bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Suspecting service overprovisions: how market signals help restore personal control and reduce decision deferrals
Authors: Chatterjee Subimal , Mishra Debi P. , Lee Jennifer JooYeon , Shibly Sirajul A. 
Published: September 2021

Purpose
Service providers often recommend unnecessary and expensive services to unsuspecting consumers, such as recommending a new part when a simple fix to the old will do, a phenomenon known as overprovisioning. The purpose of this paper is to examine to what extent consumers tend to defer their decisions should they suspect that sellers are overproviding services to them and they cannot prevent the sellers from doing so (they lack personal control); and how proper market signals can mitigate such suspicions, restore personal control and reduce deferrals.

Design/methodology/approach
The paper conducts three laboratory experiments. The experiments expose the participants to hypothetical repair scenarios and measure to what extent they suspect that sellers might be overproviding services to them and they feel that they lack the personal control to prevent the sellers from doing so. Thereafter, the experiments expose them to two different market signals, one conveying that the seller is providing quality services (a repair warranty; quality signal) and the other conveying that the seller is taking away any incentives their agents (technicians) may have to overprovide services (the technicians are paid a flat salary; quantity signal). The paper examines how these quality/quantity signals are able to reduce overprovisioning suspicions, restore personal control and reduce decision deferrals.

Findings
The paper has two main findings. First, the paper shows a mediation process at work i.e. suspecting potential overprovisioning by sellers leads consumers to defer their decisions indirectly because they feel that they lack personal control to prevent the sellers from doing so. Second, the paper shows that the quantity signal (flat salary disclosure), but not the quality signal (warranty), is able to mitigate suspicions of overprovisioning, restore personal control and reduce decision deferrals.

Practical implications
The paper suggests that although buyers may rely on quality signals to assure them of superior service, these signals do not guarantee that the quantity of service they are receiving is appropriate. Therefore, sellers will have to send a credible quality signal and a credible quantity signal to the consumers if they wish to tackle suspicions about service overprovision and service quality.

Originality/value
The paper is original in two ways. First, the paper theorizes and tests a mediation process model whereby quality/quantity signals differentially mitigate overprovisioning suspicions, restore personal control and reduce decision deferrals. Second, the paper speaks to the necessity of expanding the traditional signaling literature, designed primarily to detect poor quality hidden in the products/services of lower-quality sellers, to include detecting/solving overprovisioning often hidden in the services provided by higher-quality sellers.
Optimal asset allocation in retirement planning: threshold-based utility maximization
Authors: Bär Maximilian , Gatzert Nadine , Ruß Jochen 
Published: September 2021

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to modify the shape of utility functions traditionally used in expected utility theory (EUT) to derive optimal retirement saving decisions. Inspired by current reference point based approaches, the authors argue that utility functions with jumps or kinks at certain threshold points might very well be rational.Design/methodology/approachThe authors suggest an alternative to typical utility functions used in EUT, to be applied in the context of retirement saving decisions. The authors argue that certain elements that are used to model biases in behavioral models should–in the context of optimal retirement saving decisions–be considered “rational” and hence be included in a normative setting as well. The authors compare the optimal asset allocation derived under such utility functions with results under traditional power utility.FindingsThe authors find that the considered threshold levels can have a significant impact on the optimal investment decision for some individuals. In particular, the authors show that a much riskier investment than under EUT can become optimal if some level of income is secured by a social security and a significant portion of the distribution of terminal wealth lies below this level.Originality/valueContrary to previous work, this model is especially designed to assess the question of optimal product choice/asset allocation in the specific setting of retirement planning and from a normative point of view. In this regard, the authors first motivate the use of several thresholds and then apply this approach in a capital market model with stochastic stocks and stochastic interest rates to two illustrative investment alternatives.
The impact of COVID-19 on police training academies
Authors: White David R. , Schafer Joseph , Kyle Michael 
Published: September 2021

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the impacts coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) had on US police academies’ production of police recruits.Design/methodology/approachThe study used a national online survey of police academy directors in the USA, followed by purposive, semi-structured interviews of select academy directors. A combination of quantitative and qualitative data is combined in a mixed methods approach.FindingsThe findings suggest that academies experienced a range of impacts related to COVID-19. These impacts lead to more questions concerning how academies and state-level governing boards responded not only to pandemic-related challenges, but also to their willingness to accept more online and alternative curriculum delivery strategies.Originality/valuePolice academies are a required step in the production of new police recruits in the USA, but researchers have paid little attention to how academies operate. While exploratory, this study provides some insights into how this aspect of policing weathered the COVID-19 pandemic, and offers suggestions for future research, as well as policy implications.
Bitcoin-specific fear sentiment matters in the COVID-19 outbreak
Authors: Polat Ali Yavuz , Aysan Ahmet Faruk , Tekin Hasan , Tunali Ahmet Semih 
Published: September 2021

Purpose
This study aims to investigate the effect of fear sentiment with a novel data set on Bitcoin’s (BTC) return, volatility and transaction volume. The authors divide the sample into two subperiods to capture the changing dynamics during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors retrieve the novel fear sentiment data from Thomson Reuters MarketPsych Indices (TRMI). The authors denote the subperiods as pre- and post-COVID-19 considering January 13, 2020, when the first COVID-19 confirmed case was reported outside China. The authors use bivariate vector autoregressive models given below with lag-length k, to investigate the dynamics between BTC variables and fear sentiment.

Findings
BTC market measures have dissimilar dynamics before and after the Coronavirus outbreak. The results reveal that due to the excessive uncertainty led by the outbreak, an increase in fear sentiment negatively affects the BTC returns more persistently and significantly. For the post-COVID-19 period, an increase in fear also results in more fluctuations in transaction volume while its initial and cumulative effects are both negative. Due to extreme uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, investors may trade more aggressively in the initial phases of the shock.

Practical implications
The authors are convinced that the results in this paper have more far-reaching implications for other markets regulated by the states. BTC provides a natural benchmark to understand how fear sentiment drives and impacts the markets isolated from any interventions. Hence, the results show that in the absence of regulatory frameworks, market dynamics are likely to be more volatile and the fear sentiment has more persistent impacts. The authors also highlight the importance of using micro, asset-specific sentiment measures to capture market dynamics better.

Originality/value
BTC is not associated with any regulatory authority and is not produced by the governments and central banks. COVID-19 as a natural experiment provides an opportunity to explore the pure effects of market sentiment on BTC considering its decentralized and unregulated features. The paper has two main contributions. First, the authors use BTC-specific fear sentiment novel data set of TRMI instead of more general market sentiments used in the existing studies. Next, this is the first study to examine the association between fear and BTC before and after COVID-19.
A non‐native earthworm shifts seed predation dynamics of a native weed
Authors: Regnier Emilie E. , Hovick Stephen M. , Liu Jianyang , Harrison Steven Kent , Diekmann Florian 
Published: September 2021

Abstract

Introduced seed dispersers can shift seed predation dynamics in native species, impacting native plant establishment and spread. We studied the effect of the non‐native earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris, on seed loss dynamics in the large‐seeded native annual, Ambrosia trifida (giant ragweed), an expanding agricultural weed whose seeds are heavily predated by mice. Lumbricus terrestris may protect seeds against rodent predation by caching them in its burrows from which seedlings can emerge unharmed; however, little is known about the ability of earthworms to compete with rodents for seeds. We investigated this interaction and how environmental factors affected the competitive outcome.

In a 2‐year field study, we analysed relative rates of seed removal by earthworms and mice for seeds dispersed at various times in habitats that varied in vegetative cover.

Species‐specific responses to environmental conditions drove variation in the share of seeds taken by earthworms versus mice, with earthworms gaining relatively more seeds under warmer, wetter conditions and in low plant cover habitats, and mice obtaining more seeds under colder, drier conditions and in high cover habitats.

Environmental factors also determined which competitor accessed seeds first, and this conferred a competitive advantage that was compounded over time.

Earthworms cached some seeds under all experimental conditions, suggesting that L. terrestris can act mutualistically with giant ragweed in diverse environments.

Synthesis and applications. Our results support the hypothesis that the non‐native earthworm Lumbricus terrestris behaves as a seed dispersal mutualist for the native annual giant ragweed by caching its seeds in its burrows, thereby reducing their availability to rodent seed predators. The data also support the view that interactions among the environment and competing seed predators determine the fate of seed pools in response to species‐specific environmental preferences. In crop fields where L. terrestris is abundant, additional efforts to prevent giant ragweed seed return may be warranted due to the likelihood that earthworms will increase giant ragweed soil seed pools. Lumbricus terrestris is expanding its range throughout temperate regions and may similarly affect secondary seed dispersal and seed predation dynamics of large‐seeded species in other plant communities.
Seasonal variations of 137Cs concentration in freshwater charr through uptake and metabolism in 1–2 years after the Fukushima accident
Authors: Okada Kengo , Sakai Masaru , Gomi Takashi , Iwamoto Aimu , Negishi Junjiro N. , Nunokawa Masanori 
Published: September 2021

AbstractUnderstanding the factors influencing 137Cs concentrations in freshwater salmonids is crucial for reviving inland fisheries in polluted regions. We studied seasonal variations of 137Cs concentration in charr (Salvelinus leucomaenis) through uptake and metabolism in forested headwaters at Fukushima and Gunma sites. Charr consumed both terrestrial and aquatic animals, and terrestrial prey was predated more in summer at both sites. The 137Cs concentrations in litter, which is a dominant basal food resource of both forest and stream ecosystems, differed between forest and stream due to 137Cs leaching effect on litter submerged in streams. The concentration difference in both litter and prey was greater at Fukushima site than at Gunma site. The estimated prey 137Cs concentration at Fukushima site peaked in summer when terrestrial preys are most available, whereas it remained relatively constant at Gunma site because of the small difference of 137Cs concentrations in between terrestrial and aquatic preys. The specific metabolic rate of charr was commonly changed with stream water temperature, greatest in summer, and lowest in winter at both sites. Because both prey 137Cs concentrations and specific metabolic rates peaked in summer, the combination of uptake and metabolism at Fukushima site largely negated seasonal 137Cs fluctuations in charr, whereas specific metabolic rate fluctuations could be the major determinant of charr 137Cs concentrations at Gunma site. Our results suggested that 137Cs concentrations in prey items, whose seasonality are varied due to initial 137Cs fallout volume, were expected to be an important determinant for 137Cs concentrations in charr.
Fear, Hatred and Strategy during the Wars of the Roses
Authors: McKelvie Gordon 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThis article examines the importance of emotions such as fear, enmity and hatred during the Wars of the Roses. Despite the large body of scholarship on the wars and extensive corpus of primary sources, historians have not looked at the Wars of the Roses from this perspective. This lacuna is unfortunate for two reasons. First, examining the role of emotions provides an additional insight into the wars that current discussions have viewed as tangential. Second, the Wars of the Roses provide a different way of viewing emotions in medieval warfare from studies of emotions in other wars. Discussions of emotions in medieval warfare tend to examine the experiences and mental worlds of individual combatants, the performative value of emotions in political conflict or the use of emotions in the memory of wars. In contrast, this article demonstrates that, during the Wars of the Roses, emotions had a real and tangible influence on the course and outcome of the wars, also influencing military strategy. This article highlights the potential of the late medieval English sources for revealing the use of emotions in war. It then examines three ways in which emotions shaped the wars: the personal enmities between successive dukes of Somerset and members of the House of York; regional hatreds between northerners and southerners; and finally collective hatred and blame directed towards individual councillors. Taken together, the material examined here provides new insights into the tangible effects that emotions had on the strategies of commanders and the politics a late medieval conflict.
Serious complications and recurrences after pelvic organ prolapse surgery for 2309 women in the VIGI‐MESH registry
Authors: Fritel X , de Tayrac R , de Keizer J , Campagne‐Loiseau S , Cosson M , Ferry P , Deffieux X , Lucot J‐P , Wagner L , Debodinance P , Saussine C , Pizzoferrato A‐C , Carlier‐Guérin C , Thubert T , Panel L , Bosset P‐O , Nkounkou E , Ramanah R , Boisramé T , Charles T , Raiffort C , Charvériat A , Ragot S , Fauconnier A 
Published: September 2021

ObjectiveTo assess the incidence of serious complications and reoperations for recurrence after surgery for pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and compare the three most common types of repair.DesignProspective cohort study using a registry.SettingNineteen French surgical centres.PopulationA total of 2309 women participated between 2017 and 2019.MethodsA multivariate analysis including an inverse probability of treatment weighting approach was used to obtain three comparable groups.Main outcome measuresSerious complications and subsequent reoperations for POP recurrence.ResultsThe median follow‐up time was 17.6 months. Surgeries were native tissue vaginal repairs (n = 504), transvaginal mesh placements (n = 692) and laparoscopic sacropexies with mesh (n = 1113). Serious complications occurred among 52 women (2.3%), and reoperation for POP recurrence was required for 32 women (1.4%). At 1 year the cumulative weighted incidence of serious complications was 1.8% for native tissue vaginal repair, 3.9% for transvaginal mesh and 2.2% for sacropexy, and the rates for reoperation for recurrence of POP were 1.5, 0.7 and 1.1%, respectively. Compared with native tissue vaginal repair, the risk of serious complications was higher in the transvaginal mesh group (weighted hazard ratio, wHR 3.84, 95% CI 2.43–6.08) and the sacropexy group (wHR 2.48, 95% CI 1.45–4.23), whereas the risk of reoperation for prolapse recurrence was lower in both the transvaginal mesh (wHR 0.22, 95% CI 0.13–0.39) and sacropexy (wHR 0.29, 95% CI 0.18–0.47) groups.ConclusionsOur results suggest that native tissue vaginal repairs have the lowest risk of serious complications but the highest risk of reoperation for recurrence. These results are useful for informing women and for shared decision making.Tweetable abstractLaparoscopic sacropexy had fewer serious complications than transvaginal mesh and fewer reoperations for recurrence than vaginal repair.
In Spite of the Spite: An Indian View of China and India in BRICS
Authors: Chaulia Sreeram 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBased on expectations drawn from rationalist understanding of international institutions, this article argues that China and India persist with membership and participation in BRICS despite their growing bilateral conflicts because the grouping serves their respective strategic interests. Contrary to accounts portraying BRICS as a model for South–South cooperation or as a forum for socialization of member countries to develop a new shared collective identity, the article highlights the nationalistic power politics angle and explains why BRICS will continue to have both China and India inside the tent. For China, BRICS is one of many multilateral institutions with which to challenge and push back the United States and the Western‐crafted liberal international system. For India, BRICS is less of an anti‐Western formation and increasingly a soft balancing instrument through which China can be bound to rules and moderate its assertive behaviour as a great power. The article also highlights the constructive role Russia plays in the internal soft balancing of China via BRICS and offers examples of Russia acting as a behind‐the‐scenes intermediary to massage Sino‐Indian tensions during military standoffs. The conclusion is that BRICS will survive China‐India confrontations even amid the worsening geostrategic environment in Asia.
Physical activity in asthma control and its immune modulatory effect in asthmatic preschoolers
Authors: Maurer Debbie J. , Liu Chengyao , Xepapadaki Paraskevi , Stanic Barbara , Bachert Claus , Finotto Susetta , Gao Ya‐Dong , Graser Anna , Jartti Tuomas , Kistler Walter , Kowalski Marek , Lukkarinen Heikki , Pasioti Maria , Tan Ge , Villiger Michael , Zhang Luo , Zhang Nan , Akdis Mübeccel , Papadopoulos Nikolaos G. , Akdis Cezmi A. 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundThe impact of physical activity on immune response is a hot topic in exercise immunology, but studies involving asthmatic children are scarce. Our aims were to examine whether there were any differences in the level of physical activity and daily TV attendance, to assess its role on asthma control and immune responses to various immune stimulants.MethodsWeekly physical activity and daily television attendance were obtained from questionnaires at inclusion of the PreDicta study. PBMC cultures were stimulated with phytohemagglutinin (PHA), R848, poly I:C, and zymosan. A panel of cytokines was measured and quantified in cell culture supernatants using luminometric multiplex immunofluorescence beads‐based assay.ResultsAsthmatic preschoolers showed significantly more TV attendance than their healthy peers (58.6% vs. 41.5% 1–3 h daily and only 25.7% vs. 47.2% ≤1 h daily) and poor asthma control was associated with less frequent physical activity (PA) (75% no or occasional activity in uncontrolled vs. 20% in controlled asthma; 25% ≥3 times weekly vs. 62%). Asthmatics with increased PA exhibited elevated cytokine levels in response to polyclonal stimulants, suggesting a readiness of circulating immune cells for type 1, 2, and 17 cytokine release compared to subjects with low PA and high TV attendance. This may also represent a proinflammatory state in high PA asthmatic children. Low physical activity and high TV attendance were associated with a decrease in proinflammatory cytokines. Proinflammatory cytokines were correlating with each other in in vitro immune responses of asthmatic children, but not healthy controls, this correlation was more pronounced in children with sedentary behavior.ConclusionAsthmatic children show more sedentary behavior than healthy subjects, while poor asthma control is associated with a substantial decrease in physical activity. Our results suggest that asthmatic children may profit from regular exercise, as elevated cytokine levels in stimulated conditions indicate an immune system prepared for responding strongly in case of different types of infections. However, it has to be considered that a hyperinflammatory state in high PA may not be beneficial in asthmatic children.
Enhanced detection of abnormalities in heart rate variability and dynamics by 7‐day continuous ECG monitoring
Authors: Hayano Junichiro , Yuda Emi 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundThe analysis of heart rate variability (HRV) and heart rate (HR) dynamics by Holter ECG has been standardized to 24 hs, but longer‐term continuous ECG monitoring has become available in clinical practice. We investigated the effects of long‐term ECG on the assessment of HRV and HR dynamics.MethodsIntraweek variations in HRV and HR dynamics were analyzed in 107 outpatients with sinus rhythm. ECG was recorded continuously for 7 days with a flexible, codeless, waterproof sensor attached on the upper chest wall. Data were divided into seven 24‐h segments, and standard time‐ and frequency‐domain HRV and nonlinear HR dynamics indices were computed for each segment.ResultsThe intraweek coefficients of variance of HRV and HR dynamics indices ranged from 2.9% to 26.0% and were smaller for frequency‐domain than for time‐domain indices, and for indices reflecting slower HR fluctuations than faster fluctuations. The indices with large variance often showed transient abnormalities from day to day over 7 days, reducing the positive predictive accuracy of the 24‐h ECG for detecting persistent abnormalities over 7 days. Conversely, 7‐day ECG provided 2.3‐ to 6.5‐fold increase in sensitivity to detect persistent plus transient abnormalities compared with 24‐h ECG. It detected an average of 1.74 to 2.91 times as many abnormal indices as 24‐h ECG.ConclusionsLong‐term ECG monitoring increases the accuracy and sensitivity of detecting persistent and transient abnormalities in HRV and HR dynamics and allows discrimination between the two types of abnormalities. Whether this discrimination improves risk stratification deserves further studies.