bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Just War
Authors: Caney Simon
Published: April 2005

The aim of this chapter is to analyse a number of prominent views concerning the nature of a just war and, having criticized them, to outline the account of a just war that follows from a cosmopolitan perspective. It explores different philosophical approaches at a general level, analysing their accounts of when war may be waged (jus ad bellum) and how it may be waged (jus in bello). To do this it begins, in Section I, with some methodological observations, and then, in the next three sections (II–IV), examines several leading perspectives on the nature of just war: Sections II and III explore Michael Walzer’s influential treatment of this subject in Just and Unjust Wars (1977), criticizing in particular his account of jus ad bellum and his derivation of rules of jus in bello; Section IV analyses Terry Nardin’s state-centric account of just war in Law, Morality and the Relations of States (1983). The following four sections (V–VIII) turn to more cosmopolitan perspectives: Section V outlines the general structure of a cosmopolitan theory of just war; Sections VI and VII examine particular cosmopolitan accounts of some aspects of just war, analysing utilitarian and deontological approaches; and Section VIII criticizes the utilitarian and deontological accounts given in the previous two sections, outlining an alternative cosmopolitan rights-based approach that avoids the objections levelled against these two theories. Sections IX–XI analyse realist misgivings about both traditional and cosmopolitan conceptions of jus ad bellum (IX) and jus in bello (X); and Section XI summarizes and concludes.
Internal Organization in the Knowledge Economy: The Rise and Fall of the Oticon Spaghetti Organization
Authors: Foss Nicolai J.
Published: April 2005

This chapter develops an organizational economics interpretation of the spaghetti organization. It aims to present a novel and encompassing account and interpretation of a well-known organizational change case, and analyse the costs of internal hybrids in terms of the problem of selective intervention. The analysis is helpful in understanding broader issues of economic organization, such as the governance choice between internal and external hybrids.
Performance and Organization in the Knowledge Economy: Innovation and New Human Resource Management Practices
Authors: Foss Nicolai J.
Published: April 2005

This chapter examines the link between innovation performance and complementary new human resource management (HRM) practices. It argues that the notion of complementarities can help explain the stylised facts that relate the changes in the nature of employment relations — called ‘new HRM practices’ — to the systemic nature of these practices, and to their adoption by innovative firms. While the adoption of individual HRM practices may positively influence innovation performance, adopting a package of complementary HRM practices may impact more strongly on innovation performance.
Labour Policy and Progress: Overview
Authors: Knight John , Song Lina
Published: April 2005

This chapter discusses the evolution of the Chinese labour market. It explains the Soviet origins of the labour system and its distinctive Chinese characteristics. The process of economic reform in rural and urban China is compared. The theoretical framework of the Lewis model was adopted for analysis.
The Spatial Behaviour of Wages
Authors: Knight John , Song Lina
Published: April 2005

This chapter presents a spatial analysis of urban wages and incomes per capita using urban samples of the Institute of Economics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences national household surveys of 1988 and 1995. Wage was the main reason for the general increase in earnings inequality. Basic wage made the biggest contribution to the convergence of earnings inequality across provinces, although other sources were more powerfully convergent.
Rural Migrants in Urban Enterprises
Authors: Knight John , Song Lina
Published: April 2005

This chapter examines the employment of rural migrants in urban enterprises. Rural workers in medium- and large-scale enterprises in cities are likely to be better paid, more willing to hold on to their jobs, and less rapidly drawn back by the claims of their rural households. Migrants earn an average of 80% of the non-migrant wage. The government has implemented policies restricting urban settlement of rural people to ensure preferential access of urban residents to urban jobs.
2 The Revival of Conversion Narrative: Evangelical Awakening in the Eighteenth Century
Authors: Hindmarsh D. Bruce
Published: April 2005

A new episode in the history of spiritual autobiography opened in the late 1730s with the advent of transatlantic Evangelical Revival, and the distinguishing characteristic of this revival or ‘work’ in all its manifestations was the increased incidence of the conversion of individuals. Unlike earlier periods of heightened religious fervour, the revival was uniquely concentrated in time and extended across space. Changes in the North Atlantic world helped to create ‘modern’ conditions for this phenomenon, particularly with the rapid spread of religious news through itinerancy, letter-writing, and the periodical press and the more extensive movement of people, goods, and ideas in the period generally. Includes the case study of the early evangelical Joseph Humphreys—since Humphreys’s experience illustrates how the larger Evangelical Revival was itself constituted by individual conversion experiences, and how these experiences so often compelled converts to retell their life’s story from the beginning, even venturing sometimes to do so in print before an anonymous public.
6 ‘The Word Came in With Power’: Conversions at Cambuslang
Authors: Hindmarsh D. Bruce
Published: April 2005

By moving beyond the geographic limits of England, it is possible to trace a narrative response to Calvinistic preaching during the early Evangelical Revival among a number of lay Presbyterians in south-western Scotland who were subjects of the well-documented ‘Cambuslang Wark’ in 1742 and whose testimonies were recorded by the minister William McCulloch. Given the controversy that Cambuslang excited, especially with the leaders of the Secession Church (or ‘Associate Presbytery’), McCulloch conducted his interviews with the ‘persevering subjects’ of the revival with apologetic aims, as well as with a pastoral desire to discern accurately the condition of those under spiritual concern. The spiritual autobiographies he recorded shared a common narrative structure, displayed a profoundly experiential biblicism, and bore witness to robustly Calvinistic convictions. The marginalia in the McCulloch manuscripts record the observations of other Presbyterian ministers, invited by McCulloch to comment on the narratives, and reveal the distinct but overlapping concerns of lay and clerical piety, even as ministers sought wisely to direct, promote, and defend the ‘work’ of God in their generation through spiritual autobiography.
7 ‘A Nail Fixed in a Sure Place’: The Lives of the Early Methodist Preachers
Authors: Hindmarsh D. Bruce
Published: April 2005

The spiritual autobiographies of the early Methodist lay preachers, penned in the last decades of the eighteenth century, were memoirs of a substantial portion of their lives, interpreted in terms of evangelical conversion. By the late 1770s, evangelicals were no longer feeling their way into a genre; they were writing within a tradition, and conversion had become not only a matter of Christian initiation but also of ongoing Christian experience and identity. As Arminians, these Methodist preachers believed that one might need to renew one’s conversion. And in their accounts of entering the ministry, their experiences of Christian perfection, even in their deathbed utterances recorded by others, their narratives imitated the structure of conversion itself as an agony of travail and relief. Closely allied to one another and supervised by John Wesley, their autobiographies also represented a development from oral to written to printed narrative.
10 After Christendom: Evangelical Conversion Narrative and its Alternatives
Authors: Hindmarsh D. Bruce
Published: April 2005

Begins by reviewing the chronological proliferation, literary elaboration, and theological differentiation of the genre of conversion narrative over the course of the eighteenth century in England. In order to see the genre whole, however, and to appreciate the conditions in general under which people turned to this form of spiritual autobiography, the chapter turns to examine first the ways in which the genre fared at the end of the eighteenth century in the context of evangelical mission enterprise beyond the borders of Christendom, and, second, at the ways in which the genre contrasted with the new forms of modern autobiography in England that appeared ‘after Christendom’. The non-Western case studies include David Brainerd’s mission to the Delaware Indians in New Jersey, the conversion of David George and others associated with the Sierra Leone Colony, and the conversion of South Sea Islanders at the turn of the century. Then, finally, the unconversion and re-conversion of the English entrepreneur James Lackington illustrates both the conditions of narratable evangelical conversion in general and the ways in which the evangelical experience moderated and revised modern ideals of individuality associated with the Enlightenment.
5 The Presidentialization of Spanish Democracy: Sources of Prime Ministerial Power in Post‐Franco Spain
Authors: Biezen Ingrid van , Hopkin Jonathan
Published: April 2005

Spain is a good example of a formally parliamentary regime subject to presidentializing pressures. This chapter examines the foundations of this presidentialization, focusing on three broad areas: the formal constitutional framework and other institutional features stemming from the nature of the Spanish transition to democracy, the internal dynamics of Spanish political parties, and the dynamics of electoral competition. It shows that there are clear tendencies towards presidentialization in the Spanish political system, but also countervailing factors that to some extent redress the balance. There is no clear evidence of a gradual presidentialization of Spanish democracy over the post-Franco period, and the status and autonomy of Prime Ministers have fluctuated over time with no clear pattern or direction. This suggests that the key to explaining the degree of presidentialization of Spanish democracy lies in intra- and inter-party dynamics, and in the characteristics of leaders themselves. In conclusion, Spain has strongly ‘presidential’ tendencies, but its constitutional arrangements can also accommodate the reassertion of parliamentary power. In this sense, it has become quite a flexible institutional arrangement where political authority can shift in line with the unpredictable evolution of party politics.
Introduction
Authors: Enç Berent
Published: April 2005

Raises the problems with regard to the nature of action the author hopes to solve and summarizes the arguments employed in the remainder of the book.
A Causal Model of Deliberation
Authors: Enç Berent
Published: April 2005

Deals with the objection against causal theories that conceiving of an action as the result of a chain of events that are causally connected seems to remove the agent from picture altogether: since being an agent is being active, and being the conduit for a causal chain is a passive affair, the objection concludes that latter cannot exhaust the former. In defence of his causal theory, Enç develops a model of deliberation that distinguishes rational action from reflexive, impulsive, and compulsive behaviour.
Intentions
Authors: Enç Berent
Published: April 2005

This chapter is an essay on intentions and intentional action, which focuses in particular on the relation between the rational explanations of action that cite the agent’s intentions and the psychological state of intending. Enç first proposes a theory about the nature of intention and its content, and subsequently defends this theory by demonstrating how a number of familiar features of intentions follow from it.
The Things We Mean
Authors: Schiffer Stephen
Published: April 2005

There exist such things as the things we mean and believe, and they are what the book calls pleonastic propositions. The book is about what these propositions are in themselves, and about their place in nature, language, and thought. Chapters 1 and 2 advance the theory of pleonastic propositions, and of pleonastic entities generally. The remaining six chapters bring that theory to bear on issues in the theory of content: the existence and nature of meanings; knowledge of meaning; the relation between content-involving facts and underlying physical facts; vagueness and indeterminacy; conditionals; normative discourse; and the role of pleonastic propositions in explanation, prediction, and knowledge acquisition.
Problems of Demandingness
Authors: Cullity Garrett
Published: April 2005

Objections to demanding moral outlooks are surveyed. The Extreme Demand does not rely on substantial consequentialist or other theoretical assumptions about the connection between morality and impartiality. Seven requirements for a successful argument against the Extreme Demand are identified. The argument developed in the following chapters will have affinities with arguments developed by Kant and Williams, but will aim to overcome problems with those arguments.
Political Institutions and Redistribution
Authors: Alesina Alberto , Glaeser Edward
Published: April 2005

This chapter examines the “political” explanations for the difference in the distributive policies of the United States and Europe. Political and institutional variables provide useful insights on differences in redistribution. These include the lack of a strong socialist party, the nature of the electoral system in the United States vs. Europe, the nature of the federal Constitution in the United States compared to the more centralised states in Europe, and the different role of the courts.
Ancient Worlds, Modern Reflections
Authors: Lloyd Geoffrey
Published: April 2005

Engages in a wide-ranging exploration of what we can learn from the study of ancient civilizations, which is relevant to fundamental problems, both intellectual and moral, that we continue to face today.

How far is it possible to arrive at an understanding of alien systems of belief? Is it possible to talk meaningfully of 'science' and of its various constituent disciplines, 'astronomy', 'geography', 'anatomy', and so on, in the ancient world? Are logic and its laws universal? Is there one ontology—a single world—to which all attempts at understanding must be considered to be directed? When we encounter apparently very different views of reality, how far can that be put down to a difference in conceptions of what needs explaining, or of what counts as an explanation, or to different preferred modes of reasoning or styles of enquiry? Do the notions of truth and belief represent reliable cross-cultural universals? Are the discourses of human nature and of human rights universally applicable? What political institutions do we need to help secure equity and justice within nation states and between them?

Lloyd provides compelling evidence that the science and culture of ancient Greece and China have much to offer contemporary debates in many fields of study.
For Example and Against
Authors: Lloyd Geoffrey
Published: April 2005

How are examples used in reasoning in ancient Greek and Chinese philosophy and science and how were such uses evaluated? Some Greeks, such as Aristotle, downgraded the appeal to examples in mathematics and science in favour of an ideal of axiomatic-deductive reasoning, though still allowing examples a limited role in persuasion. The Chinese used examples with great facility, in such fields as history, law, and cosmology, but in mathematics, for instance, they sought to identify the unifying principles linking different procedures, rather than to attempt to deduce the whole of mathematics from a limited set of purportedly self-evident axioms.
Corporeality and Christ
Authors: Cooper Adam G.
Published: April 2005

Orthodox christology upholds divine impassibility while paradoxically affirming that in the events of the incarnation ‘one of the trinity suffered for us.’ Maximus integrates Chalcedonian christology with the more ‘pastoral’ and dynamic christology of Cyril of Alexandria, defending on both rational and salvific grounds the integrity of Christ’s humanity against reductionistic alternatives.
Corporeality and the Church
Authors: Cooper Adam G.
Published: April 2005

Maximus’ ecclesiology is inseparable from his anthropocentric cosmology, which in turn is deeply christological. The church in its liturgy is the existential locus of personal, communal and cosmic deification. Its sacraments, orthodox confession of faith and hierarchical orders function together as God’s continuing, bodily and visible manifestation on earth.
Market Size, Linkages, and Productivity: A Study of Japanese Regions
Authors: Kanbur Ravi , Venables Anthony J.
Published: April 2005

One account of spatial concentration focuses on productivity advantages arising from market size. The authors investigate this for 40 regions of Japan. Their results identify important effects of a region’s own size, as well as cost linkages between producers and suppliers of inputs. Productivity links to a more general form of ‘market potential’ or Marshall-Arrow-Romer externalities do not appear to be robust in our data. The effects they identify are economically quite important, accounting for a substantial portion of cross-regional productivity differences. A simple counterfactual shows that if economic activity were spread evenly over the 40 regions of Japan, aggregate output would fall by 5%.
International Trade, Location, and Wage Inequality in China
Authors: Kanbur Ravi , Venables Anthony J.
Published: April 2005

Models of economic geography predict that transportation costs directly affect demand for goods and the supply of intermediate inputs. One of the reasons that international trade is concentrated in the coastal provinces of China is that they have lower transportation costs in transporting goods to other countries than do provinces in the interior. Examines the relationship between the provincial wage rate and each province’s access to international markets, and to suppliers of intermediate inputs. A gravity equation is first estimated to construct these ‘market access’ and ‘supplier access’ variables. In the second stage, the effect of market access and supplier access on the wage rate is estimated. It is found that about one-quarter of the provincial wage differences in the coastal provinces and 15% of the wage differences in the interior provinces can be explained by these economic geography variables.
Closure and Context
Authors: Pritchard Duncan
Published: April 2005

I critically examine two of the main responses to the closure-based sceptical argument. In particular, I look at the case that has been made for the rejection of closure by, for example, Fred Dretske and Robert Nozick, and examine the so-called ‘sensitivity’ condition on knowledge that they advocate in this respect. I then evaluate this approach in the light of the attributer contextualist response to scepticism, as developed by such figures as Stewart Cohen, Keith DeRose and David Lewis. In both cases I argue that these anti-sceptical approaches suffer by being motivated by diverse and incompatible intuitions, principally as regards their ambivalent endorsement of epistemological externalism. An exploration of the relationship between the sceptical problem and the epistemic externalism/internalism distinction is thus presented.
The Source of Scepticism
Authors: Pritchard Duncan
Published: April 2005

I maintain that the neo-Moorean response to scepticism is unable, by itself at any rate, to completely resolve the sceptical problem. The reason for this is that the contemporary discussion of scepticism has misunderstood what the source of this problem is, and thus even the most plausible of the main anti-sceptical theories in the literature misses its intended target. To illustrate this, I contrast the closure-based template sceptical argument with its analogue argument expressed in terms of the ‘underdetermination’ principle that can be found in ancient Pyrrhonian sceptical writings, and which merely demands that one’s evidence should favour one’s beliefs over incompatible alternatives. I show how the latter argument brings to the fore just what is wrong with the contemporary debate regarding scepticism, which is its failure to respond to the specifically internalist and evidentialist character of the sceptical doubt.
Can there be non‐union forms of workplace partnership?
Authors: Dietz Graham , Cullen John , Coad Alan
Published: April 2005

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore a number of issues pertaining to the conceptualisation, operationalisation, feasibility and effectiveness of workplace partnership arrangements in a non‐unionised setting.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper discusses the most common definitions of partnership to discern whether scope exists for non‐unionised forms. It then presents a detailed case study, based on 38 semi‐structured interviews with 29 interviewees, inside a non‐unionised company to analyse whether its people management arrangements conform with the definitions presented, and to examine the employees’ experience of those arrangements.

Findings

The paper notes that most partnership definitions can accommodate non‐unionised forms, if the arrangements for people management inside such firms meet certain standards on employee voice mechanisms and the exchange of mutual gains. The evidence from the case study suggests that its unusual policies and practices do conform with a viable model of non‐unionised partnership – albeit with some reservations. The benefits and concerns are discussed in the paper.

Research implications/limitations

The paper presents a credible definition and observable operationalisation of partnership for researchers to adopt. It encourages future research on the extent to which so‐called “partnership” organisations, including non‐union enterprises, comply and suggests comparative research between paired unionised and non‐unionised cases. However, it is limited to one case study.

Originality/value

The paper's primary value is in its extension of the partnership debate beyond its current “union‐only ghetto” into examining non‐unionised forms, as well. The case study is also unique in the literature as an example of non‐unionised partnership.
Taking the shopping centre online: new models in e‐commerce
Authors: Dixon Timothy , Marston Andrew
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a brief re´sume´ of previous research which has analysed the impact of e‐commerce on retail real estate in the UK, and to examine the important marketing role of the internet for shopping centre managers, and retail landlords.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the results from a wider study carried out in 2003, the paper uses case studies from two different shopping centres in the UK, and documents the innovative uses of both web‐based marketing and online retailing by organisations that historically have not directly been involved in the retailing process.

Findings

The paper highlights the importance of considering online sales within a multi‐channel approach to retailing. The two types of emerging shopping centre model which are identified are characterised by their ultimate relationship with the physical shopping centre on whose web site they reside. These can be summarised as: the “centre‐led” approach, and the “brand‐led” or “marketing‐led” approach.

Research limitations/implications

The research is based on a limited number of in‐depth case studies and secondary data. Further research is needed to monitor the continuing impact of e‐commerce on retail property and the marketing strategies of shopping centre managers and owners.

Practical implications

Internet‐based sales provide an important adjunct to conventional retail sales and an important source of potential risk for landlords and tenants in the real estate investment market. Regardless of whether retailers use the internet as a sales channel, as a product‐sourcing tool, or merely to provide information to the consumer, the internet has become a keystone within the greater retail marketing mix. The findings have ramifications for understanding the way in which landlords are structuring their retail property to defray potential risks.

Originality/value

The paper examines shopping centre online marketing models for the first time in detail, and will be of value to retail occupiers, owners and other stakeholders of shopping centres.
The research of the decomposition‐coordination method of multidisciplinary collaboration design optimization
Authors: Chen Jianjiang , Zhong Yifang , Xiao Renbin , Sun Jianxun
Published: April 2005

Purpose

To obtain the global optimum of large‐scale complex engineering systems, the paper proposes a decomposition‐coordination method of multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO).

Design/methodology/approach

A rational decomposition approach based on artificial neural network (ANN) and genetic algorithms is proposed for partitioning the complex design problem into smaller, more tractable subsystems. Once the problem is decomposed into subsystems, each subsystem may be solved in parallel provided that there is some mechanism to coordinate the solutions in the different subsystems. So the response surface approximation model based on the ANN as a coordination method is described and a MDO framework is presented.

Findings

The proposed method was implemented in the design of a tactical missile. Numerical results show the effectiveness of the decomposition‐coordination method, as indicated by both better performance and lower computational requirements.

Originality/value

This paper adopts a novel MDO method to solve complex engineering problem and offers a potential and efficient MDO framework to researchers.
Affective responses to work process and outcomes in virtual teams
Authors: Caballer Amparo , Gracia Francisco , Peiró José‐María
Published: April 2005

Purpose

To analyze the direct and combined effects of the communication media and time pressure in group work on the affective responses of team members while performing intellective tasks

Design/methodology/approach

A laboratory experiment was carried out with 124 subjects working in 31 groups. The task performed by the groups was an intellective one. A 2 × 3 factorial design with three media (face‐to‐face, video‐conference, and e‐mail) and time pressure (with and without time pressure) was used to determine the direct and combined effects of these two variables on group members' satisfaction with the process and with the results, and on members' commitment with the decision.

Findings

Results show a direct effect of communication media on satisfaction with the process, which confirms the prediction of the media‐task fit model, and a negative effect of time pressure on satisfaction with group results and commitment to those results. Most interestingly, the interaction effects for the three dependent variables are significant and show that the most deleterious effects of time pressure are produced in groups working face‐to‐face, while groups mediated by video‐conference improve their affective responses under time pressure.

Research limitations/implications

Some limitations are the use of a student sample, so generalizability of the findings is limited, and the use of only one task type.

Practical implications

It can help one to know how to design work to improve satisfaction and implication of workers.

Originality/value

This paper shows some innovations as the combined effects of media and time pressure, controlling for the task type on group members' affective responses to their work and achievements.
The application of the interperiod tax allocation method in the Spanish firms
Authors: Gallego Isabel
Published: April 2005

Purpose

The purpose of this work is to analyse both from a theoretical and an empirical point of view the reversal of positive and negative temporary differences in Spanish firms and, derived from the reversal, to question whether the comprehensive allocation or the partial allocation of temporary differences is more or less profitable for firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The audited annual accounts of the firms registered in the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores – the Spanish version of the SEC – during the periods 1996, 1997 and 1998 were analysed. To analyse the differences obtained, the sample was first disaggregated into different groups, according to whether the differences were positive or negative temporary reversed. A calculation was made of some descriptive statistics together with an analysis of both the mean and the variance, which made it possible to draw robust conclusions on the way Spanish firms report their positive and negative temporary differences reversed.

Findings

The paper provides information about the positive and negative temporary differences reversals by year (1996, 1997 and 1998) and by sector of activities (energy and water, construction, transport and communications, real estate and others) in the sample period and compares them over time.

Research limitations/implications

The highest percentage corresponds to “other negative and positive temporary differences reversals” including those cases where firms do not specify which type of operation has motivated the difference and use the comprehensive allocation of temporary differences; it is very difficult to follow up all the future reversals.

Practical implications

A very useful source of information for Spanish firms and for investigators in this subject.

Originality/value

This paper is pioneering in the analysis of the reversal of temporary differences in Spanish firms, as well as in determining whether the use of the comprehensive or partial tax allocation of temporary differences is more or less appropriate.
A dedicated follower of fashion: the expansion strategy of David Linley & Co. Ltd
Authors: Doyle Stephen A. , Reid Jenny
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This paper aims to consider the adaptability of the traditional growth strategies of couture/fashion houses in the context of non‐fashion sectors.

Design/methodology/approach

By means of a case study approach based upon David Linley & Co. Ltd, a furniture design company, it explores the relevance of implementing a strategy based upon product extension as a means to market development and internationalisation.

Findings

The research demonstrates the distinct and conscious similarities between the strategy adopted by the company and that of the fashion houses as delineated in the literature. The paper concludes that there is value in pan‐sector consideration in respect of strategic planning, particularly when there are acknowledged similarities in the relative positioning of the companies within their markets.

Originality/value

Provides information on the strategic thinking of one company – based on the probable experiences and expectations of customers – which may have wider applicability in other areas of the fahion industry.
Salesperson roles: are online retailers meeting customer expectations?
Authors: Kim Minjeong , Stoel Leslie
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This paper aims to explore online customer service dimensions and to examine how attitude toward online customer service influences online purchase intent.

Design/methodology/approach

The human factors approach was employed to identify online customer service dimensions by analyzing service provided by salespeople at retail stores. Regression analyses supported the predictive validity of these measures, revealing that customer service dimensions of ease in searching, availability of frequently asked questions (FAQs), availability of in‐stock status information, and ease of comparison shopping were important predictors of online purchase intent.

Findings

Results from this study suggest that online retailers need to provide more information (e.g. FAQs) and make browsing easier to help customers have satisfactory shopping experience.

Originality/value

Provides useful information that online retailers can utilize in the development and operation of successful shopping sites.
Development of a qualitative reasoning model for financial forecasting
Authors: Kesh Someswar , Raja M.K.
Published: April 2005

Purpose

To develop a model for financial forecasting using the principles of qualitative reasoning.

Design/methodology/approach

The model was developed using theories in the accounting, finance, and marketing literature. Quantitative equations were transformed into their equivalent qualitative forms. Qualitative equations, where applicable, were developed and integrated with the quantitative equations.

Findings

The research demonstrated that qualitative reasoning models can be used for financial forecasting, decision making and control.

Research limitations/implications

The model used is experimental and relatively simple. More complex models should be developed for real life applications.

Practical implications

Development of this model demonstrates that more complex models for specific applications in various business domains can be developed and used. Since business decision making requires both qualitative and quantitative inputs, models such as these may be of great practical value.

Originality/value

The paper will be valuable to those who want to develop such models in business domains.
Facilitating conversational learning in a project team practice
Authors: Sense Andrew J.
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This paper seeks to provide an empirical insight into the facilitation dilemmas for conversational learning in a project team environment.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is an outcome of a participative action research process into the dynamics of situated learning activity in a case study project team. As part of their organizational change project (which included an explicit project goal of developing their collective and individual learning competencies) the case study project team initiated and undertook a series of participative “learning‐how‐to‐learn” workshops. These workshops were “learning spaces” that were centred on engaging “conversations” to both initiate and promote interpersonal understanding and critical reflective practice between the participants.

Findings

In evaluating the discontinuities experienced between the planned phases and activities in these “learning space” workshop processes, three key lessons that the participants learnt about facilitating conversational learning in this setting are identified and elaborated upon.

Research limitations/implications

This paper is based upon a case study of the learning activities of one project team. The opportunity exists to repeat the study in different projects and other group settings.

Practical implications

This paper offers practical guidance to learning professionals and learning practitioners in how to provide a receptive conversational context for learning between people.

Originality/value

This paper illustrates the power of conversational approaches to nurturing learning activity. Furthermore, the lessons identified constitute heuristics to pragmatically aid conversational learning amongst people in project team “learning spaces” and in other similar group settings, where conversations are considered core to the learning development process.
Technology convergence and regulatory challenge: a case from Korean digital media broadcasting
Authors: Shin Dong‐Hee
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This study seeks to survey the current convergence of broadcasting and telecommunication, examine the policy questions that arise in Korea and present a review of current regulation in this field.

Design/methodology/approach

From a technical perspective, the convergence between telecommunications and broadcasting is emerging as both industries move towards digital standards. Yet, from a policy‐making perspective, convergence seems premature and may not be desirable. This study focuses in particular on the digital media broadcasting (DMB) service, which is currently being developed in Korea.

Findings

The paper suggests perspectives on forthcoming satellite DMB service developments, and the implications of this emerging technological breakthrough. The study indicates that current broadcasting‐based regulatory frameworks may tend to deter technological convergence and thus delay service introduction in the market.

Originality/value

The paper concludes with a new regulatory model with more consideration of service providers and users.
A framework to review performance measurement systems
Authors: Najmi Manoochehr , Rigas John , Fan Ip‐Shing
Published: April 2005

Purpose

This paper aims to describe a structured review framework for managing business performance. The framework entails the review of business performance, including the strategic relevance of the measures, as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of the performance measurement system itself.

Design/methodology/approach

A range of approaches and tools are employed in the framework, which features a review card providing a high‐level view of the review process, showing the different types of review perspectives and their interactions.

Findings

The performance measurement system of an organisation is a mechanism to manage and control the organisation. Maintaining the effectiveness of the organisation and the measurement systems requires a systematic review process. The process of reviewing performance is a complex task that spans the whole organisation. A good review process seeks the correct balance between organisational benefits and the effort required.

Originality/value

Overall, the framework presented provides a structured path of performance review in a methodical and effective manner. This is useful for practitioners to apply and adapt in their situations.
Business Mobilization and Public Policy in the U.S. States*
Authors: Witko Christopher , Newmark Adam J.
Published: April 2005

Objective.The goal of this study is to examine how the political mobilization of business interests influences aggregate public policy outputs in the states. We examine the relationship between business mobilization and general state policy liberalism, as well as policy that we term state “business policy climate.”

Methods.We construct a measure of the “business policy climate” from a number of tax and regulatory indicators in the states and examine whether business influences it and policy liberalism using ordinary least squares regression.

Results.The analysis shows that business mobilization does not influence general policy liberalism but is a significant influence on a state's business policy climate. Specifically, the dominance of a state's campaign finance system by business interests makes policy more favorable toward business.

Conclusions.The extent of business mobilization in a state is an important influence on public policy outputs but is constrained by the activities of other political actors such as unions.
Allergic contact dermatitis from iodine preparations: a conundrum
Authors: Lee Simon K. , Zhai Hongbo , Maibach Howard I.
Published: April 2005

Iodine preparations are widely used antiseptics, yet limited information exists on their irritant potential and threshold for diagnostic patch testing. We examine this issue by using iodine in different preparations and concentrations. A total of 24 fair‐skinned, healthy volunteers without a history of iodine allergy, ranging in age from 18 to 65 years (mean age 49.5 + 10.7 SD), were recruited. Concentrations of 0.5%, 1%, 5% and 10% iodine in petrolatum (pet.), 0.5%, 0.75% and 1% iodine in 70% isopropyl alcohol (IPA) and 1%, 5%, 7.5% and 10% of povidone‐iodine (PVP‐I) were applied for 2 days to the intrascapular area on the back or to the volar forearm between cubital fossa and wrist using Finn Chambers® on Scanpor. Test sites were read 2 days (D2) and 4 days (D4) after patch application. Skin reactions were graded according to the following scheme: 0 = no reaction, + = questionable erythema, 1 = definite erythema, 2 = erythema and induration and 3 = vesiculation. Mild‐to‐moderate reactions (+ to 2) were observed in 75% of the subjects patched with 5% iodine in pet. at 2–4 days after application. Almost all subjects reacted to 10% iodine at D2 and D4, with 65% exhibiting erythema and induration or vesiculation. A large number (33%) of the subjects developed some reactions to the low concentration (0.5%) of iodine in 70% IPA at D2. Vesicles were seen in 54% of the subjects patched with 1% iodine in 70% IPA at D4. Only 1 subject reacted to 7.5% and 10% PVP‐I. Iodine can be irritant to normal skin in pet. and in 70% IPA. Pet. possibly enhances skin contact with iodine, thus increasing its irritant capacity. Alcohol removes sebum from the skin surface, and it might increase iodine penetration into the skin, causing a higher degree of irritation. PVP‐I is relatively non‐irritant, because its iodine is complexed in an iodophor. For diagnostic patch testing, we recommend using iodine at less than 1% in pet. and at less than 0.5% in 70% IPA. For PVP‐I, 10% appears non‐irritant. With the variation in patch‐test irritant response, interpretation of the patch‐test response in the light of clinical history is mandatory.
Topical treatment of ocular surface defects: comparison of the epitheliotrophic capacity of fresh frozen plasma and serum on corneal epithelial cells in an in vitro cell culture model
Authors: Hartwig D. , Herminghaus P. , Wedel T. , Liu L. , Schlenke P. , Dibbelt L. , Geerling G.
Published: April 2005

summary.  Accelerated healing of ocular surface disorders was reported using serum for topical application. It is supposed that growth factors, fibronectin and vitamins in serum support the proliferation of corneal epithelial cells. The use of fresh frozen plasma (FFP) instead of serum is theoretically attractive, as it is more easily available from blood banks. In this study, serum and FFP were investigated for composition of epitheliotrophic factors and effect on corneal epithelial cells.

Whole blood was taken from five donors. Serum and FFP were prepared, and the concentrations of epithelial growth factor (EGF), Platelet‐derived growth factor (PDGF), transforming growth factor‐β1, fibronectin and vitamin A were determined. Immortalized human corneal epithelial cells were used to investigate growth, migration and differentiation in response to both blood products.

Significant differences were found regarding the mediator composition of serum and FFP. Serum rather than FFP was significantly superior in stimulating cell growth, migration and differentiation.

The epitheliotrophic capacity of blood products depends upon the composition of growth factors and vitamins. Blood clotting strongly influences the growth factor pattern. The superior epitheliotrophic capacity of serum might be due to the higher concentration of proliferation mediators such as EGF and PDGF and its higher content of vitamin A.
Visualization of grain subdivision by analysing the misorientations within a grain using electron backscatter diffraction
Authors: VAN BOXEL S. , SEEFELDT M. , VERLINDEN B. , VAN HOUTTE P.
Published: April 2005

The misorientation relative to the average orientation of a grain and the point‐to‐point relative misorientation along a line across a moderately cold deformed grain, calculated from an electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) dataset, are analysed in detail by visualizing both the misorientation angle and the misorientation axis. The significance of monitoring the misorientation axis is illustrated by an example of a grain subdivided into a misorientation band structure. A new technique to visualize the subdivision structure by assigning colours to misorientations in such a way that the contrast is maximized within a grain is introduced and discussed. Furthermore, some methods for grain boundary reconstruction from EBSD datasets are compared with the map of the confidence index in order to provide a validation of the accuracy of these methods.
Porphyrin‐related photosensitizers for cancer imaging and therapeutic applications
Authors: BERG K. , SELBO P. K. , WEYERGANG A. , DIETZE A. , PRASMICKAITE L. , BONSTED A. , ENGESAETER B. Ø. , ANGELL‐PETERSEN E. , WARLOE T. , FRANDSEN N. , HØGSET A.
Published: April 2005

A photosensitizer is defined as a chemical entity, which upon absorption of light induces a chemical or physical alteration of another chemical entity. Some photosensitizers are utilized therapeutically such as in photodynamic therapy (PDT) and for diagnosis of cancer (fluorescence diagnosis, FD). PDT is approved for several cancer indications and FD has recently been approved for diagnosis of bladder cancer. The photosensitizers used are in most cases based on the porphyrin structure. These photosensitizers generally accumulate in cancer tissues to a higher extent than in the surrounding tissues and their fluorescing properties may be utilized for cancer detection. The photosensitizers may be chemically synthesized or induced endogenously by an intermediate in heme synthesis, 5‐aminolevulinic acid (5‐ALA) or 5‐ALA esters. The therapeutic effect is based on the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) upon activation of the photosensitizer by light. Singlet oxygen is assumed to be the most important ROS for the therapeutic outcome. The fluorescing properties of the photosenisitizers can be used to evaluate their intracellular localization and treatment effects. Some photosensitizers localize intracellularly in endocytic vesicles and upon light exposure induce a release of the contents of these vesicles, including externally added macromolecules, into the cytosol. This is the basis for a novel method for macromolecule activation, named photochemical internalization (PCI). PCI has been shown to potentiate the biological activity of a large variety of macromolecules and other molecules that do not readily penetrate the plasma membrane, including type I ribosome‐inactivating proteins, immunotoxins, gene‐encoding plasmids, adenovirus, peptide‐nucleic acids and the chemotherapeutic drug bleomycin. The background and present status of PDT, FD and PCI are reviewed.