bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Single Garbage Can Model and the Degree of Anarchy in Japanese Firms
Authors: Takahashi Nobuo
Published: March 2006

This paper refreshes an empirical examination of the garbage can model, particularly in a sample drawn from Japanese firms. The garbage can model of organizational decision making was originally developed by Cohen, March, and Olsen (1972) to describe organized anarchy. This paper incorporates two methodologies in an attempt to both validate and extend the garbage can model: Simulation is first used to generate a research hypothesis, then several surveys are conducted to test that hypothesis and to empirically develop an ex-post model of decision ambiguity, flight, and anarchy. The data support our hypothesis and we find out new conditions of ambiguity: (i) fluid participation, (ii) divorce of solution from discussion, and (iii) job performance rather than subjective assessments, which are clearly related to the simulation assumption of our single garbage can model. By using our new conditions of ambiguity, we develop a measure of degree of anarchy, and the regression analysis indicates a linear relationship between the flight ratio and the degree of anarchy.
A Conceptual Framework for Assessing Organization, Work Group, and Individual Effectiveness During and After Downsizing
Authors: Shaw James B. , Barrett-Power Elain
Published: March 2006

The need for a unified, cross-level (organization, work group, individual employee) model of organizational downsizing has been suggested by several authors (e.g., Kozlowski et al., 1993). The definition of downsizing, in terms applicable only at the organization level, prevents researchers from developing a more cohesive view of the interactive impact of downsizing for the organization, work groups, and individuals. In this paper, we define downsizing more broadly as a constellation of stressor events centering around pressures toward work force reductions which place demands upon the organization, work groups, and individual employees, and require a process of coping and adaptation. This stress-based view of downsizing allows researchers to develop concepts to guide research on downsizing that are more broadly applicable across levels of analysis. To show the advantages of this stress-based view of downsizing, this paper uses concepts from the stress coping literature to identify a set of critical dependent variables that should be studied in downsizing research. We argue that these variables are applicable for organization, group, and individual employee-level research.
Members' Participation in the Union: An Investigation of Some Determinants in Singapore
Authors: Aryee Samuel , Debrah Yaw A.
Published: March 2006

Data obtained from unionized employees in Singapore (N = 205) were used to investigate Strauss' (1977) suggestion that union participation studies be fitted into the general theories of role and commitment. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to examine the contribution of role commitment variables (family and union) net of demographic, job or work and union-related variables to the explained variance in a unidimensional model of union participation. The model accounted for 43% (R2) of the explained variance in participation with the role commitment antecedent set contributing a modest 5% (ΔR2). The significant positive individual variables were union satisfaction, union commitment, union tenure, and gender while union socialization and marital status positively, and family commitment negatively approached significance. Extrinsic satisfaction was significantly negatively related to participation. Limitations of the study, directions for future research and the implications of the findings are discussed.
Group Identity and Individuality in Times of Crisis: Psychoanalytic Reflections on Social Psychological Knowledge
Authors: Parker Ian
Published: March 2006

This paper locates contemporary social psychological conceptions of group identity in the context of crises in forms of knowledge, and in the ways researchers have responded to crises in disciplinary identity. Forms of group social psychology that emerged within the European tradition of research promised a fully social account of human activity and experience, but recent trends of research in the discipline, even within group identity frameworks, have returned to the individual as a focus of study. The work of Bion is used to draw attention to the ways in which crises in group identity often provoke particular varieties of response which serve to defend the group, varieties of response which look to the individual as an escape from the threat or as a solution to the problem.
The Half Full or Half Empty Glass: The Views of the Economic Optimist vs Pessimist
Authors: Furnham Adrian
Published: March 2006

This paper examines the economic beliefs and value correlates of adults either optimistic or pessimistic about their economic future. On the basis of an internally reliable, 19-item scale, nearly 277 British subjects were divided into economic pessimists, optimists, and status quo observers. These economic views were then correlated with ratings on economic social comparisons, beliefs about work, job involvement, and economic "values." Subjects with Marxist-related work beliefs tended to be more pessimistic and those with leisure ethic beliefs tended to be more optimistic. A multiple stepwise regression showed that nearly 45% of the variance could be accounted for by five factors which indicated that older, less religious, richer people who strongly believed in the humanistic work-belief system, but not in the leisure ethic, tended to be more pessimistic about the economic future of their country. The results are discussed in terms of the literature on psychological and economic optimism and pessimism.
Longevity and Cultural Differences of International Joint Ventures: Toward Time-Based Cultural Management
Authors: Meschi Pierre-Xavier
Published: March 2006

This article explores the relationships among time, organizational, and national cultural distance in an international joint venture setting. More particularly, the extent to which the longevity of an international joint venture affects the intensity of its cultural differences, is investigated in a sample of 51 international joint ventures set up in Hungary. It addresses certain mechanisms available to an international joint venture's managers and to its partners to deal with cross-cultural issues. The results suggest that the temporal dimension is a cultural moderator of prime importance, but to be totally effective, it must be combined with a willful strategy of cultural integration.
The Determinants of Parenthood: Power and Responsibility
Authors: Mass Mili
Published: March 2006

The conception of parental adaptation in terms of the complexity of the balance between the parent's responsibility and the infant's power is presented. A method based on this conception is proposed as a way to describe and assess parental adaptation. The adaptational view is compared with the clinical approach to parenthood, and its advantages for the detection of parental vulnerability and early intervention in the parent-infant relationship is illustrated. In addition, the conception of parental responsibility, in terms of the parent's evaluation of the balance between his/her responsibility and the infant's power, is compared with the conception of the legal approach which views parental responsibility in terms of accountability and the parent's duties and rights. The evolving change in the societal view of parental responsibility, brought about by the Children Act, requires a shift in the conceptualization of parenthood such as the one proposed by the adaptational conception. This could constitute a bridge between the helping professions and the legal approaches.
Social Movement Rhetoric and the Social Psychology of Collective Action: A Case Study of Anti-Abortion Mobilization
Authors: Hopkins Nick , Reicher Steve
Published: March 2006

This paper seeks to contribute toward an integrated approach to social movement mobilization. It does so through considering how a social psychological account of the determination of collective behavior (self-categorization theory) may be applied to the mobilization rhetoric of social movements. More specifically it argues that as people may define themselves and act in terms of social categories, we may usefully conceive of social movement rhetoric as being organized so as to construct social category definitions which allow the activists' preferred course of action to be taken on by others as their own. Our theoretical argument is illustrated through the detailed analysis of category construction in contemporary U.K. anti-abortion argumentation.
An Exploration of the Meaning and Consequences of Workaholism
Authors: Scottl Kimberly S. , Moore Keirsten S. , Miceli Marcia P.
Published: March 2006

Although much has been written about "workaholism," rigorous research and theoretical development on the topic is in its infancy. We integrate literature from. multiple disciplines and offer a definition of workaholic behavior. We identify three types of workaholic behavior patterns: compulsive-dependent, perfectionist, and achievement-oriented workaholism. A preliminary model is proposed; it identifies potential linkages between each type of workaholism pattern and important outcomes such as performance, job and life satisfaction, and turnover. Specific propositions for future research are articulated. We conclude that, depending on the type of workaholic behavior pattern, workaholism can be good or bad, and its consequences may be experienced or evaluated differently by individuals, organizations, and society at large. Researchers and managers should avoid making judgments about the positive or negative effects of workaholism until more carefully controlled research has been published.
Repairing ERP
Authors: Wagner Erica L. , Newell Sue
Published: March 2006

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is used to enable organizational change. The challenges of implementing these integrated software products have recently dominated academic and practitioner literatures. Given that it is difficult for organizations to stop such projects once started, the authors'approach is to focus on howto make troubled ERP projects work. A narrative methodology is adopted to analyze a strategic initiative between a university that partnered with an ERP vendor seeking entrance into the higher education market. Through the lens of social ordering, the authors argue against the idea that consensus must be sought in instances of conflict if success is to be realized. Rather, the important thing appears to be coordinating action that will allowgoals to be achieved, even if this involves compromise. Such compromise depends on reciprocity to produce order and does not expect a shared aim as long as a solution can be negotiated.
Large-Scale ICT Innovation, Power, and Organizational Change
Authors: Constantinides Panos , Barrett Michael
Published: March 2006

This article focuses on the multilevel context of power negotiations in understanding the relationship between large-scale information and communication technology (ICT) innovation and organizational change. The authors'analytical approach draws on the concept of networks of power to examine the changing interrelationships between institutional arrangements, people, ICTs, and work practices and how each plays a role in the adjustment, coordination, and integration of diverse interests and goals. The authors use this approach to examine the development and use of a regional health information network and conclude with some suggestions for effectively negotiating the process of change.
Institutions and Technology
Authors: Bridgman Todd , Willmott Hugh
Published: March 2006

The paper offers a fresh approach to the analysis of technology in organization through a critique of Orlikowski and Barley's assessment that institutional theory has the potential to bridge the social and material facets of organizational change when greater emphasis is placed on the materiality of technology. Through analysis of a major information and communication technologies outsourcing contract between UK Inland Revenue and Electronic Data Services, the authors follow institutional theory in problematizing studies in which technology is treated as a material cause or independent variable. But the approach commended by Orlikowski and Barley, they argue, is flawed by its unproblematized assumption of a separation between the physical and social aspects of technology. Drawing on the thinking of Laclau and Mouffe, the authors advocate an alternative framework that unsettles the commonsense, naturalized differentiation of the materiality of technology and the discursive field through which it is articulated and given meaning.
A Technological Frames Perspective on Information Technology and Organizational Change
Authors: Davidson Elizabeth
Published: March 2006

When information technologies (IT) have a central role in organizational change programs, understanding how organization members make sense of technology is critical to influencing their actions and to achieving planned outcomes. Orlikowski and Gash articulated a theoretic framework centered on technological frames of reference (TFR) to investigate interpretive processes related to IT in organizations. The TFR framework has been cited across a wide range of publications and has formed the basis for a genre of studies on the interpretive aspects of IT and organizational change. In this article, the author assesses these research contributions and argues that further theoretic development is needed for the TFR framework to reach its potential contributions to knowledge. The author outlines the following research strategies that could facilitate TFR theory development: focusing analysis on frame structure, investigating framing as a dynamic interpretive process, and examining the cultural and institutional basis of organizational frames.
An Institutional Perspective on Health Sector Reforms and the Process of Reframing Health Information Systems
Authors: Piotti Bruno , Chilundo Baltazar , Sahay Sundeep
Published: March 2006

Health sector reform, including structural and process changes such as the incorporation of feasible information and communication technologies, is a priority in many least developed countries. However, such changes have not been particularly effective, the reasons for which will be explored in this article. Particular attention will be paid to attempts to integrate information systems in HIV/AIDS program in Mozambique. The article draws on new institutional theory to argue that the focus of this program on formal rules (i.e., Sector Wide Approach policy and national plans), which deemphasize the informal constraints at the point of service delivery (i.e., priority given to health care over reporting), has resulted in limited change. Furthermore, the limited overlap between the formal and informal domains raises the need for enhancing incentives and enforcement as key mechanisms through which more effective change can be enabled in the future.
Buyer-Supplier Collaboration in Product Development Projects
Authors: Hoegl Martin , Wagner Stephan M.
Published: March 2006

Previous research on supplier involvement in product development projects has produced contradictory results, with some studies showing a positive relationship, others no relationship, and still others a negative relationship between supplier involvement and project performance. Drawing on data from 124 managers, project leaders, buyer members, and supplier members pertaining to 28 product development projects, the authors find that buyer-supplier collaboration positively relates to product quality, adherence to product cost targets, adherence to development budgets, and adherence to development schedules. Furthermore, their analyses show that communication frequency and intensity has a curvilinear (inverted U-shaped) relationship with project development budget and product cost.
Absorptive Capacity in the Software Industry: Identifying Dimensions That Affect Knowledge and Knowledge Creation Activities
Authors: Matusik Sharon F. , Heeley Michael B.
Published: March 2006

The ability of the firm to effectively use external knowledge (its absorptive capacity) is important to firm competitiveness and innovativeness. However, the wide array of approaches to studying absorptive capacity has obscured our understanding of what drives the effective use of external knowledge. The authors show that absorptive capacity is composed of mutliple dimensions: (a) the firm’s relationship to its external environment; (b) the structure, routines, and knowledge base of the main value creation group(s); and (c) individuals’ absorptive abilities. Their data illustrate that each of these dimensions contributes to increased knowledge or knowledge creation activities.
Stakeholder Perceptions of Age and Other Dimensions of Newness
Authors: Choi Young Rok , Shepherd Dean A.
Published: March 2006

Using verbal protocol and conjoint analyses, this study examines how stakeholders assess an organization in deciding whether to provide their support to it. The authors find that stakeholders’ support depends on their perceptions of an organization’s age and other dimensions of newness related to addressing management challenges of adaptation—the entrepreneurial problem, the engineering problem, and the administrative problem. Stakeholder support is more likely for those organizations that are old, cognitively legitimate, affectively congruent, reliable, accountable, and strategically flexible. The authors conclude with theoretical implications for scholars and practical implications for resource acquisition in various contexts of entrepreneurship.
External Sources of Knowledge, Governance Mode, and R&D Performance
Authors: Fey Carl F. , Birkinshaw Julian
Published: March 2006

This article examines how the choice of governance mode for external R&D, along with openness to new ideas and codifiability of knowledge, affects R&D performance. Superior R&D performance is therefore viewed as arising through (a) the choice of approaches used by the firm to access knowledge from outside (university partnering, alliance partnering, and contracting), (b) the knowledge context of the firm (its openness to new ideas and the codifiability of its knowledge assets), and (c) the interactions between these two sets of factors. These arguments are tested, and mostly supported, using data on the R&D activities of 107 large firms based in the United Kingdom and Sweden.
The Effects of Flexibility in Employee Skills, Employee Behaviors, and Human Resource Practices on Firm Performance
Authors: Bhattacharya Mousumi , Gibson Donald E. , Doty D. Harold
Published: March 2006

The components of human resource (HR) flexibility and their potential relationship to firm performance have not been empirically examined. The authors hypothesize that flexibility of employee skills, employee behaviors, and HR practices represent critical subdimensions of HR flexibility and are related to superior firm performance. Results based on perceptual measures of HR flexibility and accounting measures of firm performance support this prediction. Whereas skill, behavior, and HR practice flexibility are significantly associated with an index of firm financial performance, the authors find that only skill flexibility contributes to cost-efficiency.
Long-term Results of Extracorporeal Shockwave Treatment for Plantar Fasciitis
Authors: Wang Ching-Jen , Wang Feng-Sheng , Yang Kuender D. , Weng Lin-Hsiu , Ko Jih-Yang
Published: March 2006

Background

Extracorporeal shockwave treatment has shown mixed short-term results for plantar fasciitis. However, the long-term results are not available.

Hypothesis

Long-term results of shockwave treatment are comparable with short-term results.

Study Design

Randomized controlled clinical trial; Level of evidence, 1.

Methods

This prospective study consisted of 149 patients (168 heels) with an established diagnosis of chronic plantar fasciitis, including 79 patients (85 heels) in the shockwave treatment group and 70 patients (83 heels) in the control group. In the shockwave group, patients received 1500 impulses of shockwaves at 16 kV to the affected heel in a single session. Patients in the control group received conservative treatment consisting of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, orthotics, physical therapy, an exercise program, and/or a local cortisone injection. Patients were evaluated at 60 to 72 months (shockwave group) or 34 to 64 months (control group) with a 100-point scoring system including 70 points for pain and 30 points for function. The clinical outcomes were rated as excellent, good, fair, or poor.

Results

Before treatment, the groups showed no significant differences in the scores for pain and function. After treatment, the shockwave group showed significantly better pain and function scores as compared with the control group. The overall results were 69.1% excellent, 13.6% good, 6.2% fair, and 11.1% poor for the shockwave group; and 0% excellent, 55% good, 36% fair, and 9% poor for the control group (P< .001). The recurrence rate was 11% (9/81 heels) for the shockwave group versus 55% (43/78 heels) for the control group (P< .001). There were no systemic or local complications or device-related problems.

Conclusion

Extracorporeal shockwave treatment is effective and safe for patients with plantar fasciitis, with good long-term results.
p38 MAPK plays a role in IL-4 synthesis in jacalin plus CD28-stimulated CD4+ T cells—II
Authors: Tamma Seetha M Lakshmi , Chung Kun Wook , Patel Tejal , Balan Satya Priya , Pahwa Savita
Published: March 2006

We have previously shown that jacalin, a CD4+ T cell lectin, induces phosphorylation of intracellular events, moderate levels of interleukin (IL)-2 secretion. We have also shown that in the presence of CD28 costimulation, jacalin induces IL-4 secretion. In the present study, we showed that stimulation of normal CD4+ T cells with jacalin plus CD28 cross-linking (CD28XL) resulted in phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)-6 and expression of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL, which were inhibited significantly when cells were cultured in the presence of the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibitor SB203580. We further generated jacalin-induced CD4+ T cell blasts, examined the effects of CD28XL, and observed enhanced up-regulation of p38 and activation of STAT-6, Bcl-2, and Bcl-xL. Engagement of CD28 alone induced a marked degree of phosphorylation of p38 MAPK and IL-4 secretion in memory T cells (jacalin blasts), whereas in naïve T cells, jacalin plus CD28XL was required to induce these molecules. Incubation of cells with p38 inhibitor prior to CD28XL resulted in down-modulation of all these molecules. Further treatment with IL-4 has not reversed this trend. Our studies imply that p38 MAPK may play an important role in induction of these molecules and a putative role in protecting cells from undergoing apoptosis.
Chronic ethanol feeding increases activation of NADPH oxidase by lipopolysaccharide in rat Kupffer cells: role of increased reactive oxygen in LPS-stimulated ERK1/2 activation and TNF-α production
Authors: Thakur Varsha , Pritchard Michele T , McMullen Megan R , Wang Qifang , Nagy Laura E
Published: March 2006

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to the development of chronic ethanol-induced liver injury. Although ROS modulate the activity of many signal transduction pathways, the molecular targets of ROS during ethanol exposure are not well understood. Here, we investigated whether specific ROS-sensitive signal transduction pathways contribute to increased tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) production by Kupffer cells after chronic ethanol feeding to rats. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) rapidly increased ROS production, measured by dihydrorhodamine fluorescence, in Kupffer cells from ethanol- and pair-fed rats, and ROS production was 2.5-fold greater in ethanol-fed compared with pair-fed. Pretreatment with diphenyleneiodonium (DPI), which inhibits reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase, normalized ROS production in Kupffer cells from ethanol-fed rats. LPS rapidly increased Rac1-guanosinetriphosphatase (GTPase) activity and p67phox translocation to the plasma membrane in Kupffer cells from pair-fed rats. After ethanol feeding, Rac1-GTPase activity was already increased over pair-fed at baseline and remained elevated over pair-fed after LPS stimulation. Further, LPS-stimulated p67phox translocation to the plasma membrane was enhanced after chronic ethanol feeding. LPS-stimulated extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 and p38 phosphorylation, two signaling pathways regulated by ROS, were increased twofold in Kupffer cells from ethanol-fed rats compared with pair-fed controls. However, only LPS-stimulated ERK1/2 phosphorylation was inhibited by DPI, which also reduced LPS-stimulated TNF-α production in Kupffer cells from pair- and ethanol-fed rats. These results demonstrate that chronic ethanol feeding increases LPS-stimulated NADPH oxidase-dependent production of ROS in Kupffer cells. Further, ERK1/2 is an important target of NADPH oxidase-derived ROS in Kupffer cells, contributing to enhanced LPS-stimulated TNF-α production by Kupffer cells after chronic ethanol feeding.
Shelter-based palliative care for the homeless terminally ill
Authors: Podymow Tiina , Turnbull Jeffrey , Coyle Doug
Published: March 2006

Background: The homeless have high rates of mortality, but live in environments not conducive to terminal care. Traditional palliative care hospitals may be reluctant to accept such patients, due to behavior or lifestyle concerns. The Ottawa Inner City Health Project (OICHP) is a pilot study to improve health care delivery to homeless adults. This is a retrospective analysis of a cohort of terminally ill homeless individuals and the effectiveness of shelter-based palliative care. As proof of principle, a cost comparison was performed. Methods: 28 consecutive homeless terminally ill patients were admitted and died at a shelter-based palliative care hospice. Demographics, diagnoses at admission and course were recorded. Burden of illness was assessed by medical and psychiatric diagnoses, addictions, Karnofsky scale and symptom management. An expert panel was convened to identify alternate care locations. Using standard costing scales, direct versus alternate care costs were compared. Results: 28 patients had a mean age 49 years; average length of stay 120 days. Diagnoses: liver disease 43%, HIV/AIDS 25%, malignancy 25% and other 8%. Addiction to drugs or alcohol and mental illness in 82% of patients. Karnofsky performance score mean 409 / 16.8. Pain management with continuous opiates in 71%. The majority reunited with family. Compared to alternate care locations, the hospice projected $1.39 million savings for the patients described. Conclusion: The homeless terminally ill have a heavy burden of disease including physical illness, psychiatric conditions and addictions. Shelter-based palliative care can provide effective end-of-life care to terminally ill homeless individuals at potentially substantial cost savings.
The ethics of palliative care and euthanasia: exploring common values
Authors: Hurst Samia A , Mauron Alex
Published: March 2006

The ethical underpinnings of palliative care and those of voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide (VE/AS) are often viewed as opposites. In this article, we review the values held in common by the euthanasia legalization movement and palliative care providers. Outlining this common ground serves to define, with greater clarity, the issues on which differences do exist, and ways in which some open questions, which are as yet unresolved, could be approached. Open discussion between VE/AS legalization advocates and palliative care providers is important to address these open questions seriously, and to enrich the care of terminally ill patients by giving members of both groups access to each other’s experience.
Determinants of resource utilization in four palliative care units
Authors: Tibi-Lévy Yaël , Le Vaillant Marc , de Pouvourville Gérard
Published: March 2006

Objective: To assess resources mobilized per day and per patient receiving palliative care (PC) and to explain the observed cost variability. Study setting: We conducted a prospective study in four French PC units. Study design/data collection: For each patient, socio-demographic and medical data were collected (using a case-report form developed specifically for this purpose) and a daily cost for the provision of care was estimated. Three methods were used to analyse causal relationships. The first method was to ask the PC staff, individually and in group meetings, their own perception of the relationship between daily costs and the other variables; the remaining two methods used the data collected in the prospective study: correlational analysis and segmentation. The database contained 140 hospitalization sequences. Principal findings: The daily cost per patient was, on average, t434 (standard deviation: t73) and ranged from t301 to t667. Beyond differences in resources between PC units in this study, six variables were predictive of higher costs: degree of anxiety of patients and/or their families; proximity of death; extreme dependence; ENT cancer; relatively young age of the patient; and provision of certain procedures (drip, syringe driver, aspiration, oxygen therapy). Conclusions: These elements suggest using, not a single rate to finance this type of care, but modifying this tariff according to the characteristics of the patients. They raise the question about the criteria to be used if such a step were to be taken.
Pyoderma gangrenosum in a syringe driver site of a patient with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Authors: Curtis Claire , Douglas Ian
Published: March 2006

A case of pyoderma gangrenosum, which occurred in a patient with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, is described. The lesion started at a syringe driver site on the upper arm.
Defining the patient population: one of the problems for palliative care research
Authors: Borgsteede Sander D , Deliens Luc , Francke Anneke L , Stalman Wim AB , Willems Dick L , van Eijk Jacques ThM , van der Wal Gerrit
Published: March 2006

There is a lack of clear definition and clear inclusion criteria in palliative care research. The aim of this study was to describe consequences of three inclusion criteria in the build up of different study populations, studied in terms of size, number of doctor-patient contacts and demographic characteristics. General practitioners received a questionnaire for all patients who died during the second Dutch National Survey of General Practice ( n = 2194), to determine whether (1) patients received non-curative treatment; (2) patients received palliative care; and (3) death was expected (total response rate= 73%). The criterion ‘death was expected’ included most patients (62%) followed by ‘palliative care’ (46%) and ‘noncurative treatment’ (39%). Similarity between the definition-based populations was fair to moderate. More ‘palliative care’ and ‘death was expected’ in patients who had cancer than ‘non-curative treatment’ patients. The conclusions show substantial differences in populations according to the different inclusion criteria used to select them. Future research in palliative care should acknowledge the limitations of using certain inclusion criteria and explore potential bias.
Management guidelines for motor neurone disease patients on non-invasive ventilation at home
Authors: Eng Derek
Published: March 2006

Most motor neurone disease (MND) patients die of respiratory system complications. When patients have advanced disease with symptoms of respiratory failure, management issues can become complicated by the introduction of assisted ventilatory devices. Therefore, care provision by a multidisciplinary team must be structured and co-ordinated in order to ensure that patients and their carers receive the optimal level of care. The objective of this article is to review the literature and explore the complex issues surrounding the use of non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) in home care MND patients as a justification for the development of a management guideline for medical practitioners. A guideline for multidisciplinary care of home ventilated MND patients will be proposed.
The Reduced and Enhanced Impact of Shared Features on Individual Brand Evaluations
Authors: Brunner Thomas A. , Wänke Michaela
Published: March 2006

In 3 studies, consumers received information about products that had either positive or negative features in common. When they evaluated the products shortly afterward, the common features had little influence on their evaluations, and this was true regardless of whether they had made a preference rating, a similarity rating, or no rating at all before reporting these evaluations. In all cases, consumers apparently used one of the brands spontaneously as a standard of comparison for the other and, in doing so, discounted their common features. When their evaluation was delayed, however, shared features had greater impact. Two factors appear to be operating in the latter conditions. First, the alternative brand is less accessible and, therefore, is less likely to be used as a standard of comparison. Second, shared features are easier to recall than unique features, so they have a disproportional influence for this reason.
Spillover of Negative Information on Brand Alliances
Authors: Votola Nicole L. , Unnava H. Rao
Published: March 2006

This research examines the conditions in which the effect of 1 partner's negative behavior in a marketing alliance is likely to spill over to the other. Alliances with both a supplier and a spokesperson were considered. Furthermore, we determined the impact of 2 types of negative attributes: incompetence and immorality. Negative spillover from the partner brand to the host brand occurred only when the host brand was viewed as equally culpable for the offense (i.e., the host was linked directly to the negative act). In addition, moral failures were more detrimental than competence failures in a spokesperson alliance, whereas the reverse was true in a supplier alliance.
Dressed for the Occasion: Font‐Product Congruity in the Perception of Logotype
Authors: Doyle John R. , Bottomley Paul A.
Published: March 2006

Styles of lettering (i.e., fonts) can differ in their appropriateness for describing certain types of brands and products. We use the Osgood dimensions of evaluation, potency, and activity to measure the connotative meaning of fonts and product categories. Judgments of the appropriateness of a font for a product partly depend on the consistency between the connotative meaning of the font and that of the product along dimensions of potency and activity. However, its perceived appropriateness also depends on the connotative meaning of the font per se, indeendent of the type of product being described. These differences are also evident when participants choose a company to call on the basis of ads similar to those found in the Yellow Pages. Finally, the effect of the meaning that people assign to a font is similar to the effect of the meaning they assign to the product's name itself.
1=2: When a Singular Experience Leads to Dissociated Evaluations
Authors: Honea Heather , Morales Andrea C. , Fitzsimons Gavan J.
Published: March 2006

This research examines how a single experience with a salesperson can lead to the formation of dual representations of the salesperson resulting in opposing spontaneous and deliberative affective responses and dissociated evaluations. Consumers may either use their spontaneous affective reactions to form an evaluation or may respond more deliberately using information that contradicts this initial affect. As a result, they can hold 2 evaluations of the same salesperson—one that is more spontaneously generated and one that is more deliberate. The 2 cognitive bases for these evaluations can coexist in memory even when they are opposite in valence, and consumers switch back and forth between the 2 evaluations, depending on the level of cognitive activity in which they engage.
Construal‐Level Effects on Preference Stability, Preference‐Behavior Correspondence, and the Suppression of Competing Brands
Authors: Kardes Frank R. , Cronley Maria L. , Kim John
Published: March 2006

Construal level theory (Trope & Liberman, 2003) suggests that construal level––or the degree of abstractness of mental representations––increases with temporal, spatial, or sensory distance. Three experiments show that the mere presence of a set of target brands at the time a choice is made encourages consumers to represent the brands in memory in terms of concrete lower‐level construals. Consequently, preference stability is higher, preference‐behavior consistency is greater, and product category‐identification latencies for competing brands are slower. Furthermore, the mere presence of target brands at the time of choice affects preference‐behavior consistency independent of the effects of direct experience. Implications for an understanding of spontaneous preference formation, preference representation, and preference elicitation are discussed.
When Brand Attitudes Affect the Customer Satisfaction‐Loyalty Relation: The Moderating Role of Product Involvement
Authors: Suh Jung‐Chae , Youjae Yi
Published: March 2006

Drawing on the attitude accessibility and stability theories, we investigate the moderating role of product involvement in the customer satisfaction‐loyalty relation. Structural equation modeling shows that customer satisfaction has both direct and indirect effects on loyalty, whereas ad attitudes and corporate image have only indirect effects through their mediating influence on brand attitudes. Furthermore, product involvement decreases the direct effects of satisfaction on brand attitudes and loyalty, but it increases the indirect effects of ad attitudes and corporate image.
Putting Your Best Face Forward: The Impact of Customer Mood on Salesperson Evaluation
Authors: Puccinelli Nancy M.
Published: March 2006

This investigation examines the response of customers to a salesperson whose feelings ostensibly differ from those that customers are personally experiencing. When customers in a bad mood encounter a salesperson who appears to be happy, they feel even worse than they otherwise would. These feelings, in turn, decrease their evaluations of the products the salesperson is promoting. Finally, unhappy customers tend to avoid a happy salesperson unless the decision is sufficiently important that they are motivated to ignore the effects of their bad mood.
The Role of Regulatory Focus in the Experience and Self‐Control of Desire for Temptations
Authors: Dholakia Utpal M. , Gopinath Mahesh , Bagozzi Richard P. , Nataraajan Rajan
Published: March 2006

This research examines the role of regulatory focus in the experience and control of desire for temptations, the fulfillment of which conflicts with other salient goals of the consumer. Relative to a prevention focus (i.e., an orientation away from negative outcomes), our findings demonstrate that a promotion focus (i.e., an orientation toward positive outcomes) not only increases the intensity of desire experienced on encountering a temptation, but also increases success of its subsequent resistance. Differences in self‐control efficacy are found to be mediated by the type of self‐control strategies consumers use in the 2 foci. Convergent evidence obtained in 4 studies, considering situational and dispositional aspects of regulatory focus, indicates that when temptations are encountered by consumers, regulatory focus is an important determinant of the degree of desire, and the nature and outcome of self‐control.
Effects of Extreme‐Priced Products on Consumer Reservation Prices
Authors: Krishna Aradhna , Wagner Mary , Yoon Carolyn , Adaval Rashmi
Published: March 2006

We show that an extremely high‐priced product featured among more moderately priced products within a catalog can increase the reservation price for a moderately priced target product as well as the category as a whole. We investigate how this increase is influenced by the degree of relatedness between the extreme‐priced product and the target as well as the situational and temporal proximity (contiguity) in their presentation. Consistent with our conceptualization, we find that the presence of an extreme cue leads to greater changes in target reservation price when the extreme‐priced referent and target are more related and are contiguously presented. Furthermore, the impact of an extreme‐priced product's relatedness on reservation price appears to be greater when the contiguity between the extreme‐priced product and the target product is high versus when it is low.
Regulation of procollagen amino-propeptide processing during mouse embryogenesis by specialization of homologous ADAMTS proteases: insights on collagen biosynthesis and dermatosparaxis
Authors: Le Goff Carine , Somerville Robert P. T. , Kesteloot Frederic , Powell Kimerly , Birk David E. , Colige Alain C. , Apte Suneel S.
Published: March 2006

Mutations in ADAMTS2, a procollagen amino-propeptidase, cause severe skin fragility, designated as dermatosparaxis in animals, and a subtype of the Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (dermatosparactic type or VIIC) in humans. Not all collagen-rich tissues are affected to the same degree, which suggests compensation by the ADAMTS2 homologs ADAMTS3 and ADAMTS14. In situ hybridization of Adamts2, Adamts3 and Adamts14, and of the genes encoding the major fibrillar collagens, Col1a1, Col2a1 and Col3a1, during mouse embryogenesis, demonstrated distinct tissue-specific, overlapping expression patterns of the protease and substrate genes. Adamts3, but not Adamts2 or Adamts14, was co-expressed with Col2a1 in cartilage throughout development, and with Col1a1 in bone and musculotendinous tissues. ADAMTS3 induced procollagen I processing in dermatosparactic fibroblasts, suggesting a role in procollagen I processing during musculoskeletal development. Adamts2,but not Adamts3 or Adamts14, was co-expressed with Col3a1 in many tissues including the lungs and aorta, and Adamts2-/- mice showed widespread defects in procollagen III processing. Adamts2-/- mice had abnormal lungs,characterized by a decreased parenchymal density. However, the aorta and collagen fibrils in the aortic wall appeared normal. Although Adamts14 lacked developmental tissue-specific expression, it was co-expressed with Adamts2 in mature dermis, which possibly explains the presence of some processed skin procollagen in dermatosparaxis. The data show how evolutionarily related proteases with similar substrate preferences may have distinct biological roles owing to tissue-specific gene expression,and provide insights into collagen biosynthesis and the pathobiology of dermatosparaxis.
Tbx1 affects asymmetric cardiac morphogenesis by regulatingPitx2in the secondary heart field
Authors: Nowotschin Sonja , Liao Jun , Gage Philip J. , Epstein Jonathan A. , Campione Marina , Morrow Bernice E.
Published: March 2006

Individuals with 22q11 deletion syndrome (22q11DS;DiGeorge/velo-cardio-facial syndrome) have multiple congenital malformations,including cardiovascular defects. Most individuals with this syndrome possess 1.5-3.0 Mb hemizygous 22q11.2 deletions. The T-box transcription factor TBX1, lies within the nested 1.5 Mb interval and is a strong candidate for its etiology. Inactivation of Tbx1 in the mouse results in neonatal lethality owing to the presence of a single cardiac outflow tract. One important goal is to understand the molecular pathogenesis of cardiovascular defects in this syndrome. However, the molecular pathways of Tbx1 are still largely unexplored. Here, we show that Tbx1is co-expressed with the bicoid-like homeodomain transcription factor Pitx2 in secondary heart field cells in the pharyngeal mesenchyme. In situ hybridization studies in Tbx1-/- mouse embryos revealed downregulation of Pitx2 in these cells. To test for a possible genetic interaction, we intercrossed Tbx1+/- and Pitx2+/- mice. Tbx1+/-;Pitx2+/- mice died perinatally with cardiac defects, including double outlet right ventricle, and atrial and ventricular septal defects, all occurring with variable penetrance. An enhancer located between exons 4 and 5 in which a putative T-half site was identified near an Nkx2.5-binding site regulates asymmetric expression of Pitx2. We show using in vitro studies that Tbx1 binds to this site and activates the Pitx2 enhancer with the synergistic action of Nkx2.5. The results presented in this study unravel a novel Tbx1-Pitx2 pathway linking Tbx1 to asymmetric cardiac morphogenesis.
Developmental abnormalities of NT mouse embryos appear early after implantation
Authors: Jouneau Alice , Zhou Qi , Camus Anne , Brochard Vincent , Maulny Linda , Collignon Jérôme , Renard Jean-Paul
Published: March 2006

In mammals, cloning by nuclear transfer (NT) into an enucleated oocyte is a very inefficient process, even if it can generate healthy adults. We show that blastocysts derived from embryonic stem (ES) donor cells develop at a high rate, correctly express the pluripotential marker gene Oct4 in ICM cells and display normal growth in vitro. Moreover, the majority of them implant in the uterus of recipient females. We combine embryological studies, gene expression analysis during gastrulation and generation of chimaeric embryos to identify the developmental origin (stage and tissue affected) of NT embryo mortality. The majority died before mid-gestation from defects arising early, either at peri-implantation stages or during the gastrulation period. The first type of defect is a non-cell autonomous defect of the epiblast cells and is rescued by complementation of NT blastocysts with normal ES or ICM cells. The second type of defect affects growth regulation and the shape of the embryo but does not directly impair the initial establishment of the patterning of the embryo. Only chimaeras formed by the aggregation of NT and tetraploid embryos reveal no growth abnormalities at gastrulation. These studies indicate that the trophoblast cell lineage is the primary source of these defects. These embryological studies provide a solid basis for understanding reprogramming errors in NT embryos. In addition, they unveil new aspects of growth regulation while increasing our knowledge on the role of crosstalk between the extra-embryonic and the embryonic regions of the conceptus in the control of growth and morphogenesis.
The ABC of the BX-C: the bithorax complex explained
Authors: Maeda Robert K. , Karch François
Published: March 2006

As one of two Drosophila Hox clusters, the bithorax complex (BX-C)is responsible for determining the posterior thorax and each abdominal segment of the fly. Through the dissection of its large cis-regulatory region,biologists have obtained a wealth of knowledge that has informed our understanding of gene expression, chromatin dynamics and gene evolution. This primer attempts to distill and explain our current knowledge about this classic, complex locus.