bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The influence of transformational leadership on employees’ creative process engagement
Authors: Mahmood Monowar , Uddin Md. Aftab , Fan Luo
Published: September 2018

Purpose

Using a multi-level perspective, the purpose of this paper is to investigate impact of transformational leadership on employees’ creative process engagement and mediating roles of intrinsic motivation, task complexity and innovation support in the process of influence.

Design/methodology/approach

This study follows a quantitative method. Using a multi-item survey instrument, a total of 400 questionnaires were distributed among employees of small and medium enterprises registered with the Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bangladesh. Collected data were analyzed using structural equation model as well as factor analysis and path analysis to test the hypotheses and to assess the moderating and mediating effects of the variables.

Findings

The findings reveal that transformational leadership has a significant impact on employees’ creative process engagement. The study further shows that task complexity and support for innovation moderate the relationship between transformational leadership and employees’ creative process engagement.

Research limitations/implications

Based on the premises of interactionist perspectives on creativity, this study integrates multi-level variables to investigate leaders’ influences on followers’ creative process engagement. This study contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence on influence of transformational leadership on employees’ creative process engagement as well as the impact of both individual- and organizational-level variables.

Originality/value

The study adopts a distinct model comprising five different variables to investigate creative process engagement from a multi-level perspective, i.e., creative process engagement and intrinsic motivation at the individual level, task complexity at the unit level, and support for innovation and leadership at the organizational level. This integrated model of using predictors from multiple levels supports the theoretical assumptions that creative process engagement results from the interaction of individual-, group- and organizational-level factors.
Sexual health information-seeking behavior on a social media site: predictors of best answer selection
Authors: Yi Yong Jeong
Published: September 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify sexual health information needs and the cognitive and affective factors correlated with the best answer chosen by social Q&A users.

Design/methodology/approach

The study collected questions and answers regarding sexual health information on a social Q&A site, and analyzed the questions and a paired sample composed of best and non-best answers (n=480).

Findings

The main information needs of consumers are human development, sexual behavior, and sexual health. Best answers are more likely to include both cognitive (higher level of readability, risky information, social norms) and affective factors (empathy, positive/negative feelings, and optimistic information) than non-best answers.

Research limitations/implications

The study illuminates the roles of social Q&A as a unique platform to discuss sensitive health topics due to the fact that consumers use such social media sites as critical complementary health information sources.

Practical implications

If health information providers develop information with the factors that the study suggests, not only will it be more adopted by consumers, but it will also ameliorate the quality concerns about online health information.

Originality/value

Previous studies only investigated the most prevalent factors, rather than the most effective ones, which have a greater influence on best answer selection. This study compares the best answers and the non-best answers to overcome the limitations of the previous studies. Above all, the study applied the persuasion concepts to address the cognitive and affective perspectives to the answer evaluations of social Q&A.
What drives internet users’ willingness to provide personal information?
Authors: Yeh Ching-Hsuan , Wang Yi-Shun , Lin Shin-Jeng , Tseng Timmy H. , Lin Hsin-Hui , Shih Ying-Wei , Lai Yi-Hsuan
Published: September 2018

Purpose

Considering that users’ information privacy concerns may affect the development of e-commerce, the purpose of this paper is to explore what drives internet users’ willingness to provide personal information; further, the paper examines how extrinsic rewards moderate the relationship between users’ information privacy concerns and willingness to provide personal information.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collected from 345 valid internet users in the context of electronic commerce were analyzed using the partial least squares approach.

Findings

The result showed that agreeableness, risk-taking propensity and experience of privacy invasion were three main antecedents of information privacy concerns among the seven individual factors. Additionally, information privacy concerns did not significantly affect users’ willingness to provide personal information in the privacy calculation mechanism; however, extrinsic rewards directly affected users’ disclosure intention. The authors found that extrinsic rewards had not moderated the relationship between users’ information privacy concerns and their willingness to provide personal information.

Originality/value

This study is an exploratory effort to develop and validate a model for explaining why internet users were willing to provide personal information. The results of this study are helpful to researchers in developing theories of information privacy concerns and to practitioners in promoting internet users’ willingness to provide personal information in an e-commerce context.
The effect of carbon performance on corporate financial performance in a growing economy
Authors: Ganda Fortune
Published: September 2018

Purpose

This study aims to examine the impact of carbon performance on firm financial performance by using Republic of South Africa CDP company data from 2014 to 2015.

Design/methodology/approach

The study considered 63 companies on the Republic of South Africa CDP database. Content analysis was used to extract both carbon performance data and firm financial data. The data were analysed using panel data analysis and partial derivative approaches.

Findings

The findings indicate that carbon performance produces a positive relationship with return on equity (ROE) and return on sales (ROS). Conversely, it generates a negative relationship with return on investment (ROI) and market value added (MVA). Furthermore, the study highlights that carbon performance pays and that the relationship with financial performance (ROE, ROS, ROI and MVA) deepens as the corporate growth rate increases.

Practical implications

Companies that integrate carbon performance initiatives reap substantial financial gains, and this relationship is strengthened as the company’s growth rate increases.

Originality/value

The research questions and data collected from Republic of South African CDP firms are original and provide important evidence on the impact of carbon performance on firm financial indicators. Furthermore, many empirical studies focus on highly industrialised countries; this study examines this issue in the emerging South African economy which has experienced rapid growth of emissions in recent years. While most previous studies on the relationship between carbon performance and firm financial performance used a single class of corporate financial measures, this study used both accounting- and market-based indicators. It also investigated how firm growth moderates the association between carbon performance and diverse financial performance measures. Finally, pressure exerted by green stakeholders since the introduction of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s sustainability criteria in 2004, as well as government policies, has a profound impact on the South African business context; it is hence important to examine corporate environmental management activities in the context of the association between carbon performance and firm performance.
Rapid Reel Lawn Master Company: cutting the target down to size
Authors: Timmerman John Edwin , Lovvorn Al
Published: September 2018

Synopsis

Paula Hendricks, Director of Marketing for Rapid Reel Lawn Master Company (RRLMC), tasked with developing a plan to exploit the current trend in lawn mower purchasing patterns must craft a strategic proposal for the executive planning committee. RRLMC, a manufacturer of reel mowers, experienced an increase in sales due to a confluence of factors: high gasoline prices, increased concern with the environment, the trend toward smaller yards and a focus on health and exercise. Paula needed to develop a plan for the company to sustain the bonanza and determine whether this trend offered new opportunities for marketing.

Research methodology

The data for the case were collected through examination of a major reel lawn mower manufacturer in the USA, through experience teaching and using the market segmentation process, as well as personal interviews and secondary research on the history of firms within the industry. The results of a literature review have been incorporated to flesh out the discussion.

Relevant courses and levels

This case is targeted primarily at undergraduate students in upper-level marketing classes, e.g., Relationship Marketing, Marketing Management and Strategic Marketing. Additionally, it can be used in management classes (e.g. Strategic Management) where industry segmentation is discussed. It would also benefit introductory MBA marketing courses as this case directs students’ attention to the role of products’ perceived benefits and how markets may be segmented in order to assess and select prime segments of the market for targeting.
Pebble Technology Corporation: from dorm room dream to high tech pioneer
Authors: Schneper William D. , Martin Colin
Published: September 2018

Synopsis

Pebble Technology Corporation (Pebble) was an early entrant into the smartwatch industry. Pebble’s Founder, Eric Migicovsky, began thinking about creating a smartwatch in 2008 while still an undergraduate engineering student. After selling about 1,500 prototype watches, he was accepted into Silicon Valley’s prestigious Y Combinator business start-up program. Finding it difficult to attract investors, Migicovsky launched a crowdfunding campaign that raised a record-breaking $10.27m on Kickstarter. The case concludes shortly after Apple’s unveiling of its soon-to-be-released Apple Watch. The case provides an opportunity to evaluate Pebble’s various strategic options at the time of Apple’s announcement.

Research methodology

The authors observed over 30 h of video and audio recordings of speeches, interviews and other events involving Pebble’s founder, other Pebble executives, investors and competitors. These recordings are all publicly available. Whenever possible, the authors also reviewed the Twitter feeds, Facebook sites and personal websites of Pebble’s top executives over time. Similarly, the authors followed Pebble’s official website, corporate blog and Kickstarter campaign websites. The authors also drew from numerous media reports. Due to the public nature of the data, no company release is provided nor has any information been disguised in any way.

Relevant courses and levels

The case is designed for both undergraduate and graduate students for courses in strategic management.
Comparative analyses of CTX prophage region of Vibrio cholerae seventh pandemic wave 1 strains isolated in Asia
Authors: Pham Tho Duc , Nguyen Tuan Hai , Iwashita Hanako , Takemura Taichiro , Morita Kouichi , Yamashiro Tetsu
Published: September 2018

Vibrio cholerae O1 causes cholera, and cholera toxin, the principal mediator of massive diarrhea, is encoded by ctxAB in the cholera toxin (CTX) prophage. In this study, the structures of the CTX prophage region of V. cholerae strains isolated during the seventh pandemic wave 1 in Asian countries were determined and compared. Eighteen strains were categorized into eight groups by CTX prophage region‐specific restriction fragment length polymorphism and PCR profiles and the structure of the region of a representative strain from each group was determined by DNA sequencing. Eight representative strains revealed eight distinct CTX prophage regions with various combinations of CTX‐1, RS1 and a novel genomic island on chromosome I. CTX prophage regions carried by the wave 1 strains were diverse in structure. V. cholerae strains with an area specific CTX prophage region are believed to circulate in South‐East Asian countries; additionally, multiple strains with distinct types of CTX prophage region are co‐circulating in the area. Analysis of a phylogenetic tree generated by single nucleotide polymorphism differences across 2483 core genes revealed that V. cholerae strains categorized in the same group based on CTX prophage region structure were segregated in closer clusters. CTX prophage region‐specific recombination events or gain and loss of genomic elements within the region may have occurred at much higher frequencies and contributed to producing a panel of CTX prophage regions with distinct structures among V. cholerae pathogenic strains in lineages with close genetic backgrounds in the early wave 1 period of the seventh cholera pandemic.
Effect of intermediate disturbance on soil microbial functional diversity depends on the amount of effective resources
Authors: Zhang Ximei , Johnston Eric R. , Barberán Albert , Ren Yi , Wang Zhiping , Han Xingguo
Published: September 2018

Many anthropogenic environmental changes are leading to a rapid decline in soil microbial functional diversity. However, ecological mechanisms that can serve to counteract/resist the diversity loss remain largely underexplored. In particular, although intermediate disturbance and increased amount of effective resources can promote the diversity of higher organisms, the potential role of these factors, and their combination, in maintaining microbial functional diversity is poorly studied. We conducted a 5‐year experiment in a Eurasian steppe, manipulating mowing, nitrogen addition, phosphorus addition and their combinations. Nitrogen addition decreased soil pH by ~0.6 and bacterial abundance by ~19.5%, causing a disturbance effect. Phosphorus addition significantly decreased the effective amount of soil carbon‐, nitrogen‐, phosphorus‐ and water‐relevant resources. Across all nitrogen‐addition treatments subject to intermediate disturbance, there was a significant positive correlation between soil effective resource amount and microbial gene richness (r > 0.6, p < 0.01), which was elevated, in part, due to the increased fungal abundance. In contrast, significant correlations between gene richness and resource amount were not found under low‐disturbance conditions. Overall, gene richness was greatest under conditions of both intermediate disturbance and ample effective resources, suggesting that the two factors could be manipulated in combination for the maintenance of microbial functional diversity.
Targeting the phospholipase A2 receptor ameliorates premature aging phenotypes
Authors: Griveau Audrey , Wiel Clotilde , Le Calvé Benjamin , Ziegler Dorian V. , Djebali Sophia , Warnier Marine , Martin Nadine , Marvel Jacqueline , Vindrieux David , Bergo Martin O. , Bernard David
Published: September 2018

Hutchinson–Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) is a lethal premature aging that recapitulates many normal aging characteristics. This disorder is caused by mutation in the LMNA gene leading to the production of progerin which induces misshapen nuclei, cellular senescence, and aging. We previously showed that the phospholipase A2 receptor (PLA2R1) promotes senescence induced by replicative, oxidative, and oncogenic stress but its role during progerin‐induced senescence and in progeria is currently unknown. Here, we show that knockdown of PLA2R1 prevented senescence induced by progerin expression in human fibroblasts and markedly delayed senescence of HGPS patient‐derived fibroblasts. Whole‐body knockout of Pla2r1 in a mouse model of progeria decreased some premature aging phenotypes, such as rib fracture and decreased bone content, together with decreased senescence marker. Progerin‐expressing human fibroblasts exhibited a high frequency of misshapen nuclei and increased farnesyl diphosphate synthase (FDPS) expression compared to controls; knockdown of PLA2R1 reduced the frequency of misshapen nuclei and normalized FDPS expression. Pamidronate, a FDPS inhibitor, also reduced senescence and misshapen nuclei. Downstream of PLA2R1, we found that p53 mediated the progerin‐induced increase in FDPS expression and in misshapen nuclei. These results suggest that PLA2R1 mediates key premature aging phenotypes through a p53/FDPS pathway and might be a new therapeutic target.
Simultaneous Alcohol and Marijuana Use Among Young Adult Drinkers: Age‐Specific Changes in Prevalence from 1977 to 2016
Authors: Terry‐McElrath Yvonne M. , Patrick Megan E.
Published: September 2018

Background

The overall prevalence of U.S. young adult alcohol use has decreased, but little is known about historical change in related behaviors such as simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use that may increase alcohol‐related risks and societal costs. The purpose of this paper was to examine historical change in SAM use prevalence among U.S. young adult alcohol users from 1977 to 2016, and consider the extent to which observed historical change in SAM use among alcohol users reflects co‐occurring change in marijuana use during these years.

Methods

Data on past 12‐month alcohol, marijuana, and SAM use at up to 6 modal ages (19/20, 21/22, 23/24, 25/26, 27/28, and 29/30) were collected from 11,789 individuals (45.0% men) participating in the Monitoring the Future panel study. Annual prevalence estimates within modal age group were obtained; historical SAM use trends among alcohol and marijuana users were estimated.

Results

From 2014 to 2016, SAM use was reported by approximately 30% of alcohol users aged 19/20 and 21/22, and 20 to 25% of alcohol users aged 23/24 through 29/30. Since the mid‐1990s, age‐specific historical trends in SAM use prevalence among alcohol users followed 1 of 4 patterns: significant increase followed by oscillating increases/decreases (at modal age 19/20), consistent and significant increases (at modal ages 21/22, 23/24, and 25/26), stability followed by increase (at modal ages 27/28), or stability (at modal ages 29/30). In contrast, SAM use trends among marijuana users primarily reflected stability, with some evidence of a decrease across time at modal ages 19/20 and 23/24. Historical change in SAM prevalence among alcohol users was strongly and positively correlated with changes in overall marijuana use prevalence.

Conclusions

A growing proportion of early and mid‐young adult alcohol users reported SAM use, with the highest risk among those in the early years of young adulthood. Young adult SAM use may continue to increase in proportion to the degree that young adult marijuana use continues to increase.
Keeping a low profile: small hive beetle reproduction in African honeybee colonies
Authors: Ouessou Idrissou Franck , Straub Lars , Neumann Peter
Published: September 2018

Small hive beetles (SHBs) Aethina tumida are parasites of honeybee colonies native to sub‐Saharan Africa and have become an invasive species.

SHB mass reproduction can destroy entire host colonies, although it is very rare in populations of African honeybee subspecies. However, there are no data available on SHB cryptic low‐level reproduction in African host colonies.

In the present study, we dissected entire African honeybee (Apis mellifera adansonii) colonies in Benin.

The data obtained show that nondestructive, low‐level SHB reproduction can be very common in Africa and is sufficient to explain local infestation levels of host colonies with adult SHBs.
Abstractness and desirableness in the human values system: Self‐transcendence values are construed more abstractly, but felt more closely than are self‐enhancement values
Authors: Gu Xuan , Tse Chi‐Shing
Published: September 2018

Human values are universally accepted as abstract and desirable goals, but the relationship between the relative abstractness (construal level) and desirableness (psychological distance) is not clear within the values system. Based on Schwartz's (1992) theory of human values and Trope and Liberman's (2010) construal level theory, we examined the construal level and psychological distance of two higher order values, self‐transcendence and self‐enhancement, which inherently conflict with each other in motivational goals, in three studies. We found that participants construed self‐transcendence values at a higher, more abstract level than they did self‐enhancement values (Studies 1 and 2), but they evaluated a person who cherished self‐transcendence values to be psychologically closer than a person who cherished self‐enhancement values (Study 3). Thus, self‐transcendence and self‐enhancement values differ in the relative magnitude of abstractness and desirableness. Contrary to the construal level theory, high (vs. low) abstraction level is not necessarily associated with far (vs. near) psychological distance in the human values system. Implications of the current findings are discussed.
Bendamustine with rituximab, etoposide and carboplatin (T(R)EC) in relapsed or refractory aggressive lymphoma: a prospective multicentre phase 1/2 clinical trial
Authors: Budde Lihua E. , Wu David , Martin Daniel B. , Philip Mary , Shustov Andrei R. , Smith Stephen D. , Gooley Ted A. , Chen Tara L. , Libby Edward N. , Chen Eric Y. , Kojouri Kiarash , Langerak Alan , Roden Jennifer E. , Press Oliver W. , Gopal Ajay K.
Published: September 2018

We sought to develop a safe and effective outpatient salvage regimen by replacing ifosfamide within the (R)ICE (rituximab, ifosfomide, carboplatin, etoposide) regimen with bendamustine (T(R)EC) via a multicentre phase I/II study for patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and classic Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). Therapy consisted of 60–120 mg/m2 per day bendamustine on days 1 and 2 in combination with carboplatin, etoposide and rituximab (only for CD20+ lymphoma) used in the (R)ICE regimen for up to 2 cycles. The objectives were to define a maximally tolerated dose (MTD) of bendamustine, determine safety and toxicity, assess efficacy, and evaluate impact on stem cell collection. Forty‐eight patients were treated of which 71% had refractory disease. No dose‐limiting toxicities were observed. The recommended phase II dose of bendamustine was 120 mg/m2 per day on days 1 and 2. Response rates were 85% (70% complete response, CR) in HL, and 65% (40% CR) in DLBCL. Stem cell collection was successful in 30 of 32 patients. The most common non‐haematological toxicities ≥grade 3 were febrile neutropenia (8%) and dehydration (8%). The T(R)EC regimen safely yields high response rates, successfully mobilizes peripheral blood stem cells and compares favourably to RICE, offering an effective outpatient treatment option for patients with relapsed or refractory DLBCL and HL.
Continuing care in rural Alberta: A scoping review
Authors: Brassolotto Julia , Haney Carly‐Ann , Hallstrom Lars , Scott David
Published: September 2018

Across Canada the demand for continuing care services is increasing. However, little is known about the implications this has for rural communities. This scoping review identifies several key themes in the literature related to continuing care in Alberta. These include contextual factors, quality assurance and improvement, and workforce issues. We identify the ways in which rural dynamics are included in, or omitted from, this literature and recommend areas for future research on rural continuing care provision. Further research on residential care services in rural communities should work towards bridging the rural health, academic, and organizational literature on continuing care. This synthesis will help to position rurality as a determinant of health and to situate continuing care services in specific rural settings.
Necrobiosis lipoidica associated with sarcoidosis
Authors: Lee Jack , Flowers Richard H. , Cocks Margaret M. , Noland Mary‐Margaret B.
Published: September 2018

We report the case of a 40‐year‐old African‐American female with biopsy‐proven pulmonary sarcoidosis who developed atrophic plaques on her shins, trunk, and scalp that were clinically and histologically consistent with necrobiosis lipoidica (NL). The lesions appeared 3 years after her diagnosis of sarcoidosis, and progressed despite chronic prednisone.

Sarcoidosis and NL are granulomatous skin disorders reported to coexist in the same patient only 10 times in the literature. Including the current case, patients have been exclusively females around middle age, and have greater tendencies to develop typical cutaneous sarcoidosis. The incidence of diabetes is rare in this group. Like typical NL, NL associated with sarcoidosis tends to ulcerate, and is difficult to treat. Interestingly, there are six similar cases reported in the literature of patients with sarcoidosis who developed lesions clinically and behaviorally consistent with NL, but received a final histological diagnosis of sarcoidosis. These cases share very similar demographics and clinical features with cases of true NL associated with sarcoidosis, and often have more ambiguous histology containing features of both cutaneous sarcoidosis and NL. Comparing the two sets of cases raises the possibility of a final common disease pathway shared by these two granulomatous skin disorders.
Can the Trading System Survive US–China Trade Friction?
Authors: Lawrence Robert Z.
Published: September 2018

Donald Trump has sought to change US trading relationships by raising protection at home and taxing the offshore activities of US companies abroad. These measures, which both use and violate trade rules, have provoked retaliation from other countries. Such friction has restricted and distorted trade and investment, undermined the rules‐based trading system and perhaps permanently damaged global value chains that depend on stable rules for market access. Trump has justified some of his measures as a response to China's alleged unfair practices and indeed, China has adopted industrial and technology policies that are formally neutral between domestic and foreign firms but in practice have led foreign firms to complain about discriminatory practices that favor Chinese firms. The US friction with China is unfortunate because instead of trying to bully China into submission in a tariff war, the US could have dealt with many of its concerns more effectively by cooperating with other countries and taking actions that are consistent with maintaining the rules‐based system. While the US has undermined its leadership role, the overall damage to the trading system could still be limited if other countries, especially China, take actions that sustain and strengthen it.
Topography explains the distribution of genetic diversity in one of the most fragile European hotspots
Authors: Blanco‐Pastor José Luis , Fernández‐Mazuecos Mario , Coello Alberto J. , Pastor Julia , Vargas Pablo
Published: September 2018

Aim

To investigate factors that explain the spatial pattern of genetic diversity in three closely related species (Linaria glacialis, Linaria nevadensis and Chaenorhinum glareosum) endemic to a fragile high mountain ecosystem.

Location

The alpine belt of Sierra Nevada, Spain.

Methods

We analysed the spatial pattern of cpDNA diversity of the three species. To explain the distribution of genetic diversity, we investigated the effect of topographic features and the evolutionary history of the species (demography, habitat availability and colonization dynamics).

Results

Genetic diversity was heterogeneous across the landscape. We found moderate positive correlation values between genetic diversity indices of the two Linaria species. We also observed moderate negative correlation values between genetic diversity indices of C. glareosum and those of L. glacialis and L. nevadensis. Topographic variables correlated positively with genetic diversity of the Linaria species and negatively with genetic diversity of C. glareosum. Bayesian skyline plots (BSPs) displayed a shared demographic pattern with a population size stabilization/increase since the LGM (the last 21 kyr) in all three species. Discrete phylogeographical analyses showed similar patterns of westward diffusion for L. nevadensis and C. glareosum. Species distribution models pointed to similar range dynamics in all three species, with a reduction in range size since the LGM.

Main conclusions

Different dispersal abilities, demographic trends and colonization patterns can hardly explain the differences in spatial patterns of genetic diversity between the Linaria species and C. glareosum. In contrast, topographic features seem to be an important factor to explain the distribution of genetic diversity in the alpine belt of Sierra Nevada. We point to a relevant role of microniche partitioning in determining patterns of genetic diversity distribution in alpine Mediterranean ecosystems. Furthermore, we highlight the role of microhabitat heterogeneity in the maintenance of distinct lineages, species and genetic diversity in high mountain biodiversity hotspots.
Dynamical ventral tegmental area circuit mechanisms of alcohol‐dependent dopamine release
Authors: di Volo Matteo , Morozova Ekaterina O. , Lapish Christopher C. , Kuznetsov Alexey , Gutkin Boris
Published: September 2018

A large body of data has identified numerous molecular targets through which ethanol (EtOH) acts on brain circuits. Yet how these multiple mechanisms interact to result in dysregulated dopamine (DA) release under the influence of alcohol in vivo remains unclear. In this manuscript, we delineate potential circuit‐level mechanisms responsible for EtOH‐dependent dysregulation of DA release from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) into its projection areas. For this purpose, we constructed a circuit model of the VTA that integrates realistic Glutamatergic (Glu) inputs and reproduces DA release observed experimentally. We modelled the concentration‐dependent effects of EtOH on its principal VTA targets. We calibrated the model to reproduce the inverted U‐shape dose dependence of DA neuron activity on EtOH concentration. The model suggests a primary role of EtOH‐induced boost in the Ih and AMPA currents in the DA firing‐rate/bursting increase. This is counteracted by potentiated GABA transmission that decreases DA neuron activity at higher EtOH concentrations. Thus, the model connects well‐established in vitro pharmacological EtOH targets with its in vivo influence on neuronal activity. Furthermore, we predict that increases in VTA activity produced by moderate EtOH doses require partial synchrony and relatively low rates of the Glu afferents. We propose that the increased frequency of transient (phasic) DA peaks evoked by EtOH results from synchronous population bursts in VTA DA neurons. Our model predicts that the impact of acute ETOH on dopamine release is critically shaped by the structure of the cortical inputs to the VTA.
‘Please tell me when you are in pain’: A heartbreaking story of care, grief and female–canine companionship
Authors: Satama Suvi , Huopalainen Astrid
Published: September 2018

What could the underdeveloped research area of canine–human companionship teach us about gendered body work as well as offer to the field of organization studies more broadly? This article responds to recent discussions on the animal in the organizational academy. We share an autoethnographic story of female–canine companionship as experienced by one of the authors of the article and her beloved dog, who is currently living on the borderlines between life and death, joy and mourning. We find this example relevant for raising important feminist concerns among organizational scholars about silenced questions around care and grief as well as for developing more inclusive and ethically grounded approaches to exploring research topics dealing with vulnerability. Finally, this article offers a critical reflection on the potential and limitations of alternative research in the field of organization studies that recognizes our affective relations with animals.
Recruitment outcomes, challenges and lessons learned: the Healthy Communities Study
Authors: Sagatov R. D. F. , John L. V. , Gregoriou M. , Arteaga S. S. , Weber S. , Payn B. , Strauss W. , Weinstein N. , Collie‐Akers V. ,   on behalf of the Healthy Communities Study Team
Published: September 2018

Background

The Healthy Communities Study (HCS) was a national study of community programs and policies that aimed to address childhood obesity; it necessitated recruitment of a large sample of children from communities throughout the United States.

Objective

The HCS aimed to complete visits with an average of 45 children and 12 key informants from at least 120 communities, diverse with respect to region of the country, urbanicity, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity and intensity of community programs and policies that aim to address childhood obesity.

Methods

Purchased address lists were utilized to select households for recruitment during Wave 1 of the study, and recruitment of families through schools was employed for Wave 2.

Results

The HCS successfully obtained approval from 149 school districts and 478 schools in 130 communities, recruited 5138 families, and interviewed 1421 key informants to allow for characterization of overall intensity of obesity prevention/treatment efforts in each community.

Conclusions

Lessons learned are presented. Future studies should plan for inclusion of the following in development of recruitment strategies: literature review, formative research, pilot testing, and ongoing monitoring and adjustment.
Dietary and lifestyle recommendations for urolithiasis prevention: A systematic literature review
Authors: Boarin Mattia , Villa Giulia , Capuzzi Claudia , Remon Denmart , Abbadessa Francesco , Manara Duilio Fiorenzo
Published: September 2018

What are the dietary, fluid intake and lifestyle indications for the disease management and recurrences prevention in patients with urolithiasis? Despite the progress in urolithiasis diagnosis and treatment, its incidence has increased in the last decades and a high rate of recurrence is still a real problem. Dietary and lifestyle modifications represent the most effective preventive measures. Recommendations and evidence available in literature are not always accurate and consistent, negatively affecting patients’ education. A systematic review was conducted starting from a research in electronic databases; the study selection process was based on PRISMA indications. Methodological quality and risk of bias were assessed. Data were analysed in three phases: (1) critical review of articles; (2) data extraction; (3) evidence synthesis. Thirty‐six studies were included: researchers used prevalently non‐probabilistic sampling methods and data from several studies derived from small samples, mainly from Western countries. Despite these limitations, the below listed themes for urolithiasis prevention arose: (1) the importance of a prevalently vegetarian regime with a reduced intake of meats and fats, decreasing the risk of stones formation from the accumulation of uric acid; (2) water intake greater than two litres per day is proven to prevent recurrences and drinking beverages, such as decaffeinated coffee, tea, beer and wine, also seems to be associated with a decrease in risk; (3) being physically active and having a healthy lifestyle can help to prevent recurrences. Various dietary and lifestyle modifications have a potential to prevent urolithiasis and recurrences. Clinicians should advise patients to reduce animal proteins and fats, increase fruits and vegetables, and increase water intake, as well as having a healthy lifestyle. Further rigorous methodological studies are needed.
Enforcement matters: The effective regulation of labour
Authors: KANBUR Ravi , RONCONI Lucas
Published: September 2018

The distinction between de jure and de facto regulation is well understood in theory, but has rarely been applied to cross‐country empirical work on the impact of labour regulation on labour market outcomes for lack of data. Policy debate has been based on measures of stringency of law, suggesting a negative correlation between labour regulation and labour market outcomes. This article provides new cross‐country measures of labour law enforcement and evidence of a negative correlation between stringency and intensity of enforcement. Previous results concerning the consequences of labour regulation and the legal origins theory no longer hold when a measure of effective labour regulation is used.
Towards better prevention of fatal occupational accidents in Portugal
Authors: SANTOS António J. R. , REBELO Efigénio L. , MENDES Júlio C.
Published: September 2018

Portugal, with a relatively high fatality rate for occupational accidents, faces the challenge of reducing fatalities with limited funding. This research identifies significant predictors in Portugal and estimates probabilities of occurrence. The model, based on applied logistic regression, suggests that policy‐makers should focus prevention efforts on older workers; persons with permanent contracts; those employed by large enterprises or at workplaces in the trade or services sectors; and those exposed to deviations by overflow, overturn, leak, flow, vaporization or emissions that are likely to cause musculoskeletal disorders, wounds, fractures or traumatic amputations.
A longitudinal study of nurses’ career choices: The importance of career expectations on employment in care of older people
Authors: Abrahamsen Bente
Published: September 2018

Aims

To investigate how undergraduate nursing students’ career expectations relate to their career choices, particularly employment in care of older people, in the first 10 years of nurses’ careers.

Background

Due to an increasing demand for nurses, it is important to understand nurses’ career choices over the course of their careers.

Design

A quantitative longitudinal study of 445 undergraduate nursing students based on a questionnaire survey and register data.

Methods

Data were analysed by multinomial logistic regression analyses. The questionnaire was distributed to all undergraduate nursing students in 2001–2003 in their final study semester at four universities in Norway (N = 445) to collect the students’ career expectations. Register data on clinical fields for the first 10 years after graduation were merged into the survey in 2014 (Statistics Norway).

Results

With exception of the very first years after graduation, care of older people is the most common field for undergraduate nurses to enter for a career. This choice can be understood in light of nurses’ career expectations. Among newly educated nurses, the choice to work in care of older people (rather than general hospital care) correlates with expectations of achieving a management position. Ten years after graduation, the likelihood of working in care of older people rather correlates with nurses’ expectations of part‐time work.

Conclusion

The likelihood of moving into care of older people increases with time in nursing careers and relates to nurses’ career expectations such as achieving a leadership position and working part‐time.
The nurse–patient relationship in the New Public Management era, in public home care: A focused ethnography
Authors: Strandås Maria , Wackerhausen Steen , Bondas Terese
Published: September 2018

Aim

The aim of this study was to gain deeper understandings of nurse–patient relationships in the New Public Management era, by exploring beliefs and practices of nurses and patients in Norwegian public home care.

Background

Organization of Norwegian home care services is based on New Public Management‐ideologies, which have led to a rigidly formalized and task‐oriented nursing practice that may jeopardize individual nursing care. Nurse–patient relationships have several positive effects on patients’ health and well‐being, but organizational boundaries and time pressure affect the quality of relationships.

Design

Focused ethnography.

Methods

Data were collected between November 2015–July 2016 using participant observation and semi‐structured interviews with 10 nurses and eight patients in six different home care areas, in two Norwegian municipalities. Data analysis was based on Roper and Shapiras framework.

Findings

Findings demonstrate the continued importance of nurse–patient relationships in contemporary home care, while identifying extensive variations in the degree of closeness and emotional involvement. Organizational boundaries, time constraints, high workload, and disharmony between nurses “competence and patients” complex illnesses, influence practice in ways that reduce the significance of nurse–patient relationships and affect conditions under which they develop and evolve. Facing a system nurses perceive to function suboptimal, they govern practices based on their own professional assessments, and findings indicate cultural patterns in the way both nurses and patients prioritize to safeguard nurse–patient relationships.

Conclusion

Home care cultures based on traditional nursing values continue, despite New Public Management influences, but a transition into New Public Management culture may, over time, influence the quality of nurse–patient relationships and meanings attributed to them.
Parental uncertainty about transferring their adolescent with congenital heart disease to adult care
Authors: Burström Åsa , Acuna Mora Mariela , Öjmyr‐Joelsson Maria , Sparud‐Lundin Carina , Rydberg Annika , Hanseus Katarina , Frenckner Björn , Nisell Margret , Moons Philip , Bratt Ewa‐Lena
Published: September 2018

Aims

To study parent's levels of uncertainty related to the transfer from pediatric to adult care in adolescents with congenital heart disease (CHD) and to identify potentially correlating factors.

Background

Parents acknowledge that during transition they struggle with finding ways of feeling secure in handing over the responsibility and letting go of control. Well‐prepared and informed parents who feel secure are most likely better skilled to support their adolescent and to hand over the responsibility.

Design

A cross‐sectional study.

Methods

Overall, 351 parents were included (35% response rate). Parental uncertainty was assessed using a Linear Analogue Scale (0–100). Data were collected between January ‐ August 2016. Potential correlates were assessed using the readiness for transition questionnaire and sociodemographic data.

Results

The mean parental uncertainty score was 42.5. Twenty‐four percent of the parents had a very low level of uncertainty (score 0–10) and 7% had a very high level (score 91–100). Overall, 26% of the mothers and 36% of the fathers indicated that they had not started thinking of the transfer yet. The level of uncertainty was negatively associated with the level of perceived overall readiness. Adolescents' age, sex, CHD complexity, and parental age were not related to uncertainty.

Conclusion

A wide range in the levels of uncertainty was found. Parents who were less involved in the care, or perceived their adolescent as readier for the transition, felt less uncertain. Still, thirty percent of the parents had not started to think about the transfer to adult care.
Perceptions of patient participation in symptom management: A qualitative study with cancer patients, doctors, and nurses
Authors: Lin Cen , Cohen Emma , Livingston Patricia M. , Botti Mari
Published: September 2018

Aim

To explore people with cancer, doctors', and nurses' understanding of and attitudes toward, patient participation in symptom management.

Background

In health service policies worldwide, patients are recognized as the important members of the treatment care team. The concept of patient participation can be understood from a variety of perspectives, reflecting the limited conceptual clarity and poor congruence between patients' and clinicians' understanding.

Design

A qualitative study conducted using individual interviews.

Methods

Forty one people with cancer, five doctors, and seven nurses were recruited from two oncological medical units of a cancer specialized hospital in Shanghai, China between November 2013 ‐ March 2014. Individual interviews were semi‐structured. Data were analysed through framework analysis.

Results

Patient participation was perceived as a mutual interaction requiring contribution from both patients and clinicians. Three main themes were uncovered: (a) information exchange is the key to patient participation; (b) negotiated decision‐making can be achieved in various ways; and (c) patients' self‐management can be a form of patient participation. Patient participation was recognized by both patients and clinicians as an important component of cancer care, however concerns relating to patients' limited knowledge and their ability to negotiate treatment decisions existed among most of the patients, doctors, and nurses.

Conclusion

This study identified the wide range of activities where patient participation can occur in the context of cancer care. Positive recognition of patients' roles in treatment and care should be advocated among both patients and clinicians to facilitate patients' participation in their own care and enhance clinicians' skills in involving patients.
Phylogeography of Muller's termite frog suggests the vicariant role of the Central Brazilian Plateau
Authors: Oliveira Eliana F. , Gehara Marcelo , São‐Pedro Vinícius A. , Costa Gabriel C. , Burbrink Frank T. , Colli Guarino R. , Rodrigues Miguel T. , Garda Adrian A.
Published: September 2018

Aim

To test three different scenarios to account for the geographic distribution of genetic variation inDermatonotus muelleri, a fossorial frog endemic of the South American diagonal of open formations (DOF) formed by Chaco, Cerrado, and Caatinga biomes: (a) The pan‐DOFhypothesis, where these biomes behave as a single biogeographical unit andDOFspecies lack population structure; (b) the southwest‐northeast (SW‐NE) hypothesis, where structured populations along theDOFhave either asymmetric or unidirectional gene flow in the northeast direction; (c) the vicariance hypothesis, where a pattern of population structure with no or reduced gene flow is observed.

Location

Caatinga, Cerrado, and Chaco in South America.

Methods

We sampled 179 individuals across the species distribution and sequenced one mitochondrial and two nuclear markers. We evaluated population structure, the presence, direction, and asymmetry of gene flow, and demographic changes to test three different phylogeographic hypotheses forD. muelleriusing a model‐based simulation approach.

Results

We found two geographically structured lineages with no gene flow, refuting pan‐DOFhypothesis. The Southwest lineage occurs in Chaco and western Cerrado and the Northeast lineage in eastern Cerrado and Caatinga. Our results support the model with demographic change for the Northeast lineage and constant size for Southwest lineage. The vicariance model with divergence time estimated around 4 Ma was preferred.

Main conclusions

Vicariance was the best explanation for the geographic distribution of genetic variation inDermatonotus. Divergence time supports the role of Neogene orogeny in central Brazil for the splitting ofDermatonotuslineages. The influence of Pleistocene climatic fluctuations seems restricted to changes in one lineage's population size. Therefore, both ancient and recent events shaped the phylogeography ofDermatonotus. Genetic divergence, lack of gene flow, and the presence of a geographic barrier between lineages indicate the existence of a cryptic, undescribed species in northeastern Brazil.