Overcoming barriers to technology transfer between small business assistance agencies and their clients: Third world style

This paper presents the results of an empirical examination of the methods small business assistance agencies in the Dominican Republic use to overcome technology transfer barriers. The availability and the methods agencies use to access the world's business knowledge are examined, as well as how the agencies disseminate the information to clients. The discussion identifies barriers that inhibit the flow of client information between (1) the knowledge pool and the agencies and (2) the agencies and the client. The strategies that agencies use to overcome barriers are characterized as push or pull, and informal or formal. Pull strategies begin with marketplace need and work toward the technology to solve the problem. Push strategies begin with specific business information and work toward its acceptance and use in the marketplace by clients. Personal interviews were conducted in Spanish with heads of the 13 assistance agencies in the country. Survey participants were asked about the processes, procedures, and techniques they used to gain and transfer business skills. The study identifies specific activities in which the agencies engage in order to effectively overcome barriers to the transfer of business knowledge.     

Legal technology in contemporary USA and China

The US and China are two typical models that present legal tech trends that are common world over. In China, robust regional models of intelligent judicial systems have emerged alongside some common applications that include the same-type case referencing, automated sentencing decision, uniform standards of evidence, and judges’ data profiling systems. In the US, legal tech refers to artificial intelligence in domains such as innovative legal research, predictive litigation analysis, e-discovery, and contract review.The common elements in the development of legal tech in both countries are useful for other countries to understand. However, the legal tech in both countries has distinct characteristics, as seen in their different driving forces, target groups and purposes. The characteristics of legal tech are heavily related to each country's political background, legal system, and judicial structure. The different paths taken toward legal tech also remind us to reflect on the mistakes made and to explore some experiences pertaining to developing legal tech. For the strategic deployment, it is reasonable to apply cutting-edge technologies to the legal field until they are truly matured, and combine the top-level design with local pilot projects. For the target groups, litigants and vulnerable groups should not be neglected in legal tech service provision. For the purposes, machines should play an auxiliary role rather than replace judges altogether.     

An introduction to protecting and licensing technology

Research institutions such as federal laboratories spend billions of dollars annually to develop new technologies. Recently there has been an overwhelming trend to encourage the licensing of these technologies to private industry. Without proper protection, they will be neither marketable nor licensable, as they could fall within the public domain, for free and unrestrained use. Few options effectively protect new technologies; these options are referred to as intellectual property.This article introduces basic concepts of intellectual property, with a special emphasis on patents. It considers intellectual property management and its influence on government and business.     

Law versus technology: Blockchain,GDPR, and tough tradeoffs

Inconsistency between the way in which the law is structured, and the way in which technologies actually operate is always an interesting and useful topic to explore. When a law conflicts with a business model, the solution will often be changing the business model. However, when the law comes into conflict with the architecture of hardware and software, it is less clear how the problem will be managed.In this paper, we analyze the contradiction of blockchain technology and the requirements of GDPR. The three contradictions we examine are (i) right to be forgotten versus irreversibility/immutability of records, (ii) data protection by design versus tamper-proofness and transparency of blockchain, and (iii) data controller versus decentralized nodes. We highlight that the conflicts can be handled through focusing on commonalities of GDPR and the blockchain, developing new approaches and interpretations, and tailoring the blockchain technology according to the needs of data protection law.     

Social skills training for juvenile delinquents: post-treatment changes

Objectives

To examine the post-treatment effectiveness of an outpatient, individual social skills training for juvenile delinquents in the Netherlands and to conduct moderator tests for age, gender, ethnicity, and risk of reoffending.

Methods

The sample consisted of juveniles who received Tools4U, a social skills training with a parental component, as a penal sanction (N?=?115). Propensity score matching was used to select a control group of juveniles receiving treatment as usual (TAU) of n?=?108 juveniles (of a total of N?=?354). Assessment of impulsivity, social perspective-taking, social problem-solving, critical reasoning, developmental task-related skills, and treatment integrity took place before and immediately after the treatment.

Results

Treatment integrity was found to be sufficient, so that treatment effects could be attributed to the Tools4U training. Tools4U was more effective than TAU in reducing impulsivity, cognitive distortions (self-centering and assuming the worst), and social perspective-taking deficits (hostile intent attribution). No treatment effects were found on adolescents’ social problem-solving skills, and only caretakers of girls showed improvement in parenting skills. Effects on developmental task-related skills were not in the expected direction: after Tools4U, juveniles reported significantly less social acceptance and self-worth than juveniles receiving TAU.

Conclusions

Tools4U showed generally small effects and no effects on protective factors, which might limit the long-term treatment effects on delinquency. Treatment effects may be improved by implementing additional techniques and improving the parental component for boys in particular.

     

Feasibility of a computerized intervention for offenders with substance use disorders: a research note

Objectives

Despite evidence that treatment is effective in reducing recidivism among inmates with substance use problems, scarce resources mean that few of those in need of treatment actually receive it. Computerized substance abuse interventions could be used to expand access to treatment in prisons without placing an undue burden on resources. The major aim of the study was to compare treatment conditions in terms of their service utilization, skills acquisition, and treatment satisfaction.

Methods

The study recruited men and women with substance use disorders from 10 prisons in 4 states. In an open label clinical trial, 494 subjects were randomly assigned either to the Experimental condition, a computerized drug treatment intervention, the Therapeutic Education System (TES; n?=?249), or to the Control condition, Standard Care (n?=?245). Chi-square tests compared groups on categorical variables and independent samples t tests were used for interval level continuous variables.

Results

Initial evidence demonstrated: (1) comparable group rates of session attendance and high rates of TES module completion for experimental subjects; (2) comparable group gains in the development of coping skills; and (3) a more favorable view of TES than of Standard Care.

Conclusions

Collectively, these results show that a computerized intervention, such as TES, can be implemented successfully in prison. Given the barriers to the delivery of substance abuse treatment typically encountered in correctional settings, computerized interventions have the potential to fill a significant treatment gap and are particularly well suited to inmates with mild to moderate substance use disorders who often are not treated.     

A pilot survey of courses in technology transfer offered at selected colleges and universities in the United States

This survey was developed to determine the nature of the programs and courses intechnology transfer now in existence in the United States. A pilot study approach was used, without operationalizing a definition, to avoid excluding possible technology transfer activities. Results indicate twenty colleges and universities offering courses in a wide range of academic settings including engineering, business, psychology, sociology, political science, environmental studies and agriculture. With the majority of respondents, technology transfer is studied as a combination of the history of science and technology, management, information science, and communication. In this sense, it appears to be an interdisciplinary study with a strong direction toward communication protocols, and management skills as primary outcomes.     

In Search of Indicators of Detective Aptitude: Police Recruits’ Logical Reasoning and Ability to Generate Investigative Hypotheses

Previous psychological research on criminal investigation has not systematically addressed the role of deductive and inductive reasoning skills in decision-making in detectives. This study examined the relationship between these skills derived from a cognitive ability test used for police recruitment and test scores from an investigative reasoning skills task (Fahsing and Ask 2016). Newly recruited students at the Norwegian Police University College (N = 166) were presented with two semi-fictitious missing-person cases and were asked to report all relevant hypotheses and necessary investigative actions in each case. The quality of participants’ responses was gauged by comparison with a gold standard established by a panel of senior police experts. The scores from the deductive and inductive reasoning test were not related to participants’ performance on the investigative reasoning task. However, the presence or absence of an investigative “tipping-point” (i.e. arrest decision) in the two cases was systematically associated with participants’ ability to generate investigative hypotheses. Methodological limitations and implications for police recruitment and criminal investigative practice are discussed.     

Social impact analysis on technology transfer

As societies and cultures are changed, technology transfer is an integral part of the process of creating a new world order. A primary question is whether technology transfer serves as a force for good or evil. Based on some of the recent history of the United States and the impact oftechnology transfer upon a small group of tribal people in India, this article discusses the need for a social impact analysis approach to ameliorate the negative effects of rapid changes caused by unregulated technology transfer.     

Social-cognitive skills training with a sexually abused and abusive child psychiatric inpatient: Training,generalization, and follow-up

This paper describes the clinical application of a social-cognitive skills training program for an 11 1/2-year-old child psychiatric inpatient with a history of sexual abuse and neglect who was referred for hospitalization after sexually molesting a neighborhood girl. The content and procedures of the program are outlined in detail to facilitate replication. Results indicated that improvements were found on analogue role-play scenarios administered during training-which then generalized to several specific and general measures of social adjustment/competence on the inpatient unit. A 1-year follow-up assessment revealed the maintenance of these therapeutic gains. The implications of this therapeutic approach with maltreated children and need for more rigorous empirical outcome studies are discussed.     

Skype Technologies SA v Joltid Limited and others [2009] EWHC 2783 (Ch). Anti-suit injunction: Clarification of effect of English exclusive jurisdiction clause in worldwide technology licensing contract

The Court's discretion in granting an anti-suit injunction has been clarified further by the recent decision of Mr Justice Lewison in Skype Technologies SA v Joltid Limited and Others [2009] EWHC 2783 (Ch). Ruling on the Court's willingness to grant an anti-suit injunction where an exclusive jurisdiction clause had been breached, Mr Justice Lewison held that “standard considerations that arise in arguments about forum non conveniens should be given little weight in the face of an exclusive jurisdiction clause where the parties have chosen the courts of a neutral territory in the context of an agreement with world-wide application. Otherwise the exclusive jurisdiction clause would be deprived of its intended effect”. It follows that contracting parties who deliberately select the English courts as a neutral forum in an exclusive jurisdiction clause will not be allowed to “wriggle out” of their agreement, unless the party seeking to commence proceedings in an alternative forum can establish exceptional reasons, outside of ordinary forum non conveniens arguments, to justify why the exclusive jurisdiction clause should be displaced.     

Federal-state cooperation in science and technology programs

During the past several years participants in the Government-University-Industry Research Roundtable, chaired by Richard Celeste, have discussed cooperation in science and technology programs between state and federal agencies. The result is the following paper on the potential for and means of promoting such cooperation. The roundtable is sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. [It was] created in 1984 to provide a forum where scientists, administrators, and policy makers from government, university, and industry can come together on an ongoing basis to explore ways to improve the productivity of the nation's research enterprise. The object is to try to understand issues, to inject imaginative thought into the system, and to provide a setting for discussion and the seeking of common ground. The roundtable does not make recommendations, nor of fer specific advice; it develops options and brings interested parties together.     

Assessment of assertion and problem-solving skills in wife abusers and their spouses

The present study provided an assessment of assertion and problem solving skills in couples characterized by wife abuse. A role play test and problem solving interaction task were administered to couples who were (a) physically abusive, (b) maritally discordant but nonviolent, and (c) satisfactorily married. Results indicated that members of abusive dyads exhibited deficits on selected behavioral components of assertion. However, few differences were observed between these dyads and the maritally discordant, nonviolent condition. Findings are discussed in terms of (1) the need for further evaluation of interpersonal skill variables in physically abusive males, (2) issues in selection of measures and subjects, and (3) the need to consider the possible interactive effects of multiple factors in family violence research.     

Boundary spanning between industry and university: the role of Technology Transfer Centres

Technology Transfer Centres (TTCs) have been analyzed in the last few years by focusing on the relationship between a TTC, provider of knowledge-intensive services, and a firm client-receiver. Less attention has been devoted to a more complex relationship which involves in the dyadic provider-receiver tie a third relevant body, University. We provide both a theoretical and an empirical contribution by studying whether TTCs can bond the academic and industrial system and we define the activities that make-up this role such as: scanning and selection of R&D opportunities, bridge building, semantic translation of domain specific knowledge, co-production of new knowledge. The boundary spanning role of TTCs is discussed drawing on different and complementary theoretical perspectives. Moreover, we test research hypotheses on the antecedents of boundary spanning activity from a knowledge-based perspective. We argue that TTC boundary spanners need to leverage on both technical skills and networking competences. Empirical investigation has been carried out with a survey of the TTC population of North East Italy. The research findings highlight the task coordination activities implied by a boundary spanning role in joint R&D projects and show that the endowment of human capital at individual level and a qualified social capital at individual and organizational level are the main determinants.     

Information technology in the legal curriculum—reaction and realities*

Abstract

In the light of official apparent assumptions about the use and effectiveness of C & IT in teaching and learning this article, by reference to empirical studies carried out by the authors and others, offers observations and conclusions about the most effective use of CAL in delivering legal education. We detail the type of electronic packages used in delivering modules to Woherhampton students (studying both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes), evaluate their responses and conclude by making recommendations as to the most effective use of CAL in academic programmes; in particular that by itself it be limited to providing a foundation of basic legal knowledge upon which the higher cognitive skills can be developed by face to face contact     

Occupational structures across 25 EU countries: the importance of industry structure and technology in old and new EU countries

This article analyzes the occupational structure of 25 European Union countries during the period 2000–2004. Shift-share analyses are used to decompose cross-country differences in occupational structure into within sector and between sectors effects. The static analysis for 2004 shows that the new member countries employ a lower share of skilled workers because their industry structure is biased towards less skill-intensive industries and because they use fewer skills within industries. The differences in the shares of (high-skilled) non-production workers are dominated by the between (industrial) effect. In contrast, the dynamic analysis of 2000–2004 showed that changes in the share of high-skilled non-production workers are mostly driven by within sector changes, which are probably related to skill-biased technological change. Similar trends in the countries’ within effects support the catch-up of the new member countries’ skills demand, while the structural developments that could equalize the industry mix of the new and old member countries are related to increased domestic demand and will probably take time.

Federal technology transfer: Teaching it

This paper recommends development of teaching materials and cases on technology transfer for undergraduate and graduate courses in business and engineering. Its focus is the process of transferring technology from the federal laboratories to business organizations.     

An applied technology transfer process

The applied technology transfer process is a communication process based on planning, marketing, and training. Planning is the single most important element, while pre-planning is also essential. The marketing part of applied technology transfer involves an in-depth knowledge of both consumers and products. A sound knowledge of media is also essential. The marketing step is the key delivery or transfer element. Applied technology transfer is a system that requires skills such as management and communication techniques which can be learned in traditional academic courses. However, other skills such as applied human relations are more easily learned under a supervised workshop approach. More complex technology transfer systems require additional training on a continuing education basis. The development of technology transfer learning centers can also be useful. Applied technology transfer is a research investment rather than a cost. It is the technology transfer process that insures the timely application of research effort. Research pay-off is derived from use of research products. Thus, applied technology transfer represents research delivery insurance.     

Transfer of technology: A classification of motivations

Each technology transfer (TT) transaction takes place because of some motivation on the part of the respective participants. This paper attempts to create a generic taxonomy that lists such motivations and links them to the participants in the transfer. Although the past three decades have recorded an exponential growth in the literature of TT, this literature is highly fractionated. Yet, as the literature has grown several taxonomies have surfaced dealing with the various aspects of TT. Most, however, were designed to serve one of the many scientific disciplines or professions concerned with technology transfer. Zhao and Reisman (1992) provide a synthesis of these taxonomic efforts. This paper in turn addresses an aspect of TT not previously dealt with in this manner.     

Problem-solving training with a multiply distressed abusive and neglectful mother: Effects on social insularity,negative affect,and stress

Multiple sources of stress and deficient problem-solving skills have been identified among maltreating parents. In the present study, a problem-solving intervention was evaluated with a multiply distressed, abusive and neglectful mother. Problem-solving skills were trained sequentially in a multiplebaseline design. Training focused on improving judgments related to child care and managing daily stress. The impact of training was examined in relation to problem-solving skill improvements, as well as social insularity, affect, and stress which appeared to compromise child care abilities. Problem-solving training resulted in a substantial increase in generation of alternative solutions and in the quality of plans to implement solutions on both training and generalization vignettes. Moreover, training resulted in positive changes in social insularity, negative affect, and self-reported stress and anxiety. Most of these gains were maintained at 1- and 5-month follow-ups. There were no further reports of child maltreatment during the 21 months following intervention.