bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Examining the public policy perspective of CSR implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Samy Martin , Ogiri Henry Itotenaan , Bampton Roberta 
Published: July 2015

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the public policy perspective of corporate social responsibility (CSR) implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa. There has been an increase in the number of countries adopting a national policy for CSR practice, particularly in the Western society. Despite the growing awareness about the role of government in CSR promotion, governments in Sub-Saharan Africa are yet to evolve policies that could help promote CSR in the region. As drivers of CSR, governments hold resources, like access to regulated parts of society that makes the inclusion of CSR opportunities relevant to strategic and operational management. From the extant literature, the role of government in defining and shaping the field of CSR is gaining wider acceptability.Design/methodology/approach– Using a qualitative research approach, this paper examines the current status of CSR implementation, particularly from the public policy perspective in selected Sub-Saharan African countries. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with policymakers and policy implementers. The study adopted a thematic analysis and developed a rigorous phenomenological design to reveal the insights to CSR policy-making.Findings– The findings established that the status of CSR implementation in Sub-Saharan Africa is influenced by absence of national CSR policy, CSR being mainstreamed in government constitution and CSR being a company initiative action to comply with international code of business conduct.Practical implications– The results of this study could have policy implications for both executive and MPs of national governments for CSR regulatory policies.Originality/value– In most developing countries, including Sub-Saharan African countries, the aforementioned institutional conditions are often an exception. There are both no legal and regulatory frameworks for Multinational Corporation activities and their socio-ecological impact, or such regulations may exist but are not adequately enforced (Rwabizambuga, 2007). This situation, unfortunately, has created a huge reporting gap between what organisations do and what they report regarding CSR. Hence, this original study adds to the body of knowledge for this region by revealing the central issues around the phenomenon.
Role of dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa in anxiety, depression and self‐esteem: A controlled cross‐sectional study
Authors: Fortuna Giulio , Aria Massimo , Cepeda‐Valdes Rodrigo , Garcia‐Garcia Sandra Cecilia , Moreno Trevino Maria Guadalupe , Salas‐Alanís Julio Cesar 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe psychological aspect in patients with dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB) is poorly documented. We sought to determine the role of DEB in anxiety, depression and self‐esteem. We conducted a cross‐sectional study, collecting data from 27 DEB patients and 26 healthy individuals. DEB patients and healthy controls completed three different psychometric scales for anxiety and depression and one scale for self‐esteem. DEB patients and healthy controls were homogeneous for age and sex (P > 0.05), but not for employment, marital status and economic level (P < 0.05). Median values of all psychometric battery scales were not statistically significant between DEB patients and healthy controls, except for Goldberg scale for anxiety (P = 0.003) and depression (P = 0.037) and slightly significant for Zung Scale for anxiety (P = 0.048) with no difference between DEB patients with dominant versus recessive form in all scales (P > 0.05). Among DEB patients, only employment showed a significant difference in all scales (P < 0.05) but Hamilton for depression, whereas self‐esteem seemed to be affected by marriage (P = 0.04) and education (P = 0.016). DEB patients apparently are not more anxious and/or depressed and do not have less self‐esteem than healthy individuals.
Estimating dark diversity and species pools: an empirical assessment of two methods
Authors: Lewis Rob J. , Szava‐Kovats Robert , Pärtel Meelis 
Published: July 2015

Summary

Species absent from a community but with the potential to establish (dark diversity) are an important, yet rarely considered component of habitat‐specific species pools. Quantifying this component remains a challenge as dark diversity cannot be observed directly and must be estimated. Here, we empirically test whether species ecological requirements or species co‐occurrences provide accurate estimates of dark diversity.

We used two spatially nested independent datasets, one comprising 3033 samples of coastal grassland vegetation from 4 m2 and 200 m2 plots from Scotland, UK, and another comprising 780 samples of forest vegetation plots from 30 m2 and 500 m2 plots from Switzerland. Dark diversity for each of the smaller scaled plots was estimated through investigating the degree of (i) similarity in ecological requirements (measured as Ellenberg values); and (ii) co‐occurrence likelihood. Estimates were validated using species from the larger spatial scales. Estimates were further validated using observations from all larger scale plots surrounding a focal assemblage within a 2 km (Scottish grassland) and 10 km (Swiss forest) radius.

The co‐occurrence method was shown to be more accurate resulting in far fewer negative mismatches (i.e. species observed but not predicted), as well as higher proportions of observed and predicted species, relative to the Ellenberg method. Of the species observed in the large‐scale samples, 18% were estimated as part of the smaller scale dark diversity via the co‐occurrence approach relative to 8% for the Ellenberg method for both the Scottish and Swiss data, respectively. These values increased to 67% & 60% and 32% & 35%, respectively, across all observations within a 2 km (Scottish grasslands) and 10 km (Swiss forests) radius.

The study demonstrates that dark diversity for a community can be successfully estimated using readily available data, through exploring species co‐occurrence patterns. This work substantiates that habitat‐specific species pools can be accurately quantified and should prove valuable for understanding underlying community processes and improving our knowledge of the mechanisms governing species co‐existence.
Leader Incentives and Civil War Outcomes
Authors: Prorok Alyssa K. 
Published: July 2015

This article examines the influence that rebel and state leaders have on civil war outcomes, arguing that incentives to avoid punishment influence their strategic decision making during war. Leaders in civil war face punishment from two sources: internal audiences and opponents. I hypothesize that leaders who bear responsibility for involvement in the war have a higher expectation of punishment from both sources following unfavorable war performance, and thus, have incentives to continue the fight in the hope of turning the tide and avoiding the negative consequences of defeat. These incentives, in turn, make leaders who bear responsibility more likely to fight to an extreme outcome and less likely to make concessions to end the war. These propositions are tested on an original data set identifying all rebel and state leaders in all civil conflict dyads ongoing between 1980 and 2011. Results support the hypothesized relationships between leader responsibility and war outcomes.
Commitments of Debt: Temporality and the Meanings of Aid Work in a Japanese NGO in Myanmar
Authors: Watanabe Chika 
Published: July 2015

ABSTRACTThe rise of debt as a mechanism of development troubles many scholars and aid practitioners. Contrary to these concerns, however, ethnographic research at a Japanese NGO in Myanmar showed that Japanese and Burmese aid workers found value in moral and monetary debt relations. In this article, I argue that these aid workers viewed indebtedness as a precondition for the making of voluntary actors, willing and committed to aid work. What they problematized was not indebtedness but, rather, competing understandings of the appropriate temporality of a debt's repayment. The fault lines did not appear along cultural or moral‐monetary boundaries; they existed in the ways that people conceptualized voluntary actors as emerging from either long‐term forms of indebted gratitude or sequences of short‐term contractual agreements. While the entrapment of the poor in cycles of debt remains an increasing concern in the world, I here ask how we might understand local aid workers’ professional commitments when they do not question indebtedness as a moral framework.
Refinery: Visual Exploration of Large, Heterogeneous Networks through Associative Browsing
Authors: Kairam S. , Riche N. H. , Drucker S. , Fernandez R. , Heer J. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractBrowsing is a fundamental aspect of exploratory information‐seeking. Associative browsing represents a common and intuitive set of exploratory strategies in which users step iteratively from familiar to novel bits of information. In this paper, we examine associative browsing as a strategy for bottom‐up exploration of large, heterogeneous networks. We present Refinery, an interactive visualization system informed by guidelines for associative browsing drawn from literature on exploratory information‐seeking. These guidelines motivate Refinery's query model, which allows users to simply and expressively construct queries using heterogeneous sets of nodes. This system computes degree‐of‐interest scores for associated content using a fast, random‐walk algorithm. Refinery visualizes query nodes within a subgraph of results, providing explanatory context, facilitating serendipitous discovery, and stimulating continued exploration. A study of 12 academic researchers using Refinery to browse publication data demonstrates how the system enables discovery of valuable new content, even within existing areas of expertise.
Detangler: Visual Analytics for Multiplex Networks
Authors: Renoust B. , Melançon G. , Munzner T. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractA multiplex network has links of different types, allowing it to express many overlapping types of relationships. A core task in network analysis is to evaluate and understand group cohesion; that is, to explain why groups of elements belong together based on the underlying structure of the network. We present Detangler, a system that supports visual analysis of group cohesion in multiplex networks through dual linked views. These views feature new data abstractions derived from the original multiplex network: the substrate network and the catalyst network. We contribute two novel techniques that allow the user to analyze the complex structure of the multiplex network without the extreme visual clutter that would result from simply showing it directly. The harmonized layout visual encoding technique provides spatial stability between the substrate and catalyst views. The pivot brushing interaction technique supports linked highlighting between the views based on computations in the underlying multiplex network to leapfrog between subsets of catalysts and substrates. We present results from the motivating application domain of annotated news documents with a usage scenario and preliminary expert feedback. A second usage scenario presents group cohesion analysis of the social network of the early American independence movement.
Mosaic Drawings and Cartograms
Authors: Cano R. G. , Buchin K. , Castermans T. , Pieterse A. , Sonke W. , Speckmann B. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractCartograms visualize quantitative data about a set of regions such as countries or states. There are several different types of cartograms and – for some – algorithms to automatically construct them exist. We focus on mosaic cartograms: cartograms that use multiples of simple tiles – usually squares or hexagons – to represent regions. Mosaic cartograms communicate well data that consist of, or can be cast into, small integer units (for example, electorial college votes). In addition, they allow users to accurately compare regions and can often maintain a (schematized) version of the input regions’ shapes. We propose the first fully automated method to construct mosaic cartograms. To do so, we first introduce mosaic drawings of triangulated planar graphs. We then show how to modify mosaic drawings into mosaic cartograms with low cartographic error while maintaining correct adjacencies between regions. We validate our approach experimentally and compare to other cartogram methods.
Density‐dependent home‐range size revealed by spatially explicit capture–recapture
Authors: Efford M. G. , Dawson D. K. , Jhala Y. V. , Qureshi Q. 
Published: July 2015

The size of animal home ranges often varies inversely with population density among populations of a species. This fact has implications for population monitoring using spatially explicit capture–recapture (SECR) models, in which both the scale of home‐range movements σ and population densityDusually appear as parameters, and both may vary among populations. It will often be appropriate to model a structural relationship between population‐specific values of these parameters, rather than to assume independence. We suggest re‐parameterizing the SECR model usingkp= σp√Dp, wherekprelates to the degree of overlap between home ranges and the subscriptpdistinguishes populations. We observe thatkpis often nearly constant for populations spanning a range of densities. This justifies fitting a model in which the separatekpare replaced by the single parameterkand σpis a density‐dependent derived parameter. Continuous density‐dependent spatial variation in σ may also be modelled, using a scaled non‐Euclidean distance between detectors and the locations of animals. We illustrate these methods with data from automatic photography of tigersPanthera tigrisacross India, in which the variation is among populations, from mist‐netting of ovenbirdsSeiurus aurocapillain Maryland, USA, in which the variation is within a single population over time, and from live‐trapping of brushtail possumsTrichosurus vulpeculain New Zealand, modelling spatial variation within one population.Possible applications and limitations of the methods are discussed. A model in whichkpis constant, while density varies, provides a parsimonious null model for SECR. The parameterkof the null model is a concise summary of the empirical relationship between home‐range size and density that is useful in comparative studies. We expect deviations from this model, particularly the dependence ofkpon covariates, to be biologically interesting.
Knowledge, attitudes and practices surrounding occupational blood‐borne pathogen exposure amongst students in two Chinese dental schools
Authors: Wu L. , Yin Y.‐L. , Song J.‐L. , Chen Y. , Wu Y.‐F. , Zhao L. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractObjectiveTo investigate the knowledge, attitudes and practices surrounding occupational blood‐borne pathogen exposure amongst dental students at two Chinese dental schools, as well as important factors that are associated with their career choice and attitudes towards infected patients.Subject and MethodsThe study was conducted using a student self‐administered questionnaire from March to June 2013 at two Chinese dental schools. Chi‐square tests and multivariable logistic regression were used to compare the categorical variables and identify the variables related to attitudes.ResultsOne hundred and seventy‐one students answered the questionnaire (response rate 83%). Most participants had incomplete knowledge about occupational exposure and participants' compliance with the infection control programme during routine clinical work was low. Fifty‐six participants (34%) experienced at least one occupational exposure, but only one reported the incident. Percutaneous injuries and mucous membrane exposures were the main causes for exposure. Protection of the eyes and post‐exposure management were inadequate. According to most participants, they had received insufficient education. Their concerns about the risk of infectious professional exposure would influence their career choice and approach to patients. Only 14% and 26% of the participants were willing to treat human immunodeficiency virus‐ and hepatitis B virus‐infected patients, respectively.ConclusionsMore effective education on prevention and management is required for dental students to reduce the harm caused by occupational exposure. It is important to ensure dental students' knowledge and understanding before allowing them to enter clinical training.
A Paleoarchean coastal hydrothermal field inhabited by diverse microbial communities: the Strelley Pool Formation, Pilbara Craton, Western Australia
Authors: Sugitani K. , Mimura K. , Takeuchi M. , Yamaguchi T. , Suzuki K. , Senda R. , Asahara Y. , Wallis S. , Van Kranendonk M. J. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe 3.4‐Ga Strelley Pool Formation (SPF) at the informally named ‘Waterfall Locality’ in the Goldsworthy greenstone belt of the Pilbara Craton, Western Australia, provides deeper insights into ancient, shallow subaqueous to possibly subaerial ecosystems. Outcrops at this locality contain a thin (<3 m) unit of carbonaceous and non‐carbonaceous cherts and silicified sandstones that were deposited in a shallow‐water coastal environment, with hydrothermal activities, consistent with the previous studies. Carbonaceous, sulfide‐rich massive black cherts with coniform structures up to 3 cm high are characterized by diverse rare earth elements (REE) signatures including enrichment of light [light rare earth elements (LREE)] or middle rare earth elements and by enrichment of heavy metals represented by Zn. The massive black cherts were likely deposited by mixing of hydrothermal and non‐hydrothermal fluids. Coniform structures in the cherts are characterized by diffuse laminae composed of sulfide particles, suggesting that unlike stromatolites, they were formed dominantly through physico‐chemical processes related to hydrothermal activity. The cherts yield microfossils identical to previously described carbonaceous films, small and large spheres, and lenticular microfossils. In addition, new morphological types such as clusters composed of large carbonaceous spheroids (20–40 μm across each) with fluffy or foam‐like envelope are identified. Finely laminated carbonaceous cherts are devoid of heavy metals and characterized by the enrichment of LREE. This chert locally contains conical to domal structures characterized by truncation of laminae and trapping of detrital grains and is interpreted as siliceous stromatolite formed by very early or contemporaneous silicification of biomats with the contribution of silica‐rich hydrothermal fluids. Biological affinities of described microfossils and microbes constructing siliceous stromatolites are under investigation. However, this study emphasizes how diverse the microbial community in Paleoarchean coastal hydrothermal environment was. We propose the diversity is at least partially due to the availability of various energy sources in this depositional environment including reducing chemicals and sunlight.
Projecting future expansion of invasive species: comparing and improving methodologies for species distribution modeling
Authors: Mainali Kumar P. , Warren Dan L. , Dhileepan Kunjithapatham , McConnachie Andrew , Strathie Lorraine , Hassan Gul , Karki Debendra , Shrestha Bharat B. , Parmesan Camille 
Published: July 2015

AbstractModeling the distributions of species, especially of invasive species in non‐native ranges, involves multiple challenges. Here, we developed some novel approaches to species distribution modeling aimed at reducing the influences of such challenges and improving the realism of projections. We estimated species–environment relationships for Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae) with four modeling methods run with multiple scenarios of (i) sources of occurrences and geographically isolated background ranges for absences, (ii) approaches to drawing background (absence) points, and (iii) alternate sets of predictor variables. We further tested various quantitative metrics of model evaluation against biological insight. Model projections were very sensitive to the choice of training dataset. Model accuracy was much improved using a global dataset for model training, rather than restricting data input to the species’ native range. AUC score was a poor metric for model evaluation and, if used alone, was not a useful criterion for assessing model performance. Projections away from the sampled space (i.e., into areas of potential future invasion) were very different depending on the modeling methods used, raising questions about the reliability of ensemble projections. Generalized linear models gave very unrealistic projections far away from the training region. Models that efficiently fit the dominant pattern, but exclude highly local patterns in the dataset and capture interactions as they appear in data (e.g., boosted regression trees), improved generalization of the models. Biological knowledge of the species and its distribution was important in refining choices about the best set of projections. A post hoc test conducted on a new Parthenium dataset from Nepal validated excellent predictive performance of our ‘best’ model. We showed that vast stretches of currently uninvaded geographic areas on multiple continents harbor highly suitable habitats for parthenium. However, discrepancies between model predictions and parthenium invasion in Australia indicate successful management for this globally significant weed.
The life (and death) of CD4+CD28null T cells in inflammatory diseases
Authors: Dumitriu Ingrid E. 
Published: July 2015

SummaryInflammation contributes to the development and perpetuation of several disorders and T lymphocytes orchestrate the inflammatory immune response. Although the role of T cells in inflammation is widely recognized, specific therapies that tackle inflammatory networks in disease are yet to be developed. CD4+CD28null T cells are a unique subset of helper T lymphocytes that recently shot back into the limelight as potential catalysts of inflammation in several inflammatory disorders such as autoimmunity, atherosclerosis and chronic viral infections. In contrast to conventional helper T cells, CD4+CD28null T cells have an inbuilt ability to release inflammatory cytokines and cytotoxic molecules that can damage tissues and amplify inflammatory pathways. It comes as no surprise that patients who have high numbers of these cells have more severe disease and poor prognosis. In this review, I provide an overview on the latest advances in the biology of CD4+CD28null T cells. Understanding the complex functions and dynamics of CD4+CD28null T cells may open new avenues for therapeutic intervention to prevent progression of inflammatory diseases.