bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The We-Mode Approach: A Response to John Wettersten’s Review of The Philosophy of Sociality: The Shared Point of View
Authors: Tuomela Raimo
Published: December 2009

The paper is a response to some critical points and omissions in John Wettersten’s review of my recent book The Philosophy of Sociality: The Shared Point of View (Oxford University Press, 2007). I point out in this short paper that the reviewer has not discussed the most central notions in the book relating to its “we-mode” approach, i.e. collective acceptance, group reasons, the collectivity condition, collective commitment and their role in accounting for e.g. cooperation, social institutions, cultural evolution. I also clarify the ontological commitments of my broadly naturalistic approach and show e.g. that we-mode social groups do exist as social systems but not a full-blown collective agents, although it is conceptually and instrumentally central to view them as collective agents. Also questions of we-mode versus I-mode explanations of collective action are considered in the paper.
Bivariate Random Effects Meta-Analysis of Diagnostic Studies Using Generalized Linear Mixed Models
Authors: Haitao Chu  , Hongfei Guo  , Yijie Zhou
Published: December 2009

Bivariate random effect models are currently one of the main methods recommended to synthesize diagnostic test accuracy studies. However, only the logit transformation on sensitivity and specificity has been previously considered in the literature. In this article, the authors consider a bivariate generalized linear mixed model to jointly model the sensitivities and specificities, and they discuss the estimation of the summary receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) and the area under the ROC curve (AUC). As the special cases of this model, the authors discuss the commonly used logit, probit, and complementary log-log transformations. To evaluate the impact of misspecification of the link functions on the estimation, they present 2 case studies and a set of simulation studies. Their study suggests that point estimation of the median sensitivity and specificity and AUC is relatively robust to the misspecification of the link functions. However, the misspecification of link functions has a noticeable impact on the standard error estimation and the 95% confidence interval coverage, which emphasizes the importance of choosing an appropriate link function to make statistical inference.
Causes of Radiculopathy in Young Athletes with Spondylolysis
Authors: Sairyo Koichi , Sakai Toshinori , Amari Rui , Yasui Natsuo
Published: December 2009

Background

The main clinical symptom of lumbar spondylolysis is lower back pain. Radiculopathy rarely occurs without vertebral slippage.

Hypothesis

Spondylolysis in young athletes can cause lumbar radiculopathy.

Study Design

Case series; Level of evidence, 4.

Methods

Ten patients (7 males and 3 females) were included in this study. The age of the patients ranged from 12 to 27 years. We employed plain radiography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and selective radiculography if needed.

Results

The pathomechanism was classified into nonspondylolytic radiculopathy (3 cases) and spondylolytic radiculopathy (7 cases). In the nonspondylolytic group, 1 patient had a juxta-facet cyst at L4-5 and 2 patients had a herniated nucleus pulposus. In the other group, spondylolytic-related factors caused radiculopathy, and spondylolysis was in the early or progressive stage in all 7 patients. Radiologic findings indicated that radiculopathy was caused by extraosseous hematoma or edema in the vicinity of the fracture site. The radiculopathy disappeared within a month of nonoperative management, and radiologic abnormalities disappeared 3 to 6 months later.

Conclusion

Radiculopathy can occur together with lumbar spondylolysis without slippage in young athletes. We propose extraosseous hematoma or edema at the site of spondylolysis as the unique pathomechanism causing radiculopathy in young athletes. Radiculopathy is rare in athletes with spondylolysis. Magnetic resonance imaging is a useful tool to clarify the pathologic changes that induce the radiculopathy for both spondylolytic and nonspondylolytic factors.
Effects of Dexamethasone on the Functional Properties of Cartilage Explants during Long-Term Culture
Authors: Liming Bian , Stoker Aaron M. , Marberry Kevin M. , Ateshian Gerard A. , Cook James L. , Hung Clark T.
Published: December 2009

Background

Intact articular cartilage tissue is used clinically in the form of osteochondral allografts and experimentally as explants in modeling the physiologic behavior of chondrocytes in their native extracellular matrix. Long-term maintenance of allograft tissue is challenging.

Hypothesis

By carefully modulating the preservation environment, it may be possible to preserve osteochondral allograft tissue over the long term while maintaining its original mechanical and biochemical properties.

Study Design

Controlled laboratory study.

Methods

In this study, juvenile bovine, mature bovine, and canine cartilage explants were cultured in chemically defined media with or without supplementation of dexamethasone for up to 4 weeks.

Results

The mechanical properties and biochemical content of juvenile bovine explants cultured in the presence of dexamethasone were significantly enhanced after 2 weeks in culture and remained stable with sustained cell viability thereafter. In contrast, the mechanical properties and biochemical content of juvenile bovine explants cultured in the absence of the dexamethasone significantly decreased after 2 weeks of culture. The mechanical and biochemical content of mature bovine and canine explants were not significantly affected by the presence of dexamethasone and maintained initial (day 0) mechanical and biochemical properties throughout the entire culture period with or without supplementation of dexamethasone.

Conclusion

These results suggest that juvenile and mature cartilage explants respond differently to dexamethasone. The functional properties of juvenile cartilage explants can be maintained in vitro through the addition of dexamethasone to culture media. Functional properties of mature cartilage can be preserved for at least 4 weeks in culture regardless of the presence of dexamethasone.

Clinical Relevance

Biochemical and biomechanical properties of osteochondral allograft tissue may be enhanced by the addition of dexamethasone to culture media. These findings may translate to longer shelf life of preserved osteochondral allograft transplantation tissue and increased clinical availability of grafts.
Constitutive Rhetoric as an Aspect of Audience Design: The Public Texts of Canadian Suffragists
Authors: Thieme Katja
Published: December 2009

This article offers a way of using the theory of audience design—how speakers position different audience groups as main addressees, overhearers, or bystanders—for written discourse. It focuses on main addressees, that is, those audience members who are expected to participate in and respond to a speaker’s utterances. The text samples are articles, letters, and editorials on women’s suffrage that were published between 1909 and 1912 in Canadian periodicals. In particular, the author analyzes noun phrases with which suffrageskeptical women are addressed, relying on the theory of constitutive rhetoric to highlight the interpellative force with which the audience design of this public political debate operates.
Exposure to Domestic Violence Between Parents: A Perspective From Tehran, Iran
Authors: Vameghi Meroe , Feizzadeh Ali , Mirabzadeh Arash , Feizzadeh Golnaz
Published: December 2009

Women may bear the brunt of domestic violence, but children are also inflicted by the consequences of violence between their parents. We sought to evaluate the lifetime prevalence of exposure to physical violence between parents among some senior secondary school students in Tehran. The study was conducted on senior secondary school students in all 19 educational districts of the Iranian capital, Tehran, in the academic year of 2005-06 using a multi-stage sampling. Data were collected via a self-administered questionnaire. A total of 1,495 students participated in this survey, with the prevalence estimated at 22.8%. More than half of the subjects had witnessed domestic violence between their parents; the prevalence of exposure among the girls was twice that among the boys. The most frequent act of violence was beating the partner with bare hands and the perpetrators of the violent acts were predominantly the fathers. Exposure was long-lasting; and in those with more than one exposure, the mean duration of exposure was 5.1 years. The most prevalent rates of exposure to domestic violence came from Educational Districts 15 and 10. The fact that a considerable portion of the teenagers in the present study had witnessed physical violence between their parents bears testimony to the high frequency of this form of violence in Tehran households. It is noteworthy that the socio-economic status of the families and parental divorce and estrangement increased the likelihood of exposure to domestic violence in our series.
Influence of Family Involvement in Management and Ownership on Firm Performance: Evidence From Poland
Authors: Kowalewski Oskar , Talavera Oleksandr , Stetsyuk Ivan
Published: December 2009

This article investigates the influence of family involvement on firm performance in an emerging market economy. Using a panel of 217 Polish companies from 1997 to 2005, the authors find an inverted U-shaped relationship between the share of family ownership and firm performance. The data also reveal that firms with family CEOs are likely to outperform their counterparts that have nonfamily CEOs. The results take into account the endogeneity of family ownership and are robust to a number of specification checks.
Business-to-Business Interaction
Authors: Faucher Hubert
Published: December 2009

Inter-organizational relationships involve active interfacing between organizations that are pursuing different goals while being dependent on each other at the same time. Hence, Business-to-Business (B2B) interaction can be characterized by a high degree of complexity, involving issues and concepts stemming from Purchasing, Marketing, Key Account Management or Negotiation. This article shows how a business case may be a pertinent tool to teach B2B interaction in such complexity. Based on his experience in designing a case study for a B2B Marketing course at ESSEC Business School, the author first discusses the institutional and historical context of this ‘real-life’ experience, and describes the case scenario and issues. The second part of the paper shows to what extent the management of B2B interaction, as a professional field, is a good candidate for case teaching as a result of its complexity. Through the example introduced at the outset, the author shows how a case-based B2B negotiation simulation actually addresses the training challenge by ensuring ‘high impact learning’ as defined by IMD (IMD, 2005). In the third and last part, the paper discusses how ensuring real learning efficiency also highly depends on how the case-teaching process is driven, especially through case format and structure, preparation and teaching scenario, facilitation method and time management. The conclusion underlines the fact that the returns in training efficiency largely justify the intense work of case design in this context, provided that the case teaching process is well managed.
Calling in Work
Authors: Steger Michael F. , Pickering N.K. , Shin J.Y. , Dik B.J.
Published: December 2009

Recent scholarship indicates that people who view their work as a calling are more satisfied with their work and their lives. Historically, calling has been regarded as a religious experience, although modern researchers frequently have adopted a more expansive and secular conceptualization of calling, emphasizing meaning and personal fulfillment in work. The assumption that calling can be easily secularized and applied has not been tested. Therefore, we tested whether calling was related to psychological adjustment and positive work attitudes of both highly religious and less religious college students (N = 242). We also tested whether these positive relations were mediated by people’s intrinsic religiousness or by a broader, secular construct, meaning in life. Moderation-mediation analyses supported views of calling centering on people’s experience of meaning in their work rather than more constrained religious views. Implications for future research and practical applications of calling to positive work attitudes are discussed.
Using Outcome to Improve a Career Development Course: Closing the Scientist-Practitioner Gap
Authors: Reese Robert J. , Miller Charles D.
Published: December 2009

The use of outcome data can serve as an important catalyst for improving career interventions. A follow-up to the Reese and Miller study was conducted over a 2-year period to assess whether modifications made to the course using the Reese and Miller data as a baseline resulted in subsequent improvements. Using a prepost group design that compared students in a career course designed for deciding students to a quasi-control group, data from modifications in the first year demonstrated a large increase in effect size (from 0.55 to 1.09) on a measure of career decision-making self-efficacy. The improvements in the course were maintained the second year (0.90). Uneven improvement, however, was found on a measure of perceived career difficulties from baseline. An overview of the modifications made to the course and the implications for incorporating outcome data in the provision of career services are discussed as are considerations for future research.
The Role of Attachment Styles, Perceived Discrimination, and Cultural Distance in Adjustment of German and Eastern European Immigrants in the Netherlands
Authors: Polek Elżbieta , Wöhrle Joachim , Pieter van Oudenhoven Jan
Published: December 2009

This study investigates the relationships between attachment styles and psychological and sociocultural adjustment of European immigrants in the Netherlands. Furthermore, the role of the cultural distance between native and host cultures as it pertains to the adjustment of immigrants has been examined. The present results suggest that attachment styles are more related to the psychological adjustment of immigrants than to immigrants’ sociocultural adjustment. A comparison of the adjustment of German and Eastern European immigrants show that Germans immigrants, whose culture of origin and language are more similar to the Dutch one, are psychologically and linguistically better adapted than Eastern Europeans. Also German immigrants report lower perceived discrimination than Eastern European immigrants. Surprisingly, however, German immigrants endorse less either their native or Dutch identities than Eastern European immigrants. Findings conclude with speculations about the historically rooted experience of group-guilt among Germans living in the Netherlands, as a possible explanation for their low identification with their native and Dutch cultures.
Comparative Studies on the Topical Administration of Mucopolysaccharide and Heparin Ointments in Nonhuman Primates
Authors: Hoppensteadt Debra A. , Neville Brian , Schultz Christopher , Jeske Walter , Raake Wolfram , Fareed Jawed
Published: December 2009

Mucopolysaccharide polysulfate (MPS) represents a mammalian-derived sulfated polysaccharide. Because the origin and structure of heparins is similar to MPS, this study was conducted to compare 2 ointment formulations containing MPS or heparin with a placebo ointment on tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) released in nonhuman primates (Macaca mulatta). A primate colony composed of 18 animals, housed at Loyola University Medical Center, was used in compliance with an Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)-approved protocol. Mucopolysaccharide polysulfate (4.5%), heparin (4.5%), and a placebo ointment were topically applied to individual groups of primates in a crossover study for periods of up to 2 weeks. Blood samples were drawn on days 1, 2, 5, 7, and 10. The anticoagulant effects (activated partial thromboplastin time [APTT], Heptest, thrombin time [TT]), TFPI antigen and functional levels, thrombin activatable fibrinolytic inhibitor (TAFI), and antiheparin platelet factor 4 antibodies (AHPF4 abs) were measured in citrated plasma. All data were compiled as mean ± 1 standard deviation and compared in groups. Topical administration of both the MPS and heparin ointments resulted in no measurable anticoagulant effects in the primate model; however, MPS produced a concentration-dependent release of TFPI antigen and a functional activity that was stronger than the effects observed with heparin. A decrease in TAFI activation was also observed in the MPS-treated primates. In addition, in the heparin-treated group, a slight increase in AHPF4 abs was observed. In conclusion, MPS showed a stronger release of TFPI than heparin that was not associated with a strong anticoagulant effect. Moreover, MPS downregulated TAFI, resulting in an enhanced fibrinolytic effect.
Levels of Platelet-Leukocyte Aggregates in Women With Both Thrombophilia and Recurrent Pregnancy Loss
Authors: Lukanov Tzvetan Hristoforov , Veleva Galina Lubomirova , Konova Emiliana Ilieva , Ivanov Petar Dimitrov , Kovacheva Katia Stefanova , Stoykov Dimitur Jivkov
Published: December 2009

The aim of our study was to investigate the significance of platelet-leukocyte aggregates (PLA) in women with recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) as well as to identify association between common thrombophilic factors and whole blood levels of PLA in these patients. We measured PLA by whole blood flow cytometry in 66 nonpregnant women with hereditary and/or acquired thrombophilia and RPL, classified to 3 study groups, according to the type of losses (first, second, and third trimester) and 35 age-matched healthy controls. Platelet-leukocyte aggregates levels in all study groups were significantly increased compared to the control group (median values 2.13%, 2.32%, and 2.41%, vs median value in the control group 1.39%, P < .05 for all comparisons). Women with a single thrombophilic factor and women with combination of thrombophilic factors did not differ significantly as regards the PLA levels (2.13% vs 2.27%, P = .4). This study suggests that PLA may have a role in the pathogenesis of RPL in women affected by hereditary or acquired thrombophilia.
Impact of Thrombogenic Mutations on Clinical Phenotypes of von Willebrand Disease
Authors: Ahmad Firdos , Kannan Meganathan , Yadav Vinita , Biswas Arijit , Saxena Renu
Published: December 2009

von Willebrand disease (VWD) is a most common inherited bleeding disorder. von Willebrand factor (VWF) exists as an extracellular adaptor molecule and generally involves in the hemostasis mechanism through binding with GP (Glycoprotein) Ib-IX-V platelet receptor. Clinical phenotype of bleeding disorders modulated to a decrease in bleeding symptoms by thrombogenic mutations. We made an attempt to investigate the impact of thrombogenic mutations/polymorphisms on the clinical phenotype of 114 different types of patients with VWD, and 120 healthy controls were screened for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) 677C/T, factor V (FV) Leiden (1691G/A), β3 integrin (HPA-I) (Human platelets antigen-I) gene (1565T/C), and prothrombin 20210G/A mutations. Genotypic analysis was performed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism. Forty-five patients (39.5%) were found to be positive for at least one of the prothrombotic risk factors screened. Prothrombin 20210G/A was not found in any patient with VWD as well as healthy control. Eight patients with VWD were carrying the defective alleles of different thrombogenic markers, showing milder phenotypes than expected. A high prevalence was observed for MTHFR 677C/T (677C/C 73.6%, 677C/T 24.6%, 677T/T 1.8%) and PLA1/A2 (1565T/T 88.6%, 1565T/C 10.5%, 1565C/C 0.87%) polymorphism followed by FV Leiden (1691G/G 97.4%, 1691G/ A 2.6%, 1691A/A 0.00%) in patients with VWD with allelic frequencies 11.4% (677T), 5% (1565C), and 1.3% (1691A). Hence, we concluded that thrombophilic markers were seen to be influencing the clinical phenotypes of patients with VWD.
Inflammatory Biomarker Profiling in Elderly Patients With Acute Hip Fracture Treated With Heparins
Authors: Knesek Michael John , Litinas Evangelos , Adiguzel Cafer , Hopkinson William , Hoppensteadt Debra , Lassen Michael , Fareed Jawed
Published: December 2009

Hip fracture is common in the elderly patients with associated high risk of venous thromboembolic complications. Pathogenic activation results in the generation of various surrogate markers in plasma. This study is designed to identify unique biomarkers in elderly patients with hip fracture using protein chip array enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) methods. Plasma from a randomized hip fracture study (PK-532; n = 341) treated with either enoxaparin (40 mg once daily) or unfractionated heparin (UFH; 5000 IU twice daily) were collected prior to and at 1, 3, 5, and 7 days. A total of 52 samples were analyzed using proteomic surface-enhanced laser desorption/ ionization-time of flight (SELDI-TOF) mass spectrometry to identify unique biomarkers in the molecular weight range of 0 to 150 kd. Twenty-nine healthy volunteer’s and pooled plasma from total hip replacement/total knee replacement patients with a unique biomarker at 11.9 kd were used as quality controls. In the 29 healthy individuals, the biomarker profile did not reveal the presence of any unique peak in comparison to the reference normal human plasma (NHP). Plasma obtained prior to surgery exhibits unique biomarkers in 4 of 52 (7.6%) of the samples. On day 1 postoperatively, 41 of 51 (80.3%) showed a distinct peak at 11.9 kd. On day 3, 43 of 49 (87.8%) patients showed the presence of this biomarker most often at its strongest intensity. In all, 22 of 44 (50%) showed this biomarker on day 5 and 4 of 23 (17.9%) on day 7. C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and serum amyloid A were also increased after surgery. Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) antigen levels were increased due to the treatment modalities.
Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling of Cyclohexane as a Tool for Integrating Animal and Human Test Data
Authors: Hissink A. M. , Kulig B. M. , Kruse J. , Freidig A. P. , Verwei M. , Muijser H. , Lammers J. H. C. M. , McKee R. H. , Owen D. E. , Sweeney L. M. , Salmon F.
Published: December 2009

This report describes a physiologically based pharmacokinetic model for cyclohexane and its use in comparing internal doses in rats and volunteers following inhalation exposures. Parameters describing saturable metabolism of cyclohexane are measured in rats and used along with experimentally determined partition coefficients. The model is evaluated by comparing predicted blood and brain concentrations to data from studies in rats and then allometrically scaling the results to humans. Levels of cyclohexane in blood and exhaled air are measured in human volunteers and compared with model values. The model predicts that exposure of volunteers to cyclohexane at levels of 4100 mg/m3 (∼1200 ppm) will result in brain levels similar to those in rats exposed to 8000 mg/m3 (the no-effect level for acute central nervous system effects). There are no acute central nervous system effects in humans exposed to 860 mg/m3, consistent with model predictions that current occupational exposure levels for cyclohexane protect against acute central nervous system effects.
Overview of Genotoxic Impurities in Pharmaceutical Development
Authors: Bercu Joel P. , Dobo Krista L. , Gocke Elmar , McGovern Timothy J.
Published: December 2009

This symposium focuses on the management of genotoxic impurities in the synthesis of pharmaceuticals. Recent developments in both Europe and United States require sponsors of new drug applications to develop processes to control the risks of potential genotoxic impurities. Genotoxic impurities represent a special case relative to the International Conference on Harmonisation Q3A/Q3B guidances, because genotoxicity tests used to qualify the drug substance may not be sufficient to demonstrate safety of a potentially genotoxic impurity. The default risk management approach for a genotoxic impurity is the threshold of toxicological concern unless a more specific risk characterization is appropriate. The symposium includes descriptions of industry examples where impurities are introduced and managed in the synthesis of a pharmaceutical. It includes recent regulatory developments such as the “staged threshold of toxicological concern” when administration is of short duration (eg, during clinical trials).
Final Amended Report on Safety Assessment on Aminomethyl Propanol and Aminomethyl Propanediol
Authors: Burnett Christina L. , Bergfeld Wilma F. , Belsito Donald V. , Klaassen Curtis D. , Marks James G. , Shank Ronald C. , Slaga Thomas J. , Snyder Paul W. , Andersen F. Alan
Published: December 2009

Aminomethyl propanol and aminomethyl propanediol are substituted aliphatic alcohols that function as pH adjusters in cosmetic products at concentrations less than 10%; additionally, aminomethyl propanediol is a fragrance. Extensive oral toxicity data are reviewed, with fewer inhalation toxicity data. Dermal toxicity data are presented that demonstrate, for example, that a mascara with 1.92% aminomethyl propanediol does not cause dermal irritation or allergic contact sensitization, suggesting that the maximum reported use concentration of 2% in mascara would be safe. Although these ingredients are primary amines that are not substrates for N-nitrosation, they may contain secondary amines as impurities in finished products that may undergo N-nitrosation. These ingredients should not be included in cosmetic formulations containing N-nitrosating agents. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel concludes that aminomethyl propanol and aminomethyl propanediol are safe as cosmetic ingredients in the practices of use and concentrations as described in this safety assessment.
Final Report on the Safety Assessment of PPG-2 Methyl Ether, PPG-3 Methyl Ether, and PPG-2 Methyl Ether Acetate
Authors: Robinson Valerie , Bergfeld Wilma F. , Belsito Donald V. , Klaassen Curtis D. , Marks James G. , Shank Ronald C. , Slaga Thomas J. , Snyder Paul W. , Andersen F. Alan
Published: December 2009

PPG-2 methyl ether, PPG-3 methyl ether, and PPG-2 methyl ether acetate are used in cosmetics as fragrance ingredients and/or solvents at concentrations of 0.4% to 2%. Propylene glycol ethers are rapidly absorbed and distributed throughout the body when introduced by inhalation or oral exposure, but the inhalation toxicity of PPG-2 methyl ether vapor, for example, is low. Aerosols, such as found with hair sprays, produce particle sizes that are not respirable. Because these ingredients are highly water-soluble, they are likely to be absorbed through the human skin only at slow rates, resulting in low blood concentrations and rapid removal by the kidney. These ingredients are not genotoxic and are not reproductive or developmental toxicants. Overall the data are sufficient to conclude that PPG-2 methyl ether, PPG-3 methyl ether, and PPG-2 methyl ether acetate are safe as used in cosmetics.
Beyond Risk Assessment
Authors: Dunn Amy J. , Alexeeff George V.
Published: December 2009

Risk assessment methods have evolved over time to become better at evaluating risks associated with single chemical exposures, yet are limited in evaluating risks faced by communities with exposures to a range of chemical hazards via multiple routes. Recognizing the need to identify better approaches to assess disparate impacts facing certain populations due to environmental pollution, the authors evaluated activities within the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (in California’s Environmental Protection Agency) that had begun addressing these concerns by moving beyond standard risk assessment practices. On the basis of these examples, the authors identify 4 overarching principles to guide community assessments and explore how their application can improve these assessments. More work is needed in several areas, including developing information on exposure differences due to cultural practices, lifestyle patterns, and other factors; developing methods to recognize and take into account increased susceptibility; developing tools for assessing cumulative impacts; and improving communication with communities.
Congressional Parties and the Mobilization of Leadership PAC Contributions
Authors: Heberlig Eric S. , Larson Bruce A.
Published: December 2009

Traditionally, observers have characterized leadership political action committees (LPACs) as tools used by political entrepreneurs to build personal coalitions supporting their power and policy goals. We argue that political context — namely, competition for control of the House and the advancement structures created by the parties — shapes the way House members use LPAC contributions to advance their careers. As congressional parties have become more oriented towards attaining majority status since the GOP takeover in 1995, LPAC contributions should have shifted towards helping the party win majority status rather than building individual coalitions. We use rare events logit to estimate the probability of incumbent to candidate contributions in the 1990, 1998 and 2004 election cycles. Our evidence shows that Democratic, but not Republican, LPAC contributions have generally become more party-centred as party margins have tightened.
Measuring Parties’ Ideological Positions With Manifesto Data
Authors: Dinas Elias , Gemenis Kostas
Published: December 2009

Within the rapidly growing literature on positioning political parties along policy dimensions, the rich data series collected by the Comparative Manifestos Project (CMP) has been widely considered as the most systematic and objective source of information. For estimating parties’ positions on the Left—Right dimension alone, several different methods have been proposed which make use of the CMP data. However, unless a new method is proposed, there will seldom be any attempt to check the robustness of the findings across different measurement strategies. In this article, we focus on the parties in Greece, which have been notoriously incorrectly positioned by the ‘standard’ method proposed by the CMP. We contrast the ‘standard’ method with various proposed alternatives and show that the latter outperform the former both in terms of face and convergent validity and in terms of reliability. In addition, we show that this cross-checking is essential, since different methods often lead to diametrically opposite results.
Diagnosing Culture: Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Cosmetic Surgery
Authors: Heyes Cressida J.
Published: December 2009

A recent clinical literature on the psychology of cosmetic surgery patients is concerned with distinguishing good from bad candidates. Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) — a mental disorder marked by a pathological aversion to some aspect(s) of one’s appearance — is typically understood in this context as a contra-indication for cosmetic surgery, as it marks those with inappropriate motivation who are unlikely to be satisfied by the surgery’s outcomes. This article uses Foucault’s genealogical work to argue that both the attempt to provide diagnostic conditions for BDD itself, and the broader attempt to demarcate normal and psychopathological concern with appearance are, in part, effects of disciplinary power. Although often presented as a way of making cosmetic surgery more ethical and restrained, this epistemic project inadvertently defends cosmetic surgical interests. Specifically, it contributes to legitimizing the image of an ethically suspect sub-specialty of medicine, and supports its commercial expansion and effective profit-making by displacing its negative sequelae onto patient psyches.
Regenerative Medicine’s Immortal Body: From the Fight against Ageing to the Extension of Longevity
Authors: Lafontaine Céline
Published: December 2009

From organ transplants to genetic therapies by way of the manufacture of replacement tissue, regenerative medicine incarnates a biomedical reasoning that is unique to contemporary society. As a re-engineering of the body, regenerative medicine is the most accomplished manifestation of contemporary biopolitics: it concretely announces the emergence of what sociologist Karin Knorr Cetina calls the ‘culture of life’, in which individual existence is symbolically assimilated to biological conditions. This article will examine the symbolic and ethical issues of regenerative medicine, notably regarding representations of the ageing body. In doing so, it will place this new branch of biomedical research back into the context from which it emerged, with the goal of grasping the social and cultural suppositions on which regenerative medicine is based. The growing number of elderly people in Western societies is one such central element. This article therefore intends to demonstrate how regenerative medicine is rooted in the modern biomedical deconstruction of death, which underlies the contemporary technoscientific fantasy of indefinitely extending longevity.
Rule regimes in news organization decision making
Authors: Olsson Eva-Karin
Published: December 2009

This article aims to move beyond the previous reliance on structural and bureaucratic routines in explaining news production. As a way of moving beyond the previous focus on homogeneity in the responses of news organizations, a neo-institutional framework is proposed. The following is a case study on management decision making during 11 September 2001 in three Swedish broadcasting organizations: Swedish Radio (SR), Swedish Television (SVT) and TV4. This article aims to explain why two of the managerial bodies (SR and TV4) made scheduling decisions that had never been applied before as a response to the terror attack, whereas SVT chose to broadcast according to their previous established policy on extraordinary events. In the context of organizational ‘rule regimes’, the article examines the reason for news organizations adopting routine or inspirational decisions.
Readers’ interpretations of visual and verbal narratives of a National Geographic story on Saudi Arabia
Authors: Mendelson Andrew L. , Darling-Wolf Fabienne
Published: December 2009

Using a National Geographic magazine story on Saudi Arabia as a case study, this article examines how pictures and text in a photo story interact to produce meaning for readers. Specifically, it investigates how participants’ perceptions of Saudi Arabia differed when they were exposed only to the text of the article, only to its photographs, or to both text and photographs, using focus group interviews. Participants exposed only to the text saw it as a cohesive narrative. The ‘photos only’ groups tended to jump between photographs without a linear pattern. The ‘text and photos’ groups perceived the photo story as composed of two competing narratives, which made them uncomfortable. In addition, readers exposed to the visual narrative — even when combined with the textual narrative — expressed more stereotypical views of the subjects than those exposed to the text only. The photographs appeared to detract from the text’s ability to generate a more complex understanding of Saudi culture.
When a democratic revolution isn’t democratic or revolutionary
Authors: Freedman Eric
Published: December 2009

Kyrgyzstan’s Tulip Revolution of March 2005 was expected to spur democratization by ousting an increasingly autocratic and repressive regime. Many journalists and media experts in and out of the country hoped the regime change would loosen constraints on the press, encourage privatization of state-owned newspapers and broadcast outlets, enhance professionalization and independence of journalists, and make a market-supported media system economically viable. A year and a half later, however, anticipated improvements in Kyrgyzstan’s press environment were still slow in developing. The findings raise questions about the realistic prospects for rapid change in press rights following revolutionary regime changes in other post-communist countries with no tradition of a free press.
Cultivating Cultural Differences in Asymmetric Power Relations
Authors: Ybema Sierk , Byun Hyunghae
Published: December 2009

In this article we integrate findings from interviews and ethnographic case studies to explore issues of culture and identity in Japanese—Dutch work relations in two different contexts: Japanese firms in the Netherlands and Dutch firms in Japan. It is suggested that cultural identities do not carry a pre-given meaning that people passively enact, as is sometimes assumed, but become infused with meaning in organizational actors’ interpretations that are embedded in specific social contexts. The research contribution this article makes is twofold. First, it illustrates how, in different organizational settings, cultural differences are enacted differently in people’s identity talk, underlining the context-dependent and constructed nature of culture and cultural distance in intercultural encounters. Second, it highlights the particular relevance of a power-sensitive understanding of claims of cultural difference by revealing small, but significant differences in organizational actors’ cultural identity talk that are intimately related to the specific power asymmetries within our research participants’ organizations.
What Does Captain Cook Have to Tell Us About Culture?
Authors: Ofenhejm Mascarenhas André , Carvalho de Vasconcelos Flávio
Published: December 2009

Current approaches to culture and organizations fail to define culture dynamics as inextricably wrapped up with the dynamics of cultural resources. Pursuing this goal, this paper aims to further develop the available theoretical anchoring of organizational culture dynamics. We delineate theoretical contributions and methodological implications of a structural and historical approach to culture and organizations. According to this approach, capturing culture dynamics implies studying culture as history and analyzing it as a process of social realization of cultural resources. Drawing upon Marshall Sahlins’ classical interpretation of Captain Cook landing in Hawaii and on ethnographic and historic research findings in Rio Pardo, Brazil, we show how interested subjects creatively used their pre-existing cultural categories and schemes of practice as they committed to culturally grounded action strategies, enhancing their particular positions in relation to resources made available, while imposing contradictions to other interested groups that eventually had to be incorporated into cultural order.
The Cultural Metaphor Revisited
Authors: Nielsen Christine Sarah , Soares Ana Maria , Páscoa Machado Carlos
Published: December 2009

This article develops the Fado, a unique folk music form, as a cultural metaphor for Portugal. This process illustrates the value of the metaphoric methodology as a means to deepen understanding of national cultures. Findings yield three major insights. First, the Fado metaphor provides a rich illustration of the Portuguese cultural mindset, embraced by the population as an enduring representation of national identity. Second, the Fado metaphor enables us to incorporate cultural characteristics represented by several traditional dimensions frameworks to elucidate our understanding of significant cultural factors. Third, the cultural metaphor method breaks through the constraints imposed by dimensional research and enables us to understand intra-cultural variations in attitudes, behaviors, and values. Particularly, the identification of cultural paradoxes constitutes a major contribution of this work. Paradoxes described here capture the dialectic nature of Portuguese culture in the areas of Fatalism and Perseverance; Large Power Distance and Equality; Uncertainty Avoidance and Risk-Taking; Group Orientation and Isolation; and Private and Shared Space.
Contesting Hegemony through Genealogy
Authors: Prasad Ajnesh
Published: December 2009

Much of organizational theory emanating from the field of management studies has been predicated on the Westocentric assumption of universality and has, therefore, been bereft of cultural contextualization. This is problematic insofar as such theories negate the lived realities of many non-Western peoples, particularly those who constitute members of systematically oppressed classes. With the aim to subvert the ethnocentric foundation upon which organizational studies has been traditionally grounded, this article illuminates the utility of Foucauldian thought on cross-cultural management research. It contends that Foucault’s concept of genealogy can potentially serve as a theoretical purveyor from which to destabilize the myth of universality in organizational studies, and to contest the epistemological hegemony that has been afforded to Western organizational analysis. Finally, it concludes that the conscientious deployment of Foucauldian genealogy can discursively open up a multiplicity of perspectives in understanding cross-cultural organizational life.
Patients’ and carers’ journeys through older people’s mental health services
Authors: Doherty Donna , Benbow Susan Mary , Craig Julie , Smith Carol
Published: December 2009

Mapping the patient journey is a way of investigating the experiences of people using older people’s mental health services, particularly those with a dementia. It is a useful concept for patients and their families and enables them to tell their stories in a way which carries the potential for improving and developing the service. Similarly it is a useful concept for health and social care professionals in giving them the opportunity to understand, and reflect on, how their services work in practice for users and carers and how they might be improved. The collaboration between patients, carers and professionals may itself bring about broader benefits and changes in culture for the individuals and services involved. The West Midlands Older People’s Mental Health Collaborative has encouraged the use of mapping by Collaborative teams in order to identify areas for improvement work.
Comparison between Self-administered Questionnaire and Computer-assisted Self-interview for Supplemental Survey Nonresponse
Authors: Kim Jibum , Kang Jeong-han , Kim Seokho , Smith Tom W. , Son Jaesok , Berktold Jennifer
Published: December 2009

This article examines the correlates of nonresponse for self-administered questionnaire (SAQ) sections by comparing two General Social Survey (GSS) years, 2000 and 2002, during which the GSS switched the paper-and-pencil personal interview (PAPI) and SAQ to the computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI) and computer-assisted self-administered interview (CASI) format. The authors find that CASI not only lowers the supplemental response rate but also changes the dynamics of who responds. Unlike PAPI and SAQ data collection in 2000, even those aged 45—64 were less likely to respond to the CASI supplemental survey compared to CAPI in 2002. Compared to Whites, Blacks and other ethnic groups were more likely to be nonrespondents with CASI. Researchers should be more attentive to the potential bias of supplemental nonresponse in CASI.
Conceptual Framework for Using Computers to Enhance Employee Engagement in Large Offices
Authors: Gill Rob
Published: December 2009

Using computers to engage with staff members on their organization’s Employer of Choice (EOC) program as part of a human resource development (HRD) framework can add real value to that organization’s reputation. EOC is an evolving principle for Australian business. It reflects the value and importance organizations place on their key stakeholders, their staff members, and is a vital cog in HRD systems.This article aims to define EOC for Australian business conditions, expand on the valuable contribution employee engagement and interpersonal trust can add to risk management within an organization, and illustrate how information and communication technology provides an ideal and existing platform to educate a large office-based staff about their organization’s EOC program, underpinning a culture for a learning organization. Many organizations are working hard to acquire EOC status, as EOC programs are one way of addressing employee requirements. Australia has recently been through a 10-year period of low unemployment that resulted in a job seekers’ market mentality, enabling employees and job seekers to look beyond monetary incentive in employment to include aligning work culture with their individual beliefs on corporate, environmental, and social responsibility. This article reviews the benefits of a more engaging process for information management with staff members on their EOC opportunities and conceptualizes a model curriculum delivered through computer-assisted learning on an organization’s EOC program. The literature reviewed embraces the constructivist and andragogy principles on adult learning through prior experience and knowledge that may enable individually tailored education for large office-based staff.
Evidence-Based Education
Authors: Sebbens Danielle K. , Kaufmann Judith , Straka Kristen L. , Houck Patricia R.
Published: December 2009

More than 5 million central venous catheters (CVCs) are placed each year, which results in more than 200 000 nosocomial blood stream infections. Many of these infections are attributed to improper placement or substandard care of the CVC. Limiting the number of infections with proper training will improve a child’s quality of life and outcome. Children and their caregivers need education on the strict use of aseptic technique when changing CVC dressings and when accessing the line for medication and TPN administration. Creative educational strategies, such as delivering education by digital video disc (DVD), may increase knowledge while improving satisfaction, increasing compliance, and ultimately improving outcomes. This article will review the development of a DVD intended to educate parents on the care of a CVC in children with short-bowel syndrome. Quantitative and qualitative ratings from 4 experts were compiled. All ratings on the DVD were satisfactory or higher. Qualitative suggestions were made that will greatly enhance further development of this education delivery technique.
Suppression of B-cell lymphomagenesis by the BH3-only proteins Bmf and Bad
Authors: Frenzel Anna , Labi Verena , Chmelewskij Waldemar , Ploner Christian , Geley Stephan , Fiegl Heidelinde , Tzankov Alexandar , Villunger Andreas
Published: December 2009

Oncogenic c-Myc is known to balance excessive proliferation by apoptosis that can be triggered by p53-dependent and p53-independent signaling networks. Here, we provide evidence that the BH3-only proapoptotic Bcl-2 family members Bcl-2 modifying factor (Bmf) and Bcl-2 antagonist of cell death (Bad) are potent antagonists of c-Myc–driven B-cell lymphomagenesis. Tumor formation was preceded by the accumulation of preneoplastic pre-B and immature immunoglobulin M–positive (IgM+) B cells in hematopoietic organs of Eμ-myc/bmf−/− mice, whereas Eμ-myc/bad−/− mice showed an increase of pre-B cells limited to the spleen. Although the loss of Bad had no impact on the tumor immunophenotype, Bmf deficiency favored the development of IgM+ B cell over pre-B cell tumors. This phenomenon was caused by a strong protection of immature IgM+ B cells from oncogene-driven apoptosis caused by loss of bmf and c-Myc–induced repression of Bmf expression in premalignant pre-B cells. Steady-state levels of B-cell apoptosis also were reduced in the absence of Bad, in support of its role as a sentinel for trophic factor-deprivation. Loss of Bmf reduced the pressure to inactivate p53, whereas Bad deficiency did not, identifying Bmf as a novel component of the p53-independent tumor suppressor pathway triggered by c-Myc.