1545 research outputs found
Sort by
Shifting Under Pressure: Timing Practices within Regulatory Information Disclosure Programs
Get PDFResearch examines the process through which regulatory agencies and other powerful third parties publicly disseminate information about organizations in order to reduce the information asymmetry between those organizations and their dispersed or less powerful stakeholders. These disclosure programs are presumed to work by mobilizing stakeholders to pressure organizations for change. Prior studies focus on organizations’ resistance to that external pressure, often drawing from theories of institutional forces and organizational legitimacy. Instead, the present study examines the public disclosure process itself, and adapts research on organizational learning and collective attention focus to develop new theory regarding how organizations may selectively time their practices to influence these disclosures in their favor. Results suggest that organizations may respond to disclosure programs and other governance structures when actively monitored, but may drift out of compliance during intervening periods. Findings also suggest that strong governance outside of the regulatory disclosure process can help to reduce these problems. The study contributes to corporate governance, organizational learning, and other literatures by developing new theory regarding the timing of organizational responses to regulatory interventions, and by providing evidence that overlapping forms of oversight may mitigate the limitations within any one particular governance mechanism
Antecedents and Outcomes of Big Data Adoption in Supply Chain: A Meta-Analytic Investigation
Get PDFThis paper aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the big data–performance relationship based on the existing empirical evidence. Using a meta-analysis approach, big data adoption (BDA) related 446 effect sizes reported in 133 prior empirical studies were gathered from 118848 informants in more than 30 countries. Results confirm ten significant antecedents and eight outcomes of BDA based on identified literature. We further estimate the heterogeneity based on subgroup analysis by considering two types of moderators as (a) economic regions (developed vs developing), and (b) type of industry. We find that organizations in developed countries adopt big data largely due to environmental and organizational factors. Further, developed countries can harness the potential of big data for better performance (e.g., supply chain integration, collaboration, customer relationship management, and innovation). This study provides multifaceted insights for practitioners and academia alike regarding the use of big data
Representations of Solutions of Time-Fractional Multi-Order Systems of Differential-Operator Equations
Get PDFThis paper is devoted to the general theory of systems of linear time-fractional differential-operator equations. The representation formulas for solutions of systems of ordinary differential equations with single (commensurate) fractional order is known through the matrix-valued Mittag-Leffler function. Multi-order (incommensurate) systems with rational components can be reduced to single-order systems, and, hence, representation formulas are also known. However, for arbitrary fractional multi-order (not necessarily with rational components) systems of differential equations, the representation formulas are still unknown, even in the case of fractional-order ordinary differential equations. In this paper, we obtain representation formulas for the solutions of arbitrary fractional multi-order systems of differential-operator equations. The existence and uniqueness theorems in appropriate topological vector spaces are also provided. Moreover, we introduce vector-indexed Mittag-Leffler functions and prove some of their properties
The Application of Particle-Correlated Raman Spectroscopic Analysis of Soils to Mock Casework Scenarios
No full textSoil is a continuous material, reaching across geological bodies, and is distinctly variable and differentiable based on aspects such as geographic location, seasonal factors, and human interference. In combination with its highly transferable nature, the complexity of soil makes it valuable material for forensic trace evidence and object-to-scene association. The development of forensic soil analysis is currently focused on mineralogy. Raman spectroscopy is a chemical technique that has previously been studied for mineralogy uses. Additionally, Raman spectroscopy has been researched for use in other fields of forensic science as well. As such, it is possible to use Raman spectroscopy for the forensic analysis of soils as well.
Particle-correlated Raman spectroscopy is a novel technique that combines microscopic analysis of particles with Raman identification. PCRS provides qualitative and quantitative information. When applied to soil minerals, this information includes identification and microscopic morphological characteristics (e.g. circularity, volume, area). This study explores the use of PCRS to discriminate soil minerals transferred onto mock-evidence items from different locations. Shoes and shovels were used to collect mock-evidence from three different geographical locations an urban park, a rural woodland, and a suburban residential area. Known soil samples were collected from these locations to serve as reference samples for comparison.
The soil adhering to mock-evidence items was collected and cleaned to isolate the mineral grains. The particles in the diameter range of 90-180μm were manually dispersed onto a Ramaninactive microscope slide and analyzed using PCRS. The results were compared to the reference sample results, and source consistency could be determined using mean and distribution statistical analysis. Adding heavy mineral separation to the sample preparation process allowed for a larger number of particles to increase features usable for match criteria.
This study showed that area, diameter, perimeter, and volume are suitable metrics for PCRS analysis of soil. The mean and distribution, seen through single-factor ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis tests, for these morphological features for multiple mineral classes were statistically indistinguishable between reference and mock-evidence samples. This study showed that PCRS is a powerful tool for mixture analysis and can demonstrate the discriminating potential of minerals for soil forensics
The Detection of Blood and the Recovery of DNA from Heat-Damaged Surfaces
Get PDFWhen investigating a scene exposed to high temperatures and long burn times, investigators should consider that recoverable blood could be linked to a source and give important profile information after DNA analysis. By locating blood with presumptive and confirmatory reagents, even after exposure to damaging conditions, investigators can attempt not only to confirm that blood was present but also to determine the DNA profile of the blood. Experimenting with the different burn times and temperatures in which blood is still detectable can be followed with DNA analysis, which will show whether the blood is viable after exposure to these damaging conditions.
The experiment consisted of heating three different substrates with blood added to them in a cone calorimeter and an oven. After being allowed to cool down, presumptive and confirmatory tests were run to see if the human blood was recoverable, and then DNA analysis was done to see if the DNA profile was recoverable.
If blood is subjected to high temperatures and longer burn times, depending on the substrate it is deposited on, investigators would attempt to confirm the presence of blood with the Kastle-Meyer reagent and the ABAcard Hema Trace identification kit. They could then test to see if any DNA can be recovered from the samples. This study aimed to use presumptive and confirmatory tests as search tools to try and detect blood at a crime scene altered by higher temperatures and longer burn times and then perform subsequent DNA analysis. The manipulated variables were temperatures, exposure time, and substrate
Exploring Barriers to Recruitment and Retention in Cancer Clinical Trials Among Underrepresented Populations: Perspectives of Clinical Trial Research Coordinating Staff
No full textBackground: Clinical trials are crucial in advancing scientific knowledge and interventions and exploring more efficient and safe treatments to improve patient care and health outcomes. The active participation of patients and researchers has made it feasible to conduct clinical trials that have been ground-breaking and become the standardized practice of care; however, the participation of underrepresented populations in clinical trials has been identified to be low. This issue can impact the generalizability of findings from clinical trials and efforts to promote health equity. Appropriate representation from underrepresented populations in clinical trials is vital; it will contribute to equitable healthcare for all patients, improve the standard of care practices, and ultimately improve healthcare quality.
Purpose: This study examined the barriers to recruiting and retaining underrepresented populations in cancer clinical trials. From the clinical trial research coordinating staff perspective, it investigated why the solutions to this problem identified in the existing literature have yet to be implemented successfully. Additionally, this study sought to bridge the gap in the limited literature to examine the perspectives of clinical trial research coordinating staff on why the barriers to recruitment and retention persist despite considerable efforts to identify solutions.
Methodology: Semi-structured interviews with clinical trial research coordinating staff to gain insight into the barriers to implementing solutions for recruiting and retaining underrepresented populations in clinical trials.
Results: 12 individuals signed informed consent and voluntarily participated in this semistructured interview. The participants were three clinical research nurse coordinators, three clinical research coordinators, three regulatory coordinators, and three finance and budget specialists. The study identified the emerging themes 1) lack of leadership support, 2) staff shortage, 3) financial burden, and 4) lack of resources. The themes identified are linked together, where one problem is the cause of the other, which leads to an inability to implement the solutions as described in the existing literature. While these solutions can be easily implemented with a strong leadership, appropriate allocation of funds, and the availability of staff and resources, the changes will occur only when there is a change in the organizational structure
A New Look at the Connectedness Between Energy and Metal Markets Using a Novel Approach
Get PDFThis study extends the existing literature in this area by examining the conditional connectedness between energy and metal markets using a novel time-varying quantile and frequency connectedness method developed by Chatziantoniou, et al. (2022) based on Ando, et al. (2018) and Barunik & Krehlik (2018) techniques. Connectedness between the markets was analyzed across various times and frequencies, with daily data covering May 18, 2011, to September 23, 2020. Short-term dynamics strongly drive the total pairwise shocks, while the contribution of medium-term dynamics was meagre, and that of long-term dynamics was insignificant. While the natural gas, gasoline, gas oil, heating oil, crude oil, coal, kerosene, propane, and diesel markets spilled-out shocks to many markets, gold, copper, aluminum, platinum, silver, nickel, palladium and lead markets received shocks from many markets. Zinc appears as an isolated market. The market which influenced the majority of other markets is natural gas, followed by gasoline, gas oil, heating oil, crude oil, coal, kerosene, propane and diesel. In contrast, zinc did not influence any of the markets. The pairwise connectedness results reveal the existence of intra-market linkages within the energy markets (horizontal market integration), while inter-market associations also exist between energy and metal markets (vertical market integration). However, there are only intra-market linkages in the metal markets. Linkages are strong in some markets during the COVID-19 crisis. These results inform some policy recommendations well-articulated in the conclusion section
Equity Returns Around Extreme Loss: A Stochastic Event Approach
Get PDFWe define an extreme loss event as a daily return at the left tail of negative two standard deviations of all daily returns for a specific stock. Prior studies focus on the relationship between extreme losses and specific anticipated announcements. Our study identifies the extreme loss events after they are randomly realized, and examines the return patterns of the equities in question on stochastic event setups. We investigate the daily returns of 2,651 stocks traded in the U.S. equity markets and identified 217,990 extreme loss events from the 1950s to early 2019. Our findings show that after an extreme loss, an asset realizes, on average, a daily return of 0.8459% on the first day, and 1.8099% cumulatively in the following 5-day window. We attribute the fast recovery to the investors’ overreaction. This suggests an extreme loss reversal trading strategy. Our confirmation suggests that behavioral bias may not be corrected or eliminated through arbitrage
Urban Unemployment Duration Analysis in Post-Reform China
Get PDFWe link China’s accession to the WTO with the unemployment duration of urban jobseekers. Using data from the Rural Urban Migration in China (RUMiC) of a survey conducted in early 2008, we construct an inflow sample of those who started a period of joblessness between January 2002 and December 2007 to estimate the unemployment duration for local urban jobseekers. Deploying the Cox Proportional Hazards and Accelerated Failure Time models, we find reduced trade policy uncertainty significantly shortens unemployment duration, with hazard-rate varying across internal in-migrants and urban natives, due to variations in job accessibility and reservation wages
From HR Practices to HR Performance: A Psychological Ownership Meta-Analysis Across Cultures
Get PDFThis study utilizes psychological ownership theory as theoretical framework to examine high-performance work practices, and attitudinal and behavioral performance as associations of psychological ownership on the population level. Psychological ownership describes a mindset which allows individuals to experience ownership feelings for a target (e.g., organization) regardless of legal ownership rights. Further, psychological ownership theory is integrated with and extended by contingency theory to analyze the moderation effects of societal culture. These effects have been assumed for over 30 years but hardly backed by empirical evidence from cross-cultural samples. Thus, this study analyzes data from 351,919 individuals who participated in 139 published and unpublished studies, using rigorous and advanced meta-analytic techniques. The results show that compensation and benefits, job and work design, and communication practices foster psychological ownership, which in turn enhances constructive deviant behavior, task performance, and favorable attitude while weakening unfavorable attitude. Societal culture significantly strengthens these relationships