Media influences and effects on experiences of uncertainty and fear in urban public spaces

From the point of a normative idea of equality, all citizens are entitled to equal access to the cities public spaces. In the public debate, the media have often been blamed for contributing to people＇s fear and insecurity and the avoidance of public places, especially after dark. In this paper, the author addresses the question of how and to what extent experiences of risk and threats in the media, perceptions of crime coverage in the media and third-person-effects of risk and threats influence the degree of avoidance of public places and the variation in people＇s experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public places. The main results presented here are primarily based on survey data from a well known regional survey （Western SOM） performed in 2001-2007 on approximately 3,000 inhabitants in the local region of Gothenburg, Sweden. Experiences of risk and threats through the media are of minor importance for the independent effect on the experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public spaces. The main role of the media is through the perceptions the respondents have on media coverage on crime and media influence on their own and others experiences of threats and risks. Those that believe that media coverage on crime is understated have to a greater extent avoided public places and experienced the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity than those that believe that media coverage of crime is coherent with reality or overstated. The third-person-effects that occur also have consequences. Those that believe that media influence experiences of threats and risks have to a greater extent experienced the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity than those that don＇t believe in media influence （on both others and themselves）. The main conclusion presented in this paper is that the avoidance of public places and variation in people＇s experiences of the sensation of feeling fear and insecurity in public places is more related to people＇s perceptions of media content and media influence regarding risk and threats than experiences of risk and threats through the media. This, however, doesn＇t mean that the experience of risk and threats through the media doesn＇t matter. Experience of risk and threats through the media matters, but do so through reinforcing personal and social experiences of risk and threats.     

The factors influencing knowledge entrepreneurship in Malaysian manufacturing companies

Established firms that continuously and systematically implement entrepreneurial initiatives exhibit behavior that corporate entrepreneurship researchers label as ＂sustained regeneration＂. A prime example of sustained regeneration is new product development activity in industries such as computers, electronics, and textiles where the introduction of new products is on-going and firm＇s creativities have important implications to its performance. On the other hand, knowledge entrepreneurship describes the organizational ability to respond to learn to capitalize on an opportunity, or to protect against a threat by adopting an innovation. Successful adoption of innovation requires an organizational ability to manage the process within the organization that deals with new or newly interpreted knowledge and under conditions of uncertainty and in the face of controversy, develop and initiate a plan of action to respond with goal-oriented organizational behavioral changes. Knowledge entrepreneurship connotes a ＂drive to implement change, to accomplish this goal, and to adopt an innovation＂. Knowledge entrepreneurship involves a motivated pursuit of competitive advantage, using knowledge as a means of developing sources of advantage similar to those described in the market orientation and absorptive capacity literatures. It describes a driven effort to utilize knowledge through innovation. This article is identifying knowledge entrepreneurship, and determining which factors may affect the nature of this concept. The selected criteria have been assessed according to their relative importance by utilizing analytical hierarchy process （AHP） approach and expert choice software program.     

Economic mobility trajectories of the Russian population： The experience of the last two decades

This paper is to study the economic mobility trajectories of the Russian population in the last two decades, each of which has brought about both negative shocks and broadening of the opportunity horizons for people＇s economic advancement. The information base of the research is provided by the data of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey （RLMS） for the period of 1994-2008. The investigated period Russia clearly falls into two sub-periods-the 1990s and the 2000s： The first one is characterized by sharp shifts towards impoverishment of the population and growth of economic inequality; the second one-by considerable masses of people overcoming poverty with a still high level of economic inequality. The results indicate the following The proportion of the adult population who have been chronically poor during the whole contemporary history of Russia proves to be twice as little as the proportion of those who have been “chronically non-poor”. However, both groups in total have not constituted the majority, since the majority have been migrating between the extremes of persistent well-being and ill-being during this period with the stream of those coming out of poverty prevailing in numbers.     

SME law and policy analysis

Since the reform and opening-up, especially in the new century, China＇s SMEs are rapidly springing up; they have become an important force of pushing China＇s national economic and social development. The rapid development of SMEs is playing an increasingly important role in stimulating the economy, increasing the state tax revenue, promoting the employment, pushing technological innovation and improving the people＇s lives. It is full of meaning for Chinese Government to provide a sound law and policy environment for SMEs, including mediating and regulating the behavior of domestic SMEs, promoting and protecting the prosperity of SMEs, if we want to pursue the economic prosperity. This article will analyze the status of the development of China＇s SMEs, and research on the related policies and laws.     

Cluster Policy and Smart Specialisation The Case of Bulgaria

Smart specialisation is an innovative policy concept which emphasizes the principle of prioritisation in a vertical logic and has attracted a wide interest in recent years, being implemented in many national technology and innovation strategies. Clusters are considered to be a major driver of innovation and competitiveness and for years, have been assigned a key role in various economic development strategies around the world. The paper looks at the interrelationship between clusters and smart specialisation. While clusters are an important building block of Smart Specialisation Strategies （$3）, cluster policies are also influenced by the concept of smart specialisation as they have increasingly started to target specific industries. The principal objective of the paper is to provide an overview and evaluation of the cluster policy pursued in Bulgaria during the last decade. The extent to which the country has used the principle of smart specialisation in its cluster initiatives is assessed. It has been argued that namely due to the lack of clear focus and prioritisation, Bulgaria＇s cluster policy proved to be highly inefficient. Finally, some policy recommendations for its improvement are put forward.     

Parallel Paths A Comparison of CSR Firms and Social Enterprises

Corporate social responsibility （CSR） is the incorporation of environmental and social responsibilities into the business activity, in line with the economic responsibility that firms have traditionally focused on. The social entrepreneur is a type of entrepreneur who seeks to resolve a social or environmental problem through the application of a business model, motivated by the aim of helping others and pursuing positive social change. A key aspect of social entrepreneurship （SE） is therefore the creation of social wealth. Both concepts pursue positive social change, but unlike social entrepreneurs, the objective of a responsible firm is not to solve social issues created by others, rather to understand and limit the social and environmental impacts of their profit-generating activities. In recent decades, research on CSR has grown considerably, whereas SE has only begun to receive serious academic attention quite recently. Crucially, few studies have tried to link and differentiate the two areas. Due to the increasing interest in both concepts nowadays, the need to clarify the similarities and differences between them is greater than ever, and is the principal aim of this work.     

A literature review of partnerships

In today＇s competitive era, all organizations and enterprises, including small and medium enterprises （SMEs）, should have collaboration with each other to survive and they cannot be globally successful by working alone. A partnership is the relationship existing between two or more persons or entities that join to carry on a trade or business. Each one contributes money, property, labor or skill, and expects to share the profits and losses of the business. There are different types of partnerships, and organizations should inform from them and apply from it in suitable cases. Each partnership has its own advantages and disadvantages as well. This paper aims to describe some types of partnerships between governments, communities, new social movements and firms.     

An engine of growth or a cog in the wheel： Reality and perceptions of family enterprises in China

Since the economic reforms began in the end of the 1970s, family enterprises have emerged and thrived in the People＇s Republic of China, and have contributed significantly to China＇s phenomenal growth in the last few decades. Yet, little recognition, scholarly or otherwise, was given to family enterprises in China. The author argues that such a lack of recognition of family enterprises in China has to do with various negative perceptions of family firms and entrepreneurs. Among such perceptions is the view that family enterprises are ＂backward＂ and ＂unscientific＂, and as such they need to be modernized or they will disappear. This article calls for more rigorous and ethnographic research of family businesses in China, because such research will not only afford much needed attentions to the issues unique to family businesses, but also provide a comparative case to the study of Confucian capitalism, which is believed to be an alternative to western capitalism.     

Strengthening intergovernmental relations for improved service delivery in South Africa： Issues for consideration

Fifteen years after South Africa＇s first democratic elections in 1994, a significant percentage of the population is yet to access basic services and infrastructure because of government＇s slow pace of service delivery. Following the recent elections in April 2009, various forums have placed the debate on good governance and issues of service delivery high on their agendas. This has led to an increasing call for the present government to speed up service delivery and improve the living standards of majority of the people of South Africa. In this regard, government must seriously consider all mechanisms that have hindered delivery and other issues （that have contributed to government＇s slow delivery pace） must be revisited. Amongst other challenges is the issue of managing intergovernmental relations （IGR） in a more effective and efficient manner. The paper reconsidered the extent to which IGR could be maximised as a facilitative element in governance and argued that what needed to be earnestly pursued are integrated and improved administrative processes, as well as coordinated and aligned governmental systems. This paper therefore sought to position IGR as a possible opportunity for the improvement of service delivery＇. It further reflected on some of the pertinent challenges that impact on IGR, as well as presented some pointers for the future.     

Influence of public administration and environmental management performance of cement manufacturing in Malaysia

Environmental issues have become critical concerns of businesses worldwide where environmental obligations have grown substantially and companies have to be environmentally responsible. Malaysia has enacted the Environmental Quality Act 1974 and subsidiary Environmental Quality （Clean Air） Regulations 1978, Environmental Quality （Sewage and Industrial Effluent） Regulations 1979, Environmental Quality （Prescribed Activities） Order 1987 and Environmental Quality （Scheduled Waste） Regulation 2005. ISO 14001 environmental management system （EMS） standard designed to introduce environmental improvement into every aspect of a company＇s operations. ISO 14001 assists companies in creation of structured mechanisms for continuous improvement in environmental performance. There is a complex and dynamic relation between profitability and environmental concerns. The paper evaluates how ISO 14001 aids cement companies in operating continuous environment protection programs to minimize significant environmental impacts. This study analyzes the relationship between adoption of ISO 14001 to business performance and competitive advantage of Malaysian companies that provides insights into motivations and results. ISO 14001 has a positive impact on companies＇ performance, specifically on perceived environmental impacts. The companies recognized the need for ISO 14001 as an internal tool to maintain operations and management competitiveness. To adopt the ISO 14001 environment elements, it is necessary to have corporate culture that support complex operational activities in line with the top management commitment of the ISO 14001 policy and regulatory-compliant. ISO 14001 implementation was crucial in bringing about reduction of damage to the environment at operational level, and effective environmental management at management level, as well as improvement of the company＇s image and competitiveness at strategic level. Companies that export their products are expected to implement the ISO 14001 in order to maintain their competitive edge in the global market place.     

Social Policy and Social Control： Case of San Joso del Rincon in the State of Mexico

This study sets out to analyze and evaluate the implementation of a system for the regulation and control of social policies （＂Social Comptrollership＂） involving civil society so as to reinforce the mechanisms for ensuring transparency and responsibility in the government＇s operation of social programs and the execution of public works Here is presented the analysis of the Federal Rural Housing Program （in Spanish： ＂Programa de Vivienda RuraF＇） that is aimed at providing accommodation to families in situations of severe poverty living in communities described as suffering from ＂high or very high levels of marginalization＂. The main conclusion of this research, which is based on a series of interviews with aid recipients, the officials and the social organizations involved, is that the regulatory aspects of this system for controlling social policies are not effective, since they lack mechanisms for enforcing the sanctions set down for participants who do not respect the agreements they have entered into.     

Japan＇s ＂unsettling＂ past： Article 11 of San Francisco Peace Treaty and its ramlncatlons

Article 11 of the Treaty of Peace with Japan （San Francisco Peace Treaty） has become a rallying point for some activists and historians in their endeavor to have Japan recognize its ＂war responsibility＂ and redress its ＂unsettled past＂. The provision stipulates Japan＇s acceptance of the ＂judgments of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East and of other Allied War Crimes Courts both within and outside Japan＂. The wording of this provision, which is ambiguous enough to leave a room for its re-interpretation later, was a result of a compromise among the World War lI Allies. Yet, neither archival investigation of the article＇s drafting process nor a survey of the opinions of U.S. legal experts in the public international did not prove the validity of the revisionist thesis. Nevertheless, the treaties Japan signed with its former colony （Korea） and belligerent （China） left the settlement of war-related issues obscure, creating a leeway for initiating later controversies. The end of the Cold War heralded the re-evaluation of World War I1 settlements. The subsequently created agitated environment surrounding the historical discussion of Japan＇s so-called ＂unsettled＂ past has been ＂unsettling＂ enough to prevent the Japanese leaders from establishing a uniform interpretation of Article l l, and has added impetus to the movements pressuring Japan to recognize its ＂war responsibility＂. Although interested parties have so far cited Article 11 mainly to demand ＂inaction＂ from Japan, such as to discourage Japanese political leaders from visiting the Yasukuni Shrine, there is a growing indication that some may well utilize it to demand Japan＇s ＂action＂--to pay indemnities to the victims of Japan＇s alleged atrocities through various forms of redress movements.     

Preferred learning style： Gender influence on preferred learning style among business students

Past studies indicate that there was a correlation between gender and students＇ preferred styles of learning. Thus, the purpose of this study is to determine the influence of gender on the learning style preferences of business students based on the VARK （Fleming, 2002b） learning style survey, consisting of the V（isual）, A（ural）, R（ead-Write） and K（inesthefic） learning styles. The sampling design used for this study was non-probability sampling and the sampling technique conducted was convenient sampling on 207 male students and 199 female students from the business school. The study found that gender only influences the V（isual） and A（ural） learning styles of business students. In addition to that, even though both male and female students exhibited a similar response towards both these learning styles, female students were found to demonstrate slightly higher preference for the V（isual） and A（ural） learning styles as compared to the male students. The findings draw attention to facets of learning that may exist in pre-university and tertiary classrooms with a combination of female and male students, which could have an impact on teaching and managing these students.     

A road to institutionalization： China＇s corruption and struggle for political reform

This essay is a study of China＇s political corruption and countermeasure for it. The author will focus on the cultural factors and the incompleteness of the market economy because these show us the reason why the corruption became severe after the initiation of the economic reform. The author will move on to search a solution within the field of political reform. The author will deal with the problem by two approaches. The first one is to focus on the democratization and the second one is to focus on the political institutionalization. The goal of the author＇s analysis is to examine which approach will work as a proper solution. The author＇s argument is that institutionalization will be the better one. The author will outline the grounds briefly. Firstly, unlike democratization, this solution shows possibility of realization. Secondly, political institutionalization has its own value of political development which was not considered sufficiently before. And finally there are advantages of strengthened accountability and limit discretion. To consolidate the author＇s argument the author will use Hong Kong＇s case where have been successfully controlled the problem by political institutionalization.     

Searching for sustainable competitive advantage --From tangibles to intangibles

The purpose of this paper is to emphasize on the growing importance of the intangible assets for a firm＇s sustainable competitive advantage--by considering both the features that a strategic asset must meet and the high potential of the intangible assets to fulfill those features. First, we outline the changing environment finns are operating in--at global and industry＇s level as well; second, we emphasize on the evolving theory of the resource-based view of the firm--as the main framework integrating all the assets of a firm and its relationships with the environment; third, we underline the need for organizational and managerial change and development by making the shift from tangibles to intangibles. We find that the theory in the field evolved within last years, but the conceptual framework is far from being exhaustive and unitary. The paper may be continued with the developing of a conceptual framework which is able to identify the specific intangible assets that may become strategic, their determinants, the interconnections between them, and their integration into successful competitive strategies. The practical implications of the paper consist in offering some guidelines for firms in the search of global competitiveness through the valorization of there intangible assets. The paper emphasizes that, in order to achieve sustainable competitive advantage, strategic management must develop a comprehensive, dynamic and innovative resource-based model--unique for each firm.     

Transparency Policies in Italy： The Case of Venice Municipality

Transparency is a complex phenomenon characterised by aspects that can be linked and interpreted differently. In particular transparency is associated with information and participation. In order to better understand how to manage transparency in a municipality, the paper analyses the case of Venice that adopted a strong policy to increase citizen participation through information and communications technology （ICT）. Starting with the idea that transparency is achieved only when perception of transparency between management and citizens （users） is aligned, the author has verified this alignment administering the same questionnaire separately to managers/officers and citizens. The author also analyses the alignment of perception for the different elements （motivation, issues, tools and relation） that administration has to manage to achieve transparency. The results show that for managing administration＇s transparency it is necessary to manage the ＂transparency triangle＂, i.e., addressing the information to a specific necessity of access to services or to citizen participation, with a different mix of high relational tools.     

Work Conflict as Predictor of Job Stress＂ The Case of an Italian Public Administration

Job stress is a pervasive problem for workers and employers in today＇s economy and it is a timely and important topic for organizational setting. Negative job stress may adversely affect an employee＇s mental and physical health. The aim of the present research is to explain why job stress in the public administrations is a theme of increasing interest and why many studies have analyzed its functioning and diffusion. The variables influencing job stress are numerous and often analyzed from different perspectives. Despite the influence of a number of different factors, job stress can be studied by looking at several aspects as physical environment or/and psychosocial environment. This preliminary study investigated the role of one psychosocial source, level of perceived work conflict, on job stress. A case study was presented. A survey instrument was used to collect information from a Regional Public Administration of South Italy. Data from 1,127 respondents, representing a 91.63% of response rate, were analyzed. Statistical correlations and hierarchical regression showed that work conflict was a predictive aspect of job stress and has the highest contribution to explain the phenomena. The present research has a multidisciplinary value, by linking business science, psychology, and social science.     

Administrative Innovation and Culture： Pillars of the Competitive Strategies in Horticultural Companies of Sinaloa

In contemporary times, a fundamental aspect for organization has been to achieve innovation through culture and approach to encourage the search and development of new ideas, new products, and new services; this is a key point to fulfill the competitive advantages which a company needs to be successful in the global market. The Sinaloa horticultural company has more than 100 years＇ history in the United States export market, and is presenting new challenges and demands from the market in order for it to achieve its permanence. The objective of this research is to identify and propose different strategies to implement management innovation, which in its essence is the one that coordinates, directs, and controls the human resource considering culture as an integral part, with a capacity to generate the spark and function as a motivating source which drives companies to consolidate and integrate supply chains.