bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The impact of industry, firm age and education level on financial management performance in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
Authors: Karadag Hande 
Published: July 2017

PurposeSmall- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are crucial for socio-economic growth due to their significant role in creating new workforce, gross domestic product increase, innovation and entrepreneurship. This paper aims to examine financial management performance in SMEs with regard to industry, firm age and education level of owner/managers differences.Design/methodology/approachThe data used in the study are collected from 188 SMEs through structured questionnaires, and three hypotheses regarding the associations are tested by using structural equation modeling.FindingsFindings of one-way ANOVA tests indicate that performance in financial management practices has a strong and positive correlation with education level of small business owner/managers, whereas no significant difference is found regarding SMEs operating in different industries. For the impact of company age, independent samplest-test is conducted, and a meaningful difference between small- and medium-sized companies which are five years or older and younger is found.Research limitations/implicationsThis study shows that a significant difference for age of an SME is present between over and under five-year-old SMEs, with respect to financial management performance, which is an important finding for both small business and financial management literatures. The tests regarding the particular hypotheses about education level of SME owner/managers indicate that education level of SME owner/managers significantly impacts financial management performance.Practical implicationsThe present study provides important practical implications. First, the importance of education level of owner/managers on SME financial performance is highlighted. Second, strong empirical support is found for the impact of company age on SME performance, which might be discussed as the importance of accumulation of knowledge of the owner/managers and the changes required with the growth patterns of the company, with increasing company age. Third, the study shows that industry differences do not exhibit a significant performance variation factor in financial management of SMEs, with respect to other demographic factors. Overall, these contributions help us better understand the financial management performance indicators in small and medium sized businesses.Originality/valueThis study focuses on company age, education level and industry differences with respect to financial management performance in SMEs in emerging economies, therefore provides additional empirical evidence to a research area where very few empirical studies exist.
The propensity to business startup
Authors: Abu Bakar Abdul Rahim , Ahmad Syed Zamberi , Wright Norman S. , Skoko Hazbo 
Published: July 2017

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to assess the determining factors of entrepreneurial business startup in Saudi Arabia from an eclectic perspective.Design/methodology/approachBased on Global Entrepreneurship Monitor data of 2000 Saudi Arabian respondents, the study analyzes a multitude of individual factors which are classified into four groups: financial resources; social legitimacy; entrepreneurial personality; and entrepreneurial competencies. Gender and education are moderating variables influencing the relationship, whereas age is a control variable using binary logistic regression technique.FindingsOut of ten hypotheses, only four hypotheses, namely, income, fear of failure, perception of high status and knowledge of other entrepreneurs, have a significant relationship with the possibility of a business startup.Originality/valueImplications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.
Iran’s trade policy of Asianization and de-Europeanization under sanctions
Authors: Nasre Esfahani Mohammad , Rasoulinezhad Ehsan 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to find out whether under sanctions, Iran’s trade direction has shifted from Europe (trade policy of de-Europeanization) toward Asia (trade policy of Asianization).

Design/methodology/approach
The paper conducts three panel data estimations (FE, RE, and FMOLS) based on the gravity model approach for bilateral trade patterns between Iran-25 EU members and Iran-25 Asian countries over the period 2006-2013.

Findings
The empirical evidence indicates a significant negative effect of sanctions on Iran-EU bilateral trade, while it has a positive impact on trade between Iran and the Asian countries. These findings empirically confirmed that the imposition of various sanctions related to the Iran’s nuclear program has pushed the foreign trade policy of this country toward Asianization and away from Europeanization.

Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first attempt to examine the Iran’s trade policy changing under the imposition of sanctions related to its nuclear program.
Examining the portrayal of homophobic and non-homophobic aggression in print media through an integrated grounded behavioural linguistic inquiry (IGBLI) approach
Authors: Birch Philip , Ozanne Rebecca , Ireland Jane 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The role of the media in supporting an understanding of the social world is well documented. The representation of homosexuals in the media can therefore impact on homophobia within society. The purpose of this paper is to examine how homosexuals are portrayed in the media generally, before examining and comparing newspaper reports of homosexual aggression with heterosexual aggression.

Design/methodology/approach
Utilising a new and innovative research methodology, an integrated grounded behavioural linguistic inquiry (IGBLI) approach, four daily newspapers in circulation within the USA, Canada, the UK and Australia are examined.

Findings
While there are similarities in the way print media report on these aggressive incidents, the differences which emerge from the findings are of interest which require further, more in-depth study.

Practical implications
To extend the methodology of IGBLI to other forms of media content in order to further validate the approach. To reduce the differences between LGBTI news reports and heterosexual news reports. To hold the media to account for the ways in which they express their content. To encourage users of the media, in particular print media, to be critical of what they read.

Originality/value
Typically, analysis of media utilises the research method of content analysis. This paper adopts a new and innovative research method, an IGBLI approach, which incorporates a behavioural assessment in the form of a SORC.
Co-morbidity of personality disorder and clinical syndrome in high-risk incarcerated offenders
Authors: Bennett Alice , Johnson Darren 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
In light of the clinical importance of understanding co-morbidity within offender populations, the purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence and comorbidities of clinical disorder (Axis I) and personality disorder (Axis II) within a sample of high risk, male offenders located in a high secure, prison-based personality disorder treatment service.

Design/methodology/approach
The study utilised clinical assessment data for both Axis I diagnoses (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV) and Axis II diagnoses (International Personality Disorder Examination) of 115 personality disordered offenders who met the criteria for the treatment service between 2004 and 2015.

Findings
Co-morbidity between Axis I and Axis II diagnoses was high, with 81 per cent of the sample having co-morbid personality disorder and clinical disorder diagnosis. The most prevalent Axis I disorder was substance misuse, and Axis II was antisocial, borderline, and paranoid personality disorder. Following χ2 analysis, Cluster A personality disorder demonstrated co-morbidity with both mood disorder and schizophrenia/other psychotic disorder. Paranoid, schizoid, narcissistic, and avoidant personality disorder demonstrated a level of co-morbidity with Axis I disorders. There was no association found between the clinical disorders of substance use and anxiety with any personality disorder within this sample.

Practical implications
In part these results suggest that certain Axis II disorders may increase the risk of lifetime Axis I disorders.

Originality/value
The findings of no co-morbidity between the clinical disorders of substance use and anxiety with any personality disorder within sample are inconsistent to previous findings.
Effects of nano-layered silicates on mechanical and chemical properties of acrylic-melamine automotive clear coat
Authors: Bahreini Zaker , Heydari Vahid , Namdari Zahra 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
Mechanical and chemical properties of acrylic-melamine automotive clear coat in the presence of different percentages of well dispersed nano-layered sodium montmorillonite (Na-MMT) silicate particles were investigated. For this purpose, prepared dry clear coat film samples were subjected to the entire standard test series, usually carried out in automotive coating industry.

Design/methodology/approach
Effects of adding different percentages of nano-layered silicate on mechanical and chemical properties of acrylic-melamine automotive clear coat were investigated. To increase the compatibility of nanoclays with polymer matrix of clear coat, the surface of nanoclays was modified by benzalkonium chloride as a cationic surfactant. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used for characterization and comparison between clays before and after modification, and also after dispersion in coating. Prepared dry clear coat film samples subjected to the test series are usually carried out in automotive coating industry.

Findings
The results indicated that incorporation of 1 and 2 Wt.% of nano-layered silicate caused desired improvement in chemical and physical properties of the acrylic-melamine clear coat. Increasing the percentage of nanoclay to over 2 Wt.% caused damage in some properties such as hardness, cupping and gloss.

Research limitations/implications
All materials and methods were used in this research are industrial grade. Therefore, the introduced modified clear coat sample has potential for commercial production as an automotive clear coat.

Originality/value
As far as it was searched in the literature, effects of adding nanoclay particles on mechanical and physical properties of different clear coats, such as epoxy clear coat, have been investigated in a few researches, but in this research, common and special tests which are necessary in automotive coating industry have been ignored. In the present study for the first time, acrylic-melamine clear coat was subjected to modification using nano-clay, and also, the most common industrial test methods were used for investigation of mechanical and chemical properties.
Effect of acid hydrolysis on alizarin content, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Rubia tinctorum extracts
Authors: Essaidi Ismahen , Snoussi Ahmed , Ben Haj Koubaier Hayet , Casabianca Hervé , Bouzouita Nabiha 
Published: July 2017

Purpose
The paper aims to analyse the effect of acid hydrolysis on the chemical composition and the biological activities of Rubia tinctorum collected from the south of Tunisia. It proposes to clarify the relationship between alizarin content and the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Rubia extract.

Design/methodology/approach
The paper opted for analytical tools (HPLC) and the in-vitro study of biological activities, namely, the antioxidant activity which is evaluated using the radical scavenging assay (ABTS) and ferric reducing power assay (FRAP); the antimicrobial activity is tested using the wells agar diffusion method.

Findings
The paper provides information about the positive effect of acid hydrolysis, namely, the enhancement of alizarin content in the extract which has increased its antioxidant and antimicrobial activities.

Originality/value
This paper fulfils an identified need to study the relationship between the chemical composition, biological activities and colour enhancement.
Non‐linear stochastic inversion of gravity data via quantum‐behaved particle swarm optimisation: application to Eurasia–Arabia collision zone (Zagros, Iran)
Authors: Jamasb Ali , Motavalli‐Anbaran Seyed‐Hani , Zeyen Hermann 
Published: July 2017

ABSTRACTPotential field data such as geoid and gravity anomalies are globally available and offer valuable information about the Earth's lithosphere especially in areas where seismic data coverage is sparse. For instance, non‐linear inversion of Bouguer anomalies could be used to estimate the crustal structures including variations of the crustal density and of the depth of the crust–mantle boundary, that is, Moho. However, due to non‐linearity of this inverse problem, classical inversion methods would fail whenever there is no reliable initial model. Swarm intelligence algorithms, such as particle swarm optimisation, are a promising alternative to classical inversion methods because the quality of their solutions does not depend on the initial model; they do not use the derivatives of the objective function, hence allowing the use of L1 norm; and finally, they are global search methods, meaning, the problem could be non‐convex. In this paper, quantum‐behaved particle swarm, a probabilistic swarm intelligence‐like algorithm, is used to solve the non‐linear gravity inverse problem. The method is first successfully tested on a realistic synthetic crustal model with a linear vertical density gradient and lateral density and depth variations at the base of crust in the presence of white Gaussian noise. Then, it is applied to the EIGEN 6c4, a combined global gravity model, to estimate the depth to the base of the crust and the mean density contrast between the crust and the upper‐mantle lithosphere in the Eurasia–Arabia continental collision zone along a 400 km profile crossing the Zagros Mountains (Iran). The results agree well with previously published works including both seismic and potential field studies.
Species‐specific flowering cues among general flowering Shorea species at the Pasoh Research Forest, Malaysia
Authors: Chen Yu‐Yun , Satake Akiko , Sun I‐Fang , Kosugi Yoshiko , Tani Makoto , Numata Shinya , Hubbell Stephen P. , Fletcher Christine , Nur Supardi Md. Noor , Wright S. Joseph 
Published: July 2017

Abstract

In a unique phenomenon restricted to the ever wet forests of Southeast Asia, hundreds of species from dozens of plant families reproduce synchronously at irregular, multi‐year intervals. The proximate environmental cues that synchronize these general flowering events have not been evaluated systematically because there have been no long‐term, high temporal resolution, species‐level records from the region.

We present 13 years of weekly flowering records for five Shorea species as well as daily temperature and rainfall records from the Pasoh Forest Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia. We constructed models to evaluate hypothesized relationships between flowering and cool temperature, drought, and additive and synergistic effects of cool temperature and drought for each species. Model parameters include periods of time for floral cue accumulation and flower development and temperature and/or rainfall thresholds required for floral initiation. Parameters estimated using flowering observations from 2001 to 2011 were used to forecast flowering for 2011–2014.

We show that drought and cool temperatures acting synergistically best explain the timing of flowering events for all Shorea species in the section Mutica and forecast the largest general flowering event accurately. Periods estimated for signal accumulation ranged from 54 to 90 days among species. Periods estimated for flowers to develop ranged between 43 and 96 days and closely followed the interspecific sequence of flowering in the Shorea species. Drought and temperature thresholds also varied among species, with Shorea maxwelliana requiring the most severe drought and Shorea leprosula the lowest temperatures.

Synthesis. Our results indicate that cool temperatures and low rainfall occurring on seasonal time‐scales of about 2–3 months rather than brief cold snaps or brief droughts best explain general flowering in Shorea species at the Pasoh Forest Reserve. Low rainfall is equally likely in winter (December–February) and summer (July–August) and cool temperatures are most likely in winter at Pasoh, which explains why general flowering events are restricted to spring and fall, with more frequent and stronger flowering in spring. In addition, species‐specific sensitivity to environmental cues suggests that future climate change will have differential impacts on the frequency of reproduction, with potential consequences for regeneration of these dominant species of lowland tropical forests.
Production of functionalized oligo‐isoprenoids by enzymatic cleavage of rubber
Authors: Röther Wolf , Birke Jakob , Grond Stephanie , Beltran Jose Manuel , Jendrossek Dieter 
Published: July 2017

SummaryIn this study, we show the proof of concept for the production of defined oligo‐isoprenoids with terminal functional groups that can be used as starting materials for various purposes including the synthesis of isoprenoid‐based plastics. To this end, we used three types of rubber oxygenases for the enzymatic cleavage of rubber [poly(cis‐1,4‐isoprene)]. Two enzymes, rubber oxygenase RoxAXsp and rubber oxygenase RoxBXsp, originate from Xanthomonas sp. 35Y; the third rubber oxygenase, latex‐clearing protein (LcpK30), is derived from Gram‐positive rubber degraders such as Streptomyces sp. K30. Emulsions of polyisoprene (latex) were treated with RoxAXsp, RoxBXsp, LcpK30 or with combinations of the three proteins. The cleavage products were purified by solvent extraction and FPLC separation. All products had the same general structure with terminal functions (CHO‐CH2‐ and ‐CH2‐COCH3) but differed in the number of intact isoprene units in between. The composition and m/z values of oligo‐isoprenoid products were determined by HPLC‐MS analysis. Our results provide a method for the preparation of reactive oligo‐isoprenoids that can likely be used to convert polyisoprene latex or rubber waste materials into value‐added molecules, biofuels, polyurethanes or other polymers.
The dynamics of the bacterial communities developed in maize silage
Authors: Gharechahi Javad , Kharazian Zohreh Akhavan , Sarikhan Sajjad , Jouzani Gholamreza Salehi , Aghdasi Mahnaz , Hosseini Salekdeh Ghasem 
Published: July 2017

SummaryEnsilage provides an effective means of conserving summer‐grown green forage to supply as winter feed to ruminants. The fermentation process involved in the ensilage process relies on lactic acid bacteria (LAB). Here, 16S ribosomal DNA amplicon pyrosequencing was used to follow the dynamic behaviour of the LAB community during the ensilage of maize biomass, with a view to identify the key species involved in the process. The biomass used for ensilage was a single‐cross maize hybrid, harvested at the milk‐line stage. The crop was grown at three contrasting locations. Aspects of the physico‐chemical composition of the material and the LAB species present were sampled at 0, 3, 6, 14, 21 and 32 days after ensilage was initiated. In all three cases, members of the Leuconostocaceae family dominated the epiphytic bacterial community, notably Leuconostoc and Weissella, but some variation was noted in the abundance of certain Leuconostocaceae and Lactobacillaceae species, as well as that of some Acetobacteraceae, Enterobacteriaceae and Moraxellaceae species. The constellation of the microbiome which developed during the ensilage process differed markedly from that of the epiphytic one, with Lactobacillaceae, particularly Lactobacillus and Pediococcus spp. dominating. The abundance of heterofermentative Leuconostocaceae spp. in the epiphytic community and the extent of the transition from hetero‐ to homo‐fermentation during the initial ensilage period are important factors in determining silage quality.
The role of invertebrates in seedling establishment in a heterocarpic plant, Atriplex sagittata
Authors: Honek A. , Martinkova Z. , Koprdova S. , Saska P. 
Published: July 2017

AbstractSeed heteromorphism is a marked character of many Chenopodioideae (Amaranthaceae). Seed morphs differ in dormancy, germination and seedling biology, but differences in their predation have not yet been studied. Atriplex sagittata produces small black dormant and large brown non‐dormant seeds. In this study, the timing of seed release and seedling establishment were ascertained, and their consumption by invertebrates (carabids, isopods and slugs) was studied. Seeds dispersed in the autumn passed the winter on the ground surface, protected from invertebrate predation by low temperatures. In the following vegetative season, ungerminated black seeds exposed to predation on ground surface were preferred by a large carabid species, Pseudoophonus rufipes. Some black and all brown seeds escaped predation by germinating in early spring. The seedlings were little endangered by carabids and isopods but were preferred by an invasive slug, Arion vulgaris, the feeding of which can exterminate seedlings at places in which slugs are abundant. Invertebrate predation is important factor of seed and seedling mortality of A. sagittata and seed heteromorphism modifies its intensity and timing.
All drinking is not equal: how a social practice theory lens could enhance public health research on alcohol and other health behaviours
Authors: Meier Petra Sylvia , Warde Alan , Holmes John 
Published: July 2017

AbstractBackgroundThe social meanings, settings and habitual nature of health‐related activities and their integration into our daily lives are often overlooked in quantitative public health research. This reflects an overly individualized approach to epidemiological surveillance and evaluations of public health interventions, based on models of behaviour that are rooted in social cognition and rational choice theories. This paper calls for a new approach to alcohol epidemiology and intervention research informed by theories of practice.ArgumentPractices are conceptualized as routinized types of human activity that are made up of, and can be recognized by, the coming together of several interwoven elements in the same situation (e.g. materials, meanings, skills, locations, timings). Different practices are interconnected—they can occur simultaneously (e.g. drinking and eating), hold each other in place (e.g. after‐work drinks) or compete for time (e.g. parenting versus socializing). Applying these principles to alcohol research means shifting attention away from individuals and their behaviours and instead making drinking practices an important unit of analysis. Studying how drinking practices emerge, persist and decay over time, how they spread through populations and local or social networks and how they relate to other activities of everyday life promises new insights into how, why, where, when and with whom drinking and getting drunk occur.ConclusionsTheories of practice provide a framework for generating new explanations of stability and change in alcohol consumption and other health behaviours. This framework offers potential for novel insights into the persistence of health inequalities, unanticipated consequences of policies and interventions and new interventions targets through understanding which elements of problematic practices are likely to be most modifiable. We hope this will generate novel insights into the emergence and decay of drinking practices over time and into the geographical and socio‐demographic patterning of drinking. Theories of practice‐informed research would consider how alcohol policies and population‐level interventions might differentially affect different drinking practices.