30472 research outputs found
Sort by
Contemporary retail marketing in emerging economies: the case of Ghana’s supermarket chains
No full textProvides an overview of the marketing strategies employed by supermarkets in developing countries. Presents the latest developments in consumer loyalty programmes and the applications of electronic contactless cards. Discusses the future development of supermarket marketin
Skin stretch modulates tactile distance perception without central correction mechanisms
Get PDFTactile distance perception is influenced by stimulus orientation. On the hands or face, effects of orientation may originate from the mostly oval shape of receptive fields (RF) which long axis aligns with the proximodistal body axis. As tactile distance estimation relies on the number of RFs in between stimuli, their particular alignment leads to a distortion of perception with distances being perceived as shorter in the proximodistal than the mediolateral body axis. It is however unknown, how physical manipulations such as skin stretch affect distance perception. Participants judged which of two distances aligned with the mediolateral or proximodistal axis on their dorsal left hand felt larger in two conditions: without physical manipulation and with proximodistal skin stretch. Distances were perceived shorter in proximodistal direction in the non-stretch and stretch condition, which was significantly pronounced in the stretch condition. Skin stretch led to perception of tactile distances as smaller, possibly related to the removal of afferent nerve endings and corresponding somatosensory RFs in the same external reference frame between the two touches. Though skin stretch is represented centrally, our results likely show that no correctional top-down mechanism corrects for skin stretch when estimating tactile distances
Evaluating R&D efficiency of China’s listed lithium battery enterprises
Get PDFPromoting the growth of the lithium battery sector has been a critical aspect of Chi-na’s energy policy in terms of achieving carbon neutrality. However, despite significant supports on research and development (R&D) investments that have resulted in increasing size, the sector looks to be falling behind in technological areas still. In order to guide future policies and understand proper ways of promoting R&D efficiency, we, thus, looked into the lithium battery industry of China. Specifically, data envelopment analysis (DEA) was used as the primary approach based on evidence from 22 listed lithium battery enterprises. The performance of the five leading players was compared to that of the industry as a whole. There was little indication of a meaningful improvement in R&D efficiency throughout our sample from 2010 to 2019 indicated in the result; though, during this period, a significant increase in R&D expenditure was witnessed. This finding was supported as the result shows the average technical efficiency of the 22 enterprises being 0.442, whereas the average pure technical efficiency at 0.503, suggesting they are suffering from de-creasing returns to scale (DRS). On the contrary, the performance of the five leading players seems to be superior because their average efficiency scores are higher than the industry’s average, and that they are experiencing increasing scale efficiency (IRS). We draw on these findings to suggest for policymakers that supporting technologically intensive sectors should entail more than simply increasing investment scale; rather, it should also encompass assisting businesses in developing efficient managerial processes for R&D
Loot boxes in Spanish adolescents and young adults: relationship with internet gaming disorder and online gambling disorder
Get PDFIn recent years, the video game industry has introduced the possibility of buying virtual random goods (e.g., loot boxes) in electronic games using money through microtransactions, which are becoming more widespread and potentially akin to gambling. Although previous research has linked loot boxes with problematic gaming and gambling behaviors, there are very few studies that relate them to the clinical indicators of these problems. The overall goal of this study is to ascertain the prevalence of loot box purchasing behavior and its association with Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) and Online Gambling Disorder (OGD). A secondary objective is to develop and analyze the psychometric properties of the Problematic Use of Loot Boxes Questionnaire (PU-LB). A cross-sectional study was conducted among 6633 participants (4236 males, 63.9%, and 4123 minors, 62.2%) with an average age of 16.73 ± 3.40 in a range of 11–30 years. The Spanish versions of the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form (IGDS9-SF) and the Online Gambling Disorder Questionnaire (OGD-Q) were used. A total of 2013 (30.4%) participants reported purchasing a loot box in the last 12 months (28.9% among minors). A person who had purchased a loot box in the last 12 months had a prevalence rate (PR) of 3.66 [95% CI 2.66, 5.05] of presenting an IGD, and a PR = 4.85 [IC 95% 2.58, 9.12] of presenting an OGD. The PU-LB exhibited adequate reliability and validity indicators and was positively and significantly related to loot box expenditure, IGDS9-SF, and OGD-Q scores. The results are further discussed, and practical implications and future lines of research proposed
Altered Theta Beta ratio in infancy associates with later ADHD traits
Get PDFBackground: Uncovering the neural mechanisms that underlie symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) requires studying brain development prior to the emergence of behavioural difficulties. One new approach to this is prospective studies of infants with an elevated likelihood of developing ADHD. Methods: We used a prospective design to examine an oscillatory EEG profile that has been widely studied in both children and adults with ADHD – the balance between lower and higher frequencies operationalised as the theta-beta ratio (TBR). In the present study, we examined TBR in 136 10-month-old infants (72 male, 64 female) with/without an elevated likelihood of developing ADHD and/or a comparison disorder (Autism Spectrum Disorder; ASD). Results: Infants with a first-degree relative with ADHD demonstrated lower TBR than infants without a first-degree relative with ADHD. Further, lower TBR at 10-months was positively associated with temperament dimensions conceptually related to ADHD at 2 years. TBR was not altered in infants with a family history of ASD. Conclusions: This is the first demonstration that alterations in TBR are present prior to behavioural symptoms of ADHD. However, these alterations manifest differently than those sometimes observed in older children with an ADHD diagnosis. Importantly, altered TBR was not seen in infants at elevated likelihood of developing ASD, suggesting a degree of specificity to ADHD. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that there are brain changes associated with a family history of ADHD observable in the first year of life
Citizens' attitudes to contact tracing apps
Get PDFCitizens’ concerns about data privacy and data security breaches may reduce the adoption of COVID-19 contact tracing mobile phone applications, making them less effective. We implement a choice experiment (conjoint experiment) where participants indicate which version of two contact tracing apps they would install, varying the apps’ privacy-preserving attributes. Citizens do not always prioritise privacy and prefer a centralised National Health Service system over a decentralised system. In a further study asking about participants’ preference for digital-only vs human-only contact tracing, we find a mixture of digital and human contact tracing is supported. We randomly allocated a subset of participants in each study to receive a stimulus priming data breach as a concern, before asking about contact tracing. The salient threat of unauthorised access or data theft does not significantly alter preferences in either study. We suggest COVID-19 and trust in a national public health service system mitigate respondents’ concerns about privacy
Exploring the accessibility of sport stadia for people with disability: towards the development of a Stadium Accessibility Scale (SAS)
Get PDFThe aim of this paper is to synthesise existing literature on sports stadia, spectators with disabilities (SwD), and accessibility to identify themes and to highlight the gaps in the literature. This review subsequently develops two propositions that will enable research in this emerging area to further develop. The research was guided by two research questions: first, what does the peer reviewed evidence tell us about spectators with disability (SwD) and the accessibility of sporting stadia? Second, how can this information be used to develop a Stadium Accessibility Scale (SAS)? The authors conducted a rapid review of the literature across three databases that identified 34 papers for synthesis. Synthesis revealed three research themes: a focus on legislative compliance, the need to enhance resources (both physical and human); and research that focuses on moving beyond the stadium experience. The latter can be sub-divided into two streams – studies that look at accessibility as a social legacy of major events, and studies that seek to understand the whole journey that SwD’s must make to attend sport events. The study makes two key recommendations. The first is to encourage further research aligned to the HOPES framework (Paramio-Salcines et al., 2018) that explicitly recognises the importance of understanding the broader approach to the customer experience. The second is the need for the development and validation of a reliable SAS. Greater accessibility provides a foundation for inclusive environments in sport. The findings are relevant for all stakeholders in sport as universal accessibility benefits more than people with disabilities
Fifty years of the Divorce Reform Act 1969
No full textBook synopsis: The enactment of the Divorce Reform Act 1969 was a landmark moment in family law. Coming into force in 1971, it had a significant impact on legal practice and was followed by a dramatic increase in divorce rates, reflecting changes in social attitudes.
This new interdisciplinary collection explores the background to the 1969 Act and its influence on law and society. Bringing together scholars from law, sociology, history, demography, and film and literature, it reflects on the changes to divorce law and practice over the past 50 years, and the changing impact of divorce on different people in society, particularly women.
As such, it offers a 'biography' of this important piece of legislation, moving from its conception and birth, through its reception and development, to its imminent demise. Looking to the future, and to the new law introduced by the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020, this collection suggests ways for evaluating what makes a 'good' divorce law.
This brilliant collection gives insight not only into this crucial piece of legislation, but also into a key period of societal change
Narrative comprehension guides eye movements in the absence of motion
No full textViewers’ attentional selection while looking at scenes is affected by both top-down and bottom-up factors. However, when watching film, viewers typically attend to the movie similarly irrespective of top-down factors – a phenomenon we call the Tyranny of Film. A key difference between still pictures and film is that film contains motion, which is a strong attractor of attention, and highly predictive of gaze during film viewing. The goal of the present study was to test if the Tyranny of Film is driven by motion. To do this, we created a slideshow presentation of the opening scene of Touch of Evil. Context condition participants watched the full slideshow. No-context condition participants did not see the opening portion of the scene, which showed someone placing a time-bomb into the trunk of a car. In prior research, we showed that despite producing very different understandings of the clip, this manipulation did not affect viewers’ attention (i.e., the Tyranny of Film), as both Context and No-context participants were equally likely to fixate on the car with the bomb when the scene was presented as a film. The current study found that when the scene was shown as a slideshow, the context manipulation produced differences in attentional selection (i.e., it attenuated attentional synchrony). We discuss these results in the context of the Scene Perception & Event Comprehension Theory (SPECT), which specifies the relationship between event comprehension and attentional selection in the context of visual narratives
Accountability and learning with motivated agents
Get PDFShould accountability be introduced to organizations that are learning about the right policies to achieve their goals? I develop an agency model focusing on the interactions between accountability and an agent’s intrinsic motivation. More effort by the agent leads to more informative policy outcomes and thereby better policy learning. Holding the agent accountable for the policy outcomes motivates the agent and thus improves policy learning. However, by removing the agent from office upon policy failure and thereby taking away his benefit from learning through failure, accountability also discourages the agent. This negative effect is
more substantial when the intrinsic motivation is higher. The principal, therefore, refrains from using accountability on the agent who is more intrinsically motivated
Data sources:
Access Repository Dashboard
Do you manage Birkbeck Institutional Research Online? Access insider analytics, issue reports and manage access to outputs from your repository in the CORE Repository Dashboard!