bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Intellectual capital and firm performance in the global agribusiness industry
Authors: Scafarto Vincenzo , Ricci Federica , Scafarto Francesco 
Published: June 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between intellectual capital (IC), categorized in terms of four sub-constructs – namely, human capital (HC), relational capital (RC), innovation capital (InnC) and process capital (PrC) – and business performance in the agribusiness industry.Design/methodology/approach– Based on a sample of international agribusiness companies observed over a five-year period, this paper uses correlation and multiple regression analysis to test for the existence of a positive relationship between each IC component and conventional business performance metrics.Findings– The empirical results support the hypotheses that RC and PrC have a positive impact on corporate performance. Counter to the expectations, InnC by itself is negatively associated with performance. Results also failed to confirm the hypothesis that HC directly and positively affects performance. However HC positively moderates the relation between InnC and performance, which suggests that firms that heavily invest in HC are better placed to gain returns from their research and development (R & D) investments.Originality/value– This study expands the existing research on the link between IC and performance by adding fresh evidence from a highly knowledge-intensive sector which has been under-researched thus far. It may also contribute to the specific literature on R & D and performance as it uncovers that the value-generating effect associated with R & D investments is contingent on the levels of HC.
Business school accreditation in the changing global marketplace
Authors: Zhao Jun , Ferran Carlos 
Published: June 2016

Purpose
This paper aims to examine current trends in business accreditation by describing and comparing the major international business accreditation agencies (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, European Quality Improvement System, Association of MBAs, Association of Collegiate Business Schools and Programs and International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education), and analyze their recent market expansion strategies (development and penetration using Ansoff model) as they compete for the schools seeking initial or continuing accreditation.

Design/methodology/approach
This is a comparative study of the business accreditation agencies and their competitive strategies, using publically available data such as lists of accredited schools published by the agencies as main data collection method.

Findings
Business accreditation agencies have utilized the market penetration and market development strategies to expand their market share in recent years. The key growth areas are international schools, regional teaching-oriented institutions, two-year institutions and for-profit institutions.

Research limitations/implications
This study is based on publically available data published by accreditation agencies. More in-depth analysis with survey method could be utilized in future study to identify more specific strategies and their impact on business schools seeking accreditation.

Practical implications
Accreditation is no longer a luxury but a requirement for business schools, but they have to make an informed decision on which agency to pursue to assure an appropriate fit.

Social implications
The public needs to understand the value and the requirements of accreditation. Multiple agencies provide different options to fit the missions of the different types of schools.

Originality/value
This study is valuable to business school stakeholders for understanding accreditation, the need for accreditation and the options they have available.
Growth and conflict: the views of Chinese private higher education managers
Authors: Ma Xiaoying , Abbott Malcom 
Published: June 2016

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a series of interviews conducted with a number of managers of Chinese private higher education institutions on the growth of the private higher education sector in China and the relationship it has with the government. Private higher education managers in China do seem concerned with the regulatory impediments to their institutions’ development and the difficulties involved in competing with state-funded institutions.

Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses a series of interviews conducted with a number of managers of Chinese private higher education institutions on the growth of the private higher education sector in China and the relationship it has with the government.

Findings
The research found that private higher education managers in China do seem concerned with the regulatory impediments to their institutions’ development and the difficulties involved in competing with state-funded institutions.

Originality/value
This work is the only one of its kind in the academic literature.
Mortgage credit and bankruptcy chapter choice: a case of US counties
Authors: Desai Chintal Ajitbhai 
Published: June 2016

Purpose– A financially distressed homeowner considers bankruptcy filing, either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13, to delay foreclosure. On one hand, Chapter 13 filing takes longer processing time, spreads mortgage arrearages over the debt repayment period, and increases the possibility of loan modification. On the other hand, Chapter 7 filing discharges unsecured debt, which provides additional disposable income for mortgage payments. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approach– The author uses fixed-effects (within variation), random-effects, and generalized estimation equation models with time dummies on the panel data of US counties.Findings– The results show that mortgage delinquency increases Chapter 7 filings, while it has positive but statistically insignificant effect on Chapter 13 filings. In addition, a county’s mortgage debt to income and proportion of mortgage borrowers increase its Chapter 7 filings.Originality/value– The contribution of the paper is to assess the effect of mortgage credit on the bankruptcy chapter choice using the county-level data.
Impacts of FRS139 adoption on value relevance of financial reporting in Malaysia
Authors: Gan Chin-Yee , Chong Lee-Lee , Ahmad Zauwiyah 
Published: June 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impacts of Financial Reporting Standards (FRS)139 adoption on value relevance of financial reporting for non-financial public listed companies in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approach– Multiple regressions were applied in this study to explore the value relevance of financial reporting upon FRS139 adoption.Findings– The finding indicates that book value of equity and net income after tax are significant in jointly explaining the variations associated with market value for both the pre- and post-FRS139 period. However, the role of the book value of equity and the balance sheet in stock market valuation is becoming increasingly important compared with the role of net income after tax and income statement upon mandatory adoption of FRS139.Originality/value– This study provides relevant insights into the potential consequences of FRS139 adoption in Malaysia. This is a significant event in the history of financial reporting in Malaysia. Given the importance and complexity of applying IAS39 in more developed countries, the results of this study add to current literature by providing a comprehensive empirical analysis on the effects of FRS139 adoption on financial reporting in Malaysia, a developing country where the economy is smaller, the financial market less efficient, and institutional settings different from developed countries.
Is there a role for Islamic bonds in global diversification strategies?
Authors: Balcilar Mehmet , Cerci Gozde , Demirer Riza 
Published: June 2016

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the international diversification benefits of Islamic bonds (Sukuk) for equity investors in conventional stock markets. The authors compare the diversification benefits of these securities with their conventional alternatives from advanced and emerging markets. Compared to conventional bonds, Sukuk are backed by tangible assets and carry both bond and stock-like features. Furthermore, the Sharia-based limitations limit the risk in these securities as a result of ethical investing rules. The regime-based model provides insight to possible segmentation (or integration) of these securities from global markets during different market states.Design/methodology/approach– Risk spillover effects across conventional and Islamic stock and bond markets are examined using a Markov regime-switching GARCH model with dynamic conditional correlations (MS-DCC-GARCH). Weekly return series for conventional (advanced and emerging) and Islamic stock and bond indices are examined within a regime-dependent specification that takes into account low, high, and extreme volatility states. The DCC are then used to establish alternative diversified portfolios formed by supplementing conventional and Islamic equities with conventional and Islamic bonds one at a time.Findings– Asymmetric shocks are observed from conventional stocks and bonds into Islamic bonds (Sukuk). Compared to emerging market bonds, Sukuk are found to display a different pattern in the transmission of global market shocks. The analysis of dynamic correlations suggests a low degree of association between Islamic bonds and global stock markets with episodes of negative correlations observed, particularly during market crisis periods. Portfolio performance analysis suggests that Islamic bonds provide valuable diversification benefits that are not possible to obtain from conventional bonds.Originality/value– This study provides comprehensive analysis of volatility interactions and dynamic correlations across Islamic and conventional markets within a regime-based framework and provides insight to whether these securities could serve as safe havens or diversifiers for global investors. The findings have significant implications for global diversification strategies, particularly during market crisis periods.
Measuring intellectual capital performance of Indian banks
Authors: Singh Sukhdev , Sidhu Jasvinder , Joshi Mahesh , Kansal Monika 
Published: June 2016

Purpose
– The purpose of this paper is to measure the intellectual capital performance of Indian banks and established a relationship between intellectual capital and return on assets (ROA). The paper also compared the intellectual capital performance of public sector and private sector banks.

Design/methodology/approach
– This study is based on secondary data from the top 20 Indian banks. Ten banks were selected from each of the public and private sectors on the basis of paid-up equity capital. The analysis was made using the value added intellectual coefficient, the coefficient of variation, exponential growth rates, trend analysis, Yule’s coefficient, the coefficient of correlation, the F-test and the t-test.

Findings
– The study revealed that private sectors have performed relatively better regarding the creation of total information coefficient (IC). However, the ROA was still below the international benchmark of
>
1 percent. The major cause of the lower IC and the reduced ROA is disproportionate to the increase in capital employed and escalating non-performing assets in the Indian banking sector.

Practical implications
– The study focussed on managers and identified the causes of lower performance. It proposed numerous strategies to improve the aggregate score of IC, which is closely related to bank profitability.

Originality/value
– This is the first study to make a comparative analysis of intellectual capital performance in public and private sector banks in India and in addition to the traditional style of measuring sectoral performance. Further, the study employed new statistical tools, such as Yule’s coefficient of association, to establish the association between performance variables.
Grazing‐induced shifts in community functional composition and soil nutrient availability in Tibetan alpine meadows
Authors: Niu Kechang , He Jin‐Sheng , Lechowicz Martin J. 
Published: June 2016

SummaryThe functional structure of plant communities can be altered by grazing through two main mechanisms: species turnover (i.e. changes in species occurrence and relative abundance) and intraspecific trait variability (ITV), which is driven by phenotypic responses of individual plants and shifts in the relative abundance of genotypic variants within species. Studies of grassland ecosystem function under grazing often focus on community changes induced by species turnover, which ignores the effects ofITVon biomass productivity, soil carbon or nutrient availability. By quantifying the relative contribution of both effects on shifts in community‐wide traits, we highlight the role ofITVin community functional response to grazing and its implications for ecosystem function in Tibetan alpine meadows.We measured three chemical traits (LC: leaf carbon,LN: leaf nitrogen andLP: leaf phosphorus concentrations) and two morphological traits (SLA: specific leaf area,LDMC: leaf dry matter content) that are critical components of plant production and forage quality in grazed and ungrazed plots. Using variance decomposition of community‐weighted means (CWM) for these foliar traits, we distinguished the relative importance ofITVvs. change in species occurrence and abundance in response to grazing and the associated changes in soil carbon and nutrient availability.TheCWMfor foliar nutrients andSLACWMincreased in response to grazing together with decreases in soil carbon and nutrient stores, especiallyLPCWMenrichment and loss of available soil P. TheLPCWMwas strongly negatively correlated withLDMCCWM, which was significantly higher in ungrazed plots. These community‐wide trait responses to grazing were generally best captured byITVand not changes in species occurrence and abundance, althoughITVwas consistently correlated with species turnover for all traits.Synthesis and applications. In response to continuous grazing, plants in Tibetan alpine meadows increase specific leaf area and foliar nutrients but tend to have lower leaf dry matter content, a response consistent with faster growth and regrowth under grazing. This intraspecific trait variability response drives a shift in community function from conservative, slow‐growing resource use in ungrazed meadows to exploitative resource use under grazing. This community‐wide functional response enhances forage quality, in turn favouring the secondary productivity of small herbivorous mammal communities, but also contributes to accelerated depletion of soil available phosphorus. We discuss the implications of these results for biodiversity conservation, ecosystem function and rangeland sustainability in the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, especially with regard to managing grazing rotation to strike a balance between favouring secondary productivity of domesticated stock vs. small herbivorous mammals.
Manipulating wetland hydroperiod to improve occupancy rates by an endangered amphibian: modelling management scenarios
Authors: Hamer Andrew J. , Heard Geoffrey W. , Urlus Jake , Ricciardello Jonathon , Schmidt Bernadette , Quin Darren , Steele William K. 
Published: June 2016

SummaryEnvironmental managers have the difficult task of ensuring species persistence despite considerable uncertainty about their response to management. Spatially explicit population models provide one solution for simulating the dynamics of species and evaluating alternative management regimes.We used a Bayesian model to investigate wetland occupancy dynamics of the endangered growling grass frogLitoria raniformisat a wastewater treatment plant in southern Victoria, Australia. We coupled prior information from earlier research on this species with our survey data to quantify the effects of patch‐scale variables and connectivity on the probabilities of occupancy, population extinction and colonization. Hydroperiods of 13 sites were experimentally enhanced to bolster occupancy rates byL. raniformis. We used simulations to assess the extent to which the enhanced hydroperiod regime improved the viability of the focal metapopulation.Occupancy rate increased by 15% among the enhanced sites in 2013–2014, whereas the rate of occupancy among unenhanced sites fell by 11% in that year. Forward simulation using the dynamic occupancy model suggested that the minimum occupancy rate across the metapopulation would be 18% higher if the enhanced hydroperiod regime was retained over the next 20 years.Mean posterior effects of patch‐scale variables and connectivity on the occupancy dynamics ofL. raniformiswere consistent with the prior effect in all cases, with only small changes to the size of these effects. There was no clear effect of water chemistry on occupancy dynamics.Synthesis and applications. This work suggests that managing the hydroperiod of constructed wetlands can be an effective tool for the conservation of amphibians and demonstrates the utility of spatially explicit models for assessing metapopulation viability. We encourage managers to experimentally test the efficacy of manipulating patch‐scale variables to improve occupancy rates within amphibian metapopulations.
Faster and farther: wolf movement on linear features and implications for hunting behaviour
Authors: Dickie Melanie , Serrouya Robert , McNay R. Scott , Boutin Stan 
Published: June 2016

SummaryPredation by grey wolvesCanis lupushas been identified as an important cause of boreal woodland caribouRangifer tarandus cariboumortality, and it has been hypothesized that wolf use of human‐created linear features such as seismic lines, pipelines and roads increases movement, resulting in higher kill rates.We tested if wolves select linear features and whether movement rates increased while travelling on linear features in north‐eastern Alberta and north‐western Saskatchewan using 5‐minGPS(Global Positioning System) locations from twenty‐two wolves in six packs.Wolves selected all but two linear feature classes, with the magnitude of selection depending on feature class and season. Wolves travelled two to three times faster on linear features compared to the natural forest. Increased average daily travelling speed while on linear features and increased proportion of steps spent travelling on linear features increased net daily movement rates, suggesting that wolf use of linear features can increase their search rate.Synthesis and applications. Our findings that wolves move faster and farther on human‐created linear features can inform mitigation strategies intended to decrease predation on woodland caribou, a threatened species. Of the features that can realistically be restored, mitigation strategies such as silviculture and linear deactivation (i.e. tree‐felling and fencing) should prioritize conventional seismic lines (i.e. cleared lines used for traditional oil and gas exploration) and pipelines, as they were selected by wolves and increased travelling speed, before low‐impact seismic lines.
Regulatory Unilateralism: Arguments for Going It Alone on Climate Change
Authors: Drahos Peter , Downie Christian 
Published: June 2016

AbstractClimate change is a collective action problem that has often been analyzed as a Prisoner's Dilemma. States have an incentive to free ride on the efforts of others. Yet around the globe national and sub‐national governments are introducing regulatory measures to reduce emissions that can be fairly characterized as unilateral actions. TheUSand China, the world's two largest emitters, are at the forefront. Indeed the evidence of states beginning to depart from business‐as‐usual behavior raises the possibility that the characterizations of climate change as a Prisoner's Dilemma may apply less strongly to the problem and that something else may be starting to happen. Accordingly, this article considers: (i) to what extent nations are taking unilateral action to address climate change; and (ii) in the context of climate change, which is considered one of the greatest global collective action problems the world has faced, what are the possible economic explanations for nations to act in a unilateral fashion and what are the normative reasons for doing so. We justify regulatory unilateralism on economic, geopolitical and moral grounds, and argue that regulatory unilateralism may offer the best hope of triggering a race to cut emissions. A race rather than prolonged negotiations is what is required at this moment in climate history.
Variations in first‐time caesarean birth between Eastern African immigrants and Australian‐born women in public care: A population‐based investigation in Victoria
Authors: Belihu Fetene B. , Small Rhonda , Davey Mary‐Ann 
Published: June 2016

BackgroundCaesarean section (CS) rates are known to vary by country, migration status and social group. However, little population‐based, confounder adjusted evidence exists on caesarean rate for African immigrants in Australia.AimTo investigate disparities in first‐time caesarean, mainly unplanned caesarean in labour for women born in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan relative to Australian‐born women in public care.MethodsA population‐based study of 237 943 Australian and 4057 Eastern African singleton births between 1999 and 2007, was conducted using Victorian Perinatal Data Collection. Descriptive and multivariable logistic regression analysis by parity, adjusting for confounders selected a priori, was performed for first‐time unplanned caesarean in labour and overall caesarean.ResultsPrimiparae born in each of the Eastern African countries had elevated odds of unplanned caesarean in labour: Eritrea adjusted odds ratio (ORadj) 2.04 95% CI (1.41, 2.97), Ethiopia ORadj 2.08 95% CI (1.62, 2.68), Somalia ORadj 1.62 95% CI (1.25, 2.10) and Sudan ORadj 1.39 95% CI (1.03, 1.87). Similarly, multiparae from Eastern African countries had elevated odds of unplanned caesarean in labour: Eritrea ORadj 2.13 95%CI(1.15, 3.97), Ethiopia ORadj 2.05 95% CI (1.38, 3.03), Somalia ORadj 2.16 95% CI (1.69, 2.77) and Sudan ORadj 1.81 95% CI (1.32, 2.49). The odds of any first‐time caesarean (planned or unplanned) were elevated for primiparae born in all countries except Sudan and for multiparae born in Ethiopia and Somalia.ConclusionsWe observed substantial variations in a first‐time CS between Eastern African and Australian‐born women in Victoria, Australia. However, these disparities were unexplained by socio‐demographic and clinical risks, suggesting the potential importance of other factors such as communication difficulties, support systems for immigrant pregnant women and possible differences in care.