bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Correlation Between Corneal Nerve Density and Symptoms of Small Fiber Neuropathy in Patients With Fibromyalgia: The Confounding Role of Severe Anxiety or Depression
Authors: Ramírez Manuel , Guerra-Juárez Arturo , Miyake Daniel-Yoshiro , Sebastian-Arellano Christian , Estrada-Mata Aranza-Guadalupe , González-Moyotl Nadia-Janet , Rodríguez-Aguayo Allan-Miguel , Martínez-Lavin Manuel , Martínez-Martínez Laura-Aline
Published: October 2020

Objective

A consistent line of investigation proposes fibromyalgia as a dysautonomia-associated neuropathic pain syndrome. Comorbid anxiety or depression amplifies fibromyalgia symptoms. The recent recognition of small fiber neuropathy in fibromyalgia patients supports the neuropathic nature of the illness. Corneal confocal microscopy accurately identifies small nerve fiber pathology. The newly developed Small-Fiber Symptom Survey captures the spectrum of small fiber neuropathy symptoms. We aimed to correlate corneal nerve density with different fibromyalgia disease severity questionnaires including the Small-Fiber Symptom Survey. We defined the possible confounding role of comorbid anxiety or depression severity in the clinical-pathological association.

Methods

This is a case series of 28 women with fibromyalgia. A single ophthalmologist quantified corneal subbasal plexus nerve density. Corneal innervation was correlated (Spearman ρ) with the following clinical questionnaires scores: Small-Fiber Symptom Survey, Revised Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire, and COMPASS-31 (Composite Autonomic Symptom Survey 31-Item Score). Validated inquiry forms assessed the comorbid anxiety and/or depression severity.

Results

There were no clinical-pathological correlations in the group as a whole. In the subgroup of fibromyalgia women without severe anxiety or depression (n = 13), there was a strong negative correlation between corneal nerve density with the Small-Fiber Symptom Survey score (ρ = −0.771, p = 0.002) and COMPASS-31 score (ρ = −0.648, p = 0.017). Patients with profound anxiety or depression (n = 15) had more intense symptoms but had not clinical-pathological correlations.

Conclusions

Small fiber neuropathy and dysautonomia symptoms correlate with corneal denervation in women with fibromyalgia without severe anxiety or depression. This clinical-pathological association reinforces fibromyalgia as a dysautonomia-related neuropathic pain syndrome. Severe anxiety or depression distorts fibromyalgia symptoms.

Practical point

Corneal confocal microscopy may become a useful procedure to study fibromyalgia patients.
The effects of adding long-acting injectable antipsychotic drugs to clozapine on relapse and hospitalization in patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia: a mirror-image retrospective study
Authors: Caliskan Ali Metehan , Karaaslan Munir , Inanli Ikbal , Caliskan Sila , Arslan Mehmet , Esra Cicek Ismet , Eren Ibrahim
Published: October 2020

The literature assessing the addition of long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAIs) to clozapine is limited. The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the safety and effectiveness of adding LAIs to clozapine in patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS). Patients aged 18–65 years with TRS, who were treated with first-generation (FGA-LAIs) and second-generation (SGA-LAIs) for at least 1 year after clozapine use, were included retrospectively by registration system scanning. Effectiveness measures included relapses and hospitalizations and days of hospitalization. Safety outcomes included levels of neutrophils, fasting blood sugar, total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and prolactin. The data of 29 patients who met the study criteria were evaluated. The numbers and days of hospitalizations and the numbers of relapses significantly decreased after LAI addition. Comparisons of the neutrophil counts and the total cholesterol, triglyceride, HDL, LDL, prolactin, and fasting blood glucose levels as safety indicators of the clozapine and LAI combination revealed no statistically significant change in these values before and after LAI addition. Adding LAIs to clozapine is apparently well tolerated in patients with TRS and may have a positive effect on the course of the disease.
Inertial confinement fusion: a defence context
Authors: Randewich Andrew , Lock Rob , Garbett Warren , Bethencourt-Smith Dominic
Published: October 2020

Almost 30 years since the last UK nuclear test, it remains necessary regularly to underwrite the safety and effectiveness of the National Nuclear Deterrent. To do so has been possible to date because of the development of continually improving science and engineering tools running on ever more powerful high-performance computing platforms, underpinned by cutting-edge experimental facilities. While some of these facilities, such as the Orion laser, are based in the UK, others are accessed by international collaboration. This is most notably with the USA via capabilities such as the National Ignition Facility, but also with France where a joint hydrodynamics facility is nearing completion following establishment of a Treaty in 2010. Despite the remarkable capability of the science and engineering tools, there is an increasing requirement for experiments as materials age and systems inevitably evolve further from what was specifically trialled at underground nuclear tests (UGTs). The data from UGTs will remain the best possible representation of the extreme conditions generated in a nuclear explosion, but it is essential to supplement these data by realizing new capabilities that will bring us closer to achieving laboratory simulations of these conditions. For high-energy-density physics, the most promising technique for generating temperatures and densities of interest is inertial confinement fusion (ICF). Continued research in ICF by the UK will support the certification of the deterrent for decades to come; hence the UK works closely with the international community to develop ICF science. UK Ministry of Defence © Crown Owned Copyright 2020/AWE.

This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Prospects for high gain inertial fusion energy (part 1)'.
The importance of the laser pulse-ablator interaction dynamics prior to the ablation plasma phase in inertial confinement fusion studies
Authors: Kaselouris E. , Fitilis I. , Skoulakis A. , Orphanos Y. , Koundourakis G. , Clark E. L. , Chatzakis J. , Bakarezos Μ. , Papadogiannis N. A. , Dimitriou V. , Tatarakis M.
Published: October 2020

This work presents studies which demonstrate the importance of the very early heating dynamics of the ablator long before the ablation plasma phase begins in laser driven inertial confinement fusion (ICF) studies. For the direct-drive fusion concept using lasers, the development of perturbations during the thermo-elasto-plastic (TEP) and melting phases of the interaction of the laser pulse with the ablator's surface may act as seeding to the subsequent growth of hydro-dynamic instabilities apparent during the acceleration phase of the interaction such as for instance the Rayleigh–Taylor and the Richtmyer–Meshkov, which strongly affect the implosion dynamics of the compression phase. The multiphysics-multiphase finite-element method (FEM) simulation results are experimentally validated by advanced three-dimensional whole-field dynamic imaging of the surface of the ablator allowing for a transverse to the surface spatial resolution of only approximately 1 nm. The study shows that the TEP and melting phases of the interaction are of crucial importance since transverse perturbations of the ablator's surface can reach tens of nanometres in amplitude within the TEP and melting phases. Such perturbations are of Rayleigh type and are transferred from the ablator to the substrate from the very first moments of the interaction.

This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Prospects for high gain inertial fusion energy (part 1)’.
Reflectivity and spectral shift from laser plasmas generated by high-contrast, high-intensity KrF laser pulses
Authors: Kovács Zs. , Bali K. , Gilicze B. , Szatmári S. , Földes I. B.
Published: October 2020

The energy and spectrum of the reflected 248 nm radiation are studied from solid targets up to 1.15 × 10
18
 W cm
−2
intensity. The experiments used the 700 fs directly amplified pulses of the KrF system which was cleaned from prepulses with the new Fourier-filtering method providing 12 orders of magnitude temporal contrast. Increasing the intensity from 10
15
 W cm
−2
results in increasing absorption up to more than 90% above 10
18
 W cm
−2
. This is accompanied by increasing x-ray conversion exhibiting a less steep power law dependence for low-Z matter than for gold. Strong blue shift of the reflected radiation from the backward propagating plasma was observed. It is shown that in the case of KrF laser pulses of highest contrast, vacuum heating can be one of the dominant absorption mechanisms.

This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Prospects for high gain inertial fusion energy (part 1)’.
Viral gastroenteritis in Tocantins, Brazil: characterizing the diversity of human adenovirus F through next-generation sequencing and bioinformatics
Authors: Tahmasebi Roozbeh , Luchs Adriana , Tardy Kaelan , Hefford Philip Michael , Tinker Rory J. , Eilami Owrang , de Padua Milagres Flavio Augusto , Brustulin Rafael , Teles Maria da Aparecida Rodrigues , dos Santos Morais Vanessa , Moreira Carlos Henrique Valente , Buccheri Renata , Araújo Emerson Luiz Lima , Villanova Fabiola , Deng Xutao , Sabino Ester Cerdeira , Delwart Eric , Leal Élcio , Charlys da Costa Antonio
Published: October 2020

Human enteric adenovirus species F (HAdV-F) is one of the most common pathogens responsible for acute gastroenteritis worldwide. Brazil is a country with continental dimensions where continuous multiregional surveillance is vital to establish a more complete picture of the epidemiology of HAdV-F. The aim of the current study was to investigate the molecular epidemiology of HAdV-F using full-genome data in rural and low-income urban areas in northern Brazil. This will allow a genetic comparison between Brazilian and global HAdV-F strains. The frequency of HAdV-F infections in patients with gastroenteritis and molecular typing of positive samples within this period was also analysed. A total of 251 stool samples collected between 2010 and 2016 from patients with acute gastroenteritis were screened for HAdV-F using next-generation sequencing techniques. HAdV-F infection was detected in 57.8 % (145/251) of samples. A total of 137 positive samples belonged to HAdV-F41 and 7 to HAdV-F40. HAdV-F40/41 dual infection was found in one sample. Detection rates did not vary significantly according to the year. Single HAdV-F infections were detected in 21.9 % (55/251) of samples and mixed infections in 37.4 % (94/251), with RVA/HAdV-F being the most frequent association (21.5 %; 54/251). Genetic analysis indicated that the HAdV-F strains circulating in Brazil were closely related to worldwide strains, and the existence of some temporal order was not observed. This is the first large-scale HAdV-F study in Brazil in which whole-genome data and DNA sequence analyses were used to characterize HAdV-F strains. Expanding the viral genome database could improve overall genotyping success and assist the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)/GenBank in standardizing the HAdV genome records by providing a large set of annotated HAdV-F genomes.
Evaluating the impact of curfews and other measures on SARS-CoV-2 transmission in French Guiana
Authors: Andronico Alessio , Kiem Cécile Tran , Paireau Juliette , Succo Tiphanie , Bosetti Paolo , Lefrancq Noémie , Nacher Mathieu , Djossou Félix , Sanna Alice , Flamand Claude , Salje Henrik , Rousseau Cyril , Cauchemez Simon
Published: October 2020

While general lockdowns have proven effective to control SARS-CoV-2 epidemics, they come with enormous costs for society. It is therefore essential to identify control strategies with lower social and economic impact. Here, we report and evaluate the control strategy implemented during a large SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in June-July 2020 in French Guiana that relied on curfews, targeted lockdowns and other measures. We find that the combination of these interventions reduced the basic reproduction number of SARS-CoV-2 from 1.7 to 1.1, which was sufficient to avoid saturation of hospitals. We estimate that thanks to the young demographics across the territory, the risk of hospitalisation following infection was 0.3 times that of metropolitan France and that about 20% of the population was infected by July. Our model projections are consistent with a recent seroprevalence study. The study showcases how mathematical modeling can be used to support healthcare planning and decision making in a context of high uncertainty.
Level of Knowledge in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Canadian Medical Students
Authors: Niburski Kacper , Vaughan Rachel , Papazova Elitsa , Todd Keith J.
Published: October 2020

Background

During health crises medical education is often derailed as was the case during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Medical trainees face the daunting task of having to gather, filter and synthesize new information about the evolving situation often without the standardized resources they are used to.

Methods

We surveyed Canadian medical students, in the hardest hit province of Quebec, on how they were acquiring knowledge as well as what they knew of the pandemic. Google Forms was used, with the survey being distributed to each medical school in Quebec (McGill, ULaval, Udem) both through email and through social media pages for each class year. Two analyses, Mann-Whitney and ANOVA tests, were performed for year of study and degree obtained.

Results

We received responses from 111 medical students from three universities, which represents 5% of the students invited to complete the survey. Students reported using mass media most frequently (83%) and also had a high rate of use of social media (to gather information about the pandemic. They rated these resources low in terms of their trustworthiness despite the high rates of use (average 2.91 and 2.03 of 5 respectively). Medical students also endorsed using more formal resources like public health information, scientific journals and faculty-provided information that they trusted more, however, they accessed these resources at lower rates. Of note, medical students had correct answered 60% of COVID-19 prevention strategies, 73% clinical correct answers, 90% epidemiological correct answers. Additionally, students who were training in the larger city of Montreal, where the worst of the outbreak was focused, tended to significantly perform better (p<0.0001) than their colleagues who were not located there.

Conclusion

These finding indicate a wide use of information resources intended for public consumption rather than more rigorous and trustworthy sources. Furthermore, there seems to be a knowledge gap amongst medical students responding to this survey that suggests an opportunity to improve the delivery of educational content during this rapidly evolving pandemic.
Efficacy of information transmission in cellular communication
Authors: Sarkar Sumantra , Choubey Sandeep
Published: October 2020

Inter and intra-cellular signaling are essential for individual cells to execute various physiological tasks and accurately respond to changes in their environment. Signaling is carried out via diffusible molecules, the transport of which is often aided by active processes that provide directional advection. How diffusion and advection together impact the accuracy of information transmission during cell signaling remains less studied. To this end, we study a one-dimensional model of cell signaling and compute the mutual information (MI) as a measure of information transmission. We find that the efficacy of the information transmission improves with advection only when the system parameters result in Peclet number greater than one. Intriguingly, MI exhibits nontrivial scaling with the Peclet number, characterized by three distinct regimes. We demonstrate that the observed dependence of MI on the transport properties of signaling molecules has important consequences on cellular communication.
Data science and its relationship to library and information science: a content analysis
Authors: Virkus Sirje , Garoufallou Emmanouel
Published: October 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a study exploring the emerging field of data science from the library and information science (LIS) perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

Content analysis of research publications on data science was made of papers published in the Web of Science database to identify the main themes discussed in the publications from the LIS perspective.

Findings

A content analysis of 80 publications is presented. The articles belonged to the six broad categories: data science education and training; knowledge and skills of the data professional; the role of libraries and librarians in the data science movement; tools, techniques and applications of data science; data science from the knowledge management perspective; and data science from the perspective of health sciences. The category of tools, techniques and applications of data science was most addressed by the authors, followed by data science from the perspective of health sciences, data science education and training and knowledge and skills of the data professional. However, several publications fell into several categories because these topics were closely related.

Research limitations/implications

Only publication recorded in the Web of Science database and with the term “data science” in the topic area were analyzed. Therefore, several relevant studies are not discussed in this paper that either were related to other keywords such as “e-science”, “e-research”, “data service”, “data curation”, “research data management” or “scientific data management” or were not present in the Web of Science database.

Originality/value

The paper provides the first exploration by content analysis of the field of data science from the perspective of the LIS.
Study of error compensations and sensitivity analysis for 6-Dof serial robot
Authors: Luo Xi , Zhang Yingjie , Zhang Lin
Published: October 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to improve the positioning accuracy of 6-Dof serial robot by the way of error compensation and sensitivity analysis.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, the Denavit–Hartenberg matrix is used to construct the kinematics models of the robot; the effects from individual joint and several joints on the end effector are estimated by simulation. Then, an error model based on joint clearance is proposed so that the positioning accuracy at any position of joints can be predicted for compensation. Through the simulation of the curve path, the validity of the error compensation model is verified. Finally, the experimental results show that the error compensation method can improve the positioning accuracy of a two joint exoskeleton robot by nearly 76.46%.

Findings

Through the analysis of joint error sensitivity, it is found that the first three joints, especially joint 2, contribute a lot to the positioning accuracy of the robot, which provides guidance for the accuracy allocation of the robot. In addition, this paper creatively puts forward the error model based on joint clearance, and the error compensation method which decouples the positioning accuracy into joint errors.

Originality/value

It provides a new idea for error modeling and error compensation of 6-Dof serial robot. Combining sensitivity analysis results with error compensation can effectively improve the positioning accuracy of the robot, and provide convenience for welding robot and other robots that need high positioning accuracy.
Service gifts, collective social connection and reciprocity
Authors: Tang Yihui (Elina) , Hinsch Christian , Lund Donald J. , Kharouf Husni
Published: October 2020

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the process of service gifting (i.e. unexpected upgrades or benefits) and examine why service gifts do not always result in firm-beneficial reciprocal behaviors from consumers.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a series of three studies including both scenario-based and game-theory-based experiments, this research proposes and empirically validates a conceptual model that examines the effect of service gifts on firm-beneficial reciprocal behaviors, and the role of collective social connection and norm of positive reciprocity (NPR) in this process.

Findings

The findings of this research show that the consumer’s feelings of collective social connection mediate the link between the provision of service gifts and firm-beneficial outcomes. Furthermore, an individual’s adherence to NPR moderates this process. Specifically, individuals with a strong adherence to NPR do not display increases in collective social connection following the receipt of a service gift. Those who are low in NPR follow the expected pattern of increased collective social connection leading to reciprocation.

Research limitations/implications

Future research may further generalize the model to other situations such as high vs low context cultures. Longitudinal field experiments can be used to further investigate collective versus relational social connection, which can be either a by-product or a primary benefit derived from service delivery.

Practical implications

The results of this research reveal the critical role of collective social connection which has been largely ignored in service gifting research. It encourages managers to use service gifting to directly boost consumers collective social connection. Furthermore, it offers managers insight into why service gifts do not always result in firm-beneficial outcomes because of the moderating role of NPR.

Originality/value

The roles of social connection and the norm of reciprocity have been under-studied in both theoretical and empirical work on service gifting. This paper demonstrates that, contrary to traditional thought, those typically expected to reciprocate the most (i.e. high in NPR) may not realize increased collective social connection leading to reciprocation following receipt of a service gift.
Parallel discontinuous Galerkin finite element method for computing hyperbolic conservation law on unstructured meshes
Authors: Duan Zhijian , Xie Gongnan
Published: October 2020

Purpose

The discontinuous Galerkin finite element method (DGFEM) is very suited for realizing high order resolution approximations on unstructured grids for calculating the hyperbolic conservation law. However, it requires a significant amount of computing resources. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate how to solve the Euler equations in parallel systems and improve the parallel performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Discontinuous Galerkin discretization is used for the compressible inviscid Euler equations. The multi-level domain decomposition strategy was used to deal with the computational grids and ensure the calculation load balancing. The total variation diminishing (TVD) Runge–Kutta (RK) scheme coupled with the multigrid strategy was employed to further improve parallel efficiency. Moreover, the Newton Block Gauss–Seidel (GS) method was adopted to accelerate convergence and improve the iteration efficiency.

Findings

Numerical experiments were implemented for the compressible inviscid flow problems around NACA0012 airfoil, over M6 wing and DLR-F6 configuration. The parallel acceleration is near to a linear convergence. The results indicate that the present parallel algorithm can reduce computational time significantly and allocate memory reasonably, which has high parallel efficiency and speedup, and it is well-suited to large-scale scientific computational problems on multiple instruction stream multiple data stream model.

Originality/value

The parallel DGFEM coupled with TVD RK and the Newton Block GS methods was presented for hyperbolic conservation law on unstructured meshes.
Adaptive estimation of UVs navigation parameters by irregular inertial-satellite measurements
Authors: Sokolov Sergey V. , Novikov Arthur I.
Published: October 2020

Purpose

There are shortcomings of modern methods of ensuring the stability of Kalman filtration in unmanned vehicles’ (UVs) navigation systems under the condition of a priori uncertainty of the dispersion matrix of measurement interference. First, it is the absence of strict criteria for the selection of adaptation coefficients in the calculation of the a posteriori covariance matrix. Secondly, it is the impossibility of adaptive estimation in real time from the condition of minimum covariance of the updating sequence due to the necessity of its preliminary calculation.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper considers a new approach to the construction of the Kalman filter adaptation algorithm. The algorithm implements the possibility of obtaining an accurate adaptive estimation of navigation parameters for integrated UVs inertial-satellite navigation systems, using the correction of non-periodic and unstable inertial estimates by high-precision satellite measurements. The problem of adaptive estimation of the noise dispersion matrix of the meter in the Kalman filter can be solved analytically using matrix methods of linear algebra. A numerical example illustrates the effectiveness of the procedure for estimating the state vector of the UVs’ navigation systems.

Findings

Adaptive estimation errors are sharply reduced in comparison with the traditional scheme to the range from 2 to 7 m in latitude and from 1.5 to 4 m in longitude.

Originality/value

The simplicity and accuracy of the proposed algorithm provide the possibility of its effective application to the widest class of UVs’ navigation systems.
Influence of contact form on mechanical wear characteristics of single diamond scratching on Ta12W
Authors: Wu Haiyong , Huang Hui
Published: October 2020

Purpose

Mechanical wear is the main wear form of abrasive single crystal diamond (SCD) grit. The mechanical wear of SCD grit has a significant influence on the tool life and machining quality. This paper aims to investigate the influence of grit–workpiece contact form on the mechanical wear characteristics of SCD grit.

Design/methodology/approach

Three different grit–workpiece contact forms, which involved point/line/face contact forms, are investigated to reveal the wear mechanism of SCD grit scratching on Ta12W. The wear morphology, wear volume and scratching forces are measured, and the stress models of different contact forms are analyzed.

Findings

The results show that mechanical wear mainly occurs in the grit–workpiece contact area and increases gradually from contact area to entire SCD grit. The scratching forces vary with the mechanical wear progress of SCD grits. The SCD grit with point contact form is the most prone to produce wear. The SCD grit with face contact form can remove more material volume than the other two SCD grits, and it is the most wear resistant. The stress state is closely related with the mechanical wear of SCD grit. The contact form has a significant influence on the mechanical wear of SCD grit.

Originality/value

The results of this study can provide a theoretical basis for the fabrication of abrasive tools.
An adjustable oil film thickness test rig for detecting lubrication characteristics of slipper/swash-pair in piston pumps
Authors: Wang Haiji , Shi Guanglin
Published: October 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose an adjustable oil film thickness test rig for detecting lubrication characteristics of the slipper. The mathematical analysis of lubrication is introduced. Based on the results from the test rig, the results comparison from test rig and mathematical analysis is carried out.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper introduces a mechanism which can adjust the oil film thickness between the slipper and swash-plate. Feasibility is ensured, and the accuracy of test rig is guaranteed by the three-coordinate measuring machine. Three displacement sensors show the oil film thickness and its shape. The reacting force and torque resulting from oil film can be achieved by three S-type force sensors and a torque sensor, respectively.

Findings

The relative error of the reacting force is small. The relative error reduces and is acceptable when the deformation of retainer is taken into account. The thickness and tilt angle of oil film have less effect on the reacting force. However, they are significantly impact on torque.

Originality/value

The test rig proposed in this paper is able to adjust the oil film thickness, which is used to detecting the lubrication characteristics in pump design.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-05-2020-0166/
Relational governance, organizational unlearning and learning: implications for performance
Authors: Yeniaras Volkan , Di Benedetto Anthony , Kaya Ilker , Dayan Mumin
Published: October 2020

Purpose

Drawing on the literature on dynamic skills, this study builds upon and empirically tests a conceptual model that connects business and political ties, organizational unlearning, organizational learning and firm performance. Specifically, this study suggests that business ties enable and political ties inhibit organizational unlearning (i.e. regenerative dynamic capability), which may, in turn, affect exploratory (i.e. renewing dynamic capability) and exploitative (i.e. incremental dynamic capability) innovation behaviors of the firm. Thus, the purpose of this study is to offer a theoretical framework in which organizational unlearning and learning act as mediating mechanisms between business and political ties and firm performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Structural equation modeling and mediation analyzes were used on a sample of 302 small and medium-size enterprises in Turkey.

Findings

This study found that business ties enable organizational unlearning while political ties impede it. This study further demonstrates that business ties positively and political ties negatively relate to organizational learning through organizational unlearning. In addition, this study shows that political ties are mostly negatively and indirectly related to firm performance through organizational learning while business ties positively and indirectly relate to firm performance.

Practical implications

The findings demonstrate the critical role that personal networks play in organizational learning and firm performance. This study provides evidence to the need to recognize and evaluate the potential and undesirable impacts of political ties on cultivating innovation skills and firm performance. In addition, this study recommends managers to embrace the significance of organizational unlearning in strategic renewal, particularly as it applies to building renewing and incremental dynamic skills for enhanced firm performance.

Originality/value

This study offers a deeper perspective of the dissected relations of social ties in emerging economies to firm performance by considering organizational unlearning and learning behaviors as mediating mechanisms.
Drivers of managers’ affect (emotions) and corporate website usage: a comparative analysis between a developed and developing country
Authors: Thakur Ramendra , AlSaleh Dhoha
Published: October 2020

Purpose

Existing literature reveals a general lack of research on business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce showcasing how managers’ affect plays a role in enhancing their attitude toward the businesses they work with. The purpose of this study is to fill that void by ascertaining whether managers’ corporate website knowledge, corporate website expertise and affect toward a corporate site influence their attitude toward the corporate website. It also investigates whether managers’ attitude guides corporate website usage intention in the context of two culturally diverse countries.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from managers from the USA and Kuwait using an online survey method. Structural equation modeling using EQS 6.2 software was used for analysis.

Findings

The results indicate that corporate Web knowledge influences Web expertise and affect in the US sample; in the Kuwaiti sample, Web knowledge influences Web expertise but does not influence affect. The findings in both studies reveal that managers’ knowledge about the Web has a positive effect on their attitude toward a business website. For Kuwaiti managers, Web expertise has a positive influence on affect. However, Web expertise does not influence managers’ affect in the US sample. The results further suggest that affect influences a manager’s attitude toward corporate websites in the US and Kuwaiti samples.

Originality/value

Self-efficacy and affect infusion theories serve as the foundation for this study. This research adds to these two theories in three ways. First, it examines the combined influence of affect and attitude on B2B managers’ intent to use a corporate website. Second, it proposes a single model that examines the combined relationships among managers’ knowledge and managers’ Web expertise that elicit managerial affect toward corporate websites. Third, the proposed model was tested using samples from two diverse countries (developed, the USA, and developing, Kuwait).
Desistance from absconding: “You’ve got to have hope”
Authors: Emirali Aliye , O'Rourke Rachel , Friendship Caroline
Published: October 2020

Purpose

This paper explores absconding from a new perspective. Literature has tended to focus on the risk factors linked with absconding. This paper aims to consider desistance factors for absconding for prisoners at higher risk of absconding in open prisons.

Design/methodology/approach

Stage 1 used logistic regression to identify factors associated with increased risk of absconding. Stage 2 identified new receptions with increased risk and used thematic analysis to analyse interviews with prisoners that did not abscond after three months.

Findings

Stage 1 found that the total number of previous offences predicted absconding. Stage 2 found three themes linked to desistance in absconding: “support”, “ownership” and “sense of self”.

Practical implications

This study highlights the importance of ensuring prisoners in open prisons are offered the appropriate emotional and practical support. It also identifies the importance of hope amongst prisoners in open conditions. Future research should further explore this idea in more depth.

Originality/value

Previous literature has looked at absconding from a risk factor perspective. This research identifies the desistance factors associated with absconding for individuals who have been identified as high risk of absconding. Improvements in factors associated with desistance from absconding may support a reduction in absconding from open prisons.
Effects of fairness on relationship quality and re-contract intention in food service franchise system: comparison between global and domestic franchise
Authors: Lee Jee Eun , Lee Sang Suk
Published: October 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of fairness on relationship quality and re-contract intention in the foodservice franchise industry and this paper intends to delineate the implications of enhancing the mutual relationship between the franchisor and the franchisee in the future domestic foodservice franchise system.

Design/methodology/approach

To prevent the lack of reliability and to pursue the internal consistency of the measurement model, this study adopted SPSS (Ver.20.0) and derived Cronbach’s alpha. Additionally, this study conducted a confirmatory factor analysis by using AMOS (Ver.20.0) program to assess the unidimensionality of measurements. Finally, structural equation modeling was used to test the hypothesized research framework.

Findings

The results showed that distributive fairness and informational fairness increase the relationship quality, which franchisees perceive under the franchise system. Among the relationship quality factor, only the trust has a considerable impact on the (performance) re-contract intention. The effect of fairness on relationship quality does not show a statistically considerable difference between the two groups (global franchise vs domestic franchise). However, in terms of a global franchise, distributive fairness has a significant impact on relationship quality, whereas domestic franchise, distributive fairness directly affects performance (re-contract intention).

Research limitations/implications

This study provides readers with an effect of fairness in the franchise system. Results obtained in this study are useful for understanding the fairness and relationship quality in the franchise system.

Practical implications

Recently, as the foodservice franchise market is experiencing significant growth, government and franchise-related agencies are making considerable effort to improve the relationship between the franchisor and the franchisee and to offer a better system and policy concerning the protection of consumers. Government and franchise agencies should develop an adequate policy to improve the relationship between the franchisor and the franchisee by breaking away from the imprudent support.

Originality/value

This study investigates whether fairness in the franchise system has a significant effect on the relationship quality and the performance (re-contract intention) and provides implication about the mutual growth between franchisor and franchisee to the potential food service franchise in Korea.
The relationship between paired associate learning and Chinese word reading in kindergarten children
Authors: Liu Catrina , Chung Kevin Kien Hoa , Wang Li‐Chih , Liu Duo
Published: October 2020

Background

Research has shown that paired associate learning (PAL) plays an important role in children's word reading across different languages. However, little is known about the construct of PAL and its relationship with word reading in Chinese children.

Methods

A total of 204 second‐year kindergarten children from Mainland China were assessed on measures of PAL, including the four mapping conditions of PAL: visual–verbal, verbal–verbal, visual–visual and verbal–visual PAL. Tasks of working memory (WM), inhibitory control, visual‐motor integration (VMI), phonological awareness, orthographic knowledge and Chinese word reading were also administered to these children.

Results

Our results showed that WM, VMI and phonological awareness were unique predictors of PAL, whereas inhibitory control and orthographic knowledge were not. Furthermore, PAL showed an independent contribution to Chinese word reading after controlling for phonological awareness and orthographic knowledge. The mediation analysis showed that PAL was a significant mediator of the association between different cognitive‐linguistic skills and Chinese word reading.

Conclusion

Paired associate learning contributes to Chinese word reading over and above phonological awareness and orthographic knowledge. Findings underscore the potential importance of PAL, as distinct from other cognitive‐linguistic skills, for understanding variability in early reading development.
The Presentation of the Speaker of the Commons in Tudor Parliaments: Pageantry, Persuasion and Management*†
Authors: McGovern Jonathan
Published: October 2020

This article analyses the presentation of the Commons’ Speaker in the Tudor age. It traces the medieval origins of this ceremony, arguing that it served not only as an opportunity for flamboyant rhetoric, but also as a politically significant event designed to impress upon the Commons its inferiority in the parliamentary hierarchy. The article also suggests that Elizabethan Speakers used their orations as a means of presenting counsel to the queen herself.
‘But Private Notes for My Own Memory’? Parliamentary Diaries, Parliamentary History and the Politics of Information in Early Stuart England*
Authors: Baker Philip
Published: October 2020

Early modern parliamentary diaries are a standard source for historians, and have long been used as a supplement to the official journals in reconstructions of debates and business at Westminster. This article adopts a contrasting approach and examines what diaries – viewed as sources in their own right – reveal about parliament and its members, methods of contemporary note‐taking, and the circulation and readership of political information. It begins with a review of the evidence for why, how, and to what ends members kept parliamentary diaries, before exploring the extent of their dissemination in early Stuart England. While recent literature has emphasized the circulation of materials relating to Jacobean and especially Caroline parliaments during the early 17th century, the article recovers the existence of a simultaneous interest in the parliamentary proceedings of the Elizabethan era. At a time when the future of parliament seemed uncertain, it argues that the evident market for, and readership of, Elizabethan material reflects contemporaries’ increasing recognition of parliament's significance within the English state and their changing attitudes towards parliamentary history. Moreover, while Elizabethan parliamentary diaries and journals seemingly reinforced memories of a past ‘golden age’ of parliamentary rule, the article contends that contemporaries’ production, dissemination, and reading of that material was a conscious form of political action in response to the constitutional crisis of their day.
‘The Best‐Laid Schemes o’ Mice an’ Men’? Proposals, Planning, Defeat, and Legacy, of Devolution in the 1970s*
Authors: Evans Adam
Published: October 2020

The question of whether devolved assemblies should be established for Scotland and Wales dominated considerable parliamentary time in the 1970s and became a key pillar of the Labour government's legislative agenda after the two 1974 general elections. The main building blocks of the government's devolution proposals for Scotland and Wales were in place from 1975 with the publication of the white paper, Our Changing Democracy, which outlined proposals for a primary lawmaking assembly for Scotland and a Scottish executive, operating under a ‘conferred powers model of devolution’. For Wales, the assembly was to be a body corporate (with no split between executive and assembly) exercising only executive functions and able only to pass secondary legislation. With some important modifications (including crucially the requirement for a referendum, which was then further amended to require a Yes tally equating to 40% of the electorates in both nations), these proposals were eventually incorporated into law as the Scotland and Wales Acts 1978.

While the political debates surrounding devolution in this period are well known, less attention has been paid to the practical plans undertaken by the civil service for devolution to become a reality. Considerable time was spent drawing up, from an early stage, detailed preparations for devolution, particularly in Scotland. In Wales, planning was more tentative, yet, none the less, was taken seriously by the Welsh Office. These plans never materialised in the way envisaged, with neither Welsh nor Scottish devolution able to pass the referendum thresholds put in place. However, as this article also demonstrates, both the Scotland and Wales Acts had a constitutional legacy when devolution became reality under New Labour in the late 1990s.
Growth conditions and survival kinetics during storage of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG for the design of a sustainable probiotic whey‐based beverage containing Costa Rican guava fruit pulp
Authors: Montero‐Zamora Jéssica , Cortés‐Muñoz Marianela , Esquivel Patricia , Mora‐Villalobos José‐Aníbal , Velázquez Carmela
Published: October 2020

The finding of economical and practical applications for milk whey is still a challenge for dairy industries. This paper presents information about the development of a probiotic–prebiotic beverage based on Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) and Costa Rican guava (CRG) fruit pulp with industrial potential. First, a supplemented whey media was developed for LGG growth, and the whey‐supplemented media was used for fermentation in bioreactors. LGG reached a maximum growth rate of 0.32 hr−1 after 48 hr of fermentation. The whey‐grown probiotics were then mixed with CRG pulp to produce the probiotic–prebiotic beverage. The survival kinetics of LGG in the formulated drink was not affected by the addition of CRG pulp (P > 0.05), and the shelf‐life of the inoculated beverage surpassed 40 days with a minimum population of 106 colony forming units (CFU)/mL. Properties as pH, fructose, glucose, sucrose, and proanthocyanidins (PACs) content exhibited a significant difference after storage time (P < 0.05). Finally, three different formulas of the beverage with different whey content were compared through sensory evaluation. The prototype with 50% whey content was one of the most valuable beverage formulas according to the organoleptic parameters, which remarks about the possibility of developing a probiotic whey‐based beverage containing CRG pulp. Furthermore, this is the first report about CRG beverages as a probiotic vector.

Practical Application

This research focuses on the evaluation of the properties of a probiotic beverage, with a promissory industrial application using whey, as a dairy industry byproduct, combined with the pulp of the highly nutritious and subutilized Costa Rican guava (CRG) fruit.
Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio predicts glucocorticoid resistance in polymyalgia rheumatica
Authors: Owen Claire E. , McMaster Christopher , Liew David F. L. , Leung Jessica L. , Scott Andrew M. , Buchanan Russell R. C.
Published: October 2020

Aim

Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) correlate with disease activity in several rheumatic diseases; however, their utility in polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) remains unclear. This study evaluated their relationship with disease activity and glucocorticoid resistance in PMR.

Method

Data for disease activity (PMR‐AS) and full blood examination was obtained from a prospective observational cohort comprising newly diagnosed, steroid‐naïve PMR patients treated with low‐dose glucocorticoid therapy. Glucocorticoid resistance was defined as non‐response to prednisolone 15 mg/d or initial response followed by flare (PMR‐AS ≥ 9.35 or ∆ ≥6.6) upon weaning to 5 mg/d. Univariable Bayesian linear regression analysis of the relationship between PMR‐AS (baseline and mean) and NLR and PLR was performed. Predictors of glucocorticoid resistance were identified using a multivariable outcome model, with variables derived from Bayesian model selection.

Results

Of the 32 included patients, 16 (50%) fulfilled the primary outcome measure of glucocorticoid resistance. These participants were older, typically female, and had higher baseline C‐reactive protein than their glucocorticoid‐responsive counterparts. A statistically significant relationship was identified between PMR‐AS and both NLR (odds ratio [OR] 28.1; 95% CI 1.6‐54.7) and PLR (OR 40.6; 95% CI 10.1‐71.4) at baseline, with PLR also found to correlate with disease activity during follow‐up (OR 15.6; 95% CI 2.7‐28.2). Baseline NLR proved a statistically significant predictor of glucocorticoid‐resistant PMR (OR 14.01; 95% CI 1.49‐278.06).

Conclusion

Baseline NLR can predict glucocorticoid resistance in newly diagnosed PMR patients. Both NLR and PLR may be reliable biomarkers of disease activity in PMR.