Understanding chester I. Barnard

Chester I. Barnard is an example of a manager-participant-observer whose concepts and theories have a major impact on managerial thought and practice in both the public and private sectors.

I am greatly honored to be here and to participate in the first meeting of the Chester I. Barnard Society (U.S.A.). It seems only fitting that we make every effort to bring Barnard, the man, and Barnard's thinking to public attention. In this modern age where computers and rapidly advancing technology seem to be dominating our world, we need to find focus and balance in dealing with the eternal paradoxes and conflicts of a managerial society. Chester I. Barnard more than any other person in the field of management provides perspective for this challenge.

Accordingly, I wish to discuss my perception of Chester I. Barnard and some of the key concepts found in his philosophy and his theory of management. However, before doing so I wish to summarize comments about Chester I. Barnard by a few outstanding persons. These will serve to give a feel for the breadth of Barnard's activities and the significance of his work.

Barnard's thinking has been praised by outstanding men of science. Many see in the work of Herbert Simon, the Nobel Prize recipient, a significant shadow of Barnard. In Simon's book, Administrative Behavior, a number of ideas are traceable to Barnard: composite decision processes, bounded rationality, opportunism in decision processes, and so forth. Simon himself states that “The Functions of the Executive [Barnard's major publication]⁽¹⁾ was a major influence upon my thinking about administration.⁽²⁾ The eminent economist, Kenneth Boulding, states in his book, The Image, that one of the books which influenced him the most is the “pioneering work of Chester I. Barnard.”⁽³⁾

The famous American philosopher, John Dewey, stated: “In the main I believe the great value of Barnard's discussion is that it is one of those rare cases in which a man of affairs, an experienced executive, also has genuine intellectual curiosity and wisdom.”⁽⁴⁾

Bertrand de Jeuvenel, the distinguished French political scientist, wrote to Barnard: “Your thinking is political philosophy of the highest order...As one speaks of Keynesian revolution in economics, I feel one should speak of a Barnardian revolution in political science.”⁽⁵⁾

Fortune Magazine,one of the renown American business periodicals, states:

Chester I. Barnard possibly possesses the most capacious intellect of any business executive in the U.S.⁽⁶⁾     

An Empirical Analysis of Soviet Economic Relations with Developing Countries

Soviet trade with the developing countries is analyzed using formal statistical techniques. Soviet imports of primary products are found to grow more rapidly but to be no more stable than imports of these products by market economies. Evidence is found of Soviet price discrimination in trade in favor of LDC members of the CMEA and against LDCs with which it has bilateral clearing agreements (BCAs). BCAs are correlated with greater trade volumes, relatively diverse export structures and more stable LDC exports to the Soviet Union. No evidence exists that Soviet aid deliveries are linked systematically with later Soviet imports. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 124, 421, 443     

Retrograde venous cerebral air embolism from disconnected central venous catheter: an experimental model

There are few reported cases of death attributed to retrograde cerebral air embolism from central venous catheter. The pathophysiological mechanism and the necessary conditions are not fully understood, also because of missing experimental data. We performed experimental simulation while working on a possible case of retrograde cerebral air embolism. A hermetic system consisting of two containers connected to each other and to an electric pump by means of rubber hoses was built. In this system, a fluid (water and blood) could continuously flow under conditions similar to those of the common jugular vein. The part of the system representing the jugular vein could be freely positioned at angles between 0 and 90°. A central venous catheter was inserted into this part. After disconnection, the behavior of the air bubbles entering the hose through the tip of the catheter was evaluated at different positions. At angles between 0 and 45°, the air bubbles followed the fluid flow. At angles >45°, the air bubbles showed the tendency to flow upstream; this phenomenon was more evident the more vertically the hose was located. We were able to demonstrate that a retrograde air embolism can be caused by a disconnected catheter and is even more likely if the neck is in a vertical position.     

Blood aspiration as a vital sign detected by postmortem computed tomography imaging

Blood aspiration is a significant forensic finding. In this study, we examined the value of postmortem computed tomography (CT) imaging in evaluating findings of blood aspiration. We selected 37 cases with autopsy evidence of blood in the lungs and/or in the airways previously submitted to total-body CT scanning. The CT-images were retrospectively analyzed. In one case with pulmonary blood aspiration, biopsy specimens were obtained under CT guide for histological examination. In six cases, CT detected pulmonary abnormalities suggestive of blood aspiration, not mentioned in the autopsy reports. CT reconstructions provided additional data about the distribution and extent of aspiration. In one needle-biopsied case, the pulmonary specimens showed blood in the alveoli. We suggest the use of CT imaging as a tool complementary to traditional techniques in cases of blood aspiration to avoid misdiagnosis, to guide the investigation of lung tissue, and to allow for more evidence-based inferences on the cause of death.     

Getting in touch--3D printing in forensic imaging

With the increasing use of medical imaging in forensics, as well as the technological advances in rapid prototyping, we suggest combining these techniques to generate displays of forensic findings. We used computed tomography (CT), CT angiography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and surface scanning with photogrammetry in conjunction with segmentation techniques to generate 3D polygon meshes. Based on these data sets, a 3D printer created colored models of the anatomical structures. Using this technique, we could create models of bone fractures, vessels, cardiac infarctions, ruptured organs as well as bitemark wounds. The final models are anatomically accurate, fully colored representations of bones, vessels and soft tissue, and they demonstrate radiologically visible pathologies. The models are more easily understood by laypersons than volume rendering or 2D reconstructions. Therefore, they are suitable for presentations in courtrooms and for educational purposes.     

Korruption und Kleinstaat. Elemente einer Theorie

Abstract: Der Aufsatz beschäftigt sich vorwiegend aus einer theoretischen Perspektive mit Korruption als einer bestimmten Form von Devianz in Kleinstaaten, insbesondere Mikrostaaten: Weisen sie Besonderheiten im Hinblick auf Korruptionsanfälligkeit, das Kosten‐Nutzen‐Verhältnis von Korruption sowie die Korruptionsbekämpfung auf? Zunächst wird eine grobe Kosten‐Nutzen‐Analyse für Kleinstaaten im Hinblick auf Korruption skizziert. Es folgt ein Versuch, darüber hinausgehend strukturelle korruptionserhöhende oder korruptionsreduzierende Einflussfaktoren für das Korruptionsniveau in kleinen politischen Systemen zu benennen. Daraufhin wird anhand eines Stufenmodells diskutiert, wann und gegebenenfalls in welcher Weise Kleinstaaten aktiv Korruptionsbekämpfung betreiben. Einige der in den verschiedenen Abschnitten entwickelten Überlegungen werden am Beispiel Liechtensteins punktuell veranschaulicht. Der Beitrag versteht sich als theoretische Vorstudie für weiterführende empirische Analysen.     

Geographies of Crime and Justice: Contemporary Transitional Justice and the Creation of 'Zones of Impunity'

This article explores some of the challenges that transnationalcrimes pose to the operation of transnational justice. By transnationalcrimes, we mean serious violations of international human rightsand humanitarian law that transcend national borders and areperpetrated by state or non-state actors. Many national andinternational legal mechanisms may only address a segment ofthese crimes, creating what we refer to as ‘zones of impunity.’This article examines how these dilemmas are unfolding in threeAfrican contexts: the possibility that Charles Taylor is triedfor crimes in Sierra Leone but not in Liberia; that only Congolese,and not Rwandans or Ugandans, face prosecution for crimes inIturi or elsewhere in the Democratic Republic of Congo; or thatJoseph Kony escapes prosecution in Uganda through being allowedamnesty or exile in Sudan. Our analytic framework considershow geography and politics affect legal responses to transnationalcrimes.     

Predicting discharge in forensic psychiatry: the legal and psychosocial factors associated with long and short stays in forensic psychiatric hospitals

In Germany, both the number of patients treated in forensic psychiatric hospitals and the average inpatient treatment period have been increasing for over thirty years. Biographical and clinical factors, e.g., the number of prior offences, type of offence, and psychiatric diagnosis, count among the factors that influence the treatment duration and the likelihood of discharge. The aims of the current study were threefold: (1) to provide an estimate of the German forensic psychiatric patient population with a low likelihood of discharge, (2) to replicate a set of personal variables that predict a relatively high, as opposed to a low, likelihood of discharge from forensic psychiatric hospitals, and (3) to describe a group of other factors that are likely to add to the existing body of knowledge. Based on a sample of 899 patients, we applied a battery of primarily biographical and other personal variables to two subgroups of patients. The first subgroup of patients had been treated in a forensic psychiatric hospital according to section 63 of the German legal code for at least ten years (long-stay patients, n=137), whereas the second subgroup had been released after a maximum treatment period of four years (short-stay patients, n=67). The resulting logistic regression model had a high goodness of fit, with more than 85% of the patients correctly classified into the groups. In accordance with earlier studies, we found a series of personal variables, including age at first admission and type of offence, to be predictive of a short or long-stay. Other findings, such as the high number of immigrants among the short-stay patients and the significance of a patient's work time before admission to a forensic psychiatric hospital, are more clearly represented than has been observed in previous research.