bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Updated guidelines on digital media use by children
Authors: Licata Joseph Isaac , Baker Amy Elizabeth
Published: March 2017

Given the speed at which mobile media has grown recently, the updated American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines for digital technology use by children are a welcome addition to the toolbox of pediatric healthcare providers. This article discusses the changes to the guidelines as well as other useful current research not specifically included in those guidelines.
The Phenylephrine Test Revisited
Authors: Barsegian Arpine , Botwinick Adam , Reddy Harsha S.
Published: March 2017

Purpose:

To characterize the phenylephrine test in ptotic patients to help clinicians perform the test more efficiently.

Methods:

Adults with involutional ptosis (n = 24, 30 eyes) were assessed with digital photographs for response to topical 2.5% phenylephrine drop instillation. Patient characteristics (age, gender, iris color, dermatochalasis, brow ptosis, and baseline marginal reflex distance-1 [MRD-1] height) were recorded. From the photographs, change in (MRD-1), presence of conjunctival blanching, pupillary dilation, and Hering effect were recorded at specified time intervals, 1 minute to 1 hour after drop placement. Correlations between patient characteristics and measured outcomes were evaluated using analysis of variance, Pearson coefficient, or chi-square tests.

Results:

The authors found that 73% of eyes had eyelid elevation with phenylephrine. Of these, 50% reached maximal eyelid elevation by 5 minutes, and 86% by 10 minutes after drop placement, but 14% did not reach maximal MRD-1 until 30 minutes. There is a negative correlation between the maximum MRD-1 and the baseline MRD-1 eyelid height (r = −0.5330, p < 0.01). There is no significant relationship between time to pupillary dilation with either time to max eyelid elevation or max eyelid elevation. No patient characteristic studied affected the likelihood of eyelid response to phenylephrine or presence of Hering effect.

Conclusions:

Although most ptotic eyelids demonstrate a response to 2.5% phenylephrine within 10 minutes, there is a subset of patients that respond much later. More ptotic eyelids had greater eyelid elevation with phenylephrine. Pupillary dilation and conjunctival blanching are neither predictive of nor temporally associated with eyelid height elevation. The authors did not identify any patient factors (e.g., dermatochalasis, brow ptosis) that can predict the likelihood of response to phenylephrine.
Promoting Heart Health Among Rural African Americans
Authors: Abbott Laurie , Williams Christine , Slate Elizabeth , Gropper Sareen
Published: March 2017

Background:

Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of death for people living in the United States. African Americans bear a disproportionate burden of cardiovascular disease. Interventions designed to target multiple risk factors may facilitate elimination of cardiovascular disease health disparities.

Objective:

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a culturally relevant cardiovascular health promotion intervention that could potentially reduce cardiovascular disease risk among a group of rural African American adults by improving intentions, attitudes, norms, and self-efficacy to increase produce consumption, reduce dietary saturated fat intake, and increase exercise.

Methods:

A cluster randomized controlled trial design was used to evaluate the effect of the “With Every Heartbeat Is Life” cardiovascular health promotion program among rural African Americans. The African American congregants of 12 rural churches located in northern Florida were randomly assigned to either an intervention group that received a culturally relevant cardiovascular health promotion intervention or a control group. Data analysis using linear mixed model was performed to compare group differences from pretest to posttest.

Results:

The cardiovascular health promotion intervention had a positive influence on the intentions, attitudes, norms, and self-efficacy of rural African Americans to increase produce consumption and reduce dietary saturated fat. The intervention also enhanced participants' attitudes and self-efficacy regarding exercise.

Conclusion:

The culturally relevant cardiovascular health promotion program presented to cluster groups of rural African American participants had positive influences on psychosocial variables associated with engaging in cardiovascular health recommendations. Nurse-led interventions in community settings can potentially reduce cardiovascular disease risk.
Cochlear Implants Versus Hearing Aids in a Middle-Income Country: Costs, Productivity, and Quality of Life
Authors: Montes Felipe , Peñaranda Augusto , Correa Santiago , Peñaranda Daniel , García Juan-Manuel , Aparicio Maria Leonor , Varela Andrea Ramírez , Castillo Mario
Published: March 2017

Objective:

In Colombia there are three main treatment approaches for bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss, also known as profound deafness (PD): cochlear implants (CI), hearing aids (HA), and no treatment (NT). The objective of this study is to determine the optimal treatment approach for PD in terms of productivity and cost-effectiveness.

Study Design:

Hearing levels and SES data were obtained from audiometric tests conducted on 100 patients with CI. For each treatment approach, productivity and cost-effectiveness assessments were estimated using influence diagrams and Monte Carlo simulations. Productivity was calculated as the net present value of a patient's lifetime income divided by total health-related and educational costs. For the CI and HA, the cost-effectiveness indicator was calculated as quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) gained in comparison with the NT approach divided by the total cost of the treatment option.

Results:

The results for the CI, the HA, and NT in terms of productivity ratio were 1.53, 0.94, and 1.47, respectively. Patients using CI had a gain of 5.7 QALYs, whereas patients using HA had a gain of 4.6 QALYs. The results for the CI and the HA in terms of cost-effectiveness were $15,169 and $15,430 per QALY, respectively.

Conclusion:

The CI was found to be the optimal treatment for PD, as it was the most efficient and cost-effective in terms of improving patients’ productivity and quality of life. We observed that children who had received CI developed hearing and speech abilities that contributed to their productivity and quality of life to a greater extent than those with HA.
Special Article: Leadership in Palliative Nursing
Authors: Ferrell Betty R. , Friedmann Ellen Taratoot
Published: March 2017

In 2016, the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association created the Nessa Coyle Leadership Fund to recognize the career achievements of Nessa Coyle, PhD, RN, as a pioneer in the field of palliative nursing and an exemplar of leadership. The first lectureship recognizing this award was presented at the annual assembly of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association in February 2017. This article is based on that lectureship and summarizes key leadership themes identified in Dr Coyle’s career.
Purified Adipose-Derived Stromal Cells Provide Superior Fat Graft Retention Compared with Unenriched Stromal Vascular Fraction
Authors: Zielins Elizabeth R. , Brett Elizabeth A. , Blackshear Charles P. , Flacco John , Ransom Ryan C. , Longaker Michael T. , Wan Derrick C.
Published: March 2017

Cell-assisted lipotransfer has shown much promise as a technique to improve fat graft retention in both mouse and human studies. However, the literature varies as to whether fresh stromal vascular fraction or culture-expanded adipose-derived stromal cells are used to augment volume retention. The authors’ study sought to determine whether there was a significant advantage to using adipose-derived stromal cells over unpurified stromal vascular fraction cells in a mouse model of cell-assisted lipotransfer.
Enhanced Calvarial Bone Healing in CD11c-TLR4−/− and MyD88−/− Mice
Authors: Wang Dan , Taylor Gwen M. , Gilbert James R. , Losee Joseph E. , Sodhi Chhinder P. , Hackam David J. , Billiar Timothy R. , Cooper Gregory M.
Published: March 2017

Background:

Inflammation is integral to the injury response. The inflammatory response is essential to the host defense against infection and also to tissue regeneration and repair. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are critical activators of the innate immune response and present attractive therapeutic targets for inflammation-modulated tissue regeneration. The authors’ previous study showed that depletion of TLR4 resulted in accelerated skull bone healing concurrent with increased expression of osteoclastogenic genes. As such, in the present study, the authors used various knockout mouse models for TLR4 and its associated signaling mediators as tools to further understand the role of Toll-like receptor–mediated inflammation in calvarial bone healing.

Methods:

Calvarial defects (1.8-mm diameter) were created in wild-type, TLR4 knockout (TLR4−/−), TLR2−/−, MyD88−/−, TRIF−/−, TLR4 knockout in myeloid cell (Lyz-TLR4−/−), and TLR4 knockout in dendritic-lineage cell (CD11c-TLR4−/−) mice. Bone healing was examined using micro–computed tomographic, histologic, and histomorphometric analyses.

Results:

Micro–computed tomographic and histomorphometric analyses revealed that TLR4-deficient mice (TLR4−/−, Lyz-TLR4−/−, and CD11c-TLR4−/−) exhibited a faster intramembraneous healing response at postoperative day 7, whereas MyD88−/− and CD11c-TLR4−/− mice showed enhanced bone healing at day 28.

Conclusions:

The authors’ data suggest a detrimental role for TLR4 in CD11c+ cells, mediated by Myd88 signaling, during calvarial bone healing. The authors have demonstrated that Toll-like receptor signaling components affect calvarial bone healing, establishing a link between the skeletal and immune systems during craniofacial bone healing. Toll-like receptor signaling components might be used to initiate enhanced healing in bone defects to improve clinical outcomes.
A Prospective Randomized Trial of the Efficacy of Fibrin Glue, Triamcinolone Acetonide, and Quilting Sutures in Seroma Prevention after Latissimus Dorsi Breast Reconstruction
Authors: Hart Alexandra M. , Duggal Clarie , Pinell-White Ximena , Losken Albert
Published: March 2017

Background:

Donor-site seroma is the most common complication following latissimus dorsi flap breast reconstruction. Various agents and techniques have attempted to minimize seroma formation. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of different products and quilting sutures at seroma prevention.

Methods:

This is a single-center, double-blinded, randomized, controlled trial of a consecutive series of breast cancer patients (n = 96) undergoing latissimus dorsi flap reconstruction performed by a single surgeon. Patients were randomized to receive (1) fibrin glue (Tisseel) (n = 23), (2) triamcinolone acetonide (n = 26), or (3) normal saline (control) (n = 27) sprayed into the donor site. The fourth arm included donor-site quilting sutures (n = 20). Outcomes included seroma, drain output, and days to last drain removal. Drain removal was standardized at less than 30 cc/day.

Results:

All groups were matched evenly without differences in risk, procedures, or complications. The overall seroma rate was 31.3 percent (n = 30). The quilting group had significantly less drainage for weeks 1 (p = 0.006) and 2 (p = 0.050) postoperatively. Quilting statistically reduced the incidence of seromas to 5.0 percent (n = 1; p = 0.038) compared with other groups (control, 34.5 percent; fibrin, 27.6 percent; and triamcinolone, 37.6 percent). Drains were removed 10 days earlier with quilting (control, 35.5 days; fibrin, 39.5 days; triamcinolone, 37.4 days; and quilting, 25.8 days; p = 0.001). The incidence of all other complications was similar between groups.

Conclusion:

The use of quilting donor sites significantly decreases the incidence of donor-site seromas and leads to earlier drain removal following latissimus dorsi flap reconstruction and maintains a low complication profile.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, II.
Oncoplastic Breast Reduction Technique and Outcomes: An Evolution over 20 Years
Authors: Losken Albert , Hart Alexandra M. , Broecker Justine S. , Styblo Toncred M. , Carlson Grant W.
Published: March 2017

Background:

Reduction mammaplasty at the time of lumpectomy is a good option in women with breast cancer and macromastia. We critically evaluated refinements and outcomes of this technique.

Methods:

A prospectively maintained database was reviewed of all women with breast cancer who received lumpectomy and reduction mammaplasty at our institution from 1994 to 2015. Patients’ demographics were reviewed. Preoperative and postoperative patient satisfaction (BREAST-Q) was determined. Comparisons were made between early and recent cases.

Results:

There were 353 patients included. Average age was 54 (range, 21 to 80 years), with the largest number having stage I disease [n = 107 of 246 (43.5 percent)]. Average lumpectomy specimen was 207 g (range, 11.6 to 1954 g) and total reduction weight averaged 545 g (range, 21 to 4102 g). Tumor size averaged 2.02 cm (range, 0.00 to 15.60 cm). The positive margin rate was 6.2 percent (n = 22). Completion mastectomy rate was 9.9 percent (n = 35). Overall complication rate was 16 percent. The recurrence rate was 5.2 percent (n = 10 of 192) at a mean follow-up of 2 years (range, 2 months to 15 years). Resection weights greater than 1000 g were associated with having a positive margin (16.7 percent versus 5.0 percent; p = 0.016), and tended to be associated with having a completion mastectomy (p = 0.069). Positive margin and completion mastectomy rates have been lower in the past 10 years. Over 1 year postoperatively, women reported increased self-confidence (p = 0.020), feelings of attractiveness (p = 0.085), emotional health (p = 0.037), and satisfaction with sex life (p = 0.092).

Conclusions:

The oncoplastic reduction technique is effective and results in improved patient-reported outcomes. Resections over 1000 g are associated with a higher incidence of positive margins and may increase the risk for completion mastectomy. Outcomes have improved with experience and refinement in technique.
Comparison of the Outcomes of Complex Orbital Fracture Repair with and without a Surgical Navigation System: A Prospective Cohort Study with Historical Controls
Authors: Zavattero Emanuele , Ramieri Guglielmo , Roccia Fabio , Gerbino Giovanni
Published: March 2017

Background:

In severe orbital fractures, restoration of orbital shape and volume is required to avoid diplopia and posttraumatic enophthalmos. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes between navigation-aided and conventional techniques for complex unilateral orbital fractures using titanium mesh.

Methods:

The outcomes and the computed tomography–measured orbital volume of two groups of orbital complex unilateral reconstruction cases were compared. The study group consisted of a consecutive cohort of unilateral severe orbital fracture that underwent surgery with the aid of a Brainlab navigation system. A historical control group was composed of consecutive operations performed immediately before the beginning of navigation system use. A total of 55 operations were then identified and studied for patient characteristics, diplopia and globe position, preoperative and postoperative orbital volumes, complications, need for revision surgery, and the surgeon’s performance.

Results:

Postoperative diplopia severity was lower in the study group than in the control group. Orbital volume analysis showed that reconstructed orbital volume in the study group was closer to unaffected orbital volume compared with the control group. Significant orbital volume reduction in the reconstructed orbit could be achieved in the study group, and there was no significant reduction in the control group compared with the unaffected side. The globe projection was higher compared with the preoperative situation in the study group than in the control group. The navigational platform could also contribute to reduce the learning curve.

Conclusion:

This study demonstrated that computer-assisted techniques improve outcomes compared with conventional techniques.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, III.
A dangerous method? The German discourse on hypnotic suggestion therapy around 1900
Authors: Maehle Andreas-Holger
Published: March 2017

In the late nineteenth century, German-speaking physicians and psychiatrists intensely debated the benefits and risks of treatment by hypnotic suggestion. While practitioners of the method sought to provide convincing evidence for its therapeutic efficacy in many medical conditions, especially nervous disorders, critics pointed to dangerous side effects, including the triggering of hysterical attacks or deterioration of nervous symptoms. Other critics claimed that patients merely simulated hypnotic phenomena in order to appease their therapist. A widespread concern was the potential for abuses of hypnosis, either by giving criminal suggestions or in the form of sexual assaults on hypnotized patients. Official inquiries by the Prussian Minister for Religious, Educational and Medical Affairs in 1902 and 1906 indicated that relatively few doctors practised hypnotherapy, whereas the method was increasingly used by lay healers. Although the Ministry found no evidence for serious harm caused by hypnotic treatments, whether performed by doctors or by lay healers, many German doctors seem to have regarded hypnotic suggestion therapy as a problematic method and abstained from using it.
Quantifying the fitness benefit and cost of cefixime resistance inNeisseria gonorrhoeaeto inform prescription policy
Authors: Whittles Lilith K , White Peter J , Didelot Xavier
Published: March 2017

Gonorrhea is one of the most common bacterial sexually transmitted infections in England. Over 41,000 cases were recorded in 2015, more than half of which occurred in men who have sex with men (MSM). As the bacterium has developed resistance to each first-line antibiotic in turn, we need an improved understanding of fitness benefits and costs of antibiotic resistance to inform control policy and planning. Cefixime was recommended as a single dose treatment for gonorrhea from 2005 to 2010, during which time resistance increased and subsequently declined. We developed a stochastic compartmental model representing the natural history and transmission of cefixime sensitive and resistant strains ofNeisseria gonorrhoeaein MSM in England, which was applied to data on diagnoses and prescriptions between 2008 and 2015. We estimated that asymptomatic carriers play a crucial role in overall transmission dynamics, with about 40% of infections remaining asymptomatic and untreated, accounting for 96% of onward transmission. The fitness cost of cefixime resistance in the absence of cefixime usage was estimated to be such that the number of secondary infections caused by resistant strains is only about half as much as for the susceptible strains, which is insufficient to maintain persistence. However, we estimated that treatment of cefixime-resistant strains with cefixime was unsuccessful in 84% of cases, representing a fitness benefit of resistance. This benefit was large enough to counterbalance the fitness cost when 31% of cases are treated with cefixime, and when more than 51% of cases were treated with cefixime the resistant strain had a net fitness advantage over the susceptible strain. Our findings have important implications for antibiotic stewardship and public health policies, and in particular suggest that cefixime could be used to treat a minority of gonorrhea cases without raising resistance levels.
How do specimen preparation and crystal perfection affect structure factor measurements by quantitative convergent-beam electron diffraction?
Authors: Peng Ding , Nakashima Philip N. H.
Published: March 2017

The effectiveness of tripod polishing and crushing as methods of mechanically preparing transmission electron microscopy specimens of hard brittle inorganic crystalline materials is investigatedviathe example of cerium hexaboride (CeB6). It is shown that tripod polishing produces very large electron-transparent regions of very high crystal perfection compared to the more rapid technique of crushing, which produces crystallites with a high density of imperfections and significant mosaicity in the case studied here where the main crystallite facets are not along the natural {001} cleavage planes of CeB6. The role of specimen quality in limiting the accuracy of structure factor measurements by quantitative convergent-beam electron diffraction (QCBED) is investigated. It is found that the bonding component of structure factors refined from CBED patterns obtained from crushed and tripod-polished specimens varies very significantly. It is shown that tripod-polished specimens yield CBED patterns of much greater integrity than crushed specimens and that the mismatch error that remains in QCBED pattern matching of data from tripod-polished specimens is essentially nonsystematic in nature. This stands in contrast to QCBED using crushed specimens and lends much greater confidence to the accuracy and precision of bonding measurements by QCBED from tripod-polished specimens.
Outward direct investment by Chinese state-owned enterprises
Authors: Tavares Lehmann Ana Teresa , Lehmann Frederick
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The paper aims to investigate outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) by Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs), aiming to unveil whether the Chinese OFDI policy acted as a country-specific advantage (CSA) that has been turned by Chinese firms, particularly SOEs, into a firm-specific advantage (FSA).

Design/methodology/approach

Using a data set spanning 18 years (1996-2013) on international mergers and acquisitions (IM&As) by Chinese companies (SOEs and private-owned enterprises – POEs) and drawing on extant literature, the paper systematically compares the behavior of Chinese SOEs and POEs, aiming to identify differences in their behavioral patterns that indicate that SOEs have benefitted more from policy-induced advantages than their private counterparts.

Findings

Among other aspects, significant differences were found regarding the behavior of SOEs vis-à-vis POEs that seem to show that SOEs had greater support from public entities, leading them to close larger deals and purchase more companies/stakes in cash; acquire firms with greater debt (implying higher interest payments); and purchase smaller stakes than POEs (indicating that there are other objectives than control). This lends support to the assumption that Chinese SOEs are “sitting on piles of cash”, and that the availability of capital acted as a CSA that has been transformed into an FSA by the companies involved, notably by SOEs.

Research limitations/implications

The comprehensive and large-scale data set used includes wholly owned SOEs, leaving out of this research partially owned SOEs. The findings of this paper have implications for the discussion on competitive neutrality and for the academic, managerial and public policy debate.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the only study, to date, that shows systematic differences in financing patterns of OFDI (notably via IM&As) by Chinese SOEs and POEs, among other behavioral characteristics of both types of companies when conducting FDI abroad, linking that to CSAs and FSAs induced by CSAs.
The state, employment, and regulation: making work not pay
Authors: Grady Jo
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of specific active labour market policies (ALMP) and increased use of zero hour contracts (ZHCs) in creating an environment in which low-wage jobs flourish. Alongside these, it examines the role of financialization over the last 30 years in fostering the nuturalization of policies that institutionalize low wages and deregulate the economy in favour of big business.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws upon academic literature, official statistics, and analyses via the concept of neoliberalism.

Findings

This paper demonstrates that via a set of interconnected macro and micro factors low pay is set to remain entrenched in the UK. It has demonstrated that this is not the result of some natural response to labour market demands. Far from it, it has argued that these policy choices are neoliberal in motivation and the outcome of establishing low pay and insecure employment is a significant character of the contemporary labour market is deliberate.

Research limitations/implications

This paper encourages a re-think of how the authors address this issue of low pay in the UK by highlighting alternative forms of understanding the causes of low pay.

Practical implications

It presents an alternative analysis of low pay in the UK which allows us to understand and call into question the low-pay economy. In doing so it demonstrates that crucial to this understanding is state regulation.

Social implications

This paper allows for a more nuanced understanding of the economic conditions of the inequality caused by low pay, and provides an argument as to alternative ways in which this can be addressed.

Originality/value

The paper examines the relationship between the rise of neoliberalism and finance capital, the subsequent emergence of the neoliberal organization, the associated proliferation of ALMP and ZHCs, and the impact of these on creating a low-wage economy. It makes the argument that the UK’s low-wage economy is the result of regulatory choices influenced by a political preference for financialization, even if such choices are presented as not being so. Thus, the contribution of this paper is that it brings together distinct and important contemporary issues for scholars of employee relations, but connects them to the role of the state and neoliberal regulation.
Thailand’s dual education system: a way forward
Authors: Mongkhonvanit Jomphong
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the status, values, and attributes of dual education. It investigates key elements of the dual education system in four selected countries while examining and recommending dynamics and roles for governmental policy, technical and vocational institutes, and employers in developing a dual education system in Thailand to generate a competitive workforce. The tripartite system of technical and vocational institutes, employers, and government in Thailand’s dual education is central to this study.

Design/methodology/approach

This study employs a documentary study, a survey, in-depth interviews, and responses from a focus group from technical and vocational institutes, employers, and the government.

Findings

This study found growing interest among technical and vocational institutes, employers, parents, and students in dual education. Within the tripartite system framework, the nine essential factors to improve the capacity of Thailand’s dual education system are: the technical and vocational institutes, curriculum, in-school teachers, accredited qualification, students, employers, in-company trainers, government policy, and government and related agencies. The government, companies, and technical and vocational institutes must collaborate for mutual trust and benefit while ensuring the quality of dual education programs.

Originality/value

This study is the first to examine the status and development of dual education in Thailand through the collaboration of key players. This study reflects the challenges of a major developing country in developing a dual education system, which other countries might face.
Moderating role of personal values on managers’ intention to adopt Green IS
Authors: Dalvi-Esfahani Mohammad , Ramayah T. , Rahman Azizah Abdul
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating role of the personal values on the antecedents of managers’ intention to adopt Green information system (Green IS) utilising the norm activation theory and the Schwartz’s values system.

Design/methodology/approach

To examine the effects of the identified factors on the behavioural intention, the survey method was employed. The questionnaire was distributed targeting decision makers of companies in three industries – oil/gas/energy, transportation and manufacturing and construction. With 146 valid questionnaires in hand, the collected data were analysed using the partial least squares structural equation modelling technique.

Findings

The results revealed that moral obligation (personal norm) of managers influenced their intention to adopt Green IS. While the awareness of consequences and ascription of responsibility are influencing the intention, but the analyses revealed that they are mediated by the personal norm. The moderating role of personal values was further analysed and the results showed that the managers with more orientation towards self-transcendence values have higher intention to adopt Green IS.

Originality/value

This study serves as a call to the IS literature to incorporate values, beliefs, and norms into their model of individual-level decision making towards contemporary innovation adoption. By enriching the understanding of the influence of values and attitudinal factors on the decision-making process, the research model sheds light on how managers intend to diffuse IS initiatives in their organisations for the purpose of environmental sustainability.
Segmentation and explanation of smartphone use for travel planning based on socio-demographic and behavioral variables
Authors: Vallespín María , Molinillo Sebastian , Muñoz-Leiva Francisco
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Due to the advances in smartphones, many companies in the tourism industry have launched mobile applications intended to reach their target audience. Design of these smartphone strategies requires identification of the profiles of individuals that use tourism services. The purpose of this paper is to explore the predictors of smartphone use for travel planning.

Design/methodology/approach

To achieve this goal, the authors carried out a hierarchical segmentation analysis selecting a group of different socio-demographic (gender, age, education level, marital status, occupation, and income) and behavioral (length of smartphone use and number of yearly leisure trips) variables to explain the use of these devices to search and book tourism products. The study is based on an online survey of 618 Spanish travelers.

Findings

Smartphone use for tourism can be primarily explained according to the users’ degree of daily experience of mobile phone internet use. That is, a spillover effect can be identified from the context of everyday mobile phone use to travel planning. Age, gender and the number of yearly vacations can also be distinguished, to a certain degree, through the use of smartphones. Specifically, there is an inverted U-shape quadratic relationship between the variable of age and the behavior of a potential tourist.

Originality/value

The authors conducted a segmentation study selecting a series of different socio-demographic and behavioral variables with the greatest discriminant power to explain the use of these mobile devices for travel planning. The paper concludes with compelling implications for management.
Word-of-mouth generation and brand communication strategy
Authors: Andrei Andreia Gabriela , Zait Adriana , Vătămănescu Elena-Mădălina , Pînzaru Florina
Published: March 2017

Purpose

Emerged from a theoretical contradiction, the purpose of this paper is to investigate whether perceptions and behaviors toward new brands depend on the priority assigned to promote the company’s intentions (warmth) vs its abilities (competence).

Design/methodology/approach

The research uses a two-level single factor experiment to test the effects of launch communication strategy (warmth-competence vs competence-warmth) on people’s perceptions and behavioral intents, and applies partial least squares structural equation modeling to explore the collected data.

Findings

Results offer valuable insights into the usage of communication strategy with a view to favor brand perception, referrals, and sales, laying stress on the underlying mechanisms. Research finds that warmth-competence communication strategy has a higher positive influence on brand perception than the reversed strategy. Revealing people’s proneness to promote the new companies perceived as warm and competent, results indicate that perception of warmth mediates word-of-mouth propensity.

Research limitations/implications

The present study brings novel insights for corporate communication, showing that people’s propensity to advocate on behalf of new brands is driven by the perception of company’s warmth. Explaining connections between communication strategy, brand perception, and WOM propensity (supportive or denigrating), the current study adds contributions to the previous findings on warmth and competence stereotypes applied to consumer-brand interactions.

Practical implications

From a managerial perspective, findings offer practical hints about how to use launch communication to improve brand perception and consumer supportive behaviors.

Originality/value

The present study brings novel insights for corporate communication, showing that people’s propensity to advocate on behalf of new brands is driven by the perception of company’s warmth. Explaining connections between communication strategy, brand perception, and word-of-mouth propensity, the current study adds contributions to the previous findings on warmth and competence stereotypes applied to consumer-brand interactions.
Mobile applications in tourism: the future of the tourism industry?
Authors: Tan Garry Wei-Han , Lee Voon Hsien , Lin Binshan , Ooi Keng-Boon
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to extend the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology with psychological constructs, namely, perceived playfulness, mobile innovativeness in information technology and perceived expressiveness (PEX) to examine on the consumers’ intention to adopt mobile applications (m-apps) as another mean in purchasing tourism-related product and services via their mobile devices. The study also included gender as moderating variable.

Design/methodology/approach

Partial least square-structural equation modeling approach was adopted to test the research framework using 474 valid respondents.

Findings

The results demonstrated that only performance expectancy and PEX are non-significant with the intention to adopt. In addition, gender was found to have a moderating effect between social influence and intention.

Practical implications

The study has several useful implications for researchers, m-apps developers, travel-related organizations and even government agencies when rendering m-apps services and disseminating information to their potential consumers.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the growing literature on m-apps in tourism from a developing country’s perspectives.
Macroprudential measures in the housing markets – a note on the empirical literature
Authors: Eerola Essi
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The global financial crisis has led to increased attention on the relationship of household indebtedness and systemic risks. As a result, macroprudential measures aimed at reducing the risks have been introduced in many countries. The purpose of this paper is to review the recent empirical literature on the measures targeted at households in the housing markets.

Design/methodology/approach

This note reviews and discusses the recent empirical literature on macroprudential measures targeted at households in the housing market as well as housing-related tax policy measures.

Findings

To date, the literature mostly consists of cross-country studies using aggregate data and looking at a large set of different measures. The studies typically report associations between the measures and the outcome variables of interest (often credit growth and house price appreciation), but do not assess the causal effects of the different measures or the underlying mechanisms.

Originality/value

Exploiting household data together with policy reforms should be a useful step forward in understanding the effects of the measures and uncovering the mechanisms through which they operate. This would also allow studying the distributional effects of the measures. Understanding the distributional effects is important in its own right, but it is also required because the ultimate goals of the macroprudential policies are related not only to the aggregate level of credit but also to the distribution of leverage.
Gaps in performance: benchmarking of the Czech and Slovak city libraries
Authors: Vrabková Iveta , Friedrich Václav
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify gaps in performance of city libraries from the Czech and from the Slovak Republic engaged in the project Benchmarking of Libraries. The subject of research consists of input and output performance variables of selected 51 city libraries for the period of 2011-2015 and their mutual dependence and influence.

Design/methodology/approach

To analyse relationships among ten input and four output variables, the correlation and regression analyses were used. Regression analysis was focussed on four output variables – numbers of physical visitors of libraries, numbers of loans, numbers of visitors using the internet in the library, and numbers of registered readers. Interpretation of results was supplemented with classification multidimensional analysis Chi-square automatic interaction detection.

Findings

Findings reveal that besides others the significant gap in performance was represented by library additions, which means the renewal of library collections. Performance differences were also found between city libraries in the Czech Republic and those in the Slovak Republic.

Research limitations/implications

This paper evaluates gaps in the performance on representative sample of city libraries. The number of population served among individual selected 51 libraries ranges between 15 and 35 thousand inhabitants. Analysed data are from years 2011-2015.

Originality/value

The paper analyses, by using statistical methods, data that are generated within the benchmarking project. This methodology proves and reveals causalities among performance indicators of city libraries in an unconventional way.
“YouthTalk”: positively engaging young people in Edinburgh
Authors: Kilmurry Evelyn
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe the multi-agency approach adopted in Liberton/Gilmerton, Edinburgh in Scotland to positively involve young people in shaping local service provision and to tackle rising anti-social behaviour. The approach and methodology of the engagement process used is described in detail in order to enable other authorities and services to learn from established practice.

Design/methodology/approach

The approach was developed over two years and saw the expression of over 1,500 young people’s views, which influenced 40 local statutory and voluntary services to deliver on over 70 pledges locally to improve service provision in direct response to expressed need.

Findings

The paper summarises the positive outcomes delivered as a result of the work which has transformed the way that partners plan, design and deliver their services locally, and has resulted in many significant outcomes including a 17 per cent drop in youth crime, young people opening their own Youth Cafe, and launching their annual YouthTalk Awards Event. The initiative has been held up by the HMIe as a model of best practice, and is being replicated across the city through other library locations as a successful way to engage young people in improving the quality of life in their communities.

Practical implications

The paper includes implications for the development of library and other services to work in an integrated way to positively engage with young people in order for them to be included in decision-making processes.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the studies on best practice in working positively with young people.
Public library planning: a routine practice?
Authors: Pacios Ana R.
Published: March 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study whether organisations, in this case libraries, continue to plan after having done so at least once, and whether they conduct planning on a routine basis.

Design/methodology/approach

The websites of 71 libraries, that in 2006 had a strategic or long-term plan, were analysed to determine whether in 2016 they had a new plan in place. Where there was none or where the name of the plan had changed, e-mails were sent to the head librarian to ascertain the reasons.

Findings

A total of 71.83 per cent of the libraries in the sample had a new plan underway in October 2016, i.e., ten years later. A significant rise (+8.03 per cent) in the number of three-year plans was observed relative to 2006, perhaps because the crisis and resulting uncertainty have induced libraries to narrow their decision-making windows. A preference for the term “strategic plan”: over “long-range plan” was also detected in 2016.

Originality/value

The study provides empirical evidence of the existence of routine planning. The continuity of plans in a series of libraries shows that in practice planning is a systematic, continuous and iterative activity, as contended in planning theory.
In the presence of specialist root and shoot herbivory, invasive‐range Brassica nigra populations have stronger competitive effects than native‐range populations
Authors: Oduor Ayub M. O. , van Kleunen Mark , Stift Marc
Published: March 2017

The evolution of increased competitive ability (EICA) hypothesis predicts that release from specialist herbivores enables invasive plants to evolve increased growth. The most powerful tests of EICA hypothesis are provided by approaches that simultaneously assess the effects of specialist herbivory and competitive interactions. However, such approaches are extremely rare, and hence how simultaneous release from root and shoot herbivory influence competitive ability of invasive plants remains little understood.

Here, we tested whether invasive‐range Brassica nigra plants have evolved increased competitive ability, and whether expression of competitive ability depends on separate and simultaneous effects of specialist root and shoot herbivory. To do this, we grew B. nigra plants from eight invasive‐range and eight native‐range populations in the presence vs. absence of competition with a community of native plant species, and in the absence vs. presence of separate and simultaneous damage by a specialist root herbivore (Delia radicum) and a specialist shoot herbivore (Plutella xylostella). Brassica nigra performance was assessed by measuring biomass production and flowering of individual B. nigra plants.

In partial support of the EICA hypothesis, invasive‐range B. nigra had greater flowering than native‐range conspecifics in the absence of competition. However, contrary to a prediction of the EICA hypothesis, invasive‐range B. nigra produced less above‐ground biomass than native‐range B. nigra in the absence of shoot herbivory and competition. Moreover, with simultaneous root and shoot herbivory, invasive‐range B. nigra suppressed a competing community more strongly than native‐range B. nigra did.

Synthesis. Our results suggest that invasiveness may be driven by mechanisms other than increased individual size. Simultaneous root and shoot herbivory in the invasive range may enhance suppressive effects of introduced plant species that have not completely escaped herbivore damage in the introduced range.
Perceptions of sleep duration, patterns and emotional and behavioural difficulties: a study of Greek adolescents
Authors: Poulou Maria S. , Cooper Paul
Published: March 2017

The study investigated adolescent students’ perceptions of sleep duration and patterns, and the way they relate to emotional and behavioural difficulties. Five hundred and two students from public schools in Greece completed the Sleep Questionnaire and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). It was demonstrated that consistency in sleep duration and quality in sleep patterns were associated with a reduction in adolescents’ reports of emotional and behavioural difficulties. Sleep duration was similarly distributed across gender, while sleep patterns were gender‐specific. Distinct differential effects of gender, sleep duration and patterns to adolescents’ emotional and behavioural difficulties were also found. These findings and their implications for research and practice are discussed, within the scope of the biopsychosocial framework in education.
Positive symptoms associate with cortical thinning in the superior temporal gyrus via the ENIGMA Schizophrenia consortium
Authors: Walton E. , Hibar D. P. , van Erp T. G. M. , Potkin S. G. , Roiz‐Santiañez R. , Crespo‐Facorro B. , Suarez‐Pinilla P. , Van Haren N. E. M. , de Zwarte S. M. C. , Kahn R. S. , Cahn W. , Doan N. T. , Jørgensen K. N. , Gurholt T. P. , Agartz I. , Andreassen O. A. , Westlye L. T. , Melle I. , Berg A. O. , Mørch‐Johnsen L. , Færden A. , Flyckt L. , Fatouros‐Bergman H. ,   Karolinska Schizophrenia Project Consortium (KaSP), Jönsson E. G. , Hashimoto R. , Yamamori H. , Fukunaga M. , Preda A. , De Rossi P. , Piras F. , Banaj N. , Ciullo V. , Spalletta G. , Gur R. E. , Gur R. C. , Wolf D. H , Satterthwaite T. D. , Beard L. M. , Sommer I. E. , Koops S. , Gruber O. , Richter A. , Krämer B. , Kelly S. , Donohoe G. , McDonald C. , Cannon D. M. , Corvin A. , Gill M. , Di Giorgio A. , Bertolino A. , Lawrie S. , Nickson T. , Whalley H. C. , Neilson E. , Calhoun V. D. , Thompson P. M. , Turner J. A. , Ehrlich S.
Published: March 2017

Objective

Based on the role of the superior temporal gyrus (STG) in auditory processing, language comprehension and self‐monitoring, this study aimed to investigate the relationship betweenSTGcortical thickness and positive symptom severity in schizophrenia.

Method

This prospective meta‐analysis includes data from 1987 individuals with schizophrenia collected at seventeen centres around the world that contribute to theENIGMASchizophrenia Working Group.STGthickness measures were extracted from T1‐weighted brain scans using FreeSurfer. The study performed a meta‐analysis of effect sizes across sites generated by a model predicting left or rightSTGthickness with a positive symptom severity score (harmonizedSAPSorPANSS‐positive scores), while controlling for age, sex and site. Secondary models investigated relationships between antipsychotic medication, duration of illness, overall illness severity, handedness andSTGthickness.

Results

Positive symptom severity was negatively related toSTGthickness in both hemispheres (left: βstd= −0.052;P= 0.021; right: βstd= −0.073;P= 0.001) when statistically controlling for age, sex and site. This effect remained stable in models including duration of illness, antipsychotic medication or handedness.

Conclusion

Our findings further underline the important role of theSTGin hallmark symptoms in schizophrenia. These findings can assist in advancing insight into symptom‐relevant pathophysiological mechanisms in schizophrenia.