Radboud Educational Repository (Radboud Univ.)
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Stepping over the threshold: SME internationalization in the Dutch-German borderland
No full textThis master's thesis examines how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Limburg navigate internationalization into Germany and how their position in the border region influences their motivations, barriers, and strategies. Despite the European Union’s efforts to promote cross-border mobility, many border-region residents remain nationally oriented. Additionally, the literature often views borders merely as barriers rather than opportunities. This thesis addresses these gaps by empirically exploring how Limburg-based SMEs engage in cross-border business.
Using a deductive yet exploratory approach, the study draws on semi-structured interviews with SMEs operating in Germany. Findings reveal that networks, often built through existing relationships with German stakeholders, play a pivotal role in internationalization. Personal experiences, such as language proficiency and prior exposure to German culture, further drive cross-border expansion. While administrative and cultural barriers exist, entrepreneurs overcome them by building trust, seeking expert guidance, and leveraging personal connections.
Rather than following a structured process, SMEs internationalize through effectual decision-making, responding to emerging opportunities. The border is perceived as a strategic advantage rather than an obstacle, since entrepreneurs profit from related variety and a larger market. This thesis contributes to SME internationalization literature, emphasizing the need to promote border regions as dynamic economic hubs
Melancholie en Depressie Het verlies van betekenis voor het subject in de moderne tijd
No full textFreud maakt het onderscheid tussen de melancholische depressie als pathologie en melancholie als pathoanalytisch verschijnsel, waarmee hij veronderstelt dat melancholie een algemeen kenmerk is van de mens. Jacques Lacan stelt in zijn structuurdenken dat het subject per definitie melancholisch is, omdat het niet kan samenvallen met het beeld dat het van zichzelf heeft. Julia Kristeva neemt dit idee over en voegt eraan toe dat het subject melancholisch is omdat het een
modern subject is. Door het verliezen van het geloof verliest het subject de mogelijkheid om zich te identificeren met de Ander via de taal. Kunst biedt een uitweg om de verstoring tussen het semiotische en het symbolische te herstellen en nieuwe betekenis te kunnen geven
Can elephants act morally? Towards a theory of animal morality
No full textThis paper argues for a reassessment of morality beyond rational reflection, challenging Christine Korsgaard’s essentialist notion that excludes non-human animals as moral agents. According to her, animals do not have access to their reasons for acting and can therefore not act for the right or wrong reasons. I argue that this notion fails to account for many human moral actions as well as the empathetic actions of animals. Drawing on Mons´o’s concept of minimal moral empathy, I propose a gradualist and pluralist understanding of morality: gradualist, in viewing morality as an evolutionary continuum; pluralist, in recognising multiple pathways through which moral sensitivity can be expressed—whether through rational
deliberation, empathy, or other social mechanisms. Using the case of Grace the African elephant alongside evolutionary and empirical evidence, I show that behaviours often regarded as uniquely human display strong continuities with those observed in other social animals
What will be ‘right’ in the Future? The Influence of Spatiotemporal Metaphors and Visual Priming on Persuasiveness of Political Posters.
No full textPolitical posters have historically served as a formidable tool of political communication, yet the cognitive mechanisms that could be employed to ameliorate their persuasiveness remain underexplored. This study investigates whether the Space-Time Congruency Effect (STCE), a spatiotemporal metaphor, and visual priming enhance the perceived persuasiveness of political posters. The STCE can be described as a psychological phenomenon which leads people to visualise the passing of time spatially in accordance with their writing directionality. A 2x2 between-subjects experimental design tested 122 participants, exposing them to political posters with either STCE-congruent or incongruent stimuli, with or without visual priming. Participants rated posters’ perceived persuasiveness using a validated, reliable scale. Results showed no statistically significant main effects for spatiotemporal congruency or priming. However, a small but significant priming effect emerged for posters concerned with social issues, suggesting priming may enhance persuasiveness in specific contexts. This study’s findings indicate limited practical applicability for political posters
The Paradox of Resource Inimitability in Competitive Strategy Unpacking Aggressiveness and Complexity in National Olympic Committees
No full textThis study addresses a critical gap in strategic management research by empirically investigating how a firm's resource characteristics translate into specific competitive behaviours, particularly the influence of inimitable resources on the aggressiveness and complexity of competitive actions. National Olympic Committees provide an interesting context due to their complex, multi-stakeholder environment requiring strategic resource allocation for athletic rather than financial success. Utilising content analysis of secondary data from 36 NOCs over a 22-year period based on the SPLISS framework, the research employs PLS-SEM to test its hypotheses. The findings strongly support that inimitable resources lead to significantly greater competitive aggressiveness. However, contrary to expectations, the results reveal a negative relationship between inimitable resources and competitive complexity, suggesting that such resources enable simpler, more focused strategic approaches rather than necessitating diversification. Additionally, country-level contextual factors explain substantial variance in competitive complexity, indicating that resource-based theory requires integration with institutional theory for comprehensive understanding of strategic dynamics. Practically, organizations should prioritize developing fewer, high-quality inimitable resources and adopt focused strategies, while adapting approaches to local contexts. Despite limitations including constrained sample size and single-item constructs, this research provides empirical validation for resource-behaviour linkages and underscores the importance of context-dependent strategic decisions
Facing Ambivalence: Understanding Conflict and Coping in mHealth
No full textThis study examined how ambivalent mHealth experiences, in comparison to negative and
neutral experiences, influenced coping strategies and whether self-esteem moderated the effect of
mHealth experiences on confrontative coping. To explore this, an online experiment was conducted
and 157 participants were randomly assigned to one of the three experience conditions. Participants
completed questionnaires about coping strategies and self-esteem. The data was analyzed using
multiple regression analyses. The results showed that individuals in the ambivalent condition did not
significantly differ in confrontative coping compared to those in the negative or neutral conditions.
Results for avoidance coping showed that individuals in the negative condition reported significantly
more avoidance compared to those in the ambivalent condition. For confrontative coping, no
moderating effect of self-esteem on the relationship between ambivalence and confrontative coping
was found. This study compared ambivalent mHealth experiences with negative and neutral
experiences and therefore contributes to the literature on psychological experiences and coping in
the mHealth context. The findings offered practical insights for mHealth developers aiming to
support confrontative coping, particularly among users with varying levels of self-esteem
Hebben woningcorporaties het innovatievermogen om de nieuwbouwopgave te realiseren?
No full textOnderzoek naar het effect van de organisatiestructuur op de kwaliteit van scriptie (maximaal 150 de organisatie oftewel het presteren van woningcorporaties, met focus op woorden!): nieuwbouw. Aan de hand van vijf parameters uit de sociotechniek van De Sitter is bij zes corporaties door middel van interviews en
beleidsdocumenten de feitelijke organisatiestructuur onderzocht en geanalyseerd. Hierbij is ook naar innovatievermogen, netwerkconstructie, capaciteit en competenties gekeken en een koppeling met presteren
(realisatie nieuwbouw) gemaakt. Het onderzoek toont aan dat een duidelijke, wendbare organisatiestructuur die samenwerking en projectmatig werken centraal stelt, effect heeft op de kwaliteit van de organisatie en leidt tot betere prestaties. Succesfactoren zijn structurele aandacht voor interne en externe samenwerking, duidelijke besluitvorming met heldere rollen en verantwoordelijkheden, voldoende capaciteit en de juiste competenties
voor vastgoedontwikkeling. Innovatievermogen en netwerkconstructie op alle niveaus zijn essentieel. Aanbevolen wordt om te investeren in deze factoren en de effectiviteit van veranderingen te blijven monitoren
Out of reach, yet never abandoned The paradoxical experiences of the right of return among Palestinians in the Netherlands
No full textThis thesis examines how Palestinians in the Netherlands experience and interpret the right of return, situating these narratives within broader debates on the universality of human rights. Although the right of return is recognized in international law, for Palestinians it remains out of reach, revealing the distance between universal principles and everyday realities. By foregrounding the voices of Palestinians in the Netherlands, this study explores how rights endure as emotional, symbolic and collective necessities even when denied in practice. The research is based on eight semi-structured interviews with Palestinians of different generations living in the Netherlands. The findings reveal that participants experience the right of return as a double paradox: it is denied in practice yet deeply necessary in their lives and seen as unrealistic yet indispensable. Bureaucratic erasure of Palestinian identity in the Netherlands, silences in education and broader feelings of exclusion deepen mistrust in universal rights systems, while at the same time reinforcing the symbolic and emotional significance of return. The right of return is sustained not only as a political demand but also through embodied attachments, collective practices and intergenerational transmission. Even when physical return feels impossible, recognition itself is regarded as essential. By connecting these findings to debates on relative universality and affect, the thesis shows that universality should not be understood as a fixed or uniform principle, but as something constantly negotiated between abstract ideals and lived experience
Stiltecentrum als verbindende ruimte. Over de betekenis van en behoefte aan rituele ruimte in een ziekenhuis
No full textIn deze scriptie onderzoek ik de betekenis van rituele ruimten in een ziekenhuis en de behoefte die hieraan leeft volgens medewerkers. Dit doe ik via een casestudy in een ziekenhuis en aan de hand van de kernbegrippen (1) plaats, (2) ritueel en (3) sacraliteit. Deze vormen tezamen een ruimtelijke triade, waarbij plaats als lens dient om scherp te stellen op rituele en sacrale betekenissen van een ruimte. Via documentenanalyse, observaties en interviews analyseerde ik het stiltecentrum, de islamitische gebedsruimte en mobiele rituele ruimte. Hieruit blijkt dat het stiltecentrum als verbindende ruimte fungeert voor alle rituele ruimten. Naast islamitisch gebed zijn het vooral ‘rustmoment in de hectiek’ en aan de ziekenhuiszorg gerelateerde open sacrale en religieuze rituele handelingen die de ruimten betekenisvol maken
