bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A critical reflection on knowledge hierarchies, language and development
Authors: Langthaler Margarita , Witjes Nina , Slezak Gabriele 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion about the developmental value of knowledge by reflecting on the “knowledge for development” (K4D) paradigm. In particular, it draws attention to the interaction between linguistic and communicative processes and the areas of power, knowledge and education. This is considered fruitful to understanding the complex and subtle mechanisms in the reproduction of the North‐South knowledge and power divide.Design/methodology/approachThe authors apply an interdisciplinary approach combining concepts from development studies, sociology of education and sociolinguistics. The article first contextualizes the K4D paradigm. It then reflects on knowledge hierarchies and the role of language. Second, it looks at donor policies and the conditions for higher education in developing countries. The Burkina Faso Country Gateway serves as an example of a donor‐driven K4D initiative. An analysis of its web site based on sociolinguistic approaches is used to exemplify the above mentioned interrelation.FindingsThe article concludes that the K4D paradigm asserts rather than flattens North‐South knowledge hierarchies. To allow knowledge production to be inclusive, it is necessary to reflect on how knowledge management and ICT tools must be structured in order to enable interaction with disadvantaged user groups and to facilitate democratic and participative processes.Originality/valueThe interplay between power and knowledge asymmetries with language and communication processes is rarely reflected upon in the context of development. This paper seeks to increase the attention paid to these topics.
Institutionalization of accrual accounting in the Indonesian public sector
Authors: Harun Harun , Van Peursem Karen , Eggleton Ian 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to evaluate the institutionalization of an accrual accounting system in the Indonesian public sector.Design/methodology/approachThe authors undertake a case study to gain insights relating to the critical features of the institutionalization process of the accrual accounting system (AAS) in one Indonesian public sector municipality. The data are drawn from official documents of the Indonesian Government and from publicly available information about the accrual adoption processes. The authors also interviewed key actors who were involved in the accrual accounting policy formulation, standards development and implementation. The data under investigation cover the period from 1983 to 2010.FindingsThe IPM of Dambrin, Lambert and Sponem is employed to evaluate the process by which an AAS was idealized, standardized, implemented and used in one Indonesian municipality. Scott's pillars of legitimization also inform rationales behind practice. This study reveals how the decision of the Indonesian Government to adopt accrual accounting in 2003 was part of greater political and economic reforms following the financial and political crisis that occurred in 1998. Idealized in the early 1980s by technocrats in the Ministry of Finance, accrual accounting practices were deferred and then enabled by a series of national political events. Their ultimate internalization into our municipality was led by new legislation but also influenced by the habits and histories of the Indonesian local context and was as a result decoupled in many respects from ideals, discourses and techniques established for it.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings should be understood in the economic, social and historical context of Indonesia. Findings offered here may differ from other applications due to the nature of the economic, social and political contexts.Originality/valueUniquely employing the IPM model, and drawing from a context which has undergone significant political change but which has benefitted from little research, this study contributes to an understanding of the institutionalization and legitimization process of an accrual accounting system in an emerging‐economy public sector. Findings demonstrate how notions of politics and power inform the complexity of institutionalization in this unique political‐economic environment.
Management accounting change and sustainability: an institutional approach
Authors: Arroyo Paulina 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose an institutional entrepreneurship approach to examining management accounting change triggered by social and environmental concerns.Design/methodology/approachThe study begins with a literature review concerning the role that old institutional economics and new institutional sociology have played in the study of management accounting change, underlining strengths and weaknesses. To deal with the main weaknesses, the institutional entrepreneurship approach is presented and utilized as the basis for the development of a conceptual framework, which is contextualized to the examination of management accounting change triggered by sustainability issues.FindingsManagement accounting change literature has not paid enough attention to the social constructivist roots of institutional theory. Through the application of a conceptual framework inspired by institutional change models and institutional entrepreneurship literature, this paper proposes another approach to examine how new management accounting practices are socially constructed during the course of organizational change, particularly in response to sustainability concerns.Research limitations/implicationsThis new framework has not yet demonstrated its explanatory power in a particular field.Originality/valueThe paper examines management accounting change as a social construction process led by institutional entrepreneurs who aim to mobilize resources and negotiate the definition and implementation of sustainability strategies and new management accounting practices, which will take environmental and social issues into consideration, in order to reach an agreement on the pre‐institutionalization, diffusion and institutionalization of sustainable practices.
International harmonization and national particularities of accounting
Authors: Cong Phuong Nguyen , Dinh Khoi Nguyen Tran 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the recent accounting regulations designed to facilitate international harmonization in Vietnam and to show how Vietnam developed an accounting system that harmonizes with international standards while preserving macroeconomic control.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is developed using the theoretical framework on globalisation.FindingsThe recent development of accounting aims to implement Vietnam's commitment to harmonize its accounting system with the world. This process has faced some difficulties due to national particularities such as Vietnam's economic system and accounting tradition. This paper shows that the regulators have been careful in their approach to develop and find ways to combine or adapt when pushing for accounting development: a co‐existence of vietnamese accounting standards and a uniform accounting system. This point differs from the Anglo‐Saxon world, but is comparable to China.Research limitations/implicationsThe different approach to developing accounting regulation in Vietnam reflects the key role of the State in preserving governmental control while harmonizing with international standards.Practical implicationsThis paper studies the influence of globalization on accounting development in Vietnam. It suggests that developing accounting practices in a country in harmony with international standards faces obstacles previously evidenced in the literature, such as economic system and accounting tradition. The study also provides insight into problems encountered by regulators who are incorporating international accounting standards into national accounting regulations. These problems suggest that international accounting standard setters and accounting regulators may face issues similar to those in Vietnam.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the literature on international accounting harmonisation by illustrating the need for considering national particularities as factors that will affect the rate of harmonisation with international accounting standards.
The causal relationships between performance drivers and outcomes
Authors: Barnabè Federico , Busco Cristiano 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to speculate on the potentials of the system dynamics methodology to contribute to the balanced scorecard (BSC) design and implementation by producing a detailed causal relationships model that links strategic and operational objectives in a more accurate and effective way.Design/methodology/approachThe work is based on the methodological principles and the operational tools provided by the system dynamics methodology and the BSC framework.FindingsOne of the main areas that both the relevant literature and Kaplan and Norton identified as critical in developing the original BSC framework is related to the identification and the quantification of “causal relationships” across the BSC, and to the subsequent opportunity to use a mathematical‐computer model to test and simulate such assumptions and their impacts on strategy implementation. Such issues are addressed in this paper.Practical implicationsThe paper provides information and consideration on how to model and assess causality and cause‐and‐effect relationships in BSC environments. Subsequently, it provides some reflections on the contribution of the system dynamics methodology for the design and implementation of the BSC.Originality/valueThe value of this paper is two‐fold: first, it shows that relying on system dynamics tools and methodological principles is possible to better define the concept of causality in BSC frameworks; second, it shows that by integrating system dynamics modelling principles and the BSC framework it is possible to develop a comprehensive approach to performance management and strategy formulation and strategy implementation.
The balanced scorecard: comments on balanced scorecard commentaries
Authors: Kaplan Robert S. 
Published: March 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide the author's insights about five papers written in this volume about his published work on the balanced scorecard (BSC).Design/methodology/approachThe author's comments are based on his personal writing, teaching, speaking about, and implementing the BSC during the past 20 years.FindingsThe author finds that academic commentary on the BSC often ignores its role in strategy execution.Research limitations/implicationsThe commentary is unique to the author's personal experiences and may not be generalizable to other scholars who have not shared the same experiences.Practical implicationsThe paper may help scholars better understand the role of the BSC for strategy formulation, communication and implementation. It may also aid them in teaching the BSC to students and executives.Social implicationsThe paper discusses how the BSC can be used in public sector applications, as well as for companies that want to internalize environmental, social and community objectives in their strategies.Originality/valueThe paper reflects the personal views of the author; it is original to him.
Clinical features of axillary osmidrosis: A retrospective chart review of 723 Japanese patients
Authors: Morioka Daichi , Ohkubo Fumio , Amikura Yoshiyasu 
Published: March 2013

AbstractAxillary osmidrosis often disturbs a person's social life, particularly in Asian countries. However, the clinical aspects of this condition have not been well documented in the English‐language published work. This study aimed to provide information on the features of axillary osmidrosis, with a particular focus on sex differences. A retrospective review was made of the charts for 723 Japanese patients (492 female, 231 male). The mean age at initial presentation (29.1 years) was nearly the same for males and females. Almost all patients (96.1%) had wet earwax, which was extremely high compared to its frequency in the general Japanese population. An association with hyperhidrosis was seen in 61.8% of these patients. Subjective odor levels in female patients were significantly lower than those in males (P < 0.001). A positive family history was more frequent for females than for males (P < 0.001), and prior treatment history was also more frequent for females than for males (P < 0.015). Most patients (86.6%) had received some treatments in our clinic. There were significantly fewer females who underwent surgical treatments compared to males (P = 0.026), as females preferred less invasive techniques (P < 0.001). Several features, including male/female ratios, and associations of wet earwax and hyperhidrosis, corresponded to previously reported data on axillary osmidrosis. Female patients were more concerned with axillary odor than males, and females had a tendency for polysurgery.
Costs of dispersal alter optimal offspring size in patchy habitats: combining theory and data for a marine invertebrate
Authors: Burgess Scott C. , Bode Michael , Marshall Dustin J. 
Published: March 2013

Summary

Much of the theory on offspring size focuses on the effects of habitat quality on the relationship between offspring size and fitness. Habitat spacing may be another important factor that affects selection on offspring size when offspring disperse prior to colonization and accrue deferred costs that are mediated by offspring size.

We developed a theoretical model, based on a well‐known optimality model, of how selection on offspring size changes with dispersal distance. The model assumes that offspring fitness depends on both offspring size and dispersal duration and that dispersal time and distance are positively related. Such assumptions are based on thousands of marine invertebrate species with non‐feeding larvae, but our model also applies more generally to any organism where offspring size modifies the energetic costs of dispersal, and there is a positive relationship between dispersal duration and distance.

Our model predicts that, even when habitat quality does not vary, more isolated habitats may favour the production of fewer, larger offspring if smaller offspring incur greater deferred costs of dispersal. We then empirically demonstrate that offspring size and dispersal duration have interactive effects on post‐settlement survival in a marine invertebrate (Bugula neritina), and such size‐dependent deferred costs of dispersal are of a magnitude sufficient enough to potentially favour larger offspring in isolated habitats.

Together, our results indicate that the spatial pattern of suitable habitat could impose very different selective regimes on offspring size compared with the effects of habitat quality. Furthermore, our predictions contrast to those predicted for seed size and dispersal in plants, where the production of smaller, more numerous seeds is often a more efficient way for mothers to access distant, suitable habitat.
Shifts in microbial community composition and function in the acidification of a lead/zinc mine tailings
Authors: Chen Lin‐xing , Li Jin‐tian , Chen Ya‐ting , Huang Li‐nan , Hua Zheng‐shuang , Hu Min , Shu Wen‐sheng 
Published: March 2013

SummaryIn an attempt to link the microbial community composition and function in mine tailings to the generation of acid mine drainage, we simultaneously explored the geochemistry and microbiology of six tailings collected from a lead/zinc mine, i.e. primary tailings (T1), slightly acidic tailings (T2), extremely acidic tailings (T3, T4 and T5) and orange‐coloured oxidized tailings (T6). Geochemical results showed that the six tailings (from T1 to T6) likely represented sequential stages of the acidification process of the mine tailings. 16S rRNA pyrosequencing revealed a contrasting microbial composition between the six tailings: Proteobacteria‐related sequences dominated T1–T3 with relative abundance ranging from 56 to 93%, whereas Ferroplasma‐related sequences dominated T4–T6 with relative abundance ranging from 28 to 58%. Furthermore, metagenomic analysis of the microbial communities of T2 and T6 indicated that the genes encoding key enzymes for microbial carbon fixation, nitrogen fixation and sulfur oxidation in T2 were largely from Thiobacillus and Acidithiobacillus, Methylococcus capsulatus, and Thiobacillus denitrificans respectively; while those in T6 were mostly identified in Acidithiobacillus and Leptospirillum, Acidithiobacillus and Leptospirillum, and Acidithiobacillus respectively. The microbial communities in T2 and T6 harboured more genes suggesting diverse metabolic capacities for sulfur oxidation/heavy metal detoxification and tolerating low pH respectively.
The type II secretion system (Xcp) of Pseudomonas putida is active and involved in the secretion of phosphatases
Authors: Putker Florian , Tommassen‐van Boxtel Ria , Stork Michiel , Rodríguez‐Herva José J. , Koster Margot , Tommassen Jan 
Published: March 2013

SummaryThe genome of the Gram‐negative bacterium Pseudomonas putida harbours a complete set of xcp genes for a type II protein secretion system (T2SS). This study shows that expression of these genes is induced under inorganic phosphate (Pi) limitation and that the system enables the utilization of various organic phosphate sources. A phosphatase of the PhoX family, previously designated UxpB, was identified, which was produced under low Pi conditions and transported across the cell envelope in an Xcp‐dependent manner demonstrating that the xcp genes encode an active T2SS. The signal sequence of UxpB contains a twin‐arginine translocation (Tat) motif as well as a lipobox, and both processing by leader peptidase II and Tat dependency were experimentally confirmed. Two different tat gene clusters were detected in the P. putida genome, of which one, named tat‐1, is located adjacent to the uxpB and xcp genes. Both Tat systems appeared to be capable of transporting the UxpB protein. However, expression of the tat‐1 genes was strongly induced by low Pi levels, indicating a function of this system in survival during Pi starvation.
Touch DNA Collection Versus Firearm Fingerprinting: Comparing Evidence Production and Identification Outcomes
Authors: Nunn Samuel 
Published: March 2013

AbstractA project by a metropolitan police agency in 2008–2009 had police use touch DNA kits to collect cell samples from seized firearms. To assess outcomes, results of touch DNA swabbing of firearms were compared to fingerprinting firearm evidence. The rationale was that fingerprinting, as the older technology, was the baseline against which to compare touch DNA. But little is known about ways to measure touch DNA productivity compared to fingerprinting. To examine differences between the two requires comparable measurements. Two measures were used: quantity of probative or investigative evidence produced and identification outcomes. When applied to firearms seized within an Indianapolis, IN police district, touch DNA produced a larger volume of evidence than fingerprinting, but identification outcomes for the two methods were equal. Because touch DNA was deployed by police patrol officers, there are implications for firearm forensics and the choice of forensic approaches used by police.
A Simple and Fast Detection Method for Bovine Milk Residues in Foods: A 2‐Site Monoclonal Antibody Immunochromatography Assay
Authors: Xuli Wu , Weiyi He , Ji Kunmei , Wenpu Wan , Dongsheng Hu , Hui Wu , Xinpin Luo , Zhigang Liu 
Published: March 2013

Abstract The ingredient declaration on food labels assumes paramount importance in the protection of food‐allergic consumers. China has not implemented Food allergen labeling. A gold immunochromatography assay (GICA) was developed using 2 monoclonal antibodies (mAb) against the milk allergen β‐lactoglobulin in this study. The GICA was specific for pure milk samples with a sensitivity of 0.2 ng/mL. Milk protein traces extracted from 110 food products were detected by this method. The labels of 106 were confirmed by our GICA method: 57 food samples originally labeled as containing milk were positive for β‐lactoglobulin and 49 food samples labeled as not containing milk were negative for β‐lactoglobulin. However, 3 food samples falsely labeled as containing milk were found to contain no β‐lactoglobulin whereas 1 food sample labeled as not containing milk actually contained β‐lactoglobulin. First, these negatives could be because of the addition of a casein fraction. Second, some countries demand that food manufacturers label all ingredients derived from milk as “containing milk” even though the ingredients contain no detectable milk protein by any method. Our GICA method could thus provide a fast and simple method for semiquantitatation of β‐lactoglobulin in foods.Practical Application: The present method provides a fast, simple, semiquantitative method for the determination of milk allergens in foods.
The Effect of Reversibility on a Manager's Decision to Record Asset Impairments
Authors: Trottier Kim 
Published: March 2013

AbstractOver time, accounting standards have moved toward presenting more items at fair value on the balance sheet. Consistent with this trend, IAS No. 36 permits an impairment loss on a long‐lived asset to be reversed if the economic value of the asset recovers. This article uses empirical data from an experiment conducted with 118 managers to explore the implication of allowing impairment reversals on a manager's decision to record the loss. Results suggest that permitting reversals significantly increases the likelihood that a manager will record the impairment, especially if the manager has a bonus plan. The bonus plan effect is not caused by the manager's intention to smooth income through impairment reversals, but by his disutility from a bonus forgone if the value of the asset recovers but accounting rules prohibit him from reversing the loss.
Factors Influencing Corporate Environmental Disclosures
Authors: Wegener Matt , Elayan Fayez A. , Felton Sandra , Li Jingyu 
Published: March 2013

AbstractWe investigate the effectiveness of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a not‐for‐profit organization that facilitates environmental disclosures of firms with institutional investors, thereby serving as a corporate governance mechanism for shareholders to influence the firm's environmental disclosures. We examine firm characteristics associated with firms' decisions to disclose carbon‐related information via the CDP for a sample of 319 Canadian firms over a four‐year period. In particular, we examine how firms' decisions to disclose via CDP are associated with shareholder activism, litigation risk, and the opportunity for low‐cost positive publicity once requested by the firms' “signatory” investors. Our results also show that management's decision to release climate change data is associated with domestic, but not foreign, signatory investors. We also find that disclosing firms tend to be those from lower polluting industries with less exposure to litigation risk. This suggests that this new form of coordinated shareholder activism may not be successful at altering the behavior of firms that are heavier polluters.