identities and measurement implications,” International Marketing Review.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a conceptual paper and a response to commentaries on the initial paper Strizhakova and Coulter (2019), “Consumer cultural identity: local and global cultural identities and measurement implications”.

Findings

This paper continues an important dialogue on the topic of multifaceted consumer cultural identities. Specifically, the authors discuss the myriad meanings of cultural identity, as well as meanings of global, local, disinterested/disidentified and glocal cultural beliefs. The paper offers directions and poses questions that warrant future research attention and have important implications for global and local brand managers.

Originality/value

The paper addresses important issues and future research directions about the provocative topic of consumer cultural identities, their meanings, measurements and practical/research implications.
Conceptualizing and operationalizing local and global cultural identities: a comment
Authors: Westjohn Stanford A. , Magnusson Peter
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a perspective on the Strizhakova and Coulter article in this issue, with particular focus on the conceptualization of local and global identities.

Findings

Strizhakova and Coulter (2019) offer valuable service in their discussion of the conceptualization and measurement of local and global identities. The authors suggest that local identity should not always be reduced to a local-as-national identity, but may be relevant as a sub-national or regional identity. The authors also find that another relevant identity-relevant construct is that of consumer disidentification that represents active rejection of one’s national identity as opposed to the passive disinterest represented by the unengaged category.

Originality/value

This commentary offers a new perspective to the local-global identity discourse by integrating consumer disidentification as the active rejection of identity.
Information practices among Taiwanese writers and makers: an exploration of digital natives
Authors: Chen Su-Yen , Kuo H.Y. , Chang H.-Y.
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore two types of Net-generation practitioners – writers and makers born in the 1980s – and how they describe their professions and their information practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors distinguished the information practices of Net-generation writers and makers from those of their older counterparts and then examined the contextual factors associated with the shared meanings in each community of practice, by interviewing a total of 14 participants, 7 writers and 7 makers, and qualitatively analyzed the resulting data.

Findings

First, the professional boundaries perceived by Net-generation practitioners are more blurred than those of their older counterparts. Second, they rely on life experience, online platforms and print for their sources of information and inspiration. Third, Facebooking and the use of filter bubbles are among the most popular information practices. Fourth, diversity, uniqueness, multimodal, participatory and self-media are keywords in their content creation and information produced. Fifth, connectivity (connecting people and resources) and collective intelligence (emphasizing how expertise is collected and distributed) are key themes associated with these digital natives. Sixth, the authors also identified and compared differences between these two groups.

Research limitations/implications

The study limitations include the small sample size of each practitioner group and the fact that the methods are dependent on the participants’ abilities to describe their information practices.

Originality/value

This study is among the first to focus on the characteristics of digital natives and their information practices. It provides a tentative framework for further exploration and contributes to our initial understanding of this topic.
Determinants of intention to give zakat on employment income
Authors: Andam Abdullah Campong , Osman Ahmad Zamri
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors influencing intention of Muslim Filipinos to give zakat on employment income.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used the extended theory of planned behaviour – an extension of the theory of reasoned action – to investigate the factors influencing intention to give zakat. The theory introduces six variables (i.e. attitude, perceived behavioural control, injunctive norm, descriptive norm, moral norm and past behaviour) in predicting the intention to give zakat. Totally, 450 questionnaires were distributed to the respondents in a Muslim-majority area (i.e. Marawi City), and 384 cases were deemed usable. The data have been analysed using multiple regression analysis.

Findings

This paper finds that attitude, descriptive norm and moral norm have a positive relationship with the intention to give zakat. Meanwhile, perceived behavioural control, injunctive norm and past behaviour are found to have insignificant influence over intention. However overall, the study supports the extension of the theory of planned behaviour which accounts for 53 per cent of the variance in intention.

Originality/value

This paper provides new insights on factors influencing the intention to give zakat on a non-Muslim majority country setting where no zakat institution operates. This paper also used the extended theory of planned behaviour on zakat compliance literature.
Study on data use in Indonesian primary schools
Authors: Abdusyakur Ikhsan , Poortman Cindy Louise
Published: May 2019

Purpose

Many studies have underlined data use for school improvement. However, these are mainly based on developed countries; studies on data use are still lacking on developing countries. The purpose of this paper is to investigate data use in Indonesian primary schools. This study is based on a conceptual framework focusing on kinds of data, purposes of data use and factors promoting or hindering data use in schools.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors employed a mixed-method research design, with a total of 194 teachers and 28 heads of schools from 60 schools participating in the survey. Based on the survey analysis, six schools were purposively sampled for a multiple-case study approach.

Findings

The results show that Indonesian primary schools have similar kinds of data available and most data are used for accountability purposes only. These findings might be explained by the government trying to counter-balance the schools’ autonomy, so that the focus of data use seems to be more on accountability than on school development and instructional purposes. The results also reveal that the factors had a different influence for each data use purpose: high data use schools provided insight into promoting factors, while the low data user schools provided an understanding of hindering factors.

Originality/value

This study makes a scientific contribution by offering understanding of data use in a different context. Indonesia has become decentralized in most state functions, including education. Therefore, this study can be used as a guideline for future studies of data use in other developing countries context in supporting the decentralization of educational systems.
Risk assessment in commercial real estate development
Authors: Thilini Malka , Wickramaarachchi Nishani Champika
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the commercial property development risk factors from the entrepreneur’s point of view against social, economic, environmental, technological and political risk assessment criteria. After that, this study aims to assess the risk factors based on the analytical network process (ANP) model and to prioritize the key risk factors to identify which risk factor is highly affected to the commercial development process.

Design/methodology/approach

The data were collected through face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire. The analysis of the risk factors involved the ANP model using super decision software.

Findings

The results revealed that there are five major risk factors such as environmental, social, economic, technological and political risk, and 32 sub-risk factors. According to the super matrix calculation, the synthesized values for three projects were 0.0704, 0.0532 and 0.0431, respectively. It was identified that Ward City was 0.0704, indicating that it is comparatively less risky and, hence, can be categorized as the best development and considering the sub-risk factors; the results show that the highly affected risk factors for the development are: the council approval process, climate changes and natural disaster, and the least affected risk factors are confidence to the market, lifecycle value, investment return and currency conversion factor.

Practical implications

The paper includes implications for the development of commercial properties, risk and risk assessment criteria to make risk management strategies and policy implementation.

Originality/value

The research findings are helpful in improving risk management strategies in the country, and policy formulation should focus on the above identified three risk factors in order to mitigate the risk in every stage and to achieve sustainable project development while increasing the satisfaction of long-term investment goals.
The effect of a golden parachute on managed earnings
Authors: Ujah Nacasius U. , Okafor Collins E.
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of executive compensation on the propensity to manage earnings. In particular, the authors examine an executive contractual clause known as a golden parachute (hereafter GP is interchangeably used). Usually, the triggering of a GP occurs for the following reasons: in a takeover, in termination of employment, and if the executive remains with the company through a recessionary cycle. Specifically, the authors ask the following questions: for firms that their CEO have a GP, do these firms manage earnings more? Does the age of the CEO matter for firms that have adopted a GP concerning the managing earnings?

Design/methodology/approach

The sample is based on a review of the literature on GPs and managed earnings. the authors’ data come from COMPUSTAT, CRSP, EXECUCOMP and Risk Metrics, and consist of 1,184 US firms from 1992 to 2011. A GP is binary, whereas the authors represent managed earnings through accruals and real activity.

Findings

The authors find that the propensity to manage earnings varies on the type of methods strategically used. However, controlling for the effect of SOX reveals that GP firms are more likely to manage earnings. Younger CEOs are less likely to exacerbate earnings upward.

Research limitations/implications

The authors are limited to small sample based on when the data were collected.

Practical implications

The evidence shows that GP alleviates CEOs’ concerns on short-term profits. However, it entrenches CEOs. Particularly, CEOs with a GP are more likely to exacerbate earnings. Thus, there is a need for compensation committees to give considerable attention to how GPs are assigned.

Originality/value

To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that explores the effect of a GP on a firm’s propensity to manage earnings.
How to develop successful and ethical investment analysts
Authors: Arena Matteo , Krause David K.
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to suggest best practices for managing a successful student-managed investment program (SMIP) based on the experience of the Marquette University’s Applied Investment Management (AIM) program.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors provide a detailed description of the program curriculum, instructional design, fund structure, program history, fund performance and student outcomes.

Findings

Through its experiential learning innovations, focus on ethics and close relationships with a dedicated alumni group, the AIM program prepares students for a successful career in investment analysis. Students who graduate from the AIM program experience a significantly higher successful placement rate and higher compensation at their first post-graduation job than finance major students who graduate outside the program.

Originality/value

This paper provides a detailed description of the distinguishing characteristics of the AIM program and, in doing so, it offers ideas that could be implemented by other SMIPs to improve student satisfaction, proficiency in investment analysis and employment prospects.
Auditors’ quality, footnotes, and earnings persistence
Authors: Karim Mohammad A. , Sarkar Sayan
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of auditors in financial statement readability. Using a simple proxy for financial statement obfuscation (number of footnotes), the authors examine the relationship between auditor quality, financial statement readability and earnings persistence.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use regression analysis to test two hypotheses. In the first hypothesis, the authors investigate whether firms audited by Big 4 auditors have a lower number of footnotes than firms audited by non-Big 4 auditors. In the second hypothesis, the authors show that the firms with more footnotes have less earning persistence in comparison to the firms with less footnotes.

Findings

The authors find that firms audited by Big 4 auditors have fewer footnotes than firms audited by non-Big 4 auditors, and a larger number of footnotes reduces earnings persistence one-year and two-years ahead of the financial statement, although a larger number of footnotes does not reduce earning persistence when firms use Big 4 auditors. Overall, firms that use non-Big 4 auditors tend to obfuscate annual reports by using more footnotes and, in turn, reduce earnings persistence.

Originality/value

This is the first paper that has used number of footnotes in 10Ks as a proxy for financial statement readability. This paper shows how auditors’ reputation plays a key role in the readability of the financial statement. Prior studies related to readability have ignored the importance of auditors’ quality with respect to the readability of financial statements.
Psychological empowerment and employee attitudinal outcomes
Authors: Shah Tazeem Ali , Khattak Mohammad Nisar , Zolin Roxanne , Shah Syed Zulfiqar Ali
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between perceived psychological empowerment and employee satisfaction, normative organizational commitment and turnover intentions.

Design/methodology/approach

To test the proposed research model, the authors collected field data from seven telecommunication companies located in the Islamabad Capital Territory of Pakistan. Through a two-wave data collection design, a total of 411 participants reported their perceptions about psychological empowerment and psychological capital at Time 1 and their job satisfaction, normative organizational commitment and turnover intention at Time 2.

Findings

Results supported the hypothesized relationships, showing that psychological capital fully mediates the relationship between perceived psychological empowerment and employee job satisfaction, normative organizational commitment and turnover intention.

Research limitations/implications

This study relied on cross-sectional data, which does not fully satisfy the conditions of establishing causality.

Practical implications

Results of this study will help organizations and practitioners to understand the importance of psychological empowerment and psychological capital and how they positively influence organizational performance, including employee job satisfaction, normative organizational commitment and turnover intention.

Originality/value

Drawing upon the self-determination theory of Deci and Ryan (2000), this study contributes to organizational behaviour literature by proposing and testing psychological capital as an underlying mechanism that can explain the impact of psychological empowerment on employee satisfaction, normative organizational commitment and turnover intention.
Strategic teams: what really drives them?
Authors: Wolf Daniel , Felger Brooke
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine motivation in a team setting, how engagement in the organization's value proposition and strategic agenda, better-matched talent, solid enterprise culture and accountability all play a role in motivating groups of people to become agents of making strategy happen. This paper also provides practical themes for team leadership.

Design/methodology/approach

For over 25 years, the authors have observed team function and dysfunction on all levels of business. They have defined a series of conditions that open the gates for motivation to flourish. Using developmental content, questions and frameworks, they provide a roadmap for the motivation of strategic teams in different settings, with different charters.

Findings

The authors find that teams whose members have a clear focus on their purpose within the organization's over-arching strategic plans, are well matched with specific talents of members and leaders of the team, and serve within a strong enterprise culture, are more highly motivated as agents of making strategy happen.

Originality/value

This study offers an expanded viewpoint on strategic team motivation with some themes for building strategic team competence, resilience and adaptive capacity across a range of organizational settings.
The effect of corporate social responsibility (CSR) health-care services on patients’ satisfaction and loyalty – a case of Bangladesh
Authors: Hossain Md. Shamim , Yahya Sofri B. , Khan Mohammad Jamal
Published: May 2019

Purpose

Although research on patient satisfaction and loyalty has grown rapidly, the literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) health care and patient satisfaction and loyalty is scarce. This paper aims to examine the impact of CSR health care on patient satisfaction and loyalty in Bangladesh.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative study was performed, and data were collected using purposive sampling among 195 patients who used CSR health-care services from six public and private hospitals in Bangladesh. The data were analysed using structural equation modelling through the partial least square approach.

Findings

The study found a significant positive relationship between CSR health-care services and patient satisfaction and between patient satisfaction and loyalty at p < 0.01.

Research limitations/implications

The study provides insights into policymakers in the development of Bangladesh health sectors and CSR health-care activities. However, the results might not be generalisable due to the unavailability of a sample frame.

Originality/value

The study addresses the lacuna in the literature on CSR health-care practices of hospitals in Bangladesh from the perspective of patient satisfaction and loyalty.