bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Heuristic-driven bias in property investment decision-making in South Africa
Authors: Lowies Gert Abraham , Hall John Henry , Cloete Christiaan Ernst 
Published: January 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to determine whether anchoring and adjustment as heuristic-driven bias and herding behaviour influences listed property fund managers in South Africa’s property investment decisions. The study contributes to the understanding of the influence of heuristic-driven bias and herding behaviour on property investment decisions made in a highly volatile environment.Design/methodology/approach– This study is focused on the subject field of behavioural finance and follows a survey-based design. A questionnaire was finalised after completion of the pilot study and was sent via e-mail to fund managers of all South African-based property funds listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange. Non-parametric statistical measures were used.Findings– Consistency with other studies suggests that anchoring and adjustment may exist in the decisions made by listed property fund managers. However, fund managers tend to not adjust to new information due to the current socio-political environment in South Africa rather than a lack of understanding of the new information.Practical implications– It is recommended that investors form developed and emerging economies take notice of the highly volatile circumstances in which property fund managers in an emerging economy such as South Africa have to make investment decisions. The probability of missed gains as a result of conservative investment strategies may have an impact on future returns.Originality/value– This study enhanced the understanding of the role that heuristic-driven bias plays in the South African property industry and more importantly, it went some way towards enhancing understanding of behavioural aspects and their influence on property investment decision making in an emerging market.
The performance of the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment compliant listed property firms in South Africa
Authors: Akinsomi Omokolade , Kola Katlego , Ndlovu Thembelihle , Motloung Millicent 
Published: January 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) on the risk and returns of listed and delisted property firms on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). The study was investigated to understand the impact of Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) property sector charter and effect of government intervention on property listed markets.Design/methodology/approach– The study examines the performance trends of the listed and delisted property firms on the JSE from January 2006 to January 2012. The data were obtained from McGregor BFA database to compute the risk and return measures of the listed and delisted property firms. The study employs a capital asset pricing model (CAPM) to derive the alpha (outperformance) and beta (risk) to examine the trend amongst the BEE and non-BEE firms, Sharpe ratio was also employed as a measurement of performance. A comparative study is employed to analyse the risks and returns between listed property firms that are BEE compliant and BEE non-compliant.Findings– Results show that there exists differences in returns and risk between BEE-compliant firms and non-BEE-compliant firms. The study shows that BEE-compliant firms have higher returns than non-BEE firms and are less risky than non-BEE firms. By establishing this relationship, this possibly affects the investor’s decision to invest in BEE firms rather than non-BBBEE firms. This study can also assist the government in strategically adjusting the policy.Research limitations/implications– This study employs a CAPM which is a single-factor model. Further study could employ a multi-factor model.Practical implications– The results of this investigation, with the effects of BEE on returns, using annualized returns, the Sharpe ratio and alpha (outperformance), results show that BEE firms perform better than non-BEE firms. These results pose several implications for investors particularly when structuring their portfolios, further study would need to examine the role of BEE on stock returns in line with other factors that affect stock returns. The results in this study have several implications for government agencies, there may be the need to monitor the effect of the BEE policies on firm returns and re-calibrate policies accordingly.Originality/value– This study investigates the performance of listed property firms on the JSE which are BEE compliant. This is the first study to investigate listed property firms which are BEE compliant.
Knowledge management and employee empowerment
Authors: Hasani Kaveh , Sheikhesmaeili Saman 
Published: January 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between knowledge management (KM) and employee empowerment in institutions of higher education.Design/methodology/approach– The research method in this study was the descriptive-correlative type, and was based on the goal of the method applied. Subjects in this research included the staff members of higher educational institutions in Iran. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used. To analyse research data, descriptive statistics, and for inferential statistics, the Pearson correlation, the Friedman ranking test and stepwise regression, were used. For data analysis, SPSS software was used.Findings– The results from the study show that all alternative hypotheses were confirmed and there was a significant relationship between KM and employee empowerment. In addition, KM predicted the aspects of employee empowerment in institutions of higher education.Originality/value– Through this study, the positive role of KM in employee empowerment in institutions of higher education has been described, and the importance of considering such studies has been specified for researchers.
Modelling complexity in retail supply chains
Authors: Ekinci Esra , Baykasoglu Adil 
Published: January 2016

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to describe the characteristics of complexity and how a retail supply chain can contain complexity in itself. A case has been provided to show the measurement of complexity with/without information sharing and the relation of complexity with the performance measures. Quantification of the complexity will help the practitioners to take strategic actions.

Design/methodology/approach
– System dynamics simulation has been used to model the retail supply chain with and without information sharing and data visibility. Entropy-based metric used for quantification and comparison of complexity based on the outputs of the models. Performance measures proposed for the retail supply chains to understand the effect of data visibility.

Findings
– Paper provides insight about the complexity of retail supply chain perspective. Using system dynamics modelling can be a useful way to perform what-if type analysis before business process changes. Including both complexity and performance measures can be useful to understand if the complexity is good or bad for the business and if it is in manageable amount.

Research limitations/implications
– Paper can encourage the future research on retail supply chains.

Practical implications
– Approach can be useful to analyse what-if type analysis in practice easily. It can support strategic decision making process.

Originality/value
– Combines retail supply chain with complexity and performance measurement.
Emotional landscapes; discomfort in the field
Authors: Levy Nadine 
Published: January 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to explore a researcher’s emotions in the field. It argues that a researcher’s emotional responses can lead to insights into certain aspects of participants’ emotional and social worlds, while simultaneously obscuring certain lines of inquiry and limiting data collection. On this basis, the author calls for researchers to maintain a high level of awareness and reflexivity while working with strong emotions in the field. This, the author argues, allows a researcher to remain open to new understandings and address any limitations skilfully and transparently.Design/methodology/approach– Drawing on feminist theory and emerging scholarship pertaining to fieldwork and emotions, this paper examines the methodological dilemmas the author faced in relation to the own subjectivity while carrying out field-work at radical ecovillage in the USA. It analyses sections of the reflexive diary and explores the insights the author gained by remaining aware and reflexive while in the field.Findings– The author demonstrates how feelings of unease, alienation and entrapment prompted to explore new lines of inquiry and, in turn, consider certain emotion rules and ideologies present in the research setting. The author also speculates about the ways such feelings impacted the data collection by obscuring certain phenomena in the field.Research limitations/implications– The author makes a number of practical suggestions about how researchers can work skilfully with emotions in the field. In addition, the author proposes that by remaining mindful of one’s emotional responses valuable lines of questioning and themes may emerge for consideration.Originality/value– This paper contributes to emerging scholarship on the importance of examining a researcher’s experiences and reactions to a research setting in conjunction with other data. It offers a practical example of how this approach can elicit insight into the lives of participants.
Behavioural flexibility in migratory behaviour in a long‐lived large herbivore
Authors: Eggeman Scott L. , Hebblewhite Mark , Bohm Holger , Whittington Jesse , Merrill Evelyn H. 
Published: January 2016

SummaryMigratory animals are predicted to enhance lifetime fitness by obtaining higher quality forage and/or reducing predation risk compared to non‐migratory conspecifics. Despite evidence for behavioural flexibility in other taxa, previous research on large mammals has often assumed that migratory behaviour is a fixed behavioural trait.Migratory behaviour may be plastic for many species, although few studies have tested for individual‐level flexibility using long‐term monitoring of marked individuals, especially in large mammals such as ungulates.We tested variability in individual migratory behaviour using a 10‐year telemetry data set of 223 adult female elk (Cervus elaphus) in the partially migratoryYaHaTinda population inAlberta,Canada.We used net squared displacement (NSD) to classify migratory strategy for each individual elk‐year. Individuals switched between migrant and resident strategies at a mean rate of 15% per year, and migrants were more likely to switch than residents. We then tested how extrinsic (climate, elk/wolf abundance) and intrinsic (age) factors affected the probability of migrating, and, secondly, the decision to switch between migratory strategies.Over 630 individual elk‐years, the probability of an individual elk migrating increased following a severe winter, in years of higher wolf abundance, and with increasing age.At an individual elk level, we observed 148 switching events of 430 possible transitions in elk monitored at least 2 years. We found switching was density‐dependent, where migrants switched to a resident strategy at low elk abundance, but residents switched more to a migrant strategy at high elk abundance. Precipitation during the previous summer had a weak carryover effect, with migrants switching slightly more following wetter summers, whereas residents showed the opposite pattern. Older migrant elk rarely switched, whereas resident elk switched more frequently to migrate at older ages.Our results show migratory behaviour in ungulates is an individually variable trait that can respond to intrinsic, environmental and density‐dependent forces. Different strategies had opposing responses to density‐dependent and intrinsic drivers, providing a stabilizing mechanism for the maintenance of partial migration and demographic fitness in this population.
Effects of plant functional group loss on soil biota and net ecosystem exchange: a plant removal experiment in the Mongolian grassland
Authors: Chen Dima , Pan Qingmin , Bai Yongfei , Hu Shuijin , Huang Jianhui , Wang Qibing , Naeem Shahid , Elser James J. , Wu Jianguo , Han Xingguo 
Published: January 2016

SummaryThe rapid loss of global biodiversity can greatly affect the functioning of above‐ground components of ecosystems. However, how such biodiversity losses affect below‐ground communities and linkages to soil carbon (C) sequestration is unclear. Here, we describe how losses in plant functional groups (PFGs) affect soil microbial and nematode communities and net ecosystem exchange (NEE) in a 4‐year removal experiment conducted on the Mongolian plateau, the world's largest remaining natural grassland.Our results demonstrated that the biomasses or abundances of most components of the two below‐ground communities (microbes and nematodes) were negatively affected byPFGloss and were positively related to above‐ground plant biomass. The removal of dominantPFGs (perennial bunchgrasses and perennial rhizomatous grasses) reduced the biomass or abundance of below‐ground community components while removal of less dominantPFGs (perennial forbs and annuals/biennials) did not change or increased the biomass or abundance of below‐ground community components.The biomass‐based ratio of fungal to bacterial microbes and the number‐based ratio of fungal‐feeding to bacterial‐feeding nematodes decreased with increasingPFGlosses. Variation partitioning analyses showed that the identity ofPFGs together with above‐ground plant biomass explained most of the total variation in soil microbes and that the identity ofPFGs and above‐ground plant biomass together with nematode food resources explained most of the total variation in soil nematodes. The increase inNEEwithPFGloss was mainly explained by decreases in above‐ground plant biomass and the ratio of fungi to bacteria.Synthesis. The shift of below‐ground communities from a fungal‐based to a bacterial‐based energy channel asPFGrichness decreases indicates that less diverse grassland ecosystems will have lower nutrient retention and hence be more sensitive to land‐use or climate change. The dominant effects of above‐ground plant biomass and below‐ground communities onNEEindicate thatPFGloss resulting from land‐use or climate change has the potential to reduce C sequestration in semi‐arid grassland soils. These findings suggest that predictive models may need to consider the composition of above‐ground and below‐ground communities in order to accurately simulate the dynamics ofCO2fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems.
The effect of prenatal lifestyle intervention on weight retention 12 months postpartum: results of the Norwegian Fit for Delivery randomised controlled trial
Authors: Sagedal LR , Sanda B , Øverby NC , Bere E , Torstveit MK , Lohne‐Seiler H , Hillesund ER , Pripp AH , Henriksen T , Vistad I 
Published: January 2016

ObjectiveTo examine the effect of a prenatal lifestyle intervention on postpartum weight retention (PPWR).DesignRandomised controlled trial.SettingHealthcare clinics in southern Norway.PopulationHealthy, nulliparous women with body mass index ≥19 kg/m2, age ≥18 years, and singleton pregnancy of ≤20 gestational weeks.MethodsWomen were randomised to intervention (dietary counselling twice by phone and access to twice‐weekly exercise groups during pregnancy) or control group (standard prenatal care). Intervention compliance was defined post‐factum as attending dietary counselling and ≥14 exercise classes.Main outcome measuresPPWR (weight measured postpartum minus self‐reported pre‐pregnancy weight) and the proportion of women returning to pre‐pregnancy weight.ResultsOf 606 women randomised, 591 were included in an intention‐to‐treat analysis of pregnancy outcomes and 391 (64.5%) were analysed 12 months postpartum. Mean PPWR was not significantly different between groups (0.66 kg for intervention versus 1.42 kg for control group, mean difference −0.77 kg, 95% CI −1.81, 0.28; P = 0.149). An increased proportion of intervention participants achieved pre‐pregnancy weight (53% versus 43%, OR 1.50, 95% CI 1.003, 1.471; P = 0.045). However, the difference was not statistically significant when we adjusted for missing data (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 2.23, P = 0.067) using logistic mixed‐effects models analysis. Women compliant with intervention had significantly lower PPWR than control participants, also after adjusting for potential confounders (adjusted mean diff −1.54 kg, 95% CI −3.02, −0.05; P = 0.039).ConclusionsThe Norwegian Fit for Delivery intervention had little effect on PPWR, although women who were compliant with the intervention demonstrated significantly lower PPWR at 12 months.Tweetable abstractNorwegian Fit for Delivery RCT: little effect of lifestyle intervention on weight retention 1 year postpartum.
Review article: Staff perception of the emergency department working environment: Integrative review of the literature
Authors: Johnston Amy , Abraham Louisa , Greenslade Jaimi , Thom Ogilvie , Carlstrom Eric , Wallis Marianne , Crilly Julia 
Published: January 2016

AbstractEmployees in EDs report increasing role overload because of critical staff shortages, budgetary cuts and increased patient numbers and acuity. Such overload could compromise staff satisfaction with their working environment. This integrative review identifies, synthesises and evaluates current research around staff perceptions of the working conditions in EDs. A systematic search of relevant databases, using MeSH descriptors ED/EDs, Emergency room/s, ER/s, or A&E coupled with (and) working environment, working condition/s, staff perception/s, as well as reference chaining was conducted. We identified 31 key studies that were evaluated using the mixed methods assessment tool (MMAT). These comprised 24 quantitative‐descriptive studies, four mixed descriptive/comparative (non‐randomised controlled trial) studies and three qualitative studies. Studies included varied widely in quality with MMAT scores ranging from 0% to 100%. A key finding was that perceptions of working environment varied across clinical staff and study location, but that high levels of autonomy and teamwork offset stress around high pressure and high volume workloads. The large range of tools used to assess staff perception of working environment limits the comparability of the studies. A dearth of intervention studies around enhancing working environments in EDs limits the capacity to recommend evidence‐based interventions to improve staff morale. © 2016 The Authors. Emergency Medicine Australasia published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australasian College for Emergency Medicine and Australasian Society for Emergency Medicine
Definitive intensity‐modulated radiotherapy concurrent with systemic therapy for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma: Outcomes from an integrated regional Australian cancer centre
Authors: Masoud Rahbari Reza , Winkley Lauren , Hill Jacques , Tahir Abdul Rahim Mohammed , McKay Michael , Last Andrew , Shakespeare Thomas P , Dwyer Patrick 
Published: January 2016

AbstractIntroductionOropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) incidence has increased over the past two decades largely because of an increase in human papilloma virus (HPV)‐related OPSCC. We report here outcomes of definitive radiation therapy for OPSCC with simultaneous integrated boost intensity‐modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in a regional Australian cancer centre.MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed electronic medical records (EMR) of all patients treated with IMRT for head and neck cancer. We included patients who received a curative intent IMRT for OPSCC (2010–2014).ResultsOf 61 patients, 80% were men, and the median age was 57 years. Ninety percent of our patients received concurrent systemic therapy, and 68% were p16 positive. The median radiotherapy dose received was 70 Gy in 35 fractions. The median follow up for surviving patients was 22 months. Twenty‐four month actuarial data show that the loco‐regional recurrence free, metastasis‐free MFS, cancer‐specific (CaSS) and overall survival percentages were 98.3%, 92.6%, 91% and 90.3%, respectively. We did not observe grades 4 or 5 acute or late toxicities, and 10 patients (16.2%) exhibited persistent grade 3 toxicity 6 months after completing the treatment.ConclusionThe results from curative IMRTs for OPSCC delivered in a regional cancer centre are comparable with results published by tertiary referral centres. A long‐term follow up of this patient cohort will continue for further analyses and comparisons with tertiary centres.
Zofenopril and Ramipril in Combination with Acetyl Salicylic Acid in Postmyocardial Infarction Patients with Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction: A Retrospective Analysis of the SMILE‐4 Randomized, Double‐Blind Study in Diabetic Patients
Authors: Borghi Claudio , Omboni Stefano , Novo Salvatore , Vinereanu Dragos , Ambrosio Giuseppe , Ambrosioni Ettore ,   the SMILE‐4 Working Party
Published: January 2016

SummaryObjectiveIn the SMILE‐4 study, zofenopril + acetyl salicylic acid (ASA) was more effective than ramipril + ASA on 1‐year prevention of major cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients with acute myocardial infarction complicated by left ventricular dysfunction. In this retrospective analysis, we evaluated drug efficacy in subgroups of patients, according to a history of diabetes mellitus.MethodsThe primary study endpoint was 1‐year combined occurrence of death or hospitalization for cardiovascular causes. Diabetes was defined according to medical history (previous known diagnosis).ResultsA total of 562 of 693 (81.0%) patients were classified as nondiabetics and 131 (18.9%) as diabetics. The adjusted rate of MACE was lower under zofenopril than under ramipril in both nondiabetics [27.9% vs. 34.9% ramipril; odds ratio, OR and 95% confidence interval: 0.55 (0.35, 0.86)] and diabetics [30.9% vs. 41.3%; 0.56 (0.18, 1.73)], although the difference was statistically significant only for the nondiabetic group (P = 0.013). Zofenopril was superior to ramipril as regards to the primary study endpoint in the subgroup of 157 patients with uncontrolled blood glucose (≥126 mg/dL), regardless of a previous diagnosis of diabetes [0.31 (0.10, 0.90), P = 0.030]. Zofenopril significantly reduced the risk of hospitalization for cardiovascular causes in both nondiabetics [0.64 (0.43, 0.96), P = 0.030] and diabetics [0.38 (0.15, 0.95), P = 0.038], whereas it was not better than ramipril in terms of prevention of cardiovascular deaths.ConclusionsThis retrospective analysis of the SMILE‐4 study confirmed the good efficacy of zofenopril plus ASA in the prevention of long‐term MACE also in the subgroup of patients with diabetes mellitus.