bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Eliminating short switching cycles when using hysteresis control of resistance spot welding systems
Authors: Černelič Jernej , Brezovnik Robert , Sukič Primož , Petrun Martin
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to present two hysteresis-control algorithms designed for medium-frequency, direct-current, resistance-spot-welding (MFDC RSW) systems. The first proposed control algorithm (MSCHC) eliminates the short switching cycles that can occur when using the existing hysteresis-control algorithms. This control minimises the number of switching cycles that are needed to generate the selected welding current. The welding-current ripple can be high when using this control algorithm. Therefore, a second algorithm (HCRR) is presented that reduces the welding-current ripple by half.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed hysteresis controllers consist of the transformer’s magnetic-flux-density hysteresis regulator and a welding-current hysteresis regulator. Therefore, the welding current must be measured and the saturation of the iron core must be detected. The proposed hysteresis controller supplies the inverter with the signals needed to generate the supply voltage for the RSW transformer, which then generates the selected welding current.

Findings

The proposed MSCHC algorithm produces the smallest possible number of switching cycles needed to generate the selected welding current. The high welding-current ripple can be reduced if the number of switching cycles is increased. The observed number of switching cycles and the welding-current ripple change if the welding resistance and/or inductance change.

Originality/value

The number of switching cycles can be minimised when using the first proposed control algorithm (MSCHC), and so the switching power losses can be minimised. If the welding-current ripple produced by the first control algorithm is unacceptable, the second control algorithm (HCRR) can reduce it by increasing the number of switching cycles.
A computational framework for a two-scale generalized/extended finite element method
Authors: Malekan Mohammad , Barros Felício , Pitangueira Roque Luiz da Silva , Alves Phillipe Daniel , Penna Samuel Silva
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to present a computational framework to generate numeric enrichment functions for two-dimensional problems dealing with single/multiple local phenomenon/phenomena. The two-scale generalized/extended finite element method (G/XFEM) approach used here is based on the solution decomposition, having global- and local-scale components. This strategy allows the use of a coarse mesh even when the problem produces complex local phenomena. For this purpose, local problems can be defined where these local phenomena are observed and are solved separately by using fine meshes. The results of the local problems are used to enrich the global one improving the approximate solution.

Design/methodology/approach

The implementation of the two-scale G/XFEM formulation follows the object-oriented approach presented by the authors in a previous work, where it is possible to combine different kinds of elements and analyses models with the partition of unity enrichment scheme. Beside the extension of the G/XFEM implementation to enclose the global–local strategy, the imposition of different boundary conditions is also generalized.

Findings

The generalization done for boundary conditions is very important, as the global–local approach relies on the boundary information transferring process between the two scales of the analysis. The flexibility for the numerical analysis of the proposed framework is illustrated by several examples. Different analysis models, element formulations and enrichment functions are used, and the accuracy, robustness and computational efficiency are demonstrated.

Originality/value

This work shows a generalize imposition of different boundary conditions for global–local G/XFEM analysis through an object-oriented implementation. This generalization is very important, as the global–local approach relies on the boundary information transferring process between the two scales of the analysis. Also, solving multiple local problems simultaneously and solving plate problems using global–local G/XFEM are other contributions of this work.
Macro-modeling of spot weld strength and failure
Authors: Chtourou Rim , Leconte Nicolas , Zouari Bassem , Chaari Fahmi , Markiewicz Eric , Langrand Bertrand
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to propose a macro modeling approach to simulate the mechanical behavior and the failure of spot welded joints in structural crashworthiness computations.

Design/methodology/approach

A connector element is proposed to simulate the behavior and failure of spot weld joints. An elastic-plastic damageable model is used to describe the non-linear response and rupture. The connector model involves several parameters that have to be defined. Some are directly identified based on mechanical interpretations and experimental tests characteristics. The remaining parameters are identified through a finite element model updating approach using Arcan tests. Resulting from a sensitivity analysis, an original two steps optimization methodology, using the Modes I and II Arcan tests results sequentially, has been implemented to identify the remaining model parameters.

Findings

The numerical results for Arcan tests in mixed Modes I/II are in a good agreement with the experimental ones. The model is also validated on tensile pull-out, single lap shear and coach-peel tests.

Originality/value

By comparison with previous published results, the proposed model brings a significant improvement. The main innovative aspects of this work are as follows: the proposed formulation, a reduced number of parameters to optimize, an original sequential optimization methodology based on physical and mechanical analyses and a mesh size independent connector element.
Parameter identification for a Cowper-Symonds material model using a genetic algorithm combined with a response surface
Authors: Škrlec Andrej , Klemenc Jernej
Published: March 2017

Purpose

In conditions where a product is subjected to extreme mechanical loading in a very short time, a strain rate has a significant influence on the behaviour of the product’s material. To accurately simulate the behaviour of the material during these loading conditions, the strain rate parameters of the selected material model should be appropriately used. This paper aims to present a fast method with which the proper strain-rate-dependent parameter values of the selected material model can be easily determined.

Design/methodology/approach

In the paper, an experiment was designed to study the behaviour of thin, flat, metal sheets during an impact. The results from this experiment were the basis for the determination of the strain-rate-dependent parameter values of the Cowper–Symonds material model. Optimisation processes with different numbers of required parameters of the selected material model were performed. The optimisation process consists of the method for design of experiment, modelling a response surface and a genetic algorithm.

Findings

The paper provides comparison of two optimisation processes with different methods for design of experiment. The performances of the presented method are compared and the engineering applicability of the results is discussed.

Originality/value

This paper presents a new fast approach for the identification of the parameter values of the Cowper–Symonds material model, if these cannot be easily determined directly from experimental data.
Multi-scale model updating of a timber footbridge using experimental vibration data
Authors: Castro-Triguero Rafael , Garcia-Macias Enrique , Saavedra Flores Erick , Friswell M.I. , Gallego Rafael
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to capture the actual structural behavior of the longest timber footbridge in Spain by means of a multi-scale model updating approach in conjunction with ambient vibration tests.

Design/methodology/approach

In a first stage, a numerical pre-test analysis of the full bridge is performed, using standard beam-type finite elements with isotropic material properties. This approach offers a first structural model in which optimal sensor placement (OSP) methodologies are applied to improve the system identification process. In particular, the effective independence (EFI) method is used to determine the optimal locations of a set of sensors. Ambient vibration tests are conducted to determine experimentally the modal characteristics of the structure. The identified modal parameters are compared with those values obtained from this preliminary model. To improve the accuracy of the numerical predictions, the material response is modeled by means of a homogenization-based multi-scale computational approach. In a second stage, the structure is modeled by means of three-dimensional solid elements with the above material definition, capturing realistically the full orthotropic mechanical properties of wood. A genetic algorithm (GA) technique is adopted to calibrate the micromechanical parameters which are either not well-known or susceptible to considerable variations when measured experimentally.

Findings

An overall good agreement is found between the results of the updated numerical simulations and the corresponding experimental measurements. The longitudinal and transverse Young's moduli, sliding and rolling shear moduli, density and natural frequencies are computed by the present approach. The obtained results reveal the potential predictive capabilities of the present GA/multi-scale/experimental approach to capture accurately the actual behavior of complex materials and structures.

Originality/value

The uniqueness and importance of this structure leads to an intensive study of its structural behavior. Ambient vibration tests are carried out under environmental excitation. Extraction of modal parameters is obtained from output-only experimental data. The EFI methodology is applied for the OSP on a large-scale structure. Information coming from several length scales, from sub-micrometer dimensions to macroscopic scales, is included in the material definition. The strong differences found between the stiffness along the longitudinal and transverse directions of wood lumbers are incorporated in the structural model. A multi-scale model updating approach is carried out by means of a GA technique to calibrate the micromechanical parameters which are either not well-known or susceptible to considerable variations when measured experimentally.
A constrained optimization solution for Caughey damping coefficients in seismic analysis
Authors: Pan Danguang , Li Chenfeng
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Extended from the classic Rayleigh damping model in structural dynamics, the Caughey damping model allows the damping ratios to be specified in multiple modes while satisfying the orthogonality conditions. Despite these desirable properties, Caughey damping suffers from a few major drawbacks: depending on the frequency distribution of the significant modes, it can be difficult to choose the reference frequencies that ensure reasonable values for all damping ratios corresponding to the significant modes; it cannot ensure all damping ratios are positive. This paper aims to present a constrained quadratic programming approach to address these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The new method minimizes the error of the structural displacement peak based on the response spectrum theory, while all modal damping ratios are constrained to be greater than zero.

Findings

Several comprehensive examples are presented to demonstrate the accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed method, and comparisons with existing approaches are provided whenever possible.

Originality/value

The proposed method is highly efficient and allows the damping ratios to be conveniently specified for all significant modes, producing optimal damping coefficients in practical applications.
Using BIM capabilities to improve existing building energy modelling practices
Authors: Gerrish Tristan , Ruikar Kirti , Cook Malcolm , Johnson Mark , Phillip Mark
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a review of the implications building information modelling (BIM) is having on the building energy modelling (BEM) and design of buildings. It addresses the issues surrounding exchange of information throughout the design process, and where BIM may be useful in contributing to effective design progression and information availability.

Design/methodology/approach

Through review of current design procedures and examination of the concurrency between architectural and thermophysical design modelling, a procedure for information generation relevant to design stakeholders is created, and applied to a high-performance building project currently under development.

Findings

The extents of information key to the successful design of a buildings energy performance in relation to its architectural objectives are given, with indication of the level of development required at each stage of the design process.

Practical implications

BIM offers an extensible medium for parametric information storage, and its implementation in design development offers the capability to include BEM parameter-integrated construction information. The extent of information required for accurate BEM at stages of a building’s design is key to understanding how best to record performance information in a BIM environment.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the discussion around the integration of concurrent design procedures and a common data environment. It presents a framework for the creation and dissemination of information during design, exemplifies this on a real building project and evaluates the barriers experienced in successful implementation.
Numerical study on free convection of cold water in a square porous cavity heated with sinusoidal wall temperature
Authors: Janagi K. , Sivasankaran S. , Bhuvaneswari M. , Eswaramurthi M.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The aim of the present study is to analyze the natural convection flow and heat transfer of cold water around °C in a square porous cavity. The horizontal walls of cavity are adiabatic, and the vertical walls are maintained at different temperatures. The right side wall is maintained at temperature θc, and the left side wall is maintained at sinusoidal temperature distribution.

Design/methodology/approach

The Brinkman–Forchheimer-extended Darcy model for porous medium is used to study the effects of density inversion parameter, Rayleigh number and impact of Darcy number and porosity. The finite volume method is used to solve the governing equations.

Findings

The heat transfer rate is increased on increasing the Darcy number and porosity. Also, the convective heat transfer rate is decreased first and then increased on increasing the density inversion parameter.

Research limitations/implications

The numerical computations have been carried out for the Darcy number ranging of 10(−4) ≤ Da ≤ 10(−1), the porosity ranging of 0.4 ≤ ε ≤ 0.8 and the density inversion parameter ranging of 0 ≤ Tm ≤ 1 and keeping Ra = 106.

Practical implications

The results can be used in the cooling of electronic components, thermal storage system and in heat exchangers.

Originality/value

The choice of consideration of sinusoidal heating and density maximum effect produces good result in flow field and temperature distribution. The obtained results can be used in various fields.
School leadership, social justice and immigration
Authors: Brooks Jeffrey S. , Normore Anthony H. , Wilkinson Jane
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore theoretical connections between educational leadership for social justice and support for immigration. The authors seek to identify strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for further study and improved practice.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a theoretical research paper that introduces, evaluates and expands two frameworks for understanding leadership and immigration.

Findings

Findings suggested that there is a need for educational leadership scholars to more purposefully investigate issues related to social justice and immigration.

Originality/value

This study offers a novel theoretical perspective on leadership, social justice and immigration.
Humanitarian healthcare: treating Syrian patients in Israeli hospitals
Authors: Young Savannah Spivey , Lewis Denise C. , Oshri Assaf , Gilbey Peter , Eisenman Arie , Schuster Richard J. , Seponski Desiree M.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the findings on interpersonal relational processes of Israeli healthcare providers (HCPs) and Syrian patients and caregivers using data collected in two Israeli hospitals.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a parallel mixed-methods design, data were integrated from observations, interviews, and surveys. In total, 20 HCPs and three Syrian patient caregivers provided interview data. Quantitative data were collected from 204 HCPs using surveys. The qualitative component included the phenomenological coding. The quantitative analysis included factor analysis procedures. Throughout parallel analysis, data were mixed dialogically to form warranted assertions.

Findings

Results from mixed analyses support a three-factor model representing the HCPs’ experiences treating Syrian patients. Factors were predicted by religious and occupational differences and included professional baseline, humanitarian insecurity, and medical humanitarianism.

Research limitations/implications

Limitations of this study included issues of power, language differences, and a small Syrian caregiver sample.

Practical implications

As the fearful, injured, and sick continue to flee violence and cross geopolitical borders, the healthcare community will be called upon to treat migrants and refugees according to ethical healthcare principles.

Originality/value

The value of this research is in its critical examination of the HCPs’ interactions with patients, a relationship that propels humanitarian healthcare in the face of a global migrant crisis.
Correcting malapropisms: strategies to bridge cultural and socioeconomic gaps
Authors: Berger Israel , Cartmill John A.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Although patients and lay people are often more knowledgeable about medical conditions than their predecessors, the dominant culture’s increased involvement in understanding their health and making treatment decisions does not translate into consistently more informed patients. High health literacy is associated with both improved health outcomes and receiving better quality-of-care. Low health literacy disproportionately affects people from marginalized ethnic and language groups. Regardless of how a particular clinician feels about a patient, malapropisms and mis-attributions may cause patients to appear less intelligent or to have lower perceived health literacy, potentially affecting their healthcare experiences with other clinicians. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper discusses the evidence for “up-skilling” patients and uses principles from conversation analysis to demonstrate how malapropisms can be corrected sensitively. Clinician training in skilled communication using the conversation analytic role-play method is also addressed.

Findings

Malapropisms are best corrected through modelling rather than calling attention to the error directly, as this allows the patient to save face. Explanations using drawings and clearly written materials may also be useful.

Originality/value

Helping patients to improve their communication with clinicians may lead to improved health outcomes through improved quality-of-care.
Nurses’ reciprocation of perceived organizational support: the moderating role of psychological contract breach
Authors: Islam Talat , Khan Mubbsher Munawar , Khawaja Fauzia Naheed , Ahmad Zulfqar
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The nursing profession demands emotional and psychological attachment to perform well. Nurses should not only engage in their work thoroughly, but also be willing to perform beyond their normal job descriptions. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of perceived organizational support (POS) in enhancing nurses work engagement (WE) and extra-role behavior (i.e. OCB).

Design/methodology/approach

This study used a questionnaire-based survey to collect data from 389 nurses.

Findings

The study found that the relationships among POS, WE, and citizenship behavior may further be explained through affective commitment (AC); whereas the association between POS and AC is moderated by the psychological contract breach.

Research limitations/implications

The data for this study was collected through self-reported questionnaires at one point of time. The implications for the policy makers are also discussed.

Originality/value

This study integrates job demand resource and social exchange theories in the healthcare sector to explain the nurses’ response to POS.
Emotional intelligence, leadership style and organizational climate
Authors: Maamari Bassem E. , Majdalani Joelle F.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the effect of emotional intelligence (EI) on the leader’s applied leadership style (mediator) and the effect of this style on the employees’ organizational citizenship (responsibility, reward and warmth and support).

Design/methodology/approach

The researchers are proposing a model that highlights the mediating role of leadership style on the relationship between leaders’ EI and employees’ feeling of organizational climate. The study follows the quantitative process. A survey is prepared for data collection and for statistically testing the proposed model.

Findings

The results show that the leaders’ EI does affect his/her leadership style. Moreover, the leaders’ style affects directly the respective employees’ feeling of organizational climate to varying levels. The variance between different styles is found to be small.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations of this study include the minimal cross-check interviews. The sample size’s limitation resulted in the researchers’ inability to compare the different sub-sectors of the economy (labelled as the type of work of the firm) to derive deeper conclusions by economic/business sector.

Practical implications

The study reveals a number of practical implications affecting communication, performance, stability and tenure, and thereby lower turnover.

Social implications

The social implications of this study include the social relationships within the work-setting, higher empathy and higher levels of norming as a direct result of improving the leader’s EI level.

Originality/value

The paper is based on a sample of respondents with a new model suggested and tested scientifically, following a rigorous process. It assesses the impact of both EI and organizational climate with leadership style.
Relations at workplace, cynicism and intention to leave
Authors: Abugre James B.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Although employee relations are recognised as important mechanisms for initiating organisational competitiveness and output, existing research has focused primarily on how these relations embed employees’ job and performance, rather than on the declining outcomes from such relations. This paper aims to integrate research on co-worker relations at workplace and cynicism with social exchange as a theoretical grounding to propose a process model that focuses on how employees’ positive relationship at workplace impacts negatively on their cynical behaviours in organisation leading to their intention to stay rather than their intention to leave.

Design/methodology/approach

This study offers a conceptual analysis and a review of the literature to explain employees’ behavioural intentions which may lead to their psychological threat or psychological safety in work organisations.

Findings

This work positions cynicism as psychological threat that moderates and predicts the likelihood that negative relations at workplace will actively engage employees’ intention to leave the organisation. Similarly, the model positions job satisfaction and commitment as psychological safety that predicts the likelihood that positive relations at workplace will engage employees’ intention to stay. The outcome of this study is the creation of a model which provides a comprehensive methodological framework for conducting behavioural research.

Research limitations/implications

This is a conceptual paper.

Practical implications

This study has major implications for managing and communicating with workers, as well as organisational socialisations and practices related to co-worker relations for effective human resource management practices from both managerial and practitioner perspective.

Originality/value

This work has been able to create a theoretical framework that provides an understanding for management to learn from its end-state competencies and contributions. By this, the model created would enable research to examine the empirical relationship between co-worker relations, cynicism and intention to leave. Thus, the contribution of this paper identifies the roles that management and organisational leadership can play in the practice of employee behavioural intentions.
The relationship between MNCs’ strategies and executive staffing
Authors: Lakshman Sangeetha , Lakshman C. , Estay Christophe
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship of business strategies with executive staffing of multinational companies (MNCs).

Design/methodology/approach

Based on in-depth interviews conducted with top executives of 22 MNCs’, the authors identify important connections between international business strategies and staffing orientation. The authors used the qualitative research approach of building theory from interviews; thus, creating theoretical propositions from empirical evidence.

Findings

The authors find that when the pressure for global integration is high, MNCs use more parent-country national (PCNs) (ethnocentric staffing) as against the use of host-country managers (HCNs) (polycentric staffing) when this pressure is low. Additionally, MNCs using a global strategy are more likely to use an ethnocentric staffing approach, those using a multi-domestic strategy use a polycentric approach and firms using transnational strategy adopt a mix of ethnocentric and polycentric approaches.

Research limitations/implications

Although the authors derive theoretical patterns based on rich qualitative data, their sample is relatively small and comprises mostly of French MNCs. Generalizability to a broader context is limited. However, the authors’ findings have critical implications for future research.

Practical implications

The authors’ findings provide critical managerial implications for MNCs in matching their HR strategies with business strategies. These are important for effective strategy implementation.

Originality/value

Although MNC staffing orientations have been studied for a long time, their relationship to international business strategies is still not clearly understood. The authors contribute to the literature by investigating the relationship between MNCs’ business strategy types with staffing orientations.
Optimization approach for increasing revenue of perishable product supply chain with the Internet of Things
Authors: Yan Rui
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to optimize a two-level perishable product supply chain by increasing its revenue with the Internet of Things (IoT). It particularly investigates how radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology impacts the revenue of the supply chain.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, two revenue models were built to calculate the revenue of perishable product supply chain before and after the application of IoT to analyze the influences of IoT on perishable product supply chain. In the case study, particular data of an aquatic product supply chain were analyzed through these models which were later solved by a computer simulation method based on Colonial Competitive Algorithm, a new heuristic algorithm inspired by imperialistic competition in human society.

Findings

Using these revenue models to compare the revenues of supply chain before and after the application of IoT, this paper concludes that the application of IoT can efficiently optimize a perishable product supply chain by balancing its wholesale profits and its total costs including logistics costs, therefore, increasing its overall revenue. However, this conclusion is only applicable for large enterprises, while small enterprises are not supposed to introduce IoT due to its high cost.

Originality/value

The revenue models built in this paper can be used to evaluate the profits of supply chain and help enterprises determine how to maximize their profits and whether they should introduce IoT in a perishable product supply chain. In addition, through the analysis of case study, this paper gives several valuable suggestions to help enterprises reduce their logistics costs and increase their overall revenue.
IoT-based framework for performance measurement
Authors: Rezaei Mahdi , Akbarpour Shirazi Mohsen , Karimi Behrooz
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop an Internet of Things (IoT)-based framework for supply chain (SC) performance measurement and real-time decision alignment. The aims of the proposed model are to optimize the performance indicator based on integrated supply chain operations reference metrics.

Design/methodology/approach

The SC multi-dimensional structure is modeled by multi-objective optimization methods. The operational presented model considers important SC features thoroughly such as multi-echelons, several suppliers, several manufacturers and several products during multiple periods. A multi-objective mathematical programming model is then developed to yield the operational decisions with Pareto efficient performance values and solved using a well-known meta-heuristic algorithm, i.e., non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II. Afterward, Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution method is used to determine the best operational solution based on the strategic decision maker’s idea.

Findings

This paper proposes a dynamic integrated solution for three main problems: strategic decisions in high level, operational decisions in low level and alignment of these two decision levels.

Originality/value

The authors propose a human intelligence-based process for high level decision and machine intelligence-based decision support systems for low level decision using a novel approach. High level and low level decisions are aligned by a machine intelligence model as well. The presented framework is based on change detection, event driven planning and real-time decision alignment.
Open innovation search in manufacturing firms: the role of organizational slack and absorptive capacity
Authors: Wang Yueqi , Guo Bin , Yin Yanjie
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explore organizational factors that act as antecedents of open innovation search. The authors aim to empirically examine whether the extent to which the organizational slack is absorbed determines its influence on firms’ openness in innovation search. In addition, the authors also examine the moderating effect of absorptive capacity on the relationship between slack and open innovation search.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted secondary data from multiple sources (NBER, Compustat and US census) and then constructed a ten-year balanced panel dataset of 298 manufacturers. The generalized least square method was used to explore the determinants of open innovation search among manufacturing firms.

Findings

The results of this study reveal that the absorption level of organizational slack indeed determines the openness in innovation search. Specifically, absorbed slack negatively affects a firm’s openness in innovation search, whereas unabsorbed slack promotes open innovation search. Additionally, the relationship between absorbed slack and open innovation search will be less negative with the increase of absorptive capacity.

Originality/value

Different from most previous studies that have examined the performance effect of open search among high-tech and large enterprises, this study focuses on the antecedents of open search strategy in both high- and low-tech, large and small firms. The findings reveal that different forms of organizational slack divergently influence a firm’s open search strategy, contributing to the understanding of the relationship between organizational slack and knowledge search behavior in a broader context, as well as the understanding of the moderating effect of absorptive capacity.
Global ranking of knowledge management and intellectual capital academic journals: 2017 update
Authors: Serenko Alexander , Bontis Nick
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to update a global ranking of 27 knowledge management and intellectual capital (KM/IC) academic journals.

Design/methodology/approach

The ranking was developed based on a combination of results from a survey of 482 active KM/IC researchers and journal citation impact indices.

Findings

The ranking list includes 27 currently active KM/IC journals. The A+ journals are the Journal of Knowledge Management and the Journal of Intellectual Capital. The A journals are the Learning Organization, Knowledge Management Research & Practice, Knowledge and Process Management, VINE: The Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems and International Journal of Knowledge Management. A majority of recently launched journals did not fare well in the ranking. Whereas a journal’s longevity is important, it is not the only factor affecting its ranking position. Expert survey and citation impact measures are relatively consistent, but expert survey ranking scores change faster.

Practical implications

KM/IC discipline stakeholders, including practitioners, editors, publishers, reviewers, researchers, students, administrators and librarians, may consult the developed ranking list for various purposes. Compared to 2008, more researchers indicated KM/IC as their primary area of concentration, which is a positive indicator of discipline development.

Originality/value

This is the most recent ranking list of KM/IC academic journals.
The role of trust in corporate social responsibility and worker relationships
Authors: Gaudencio Pedro , Coelho Arnaldo , Ribeiro Neuza
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to show how organizational corporate social responsibility (CSR) can influence workers’ attitudes and behaviors, especially in terms of affective commitment (AC), job satisfaction (JS), and turnover intention (TI). A second aim is to explore the social exchange process that may underlie this relationship, by examining the mediating role of organizational trust (OT).

Design/methodology/approach

The authors employ structural equation modeling based on survey data obtained from 315 Portuguese individuals.

Findings

The findings show that perceptions of CSR predict workers’ attitudes and behaviors directly through the mediating role of OT. They suggest that managers should implement CSR practices because these can contribute toward fostering OT, improving workers’ AC and JS, and reducing TI.

Originality/value

This study enriches the existing knowledge about social exchange relationships in organizational contexts, and responds to the need to understand underlying mechanisms linking CSR with workers’ organizational outcomes, by analyzing CSR practices in a holistic stakeholder perspective.
Organizational factors and process capabilities in a KM strategy: toward a unified theory
Authors: Valaei Naser , Nikhashemi S.R. , Javan Nariman
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of knowledge management (KM) enablers on KM activities in the context of Malaysian small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The effects of organizational culture, transformational leadership, organizational structure, and technology utilization as infrastructural KM enablers are examined on KM activities as knowledge acquisition, knowledge conversion, application, and protection.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 227 responses from SMEs’ top management are used to assess the measurement and structural models applying partial least squares-structural equation modeling.

Findings

The results show that technology utilization and organizational structure are two main factors in KM activities (all structural relationships are supported). Surprisingly, organizational culture is only associated with knowledge conversion and protection and the findings indicate no relationships between organizational culture and knowledge acquisition and application. The results also indicate a positive relationship between transformational leadership and knowledge acquisition and the hypotheses on the association between transformational leadership and knowledge conversion, application, and protection are rejected.

Practical implications

The results of importance-performance map analysis (IPMA) imply that technology utilization has the highest importance on knowledge acquisition, conversion, and protection while organizational structure has the highest importance on knowledge application. The results of IPMA also show that organizational culture has the highest performance on all KM activities.

Originality/value

This study is amongst the few that examines the structural relationships between organizational factors and KM activities in a SME context.
Analysing supply chain resilience: integrating the constructs in a concept mapping framework via a systematic literature review
Authors: Ali Abubakar , Mahfouz Amr , Arisha Amr
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the concept of supply chain resilience (SCRES) within a concept mapping framework to seek conceptual clarity, with an emphasis on SCRES definitions, essential elements and managerial practices.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature review was conducted of 103 peer-reviewed journal articles from the year 2000 to 2015, with the aim of answering a focus review question.

Findings

Through analysis and synthesis of the literature, the study revealed three major constructs used to define SCRES: phases of resilience, resilience strategies and the capabilities needed to be resilient. Emerging from the capabilities construct are five core SCRES capabilities: the ability to anticipate, to adapt, to respond, to recover and to learn. Also, given the need to consolidate the various constructs of SCRES, the study identified 13 essential elements and 84 managerial practices that support firms to achieve the five capabilities, which are then linked to SCRES strategies and phases to establish the connections that provide an integrated view of the concept.

Research limitations/implications

The explorative nature of this study and the role of the concept mapping framework, which does not empirically test the relationships in the model, are considered as limitations, to be addressed by the authors in future research.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper lies in the classification of different features of SCRES through a comprehensive concept mapping framework that establishes relationships and interactions between them. This study, therefore, lays a foundation for testing these connections in future empirical studies. The paper brings together fragmented literature from multiple studies to create a solid body of knowledge that addresses the need for conceptual clarity in SCRES literature.
Alexander of Telese's Encomium of Capua and the Formation of the Kingdom of Sicily
Authors: OLDFIELD PAUL
Published: March 2017

Having been promoted to royal status in 1130, Roger II of Sicily sought to bind a set of disparate territories into one kingdom covering mainland southern Italy and Sicily. Scholarship has devoted much space to identifying Roger's royal strategy in its embryonic and contested state of the 1130s – with views ranging from tyrannical authoritarianism to control via negotiation and consensus – and also to pinpointing some of the major turning points which led to the creation of the Sicilian monarchy. This article aims to contribute to this body of scholarship by examining an undervalued passage in the Ystoria Rogerii Regis Sicilie Calabrie atque Apulie of Abbot Alexander of Telese, a contemporary work of indispensable value for any understanding of the formation of a monarchy that changed the shape of South Italian history thereafter. The passage in question, an encomium of Capua, points towards Roger's capture of that city in the summer of 1134 as a controversial and pivotal event in the political and ideological formation of the new kingdom. In Alexander of Telese's important construction it was at Capua that Roger truly began acting as a king.
THE TIES THAT BLIND US
Authors: Brands Raina
Published: March 2017

The structure of your team affects how you perceive its leader, according to research by Raina Brands
STEREOTYPING: THE UNIVERSAL PERFORMANCE KILLER
Authors: Rattan Aneeta
Published: March 2017

We all expect to be judged on merit, and nothing else. And most of the time, that's what happens. But Aneeta Rattan's research reveals an insidious breed of bias that affects us all
HOW TO GO FROM GOOD TO GREAT
Authors: Peterson Randall S
Published: March 2017

What turns a manager into a leader? Randall S Peterson suggests some answers
Monitoring retinoschisis and non‐acute retinal detachment by optical coherence tomography: morphologic aspects and clinical impact
Authors: Eibenberger Katharina , Sacu Stefan , Rezar‐Dreindl Sandra , Pöcksteiner Julia , Georgopoulos Michael , Schmidt‐Erfurth Ursula
Published: March 2017

Purpose

To differentiate retinoschisis (RS) from non‐acute retinal detachment (naRD) in clinical routine using optical coherence tomography (OCT), describe unique morphological OCT characteristics and monitor disease progression.

Methods

This prospective, observational study included 64 eyes of 44 patients with either RS or naRD. Patients were examined clinically and using Heidelberg Spectralis OCT®, Topcon DRI OCT® and Cirrus HRA‐OCT® over 2 years with follow‐up at 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months. Main outcomes were typical morphologic findings of RS and naRD described in OCT. Progression was monitored using Spectralis OCT® follow‐up mapping and an eye‐tracking method.

Results

Forty‐seven eyes were diagnosed with RS and 17 with naRD. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) provided a definite diagnosis in four eyes diagnosed clinically as uncertain. Seventy‐seven percentage of eyes with RS were atrophic in the inner leaf (IL), whereas 41% with naRD showed cystoid alteration. A discontinuation of the IL clinically observed as an inner‐layer break (ILB) could be imaged. We described a tissue retraction within the outer leaf (OL), which corresponded to outer‐layer breaks (OLBs) in clinical examinations in nine eyes (19%).

Conclusion

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a reliable method to differentiate and monitor RS from naRD. Morphological characteristics, including ILB and OLB, could be accurately illustrated in RS.
Laparoscopic resection of retroperitoneal ectopic thyroid tissue
Authors: Tamaki Sawako , Miyakura Yasuyuki , Someya Soutoku , Ishikawa Hideki , Kakizawa Nao , Hasegawa Fumi , Tanaka Hiroyuki , Kikugawa Rina , Tsujinaka Shingo , Tanaka Akira , Lefor Alan Kawarai , Rikiyama Toshiki
Published: March 2017

A 43‐year‐old otherwise healthy woman was found to have a retroperitoneal mass during a routine medical examination and was referred for further evaluation. Abdominal CT scan showed a well‐delineated, low‐density area that exhibited heterogeneous contrast enhancement. The area measured about 20 mm in size and was to the left of the aorta at the level of the inferior mesenteric artery. MRI showed a mass with heterogeneous hypointensity on T1‐weighted images and heterogeneous hyperintensity on T2‐weighted images. PET‐CT scan showed slightly increased 18F‐fluorodeoxyglucose accumulation within the mass. Laparoscopic resection was performed. A smooth, brownish mass was seen in the retroperitoneum and was resected with minimal blood loss. Histopathological examination showed a nodular mass measuring 40 × 26 × 20 mm that was composed solely of ectopic thyroid tissue. This case shows the exceptional development of ectopic thyroid in the infradiaphragmatic retroperitoneum and demonstrates the usefulness of laparoscopy for resecting such masses.
Transcriptional network analysis in frontal cortex in Lewy body diseases with focus on dementia with Lewy bodies
Authors: Santpere Gabriel , Garcia‐Esparcia Paula , Andres‐Benito Pol , Lorente‐Galdos Belen , Navarro Arcadi , Ferrer Isidro
Published: March 2017

The present study investigates global transcriptional changes in frontal cortex area 8 in incidental Lewy Body disease (iLBD), Parkinson disease (PD) and Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). We identified different coexpressed gene sets associated with disease stages, and gene ontology categories enriched in gene modules and differentially expressed genes including modules or gene clusters correlated to iLBD comprising upregulated dynein genes and taste receptors, and downregulated innate inflammation. Focusing on DLB, we found modules with genes significantly enriched in functions related to RNA and DNA production, mitochondria and energy metabolism, purine metabolism, chaperone and protein folding system and synapses and neurotransmission (particularly the GABAergic system). The expression of more than fifty selected genes was assessed with real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Our findings provide, for the first time, evidence of molecular cortical alterations in iLBD and involvement of several key metabolic pathways and gene hubs in DLB which may underlie cognitive impairment and dementia.
A Small‐Scale Randomized Efficacy Trial of the Identity Project: Promoting Adolescents’ Ethnic–Racial Identity Exploration and Resolution
Authors: Umaña‐Taylor Adriana J. , Douglass Sara , Updegraff Kimberly A. , Marsiglia Flavio F.
Published: March 2017

Adolescents’ ethnic–racial identity (ERI) formation represents an important developmental process that is associated with adjustment. The Identity Project intervention, grounded in developmental theory, was designed to engage adolescents in the ERI processes of exploration and resolution. The current small‐scale efficacy trial involved an ethnic–racially diverse sample of adolescents (N = 215; Mage = 15.02, SD = .68) from eight classrooms that were randomly assigned by classroom to the intervention or attention control group. Differences between conditions in ERI exploration at Time 2 were consistent with desired intervention effects; furthermore, higher levels of ERI exploration at Time 2 predicted increases in ERI resolution at Time 3 only for youth in the treatment condition. Findings provide preliminary evidence of program efficacy.
Associations Between Household Food Insecurity in Early Childhood and Children's Kindergarten Skills
Authors: Johnson Anna D. , Markowitz Anna J.
Published: March 2017

Using nationally representative data on a recent birth cohort of U.S.‐born children in low‐income households (n = 2,800–3,700), this study investigates associations between the timing and intensity of early childhood food insecurity and children's kindergarten reading, math, and social‐emotional outcomes. Descriptive patterns reveal that approximately 20% of low‐income 0‐ to 5‐year‐old children reside in food‐insecure households. Food insecurity experienced during early childhood is unfavorably associated with social‐emotional outcomes in kindergarten, controlling for household income and prior assessments of child social‐emotional skills. Results are less consistent for cognitive outcomes but similar in magnitude. If replicated, findings may inform policy efforts to reduce disparities in early skills for approximately 15 million U.S. children in food‐insecure households.