bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Rough‐Set‐Based Knowledge Acquisition from Cases for Integrity Assessment of Bridge Structures
Authors: Furuta Hitoshi , Hirokane Michiyuki
Published: March 2003

Many existing structures present an ever‐increasing demand for maintenance and repair. It is necessary in the first place to diagnose such structures correctly. The diagnoses have been dependent to date on experts of great experience. To meet the increasing demand for maintenance and repair and perform diagnoses efficiently and correctly, the development of expert systems is hoped for. This article discusses application of rough‐set theory to the acquirement of experiential knowledge contained in diagnostic cases. Rough‐set theory was applied to cases in which experts diagnosed the damage of bridges, and a minimal‐decision algorithm was derived that could make diagnoses equivalent to those of the experts. In addition, a method of deriving rules from the minimal‐decision algorithm for the construction of expert systems is discussed.
Interaction Dynamics in Collaborative Design Discourse
Authors: {n}a‐Mora Feniosky Pe , Hussein Karim
Published: March 2003

Computer conferencing is an important emerging technology that promises to have dramatic effects on coordinating the development of large‐scale engineering projects. The technology provides instant inexpensive access to all those involved in a project, thereby reducing project costs and enhancing quality. This article outlines key principles that are necessary to realize the full potential of computer‐mediated communication and coordination of group work in the architecture/engineering/construction (AEC) industry. The approaches proposed are based on an analysis of collaborative design discourse data in physical meeting settings. The interactions of group members have been modeled, and the results have been statistically verified. Based on this model, deficiencies in current computer‐mediated communication are outlined, and a set of principles for effective conferencing systems is formulated to address these defficiencies. Implementations of these recommendations have been integrated into a distributed collaborative design tool being developed by this research group.
CPT‐Based Liquefaction Evaluation Using Artificial Neural Networks
Authors: Juang C. Hsein , Chen Caroline Jinxia
Published: March 2003

This article presents various artificial neural network (ANN) models for evaluating liquefaction resistance and potential of sandy soils. Various issues concerning ANN modeling such as data preprocessing, training algorithms, and implementation are discussed. The desired ANN is trained and tested with a large historical database of liquefaction performance at sites where cone penetration test (CPT) measurements are available. The ANN models are found to be effective in predicting liquefaction resistance and potential. The developed ANN models are ported to a spreadsheet for ease of use. A simple procedure for conducting uncertainty analysis to address the issue of parameter and model uncertainties is also presented using the ANN‐based spreadsheet model. This uncertainty analysis is carried out using @Risk, which is an add‐in macro that works well with popular spreadsheet programs such as Microsoft Excel and Lotus 1‐2‐3. The results of the present study show that the developed ANN model has potential as a practical design tool for assessing liquefaction resistance of sandy soils.
Functional Networks: A New Network‐Based Methodology
Authors: Castillo Enrique , Cobo Angel , Gutiérrez José Manuel , Pruneda Eva
Published: March 2003

In this article we give a general methodology to build and work with functional networks, a network‐based alternative to the neural networks paradigm. In functional networks, neural functions are allowed to be not only multivariate but also truly multiargument and different for all neurons. Thus neural functions instead of weights are learned. In addition, outputs coming from different neurons can be connected, that is, forced to output the same values. The topology and neuron functions of functional networks can be selected based on data, domain knowledge, or a combination of the two. Functional equations play an important role in functional networks, since the preceding types of connections lead to functional equations that impose a substantial reduction in the degrees of freedom of the initial neural functions. Some methods are given to obtain equivalent functional and differential equations, and they are applied to approximating the solutions of differential equations problems. The examples of an associative operator, a cantilever beam, and a mass supported by two springs and a viscous damper are given to illustrate the methods and show their power.
Traffic Volume Time‐Series Analysis According to the Type of Road Use
Authors: Lingras Pawan , Sharma Satish C. , Osborne Phil , Kalyar Iftekhar
Published: March 2003

Problems related to highway traffic operation and congestion management can be alleviated with the use of modern intelligent transportation systems (ITSs). Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) is one of the emerging technologies that will help travelers plan routes and schedules of their trips so as to redistribute the traffic over the highway network. Such redistribution will try to maximize the use of available highway capacity. Collections of real‐time data and short‐term predictions of traffic volumes are among the critical needs of an ATIS. This article studies characteristics of different traffic volume time series. In particular, time‐series analysis is applied to the prediction of daily traffic volumes. The daily traffic volume is estimated by using the previous 13 daily traffic volumes. The study involves a comparison of statistical and neural network techniques for time series analysis. The analysis is applied to different types of road groups according to the trip purpose and trip length distribution. It is hoped that this study will provide a better understanding of various issues involved in the short‐term prediction of traffic volumes on different types of highways.
Helping Teachers Formulate Sound Test Accommodation Decisions for Students with Learning Disabilities
Authors: Fuchs Lynn S. , Fuchs Douglas
Published: March 2003

This paper introduces a data‐based approach as an alternative way to help teachers formulate decisions about the validity of test accommodations for students with LD. Three rationales for the approach are provided: (a) an inadequate research base to guide decision‐making; (b) the heterogeneity of the LD population; and (c) problems with teachers' use of subjective judgment.

Well‐controlled studies on test accommodations are too scarce to draw firm conclusions about effects for the group of students labeled learning disabled (LD). Moreover, in light of the heterogeneity of learning disabilities, the individual, rather than the LD label, may be the more appropriate unit for deciding which test accommodations preserve the validity of test scores for students with LD. In this paper, we provide a rationale for a data‐based approach to help teachers formulate decisions about the validity of test accommodations for individual students with LD. Then we describe an objective assessment process teachers may use in determining valid test accommodations. We conclude with recommendations for practitioners.
Voluntary Development Restrictions and the Cost of Habitat Conservation
Authors: Lovell Sabrina J. , Sunding David L.
Published: March 2003

The management of economic activity on private land plays an important role in the effort to maintain and improve environmental quality in the United States. The paper develops a conceptual framework and an econometric model of the value of undeveloped land to show how preexisting development restrictions affect the cost of protecting habitat. The model is applied to the case of preserving vernal pools in California's Sacramento County by prohibiting development on agricultural land. Ignoring the existence of California's program of differential property tax assessment of farmland is shown to result in a large overestimate of the cost of habitat protection.
Common and Private Values of the Firm in Tax Competition
Authors: Scoones David , Wen Jean‐François
Published: March 2003

We develop a simple model of interregional tax competition to explore how the balance between common and region‐specific aspects of a project's value affects the magnitudes of tax breaks offered by governments, when the firm possesses private information on the region‐specific values. We examine cases in which the tax applies to both the common and private values and to each component separately. The model predicts that when the common and observable part of the value of a project increases relative to the variance of the region‐specific private values, the stringency of competition reduces the equilibrium tax rate. Conversely, if the competing regions are sufficiently different, bidding is less aggressive. One interpretation of the results is that firms that are observed to be large get better tax breaks. The intuition is closely related to the Bertrand model of differentiated product market competition.
Altruism and the Political Economy of Income Taxation
Authors: Kranich Laurence
Published: March 2003

I develop a model in which altruistic agents vote over quadratic income tax schedules. Agents have heterogeneous preferences and productivities, and the model incorporates the incentive effects of taxation. The main result of the paper establishes the existence of a self‐confirming majority rule equilibrium in which agents' labor supply decisions are optimal given their tax liabilities and the tax policy is a majority rule equilibrium given the labor supply decisions. In equilibrium the actions by all agents confirm their expectations, but such expectations may be incorrect out of equilibrium. The model generates majority rule voting equilibria that involve progressive taxation.
What comes out of the consulting‐room? The reporting of clinical material
Authors: Wharton Barbara
Published: March 2003

The author addresses the difficulties inherent in reporting clinical material. These fall into two main categories, the ethical problem of upholding confidentiality, and the technical problems which include the definition of analytical data, and the numerous ways in which truth can be distorted in the analytic context. It is advocated that consent be obtained from patients before publishing their material. It is also suggested that clinical reports should contain enough detail of the analytic interaction, including the analyst's thoughts and feelings, to convey the analytic process, and to enable the listener/reader to consider the evidence for himself and to draw his own conclusions. It is concluded that an analyst's anxiety about exposing a patient might obscure an anxiety about exposing himself.
Subjectivity and unconsciousness
Authors: Renik Owen
Published: March 2003

Concepts of the unconscious were crucial to both Jung's and Freud's thinking. Psychoanalytic and analytical psychological views of the unconscious are compared and contrasted, and both are critically reviewed. It is suggested that we need to revise our conceptualization so as to take better account of the role of the analyst's expectations and inferences, and therefore of his or her subjectivity, whenever he or she makes a clinical judgement that unconscious mental processes are in operation. Some technical implications of a revised definition of unconsciousness are considered, especially indications for self‐disclosure by an analyst of his or her own experience of events within the treatment.
Tyrannical omnipotence in the archetypal father
Authors: Colman Warren
Published: March 2003

This paper sets the archetypal relationship between the tyrannical, devouring father and his sons in the context of a disjunction in the parental couple (syzygy) whereby the role of the maternal feminine is eclipsed and excluded. This is shown to originate in an omnipotent defence against infantile dependence on the mother. Successful liberation from the father's tyranny requires the restoration of mutuality between the internal couple. Although the main focus is on the internal world (and a detailed clinical illustration is given, showing the working out of this process in the analytical relationship), reference is also made to political tyranny, attitudes to the control of Nature by technological means and patriarchal forms of masculinity. The Chronos myth is amplified through the use of two modern variants in the films The Terminator and Star Wars.
Confidentiality and paradox: the location of ethical space
Authors: Wiener Jan
Published: March 2003

Implicit in Jung's alchemical metaphor of the vas bene clausum is the idea of an analytic frame with a space inside it for something vital, a relationship between two selves, to develop. For this to happen, analysts must respect their patients' rights to confidentiality. The paper explores the analyst's state of mind and the intrapsychic processes that are constellated when struggling with ethical dilemmas about issues of confidentiality in analytic work. The author suggests that at times when analysts consider breaking confidentiality, there is often a disturbing inner conflict between their moral principles (codes of ethics) and their internal personal ethical attitude. At these difficult moments, the mutuality of the work and the vas bene clausum can be significantly disrupted. The analyst tries to find a third position, a mental and emotional ethical space where the subjective and the objective, the ethical and the unethical can become more companionable bedfellows.
Between certainty and uncertainty – observations on psychoanalysis in Russia
Authors: Goldsmith Gary N.
Published: March 2003

‘Diversity’, the theme of our conference, carries a subversive sub‐text in totalitarian societies. This is one of the themes presented as the current revival of psychoanalysis in the more democratic post‐Communist Russia is explored. The history of psychoanalysis in Russia is summarized with a focus on its politicization, which led to initial interest in its theory (by way of a misapprehension of its tenets), and then to ultimate suppression of psychoanalytic thinking as an ideology deemed antagonistic to the totalitarian regime. In contrast, features of psychoanalysis and democracy are explored for their mutual affinities. The background of the resourceful new generation of analytic therapists is discussed, especially in regard to their experience of the parallel meanings of the word ‘repression’ (political, psychological). There is a persistence of some traits in patients and practitioners alike that are referable to past repression, such as the newness of verbal treatments, the inhibition of psychological curiosity, the ambivalent lure of certainty, and the pressure of authoritarian introjects. It is noted that psychoanalysis has its own history of a posture opposed to pluralism and diversity, which deepens the dialogue on the mutual engagement between psychoanalysis and the vicissitudes of its history in Russian culture.
Coincidence, historical repetition, and self‐knowledge: Jung, Vico, and Joyce
Authors: Verene Donald Phillip
Published: March 2003

Jung develops synchronicity as an acausal principle of connection by recounting various examples of meaningful coincidence from experience and by analysing various systems of divination, notably the I Ching. Philosophical theory of causality has given no significant attention to synchronicity; the events of synchronicity are regarded as chance. The Neapolitan philosopher Giambattista Vico (1668–1744) developed a doctrine of historical experience and of self‐knowledge that grounds the phenomenon of synchronicity in a metaphysics. James Joyce employed Vico's conception of language and historical cycles as the basis of Joyce's final literary work, Finnegans Wake. Vico's metaphysical sense of synchronicity and Joyce's literary formulation offer a grounding of this principle in non‐divinatory sources in modern Western thought, something which Jung's discussion does not provide. These philosophical and literary perspectives complement Jung's to offer an expanded context in which to recognize synchronicity and to make sense of it.
Nymphea: from psychic breakdown to the emergence of subjectivity
Authors: Martin–Vallas François
Published: March 2003

In the first part of the paper the author presents an account of the analysis of a woman who is psychically extremely disturbed. This clinical presentation focuses on the unfolding of the transference process, and on the countertransference difficulties encountered during the course of the treatment which lasted more than ten years.

In the second part of the paper the author proposes a theoretical approach to the breakdown experienced by the patient, and puts forward the hypothesis that there was insufficient differentiation between her internal objects and the archetypes, and that this prevented the development of symbolization. The author proposes the idea of a collapse between internal and external objects, which destroys the space necessary for representation and symbolization that normally arise between the two poles of the object.

The account of this transference process between the analyst and the patient is thus seen as the account of the (re)construction of true internal objects, and of the resumption of a symbolic process to make possible the development of subjectivity.
The Economics of Nonpoint Pollution Control
Authors: Shortle James S. , Horan Richard D.
Published: March 2003

A timely literature on the design of economic incentives for nonpoint pollution control has been emerging. We describe the nonpoint pollution control problem, some of the peculiar challenges it poses for policy design, and the policy‐related contributions of the theoretical and empirical literature on the economics of nonpoint pollution.
G@RCH 2.2: An Ox Package for Estimating and Forecasting Various ARCH Models
Authors: Laurent Sébastien , Peters Jean–Philippe
Published: March 2003

This paper discusses and documents G@RCH 2.2, an Ox package dedicated to the estimation and forecast of various univariate ARCH–type models including GARCH, EGARCH, GJR, APARCH, IGARCH, FIGARCH, HYGARCH, FIEGARCH and FIAPARCH specifications of the conditional variance and an AR(FI)MA specification of the conditional mean.

These models can be estimated by Approximate (Quasi) Maximum Likelihood under four assumptions: normal, Student–t, GED or skewed Student errors. Explanatory variables can enter both the conditional mean and the conditional variance equations. h–step–ahead forecasts of both the conditional mean and the conditional variance are available as well as many mispecification tests.

We first propose an overview of the package’s features, with the presentation of the different specifications of the conditional mean and conditional variance. Then further explanations are given about the estimation methods. Measures of the accuracy of the procedures are also given and the GARCH features provided by G@RCH are compared with those of nine other econometric softwares. Finally, a concrete application of G@RCH 2.2 is provided.
Assessing Ricardian Equivalence
Authors: Ricciuti Roberto
Published: March 2003

This paper reviews the literature on Ricardian equivalence. This hypothesis may be interpreted as a generalization to the short and the long run of the theories that put no weight on the real effects of public policies on aggregate demand. We argue that Ricardian equivalence relies on both the permanent income hypothesis and the fulfillment of the intertemporal government budget constraint. The theoretical literature emphasizes several reasons for departures from this hypothesis. However, the empirical literature is inconclusive. When Ricardian equivalence is tested in a life–cycle framework the hypothesis is usually rejected, while when the empirical analysis is based on optimizing models, it is usually accepted.
Reclaiming the Idea of Truth: Some Thoughts on Theory in Response to Practice
Authors: Flaskas Carmel
Published: March 2003

This paper examines the idea of truth, its place in therapy and in the history of systemic theory. Beginning with some practice fragments, the theory exploration considers the idea of truth in the modernist frame, the paradox of the modernist metaphor in describing the activity of therapy, and the peculiarities of the idea of truth in the earlier systemic therapies. Postmodernist and social constructionist ideas are then explored, and meaning is identified as the concept which currently occupies the place of an idea of truth in systemic discourse. It is argued that meaning as a concept is insufficiently attached to an idea of (external) reality or to an understanding of the relationship of the individual to knowledge of her/his experience of the world. Reclaiming the idea of truth as an emotional and social process has more potential to meet the complexities of human experience in thinking about the process of therapeutic change.
A Full Circle: Psycho‐dynamic Understanding and Systems Theory
Authors: Bentovim Arnon
Published: March 2003

Two papers published in 1979 are reviewed, one which looked at theories of family interaction and techniques of intervention, and the other at developments of the focal approach to family therapy which has its base in a dynamic understanding of the nature of relationships, but uses a variety of systemic interventions to create change. The development of the approach is described, along with its application to work in the abuse field. A recent case where two daughters were sexually abused by the grandfather who had abused their mother is used as an illustration.
Children as carers: the impact of parental illness and disability on children's caring roles
Authors: Aldridge Jo , Becker Saul
Published: March 2003

The nature and extent of young caring in the UK continue to be a feature of a growing number of research programmes motivated by a children and carers' rights philosophy. However, the context in which young caring occurs as a result of parental ill‐health or disability can only be fully understood by examining the findings and implications of medical research into parental impairment, and the social movements that have served to re‐define the concept of ‘disability’ in society. This paper examines the arguments put forward by medical researchers, by those proposing a social model of disability and by those who have specifically investigated the conditions and experiences of young carers. It argues that children's caring roles within families where there is parental illness or disability need to be understood not only as a reflection of the nature of the medical condition itself, but as a consequence of complex family, social and economic processes. A ‘whole family’ approach is proposed, where the needs of children and parents are respected and responded to.
Refugee families in therapy: from referrals to therapeutic conversations
Authors: Sveaass Nora , Reichelt Sissel
Published: March 2003

Refugee families referred for therapy present a wide array of problems and expectations, not always in accordance with what therapy may offer. Major differences between referring professionals, families and therapists regarding problem definitions and solutions may complicate collaboration. Interventions that may overcome these barriers and move initial interviews into a therapeutic context are described. Three patterns regarding referral process, problem presentation and expectations (here called referral contexts) are outlined: ‘the relational’, where families ask for psychological and interpersonal assistance, ‘the unfocused’, where families are referred to therapy without expressing any wish for it, and ‘the fixed solution’, where families seek support for solutions that are not of a therapeutic nature. The interventions described form part of a negotiation where motives and interest for therapy are explored and agreements regarding further therapy are outlined.
Rhetorical processes in therapy: the bias for self–containment
Authors: Guilfoyle Michael
Published: March 2003

This paper argues that therapy tends to reproduce a particular version of personhood, identified by Sampson’s notion of the self–contained indi–vidual. The self–contained individual is a contemporary Western construction, which requires a denial of the interactive processes that permit its appearance and idealization. Focusing on constructionist therapies, it is argued that therapists use rhetorical strategies to more or less systematically argue for self–containment as a preferred way of being. These rhetorical manoeuvres render different aspects of self–containment plausible, practicable and ‘real’, while alternative versions of the self and behaviour are discursively minimized, becoming less plausible in the process. An analysis of two family therapy sessions is then used to illustrate these processes. It is suggested that therapy may reproduce Western ideals about being human.
Ruling Classes and Agents of the State: Formal and Informal Networks of Power
Authors: Richmond Colin
Published: March 2003

This article examines the power–sharing in England in the later Middle Ages considering definitions of where public authority and private power begin and end. It is argued that the English polity resembled more a multiple corporation than a joint‐stock company; private and public interest were as inextricably confused as were public and private authority. The essay answers questions provoked by this observation. Who serve whom? Who managed whom? Was the government of England rendered less effectual by the disputes among kings, nobles and gentlemen as to what share of power each was to have? Was ‘England’ damaged by the strife and the striving of individuals, whether royal, noble, or gentle, which the untidy meshing of private and landed power with public and governmental authority made if not inevitable then certainly commonplace?
The Phallocentric Gaze: Leon Battista Alberti and Visual Art
Authors: Sydie R.A.
Published: March 2003

Two questions are addressed: Why did Alberti promote the crafts of painting, sculpture and architecture as liberal arts? How did this contribute to the misogynist nature of fine art theory and practice? The answers proposed are, first, Alberti's promotion was a valuable form of symbolic capital that gave him an innovative route to influence and status with powerful patrons. Secondly, the misogynist contribution was a consequence of a particular approach to perspective in conjunction with a gendered understanding of the artistic ‘eye’. Both answers are anchored in the patriarchal culture of fifteenth‐century Florence.
Colonial Reception and Cultural Reproduction: Filipino Elites and United States Tutelary Rule
Authors: Go Julian
Published: March 2003

This essay opens up the problematic of state intention versus local reception through an analysis of United States colonial rule in the Philippines. Specifically, I examine how the Filipino political elite received the project of democratic tutelage, c. 1899–1910s. I argue that the Filipino elite received the Americans’ project through a particular tactic, one which is analytically irreducible to “resistance.” By this tactic, which I call “domestication,” the elite refashioned the Americans’ imposed discourses and institutions in accordance with their preexisting political culture. The elites thereby reproduced the very cultural field which the Americans tried to uproot, effectively thwarting the project from the outset.
The Influence of Ownership Structure on Risk Management: Evidence from New Zealand State Owned Enterprises
Authors: Berkman Henk , Bradbury Michael E.
Published: March 2003

This paper examines how recent theories on risk management apply to government owned organizations. We argue that, compared to publicly listed firms, government owned organizations have a lower need for risk management since stakeholders are likely to rely on implicit guarantees arising from government ownership. We test this proposition empirically and find that government owned organizations make less use of financial derivatives to reduce the costs of financial distress and agency conflicts. In general our findings provide strong support for the modern theories of risk management.
The Market Perception of Convertible Debt Versus Straight Debt: some Empirical Evidence from U.S. Firms and Non‐U.S. Firms Listed in the U.S.
Authors: Schneider Douglas K. , McCarthy Mark G. , Wertheim Paul
Published: March 2003

Accounting for convertible debt has long been a source of controversy in the accounting profession in the U.S. Current U.S. accounting rules require classifying convertible debt at date of issuance as “entirely debt” until conversion, despite numerous studies that assert that convertible debt is not “entirely debt”, but is a blend of debt and equity. Convertible debt has taken on international interest because of the issuance of International Accounting Standard (IAS) 32, Financial Instruments; Disclosure and Presentation, which prescribes reporting separate debt and equity components for convertible debt. This study examines convertible debt issued by U.S. firms and non‐U.S. firms listed in the U.S. using a levels approach. Specifically, convertible debt is compared to straight debt and contrary to ex ante expectation, convertible debt was not found to be perceived as being significantly different than straight debt for U.S. firms for any years and is statistically different in only two of the six years tested for non‐U.S. firms. The validity of this study's findings is underscored by its research design, which compares convertible debt and straight debt issued by the same firms. The findings suggest that investors regard reported amounts of convertible debt similar to straight debt in their assessment of firm value.
The Accuracy of Price‐Earnings and Discounted Cash Flow Methods of IPO Equity Valuation
Authors: Berkman Henk , Bradbury Michael E. , Ferguson Jason
Published: March 2003

This paper compares estimates of value derived from conventional discounted cash flow and price earnings valuation methods to the market price. For a sample of 45 firms newly listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange our results suggest that the best discounted cash flow method and the best price earnings comparable have similar accuracy. The median absolute pricing error is around 20% and the models explain around 70% of the cross‐sectional variation in market price scaled by book value. The results serve to corroborate the findings of Kaplan and Ruback (1995).
Information and Trading Risks in Global Investing: An Empirical Analysis of Research Location and Pacific Rim Mutual Fund Performance
Authors: Hung Mingyi
Published: March 2003

With the rapid growth of international investment, information and trading risk management has become increasingly important. Evidence suggests that investment companies use local offices as an effective way to manage both information and trading risks. This paper examines the evidence and asks what the characteristics are of investment companies that establish local research offices in foreign markets, and if companies that use local research offices show superior investment performance. My findings suggest that investment companies that manage large funds and use more company‐specific information are more likely to have Pacific Rim research offices. However, my results provide no evidence of superior investment performance by companies with local research offices.
Do Country Specific Bankruptcy Codes Determine Long‐term Financial Performance? The Case of Metallgesellschaft AG and Columbia Gas System
Authors: Jayaraman Narayanan , Sabherwal Sanjiv , Shrikhande Milind
Published: March 2003

In this paper, we examine the impact of financial distress, the bankruptcy code, and related procedures on the long‐term performance of two companies engaged in similar businesses across two countries. Both the companies were driven into bankruptcy as a result of unanticipated changes in energy prices. Though the resolution of bankruptcy of the US firm took a longer time, the post‐reorganization performance of the firm has been excellent. In contrast, the post‐reorganization performance of the German firm, which emerged out of bankruptcy in 2 weeks, has been poor. These results are consistent with the view that one of the important determinants of post‐bankruptcy performance of a firm is more likely to be the underlying economic fundamentals rather than the country specific bankruptcy code through which the firm reorganizes.
Equity Valuation and Current Cost Disclosures: the Case of Mexico
Authors: Davis‐Friday Paquita Y.
Published: March 2003

This study uses an accounting‐based valuation model to investigate the relation between the market value of publicly traded Mexican firms and their disclosures of price‐level adjusted accounting information. The model is estimated on a sample of Mexican companies during 1987–1990, when annual inflation rates in Mexico decreased from 130 per cent to 20 per cent. The results indicate that general price level‐adjusted and current cost disclosures explain a significant portion of the cross‐sectional variation in the market‐to‐book ratios of the sample firms. Further, the explanatory power of holding gains is robust to decreases in the general level of inflation, which suggests that current cost and constant peso disclosures are relevant for determining firm value over a wide range of inflation rates. These results are particularly important now since the Mexican Institute of CPAs has proposed eliminating the measurement of holding gains in order to make Mexican financial statements more comparable to US and Canadian GAAP.
Japanese Management Views on Overseas Exchange Listings: Survey Results
Authors: Yamori Nobuyoshi , Baba Taiji
Published: March 2003

Although many theoretical papers support the hypothesis that overseas listings have a positive effect on stockholders' wealth, a few empirical studies cast doubts on this hypothesis. These studies suggest that the steady growth of overseas listings is motivated not only by the stockholders' wealth maximization, but also by other reasons, such as managers' utility maximization. However, information about management views on overseas listings is as yet inadequate to support or contradict this hypothesis. Following Baker and Pettit (1982) and Baker and Johnson (1990), both of which examined management's motives for domestic exchange listing, we used a questionnaire to obtain information on Japanese managers' views of their company's decision to list overseas. Our survey, mailed to the chief financial officers of 2,230 Japanese domestically‐listed companies, shows that Japanese managers regard disclosure and financial reporting requirements as the primary obstacle to listing overseas. This is why many Japanese companies do not list their stocks on overseas stock exchanges despite the fact that they acknowledge the beneficial effects of overseas listings.
New Wine in Old Bottles or New Wine in New Bottles?
Authors: Leighton Patricia
Published: March 2003

This chapter traces the origins of what became the new university law schools, paying particular attention to the creation, culture, and contribution of the United Kingdom polytechnics. It argues that the ‘equal but different’ philosophy of the polytechnics has special application to law teaching. In particular, it demonstrates that legal education outside the traditional universities has a commitment to vocationalism, innovation in teaching and learning, and to widening access to both legal education and the legal profession. Drawing on research findings, the chapter explores the nature and the professional norms of law teachers in new universities, as contrasted with their counterparts in the traditional sector.
The Perceptions of Academic Lawyers Concerning the Effects of the United Kingdom's Research Assessment Exercise
Authors: Vick Douglas W. , Murray Andrew D. , Little Gavin F. , Campbell Kevin
Published: March 2003

In this article, the authors analyse quantitative and qualitative data compiled from a large‐scale postal survey of legal academics concerning the United Kingdom's Research Assessment Exercise. The purpose of the study was to measure the attitudes of academic lawyers affected by the RAE rating process and institutional responses to that process. The study reveals that a substantial number of respondents lack faith in the objectivity of the rating process, believe institutional responses to the RAE have caused damage to academic working environments, and perceive that the RAE has failed to improve the quality of legal research.
Comparative Family Law and the Political Process: Regulation of Sexual Morality in Finland
Authors: Bradley David
Published: March 2003

This article demonstrates a basis for comparative analysis of family laws. It illustrates the extent to which political constraints influence the development of legal policy and reception of foreign models. The article takes the form of a case study and examines Finnish law relating to unmarried parenthood, informal cohabitation, and same‐sex partnerships. Comparisons are drawn with Swedish law. Finland and Sweden have maintained a remarkably close association. Similarities and points of departure in the reform process and detail of legislation in these two jurisdictions point up the institutional dimensions of family law.
‘And You Can't Find Me Nowhere’: Relocating Identity and Structure within Equality Jurisprudence
Authors: Cooper Davina
Published: March 2003

This paper explores key tensions in conceptualizing equality. It begins by arguing for the equality of lives lived and then goes on to link this to equality based on power. Yet, although equality of power seems to offer a more radical model than approaches to equality based on resources, satisfaction, and recognition, it nevertheless is not entirely suitable, since it too centres equality's subject. After addressing some of the analytical problems a subject‐centred framework raises, including how to deal with reactionary identities and practices, the paper considers instead a structural approach to equality. This focuses on targeting social organizing principles, while recognizing the complex relationship between inequalities of gender, race, sexuality, and class and inequalities associated with unpopular viewpoints or beliefs. Finally, using lesbian and gay sexuality as an example, the paper considers the ways in which normative‐epistemological organizing principles — proper place and the public/private — naturalize, legitimize but also hold the possibility of undercutting asymmetries of power.
The Social Issue Courtroom Drama as an Expression of American Popular Culture
Authors: Kuzina Matthias
Published: March 2003

Drawing on recent works of commercial Hollywood cinema and topical made‐for‐television movies, this paper explores the cultural implications of two distinct varieties of the American courtroom picture: the problem film in the guise of a legal drama and the trial movie which may take the form of a social issue film. Both types merge into a category that overtly abounds with liberal stances and humanitarian attitudes, films that portray actual or – only rarely – fictional excesses of rigid conservative orthodoxy, movies that have also succeeded in capturing the interest of the public on both sides of the Atlantic. Further, the aesthetics of the documentary tradition related to this generic strain is examined in such a way as to cast light on the quality of critical reflection and certain ideological inferences thereof.
Borders and Boundaries: Locating the Law in Film
Authors: Osborn Guy
Published: March 2003

The essay examines the emergence of law and film in the curricula of law schools in the context of Britain. It outlines the development of legal education in England and Wales and the relationship between legal education and training. It notes the broadening out of the syllabus to encompass more politicized courses taught within their socio‐economic context like family law and labour law. From this shift of academic focus the politically contextual has extended to the cultural context. The relationship between law and culture both in literature and in other areas has been the end result of this relaxation of focus on professional education. Finally, the precise nature of law and film and its boundaries are discussed.
Magistrates: The Future According to Auld
Authors: Morgan Rod
Published: March 2003

This paper arises out of work I undertook before I was appointed to my present post. I wish to comment narrowly on Auld’s proposals for the future role of magistrates (in which category, for present purposes, I include district judges, formerly stipendiary magistrates), and will do so in the light of my own published research, commissioned jointly by the Home Office and Lord Chancellor’s Department to inform Auld’s deliberations. In the process I will comment on the manner in which Auld drew on, or failed to draw on, data generated in the course of that research.
Managers' Innovations and the Structuration of Organizations
Authors: Coopey John , Keegan Orla , Emler Nick
Published: March 2003

Drawing on interview data from managers in three organizations a theoretical framework based on structuration theory is offered for understanding the social construction of innovation in a way that overcomes the duality of individual and structural perspectives that fragments the literature on innovation and other related domains. Three case studies, one from each organization, illustrate and help link the elements of an argument that focuses first on how an organization's openness to its external environment allows for conflicting interpretations of necessary action. Individual agents exploit the ambiguity, making choices which help sustain or develop their self‐identities, drawing on experience to shape innovations that promise to reconcile the constraints of the personal and organizational domains. Their capacity to transform circumstances in the desired direction depends on the extent to which they can deploy personal and organizational resources to negotiate appropriate meanings through social and political relationships with relevant others. The socio‐political process and the substance of the innovation have reciprocal effects, yielding the possibility of agreement on a ‘working innovation’ which, once institutionalized, modifies the existing system and structures in ways that constrain, in new modes, the behaviours of all of those involved
Global New Product Development Processes: Preliminary Findings and Research Propositions
Authors: Subramaniam Mohan , Rosenthal Stephen R. , Hatten Kenneth J.
Published: March 2003

This study examines the processes and routines firms employ for developing new global products. Observations from 13 Japanese, American and European multinational companies reveal that global new product development processes vary in terms of the involvement of overseas subsidiaries in project teams and the generation of new product concepts. In particular, when the knowledge about different product design requirements among overseas markets or plants is tacit, firms employ cross‐national product development teams and use overseas subsidiaries as sources of new product concepts. Anchoring these findings on information processing theory, we develop a set of research propositions on global new product development processes and suggest directions for future research.
In Search of Commitment‐Oriented Human Resource Management Practices and the Conditions that Sustain Them
Authors: Roche William K.
Published: March 2003

Drawing on data from a survey of human resource management (HRM) in Irish organizations, the paper examines the incidence of coherent bundles of commitment‐oriented HRM practices and deploys loglinear modelling to test a series of hypotheses concerning external and internal factors which sustain such practices. The paper identifies the low overall incidence of cohesive commitment‐oriented HRM practices in organizations in Ireland. The analysis establishes that the strategic integration of HRM into corporate strategy strongly favours the adoption of such practices, as does the avoidance of union recognition. No link can be established empirically between sectoral turbulence or dynamism and either the adoption or non‐adoption of coherent sets of commitment‐oriented HRM practices. Nor does the modelling identify any core set of underlying features which, when observed concurrently, greatly increases the likelihood that commitment‐oriented HRM practices will be adopted.
Implementing Collaboration Between Organizations: An Empirical Study Of Supply Chain Partnering
Authors: Boddy David , Macbeth Douglas , Wagner Beverly
Published: March 2003

Many managers attempt to develop collaborative alliances with other organizations. Such strategies are difficult to implement: they are as likely to fail as to succeeed. Implementing and managing an alliance is harder than deciding to collaborate. This paper explores the topic empirically through a study of one form of alliance – supply chain partnering. It presents an interaction model of partnering which shows seven contextual factors that shape, and are shaped by, human action. This context can both help and hinder the emergence of co‐operative behaviour. The model is illustrated through a case study of two organizations (customer and supplier) attempting to co‐operate more closely. The case shows how the cultural and other differences between the parties at first caused difficulty. Actions were taken to change aspects of the context to facilitate more co‐operative behaviour. Improving interpersonal relations led to further actions to create more formal mechanisms which would support future co‐operation. These appear to have contributed to the relationship exceeding the initial expectations of the partners. The interaction model illuminates both the content and process of supply chain partnering.
Unequal Pay, Unequal Responses? Pay Referents and their Implications for Pay Level Satisfaction
Authors: Brown Michelle
Published: March 2003

Pay referents are those with whom workers make pay comparisons. The five referents used in this study are: market, organizational, financial, social and historical. Of particular interest is the importance attached to each of these referents and the implications of inequity (under and over) for pay level satisfaction. The study also examines reactions to pay inequity on the basis of union status. The data for the study derive from a survey of 2867 public sector research workers. The study finds that the market referent is the most important to all workers, irrespective of union status; type of inequity (over or under) with this referent has the greatest impact on pay level satisfaction. The paper concludes with an examination of the implications for management, unions and the design of pay systems.