bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Attitudes and leadership competences for project success
Authors: Müller Ralf , Rodney Turner J.
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relative importance of project managers' attitudes towards their project and their leadership competences for achieving project success. Leadership competences were assessed as emotional, managerial, and intellectual competences (EQ, MQ, IQ, respectively) using the leadership dimensions questionnaire. Attitudes were assessed through the importance project managers assign to the project success criteria.

Design/methodology/approach

Building on the competency school of leadership theories, this study used 400 responses to a global web‐based questionnaire to identify the variances in attitudes and leadership competences of project managers and its relation to project success. ANOVA and regression analyses were used to identify how attitudes and leadership competences related to project results.

Findings

The paper identifies two types of results variances, these are, variances in project results and variances in business results. The former is caused by the attitudes of project managers, the latter is caused by a mixture of their attitude and emotional competences.

Research limitations/implications

The results show the relative importance of specific attitudes and leadership competences for different types of project success.

Practical implications

The results indicate key areas for project manager development in order to move from mediocre to superior project results.

Originality/value

The paper builds on prior work in EQ, MQ, and IQ for project management and is the first study to identify a migration theory for the combination of attitudes and leadership competences for project success.
Business perceptions of regulative institutions in Central and Eastern Europe
Authors: Kshetri Nir
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate, theoretically and empirically, how entrepreneurial firms' perceptions of formal institutions differ across Central and Eastern European (CEE) economies.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses data from the World Bank Group's World Business Environment Survey (WBES) compare entrepreneurial firms' perceptions of changes in different components of regulative institutions in Latin and orthodox CEE economies. The data used in this paper capture a decade's progress in the development of regulative institutions in these economies.

Findings

It was found that the state's regulatory, participatory, and supportive roles are more favorable to businesses in the Latin countries than in the orthodox countries. The findings provide support for the notion that informal institutions influence the degree of generalizeability and replicability of Western political and economic institutions' success in driving firms' entrepreneurial behavior in emerging economies.

Research limitations/implications

The first limitation is that the data used were collected about a decade ago. Another limitation relates to a lack of coverage of many former Soviet republics and some other CEE countries in the WBES.

Practical implications

The findings point to the need of strategic planning and various degrees of adaptation of business strategies across the CEE economies. Second, businesses may differ in terms of the relative importance of regulatory, participatory, and supportive roles of the government in their operations. Finally, some CEE economies can be influenced more than others by international pressures.

Originality/value

This paper's greatest value stems from the fact that it uses internationally comparable firm‐level data to empirically examine entrepreneurial firms' perceptions of regulative institutions in CEE economies.
Entrepreneurial Need for Achievement in China, Latvia, and the USA
Authors: Carraher Shawn M. , Buchanan Jason K. , Puia George
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The decision one makes to engage in entrepreneurial activity is affected by many different motivators. The paper aims to focus on one specific motivator for entrepreneurial activity which is the Need for Achievement. The prevailing methods of studying achievement motivation will also be discussed as shall constructs related to Need for Achievement. The paper also examines the dynamics of achievement motivation. The dynamic ability of individual traits is important, if it were not one's traits would be constant and not capable of being changed or developed. Some of the main factors that can influence achievement motivation are also examined in the paper.

Design/methodology/approach

Specifically, data from 249 entrepreneurs from the USA, 220 from China, and 173 from Latvia were used in order to examine the relationships between variables related to Need for Achievement.

Findings

Goal orientation, conscientiousness, cognitive complexity, age, and gender were found to be able to account for 29.4 percent of the variance in Need for Achievement among American entrepreneurs, 45.3 percent among Chinese entrepreneurs, and 33.5 percent among Latvian entrepreneurs. Differences are found between the countries with cognitive complexity being statistically significant in the USA and China, but not in Latvia. Gender was significant in the USA and China but not in Latvia. Age was not significantly related to Need for Achievement in any of the three countries, while goal orientation and conscientiousness were significantly related to Need for Achievement in all three countries. Finally, the implications of this research as well as areas that need to be considered for future research are discussed.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is limited to entrepreneurs of small to medium‐sized enterprises in North America, Asia, and the Baltics. The implications of the research include that Need for Achievement is important for entrepreneurs across these three very diverse cultures and that variables related to Need for Achievement vary between the countries. As Need for Achievement is related to economic development, it is important to understand the factors which might be able to influence the Need for Achievement of entrepreneurs from around the world.

Originality/value

The development of entrepreneurs is important if economies desire to have sustainable growth. Little empirical research has examined these issues with data‐sets from three continents. Even less research has examined these issues among entrepreneurs. The paper addresses these areas.
The business of business incubators
Authors: Gstraunthaler Thomas
Published: September 2010

Purpose

New business ideas, especially those which address markets that do not yet exist, face huge difficulties in securing vital resources. Hence, governments support the creation of a protected environment, business incubators, in which these early ventures can develop. Business incubators perform two different processes: servicing the companies they host and fulfilling their main stakeholders' demands. Hence, this paper is critical of whether business incubators in Lithuania have been installed due to real economic demand to help all the promising startups to develop or if they serve primarily political goals. Business incubators are exposed to pressure from shareholders, both public and private, and adopt certain strategies to deal with their expectations. The paper aims to explore how the management of business incubators understand their own position, tasks and challenges and how they see their business incubators performing now and in the future.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper adds viewpoints from the sociology‐based institutional theory, adopting a more critical view on how institutions emerge, how they are influenced by their environment and how they shape the environment in which they operate. In‐depth interviews were conducted with the management of the business incubators. The paper included all seven business incubators of Lithuania: five business incubators in Vilnius and two business incubators in Kaunas.

Findings

The studied Lithuanian business incubators have a strong focus on property, together with the offering of training and consulting, although at a very superficial level. There are strong arguments in favor of a mimicking process and institutional behavior. What made these property developments so attractive was the available public money, particularly from the European Union. As long as the money keeps flowing, there is a strong incentive to grow. The managers say that their public shareholders provide only weak support after the business incubator was set up. Their private investors, on the other hand, are interested in high rents. In addition, teams operating the business incubators are small, most consisting of not more than three people; a much lower number than the European average of 12.

Originality/value

The empirical results offer interesting insights into the self‐understanding of the management of Lithuanian business incubators, their setup and the environment in which they operate.
Software development maturity evaluation: six cases from Estonian SMEs
Authors: Puus Uuno , Mets Tõnis
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The software industry, especially software development (SD), in Estonia is at the present moment in the phase of expansion: first level of life cycle of the industry. Initial maturity level of the industry is among other factors characterized by lower maturity level of development process in companies/development teams. The goal of this paper is to analyze the maturity level of SD process in Estonian companies. Usually, poorly managed processes and low‐development performance are the major reasons for overrun deadlines and insufficient competitive advantages. Therefore, improved performance is the key factor of SD industry competitiveness.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology used in the paper is semi‐structured interviews with experienced software developers/project managers in Estonian SD enterprises. On the basis of the interviews, authors were analyzing the usability of capability maturity model integration (CMMI) in Estonian SD companies to perform/apply the software process improvement (SPI).

Findings

Results based on self‐evaluation are describing the current level of SD process maturity in sense of CMMI in Estonian SD enterprises. Also, the difficulties of collecting process performance data were discovered. SD companies did not find it necessary to collect and save development process performance data, such as number of (corrected) errors, number of lines of code, etc.

Originality/value

The paper describes structured performance as SD process maturity in sense of CMMI together with development process performance as project characteristics: product quality, cycle‐time, development effort, product maintainability, etc.
Efficiency evolution of coal‐fired electricity generation in China, 1999‐2007
Authors: Tai Wu Han , Pineau Pierre‐Olivier , Caporossi Gilles
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The paper seeks to evaluate the changes in efficiency and productivity of coal‐fired electricity generation of 30 Chinese administrative regions from 1999 to 2007.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper incorporates data envelopment analysis with the Malmquist index to study the progress made in this sector. The model considers both economic and environmental factors by including the variables fuel consumption, labor, capital, sulfur dioxide emissions and electricity generated. A second model is constructed without the variable sulfur dioxide emissions to evaluate economic performances without taking environmental measures into consideration.

Findings

By comparing the two models, the paper identified provinces that favored economic performance over environmental performance, or vice versa. Also, it showed that the more efficient provinces tend to manage both economic and environmental efficiencies equally well, while the reverse is true for the least efficient provinces. The average total factor productivity growth in coal‐fired electricity generation of all provinces was 3.96 per cent for 1999‐2007, and this growth is mainly attributed to technological change. In addition, it found that the Eastern provinces are the most efficient and productive of the group.

Research limitations/implications

In the absence of provincial coal quality data, a key efficiency factor is missing from the analysis.

Practical implications

Efficiency improvement efforts in the Chinese generation sector should target the least efficient provinces identified in this paper. Practices in the most efficient provinces should be further investigated to be replicated when possible.

Originality/value

The paper provides a contemporary overview of Chinese provincial efficiency and productivity measures for policy makers and investors to improve China's coal‐fired electricity generation sector.
Assessing power stations performance using a DEA‐bootstrap approach
Authors: Tsolas Ioannis E.
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the performance of Greek fossil fuel‐fired power stations employing a data envelopment analysis (DEA) model combined with bootstrapping.

Design/methodology/approach

DEA is used to derive aggregate performance indicators using data on inputs and desirable and undesirable outputs for a sample of fossil fuel‐fired power stations. The statistical significance of the derived aggregate performance indicators is assessed via the bootstrapping approach.

Findings

The results suggest that the power stations in the sample are considerably more inefficient than revealed by the initial point estimates of inefficiency. Moreover, the non‐lignite‐fired stations of the sample are on an average more efficient than the lignite‐fired stations.

Research limitations/implications

DEA represents a useful framework for exploring the current state to derive aggregate performance indicators of power stations, and moreover, the statistical properties of these metrics can be assessed via the bootstrapping approach.

Practical implications

The bootstrapping approach in DEA shows its superiority over DEA models that do not address the uncertainty surrounding point estimates. The DEA bootstrapping model used in this study to model environmental performance in the power station electricity production setting provides bias correction and confidence intervals for the point estimates and it is therefore more preferable.

Originality/value

The derivation of aggregate performance indicators of Greek fossil fuel‐fired power stations is an important addition to the existing literature on energy economics. The paper is also innovated in providing the statistical properties of the derived performance metrics.
Estimating the efficiency of American petroleum refineries under varying assumptions of the disposability of bad outputs
Authors: Mekaroonreung Maethee , Johnson Andrew L.
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The paper aims to describe and compare multiple methods for estimating the technical efficiency of 113 US oil refineries in operation in 2006 and 2007, considering undesirable output in a production process.

Design/methodology/approach

A technology that satisfies weak disposability between desirable and undesirable outputs is constructed by allowing different abatement factors across all refineries. Several measures based on data envelopment analysis approaches are implemented and compared to study the impact of disposability assumptions and to investigate the effects of using non‐uniform abatement factors. A hyperbolic efficiency measure is used to analyze the potential output loss of each refinery due to environmental regulations.

Findings

The results indicate that domestic refineries can improve efficiencies regardless of the disposability assumptions and that environmental regulations reduce the amount of potentially desirable outputs produced by some facilities. However, refineries in the western USA appear to be the most affected by regulations. In general, efficient refineries are less likely to be affected.

Research limitations/implications

Undesirable outputs are limited to toxic release. Undesirable outputs generated from refining crude oil, such as greenhouse gases, can be used when data are available. The desirable outputs in this paper do not include premium products, such as lubricants, which could raise the efficiency estimates of complex refineries.

Originality/value

To the authors' knowledge, this paper is the first implementation of the weakly disposable technology constructed by different uniform abatement factors. Further, the paper investigates the effects of various disposability assumptions on efficiency estimation. The result clearly identifies refineries that use their resources efficiently. The paper suggests that the data may be used to augment managerial decision‐making regarding benchmarking and best practices.
Integrated cost and quality benchmarking for electricity distribution using DEA
Authors: Ajodhia Virendra
Published: September 2010

Purpose

Energy regulators applying price‐cap systems typically do not incorporate quality into the benchmarking process. The paper aims to develop a methodology for integrated cost‐quality benchmarking for electricity distribution networks.

Design/methodology/approach

Two basic models are developed namely a technical model which specifies quality as a minimising input factor, and a social cost model which measures the extent to which the provided quality level is optimal. The two models are applied to a sample of Dutch and UK firms.

Findings

The results suggest that integrated price‐quality benchmarking is an important regulatory asset but at the same time, its limitations should also be recognised.

Originality/value

Traditionally, benchmarking under price‐caps has been mostly restricted to the analysis in the area of costs. A truly integrated price‐quality benchmarking approach for electricity distribution networks is, however, lacking. This paper aims to fill this gap.
Should Chinese new technology SMEs remain independent in overseas markets?
Authors: Tao Shaw X. , Li Lee , Qian Gongming
Published: September 2010

Purpose

Chinese new small‐ and medium‐sized technology enterprises face an important strategic decision when they operate in overseas markets. That is, should they remain independent? Independent small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) rely on their own internal resources while dependent SMEs resort to external resources through partnerships. The paper aims to evaluate various market contexts in which one strategy is preferred to the other.

Design/methodology/approach

Hypotheses developed from the literature review are tested with the quantitative data which were collected through questionnaires.

Findings

This paper assesses Chinese new technology SMEs' market environments and their internal resources. Findings from this paper suggest that different market contexts and different internal resources lead to different strategies.

Originality/value

This paper makes contributions to existing studies on two fronts. First, it investigates Chinese new technology SMEs' performance in the overseas market. Chinese new technology SMEs have been a new phenomenon in the world market and few studies have been reported on these firms' strategies and performance. Second, this paper assesses SMEs' strategic option of independence and dependence against the background of high‐tech industries which require heavy R&D investments and have been highly risky and uncertain.
The strategy of designing around existing patents in technology innovation
Authors: Chunlin Si , King‐Lien Lee
Published: September 2010

Purpose

This paper aims to develop a systematic framework of strategy of designing around existing patents in enterprises' innovative activities. After reviewing the choice of strategy and principle of the design to evade the existing patents, this paper discusses how to select the target patent under enterprise's strategy, before finally taking the designing around existing patent based on patent standardisation as an successful implementation of innovative process.

Design/methodology/approach

This is an exploratory research with a case study of critical technology of OTFT to illustrate the application of the proposed strategy. The choice of strategy of designing around existing patents is analyzed on the basis of judgments of patent infringement, and a framework of selecting target patent is proposed for the development of strategy of designing around existing patents as an innovation process.

Findings

This research suggests that technology innovation based on designing around existing patent should focus on choosing technology from the target patent of critical technology, choosing a policy that can balance the risk of patent infringement and costs of technology innovation and combining the policy of designing around existing patent and the application of TRIZ theory.

Originality/value

The framework proposed in this paper provides an alternative strategy of technological innovation for technology follower firms.
Empirical study on commonness of fast growing private enterprises in China
Authors: Haisu Wang , Zhongxiu Fang
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The paper aims to examine the similarities of fast‐growth private enterprises (PEs) in China with particular focus on enterprises listed on growth enterprises market in order to draw managerial implications for other PEs.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper looks at the release effects of intangible assets in PEs. It examines the excavation effects of preferential policy on PEs and goes on to discuss the agglomeration effects of the inherent advantages of these.

Findings

The paper argues that the fast growth of PEs in our sample was attributable to three main factors, i.e. benefits of intangible assets marketisation, shrewd use of government preferential policies and technological and managerial capabilities.

Practical implications

This research calls for the Chinese Government to adjust relevant policies to create a fair and competitive environment for enterprises with different ownerships and different scales.

Originality/value

The paper highlights the fact that the social and economic conditions of China in the post‐transition period have changed greatly and that the Chinese Government needs to clarify and define the existing characteristics and functions of enterprises and improve their service‐oriented functions.
Customer satisfaction factors (CSFs) with online banking services in an Islamic country
Authors: Sadeghi Tooraj , Heidarzadeh Hanzaee Kambiz
Published: September 2010

Purpose

This paper seeks to investigate the key factors underlying customer satisfaction with electronic banking services in an Islamic country, Iran.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors validate a measurement model for customer satisfaction evaluation in e‐banking service quality based on different service quality models and theories such as technology acceptance model, theory of reasoned action and theory of planned behavior.

Findings

The paper provides a model of seven factors on the following dimensions: convenience, accessibility, accuracy, security, usefulness, bank image, and web site design. Some of these factors illustrate a significant statistical difference between males and females.

Originality/value

These dimensions are determinants of customer's quality perception in e‐banking services and this paper presents new directions in service quality research and offers new directions to researchers and managers in providing service quality improvement.
Arabian Gulf innovator attitudes for online Islamic bank marketing strategy
Authors: Elbeck Matt , Dedoussis Evangellos‐Vagelis
Published: September 2010

Purpose

This paper's aim is to guide online Islamic bank marketing strategy.

Design/methodology/approach

A study in 1999 interviewed 120 innovators about their attitudes and preferences to a hypothetical online Islamic bank, and replicated in 2009 for existing online Islamic banks using a sample of 220 innovators.

Findings

The ten‐year replication interval reveals increased internet and online bank usage, higher household incomes and concerns about security (fraud, theft, and hacking). Criteria describing a bona fide online Islamic bank are inconsistent and do not strongly reflect Sharia, suggesting a vague marketspace position. Similarities between online Islamic bank innovator attitudes and preferences with online bank innovators allows online Islamic banks confidence in the use of best practices in online marketing strategy.

Practical implications

The 2009 study offers present‐day insights for online Islamic bank marketing strategy development, with 48 percent planning to open an online Islamic bank (51 percent have a retail branch Islamic bank account) citing time savings and 24‐hour access as primary advantages, with online security as the major impediment. For product mix, preferred investment products include real estate, construction and restaurants, whilst popular bank services include the ability to view and transfer across accounts, investment portfolio variety, and ease to open new accounts.

Originality/value

This study is one of the first to address marketing issues about the burgeoning online Islamic bank market.
Compliance to Islamic marketing practices among businesses in Malaysia
Authors: Abdullah Kalthom , Ismail Ahmad Mohd.
Published: September 2010

Purpose

This research paper aims to explore the perceptions of Muslim consumers of the degree of compliance of Malaysian businesses to Islamic marketing practices and promotional strategies.

Design/methodology/approach

The perceptions of the Muslim consumers were examined by distributing a self‐administered survey questionnaire to a sample of 450 Muslim respondents residing in the major towns in Peninsular Malaysia. Items used in the questionnaire were derived from the basic guidelines provided in the Quran and the Sunnah on the conduct of business practices, specifically on the general marketing and promotional practices used.

Findings

Findings suggest that though there is an awareness of these regulations and practices, not many businesses in Malaysia are perceived to be complying with them both with respect to general Islamic marketing principles and with recommended Islamic promotional practices. There was also a significant difference in opinions expressed by Muslim consumers due to the influence of their religious educational background and the states in which they resided.

Practical implications

There is a need towards more research on how Islamic guidelines could be applied in all aspects of marketing activities. This could create more awareness among businesses about the issues and obligations that are relevant in marketing practices.

Originality/value

This research is a rare attempt on the part of researchers and scholars in Malaysia to relate the Islamic injunctions and guidelines on a specific discipline such as marketing. Although there have been many studies on Islamic finance and economics, the area of Islamic marketing remains clearly under researched.
Re‐stating financial statements and its reaction in financial market
Authors: Robbani Mohammad G. , Bhuyan Rafiqul
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the short‐term reactions of stock prices to the announcement of earnings restatement by the public companies listed in the Toronto stock exchange in Canada.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper conducts an empirical study. For the purpose conducting the empirical study, a standard event study methodology has been utilized to examine the effect of restatement announcements on the stock returns. The dates of the announcement of restatement by each company have been collected and the effect of the announcement has been studied surrounding the announcement dates.

Findings

The results of empirical works indicate that, in general, the financial market reacts negatively to any restatement of earnings. This is evident from the fact that irrespective of the reasons for restatement, all restatements show a negative effect on the stock price. The impact of the restatement announcements is significant for all the prediction intervals. However, the long‐term reaction is more pronounced compared to short‐term reaction. In addition, the negative reaction is much higher for those reasons that are directly related to the earnings management than those that do not involve any active earnings management.

Research limitations/implications

Since the paper investigates only one stock exchange, it may have a limited application in other financial markets. Similar researches can be undertaken for other financial markets different in size, scope or geographical location.

Practical implications

The findings of the paper may have broad implications both for individual investors and corporate executives. The decisions made by executives on restatements affect stock price and hence the investors' rate of return. Since the general effect of such restatement is negative on the stock returns, it may portray a negative perception about the company. Therefore, the paper has implications on the decisions made by both the investors and the corporate executives.

Originality/value

The paper studied the Canadian stock market which was not studied in the past to examine the reactions of restatement.
The determinants of corporate disclosure: a meta‐analysis
Authors: Khlif Hichem , Souissi Mohsen
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the association between disclosure and seven corporate characteristics which are ownership dispersion, analysts following, audit firm size, leverage, corporate size, profitability, and multi‐nationality.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper applies the meta‐analysis technique developed by Hunter et al. in 1982 to a sample of 16 articles published between 1997 and 2006 for the purpose of cumulating and integrating the findings across studies.

Findings

The paper shows a significant association between disclosure and audit firm size.

Originality/value

The paper is an extension of previous work of Ahmed and Courtis to the extent that it includes other determinants of disclosure not included in prior works. It also aims at reconciling the inconsistent results of prior studies.
A field study of user versus provider perceptions of management accounting system services
Authors: Fleischman Gary , Walker Kenton , Johnson Eric
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate user versus provider perceptions of management accounting system (MAS) services using the DeLone and McLean information system success model and the theoretical lens of social perception theory.

Design/methodology/approach

Quantitative survey data were collected and analyzed using ordinal regression. Qualitative interview data concerning user‐provider perceptions of MAS service information quality, importance, use, and satisfaction were utilized to corroborate and explain the data analysis.

Findings

The results suggest that there are significant perceptual differences about MAS service quality by users versus providers. For this organization, the paper identifies what these differences are, why they exist, and how organizations may identify and narrow identified gaps.

Research limitations/implications

The paper is based on a case study that may not be generalizable to broader populations. It uses a cross‐sectional, correlational, self‐report survey, therefore is unable to make causal or directional inferences. Future research should assess MAS services in different organizations, industries, and cultures.

Practical implications

The paper is among the first to provide quantitative and qualitative evidence of perceived differences in accounting service quality, approaches to uncovering sources of differences, and steps that organizations may take to improve service quality.

Originality/value

This paper is the first to apply the DeLone and McLean information system success model in the context of MAS service quality. The paper examines perceptions of MAS providers and users to evaluate services and investigates perceptual differences across functions and at different organizational levels.
Strategic human resource management practices: effect on performance
Authors: Akong'o Dimba Beatrice
Published: September 2010

Purpose

Strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices are used by large foreign multinational companies to improve their performance. The purpose of this paper is to establish the direct or indirect relationship between SHRM practices and firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

SHRM practices are conceptualized as independent variables measured through a bundle of distinct practices. Organizational performance as a dependent variable is measured using constructs of image, interpersonal relations, and product quality. The model is tested with data from 50 large foreign multinational companies operating in Kenya.

Findings

Results of this paper show that the SHRM practices that best predict firm performance are training and development and compensation systems. The relationship between the use of SHRM practices and firm performance does not hold across the five bundles of what are considered as “high performance work practices”. This paper also assumes that the relationship between SHRM practices and firm performance is indirect through motivation.

Research limitations/implications

Cross‐sectional data from 50 large manufacturing companies in Kenya are used, and it would be interesting to test this model for more industries and countries.

Practical implications

Results of this paper have shown that the SHRM practices that best predict firm performance are training and development and compensation systems.

Originality/value

To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first large‐scale empirical paper of the influence of SHRM practices on firm performance, using data from large foreign manufacturing companies operating in Kenya.
Financial literacy and youth entrepreneurship in South Africa
Authors: Kojo Oseifuah Emmanuel
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the level of financial literacy and impact on youth entrepreneurship in South Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper used both desk research and questionnaire complemented by interview to assess the level of financial literacy among youth entrepreneurs in the Vhembe District of the Limpopo Province, South Africa.

Findings

The paper reveals that financial literacy among youth entrepreneurs in the Vhembe District appears to be above average and contributes meaningfully to their entrepreneurship skills.

Research limitations/implications

Further research is needed to verify in specific and practical terms, the level and impact of financial literacy on youth entrepreneurs in the Vhembe District.

Practical implications

Education and training at both high school and tertiary levels with emphasis on financial literacy and entrepreneurial skills may have significant implications for small‐, micro‐, and medium‐sized enterprise development and growth for the youth entrepreneur in general in South Africa.

Originality/value

The paper is the first to examine the level of financial literacy among youth entrepreneurs in the Vhembe District. The paper therefore sets an important benchmark for further research in this area.
HIV/AIDS in the workplace: a case study from higher education
Authors: Von Der Marwitz Jill , Were‐Okello Tom
Published: September 2010

Purpose

This paper seeks to highlight the nature and possible effect of the South African higher education (HE) sector's human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) workplace programmes response and progress.

Design/methodology/approach

A discourse approach is employed within the contextualization of the role of the South African higher education institution (HEI) in addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Findings

The focus of wellness is rapidly becoming part of any corporate landscape and institutions of HE are an integral part of this landscape. Significant gains have been made in the implementation of creative and innovative HIV/AIDS workplace programmes in South Africa's HEI's at the individual, group, family, and at local community level.

Research limitations/implications

All HEIs are currently aligning their HIV/AIDS policies with the National HIV/AIDS sector policy framework. Further research is thus needed on HIV/AIDS where this aspect forms part of a strategic and holistic approach to employee wellness.

Practical implications

Mainstreaming of HIV/AIDS within the institution and the realignment of other allied institutional HIV/AIDS policies together with the establishment of a monitoring and evaluation tool with relevant indicators to gauge the level of responsiveness of institutions.

Originality/value

This study is the first that seeks to ascertain the level of importance of employee wellness in South Africa's HE sector. Therefore, this study sets an important benchmark for further research in the area.
Gender buying behaviour: German tourists – informal craft markets
Authors: Küsel Reulene , Ras Peter J.
Published: September 2010

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine the gender buying patterns of German tourists travelling on coach tours while visiting South Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is based on quantitative research methodologies and descriptive statistics were used to determine the gender buying behaviours of the German tourists in organised coach tours.

Findings

In this paper, the research questions are answered and provide the necessary insight into the buying behaviour of the tourists.

Research limitations/implications

Further research is needed to determine the different types of foreign tourists buying needs. The implication will be that not only German tourists must be researched but also other foreign tourists visiting South Africa.

Practical implications

The informal craft market owner will know the tourists' preferences and by producing the crafts that are unique, the informal craft owner will be able to sustain not only themselves but also impact positively on the immediate communities as more jobs can be created.

Originality/value

This research is timely and much needed as it is the start of the building blocks for further research in informal craft markets and will help with the development of informal craft markets. By determining the buying needs of tourists that visit South Africa in organised coach tours, the craft owners will be able to produce the correct crafts that are sought by foreign tourists.
Anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies target sequential functional proteinase 3 epitopes in the sera of patients with Wegener's granulomatosis
Authors: Bruner B F , Vista E S , Wynn D M , Harley J B , James J A
Published: September 2010

Many patients with Wegener's granulomatosis (WG) have anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies (c-ANCA). Aside from being a diagnostic marker, these autoantibodies may play roles in disease pathogenesis. Proteinase 3 (PR3) is the primary target of c-ANCA in WG patient sera. Of 60 c-ANCA-positive patients, 10 patients were selected for detailed humoral epitope analysis, contingent upon serum availability, using samples with positive levels of anti-PR3 by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Sequential epitope specificities of anti-PR3 antibodies detected by screening the maximally overlapping solid-phase octapeptides of PR3 showed seven major common antigenic targets bound by WG patient sera. These include novel and previously identified sequential PR3 epitopes bound by c-ANCA. B cell epitope prediction algorithms identified all or part of the seven defined epitopes. Several epitopes share sequence and structural proximity with functional sites, including the catalytic triad and proposed binding sites of other potential proteins [PR3 complementary peptide and soluble endothelial protein C receptor (sEPCR)]. Epitope 4 (VVLGAHNVRTQ) had the highest binding prevalence (90%) and epitope 2 (AQPHSRPYMAS) has the highest average reactivity of the antigenic regions. Epitope 4 includes the interaction site between sEPCR and PR3 which may serve as an important interaction to down-regulate inflammation. Epitopes 3, 5 and 7 are in direct proximity to amino acids that form the catalytic triad of the protein. c-ANCA targets both unique and previously known sequential PR3 peptides. This information may prove useful in understanding anti-PR3-mediated disease pathogenesis in systemic vasculitides.
Euthycarcinoids
Authors: Ortega‐Hernández Javier , Legg David A. , Tremewan Jonathan , Braddy Simon J.
Published: September 2010

The euthycarcinoids are a mysterious group of extinct, possibly amphibious, arthropods. Like many groups of arthropods their affinities remain enigmatic. They comprise 15 species known mainly from the Late Carboniferous Coal Measures of Europe and North America, although they have been found in older rocks in Argentina and Australia. The oldest known euthycarcinoid is Apankura machu, from the Late Cambrian of Argentina, and the youngest is Euthycarcinus kessleri, from the Middle Triassic of France.
Species responses to fire, climate and human impact at tree line in the Alps as evidenced by palaeo‐environmental records and a dynamic simulation model
Authors: Colombaroli Daniele , Henne Paul D. , Kaltenrieder Petra , Gobet Erika , Tinner Willy
Published: September 2010

1. We use high‐resolution records of macroscopic charcoal and plant remains from sediments of a lake in the Swiss Alps (Gouillé Rion, 2343 m a.s.l.) to reconstruct local fire variability and vegetation dynamics over the last 12 000 years.

2. Species response to fire variability and to summer temperature was obtained by combining regression analyses between contiguous series of plant macrofossils, macroscopic charcoal and an available reconstruction of past summer temperature.

3. With a dynamic landscape vegetation model (LandClim), we simulated fire regimes using two levels of ignition frequency and moisture availability to disentangle the role of climate vs. humans on fire occurrence. The simulation results show that human disturbance was relevant in controlling the fire variability and are in agreement with pollen evidence of human impact from previous studies from Gouillé Rion.

4. Our results show that fire is a natural disturbance agent in the tree line ecotone. Biomass availability controlled the fire regime until increased land use and anthropogenic fire during the past 4000 years changed species composition and vegetation structure close to the tree line.

5. Important species at the tree line ecotone such as Pinus cembra greatly benefitted from periods with temperature above the modern mean July temperature, if anthropogenic fire disturbance was not too severe, such as during the Bronze Age (c. 4000 cal. years bp).

6. When mean July temperatures were lower than modern mean July values, Juniperus nana and Larix decidua were at an advantage over P. cembra. With increasing anthropogenic fire, open lands with J. nana replaced L. decidua and P. cembra forest stands.

7. Synthesis. Fire activity was low to moderate during the early and mid‐Holocene. Intensified land use coupled with fire occurrence since the Bronze Age (c. 4000 cal. years bp) had a larger impact on species composition near the tree line than climate change. Although climate change will alter vegetation composition, future dynamics of mountain forests will be co‐determined by anthropogenic fire. For example, high fire variability may impede upslope establishment of forests in response to climatic warming as expected for this century, with serious implications for forest diversity.
Evaluation of fungal flora in normal and diseased canine ears
Authors: Campbell Jacquelyn J. , Coyner Kimberly S. , Rankin Shelley C. , Lewis Thomas P. , Schick Anthea E. , Shumaker Amy K.
Published: September 2010

This study was undertaken to characterize otic fungal flora encountered in normal dogs, atopic dogs with no clinical or cytological evidence of otitis and dogs with otitis externa. Forty‐two normal dogs, 23 atopic dogs and 32 dogs with otitis were included in the study. Samples for otic fungal culture and cytology were obtained from all animals, for a total of 194 ears. Sixty‐seven ear samples (34%) were culture positive for saprophytic fungal organisms, as follows: 43 (64%)Penicilliumspecies, 13 (19%)Aspergillusspecies and the remaining 17% comprised of various other saprophytic fungal organisms. Cytological evidence of saprophytic fungal colonization or infection was not found in any animal. There was no relationship between positive saprophytic fungal culture and any study group. Thirty‐three ear samples (17%) were positive forMalassezia pachydermatis. Cytological findings ofMalasseziawere significantly associated with positive culture forMalassezia(P = 0.006 left ear;P = 0.019 right ear). Furthermore, increased numbers ofMalassezialed to a higher chance of positive culture (P = 0.003 left ear;P = 0.008 right ear; McNemar’s test).Malassezia pachydermatiswas more likely to be cultured from ears with increased cerumen.Ear type (erect or pendulous) was not significantly associated with positive culture forMalasseziaor saprophytic fungal organisms. There was no relationship between positiveMalasseziaculture and any study group; however,Malasseziawas more likely to be cultured from individual dogs in the atopic or otitis groups that also had other dermatological signs consistent with allergic dermatitis and/or pyoderma (P = 0.031 left ear;P = 0.005 right ear).
Transfusion has no effect on recurrence in hepatitis C after liver transplantation
Authors: RICE M. J. , WENDLING A. , FIRPI R. J. , HEMMING A. W. , NELSON D. R. , SCHWAB W. K. , GRAVENSTEIN N. , MOREY T. E.
Published: September 2010

Background: The literature suggests that blood product transfusions have a negative impact on the survival of liver transplant patients. We investigated the impact of intraoperative blood product usage on the survival of liver transplantation patients being transplanted for hepatitis C‐related end‐stage liver disease. In addition, we analyzed a potentially more sensitive metric, namely disease recurrence and fibrosis progression, obtained from follow‐up liver biopsies.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 194 consecutive patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) undergoing liver transplantation. To investigate the effect of red blood cell (RBC) or platelet transfusions on post‐transplant HCV recurrence, hepatic biopsy data from 4 months and 1 year after transplantation were studied. In addition, survival data were analyzed.

Results: There was no effect of intraoperative RBC or platelet transfusion on either 1‐ or 5‐year patient survival following liver transplantation. There was no difference in HCV disease recurrence or progression of hepatic fibrosis at 4 months or 1 year attributable either to RBC or to platelet transfusion.

Conclusion: This study was not able to confirm an effect on the survival of HCV‐infected liver transplant patients related to intraoperative transfusion of RBCs or platelets. In addition, these transfusions had no effect on HCV recurrence or fibrosis progression. This is not to condone a liberal transfusion practice, but rather to reassure that when clinically indicated, transfusion does not have a significant impact on patient survival or disease recurrence in HCV‐infected liver transplant patients.