bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Gender diversity in employees and discretionary accruals: the Korean evidence
Authors: Kim Hyun Ah , Jeong Seok Woo
Published: June 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the relation between gender diversity in employees and earnings quality. Specifically, how gender diversity among full-time and part-time employees is associated with discretionary accruals in Korea is examined.

Design/methodology/approach

The author analyzes the association between women ratio among full-time (part-time) employees and discretionary accruals by using 3,687 firm-years of Korean listed companies from 2010 to 2012. The regression model used in Barua et al. (2010) is adopted. The dependent variables, the absolute value of discretionary accruals, are proxied by the Modified Jones Model of Dechow et al. (1995) and the Performance Matched Model of Kothari et al. (2005).

Findings

First, a higher ratio of women among full-time workers is related to lower discretionary accruals, whereas that of part-time female employees is not related to discretionary accruals. Second, the effect of gender diversity in employees varies depending on the possibility of earnings management. Third, the results are robust with sample firm-years without female executives, thereby suggesting that the results are not driven by the existence of female executives, and robust to accounting standards and firm-year clustering.

Originality/value

This paper expands the understanding about the determination of discretionary accruals by demonstrating the impact of full-time female employees on earnings quality. Previous studies demonstrated that female workers are more ethical in the workplace, and the quality of accounting information disclosed by firms with female CFOs or directors, i.e. high ranking officers, is higher. It is observed that accounting information quality is higher when firms simply have more female workers, regardless of their relative position in the firm. This complements the results of previous studies and indicates gender diversity among employees is a sign of accounting information quality.
Nexus between financial literacy and financial inclusion
Authors: Bongomin George Okello Candiya , Munene John C. , Ntayi Joseph Mpeera , Malinga Charles Akol
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Premised on the argument that cognition structures the way how individuals think and make decisions, the purpose of this paper is to test the interaction effect of cognition in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used cross-sectional research design and quantitative data were collected and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Baron and Kenny guidelines were adopted to test for existence of moderating effect of cognition in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda. Furthermore, ModGraph excel software was used to establish the magnitude of moderating effect of cognition in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda.

Findings

The results revealed that cognition significantly moderate the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda. In addition, both cognition and financial literacy also have direct effects on financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda.

Research limitations/implications

The study adopted cross-sectional research design and data were collected by use of only questionnaires. Future studies through longitudinal research design may be employed. Besides, further studies using interviews may be adopted. Furthermore, this study collected data from only tier 3 financial institutions, thus, ignoring the other financial institutions. Future studies could focus on financial institutions under the other tiers.

Practical implications

The findings from the study enlightens policy-makers, managers of financial institutions, and financial inclusion advocates on the importance of cognition in enhancing financial literacy among the poor, especially in rural Uganda. Cognition combined with financial literacy helps the poor to make wise financial decisions and choices toward consuming financial services and products provided by formal financial institutions. This leads to increased scope of financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda. Therefore, advocates of financial literacy should assess community cultural cognition and utilize them to design and fashion effective financial literacy interventions that can promote financial inclusion.

Originality/value

The study uses Baron and Kenny and ModGraph excel software to test for the interaction effect of cognition in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural Uganda. While several studies exist worldwide on financial inclusion, this study is the first to test the interaction effect of cognition in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of the poor in rural areas in a developing country context.
On the theorization of lesson study and learning study
Authors: Wood Keith
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an introduction of the papers in the current issue.

Design/methodology/approach

By revealing contrasting features of alternative theories of learning, this paper offers a contribution to the on-going discussion about the role of learning theory in Japanese lesson study and its global adaptations.

Findings

Attempts to theorize lesson study in contrast to the theory-based learning study reveal a fundamental difference in the learning theories used to underpin this task related to the different world views on which they are founded.

Originality/value

This paper review provides an overview of the insights into lesson and learning studies provided by the authors in this issue of the journal.
Customers’ perception of service quality of banking sectors in Bangladesh
Authors: Rouf Md. Abdur , Kamal Mostafa , Iqbal Mohammed Masum
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The main purpose of the study is to find out the customer perception of service quality of banking sectors in Bangladesh and measure their relations with regard to the customer personal characteristics like gender, age, education and occupation.

Design/methodology/approach

The research method applied in this study is random sampling survey method. The data are analysed using descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, t-test and f-test.

Findings

The findings indicate that the overall customer perception is neutral level. Aspect like gender, age and occupation are found to be statistically significant, and education is not statistically significant.

Originality/value

The findings of the study will be a benchmark or the board for policymakers and implementers in torching the avenues of improvement in raising the level of customer satisfaction.
Planners as leaders: finding their comfort zone
Authors: Johnson Bonnie J.
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Planners are expected to leave leadership to elected officials. Yet, they are often asked to do more. Should planners lead? The purpose of this paper is to examine how leadership is seen in the profession and then outline major theories of leadership and planning.

Design/methodology/approach

Using content analysis, the major theories of planning and descriptions of what planners do from professional planning organizations’ codes of ethics from around the world are compared.

Findings

Results indicate that new ways of thinking about leadership (Group leadership, Servant, Adaptive, Authentic and Followership) can help planners find leadership styles that fit their comfort zones better than old leadership definitions emphasizing heroic individuals.

Originality/value

Existing literature regarding leadership in planning indicates that planners must run for office if they are to lead. This examination of planners’ codes of ethics and newer theories of leadership indicates they can be leaders and operate well within current ethical boundaries.
Improving the tie force method for progressive collapse design of RC frames
Authors: Naji Arash
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to recover the deficiency of existing tie force (TF) methods by considering the decrease in section strength due to cracking and by selecting limit state of collapse according to section properties.

Design/methodology/approach

A substructure is selected by isolating the connected beams from the entire structure. For interior joints, the TFs in the orthogonal beams are obtained by catenary action. For corner joints, the TFs are assessed by beam action. For edge joints, however, the resistance is gained by greater of the resistance under catenary action for periphery beams and beam action for all the connecting beams in both directions. For catenary action, the TF capacities must satisfy Equation (20). On the other hand, for beam action, the TF must satisfy Equation (16), while R is calculated from Equation (17). In the case where the length of the connecting beams is similar, Equation (19) can be used.

Findings

Closed form solutions are available for TFs on both beam and catenary stages.

Originality/value

The proposed formulation makes designing more practical and convenient. However, the proposed formulation had good agreement with experimental results.
Porous exponential slider bearings lubricated with MHD-couple stress fluid
Authors: Naduvinamani N.B. , Hosmani Shridevi S.
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) effect on porous exponential slider bearings lubricated with couple stress fluid and to derive the modified Reynolds’s equation for non-Newtonian fluid under various operating conditions to obtain the optimum bearing parameters.

Design/methodology/approach

Based upon the MHD theory and Stokes theory for couple stress fluid, the governing equations relevant to the problem under consideration are derived. This paper analyzes the effect on porous exponential slider bearings with an electrically conducting fluid in the presence of a transverse magnetic field. Semi-numerical solutions are obtained and discussed.

Findings

It is found that there is an increase in the load carrying capacity, frictional force and decrease in the co-efficient of friction in porous bearings due to the presence of magnetic effects with couple stress fluid.

Originality/value

This study is relatively original and gives the MHD effect on porous exponential slider bearings lubricated with couple stress fluid. The author believes that the paper presents these results for the first time.
Expectation as a key determinant of international students’ satisfaction
Authors: Beloucif Ahmed , Mehafdi Messaoud , Komey Naa Ayeley
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore international postgraduate students’ expectations of UK university education, covering various aspects of student expectation at a leading business school in Scotland. The authors present in this paper the findings from the qualitative stage of this study, offering a fresh insight into the factors that influence students’ expectations of postgraduate university education and the impact this has on the students’ satisfaction with their courses.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative inquiry was adopted, collecting primary data by means of semi-structured interviews of business school international students enroled in different taught 12-month MSc courses.

Findings

International students are found to have high expectations of improved job prospects after graduating from their chosen UK university, underlined mainly by the university’s reputation for improving student employability. The most significant a priori factors that form students’ expectations are word of mouth, recommendations and the students’ belief in the calibre of lecturers and the quality of the facilities.

Research limitations/implications

The students are universities’ most important customers in an increasingly competitive and financially constrained UK higher education environment. Theoretically, the study contributes to the growing literature in this challenging environment not only by identifying the components of international postgraduate students’ expectations but also by exploring how the expectations can be met or exceeded to improve students’ satisfaction. Future research can also replicate this study to other subject areas and draw the similarities and differences that may exist in the expectations of non-business international MSc students.

Practical implications

Practically, this study’s findings should help university students’ recruitment and engagement services develop tailored marketing strategies to better manage international students’ expectations, for example, by being more proactive in embedding employability into postgraduate education provision. Moreover, the findings can also be drawn upon to improve the design and delivery of taught MSc courses in order to meet and exceed the expectations of prospective international postgraduate students.

Originality/value

This research offers a fresh insight and contributes to the understanding of international students’ expectations and their satisfaction of university education services.
Poisoning expertise and outcomes in malicious contamination incidents
Authors: Kilbane Sarah
Published: June 2018

Purpose

It is often assumed that poisoners and product tamperers are likely to share an interest in or knowledge of poisonous substances. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether perpetrators with existing poison knowledge will choose different contaminating agents than non-experts, as well as whether there is a link between poison expertise and outcomes in malicious contamination cases. Based on their expertise, it is expected that those perpetrators with some form of existing poison knowledge would select more concerning and difficult to obtain agents, and that attacks committed by experts would result in more harm than attacks by non-experts.

Design/methodology/approach

A content analysis was conducted on qualitative descriptions of malicious contamination events, with relevant behavioural variables identified as being present or absent for each individual case. Differences between experts and non-experts in agent choice and incident outcome were then explored using descriptive statistics, contingency tables and Mann-WhitneyUtests.

Findings

Agent choice was found to differ between experts and non-experts, with different agents chosen depending on whether the event was a threat or a genuine contamination incident. However, attacks by poison experts were found to be no more deadly than attacks perpetrated by non-experts.

Originality/value

This research provides the first known analysis comparing agent choice and outcomes in malicious contamination incidents as a factor of perpetrator knowledge. Investigative applications are discussed.
The impact of a brief structured intervention on young offenders masculine identity: a mixed methods study
Authors: Blagden Nicholas , Perrin Christian
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Masculinity in young men can be considered a dynamic risk factor. However, there is a lack of interventions designed to support men and young men to explore the ways in which the concept of masculinity contributes to shaping their individual identity. The purpose of this paper is to explore young offenders’ perceptions of a programme designed to address masculinity and criminogenic attitudes and evaluate whether the programme contributed to any personal change/development and what core learning they took from the course.

Design/methodology/approach

The research utilised a mixed-methods approach to address aims and objectives.

Findings

The quantitative results found that there was a pre-/post-course reduction in toughness and increase in self-esteem and risk-taking perceptions. The qualitative results identified four superordinate themes reconstruing masculine self-realisation awareness and reflection group dynamics and course relationships and unintended consequences. The course-assisted participants in helping to reconstrue aspects of being a man made them think about the future and allowed for participants to consider their possible and desired selves.

Research limitations/implications

The research has policy and practice implications for brief interventions targeted at young offenders.

Originality/value

The research evaluates a novel intervention aimed at addressing young offenders masculine beliefs and identities. The research has implications for working with this client group.
The sequencing of interventions with offenders: views of offender managers and supervisors
Authors: Stephenson Zoe , Woodhams Jessica , Harkins Leigh
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the views and opinions of offender supervisors and offender managers regarding the sequencing of interventions for prisoners in England. More specifically, the research aims to gain an understanding of any barriers to implementing desired practice.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten participants located across four HM prisons in the West Midlands. Questions were designed to gather information and views regarding: current practice in the area of sequencing of interventions; opinions on the potential importance of coherent sequencing of interventions; views on how interventions should be sequenced; and what, if any, issues impacted upon coherent sequencing. Thematic analysis was used to identify, analyse and report themes within the interviews.

Findings

Participants discussed current practice regarding the sequencing of interventions and made suggestions regarding tailoring the sequence of interventions to the individual offender. The issue of readiness to change was emphasised (i.e. engagement with interventions will increase where offenders are able to participate in an intervention when they feel ready to do so). In addition, participants commented that they felt there to be insufficient resources at their disposal which led to barriers to the coherent sequencing of interventions (e.g. waiting lists for treatment programmes).

Practical implications

Suggestions were made by participants regarding the coherent sequencing of interventions; for example, providing prisoners with experience of a generic group intervention prior to an offence-specific intervention, prioritising motivation to change and being responsive to the needs of individual offenders.

Originality/value

The study provides insight regarding the sequencing of interventions from the perspective of offender supervisors and offender managers who are involved in the planning of treatment programmes across the course of an offender’s sentence.
How do destination Facebook pages work? An extended TPB model of fans’ visit intention
Authors: Leung Xi Y. , Jiang Lan
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose and test an extended theory of planned behavior model (TPB) to explain how following destination Facebook pages impacts travelers’ visit intention.

Design/methodology/approach

The study asked 252 participants to follow a destination’s Facebook page for three months before they completed the survey. An integrative model combining theory of planned behavior, social influence theory and attitude toward the ad was proposed. Partial least squares structural equation model (PLS-SEM) was used in testing the proposed model.

Findings

The findings indicated that the three social influences (compliance, identification and internalization) all significantly impacted visit intention both directly and mediated by subjective norm. Facebook page experience also significantly influenced visit intention mediated by perceived behavioral control. However, both attitude toward the destination and attitude toward messages were not significantly associated with visit intention.

Practical implications

The findings of this study revealed important practical implications for destination marketing organizations (DMOs) to leverage Facebook marketing. Specifically, DMOs should pay extra attention to the social influence of Facebook pages, especially identification, and also use Facebook pages to reduce perceived behavioral control of potential visitors.

Originality/value

This study was one of the first attempts to explore the factors influencing visit intention of destination Facebook fans based on an extended TPB model. The study also contributed to the literature of using PLS-SEM in predicting behavioral intention through a reflective-formative higher-order model.
The effect of leadership in the development of innovation capacity
Authors: Gil Alfonso J. , Rodrigo-Moya Beatriz , Morcillo-Bellido Jesús
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the impact of leadership on culture and on the structure of learning, and of these two constructs on the innovation capacity.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative study utilising a survey was carried out. By means of an ad hoc questionnaire, educational administrators were asked about some characteristics of their organisations. The authors have proven the model of research through a model of structural equations, that is, by means of the partial least squares technique.

Findings

The hypothesis is confirmed that leadership affects culture and learning structure, and both impact on the innovation capacity of schools.

Practical implications

This work addresses the role of three critical aspects in the management of educational organisations—leadership, culture and structure—in the development of innovation that is essential in improving organisational development.

Originality/value

The role of leadership in the development of favourable conditions for innovation is verified, as is the impact of these conditions on the innovation capacity of educational organisations.
Risk management behaviour in banking
Authors: Sheedy Elizabeth , Lubojanski Martin
Published: June 2018

Purpose

Risk management is now considered the responsibility of all financial services professionals, not just senior leaders or risk specialists. Very little is known about the role of staff in risk management, so the purpose of this paper is to, first, clarify what constitutes “desirable” risk management behaviour by financial services staff based on the practitioner and regulatory literature. Based on this understanding, the authors analyse the characteristics of those who are most likely to display such behaviour.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper analyses some 36,000 survey responses across ten banks headquartered in Anglo countries.

Findings

Desirable risk management behaviour at the employee level includes compliance but goes well beyond mere compliance to include speaking up, thoughtful engagement with and accountability for the risk management framework. The authors find a significant negative association between individual risk tolerance and desirable risk management behaviour. Older workers as well as those with greater seniority are more likely to report desirable risk management behaviour. The link between female gender and risk management behaviour is not supported after controlling for individual risk attitudes. The authors provide evidence that females who succeed in financial services do not conform to traditional female stereotypes.

Practical implications

Findings suggest financial institutions should hire/retain more older workers and those with lower risk tolerance to improve risk management. Hiring more females, however, is not likely to lead to better risk management.

Originality/value

The paper is the first to investigate risk management behaviour in financial services staff. The research exploits a unique, difficult to obtain data set.
Identification of a major glucose transporter in Flavobacterium johnsoniae: Inhibition of F. johnsoniae colony spreading by glucose uptake
Authors: Imamura Keigo , Sato Keiko , Narita Yuka , Kondo Yoshio , Nakane Daisuke , Naito Mariko , Fujiwara Taku , Nakayama Koji
Published: June 2018

Many members of the phylum Bacteroidetes, such as Flavobacterium johnsoniae, can glide over a solid surface: an ability called gliding motility. It can be usually observed on agar plates as thin, flat, spreading colonies with irregular, feathery edges; this phenomenon is called colony spreading. Colony spreading of F. johnsoniae on 1.5% agar plates containing poor nutrients is dose‐dependently inhibited by addition of D‐glucose, as previously reported. Accordingly, here, we created mutants (by transposon mutagenesis) that partially suppressed glucose‐mediated inhibition of colony spreading. Among the isolates, we found that one had a transposon insertion in Fjoh_4565, tentatively named mfsA, which encodes a major facilitator superfamily (MFS) transporter previously shown to be required for growth on glucose, N‐acetyl‐glucosamine, and chitin. We constructed an mfsA deletion mutant and found that the mutant showed no glucose‐mediated acceleration of growth or glucose uptake. The mfsA gene complemented the phenotype of a glucose‐negative Escherichia coli. These results suggest that the mfsA gene encodes the sole MFS transporter of glucose in F. johnsoniae and that glucose uptake is partially required for the glucose‐mediated inhibition of F. johnsoniae colony spreading.
Trait‐based predictions and responses from laboratory mite populations to harvesting in stochastic environments
Authors: Smallegange Isabel M. , Ens Hedwig M.
Published: June 2018

Predictions on population responses to perturbations are often derived from trait‐based approaches like integral projection models (IPMs), but are rarely tested. IPMs are constructed from functions that describe survival, growth and reproduction in relation to the traits of individuals and their environment. Although these functions comprise biologically non‐informative statistical coefficients within standard IPMs, model parameters of the recently developed dynamic energy budget IPM (DEB‐IPM) are life‐history traits like “length at maturation” and “maximum reproduction rate”. Testing predictions from mechanistic IPMs against empirical observations can therefore provide functional insights into the links between individual life history, the environment and population dynamics.

Here, we compared the population dynamics of the bulb mite (Rhizoglyphus robini) predicted by a DEB‐IPM with those observed in an experiment where populations experienced daily food rations that were either positively correlated over time (red noise), negatively (blue noise) or uncorrelated (white noise). We also selectively harvested large adults in half of these populations. The model failed to generate detailed predictions of population structure as juvenile numbers were overestimated; likely because juvenile–adult interference competition was underestimated. The model performed well at the population level as, for both harvested and unharvested populations, simulations matched the observed, long‐term stochastic growth rate λs.

We next generalised the model to investigate how stochastic change affects mite λs, which correlated well with the frequency f of experiencing periods of good environment, but, due to the relationship between f and noise colour ρ, did not correlate well with shifts in ρ. The sensitivity of λs to perturbations in life‐history parameters depended on the type of stochastic change, as well as population growth.

Our findings show that responses to differential mortality depend on individual life‐history traits, environmental characteristics and population growth. As long‐term climate change causes ever greater environmental fluctuations, trait‐based approaches will be increasingly important in predicting population responses to change. We therefore conclude by illustrating what questions can be examined with mechanistic trait‐based models like the DEB‐IPM, the answers to which will advance our knowledge of the functional links between individual traits, the environment and population dynamics.
Climate change increases ecogeographical isolation between closely related plants
Authors: Duffy Karl J. , Jacquemyn Hans
Published: June 2018

Ecogeographical isolation is a fundamental prezygotic barrier to reproduction and a step towards diversification in flowering plants. However, whether ecogeographical isolation acts as a reproductive barrier between species and thus as a mechanism for species divergence is unclear and is expected to change as species distributions shift under climate change.

Using a Maxent framework, we quantified the extent of ecogeographical isolation of nine closely related species of the European plant genus Pulmonaria, which lack premating barriers and often form hybrids. We investigated ecogeographical isolation under both current conditions and four climate change scenarios; two unrelated future climate models, each with two predictions of the potential trajectories of climate change.

Compared with current climates, under these future climate scenarios, there will be an increase in mean annual temperature, but not in mean annual precipitation in the range of Pulmonaria throughout Europe. This will result in a range contraction in three of the nine Pulmonaria species, a range expansion in two species, and no clear effect of climate change on the ranges of four species.

Climate change will result in an overall increase in ecogeographical isolation between these species in future. In particular, species that have low ecogeographical isolation under current conditions are predicted to increase the most in their ecogeographical isolation under climate change.

Synthesis. These results highlight that climate change can strongly impact on a major premating barrier of closely related species, therefore potentially affect the evolutionary trajectory of plants in the future.
Combination of competitive PCR and cultivation methods for differential enumeration of viable Lactobacillus acidophilus in bio‐yoghurts
Authors: Shakeri Monir‐Sadat , Shahidi Fakhri , Mortazavi Ali , Bahrami Ahmad Reza , Nassiri Mohammad Reza
Published: June 2018

To ensure the presence of viable Lactobacillus acidophilus in bio‐yoghurts, competitive PCR (cPCR) method was optimised using certain amounts of the recombinant plasmid as a non‐homologous competitor. Results showed that this method was well‐suited to detect and identify approximately 1.3 × 104 cfu/mL of L. acidophilus bacteria. The developed cPCR method was comparable to the cultivation method with a limit of quantification of approximately 104 cfu/g L. acidophilus bacteria. However, the use of MRS‐bile agar medium alone was not enough for an accurate enumeration of viable L. acidophilus bacteria in commercial bio‐yoghurts. We concluded that the combined assay can be used as a more reliable and cost‐effective alternative for the quality assurance of acidophilus yoghurts.
Audit Firm Tenure, Bank Complexity, and Financial Reporting Quality
Authors: Bratten Brian , Causholli Monika , Omer Thomas C.
Published: June 2018

Theory from organizations and economics research posits that in an inter‐organizational relationship, both parties invest in relationship‐specific knowledge, which in turn facilitates the effectiveness of the relationship while strengthening the attachment between the parties. In complex settings where there are more opportunities for knowledge creation, the investments will be larger and the attachment stronger. Because banks are complex institutions that present unique challenges to auditors, we suggest that effective audits critically depend on the accumulation of significant investments in client‐specific expertise through a long association with the client. We find a positive association between audit firm tenure and financial reporting quality, and this association is particularly strong in banks that are more complex. Also, contrary to recent research we find that benefits of audit firm tenure for complex banks accrue even for long tenure and are not limited to medium tenure. Our findings largely support the notion that a long relationship with the client reflects the underlying demand for expertise, which is critical for high‐quality audits of complex organizations. Imposing short‐term limits on audit firms would adversely affect the investments in client‐specific expertise especially in the cases where this expertise is needed the most. Our findings do not support calls for mandatory audit firm rotation for large complex institutions.
Joint analysis of multiple phenotypes in association studies using allele‐based clustering approach for non‐normal distributions
Authors: Liang Xiaoyu , Sha Qiuying , Zhang Shuanglin
Published: June 2018

In the study of complex diseases, several correlated phenotypes are usually measured. There is also increasing evidence showing that testing the association between a single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and multiple‐dependent phenotypes jointly is often more powerful than analyzing only one phenotype at a time. Therefore, developing statistical methods to test for genetic association with multiple phenotypes has become increasingly important. In this paper, we develop an Allele‐based Clustering Approach (ACA) for the joint analysis of multiple non‐normal phenotypes in association studies. In ACA, we consider the alleles at a SNP of interest as a dependent variable with two classes, and the correlated phenotypes as predictors to predict the alleles at the SNP of interest. We perform extensive simulation studies to evaluate the performance of ACA and compare the power of ACA with the powers of Adaptive Fisher's Combination test, Trait‐based Association Test that uses Extended Simes procedure, Fisher's Combination test, the standard MANOVA, and the joint model of Multiple Phenotypes. Our simulation studies show that the proposed method has correct type I error rates and is much more powerful than other methods for some non‐normal distributions.
Risk, pattern and survival impact of second primary tumors in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma following definitive intensity‐modulated radiotherapy
Authors: Chow James C.H. , Au Kwok Hung , Mang Oscar W.K. , Cheung Ka Man , Ngan Roger K.C.
Published: June 2018

Aim

Second primary tumor (SPT) is a serious late complication after definitive radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). We evaluated the incidence, pattern, risk factors and survival impact of SPT in NPC patients following definitive intensity‐modulated radiotherapy (IMRT).

Methods

A retrospective review of 780 consecutive IMRT‐treated NPC patients between February 2003 and September 2011 was conducted. Cumulative SPT incidence and overall survival after SPT diagnosis were estimated. Associations between clinical characteristics and SPT risk were analyzed. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) were calculated using age, gender and calendar‐year–specific cancer incidences from the Hong Kong Cancer Registry.

Results

At a median follow‐up of 7.5 years, 51 SPTs (6.7%) were identified, 22 (43.1%) of which occurred within previous radiotherapy fields. Tongue cancers (31.8%) and sarcomas of the head and neck (31.8%) were the most common in‐field SPTs. Age [hazard ratio (HR), 1.051; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.025–1.078] and smoking status (HR, 1.755; 95% CI, 1.002–3.075) were independent risk factors associated with SPT development. Median overall survival after SPT diagnosis was 2.9 years. There was an 84% increase in cancer risk (SIR, 1.84; 95% CI, 1.37–2.42) compared with the general population. Significant excess risks were observed for sarcoma, tongue, oropharyngeal, prostate and liver cancer. Excess risks were higher beyond 5 years of follow‐up.

Conclusion

Substantial risk of SPT, especially for in‐field sarcoma and tongue cancers, exists after definitive IMRT for NPC. SPT severely negates longevity of NPC survivors. High awareness and careful surveillance is warranted for this late lethal complication.
nab‐Paclitaxel plus gemcitabine in metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma: Australian subset analyses of the phase III MPACT trial
Authors: Young Rosemary , Mainwaring Paul , Clingan Philip , Parnis Francis Xavier , Asghari Gholamreza , Beale Philip , Aly Abdalla , Botteman Marc , Romano Alfredo , Ferrara Stefano , Margunato‐Debay Sandra , Harris Marion
Published: June 2018

Aim

The phase III MPACT trial (N = 861) demonstrated superior overall survival (OS) with first‐line nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine versus gemcitabine alone (median, 8.7 months vs 6.6 months; hazard ratio [HR], 0.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.62–0.83; P < 0.001) in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The efficacy benefit of the combination over gemcitabine alone was observed across patient subgroups, including those based on region. This subset analysis was designed to examine the safety and efficacy of nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine in patients treated in Australia to understand whether differences in patient population or regional variations in patient care had any impact on clinical outcomes.

Methods

Patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer received first‐line nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine or gemcitabine alone in the MPACT study; this analysis focused on those treated in Australia.

Results

In the Australian cohort, 120 patients were randomized to receive nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine (n = 61) or gemcitabine alone (n = 59). Median OS was 9.4 months with nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine versus 6.7 months with gemcitabine alone (HR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.44–0.94; P = 0.022). Progression‐free survival (median, 5.5 months vs 3.6 months; HR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.42–1.00; P = 0.049) and the overall response rate (23% vs 2%; P < 0.001) were significantly improved with the combination. No new safety signals were observed.

Conclusions

The results of this subset analysis confirm the efficacy and manageable safety profile of nab‐paclitaxel plus gemcitabine in patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer treated in Australia.
Diagnostic accuracy of urine cytokeratin 20 for bladder cancer: A meta‐analysis
Authors: Mi Yan , Zhao Yinlong , Shi Fang , Zhang Mengmeng , Wang Chunpeng , Liu Xin
Published: June 2018

Aim

Urine cytokeratin 20 (CK20) has been reported as a novel diagnostic biomarker for bladder cancer (BC). This meta‐analysis aims to evaluate the diagnostic value of urine CK20 for BC.

Methods

A systematic search for literatures was performed till March 31, 2018. Sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and the area under the summary receiver operator characteristic curve (AUC) were analyzed.

Results

Twenty‐seven studies from 22 articles met the eligible criteria. The pooled estimates were as follows: sensitivity, 0.79; specificity, 0.90; PLR, 8.17; NLR, 0.23; DOR, 35.29 and; AUC, 0.90. CK20 was more sensitive for the diagnosis of bladder urothelial carcinoma (BUC) than all types of BC (0.83 vs 0.75). For Tis/Ta tumors, the values were inferior to T1 and ≥T2 stage tumors, that is, the sensitivity (0.74 vs 0.81 vs 0.86), PLR (7.95 vs 9.97 vs 10.75) and DOR (27.81 vs 47.09 vs 69.63). For grade 1 tumors, the values were inferior to grade 2 and ≥grade 3 tumors, that is, the sensitivity (0.70 vs 0.82 vs 0.87), PLR (11.86 vs 13.63 vs 14.26) and DOR (36.63 vs 72.00 vs 101.71). RT‐PCR or PCR showed superior sensitivity and specificity (0.80 vs 0.76, 0.91 vs 0.89) than immunostaining in detection of urine CK20 for BC.

Conclusion

Urine CK20 might be a potential noninvasive biomarker for BC, especially for BUC. The diagnostic accuracy of urine CK20 is improved with the progression of tumor stage and grade. In addition, RT‐PCR or PCR shows better diagnostic performance in detecting urine CK20 than immunostaining.
The diversity of cultural diversity: Psychological consequences of different patterns of intercultural contact and mixing
Authors: Cheon Bobby K.
Published: June 2018

Culture mixing is a critical consequence of globalization. Thus, predicting the effects of globalization on individual psychological processes requires understanding the effects of exposure to culture mixing on cognition, attitudes, and behaviors. Prior research has demonstrated that perceiving the mixing of own and foreign cultures can trigger subsequent shifts across a wide range of psychological processes. This article proposes that the psychological consequences of culture mixing can be understood through consideration of the specific form of culture mixing involved and the fundamental psychological functions that cultures (particularly heritage cultures) fulfill. Culture mixing itself is a diverse, heterogeneous phenomenon, and different forms of culture mixing (e.g., simultaneous co‐presence, superimposition, fusion) may activate different psychological outcomes. Furthermore, heritage cultures serve critical psychological functions by providing guides and normative standards for behavior, acting as markers that facilitate differentiation of ingroup members from those of outgroups and buffering against psychological threats. The frustration or disruption of these functions by culture mixing may serve as a basis for predicting psychological responses to mixing. Finally, this article suggests key areas for future study in culture mixing and how studying diverse patterns of culture mixing may be critical for enriching cognition and behavior in response to reminders of globalization.
A history of undescended testes in young men with Klinefelter syndrome does not reduce the chances for successful microsurgical testicular sperm extraction
Authors: Ragab M. W. , Cremers J.‐F. , Zitzmann M. , Nieschlag E. , Kliesch S. , Rohayem J.
Published: June 2018

Klinefelter syndrome (KS) and undescended testes (UDT) are known etiologies for non‐obstructive azoospermia (NOA), and coexistence of both etiologies is not uncommon. Patients with both KS and a history of UDT are therefore considered to have extremely reduced chances for paternity. We aimed to analyze the impact of previous surgically corrected unilateral or bilateral UDT on sperm retrieval rates (SRRs) by microsurgical testicular sperm extraction (mTESE) in azoospermic men with KS. Age, testicular volumes, and hypothalamo–pituitary–gonadal axis function were investigated in relation to SRRs in 29 non‐mosaic KS patients (47,XXY) with a history of UDT (group 1) who underwent mTESE between 2008 and 2016 in our center and compared to the data of age‐ and serum testosterone‐matched non‐mosaic KS controls with eutopic testes at birth (group 2), and to those of 51 men with NOA and a normal male karyotype (46,XY), but previous UDT (group 3). SRRs in KS patients with surgically corrected UDT during childhood were comparable to SRRs of KS patients with eutopic testes at birth: 31% (35% in unilateral and 22% in bilateral UDT) vs. 38% (p = 0.581). SRRs and Leydig cell function in group 1 were negatively correlated with age. Significantly higher SRRs (66%) were found in euploid azoospermic men with surgically corrected UDT (p < 0.001). A history of UDT does not preclude chances for future fatherhood in young azoospermic males with KS. In one of three men with previous unilateral UDT and in one of 4–5 in those with previous bilateral UDT, spermatozoa can be harvested by mTESE during late adolescence or young adulthood for immediate or future use in assisted reproduction.
Surgical outcomes of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis in elderly patients
Authors: Yokota Yuki , Tomimaru Yoshito , Noguchi Kozo , Noda Takehiro , Hatano Hisanori , Nagase Hirotsugu , Hamabe Atsushi , Hirota Masashi , Oshima Kazuteru , Tanida Tsukasa , Morita Shunji , Imamura Hiroshi , Iwazawa Takashi , Akagi Kenzo , Dono Keizo
Published: June 2018

Introduction

The clinical significance of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) for acute cholecystitis in elderly patients aged 80 years or older has not been determined. This study aimed to investigate surgical outcomes of LC for acute cholecystitis in elderly patients compared to non‐elderly patients.

Methods

Patients who underwent urgent LC for acute cholecystitis were enrolled. Older (≥80 years) and younger patients (<80 years) were compared for perioperative factors to assess surgical outcomes of LC.

Results

A total of 351 patients were included; 52 (14.8%) and 299 (85.2%) were categorized as older and younger, respectively. The older group had a significantly higher proportion of patients with concomitant physiological diseases than the younger group and a significantly higher ASA classification. No significant differences between the two groups were found in operation time, intraoperative blood loss, or conversion rate to open surgery. Incidence of postoperative complications and duration of postoperative hospital stay also were not significantly different between the two groups.

Conclusion

Surgical outcomes of LC for acute cholecystitis in older patients are comparable to those in younger patients, which confirms the feasibility of LC for acute cholecystitis in elderly patients.
Imagined Races: From Environmental Determinism to Geographical Authenticity in Twentieth‐Century Argentina
Authors: COLETTA MICHELA
Published: June 2018

This article explores how Argentine intellectuals incorporated the natural environment into their accounts of the racial, cultural and political features of the nation. In the late nineteenth century environmental determinism, based on the assumption of a cause–effect relationship between geographical and racial factors, entered Argentina through three main routes: Lamarckism, Darwinism and Spencerianism. By the mid twentieth century, however, anti‐positivist philosophies had been fully incorporated into a body of work that analysed Argentina's socio‐historical foundations. This article examines the shift that occurred during the first half of the twentieth century in how those seeking to define race incorporated the environment into their arguments. The raza was commonly taken to be synonymous with nation. Selected works by sociologist and legal scholar Carlos Octavio Bunge (1875‐1918) and by writer and ensayista Bernardo Canal Feijóo (1897‐1982) will be analysed as influential yet overlooked examples of how ‘the problem of Argentine culture’ could not be separated from the question of nature understood in terms of both physical and human geography. The goal will be to reveal, firstly, the extent to which the notion of the interior as geographical and anthropological desert deeply informed the political vision of the early national period in relation to race and nation and, secondly, how later interpretations of the nation recast American nature as a foundational element of cultural authenticity based on a sentiment of geographical belonging.