bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The psychological and functional factors driving metaverse resistance
Authors: Lee Michael S.W. , Chaney Damien 
Published: September 2023

PurposeWhile the metaverse is promised to be the next big step for the Internet, this new technology may also bear negative impacts on individuals and society. Drawing on innovation resistance literature, this article explores the reasons for metaverse resistance.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on 66 semi-structured interviews, and the subsequent data were analysed thematically.FindingsThe findings revealed 11 reasons for metaverse resistance: lack of understanding, lack of regulation, addiction avoidance, claustrophobia, loss of social ties, disconnection from reality, privacy concerns, extreme consumer society, unseen benefits, infeasibility and nausea.Practical implicationsBy understanding the various reasons for metaverse resistance managers and policymakers can make better decisions to overcome the challenges facing this innovation, rather than adopting a “one-size-fits-all” approach.Originality/valueWhile the literature has mainly adopted a positive perspective on the metaverse, this research offers a more nuanced view by identifying the reasons why consumers may resist the metaverse. Furthermore, this study introduces for the first-time “addiction-driven-innovation-resistance (ADIR)” as a potential reason for metaverse resistance, which may also apply to other cases of innovation resistance, when new innovations are perceived as being “too good” and therefore potentially addictive.
Healthcare employment landscape: comparing job markets for professionals in developed and developing countries
Authors: Butt Salman , Raza Ahmed , Siddiqui Rabia , Saleem Yasir , Cook Bill , Khan Habib 
Published: September 2023

PurposeThis literature review aims to assess the current research on healthcare job availability and skilled professionals. The objective of this research is to identify challenges caused by the imbalance between healthcare service demand and qualified professionals and propose potential solutions and future research directions.Design/methodology/approachThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method was employed as the guiding framework for conducting this review. A qualitative research design analyzed 38 peer-reviewed, evidence-based research works from 50 journal publications. Inclusion criteria focused on empirical studies, observational research and comprehensive reviews published within the last ten years. Thematic and discourse analysis categorized themes and factors explored in selected publications.FindingsThe findings highlight significant challenges in the healthcare sector regarding job availability and skilled professionals. Developed countries face understaffed healthcare facilities, resulting in increased workloads and compromised care. Developing countries experience high rates of unemployment among healthcare graduates due to limited resources and mentorship.Practical implicationsImproving educational infrastructure, expanding training opportunities and increasing healthcare investments are crucial for nurturing a skilled workforce. Implementing effective retention policies, fostering international collaborations and addressing socioeconomic determinants can create a sustainable job market.Originality/valueThe healthcare sector faces critical challenges in balancing job availability and skilled professionals. Strategic solutions are proposed to create a sustainable and equitable healthcare workforce. By implementing recommendations and conducting further research, access to quality healthcare and global public health outcomes can be improved.
Examining the effect of knowledge hiding towards individual task performance: the moderating role of transformational leadership
Authors: Kurniawanti Ika Atma , Zain Djumilah , Thoyib Armanu , Rahayu Mintarti 
Published: September 2023

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the effect of knowledge hiding on individual task performance and examine the moderating influence of transformational leadership.Design/methodology/approachThis study included 256 participants employed by financing companies in Indonesia. In addition, to analyze the data, descriptive statistics were computed using SPSS 25, and the structural equation model-partial least square (SEM-PLS) was used for hypothesis testing.FindingsThe findings revealed the negative effects of knowledge hiding on individual task performance and its potential consequences for individuals and organizations. However, it also suggested that transformational leadership may not be sufficient to reduce the negative effects of knowledge hiding on individual task performance.Research limitations/implicationsThis study only focused on the context of a specific industry or country, which limited the generalizability of the findings.Practical implicationsThis study enriches the understanding of the importance of addressing knowledge-hiding behaviors and investigating additional factors that can enhance task performance in organizations.Originality/valueThis study adds value to the existing literature by emphasizing the importance of investigating supplementary factors other than transformational leadership that have the potential to reduce the negative effects of knowledge hiding on organizational performance.
CEO vigilance and hypercompetition: CEO attention in resource utilization and firm competitive aggressiveness
Authors: Li Mengge , Yang Jinxin 
Published: September 2023

PurposeBy integrating perspectives from the resource-based view, attention-based view, upper echelon theory and competitive dynamics (CD), the authors seek to understand how chief executive officer (CEO) vigilance influences the way resources are utilized in relation to competitive behavior.Design/methodology/approachThis study's empirical analysis is conducted using a longitudinal design in the US software and IT services industry with a final sample consisting of 44 publicly traded firms and 471 firm-year observations from 1995 to 2009. The authors respectively use the fixed-effects negative binomial model and generalized estimating equation (GEE) model to test the effects of technology resource breadth on competitive intensity and competitive deviance and the interacting effects with CEO attention broadness and uniqueness.FindingsThis study's results show that CEO vigilance (attention broadness and uniqueness) interacts with technology resource breadth to jointly influence competitive intensity and deviance. Firms with vigilant CEOs utilize firm resources to compete less intensively but in an unconventional way.Practical implicationsThis study reveals that when CEOs have a broader focus and attend to a wide range of information, their ability to quickly utilize firm resources for formulating competitive actions decreases. Consequently, it is crucial for CEOs to acknowledge the limitations of their attentional capacity. They need to understand that the allocation of their attention and information processing capacity has significant implications for the speed and quality of their decision-making processes.Originality/valueThe authors conceptualize and operationalize CEO vigilance, which is a novel construct that has not been studied. The authors show that CEO vigilance plays critical roles in utilizing resources to compete. This study offers significant research implications for attention-based view, upper-echelons theory, CD perspective and resource-based view.
Plant neighbourhood diversity effects on leaf traits: A meta‐analysis
Authors: Felix Juri A. , Stevenson Philip C. , Koricheva Julia 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Leaf traits often vary with plant neighbourhood composition, which in turn may mediate plant susceptibility to herbivory. However, it is unknown whether there are any common patterns of change in leaf trait expression in response to neighbourhood diversity, and whether these responses confer increased resistance or susceptibility to herbivores.

We used meta‐analysis to combine data from 43 studies that examined the influence of neighbourhood diversity on eight physical and chemical leaf traits that could affect herbivory. All leaf traits apart from leaf thickness were highly plastic and exhibited significant differences between plant monocultures and species mixtures, but the direction of effect was variable. Leaf toughness was the only trait that displayed a significant decrease with plant diversity, whereas specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf nitrogen were both marginally increased in species mixtures.

The magnitude and direction of leaf trait responses to neighbourhood diversity were independent of plant density and phylogenetic diversity, but changes in SLA correlated positively with plant species richness. SLA was also significantly increased in experimental studies, but not in observational studies, while neighbourhoods containing nitrogen‐fixers were associated with increased leaf nitrogen and reduced phenolics. When studies on the over‐represented species Betula pendula were removed from the analysis, the effect of neighbourhood diversity on leaf toughness became nonsignificant, but phenolics were significantly reduced in diverse neighbourhoods composed of mature trees, and marginally reduced in species mixtures across all studies.

Increases in plant neighbourhood diversity are often associated with reductions of herbivory, although in some cases, the reverse occurs, and plants growing in species mixtures are found to suffer greater herbivory than those in monocultures. This study offers a potential explanation for the latter phenomenon, as our results show that leaf trait expression is highly plastic in response to neighbourhood diversity, and in certain cases could lead to increased leaf quality, which in turn could promote greater rates of herbivory.

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.
Revised models for evaluating hydrocarbon saturation of tight sandstone formations based on dielectric dispersion logs
Authors: Wang Xiaoyu , Liao Guangzhi , Zhao Peiqiang , Mao Zhiqiang 
Published: September 2023

AbstractAccurate estimation of hydrocarbon saturation is significant for log interpreters to evaluate tight sandstone formations. It is difficult to use conventional wireline logs to calculate hydrocarbon saturation in complex reservoirs. Dielectric dispersion logs are processed using dielectric models to obtain accurate saturation assessment, especially in high salinity shaly sand formations. However, the dielectric models consist of complex refractive index method model and shaly sand model ignore the impact of clay effects on complex refractive index method model, and the dielectric dispersion logs generated by them appear several unphysical phenomena in the clay‐bearing formations, such as the permittivity data at the highest frequency are greater than those at the second highest frequency and the conductivity data at the highest frequency are lower than those at the second highest frequency. This paper modifies the dielectric models by introducing a combined conductive phase in complex refractive index method model to correct the unphysical behaviours. Revised models are combined with four permittivity and four conductivity logs acquired by dielectric scanner at 24, 102, 360 and 960 MHz to inverse the water saturation, water salinity, textural index for water‐bearing pore and fraction of clay‐related phase. The complex refractive index method model interprets the logs measured at 960 MHz and shaly‐sand model interprets other dielectric dispersion logs. The particle swarm optimization algorithm is used to search inversion parameters. The results of forward simulation show that the revised models can correct unphysical behaviours of dielectric dispersion logs generated by the original models. Moreover, we apply original models and revised models to laboratory core data. The results of experiments show that the mean relative error values of the original models are 19.38% and 23.60% and of the revised models are 5.54% and 6.28% in two cases. It shows that the revised models are more accurate than the original models to interpret dielectric dispersion logs of tight sandstone reservoirs.
Geography and environmental pressure are predictive of class‐specific radioresistance in black fungi
Authors: Aureli Lorenzo , Coleine Claudia , Delgado‐Baquerizo Manuel , Ahren Dag , Cemmi Alessia , Di Sarcina Ilaria , Onofri Silvano , Selbmann Laura 
Published: September 2023

AbstractBlack fungi are among the most resistant organisms to ionizing radiation on Earth. However, our current knowledge is based on studies on a few isolates, while the overall radioresistance limits across this microbial group and the relationship with local environmental conditions remain largely undetermined. To address this knowledge gap, we assessed the survival of 101 strains of black fungi isolated across a worldwide spatial distribution to gamma radiation doses up to 100 kGy. We found that intra and inter‐specific taxonomy, UV radiation, and precipitation levels primarily influence the radioresistance in black fungi. Altogether, this study provides insights into the adaptive mechanisms of black fungi to extreme environments and highlights the role of local adaptation in shaping the survival capabilities of these extreme‐tolerant organisms.
Workplace democracy in action? Assessing employee board representation in Australian government agencies
Authors: Clark Benjamin 
Published: September 2023

AbstractVarious scholars and political actors advocate workplace democratisation to give employees greater influence over decision‐making. Many suggest employee board representation (EBR) as a mechanism to facilitate this, but some question how influential employee board representatives (EBRs) are and whether they represent their colleagues’ views. This study investigates the extent to which EBR contributes to workplace democratisation, via a comparison of three Australian public sector organisations. The study found EBRs exerted significantly more influence at the Australian National University than at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the Australian Film Television and Radio School. Most EBRs wanted to draw upon staff experiences but their communication with colleagues was often constrained. Variances of influence were explained by the number of EBRs, the actions of the Chair, chief executive officer, government, and other board members. Two findings stand out as unique contributions: the importance of appointment powers to EBR influence in the public sector, and EBRs’ limited influence on labour issues in the Anglosphere due to the adversarial system of labour bargaining being positioned largely outside the boardroom. The study concludes that EBR is a non‐tokenistic form of workplace democratisation, albeit with a specific scope, which has utility within a mix of democratising mechanisms.Points for practitioners
Most EBRs exerted a limited or moderate influence on decision‐making, but others exerted more significant influence. They were most influential on matters related to their experience and expertise and were largely unable to influence workers’ pay, conditions, and other labour issues.
Most EBRs did not represent their colleagues in a transactional or direct sense, but drew upon their experiences as staff members when making decisions. However, EBRs had fluctuating issues communicating with their fellow employees, largely due to managerial direction around confidentiality.
The number of SEDs on the board and the actions of other board members, the Chair, chief executive officer, and the government explained the variances in SEDs’ influence between agencies.
This study's findings regarding EBR influence were middling compared to European research, but appointment powers were found to be particularly important in the public sector context. EBRs’ influence was found to be limited on labour issues, suggesting a potential clash between the corporatist inclination of EBR and the adversarial system of labour bargaining prevalent in the Anglosphere.
Elected EBRs offer employees a non‐tokenistic form of representation but within a limited scope of strategy and oversight. Given factors that constrain SEDs’ influence and representativeness can be at least partly countered by policy design and political leadership, these findings bolster the policy case for extending EBR throughout the public sector.
Founder's Financial Knowledge and the New Firm's Ability to Obtain Debt Financing
Authors: Rijssegem Laurence , Paeleman Ine , Hünermund Egle (Vaznyte) , Andries Petra 
Published: September 2023

AbstractHow does a founder's knowledge of debt financing influence his/her new firm's ability to obtain the amount of debt financing it desires? Building on the cognitive psychology literature, we propose that the depth of a founder's debt financing knowledge is positively associated with the new firm's ability to obtain debt financing as he/she will be better at selecting and acquiring relevant sources of debt financing. Integrating insights on entrepreneurial growth‐oriented strategies, we further argue that this relationship will be more pronounced when the new firm internationalizes and innovates more. Using a Heckman full information maximum likelihood model, we analyse survey data on 1845 Flemish new firms. The first stage of the model estimates the new firm's probability of raising debt financing. The second stage tests the relationship between the founder's knowledge depth of debt financing and the new firm's debt financing ability, conditional on the decision to raise debt financing. We find that the founder's knowledge depth of debt financing is positively associated with the new firm's ability to obtain debt financing. This association becomes even more pronounced when the new firm internationalizes more. These findings extend the entrepreneurial finance, entrepreneurial strategy and cognitive psychology literature.
Fibroblast‐specific adipocyte enhancer binding protein 1 is a potential pathological trigger and prognostic marker for liver fibrosis independent of etiology
Authors: Zhang Wen , Li Yu Jia , Zhang Ning , Chen Shu Yan , Tong Xiao Fei , Wang Bing Qiong , Huang Tao , You Hong , Chen Wei 
Published: September 2023

ObjectivesAortic carboxypeptidase‐like protein (ACLP) is an extracellular protein involved in adipogenesis, epithelial‐mesenchymal transition, epithelial cell hyperplasia, and collagen fibrogenesis. This study mainly aimed to analyze the potential role of adipocyte enhancer binding protein 1 (AEBP1), the ACLP‐encoding gene, as a pathological target or prognostic marker for liver fibrosis regardless of etiology.MethodsDysregulation pattern, clinical relevance, and biological significance of AEBP1 gene in liver fibrosis were analyzed using publicly available transcriptomic profiles, different liver fibrosis mouse models, biological databases, and AEBP1 gene silencing followed by RNA sequencing in human hepatic stellate cells (HSCs).ResultsAEBP1 gene expression was upregulated and positively correlated with liver fibrogenesis independent of etiology, the protein of which was further verified in liver fibrosis mouse models induced by different pathogenic factors. A higher expression of liver AEBP1 gene had the potential to predict poor prognosis in liver fibrosis. Systematic bioinformatic analyses revealed that AEBP1 expression was HSCs‐specific and associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling and its downstream mechanical–chemical signaling transition. AEBP1 knockdown by specific small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) in HSCs inhibited ECM‐receptor interaction and immune‐related pathways as well as HSC proliferation or activation.ConclusionA high expression of AEBP1 was specifically associated with liver fibrosis and was related to a poor prognosis and predicted the role of AEBP1 in HSCs, providing a new insight for understanding AEBP1 in liver fibrosis.
Rapid detection of Salmonella enterica in primary production samples by eliminating DNA amplification inhibitors using an improved sample pre‐treatment method
Authors: Vinayaka Aaydha Chidambara , Quyen Than Linh , Huynh Van Ngoc , Madsen Mogens , Bang Dang Duong , Wolff Anders 
Published: September 2023

AbstractSensitive detection of pathogens in livestock farms is an integral part of the One Health Action Plan of the European Union (EU). Ensuring this requires on‐site testing devices that are compatible with complex matrices such as primary production samples. Among all, faeces are considered the most challenging matrix type that makes it difficult to identify pathogens because of complexity in sample preparation for molecular testing. We have developed a loop‐mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) based veterinary point‐of‐care (POC) device (VETPOD) and adapted it to detect Salmonella enterica in primary production samples. Three different sampling methods (semi‐wet chicken faeces, boot socks collection and dust samples from poultry shed) were iteratively tested to assess their nature of complexity and possibility for adapting them as suitable sampling methods for on‐site testing. During the study, the sample preparation method that included a two‐step centrifugation combined with washing of the enriched Salmonella cells was found crucial in eliminating amplification inhibitors originating from the faecal matrices. A total of 90 samples were tested that included 60 samples for sensitivity study and 30 samples for relative level of detection (RLOD, a level of detection in comparison to ISO 6579:1 reference method). Overall, the VETPOD had a sensitivity of 90%, 84.62% and 81.82% for boot sock, faecal and dust samples, respectively. The RLOD was 2.23 CFU/25 g which was found to be 1.33 times higher than the ISO 6579:1. Performing with an excellent agreement with ISO 6579:1, the VETPOD proved as a promising alternative to detect Salmonella spp. in primary production and animal husbandry samples.
Stock Pledge by Controlling Shareholder and Corporate Social Responsibility*
Authors: Wen Wen , Tong Lijing , Xie Lu , Zhang Siting 
Published: September 2023

AbstractWe examine the influence of stock pledge by controlling shareholders on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Results show that firms exhibit poorer CSR performance when the controlling shareholders have more shares under pledge to financial institutions. Further analyses suggest that the negative relation between stock pledge and CSR only exists in financially constrained firms and non‐state‐owned firms, in which the pledging controlling shareholders have greater incentive to increase stock price and maintain their control rights. Our findings support a margin call hypothesis that firms tend to cut off CSR spending to improve short‐term financial performance and reduce the risk of losing control rights.