Does context matter in academic entrepreneurship? The role of barriers and drivers in the regional and national context

With pressure on universities to better contribute to society, academic entrepreneurship is an increasingly recognised source of new knowledge and technologies as well as being a driver of the movement to a knowledge society. However, whilst growing, the level of academic entrepreneurship in Europe is still relatively low. Two reasons that are factors influencing this are inhibitors (barriers) and facilitators (drivers), however the understanding of how their interplay influences academic entrepreneurship, particularly across different context is lacking. For this reason, this study focussed on two environmental settings, European regions and countries, seeking to understand if it is the hurdle (barrier) or (and/or) tail-wind (drivers) that most impacts academic entrepreneurship and how does the regional or national context influence this. An online survey was translated into 22 languages and undertaken in 33 countries in Europe and the European Economic Area. From the original data set, 12 countries in four European regions provided a sample of 2925 responses, with a second step to focus on four ‘lead’ countries within those regions. The results show that there is a significant difference in the university-business cooperation barriers and drivers that effect academic entrepreneurship in the European regions. Furthermore, different barriers and drivers were found to significantly affect the four lead countries with barriers and drivers being able to provide a good explanation of the extent of academic entrepreneurship in the UK and Germany, and a limited explanation of entrepreneurial activity by Spanish and Polish academics. Overall the article contributes to the literature of resource-based theory and also the understanding of factors influencing European academic entrepreneurship.     

Human Identification via Lateral Patella Radiographs: A Validation Study,

This research examines the utility of patella outline shape for matching 3D scans of patellae to knee radiographs using elliptical Fourier analysis and subjective methods of human visual comparison of patellae across radiographs for identification purposes. Repeat radiographs were captured of cadaver's knees for visual comparison before patellae were extracted and skeletonized for quantitative comparisons. Quantitative methods provided significant narrowing down of the candidate pool to just a few potential matches (<5% of original sample), while the human analysts showed high capacity for correctly matching radiographs, irrespective of educational level (positive predictive value = 99.8%). The successful computerized matching based on a single quantified patella trait (outline shape) helps explain the potency achieved by subjective visual examination. This work adds to a growing body of studies demonstrating the value of single isolated infracranial bones for human identification via radiographic comparison.     

LGBTQ-Affirming Policing: Tactics Generated by Law Enforcement Personnel

Law enforcement personnel (LEP) use a variety of tactics to perform their job duties. Although LEP often receive specialized training to work with ethnocultural minorities and are sometimes trained to work with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) citizens, a clear articulation of LGBTQ-affirming police tactics has not yet been established. Using qualitative content analysis and a multiple case study approach, this project identified a variety of tactics generated by LEP in written surveys and group discussion of scenarios involving LGBTQ citizens. Results showed that across all scenarios, LEP were able to generate LGBTQ-affirming tactics, including both typical police procedures, as well as approaches specific to LGBTQ citizens. Non LGBTQ-affirming tactics typically reflected reluctance to adapt general procedures to meet the needs of LGBTQ citizens. The results of this study support the use of group-based scenario training to help LEP identify and adopt LGBTQ-affirming approaches. This study is significant because it represents a first step toward identifying best practices for LGBTQ-affirming police tactics.     

The Self-Report Symptom Inventory (SRSI): a New Instrument for the Assessment of Distorted Symptom Endorsement

Self-report instruments to detect distorted symptom reporting play a crucial role in clinical and forensic psychology. Most of the instruments currently available for this purpose only list implausible symptoms, which makes them easily identifiable as symptom validity tests. We developed the Self-Report Symptom Inventory (SRSI), combining five self-report scales of genuine symptoms with five pseudosymptom scales to screen for distorted symptom reporting in various domains (e.g., depression, post-traumatic stress). With a preliminary questionnaire version, we collected data in a heterogeneous sample (N?=?239) and performed an item selection, resulting in the final 107-item version. This version was evaluated in civil forensic patients, inmates of a prison, and a population-based sample; N?=?387). Data show that (a) SRSI pseudosymptom scores correlate highly (≥.80) with other instruments tapping distorted symptom endorsement, notably the Structured Inventory of Malingered Symptomatology; (b) High SRSI pseudosymptom scores tend to correlate with underperformance; and (c) The psychometric features of the SRSI are satisfactory, with internal consistency for the total scales >.90 and retest reliability >.85. The instrument appears to be a promising tool for examining symptom exaggeration, but further work is required, in particular cross-validation with other samples and different methods.     

When Terrorism Hits Home: Domestic Newspaper Coverage of the 1998 and 2002 Terror Attacks in Kenya

Analyzing newspaper coverage of the 1998 Nairobi and 2002 Mombasa terrorist attacks by the Nairobi Daily Nation and East African Standard finds that generalizations from Western sources, such as newsworthiness criteria and coverage of government officials and terrorists, appear similar in Kenyan media, although interpretation of the attacks were colored by a “developing world” perspective in some respects. Terrorists also ironically are more prominent in subsequent attacks, although perhaps only when they fail to inflict heavy damage and casualties. The second attack also brought far more criticism on the Kenyan government, which may have implications for similar events in other countries.

Adhabu ya kaburi aijau maiti (The corpse knows the torment of the grave).

—Swahili proverb     

Velvet Disillusionment: Czech Performing Arts and Twenty-Five Years of Transition, 1989–2014

ABSTRACT

The performing arts sector of the Czech Republic faces significant challenges twenty-five years after the Velvet Revolution, which ushered in swift and dramatic political, social, and economic change. Early policy decisions, subsequent privatization efforts, and neglect, compounded by the country's foray into the muddy waters of the free market, have left artists and administrators seeking solutions and searching for solvency. Empirical research, primarily in the form of surveys, site visits, and interviews with prominent Czech artists and administrators, significantly informs this article, which explores the state of Czech performing arts twenty-five years after the fall of Communism.     

One voter and two choices: The impact of electoral context on the 2011 UK referendum

There is a debate in the literature on referendum voting as to whether these occasions are opportunities for voters to express issue preferences in the absence of partisan politics or whether they simply serve as referendums on the current government. In part, this latter, second order account is assumed to be driven by the amount and content of media coverage, and hence information about the referendum, that is available to voters. In this paper, we address the second order question and demonstrate that holding elections concurrently both reduces the amount of media attention to the second order contest—the AV referendum in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland where national elections were held—and moderates media priming, thereby affecting the salient cues in the decision making of voters in those contexts.     

Beating the Clock: Strategic Management under the Threat of Direct Democracy

This article explores public sector responsiveness to voter‐led initiatives, specifically, the degree to which public managers attempt to lock in resources before they are constrained by a particular initiative. The authors posit that such behavior, which they term “beating the clock,” is a function of the potential impact of the proposed initiative, the degree to which managers can react to the initiative's central issues, and the perceived likelihood of passage. Although scholars have explored different responses to voter‐led initiatives, this particular form of strategic behavior has yet to be studied. Using longitudinal data on public debt issuance, hypotheses are tested in the context of a reform proposed through the initiative process in Colorado in 2010. Results show that the number of debt issues increased by roughly 150 percent in advance of a potentially binding election, indicating the ability to preempt formal initiative efforts in certain policy areas.     

Written Versus Unwritten Rules: The Role of Rule Formalization in Green Tape

ABSTRACT

Contemporary conceptions of written organizational rules evoke images of inefficiency, constraint, and rigidity. While formal rules can generate negative outcomes, this article argues that their written nature is not the culprit. Rather, theory suggests that the formalization process increases a rule's likelihood of becoming effective “green tape.” From a rule design perspective, rule formalization is expected to trigger more organizational learning and greater scrutiny than unwritten rules, which undergo no such process. From a compliance perspective, written rules are expected to focus organizational attention and convey legitimacy better than unwritten rules, thereby increasing the likelihood of compliance. Combining these expectations, the article hypothesizes that written rules will exhibit more logical designs, higher compliance, and ultimately greater effectiveness than unwritten rules. Statistical modeling of two data sources supports these expectations and suggests the need to rethink reflexively negative attitudes toward written organizational rules.     

The Development and Application of Random Match Probabilities to Firearm and Toolmark Identification

The field of firearms and toolmark analysis has encountered deep scrutiny of late, stemming from a handful of voices, primarily in the law and statistical communities. While strong scrutiny is a healthy and necessary part of any scientific endeavor, much of the current criticism leveled at firearm and toolmark analysis is, at best, misinformed and, at worst, punditry. One of the most persistent criticisms stems from the view that as the field lacks quantified random match probability data (or at least a firm statistical model) with which to calculate the probability of a false match, all expert testimony concerning firearm and toolmark identification or source attribution is unreliable and should be ruled inadmissible. However, this critique does not stem from the hard work of actually obtaining data and performing the scientific research required to support or reject current findings in the literature. Although there are sound reasons (described herein) why there is currently no unifying probabilistic model for the comparison of striated and impressed toolmarks as there is in the field of forensic DNA profiling, much statistical research has been, and continues to be, done to aid the criminal justice system. This research has thus far shown that error rate estimates for the field are very low, especially when compared to other forms of judicial error. The first purpose of this paper is to point out the logical fallacies in the arguments of a small group of pundits, who advocate a particular viewpoint but cloak it as fact and research. The second purpose is to give a balanced review of the literature regarding random match probability models and statistical applications that have been carried out in forensic firearm and toolmark analysis.