bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Labour market deregulation and the decline of labour power in North America and Western Europe
Authors: Peters John 
Published: September 2008

Abstract
The goal of this article is to provide a critical evaluation of what has happened to organized labour and labour markets since 1980. It examines the impacts of labour market deregulation on wage share and pay standardization. It also explores how recent economic changes have weakened organized labour and eroded wage setting and social corporatism. The argument is made that contemporary institutional and ‘Varieties of Capitalism’ perspectives on labour market reform have overstated the power of states, institutions, and organized interests in deflecting global economic pressures. Drawing on a range of recent OECD statistics and qualitative studies, it is claimed that current labour deregulation policies and labour market reforms mark a fundamental break with post-war developments, and represent a reassertion of the power of capital ownership over organized labour and labour markets across North America and Western Europe. It assesses how far this reversal in power has gone by focusing on changes in four key variables: (i) job quality, (ii) wage share, (iii) pay standardization and income equality, and (iv) the effectiveness of wage setting institutions in allowing unions to bring bargaining pressure on capital. This is the first study to report on comparative changes and qualitative reforms to these labour market variables in 13 OECD countries between 1970 and the 25-year period 1980–2005.
Dictatorial Institutions and their Impact on Economic Growth
Authors: Gandhi Jennifer 
Published: September 2008

AbstractNon-democratic regimes vary in the degree to which domestic groups threaten their rule and the extent to which they need the cooperation of these groups. To both neutralize threats to their rule and solicit cooperation, some dictators coopt potential domestic opposition by providing rents and policy concessions within nominally-democratic institutions, such as legislatures and political parties. These institutions, designed as instruments of cooptation, facilitate cooperation between the regime and outside groups which promotes economic growth.
Basque Violence: a Reappraisal of Culturalist Explanations
Authors: Beck Jan Mansvelt , Markusse Jan D. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractDavid Laitin has explained the occurrence of Basque and Georgian nationalist
violence as the outcome of language revival in a bilingual setting and a
specific locale. Based on game theory, he has suggested that violence, as a
rational nationalist strategy, will increasingly be used if specific thresholds
levels in language choice for education are met. A critical reappraisal of his
approach is made in which the conceptual and methodological limits to the
empirical testing are highlighted. Subsequently, an extensive dataset of Basque
municipalities in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country is used to
statistically verify Laitin’s model by multivariate analysis. In some
areas of the Basque Country Laitin’s model seems to fit while in
others not. With the help of both quantitative and qualitative data, alternative
explanations for Basque ethnic violence are explored.
Long time trends in influenza-like illness and associated determinants in The Netherlands
Authors: DIJKSTRA F. , DONKER G. A. , WILBRINK B. , VAN GAGELDONK-LAFEBER A. B. , VAN DER SANDE M. A. B. 
Published: September 2008

SUMMARYWe analysed long-term epidemiological trends in influenza-like illness (ILI) in The Netherlands and used an ecological analysis to estimate its relationship with age, influenza vaccination, and virological aspects. This study used data from weekly ILI consultation reports from sentinel general practitioners (1986/1987 to 2006/2007), virological data from sentinel ILI patients (1992/1993 to 2006/2007), and data for influenza vaccine uptake (1991–2005). The incidence of ILI consultations, although varying during the study period, was estimated to decrease in the total population by 12·2/10 000 persons each season (95% CI 8·6–15·9). Uptake of influenza vaccination in people aged ⩾65 years (elderly) increased from 28% in 1991 to >70% since 1997. ILI incidence in the elderly declined by 1·7/10 000 persons (P=0·05) per percentage vaccine uptake per season. The decline in ILI incidence over the last 20 years could be related to the increased vaccine uptake. However, insufficient data were present to assess the impact of other potential contributing factors, such as diminished fitness of influenza viruses and changes in consulting behaviour.
Nosocomial transmission clusters and risk factors inMoraxella catarrhalis
Authors: LEVY F. , LEMAN S. C. , SARUBBI F. A. , WALKER E. S. 
Published: September 2008

SUMMARYWe report an objective examination of nosocomial transmission events derived from long-term (10-year) data from a single medical centre. Cluster analysis, based on the temporal proximity of genetically identical isolates of the respiratory pathogenMoraxella catarrhalis, identified 40 transmission events involving 33 of the 52 genotypes represented by multiple isolates. There was no evidence of highly transmissible or outbreak-prone genotypes. Although most clusters were small (mean size 3·6 isolates) and of short duration (median duration 25 days), clustering accounted for 38·7% of all isolates. Significant risk factors for clustering were multi-bed wards, and winter and spring season, but bacterial antibiotic resistance, manifested as the ability to produce a β-lactamase was not a risk factor. The use of cluster analysis to identify transmission events and its application to long-term data demonstrate an approach to pathogen transmission that should find wide application beyond hospital populations.
Food insecurity and maternal depression in rural, low-income families: a longitudinal investigation
Authors: Huddleston-Casas Catherine , Charnigo Richard , Simmons Leigh Ann 
Published: September 2008

AbstractObjectiveThe purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between household food insecurity and maternal depression in a rural sample to determine whether food insecurity predicted mothers’ depression over time or vice versa.DesignThe study employed a prospective design using three waves of data from ‘Rural Families Speak’, a multi-state study of low-income rural families in the USA. Food insecurity was measured using the Core Food Security Module and depression was measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies–Depression Scale. A structural equation model was fit to the data using the AMOS software package.SettingSixteen states in the USA (California, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wyoming) between 2000 and 2002.SubjectsSubjects included 413 women with at least one child under the age of 13 years living in the home.ResultsFindings based on the 184 subjects with complete data indicated that the causal relationship between household food insecurity and depression is bidirectional (P = 0·034 for causation from depression to food insecurity, P = 0·003 for causation from food insecurity to depression, χ2/df = 1·835, root-mean-square error of approximation = 0·068, comparative fit index = 0·989). Findings based on all 413 subjects after imputation of missing values also indicated bidirectionality.ConclusionsThe recursive relationship between food insecurity and depression has implications for US nutrition, mental health and poverty policies. The study highlights the need to integrate programmes addressing food insecurity and poor mental health for the population of rural, low-income women.
Effectiveness of fortification of corn flour-derived products with hydrogen-reduced elemental iron on iron-deficiency anaemia in children and adolescents in southern Brazil
Authors: Miglioranza Lúcia HS , Breganó José Wander , Dichi Isaias , Matsuo Tiemi , Dichi Jane Bandeira , Barbosa Décio Sabbatini 
Published: September 2008

AbstractObjectiveTo find the ideal combination of Fe fortifier and its food vehicle is an essential measure in developing countries. However, its cost also plays an important role. In the present study, the effect on blood parameter values of corn flour-derived products fortified with powdered elemental Fe in the form of H2-reduced Fe was investigated in children and adolescents.MethodsOne hundred and sixty-two individuals (eighty-six boys and seventy-six girls) from public educational centres in Londrina, Paraná (southern Brazil) participated in the study. Fe-deficiency anaemia (IDA) was defined when Hb and serum ferritin values fell below 12 g/dl and 20 μg/l, respectively; Fe deficiency (ID) was considered when serum ferritin was below 20 μg/l.ResultsThe prevalence of ID and IDA decreased from 18·0 % and 14·9 %, values found at the beginning of the study, to respectively 5·6 % and 1·2 % after 6 months. Changes from altered to normal values occurred more often than normal to altered values with transferrin saturation (14·2 %v. 6·8 %;P< 0·04) and ferritin (12·4 %v. 0 %;P< 0·001). Hb, transferrin saturation and ferritin showed differences between normal and altered parameters after 6 months (P< 0·001).ConclusionA pronounced reduction in the prevalence of ID and IDA was observed in children and adolescents following 6 months’ ingestion of corn flour-derived products enriched with elemental Fe.
Risk factors for stunting among under-fives in Libya
Authors: El Taguri Adel , Betilmal Ibrahim , Mahmud Salah Murad , Monem Ahmed Abdel , Goulet Olivier , Galan Pilar , Hercberg Serge 
Published: September 2008

AbstractObjectiveStunting is a chronic condition reflecting poor nutrition and health. Our aim was to ascertain major predictors of stunting in children <5 years old in Libya.Population and methodsA nationally representative, cross-sectional, two-stage stratified cluster sample survey enrolled 4549 under-fives from 6707 households. Logistic regression was used to determine individual risk factors in bivariate and multivariate analyses.ResultsAnthropometric measurements were available for 4498 children. Among the 929 stunted children (20·7 %), 495 were boys (53·3 %) and 434 were girls (46·5 %). In multivariate analysis, risk factors were young age (1–2 years: OR = 2·32, 95 % CI 1·67, 3·22; 2–3 years: OR = 1·64, 95 % CI 1·22, 2·21), resident of Al-Akhdar (OR = 1·67, 95 % CI 1·08, 2·58), being a boy (OR = 1·28, 95 % CI 1·05, 1·55), having a less educated father (illiterate: OR = 2·10, 95 % CI 1·17, 3·77; preparatory school: OR = 1·71, 95 % CI 1·11, 2·65), poor psychosocial stimulation (no family visits or trips: OR = 1·52, 95 % CI 1·07, 2·16; father rarely/never plays with child: OR = 2·24, 95 % CI 1·20, 4·16), filtered water (OR = 8·45, 95 % CI 2·31, 30·95), throwing garbage in the street (OR = 13·81, 95 % CI 2·33, 81·72), diarrhoea (OR = 1·58, 95 % CI 1·09, 2·29) and low birth weight (OR = 1·8, 95 % CI 1·17, 2·40). Protective factors were older age of father (OR = 0·53, 95 % CI 0·32, 0·90) and water storage (OR = 0·70, 95 % CI 0·54, 0·90). These variables only explained 20 % of cases of stunting.ConclusionVarious multilevel actions are needed to improve nutritional status of under-fives in Libya. At risk-groups include those with young age (1–3 years), resident of Al-Akhdar region, boys, father’s low educational level, poor psychosocial stimulation, poor housing environment, diarrhoea and low birth weight.
An exploratory study of associations between social capital and self-assessed health in Norway
Authors: IVERSEN TOR 
Published: September 2008

AbstractThe objective of this study is to estimate associations between social capital and health when other factors are controlled for. Data from the standard-of-living survey by Statistics Norway are merged with data from several other sources. The merged files combine data at the individual level with data that describe indicators of community-level social capital related to each person’s county of residence. Both cross-sectional and panel data are used. We find that one indicator of community-level social capital – voting participation in local elections – is positively associated with self-assessed health in the cross-sectional study and in the panel data study. While we find that religious activity at the community-level has a positive effect in the cross-sectional survey and no effect in the panel survey, we find that sports organizations have a negative effect on health in the cross-sectional survey and no effect in the panel survey. The question is raised whether the welfare state diminishes the effect of structural community social capital, as represented by voluntary organizations, on health.
Organizational Learning in Multinationals: R&D Networks of Japanese and US MNEs in the UK*
Authors: Lam Alice 
Published: September 2008

ABSTRACTThe institutional approach treats organizational forms and behaviour as contingent upon institutions that are durable and socially embedded and so several authors have argued that the nature and modes of operation of multinational enterprises (MNEs) vary according to their national origins. This paper examines the ways in which national patterns of organization and innovation affect Japanese and US MNEs’ global R&D networks and transnational learning, based on case studies of their R&D laboratories in the UK. In particular, it focuses on how these MNEs tap into foreign academic knowledge base and scientific labour through collaborative links with higher education institutions.Relative to many Japanese MNEs, US firms have developed a greater organizational capacity for coordinating globally dispersed learning and embedding themselves in local innovation networks because the liberal institutional environment within which US MNEs have developed enables them to extend their organizational and human resource systems across institutional and geographical boundaries. By contrast, Japanese MNEs appear to be more limited in their transnational learning because of the much more tightly integrated organizational and business system within which they are embedded. The paper also illustrates how the contrasting logics of the US ‘professional community’ and the Japanese ‘organizational community’ model of learning are manifested in MNEs.
Age‐specific interval breast cancers in Japan: estimation of the proper sensitivity of screening using a population‐based cancer registry
Authors: Suzuki Akihiko , Kuriyama Shinichi , Kawai Masaaki , Amari Masakazu , Takeda Motohiro , Ishida Takanori , Ohnuki Koji , Nishino Yoshikazu , Tsuji Ichiro , Shibuya Daisuke , Ohuchi Noriaki 
Published: September 2008

The age‐specific sensitivity of a screening program was investigated using a population‐based cancer registry as a source of false‐negative cancer cases. A population‐based screening program for breast cancer was run using either clinical breast examinations (CBE) alone or mammography combined with CBE in the Miyagi Prefecture from 1997 to 2002. Interval cancers were newly identified by linking the screening records to the population‐based cancer registry to estimate the number of false‐negative cases of screening program. Among 112 071 women screened by mammography combined with CBE, the number of detected cancers, false‐negative cases and the sensitivity were 289, 22 and 92.9%, respectively, based on the reports from participating municipalities. The number of newly found false‐negative cases and corrected sensitivity when using the registry were 34 and 83.8%, respectively. In detected cancers, the sensitivity of screening by mammography combined with CBE in women ranging from 40 to 49 years of age based on a population‐based cancer registry was much lower than that in women 50–59 and 60–69 years of age (40–49: 18, 71.4%, 50–59: 19, 85.8%, 60–69: 19, 87.2%). These data suggest that the accurate outcome of an evaluation of breast cancer screening must include the use of a population‐based cancer registry for detecting false‐negative cases. Screening by mammography combined with CBE may therefore not be sufficiently sensitive for women ranging from 40 to 49 years of age. (Cancer Sci 2008; 99: 2264–2267)
S‐phase fraction determined on fine needle aspirates is an independent prognostic factor in breast cancer – a multivariate study of 770 patients
Authors: Gazic B. , Pizem J. , Bracko M. , Cufer T. , Borstnar S. , Pohar‐Marinsek Z. , Us‐Krasovec M. 
Published: September 2008

Background:  The prognostic significance of DNA ploidy and the S‐phase fraction (SPF) have been extensively studied in breast cancer, but their clinical utility remains controversial. The type of tumour material can substantially influence flow cytometric DNA measurements. Material obtained by fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy is very suitable for flow cytometric DNA analysis because it contains a low proportion of non‐tumour cells and less debris than tissue samples.Methods:  The prognostic significance of DNA ploidy and SPF, determined on FNA samples, was analysed in 770 breast cancer patients, diagnosed between 1992 and 1997. DNA ploidy and SPF were determined at the time of diagnosis as part of the diagnostic work‐up. The median follow‐up was 90 months. Survival analysis included overall cancer specific survival (OS), disease free survival (DFS) and survival after recurrence (SAR). Other variables included in survival analyses were age, histological grade, histological type, lymph node status and tumour size. Disease free interval and the site of recurrence were also included in SAR analysis.Results:  DNA ploidy and SPF correlated with tumour type, size, lymph node involvement and, especially, tumour grade. In a univariate analysis, both aneuploidy and high SPF were associated with shorter OS, DFS and SAR, but only SPF retained its independent prognostic significance in multivariate analyses. Independent prognostic variables for OS were node status, histological grade, SPF and tumour size. Node status, histological grade and SPF were independent predictors of DFS, while the site of recurrence, SPF, histological grade, disease free interval and age were independent predictors of SAR.Conclusions:  DNA ploidy and SPF can be efficiently and routinely determined on FNA samples. High SPF is independently associated with a worse clinical outcome of patients with breast cancer. Although SPF and histological grade share prognostic information to some degree, SPF provides additional, less subjective prognostic information. The prognostic value of SPF determined on FNA samples could be even more relevant in neoadjuvant settings and for patients not amenable for surgical treatment, when histological grade cannot be assessed.
Anti‐inflammatory effects of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α are mediated via TNF‐R2 (p75) in tolerogenic transforming growth factor‐β‐treated antigen‐presenting cells
Authors: Masli Sharmila , Turpie Bruce 
Published: September 2008

SummaryExposure of macrophages to transforming growth factor (TGF)‐β is known to alter their functional phenotype such that antigen presentation by these cells leads to tolerance rather than an inflammatory immune response. Typically, eye‐derived antigen‐presenting cells (APCs) exposed to TGF‐β in the local environment are known to induce a form of peripheral tolerance and protect the eye from inflammatory immune effector‐mediated damage. In response to TGF‐β, APCs increase their expression of tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α and TNF receptor 2 (TNF‐R2). Although TNF‐α has been implicated in tolerance and the associated regulation of the inflammatory immune response, its source and the receptors involved remain unclear. In this report we determined the contribution of TNF‐α and TNF‐R2 expressed by TGF‐β‐treated APCs to their anti‐inflammatory tolerogenic effect. Our results indicate that APC‐derived TNF‐α is essential for the ability of APCs to regulate the immune response and their IL‐12 secretion. Moreover, in the absence of TNF‐R2, APCs exposed to TGF‐β failed to induce tolerance or regulatory cells known to participate in this tolerance. Also, blocking of TNF‐R1 signalling enhanced the ability of the APCs to secrete increased TGF‐β in response to TGF‐β exposure. Together our results support an anti‐inflammatory role of TNF‐α in regulation of an immune response by TGF‐β‐treated APCs and suggest that TNF‐R2 contributes significantly to this role.
Climatic fluctuations shape the phylogeography of a mesic direct‐developing frog from the south‐western Australian biodiversity hotspot
Authors: Edwards Danielle L. , Dale Roberts J. , Scott Keogh J. 
Published: September 2008

AbstractAim To assess phylogeographic pattern throughout the range ofMetacrinia nichollsiin order to develop specific biogeographical hypotheses for the wet forests of south‐western Australia. This was carried out by contrasting a direct‐developing frog species,M. nichollsi, that breeds independently of free surface water with conventional, aquatic breeders and highly specialized direct developers.Location Wet forests of the south‐western Australian biodiversity hotspot – an area of high species richness and endemism for myobatrachid frogs and many other faunal groups.Methods We compiled an extensive phylogeographic data set from field‐collected samples based on mitochondrialND2sequences. Phylogenetic analyses combined with estimates of divergence times were used to build a model of major biogeographical events affecting the species. Phylogeographic analyses were used to provide insights into smaller‐scale processes acting within each major lineage.Results Phylogenetic analysis recovered three major lineages, with divergence dates coincident with late Miocene–early Pliocene arid cycles. One lineage was confined to geographically isolated populations in the Stirling Ranges (Stirling Ranges Lineage, SRL). The continuous range ofM. nichollsiwas split into two: the Main Range Lineage (MRL) and the Southern Coastal Lineage (SCL). The SCL displays a strong drainage‐based population structure, whereas the MRL displays a strong signature of recent expansion, suggesting that these two lineages have had very different biogeographical histories.Main conclusions Late Miocene–Pliocene aridity appears to have isolated populations in the Stirling Ranges and resulted in the formation of two additional lineages on a north–south gradient that are independent of southward‐flowing drainage systems. Our results demonstrate that climatic fluctuations are likely to have generated fine‐scale phylogeographic structure withinM. nichollsiand that catchment regions are important refugia during arid cycles.