bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Joint seasonality in geographic and ecological spaces, illustrated with a partially migratory bird
Authors: Basille Mathieu , Watling James , Romañach Stephanie , Borkhataria Rena
Published: January 2019

As most species live in seasonal environments, considering varying conditions is essential to understand species dynamics in both geographic and ecological spaces. Both resident and migratory species need to contend with seasonality, and balance settling in favorable areas with tracking favorable environmental conditions during the year. We present an exploratory framework to jointly investigate a species’ niche in geographic and ecological spaces, applied to wood storks (Mycteria americana), which are partially migratory wading birds, in the southeastern U.S. We concurrently described monthly geographic distributions and climatic niches based on temperature and precipitation. Geographic distributions of wood storks were more similar throughout the year than were climatic niches, suggesting that birds stay within specific areas seasonally, rather than tracking areas of similar climate. However, wood storks expressed consistent selection of warm areas during the winter, and wet areas during the summer, indicating that the selection of seasonal ranges may be directly related to environmental conditions across the entire range. Our flexible framework, which simultaneously considered geographic and ecological spaces, suggested that tracking climate alone did not explain seasonal distributions of wood storks in breeding and non-breeding areas.
Transcriptomic basis and evolution of ant nurse-larval social regulatory interactions
Authors: Warner Michael R. , Mikheyev Alexander S. , Linksvayer Timothy A.
Published: January 2019

Development is often strongly regulated by interactions among close relatives, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are largely unknown. In eusocial insects, interactions between caregiving worker nurses and larvae regulate larval development and resultant adult phenotypes. Here, we begin to characterize the social interactome regulating ant larval development by collecting and sequencing the transcriptomes of interacting nurses and larvae across time. We find that the majority of nurse and larval transcriptomes exhibit parallel expression dynamics across larval development. We leverage this widespread nurse-larva gene co-expression to infer putative social gene regulatory networks acting between nurses and larvae. Genes with the strongest inferred social effects tend to be peripheral elements of within-tissue regulatory networks and are often known to encode secreted proteins. This includes interesting candidates such as the nurse-expressedgiant-lens, which may influence larval epidermal growth factor signaling, a pathway known to influence various aspects of insect development. Finally, we find that genes with the strongest signatures of social regulation tend to experience relaxed selective constraint and are evolutionarily young. Overall, our study provides a first glimpse into the molecular and evolutionary features of the social mechanisms that regulate all aspects of social life.

Author Summary

Social interactions are fundamental to all forms of life, from single-celled bacteria to complex plants and animals. Despite their obvious importance, little is known about the molecular causes and consequences of social interactions. In this paper, we study the molecular basis of nurse-larva social interactions that regulate larval development in the pharaoh antMonomorium pharaonis. We infer the effects of social interactions on gene expression from samples of nurses and larvae collected in the act of interaction across a developmental time series. Gene expression appears to be closely tied to these interactions, such that we can identify genes expressed in nurses with putative regulatory effects on larval gene expression. Genes which we infer to have strong social regulatory effects tend to have weak regulatory effects within individuals, and highly social genes tend to experience relatively weaker natural selection in comparison to less social genes. This study represents a novel approach and foundation upon which future studies at the intersection of genetics, behavior, and evolution can build.
WNT/β-CATENIN modulates the axial identity of ES derived human neural crest
Authors: Gomez Gustavo A. , Prasad Maneeshi S. , Wong Man , Charney Rebekah M. , Shelar Patrick B. , Sandhu Nabjot , Hackland James O.S. , Hernandez Jacqueline C. , Leung Alan W. , García-Castro Martín I.
Published: January 2019

The WNT/β-CATENIN pathway is critical for neural crest (NC) formation. However, the effects of the magnitude of the signal remains poorly defined. Here we evaluate the consequences of WNT magnitude variation in a robust model of human NC formation. This model is based on human embryonic stem cells induced by WNT signaling through the small molecule CHIR9902. In addition to its known effect on NC formation, we find that the WNT signal modulates the anterior-posterior axial identity of NCCs in a dose dependent manner, with low WNT leading to anterior OTX+, HOX-NC, and high WNT leading to posterior OTX−, HOX+ NC. Differentiation tests of posterior NC confirm expected derivatives including posterior specific adrenal derivatives, and display partial capacity to generate anterior ectomesenchymal derivatives. Furthermore, unlike anterior NC, posterior NC transit through a TBXT+/SOX2+ neuromesodermal precursor-like intermediate. Finally, we analyze the contributions of other signaling pathways in posterior NC formation, and suggest a critical role for FGF in survival/proliferation, and a requirement of BMP for NC maturation. As expected RA and FGF are able to modulate HOX expression in the posterior NC, but surprisingly, RA supplementation prohibits anterior, but only reduces, posterior NC formation. This work reveals for the first time that the amplitude of WNT signaling can modulate the axial identity of NC cells in humans.
The semantic segmentation approach for normal and pathologic tympanic membrane using deep learning
Authors: Seok Jungirl , Song Jae-Jin , Koo Ja-Won , Kim Hee Chan , Choi Byung Yoon
Published: January 2019

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to create a deep learning model for the detection and segmentation of major structures of the tympanic membrane.

Methods

Total 920 tympanic endoscopic images had been stored were obtained, retrospectively. We constructed a detection and segmentation model using Mask R-CNN with ResNet-50 backbone targeting three clinically meaningful structures: (1) tympanic membrane (TM); (2) malleus with side of tympanic membrane; and (3) suspected perforation area. The images were randomly divided into three sets – taining set, validation set, and test set – at a ratio of 0.6:0.2:0.2, resulting in 548, 187, and 185 images, respectively. After assignment, 548 tympanic membrane images were augmented 50 times each, reaching 27,400 images.

Results

At the most optimized point of the model, it achieved a mean average precision of 92.9% on test set. When an intersection over Union (IoU) score of greater than 0.5 was used as the reference point, the tympanic membrane was 100% detectable, the accuracy of side of the tympanic membrane based on the malleus segmentation was 88.6% and detection accuracy of suspicious perforation was 91.4%.

Conclusions

Anatomical segmentation may allow the inclusion of an explanation provided by deep learning as part of the results. This method is applicable not only to tympanic endoscope, but also to sinus endoscope, laryngoscope, and stroboscope. Finally, it will be the starting point for the development of automated medical records descriptor of endoscope images.
Most chromatin interactions are not in linkage disequilibrium
Authors: Whalen Sean , Pollard Katherine S.
Published: January 2019

Chromatin interactions and linkage disequilibrium (LD) are both pairwise measurements between genomic loci that show block patterns along mammalian chromosomes. Their values are generally high for sites that are nearby in the linear genome but abruptly drop across block boundaries. One function of chromatin boundaries is to insulate regulatory domains from one another. Since recombination is depressed within genes and between distal regulatory elements and their promoters, we hypothesized that LD and chromatin contact frequency might be correlated genome-wide with the boundaries of LD blocks and chromatin domains frequently coinciding. To comprehensively address this question, we compared chromatin contacts in 22 cell types to LD across billions of pairs of loci in the human genome. These computationally intensive analyses revealed that there is no concordance between LD and chromatin interactions, even at genomic distances below 25 kilobases (kb) where both tend to be high. At genomic distances where LD is approximately zero, chromatin interactions are frequent. While LD is somewhat elevated between distal regulatory elements and their promoters, LD block boundaries are depleted—not enriched—at chromatin boundaries. Finally, gene expression and ontology data suggest that chromatin contacts identify regulatory variants more reliably than do LD and genomic proximity. We conclude that the genomic architectures of genetic and physical interactions are independent, with important implications for gene regulatory evolution, interpretation of genetic association studies, and precision medicine.
Mask-based approach to phasing of single-particle diffraction data. II. Likelihood-based selection criteria
Authors: Lunin Vladimir Y. , Lunina Natalia L. , Petrova Tatiana E. , Baumstark Manfred W. , Urzhumtsev Alexandre G.
Published: January 2019

A new type of mask-selection criterion is suggested for mask-based phasing. In this phasing approach, a large number of connected molecular masks are randomly generated. Structure-factor phases corresponding to a trial mask are accepted as an admissible solution of the phase problem if the mask satisfies some specified selection rules that are key to success. The admissible phase sets are aligned and averaged to give a preliminary solution of the phase problem. The new selection rule is based on the likelihood of the generated mask. It is defined as the probability of reproducing the observed structure-factor magnitudes by placing atoms randomly into the mask. While the result of the direct comparison of mask structure-factor magnitudes with observed ones using a correlation coefficient is highly dominated by a few very strong low-resolution reflections, a new method gives higher weight to relatively weak high-resolution reflections that allows them to be phased accurately. This mask-based phasing procedure with likelihood-based selection has been applied to simulated single-particle diffraction data of the photosystem II monomer. The phase set obtained resulted in a 16 Å resolution Fourier synthesis (more than 4000 reflections) with 98% correlation with the exact phase set and 69% correlation for about 2000 reflections in the highest resolution shell (20–16 Å). This work also addresses another essential problem of phasing methods, namely adequate estimation of the resolution achieved. A model-trapping analysis of the phase sets obtained by the mask-based phasing procedure suggests that the widely used `50% shell correlation' criterion may be too optimistic in some cases.
Crystal structure ofMycobacterium tuberculosisFadB2 implicated in mycobacterial β-oxidation
Authors: Cox Jonathan A. G. , Taylor Rebecca C. , Brown Alistair K. , Attoe Samuel , Besra Gurdyal S. , Fütterer Klaus
Published: January 2019

The intracellular pathogenMycobacterium tuberculosisis the causative agent of tuberculosis, which is a leading cause of mortality worldwide. The survival ofM. tuberculosisin host macrophages through long-lasting periods of persistence depends, in part, on breaking down host cell lipids as a carbon source. The critical role of fatty-acid catabolism in this organism is underscored by the extensive redundancy of the genes implicated in β-oxidation (∼100 genes). In a previous study, the enzymology of theM. tuberculosisL-3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase FadB2 was characterized. Here, the crystal structure of this enzyme in a ligand-free form is reported at 2.1 Å resolution. FadB2 crystallized as a dimer with three unique dimer copies per asymmetric unit. The structure of the monomer reveals a dual Rossmann-fold motif in the N-terminal domain, while the helical C-terminal domain mediates dimer formation. Comparison with the CoA- and NAD+-bound human orthologue mitochondrial hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase shows extensive conservation of the residues that mediate substrate and cofactor binding. Superposition with the multi-catalytic homologueM. tuberculosisFadB, which forms a trifunctional complex with the thiolase FadA, indicates that FadB has developed structural features that prevent its self-association as a dimer. Conversely, FadB2 is unable to substitute for FadB in the tetrameric FadA–FadB complex as it lacks the N-terminal hydratase domain of FadB. Instead, FadB2 may functionally (or physically) associate with the enoyl-CoA hydratase EchA8 and the thiolases FadA2, FadA3, FadA4 or FadA6 as suggested by interrogation of the STRING protein-network database.
Effect of non-conventional heat treatment of API X60 pipeline steel on corrosion resistance and stress corrosion cracking susceptibility
Authors: Jacobo Luis Ricardo , Garcia Rafael , Lopez Victor Hugo , Contreras Antonio
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of heat treatment (HT) applied to an API X60 steel in corrosion resistance and stress corrosion cracking (SCC) susceptibility through slow strain rate tests (SSRT) in NS4 solution and congenital water (CW) to assess external and internal SCC, respectively.

Design/methodology/approach

API X60 steel was heat treated at a temperature of 1,200°C for 30 min followed by water quenching. Specimens from this steel were machined according to NACE TM 198. SSRT were performed in a constant extension rate tests (CERT) machine at room temperature at a strain rate of 1 × 10–6s–1. For this purpose, a glass cell was used. Corrosion behavior was evaluated through polarization curves (PCs).

Findings

The SCC index obtained from SSRT indicates that the steel heat treated could be susceptible to SCC in CW and NS4 solution; the mechanism of SCC was hydrogen embrittlement. Thus, CW may promote the SCC phenomenon in pipelines. HT improves the steel corrosion resistance. Higher corrosion rate (CR) was observed when the steel is exposed to CW. The corrosion process in X60 steel shows that the oxidation reaction in the anodic branch corresponds to an activation process, and the cathode branches reveal a diffusion process.

Originality/value

The purpose of the heat treatment applied to X60 steel was to generate a microstructure of acicular ferrite to improve the corrosion resistance and SCC behavior.
LCA of the maintenance of a piston-prop engine
Authors: Şöhret Yasin , Ekici Selcuk , Altuntas Onder , Karakoc T. Hikmet
Published: January 2019

Purpose

This study aims to introduce an approach to evaluate environmental impact of a piston-prop engine from the view point of life cycle assessment (LCA).

Design/methodology/approach

In the aviation industry, safety is an important issue. For reliable and safe flights, the maintenance of aerial vehicles and engines is mandatory. Additionally, regular and correct maintenance plays a key role in keeping efficiency at a high level. With this in mind, a LCA of a regular 50 hourly maintenance process of Cessna type training aircraft is conducted. During the assessment, the starting of the engine before maintenance, replacement of the oil filter, test procedure of the spark plugs, a compressor test, engine cleaning and engine starting following maintenance are taken into account.

Findings

At the end of the study, normalization and characterization values for the maintenance, electricity consumption during maintenance and used fuel are obtained.

Practical implications

Regarding the number of this type aircraft worldwide, the current study offers a valuable contribution to the literature. The authors also intend to introduce an approach which may be useful for the assessment of large body aircraft still in service.

Originality/value

The present paper is a pioneer for future applications of LCA methodology to piston-prop engines and training aircraft.
Colombian millennials at the workplace
Authors: Roman-Calderon Juan Pablo , Gonzales-Miranda Diego René , García Gustavo A. , Gallo Oscar
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a study on the antecedents of turnover intentions (TOI) of millennial Colombian employees. A theoretical model in which positive work-family interaction, professional respect (PR) and meaning predicted TOI is simultaneously tested in Millennials and Xers.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors used a multigroup structural equation approach to analyze the data provided by 2,157 Millennials and 279 Xers. Participants work in 11 companies from five Colombian cities. City, age, sex, tenure and wage are included as control variables to respond to some limitations of previous research and isolate the effects of age cohorts.

Findings

The results show differences in terms of some of the variables under study. Further, the effects of positive work-family interaction and PR on TOI were different from one age cohort to the other. The influence of meaning on the outcome variable was equal in Millennials and Xers but resulted positive.

Research limitations/implications

The authors studied an under-researched population, used rigorous analytical procedures to simultaneously test the hypotheses across generations, analyzed data from a large sample size and control for confounding variables identified by researchers inquiring generational differences at the workplace. By these means, the study contributes to literature on millennial employees and age diversity.

Originality/value

By studying an under-reseach population and using suitable analytical techniques, the study contributes to literature on millennial employees and age diversity.
So similar and yet so different
Authors: Moretti Luca , Mayerl Martin , Muehlemann Samuel , Schlögl Peter , Wolter Stefan C.
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to compare a firm’s net cost and post-apprenticeship benefits of providing apprenticeship training in Austria and Switzerland: two countries with many similarities but some critical institutional differences.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors draw on detailed workplace data with information on the costs and benefits of apprenticeship training, as well as on hiring costs for skilled workers from the external labour market. The authors use nearest-neighbour matching models to compare Austrian firms with similar Swiss firms based on observable characteristics.

Findings

On average, a Swiss firm generates an annual net benefit of €3,400 from training an apprentice, whereas a firm in Austria incurs net costs of €4,200. The impetus for this difference is largely a higher relative apprentice pay in Austria. However, compared with Swiss firms, Austrian firms generate a higher post-training return by retaining a higher share of apprentices and savings on future hiring costs.

Practical implications

The authors demonstrate that apprenticeship systems can exist under different institutional environments. For countries currently in the process of establishing or expanding apprenticeship systems, the comparative analysis clearly shows that policymakers should consider more than just one country’s particular apprenticeship model.

Originality/value

The authors provide a first comparative analysis between two apprenticeship countries that empirically assesses a firm’s costs and benefits of training during an apprenticeship programme and also provides a monetary value of a particular type of post-training benefits that firms can generate by retaining former apprentices as skilled workers (i.e. savings in future hiring costs for skilled workers).
Happy feelings: examining music in the service environment
Authors: Kemp Elyria Angela , Williams Kim , Min Dong-Jun , Chen Han
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the psychological influence that the presence of music has on consumers’ evaluations of the service environment. Specifically, it investigates how emotion regulation processes and the impact of emotions/mood are linked to consumers’ evaluation of service and product quality.

Design/methodology/approach

An exploratory study was conducted using industry professionals in order to garner insight about the value of music and its benefits in the service environment. A field experiment was then conducted to test hypotheses.

Findings

Industry professionals offer implicit theories about the value of music. Specifically, they propose that music can be used to help customers regulate emotions and improve mood, enhance the customer experience and help in attracting new consumer segments. Results from the field experiment found that those exposed to music were likely to improve mood, express more favorable evaluations of the service and product quality of the establishment, as well as exhibit stronger intentions to continue to patronize the establishment.

Practical implications

Using live music in the service environment can be beneficial to organizations by improving customers’ emotional/psychological status as well as their evaluation of the consumption experience.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating how emotion regulation processes and the impact of emotions/mood are linked to consumers’ evaluation of service and product quality. Also, support for mood congruency judgment is found. Participants in the field study who had been exposed to music indicated that they made efforts to improve their mood and subsequently had more favorable judgments of service and product quality.
Linking food safety training with whistle-blowing
Authors: Yu Heyao , A. Sirsat Sujata , Neal Jack A.
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a validated food safety whistle-blowing scale and examine how training influences food handlers’ whistle-blowing, the mediating roles of job satisfaction and food safety self-efficacy and the moderating roles of organization type and gender.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 734 food handlers from the food service industry and 306 food handlers from the food processing industry were recruited. A two-step psychometric process was conducted to validate the scale, and a moderated mediation model was used to examine the mechanisms through which food safety training influences whistle-blowing.

Findings

The results showed that job satisfaction and self-efficacy fully mediated the relationship between training and whistle-blowing. Organization type moderated the first step of the two indirect paths and gender moderated the second step, thereby supporting the mediated-moderated model.

Practical implications

The results indicate the influence of food safety training programs on whistle-blowing behaviors and suggest other methods of enhancing employee whistle-blowing through human resource management.

Originality/value

A validated scale is lacking to measure whistle-blowing in the food safety context, and little research has examined the influence of human resource practices on whistle-blowing. This study provides meaningful insights for researchers by developing and validating food safety the whistle-blowing scale, connecting training with whistle-blowing, and provides useful information for practitioners by offering the methods of enhancing whistleblowing in both the food processing and food service industry.
Government institutional support, entrepreneurial orientation, strategic renewal, and firm performance in transitional China
Authors: Shu Chengli , De Clercq Dirk , Zhou Yunyue , Liu Cuijuan
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and strategic renewal (as a critical dimension of corporate entrepreneurship) might transmit government institutional support and thereby enhance firm performance in a transition economy.

Design/methodology/approach

Multi-respondent data were collected from 230 Chinese-based firms. The hypotheses were tested with structural equation modeling, in combination with a bias-corrected bootstrap method, to assess the significance of the theorized direct and indirect relationships.

Findings

Government institutional support enhances EO and strategic renewal individually, yet EO also fully mediates the relationship between government institutional support and strategic renewal. Moreover, strategic renewal fully mediates the relationship between EO and firm financial performance, and it partially mediates the relationship between EO and firm reputation.

Originality/value

This study contributes to entrepreneurship literature by testing an organization-level model of entrepreneurial phenomena in established firms that identifies EO and strategic renewal as two distinct mechanisms through which government institutional support in a transition economy can enhance organizational effectiveness, which entails the firm’s financial performance and reputation. In doing so, this study provides an extended understanding of how EO and strategic renewal might influence a firm’s financial and nonfinancial outcomes in different ways.
The myth of sharing publicly as 21st century literacy
Authors: Schmier Stephanie
Published: January 2019

Purpose

This paper highlights the fluidity with which youth make decisions about engaging with digital technologies including online social media. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is to explore the possibilities that literacy curriculum that centers digital technologies can have for students from immigrant communities through tracing the case of a Bangladeshi–American girl named Sabina.

Design/methodology/approach

Grounded in a transliteracies frame, this qualitative case study explores the digital literacy practices of youth in an urban public secondary school in the USA. Data collection included participant observation across various spaces including an eighth grade digital media studies class, school cafeteria and hallways, participants’ homes and online communities. Further data included formal interviews, informal conversations and digital and print artifact collection. Data were analyzed through the lenses of flow and space–time path.

Findings

The findings of this paper highlight how Sabina made space for social networking using digital technologies on her own terms as well as how the ways that she collaborated through the use of digital technologies created opportunities for her to be an active participant in her social worlds across home and school contexts.

Originality/value

Analyzing Sabina’s digital literacy practices across diverse social spaces offers insights for educators to create opportunities for diverse youth to leverage digital technologies to support skills such as collaboration and civic engagement, which have been identified as defining characteristics of twenty-first century literacies. This case points to the imperative for teachers to create connected learning classrooms that offer opportunities for youth to use digital technologies to support their efforts to make change in the world on their own terms.
Blue ocean leadership activities improve firm performance
Authors: Loh Kok Liang , Mohd Yusof Shari
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediation effect of Blue Ocean Leadership (BOL) activities between lean manufacturing (LM) practices and firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

This study applied sequential mixed method with expert opinion in the first stage and cross-sectional survey from automotive vendor companies in the second stage. The samples were drawn using random sampling procedure from automotive vendor companies in Malaysia with the final number of respondents of 64. Four main hypotheses were developed and tested statistically by applying multivariate data analysis using SmartPLS3.0 SEM software.

Findings

The results provide evidence that LM practices have positive and significant impact on firm performance. Moreover, activities of Genba-Kaizen significantly improve the firm performance by an amazing 30 per cent.

Research limitations/implications

The data used in the survey represent self-reporting by mainly the top management in operations or production. It is recommended for future study to include middle and lower management level to understand the difference of their activities. Besides, it is proposed to extent the population beyond automotive industry.

Practical implications

This study contributes to the LM body of knowledge by identifying the relationships between the LM practices, firm performance and BOL activities. Understanding these will help lean practitioners especially the leaders in making better decision in both manufacturing and service organizations. Thus, increasing the staff motivation and engagement eventually contributes to the firm performance.

Originality/value

Although there are growing numbers of anecdotal and empirical evidences in favour of LM in manufacturing environment, there has been almost no theory-building and methodologically rigorous research examining the link between the leaders’ activities with LM practices and firm performance. This study is addressing such gaps.
Revisiting strategy mapping for performance management: a realist synthesis
Authors: Armstrong Ryan
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The strategy map represents a major contribution to the theory and practice of performance management. However, it has failed to realize its full potential due to a lack of theoretical and conceptual development. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to revisit the theories of strategy maps to better understand how and in what circumstances they benefit performance management.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employs realist synthesis, a method of systematic literature review. A theory on how strategy maps work is extracted from performance management literature, which are subsequently evaluated through a critical examination of empirical studies.

Findings

A theory of how strategy maps are meant work is presented in relation to the generic performance management stages of problem structuring, development and use, where they can serve as a tool for discovery and by stimulating social interactions. Based on the findings, 12 propositions are offered related to the effective use of strategy maps within a performance management framework.

Research limitations/implications

The introduction of the strategy map to performance management represented a breakthrough in how organizational performance could be understood and communicated. This study goes a step further by considering how they work and in what circumstances. In so doing, the study aims to open the way for new and more effective applications of strategy maps within the changing performance management context.

Practical implications

This study provides practitioners with actionable propositions which can help in effectively using strategy maps.

Originality/value

Distinguishing the aims and mechanisms of the strategy map along performance management systems has the potential to greatly increase their effectiveness in practice as a powerful, but underutilized tool. This paper also demonstrates how realist synthesis, currently an uncommon method in management studies, facilitated the creation of a new perspective of strategy maps to fit specifically within performance management.
To what extent do quality procedures determine the performance of French SMEs?
Authors: Bannour Souad , Mtar Kais
Published: January 2019

Purpose

Although a considerable bulk of literature has focused on the relationship between the implementation of quality assurance certification and the corporate performance of companies, still few are the works devoted to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The purpose of this paper is to provide additional evidence for the impact of implementing quality assurance and control certificates on the performance of French SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

With a view to determining the effect of certification on the performance of 1,164 French SMEs, the study used the matching method as developed by D.B. Rubin (1974). The data mobilized is the fruit of matching the results of the IOC survey (the Organizational Change and Informatization) conducted in 2006 with data pertaining to the performance of companies as derived from DIANE files (Disk for Economic Analysis).

Findings

The empirical contribution of this study indicates the need of SMEs for implementing quality certificates to improve their turnover, increase their added value, increase their labor productivity and boost the productivity of financial capital.

Research limitations/implications

The paper has three main limitations. The first has to do with the choice of performance indicators. The paper is manly limited to the economic side of corporate performance. The second limitation is related to the origin of the data that covers only the year 2006. The study suffers from the time interval limit in which the relation between the implementation of the organizational innovations and the performance is tested. The third limitation concerns the generalization of results. The study was conducted on French SMEs, which limits the generalization of the results obtained.

Practical implications

Research findings have many implications on researchers and SME executives. For this latter, quality assurance system is perceived as a tool to maintain a competitive edge over competitors.

Originality/value

The paper aims to assess the impact of implementing quality certificates on the performance of French SMEs. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study examining the relationship between the implementation of a quality assurance certificate and the performance of a large sample of 1,164 French SMEs.
Impact of social commerce constructs and social support on social commerce intentions
Authors: Sheikh Zaryab , Yezheng Liu , Islam Tahir , Hameed Zahid , Khan Ikram Ullah
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of social commerce constructs (SCCs), social support and relationship quality on social commerce intentions, which lead to use behaviour of social networking sites for social commerce.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from 343 users of social networking sites in Pakistan. The data analysis was conducted using PLS-SEM.

Findings

The results show that SCCs have empowered consumers through the existence of virtual groups, ratings and reviews and recommendations and referrals, thereby having a significant impact on social commerce intentions. The relationship quality with social networking sites, measured through commitment, satisfaction and trust, also proved to be a leading forecaster of social commerce intentions. The impact of social support could not positively influence the relationship quality with the social networking site. However, social support influences the social commerce intentions significantly.

Research limitations/implications

Future research should enrich model with some moderating variables and data may be collected from actual online shoppers only.

Practical implications

This study provides valuable insights to retailers to formulate their social commerce strategies as per decision factors results to have maximum engagement of consumers in social commerce.

Originality/value

The study proposes the unique model for finding the social commerce intentions and use behaviour using social support theory, relationship marketing theory and information systems literature.
Explaining normative behavior in information technology use
Authors: Maity Moutusy , Bagchi Kallol , Shah Arunima , Misra Ankita
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify a model that provides explanations for normative behavior in information technology (IT) use, and to test the model across two different types of normative behavior (i.e. green information technology (GIT), and digital piracy (DP)).

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed model is based on the norm activation model (NAM) and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology model (UTAUT). A total of 374 and 360 usable responses were obtained for GIT and DP, respectively. The authors use the SEM technique in order to test the proposed model on the two sub-samples.

Findings

Findings from the proposed model show that DP users’ personal norm (PN) negatively impacts behavioral intention and actual behavior. These findings indicate that users of IT who indulge in DP understand that use of pirated software may not be a socially approved behavior but they still indulge in it because their PNs are not aligned with social expectations. GIT users’ PN positively impacts behavioral intention and actual behavior, and the relationship is stronger for behavioral intention than for actual behavior.

Research limitations/implications

The sample consists of college students and working professionals based in India who may be savvy with respect to internet use. Future work may evaluate whether the pattern of results that the authors report for normative behavior does hold across other types of normative behavior.

Practical implications

These findings hint at a gap between the moral compass and the final “action” taken by DP users. What managers need to do is to create awareness among their customers about the implementation of DP/GIT and help users engage in normative behavior.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the literature by integrating the UTAUT and the NAM to explain normative behavior of IT use. The authors propose and test a model that identifies cognitive as well as social-psychological motivations to explain normative behavior in IT use, which have been sparingly studied in extant literature, and provides a holistic understanding of the phenomenon. As such, this research contributes to the existing knowledge of understanding of normative IT behavior.
Linking improvisational behavior to customer satisfaction: the relational dynamics
Authors: Hultman Magnus , Yeboah-Banin Abena Animwaa , Boso Nathaniel
Published: January 2019

Purpose

Contemporary sales scholarship suggests that salespersons pursuing customer satisfaction should improvise (think and act on their feet) to find solutions to customers’ emergent problems. A missing link in this literature, however, is the relational context within which improvisation takes place and becomes effective. This study aims to examine how the tone of the salesperson–customer relationship (whether cordial or coercive) drives and conditions salesperson improvisation and its implications for customer satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

The study tests the proposed model using dyadic salesperson–customer data from business-to-business (B2B) markets in Ghana. The relationships are tested using structural equation modeling technique.

Findings

The study finds that salesperson improvisation is associated with customer satisfaction. It also finds the extent of cordiality between salespersons and their customers predicts but does not enhance the value of improvisation for customer satisfaction. The reverse is true for customer exercised coercive power which is not a significant driver of improvisation but can substantially alter its benefits for the worse.

Practical implications

By implication, salespersons should improvise more to be able to satisfy customers. However, such improvisation must be tempered with a consciousness of the relationship shared with customers and the level of power they exercise in the relationship.

Originality/value

Because improvised behavior deviates from routines and may be unsettling for customers, improvising salespersons must first understand whether their customers would be willing to accommodate such deviations. Yet, the literature is silent on this relational context surrounding improvisation. This study, by exploring facilitating and inhibitory relational variables implicated in improvisation, addresses this gap.
Socio-cultural barriers to developing a regional entrepreneurial ecosystem
Authors: Walsh Jacqueline , Winsor Blair
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a contextual analysis that helps explain how socio-cultural factors are negatively impacting the evolution of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in a struggling regional economy.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study method is used to provide a detailed contextual analysis triangulating primary and secondary data.

Findings

This paper provides insight into a region impeded from embracing the benefits of innovation-driven entrepreneurship in fostering economic development. The authors show that socio-cultural factors may be inhibiting the region from having a functional entrepreneurial ecosystem that can support innovation. Specific aspects of culture and social capital weaknesses are identified and insight into the potential causes of these impediments were offered. As well, the paper shows how the fundamental nature of culture may be affecting other elements of the entrepreneurial ecosystem from maturing.

Originality/value

This paper adds to a small, but growing, body of literature that is illustrating the evolutionary nature of entrepreneurial ecosystems and the significant impact of socio-cultural attributes to that evolution. This paper responds to calls to investigate contexts in which innovation does not thrive and where economic challenges prevail. The value of this research paper is to provide conceptual contributions in a contextual analysis from which other researchers can draw comparisons, insights and inspiration for similar approaches. Despite the abundance of research discussing the importance of culture, there are very few actual case studies showing concrete examples of culture and its influence on a region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Frontline Service Technology infusion: conceptual archetypes and future research directions
Authors: De Keyser Arne , Köcher Sarah , Alkire (née Nasr) Linda , Verbeeck Cédric , Kandampully Jay
Published: January 2019

Purpose

Smart technologies and connected objects are rapidly changing the organizational frontline. Yet, our understanding of how these technologies infuse service encounters remains limited. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to update existing classifications of Frontline Service Technology (FST) infusion. Moreover, the authors discuss three promising smart and connected technologies – conversational agents, extended reality (XR) and blockchain technology – and their respective implications for customers, frontline employees and service organizations.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses a conceptual approach integrating existing work on FST infusion with artificial intelligence, robotics, XR and blockchain literature, while also building on insights gathered through expert interviews and focus group conversations with members of two service research centers.

Findings

The authors define FST and propose a set of FST infusion archetypes at the organizational frontline. Additionally, the authors develop future research directions focused on understanding how conversational agents, XR and blockchain technology will impact service.

Originality/value

This paper updates and extends existing classifications of FST, while paving the road for further work on FST infusion.
Overthinkers, attention-seekers and wallflowers: peer perceptions of clinical anxiety disorders in adolescence
Authors: Hanlon Holly Rose , Swords Lorraine
Published: January 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate peer perceptions and stereotypes towards adolescents with clinical anxiety disorders.

Design/methodology/approach

The study utilised an exploratory qualitative design, using short vignettes to investigate perceptions of three clinical anxiety disorders (panic disorder, generalised anxiety disorder and social anxiety disorder) and a control scenario, situational stress. Responses were analysed using thematic analysis.

Findings

The results of the study suggest that previously established mental illness stereotypes (e.g. fear and dangerousness) may not be relevant to those with anxiety disorders, with perceptions of personal responsibility, weakness and social abnormality salient instead. These results suggest that stigma interventions should be tailored to disorder and age group.

Practical implications

Perceptions of weakness and blame have been associated with higher levels of discrimination, meaning people with anxiety disorders may be particularly vulnerable. Similarly, the negative social perceptions may be particularly damaging in adolescence, when successful peer relationships are vitally important. The results suggest specific stereotypes to target in stigma reduction campaigns for anxiety disorders, which may not being addressed by existing interventions.

Originality/value

There is a significant lack of research on both adolescent mental illness stigma in general, and anxiety stigma specifically. This study aimed to begin to address that gap, and found results that suggest, in line with previous work, that perceptions of blame may be more common for anxiety disorders, with negative social perceptions also reflecting the unique importance of peer relationships for adolescents. Further research should explore these stereotypes in more detail.
Age diversity management and organisational outcomes: The role of diversity perspectives
Authors: Ali Muhammad , French Erica
Published: January 2019

Several macro‐level and meso‐level factors have led to unprecedented proportions of aged employees in organisations, resulting in higher levels of age diversity. Little is known about which age diversity practices and programmes are effective in which types of organisations for which outcomes. Derived from social exchange theory, this paper proposes and tests positive relationships between age diversity practices and organisational outcomes and work‐life programmes and organisational outcomes. Derived from contingency theory, it also proposes and tests for a moderating effect of diversity perspective (fairness and discrimination vs. synergy) on the two main relationships. Data were collected from 248 medium to large‐sized for‐profit organisations. The results partially support both main effect hypotheses and one moderating effect hypothesis. The findings suggest different organisational outcomes for age diversity practices and work‐life programmes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Pembrolizumab for non‐small cell lung cancer with central nervous system metastases: A two‐case report
Authors: Di Mingyi , Zhang Li
Published: January 2019

Non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for up to 85% of all lung cancers. Central nervous system metastases are a common complication of NSCLC and confer a poor prognosis and a dismal survival rate. Treatment is limited, has poor outcomes, and affects patient quality of life. Pembrolizumab is an anti‐PD‐1 antibody that has shown good results for the management of NSCLC. However, its penetration of the central nervous system has not been well studied, and patients with untreated brain metastases are excluded from most clinical trials. Herein, we report two cases of NSCLC with brain metastases in patients successfully treated with pembrolizumab, and discuss the efficacy and safety of pembrolizumab in these patients. Pembrolizumab has shown good control and the patients have had long progression‐free survival with a high quality of life. Neither patient has experienced serious or grade 3–4 treatment‐related adverse events. Pembrolizumab demonstrates activity in brain metastases in NSCLC patients with an acceptable safety profile. Thus, there may be a role for systemic immunotherapy in patients with untreated or progressive brain metastases.