Assessing market competition and vendors' size and scope on AlphaBay.

Science.gov (United States)

Paquet-Clouston, Masarah; Décary-Hétu, David; Morselli, Carlo

2018-04-01

Since 2011, drug market participants have traded illegal drugs through cryptomarkets, a user-friendly infrastructure in which drug market participants can conduct business transactions. This study assesses market competition and the size and scope of drug vendors' activities on one of the largest cryptomarkets, AlphaBay, in order to better understand the challenges that drug vendors face when selling on this venue. Relying on data collected from AlphaBay, we calculate the degree of competition within the drug market using the Herfindhal-Hirshmann Index (HHI). We then follow a micro analytical approach and assess the size and scope of vendors' accounts. This is done by evaluating each vendor's market share over time using a group-based trajectory model (GBTM). Results from the GBTM are then used to assess vendors' exposure, diversity and experience based on their selling position in the market. The HHI scores demonstrate that cryptomarkets offer a highly competitive environment that fits in a top-heavy market structure. However, the distribution of vendors' market share trajectories shows that only a small portion of vendors (referred to as high-level vendors) succeed in generating regular sales, whereas the majority of vendors are relegated to being mere market spectators with almost zero sales. This inequality is exacerbated by the aggressive advertising of high-level vendors who post many listings. Overall, product diversity and experience is limited for all market participants regardless of their level of success. We interpret these results through Reuter's work on traditional illegal markets, e-commerce studies and the growing field of cryptomarket research. We conclude that, while offering a new venue for illegal drug transactions, in many ways, the economics of cryptomarkets for drug dealing are consistent with Reuter's classic assessment of illegal markets and the consequences of product illegality that underlie it. Cryptomarkets conflicting features, a

A socioeconomic survey of kidney vendors in Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Naqvi, Syed Ali Anwar; Ali, Bux; Mazhar, Farida; Zafar, Mirza Naqi; Rizvi, Syed Adibul Hasan

2007-11-01

In recent years, Pakistan has emerged as one of the largest centres for commerce and tourism in renal transplantation. Kidney vendors belong to Punjab in eastern Pakistan, the agricultural heartland, where 34% people live below poverty line. We report results of a socioeconomic and health survey of 239 kidney vendors. The mean age was 33.6 +/- 7.2 years (M:F 3.5:1). Mean nephrectomy period was 4.8 +/- 2.3 years. Ninety per cent of the vendors were illiterate. Sixty-nine per cent were bonded labourers who were virtual slaves to landlords, labourers 12%, housewives 8.5% and unemployed 11%. Monthly income was $US15.4 +/- 8.9 with 2-11 dependents per family. Majority (93%), vended for debt repayment with mean debt of $1311.4 +/- 819. The mean agreed sale price was $1737 +/- 262. However, they received $1377 +/- 196 after deduction for hospital and travel expenses. Postvending 88% had no economic improvement in their lives and 98% reported deterioration in general health status. Future vending was encouraged by 35% to pay off debts and freedom from bondage. This study gives a snapshot of kidney vendors from Pakistan. These impoverished people, many in bondage, are examples of modern day slavery. They will remain exploited until law against bondage is implemented and new laws are introduced to ban commerce and transplant tourism in Pakistan.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, January-March 1986. Volume 10, No. 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-05-01

The NRC vendor inspection focus has been shifted to vendor activities associated with nuclear plant operation, maintenance, and modifications, more than firms designing nuclear steam supply systems, architect engineering firms designing nuclear plants, and major equipment vendors. Results of 16 inspections are reported, giving for each organization inspected, their activity, inspection bases and scope, and any violations, nonconformances, or unresolved items found. The status of previous inspection findings are also given

Vendor-managed inventory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Govindan, Kannan

2013-01-01

Vendor-managed inventory (VMI) represents the methodology through which the upstream stage of a supply chain (vendor) takes responsibility for managing the inventories at the downstream stage (customer) based on previously agreed limits. VMI is another method by which supply chains can be managed...... review, we have identified six dimensions of VMI: namely, inventory, transportation, manufacturing, general benefits, coordination/collaboration, and information sharing. In addition, there are, three methodological classifications: modelling, simulation, and case studies. Finally, we will consider...

Vendor Managed Consignment Inventory (Vmci) Model For Single Vendor Multi Retailers Under Probabilistic

OpenAIRE

Rosyida, Erly Ekayanti; Pujawan, I Nyoman; Kurniati, Nani

2015-01-01

Vendor managed consignment inventory (VMCI) adalah suatu strategi kolaborasi yang terjalin diantara pihak-pihak yang terkait dalam supply chain, dimana vendor sebagai supplier mempunyai wewenang untuk memutuskan order quantity yang harus dikirimkan ke buyernya serta menjadi pemilik barang tersebut sampai barang tersebut terjual atau dipakai. Integrasi pada sistem supply chain ini terjadi karena adanya information sharing dan business process reengineering. Pada penelitian ini akan dilakukan a...

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, April 1982-June 1982

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-07-01

Firms designing nuclear steam supply systems, architect engineering firms doing design work on nuclear power plants, and certain selected vendors are currently inspected on a regular basis by the NRC. NRC inspectors, during periodic inspections, ascertain through direct observation of selected activities (including review of processes and selected hardware, discussions with employees and selected record review) whether a licensee or contractor is satisfactorily implementing a quality assurance program. If nonconformances with QA commitments are found, the inspected organization is requested to take appropriate corrective action and to institute preventive measures to preclude recurrence. In addition to the QA program inspections, NRC also conducts reactive inspections of the licensee's contractors and vendors. These are special, limited scope inspections to verify that organizations supplying safety-related equipment or services to licensed facilities are exercising appropriate corrective/preventive measures when defects or conditions which could adversely affect the safe operation of such facilities are identified and that these organizations are complying with the NRC requirements which govern the evaluation and reporting of such conditions

Secure vendor environment (SVE) for PACS

Science.gov (United States)

Honeyman-Buck, Janice; Frost, Meryll

2005-04-01

A Secure Vendor Environment (SVE) was created to protect radiology modalities from network intrusion, worms, viruses, and other forms of damaging attacks. Many vendors do not attempt any form of network security and if an institution demands a non-standard and secure installation, a future system upgrade could and frequently does eliminate any security measures installed during the initial installation. The SVE isolates the vendor equipment behind a virtual firewall on a private network that is invisible to the outside world. All interactions must go though a device containing two network interface cards called an Application Processor that acts as a store-and forward router, performs DICOM repair, proxies modality worklist, and isolates the vendor modalities. A small VPN appliance can open the device temporarily for remote access by vendor engineers. Prior to the routine installation of the SVE, vendor equipment was often attacked by hostile network intruders and viruses or worms, sometimes rendering the equipment unusable until the vendor could reload the system. The resulted in considerable clinical downtime and loss of revenue. Since the relatively low cost SVE solution has routinely been installed with all new equipment, no intrusions have occurred, although our network sniffers and intrusion detectors indicate that we are constantly being scanned for vulnerability. Purpose: To provide a secure network for vendor equipment in a PACS environment while allowing vendor access for upgrades and system repairs. Method: The network administrators at our university believe that network security should be implemented at the machine level rather than relying on a firewall. A firewall solution could conceivably block unwanted intrusion from outside the university network, but would still allow literally thousands of potential network users to get through to the PACS network. All the PACS archive, display and routing systems are individually protected from intrusion, but

Responding to an RFP: A Vendor's Viewpoint.

Science.gov (United States)

Kington, Robert A.

1987-01-01

Outlines factors used by online vendors to decide whether to bid on RFPs (requests for proposals) for library automation systems, including specifications for software, hardware or performance requirements not met by the vendor; specifications based on competitors' systems; the size and complexity of the request itself; and vendors' time…

Why I Love Vendors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wiley, H. S.

2010-02-01

In December, I attended the annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology, as I have done regularly for the last several decades. It is always a good way to catch up with old friends and look for the latest trends in cell biology. I rarely attend the talks, having found that they more reflect the fashion of the moment (or the past) than the direction of the field. Poster sessions are more to my liking, since they provide a chance to talk to enthusiastic young scientists in the trenches. But my favorite stop has always been the vendor booths. When I tell my friends that I love visiting vendor booths, most of them seem to think I am kidding. At meetings, many scientists seem to feel that vendors are necessary evils. They provide free candy and cheap pens in exchange for bombarding us with ads and scanning our badges. Like popup ads in web browsers, we have learned to both ignore and accept them as part of the landscape. It is unfortunate that we have become so inured to their presence. Talks and posters capture exciting research from the last few years or months, but vendor booths capture the future, offering one of the clearest visions of where a field is going.

Process Control/SCADA system vendor security awareness and security posture.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Luiijf, H.A.M.; Lüders, S.

2009-01-01

A starting point for the adequate security of process control/SCADA systems is the security awareness and security posture by the manufacturers, vendors, system integrators, and service organisations. The results of a short set of questions indicate that major security improvements are required in

Prevalence of oral lesions in pan vendor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prakash Gadodia

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Being a portal of entry to various smoking and smokeless tobacco products, oral cavity is prone to deleterious effects. Present study consist of epidemiological survey to elucidate oral lesions in pan vendors. Aims and objectives: To detect oral lesions in pan vendors and compare it with controls. To detect habit pattern and prevalence of OSMF and other lesions in pan vendors as compared to controls- To identify, recognize and evaluate the possible etiology for OSMF, encompassing various chewing and smoking habits. Materials and methods: Study population consist of 170 pan vendors with age ranging from 15 to 55 years and equal number of sex matched controls selected randomly. Results: Prevalence of oral lesions in pan vendors is statistically significantly higher as compared to controls. The habit of arecanut chewing in various forms was present in all cases. The habit of smoking and smokeless tobacco products was present in all cases. Conclusion: Pan vendors are at higher risk for oral lesions than controls. There is increase in relative risk with increase in duration and frequency of habit.

Innovative Approach for IBS Vendor Selection Problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Omar Mohd Faizal

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Supply chain management in Industrialised Building System (IBS construction management has significantly determined the successful of company and project performance. Due to the wide variety of criteria and vendor available, the vendor selection process for a specific project needs is becoming more difficult. The need of decision aid for vendor selection in other areas is widely discussed in previous research. However, study on vendor selection for IBS project is largely neglected. Decision Support System (DSS is proposed for this purpose. Yet, most of the DSS models are impractical since they are complicated and difficult for a layman such as project managers to use. Research indicates that the rapid development of ICT has highly potential towards simple and effective DSS. Thus, this paper highlights the importance and research approach for vendor selection in IBS project management. The study is based on Design Science Research Methodology with combination of case studies. It is anticipates that this study will yield an effective value-for-money decision making platform to manage vendor selection process.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-04-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period form January 1994 through March 1994. A list of selected bulletins and information notices involving vendor issues and copies of pertinent correspondence involving vendor issues are also included in this periodical

What Vendors Wished You Knew

Science.gov (United States)

Weinstein, Margery

2010-01-01

The vendor-learning professional relationship is a delicate one. In the rush to scour the marketplace for the best products and services for learners, and secure a deal favorable to one's company, the learning vendor can be one of the greatest allies. Among the first steps to making a satisfying learning technology purchase is ensuring one's…

Vendor audits: A cooperative program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

White, S.C.

1989-01-01

The litany of recent problems with substandard, fraudulent, or counterfeit materials has led to much scrutiny regarding the adequacy and effectiveness of licensee-performed vendor audits. To address these problems in the audit process, most licensees have dedicated significant additional technical and qualitative resources. In response to the limited availability of sufficient resources and expertise to perform more comprehensive and effective vendor audits, many licensees have recognize the advantages of cooperative programs to perform joint audits with other licensees on a regional basis. The Nuclear Procurement Issues Council (NUPIC) provides such a program on a national level, which has proven to be of significant benefit not only to licensees but also to vendors of nuclear safety-related items and services

Utility-vendor partnerships for refurbishment projects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Newman, G.; Hall, H. [Bruce Power, Tiverton, Ontario (Canada)

2012-07-01

Through the course of normal operation of the six (6) Bruce Power units, the quality of plant modifications has from time to time resulted in extensive rework, additional cost and significant unit generation schedule delays. This has impacted Bruce Power’s ability to successfully deliver our capital improvement program, generation plan and therefore our business plan. More recently, the restart of Units 1 and 2 have exhibited this same issue however in a more intensive manner due to the large number of Structures, Systems and Components (SSC) being brought into service. As such Bruce Power has and will continue to take steps to bolster its Quality Assurance and Control provisions as necessary to ensure that upgrades to our stations work first time and every time. Part of this enhanced focus involves the upfront Engineering Change Control (ECC) process and from this perspective it is imperative that these modifications meet and/or exceed the provisions within the Bruce Power ECC requirements, including the quality gates associated with the key milestones within this protocol. As such Bruce Power has and will continue to hold training sessions with our key Vendors to ensure that these requirements are clear since this shall determine the nature of our future working relationship. For Vendors who adhere to these requirements, support will continue to be requested and for cases where they do not, services will be suspended. By extension, services provided in support of field work will similarly be monitored and screened with the same objective, high quality installations must become the standard rather than the exception and special steps have identified and are being implemented to improve the performance in this area of our business. In aggregate the above theme is consistent with a continuous improvement perspective and in recognition that not all services provided by our current Vendor base are of equivalent quality. Bruce Power understands that we must work

Utility-vendor partnerships for refurbishment projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newman, G.; Hall, H.

2012-01-01

Through the course of normal operation of the six (6) Bruce Power units, the quality of plant modifications has from time to time resulted in extensive rework, additional cost and significant unit generation schedule delays. This has impacted Bruce Power’s ability to successfully deliver our capital improvement program, generation plan and therefore our business plan. More recently, the restart of Units 1 and 2 have exhibited this same issue however in a more intensive manner due to the large number of Structures, Systems and Components (SSC) being brought into service. As such Bruce Power has and will continue to take steps to bolster its Quality Assurance and Control provisions as necessary to ensure that upgrades to our stations work first time and every time. Part of this enhanced focus involves the upfront Engineering Change Control (ECC) process and from this perspective it is imperative that these modifications meet and/or exceed the provisions within the Bruce Power ECC requirements, including the quality gates associated with the key milestones within this protocol. As such Bruce Power has and will continue to hold training sessions with our key Vendors to ensure that these requirements are clear since this shall determine the nature of our future working relationship. For Vendors who adhere to these requirements, support will continue to be requested and for cases where they do not, services will be suspended. By extension, services provided in support of field work will similarly be monitored and screened with the same objective, high quality installations must become the standard rather than the exception and special steps have identified and are being implemented to improve the performance in this area of our business. In aggregate the above theme is consistent with a continuous improvement perspective and in recognition that not all services provided by our current Vendor base are of equivalent quality. Bruce Power understands that we must work

CVFA: Coal vendor financial advisor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goote, W.G.; Andersen, S.

1992-01-01

An expert system for determining coal vendor financial viability in fuel purchasing contracts at an electric utility is described. The system blends rules, data objects, and financial knowledge to provide a rational basis for accepting or rejecting coal contracts given the financial capability of the coal vendor. The discussion concludes with a critique of managerial issues in the development of the system and its use in decision making. 3 refs., 1 fig

Commitment Without Marriage

Science.gov (United States)

Reczek, Corinne; Elliott, Sinikka; Umberson, Debra

2011-01-01

The majority of Americans will marry in their lifetimes, and for many, marriage symbolizes the transition into long-term commitment. However, many Americans cannot legally marry. This article analyzes in-depth interviews with gays and lesbians in long-term partnerships to examine union formation and commitment-making histories. Using a life course perspective that emphasizes historical and biographical contexts, the authors examine how couples conceptualize and form committed relationships despite being denied the right to marry. Although previous studies suggest that commitment ceremonies are a way to form same-sex unions, this study finds that because of their unique social, historical, and biographical relationship to marriage and ceremonies, long-term same-sex couples do not follow normative commitment-making trajectories. Instead, relationships can transition more ambiguously to committed formations without marriage, public ceremony, clear-cut act, or decision. Such an understanding of commitment making outside of marriage has implications for theorizing alternative forms of union making. PMID:21814298

Involving vendors in continuous quality improvement efforts.

Science.gov (United States)

McDevitt, M C

1995-03-01

In the hospital environment, vendors supply a wide range of items, from surgical sutures to the latest in high-cost technological equipment. Also, many clinical and support services, such as respiratory therapy, transcription, and computer databanks are now outsourced to commercial vendors. Interaction with such vendors is often less than satisfactory, with prolonged timelines and disruption of an important process that is being computerized. Although hospitals deal with very few vendors in long-term relationships, such as those seen in manufacturing, this should not preclude the formation of a supplier-customer relationship that goes beyond management's interaction with the sales representative in response to a request for proposal. This is especially true when a process improvement team has studied an internal process and defined a key quality characteristic.

DEVELOPING VENDOR IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM IN MALAYSIA AUTOMOTIVE COMPANY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SHUKRIAH ABDULLAH

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Improvement Program seek to do evaluation well, request to become sufficiently versed in evaluation or to integrate on improvement perspective in all phase of performance, from needs assessment to implementation and evaluation itself. The purpose of this program in the automotive company is to assist vendor as global manufacturer in preparation towards ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA 2015. This development vendor improvement program emphasize on the downtime reduction to below 200 minutes per month with the ultimate end of improving not only program or solutions but also the organizations and customer. A practical approach either planned or unplanned by the automotive company require policies and procedures that address the same consideration on the downtime identification. 20 top bottom rank vendor were determined based on the downtime performance, followed by classification into different group based on severity. To execute the vendor improvement program three among 20 top bottom rank vendors were selected due to willingness to participate and ease of data access in the program. Selected vendors have high ranking in terms of downtime. The case study method involved an interview and plant observation. The used of secondary data from the automotive company, and previous researcher are also utilised. This improvement program assists the automobile manufacturer to improve its supplier’s performance. The vendor improvement program is implemented through a whole supplier operation assessment.

Licensee contractor and vendor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, July 1995--September 1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-12-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC`s Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1995 through September 1995. Vendors inspected include: (1) Continental Disc Corporation, (2) Divesco, (3) Eaton, (4) General Electric Nuclear Energy, (5) ITT Barton, (6) Liberty Technologies, (7) Mid-South Nuclear, (8) Power Distribution Services, (9) Rosemount, (10) Target-Rock, and (11) Westinghouse Electric.

Licensee contractor and vendor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, July 1995--September 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-12-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1995 through September 1995. Vendors inspected include: (1) Continental Disc Corporation, (2) Divesco, (3) Eaton, (4) General Electric Nuclear Energy, (5) ITT Barton, (6) Liberty Technologies, (7) Mid-South Nuclear, (8) Power Distribution Services, (9) Rosemount, (10) Target-Rock, and (11) Westinghouse Electric

An Analysis of DOD Fraudulent Vendor Payments

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Jones-Oxendine, Shawn

1999-01-01

...) known DoD fraudulent vendor cases in light of their management control weaknesses. A high risk of fraudulent vendor payments were present in the DoD, pre-DFAS finance and accounting systems and the current DFAS configuration...

Faeco-oral parasitic infection in street food vendors in Tamale, Ghana

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Poor environmental sanitation, personal and food hygiene practices of food vendors are major causes of street food contamination and outbreak of foodborne illness. The unregulated and rapid growth of the street food industry in the Tamale Metropolis with its associated health risk calls for strict public health surveillance to ...

The Dynamic Environment of Crypto Markets: The Lifespan of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS and Vendors Selling NPS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elle Wadsworth

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The Internet has played a major role in the distribution of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS, and crypto markets are increasingly used for the anonymous sale of drugs, including NPS. This study explores the availability of individual NPS and vendors on the crypto markets and considers whether crypto markets are a reliable platform for the sale of NPS. Data was collected from 22 crypto markets that were accessed through the hidden web using the Onion Router (Tor. Data collection took place bimonthly from October 2015 to October 2016 as part of the CASSANDRA (Computer Assisted Solutions for Studying the Availability aNd DistRibution of novel psychoActive substances project. In seven snapshots over 12 months, 808 unique vendors were found selling 256 unique NPS. The total number of individual NPS and vendors increased across the data collection period (increase of 93.6% and 71.6%, respectively. Only 24% (n = 61 of the total number of NPS and 4% (n = 31 of vendors appeared in every snapshot over the 12 months, whereas 21% (n = 54 of NPS and 45% (n = 365 of vendors only appeared once throughout the data collection. The individual NPS and vendors did not remain the same over the 12 months. However, the availability of NPS and vendors selling NPS grew. NPS consistently available on crypto markets could indicate popular substances.

The role of private drug vendors as malaria treatment providers in selected malaria endemic areas of Sri Lanka

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rajakaruna, R S; Weerasinghe, M; Alifrangis, M

2006-01-01

was applied taking all response variables as binary outcome. RESULTS: Vendors' knowledge on antimalarials was poor with 58% of the vendors being unaware of the government malaria drug policy in the country. Also, the advice provided to customers buying antimalarials was limited. However, the majority......BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The involvement of private drug vendors in malaria treatment is particularly high in developing countries and understanding their practices and knowledge about antimalarials and malaria treatment will aid in devising strategies to increase the correct use of antimalarials...... and improve adherence to the government's malaria drug policy. Results of a study on the knowledge and practices of the private drug vendors conducted in seven districts in Sri Lanka, mostly in malarious areas are presented. METHODS: Data on awareness of government's malaria drug policy, practice of issuing...

A case on vendor selection methodology: An integrated approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nikhil C. Shil

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Vendor selection methodology is a highly researched area in supply chain management l terature and a very significant decision taken by supply chain managers due to technological advances in the manufacturing process. Such research has two basic dimensions: one is related to the identification of variables affecting the performance of the vendors and the other deals with the methodology to be applied. Most of the research conducted in this area deal with the upfront selection of vendors. However, it is very common to have a list of dedicated vendors due to the development of sophisticated production technologies like just in time (JIT, a lean or agile manufacturing process where continuous flow of materials is a requirement. This paper addresses the issue of selecting the optimal vendor from the internal database of a company. Factor analysis, analytical hierarchy process and regression analysis is used in an integrated way to supplement the vendor selection process. The methodology presented here is simply a proposal where every possible room for adjustment is available.

Management information systems and the role of the nurse vendor.

Science.gov (United States)

Lenkman, S

1985-09-01

Nurse vendors have the ability and motivation to respond to market imperatives faster than most health care institutions. Vendors can contribute important knowledge to nursing literature about the consultant-expert vendor-client relationship and the expectations of both.

The Dynamic Environment of Crypto Markets: The Lifespan of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and Vendors Selling NPS.

Science.gov (United States)

Wadsworth, Elle; Drummond, Colin; Deluca, Paolo

2018-03-16

The Internet has played a major role in the distribution of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), and crypto markets are increasingly used for the anonymous sale of drugs, including NPS. This study explores the availability of individual NPS and vendors on the crypto markets and considers whether crypto markets are a reliable platform for the sale of NPS. Data was collected from 22 crypto markets that were accessed through the hidden web using the Onion Router (Tor). Data collection took place bimonthly from October 2015 to October 2016 as part of the CASSANDRA ( C omputer A ssisted S olutions for S tudying the A vailability a N d D ist R ibution of novel psycho A ctive substances) project. In seven snapshots over 12 months, 808 unique vendors were found selling 256 unique NPS. The total number of individual NPS and vendors increased across the data collection period (increase of 93.6% and 71.6%, respectively). Only 24% ( n = 61) of the total number of NPS and 4% ( n = 31) of vendors appeared in every snapshot over the 12 months, whereas 21% ( n = 54) of NPS and 45% ( n = 365) of vendors only appeared once throughout the data collection. The individual NPS and vendors did not remain the same over the 12 months. However, the availability of NPS and vendors selling NPS grew. NPS consistently available on crypto markets could indicate popular substances.

Vendor neutral archive in PACS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agarwal, Tapesh Kumar; Sanjeev

2012-01-01

An archive is a location containing a collection of records, documents, or other materials of historical importance. An integral part of Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) is archiving. When a hospital needs to migrate a PACS vendor, the complete earlier data need to be migrated in the format of the newly procured PACS. It is both time and money consuming. To address this issue, the new concept of vendor neutral archive (VNA) has emerged. A VNA simply decouples the PACS and workstations at the archival layer. This is achieved by developing an application engine that receives, integrates, and transmits the data using the different syntax of a Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine (DICOM) format. Transferring the data belonging to the old PACS to a new one is performed by a process called migration of data. In VNA, a number of different data migration techniques are available to facilitate transfer from the old PACS to the new one, the choice depending on the speed of migration and the importance of data. The techniques include simple DICOM migration, prefetch-based DICOM migration, medium migration, and the expensive non-DICOM migration. “Vendor neutral” may not be a suitable term, and “architecture neutral,” “PACS neutral,” “content neutral,” or “third-party neutral” are probably better and preferred terms. Notwithstanding this, the VNA acronym has come to stay in both the medical IT user terminology and in vendor nomenclature, and radiologists need to be aware of its impact in PACS across the globe

Site Specific Vendor's License

Data.gov (United States)

Montgomery County of Maryland — This dataset contains information of a site-specific vendor's license which is required if an individual sells or offers to sell goods or services from a stationary...

Do vendors benefit from promotions in a multi-vendor loyalty program?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dorotic, Matilda; Fok, Dennis; Verhoef, Peter C.; Bijmolt, Tammo H. A.

The growing trend of networking in recent years has led to an increase in number of loyalty program partnerships, most notably multi-vendor loyalty programs (MVLP). In an MVLP (as in other types of LPs), cardholders frequently receive promotional mailings intended to increase sales at the

Do vendors benefit from promotions in a multi-vendor loyalty program?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Dorotic (Matilda); D. Fok (Dennis); P.C. Verhoef (Peter); T.H.A. Bijmolt (Tammo)

2011-01-01

textabstractThe growing trend of networking in recent years has led to an increase in number of loyalty program partnerships, most notably multi-vendor loyalty programs (MVLP). In an MVLP (as in other types of LPs), cardholders frequently receive promotional mailings intended to increase sales at

Do vendors benefit from promotions in a multi-vendor loyalty program?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dorotic, Matilda; Fok, Dennis; Verhoef, Peter C.; Bijmolt, Tammo H. A.

2011-01-01

The growing trend of networking in recent years has led to an increase in number of loyalty program partnerships, most notably multi-vendor loyalty programs (MVLP). In an MVLP (as in other types of LPs), cardholders frequently receive promotional mailings intended to increase sales at the

OPC model generation procedure for different reticle vendors

Science.gov (United States)

Jost, Andrew M.; Belova, Nadya; Callan, Neal P.

2003-12-01

The challenge of delivering acceptable semiconductor products to customers in timely fashion becomes more difficult as design complexity increases. The requirements of current generation designs tax OPC engineers greater than ever before since the readiness of high-quality OPC models can delay new process qualifications or lead to respins, which add to the upward-spiraling costs of new reticle sets, extend time-to-market, and disappoint customers. In their efforts to extend the printability of new designs, OPC engineers generally focus on the data-to-wafer path, ignoring data-to-mask effects almost entirely. However, it is unknown whether reticle makers' disparate processes truly yield comparable reticles, even with identical tools. This approach raises the question of whether a single OPC model is applicable to all reticle vendors. LSI Logic has developed a methodology for quantifying vendor-to-vendor reticle manufacturing differences and adapting OPC models for use at several reticle vendors. This approach allows LSI Logic to easily adapt existing OPC models for use with several reticle vendors and obviates the generation of unnecessary models, allowing OPC engineers to focus their efforts on the most critical layers.

34 CFR 395.33 - Operation of cafeterias by blind vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Operation of cafeterias by blind vendors. 395.33... BLIND ON FEDERAL AND OTHER PROPERTY Federal Property Management § 395.33 Operation of cafeterias by blind vendors. (a) Priority in the operation of cafeterias by blind vendors on Federal property shall be...

The sales and marketing practices of English-language internet alcohol vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Rebecca S; Schmidt, Allison

2014-03-01

This study aimed to fill information gaps about the sales and marketing practices of internet alcohol vendors and their implications for addressing youth access and other legal violations. Further, it aimed to expand the limited scientific literature on internet alcohol sales using systematic survey methods to inform future efforts to regulate this industry and prevent sales to minors. The design was a cross-sectional website content analysis survey. [Not applicable]. A total of 105 internet alcohol vendor websites. Six key content analysis topics were explored: products offered, average prices and proportions of vendors using different promotions, policy statements and methods for age verification, payment and delivery. Websites sell and promote a variety of alcohol products, offered as cheaply as $1.93 for a 750-ml bottle. Vendors rely heavily upon age verification methods that are unlikely to prevent sales to minors. Many vendors advertise shipping of products via methods through which it is illegal or against delivery company policies to transport alcohol, and 99% of vendors accept credit cards. Limiting and enforcing delivery and payment options are types of policy interventions that have been used successfully with internet cigarette vendors that may be applicable to internet alcohol vendors as well. Internet alcohol vendor practices are insufficient to prevent sales to minors, and need further regulation and enforcement of existing policies. Their sales practices are similar to those of internet cigarette vendors prior to regulation, and similar regulatory approaches may be effective in reducing internet alcohol sales to minors. © 2013 Society for the Study of Addiction.

The changing refinery/vendor relationship: One tool for increased competitiveness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borowski, C.J.; Swett, G.H.

1996-01-01

The historic relationship between many petroleum refineries and vendors was adversarial. However, during the past 10 years, many industrial firms have found that working together with vendors is critical to reducing costs and improving quality--the two key elements required to maintain a competitive position. As refiners have begun working with their vendors more like partners, numerous benefits have accrued to the refining industry. This paper analyzes how the refiner-vendor relationship has changed. Specifically, the authors address the following issues: the competitive threat that has forced a different approach to contracting services and goods; how right-sizing and capacity creep have contributed to the need to re-examine historic practices; key elements in a successful refinery/vendor relationship; how does it work in real life; and implementing a partnering program

34 CFR 395.14 - The State Committee of Blind Vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false The State Committee of Blind Vendors. 395.14 Section... BLIND ON FEDERAL AND OTHER PROPERTY The State Licensing Agency § 395.14 The State Committee of Blind... Blind Vendors which, to the extent possible, shall be fully representative of all blind vendors in the...

Investigating unlicensed retail drug vendors' preparedness and knowledge about malaria: An exploratory study in rural Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Liow, Eric; Kassam, Rosemin; Sekiwunga, Richard

2017-10-01

Despite major efforts to increase the uptake of preventive measures and timely use of the first line antimalarial treatment artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACT), Uganda continues to fall short of meeting its national malaria control targets. One of the challenges has been scaling up effective measures in rural and remote areas where the unlicensed private retail sector remains the first point of contact and a common source of treatment. The current paper discusses unlicensed vendors' (1) training related to malaria case management for children aged five and under, and (2) knowledge related to the cause of malaria, preventive measures, common signs, and symptoms, diagnostic procedures, and best treatment options. A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted in the rural district of Butaleja, Uganda in 2011. All 88 unlicensed drug outlets enumerated in the study area were visited by six locally recruited research assistants, with one vendor from each outlet invited to participate. The transcripts were analyzed using acceptable qualitative research protocols. About half of the 75 vendors interviewed had received some sort of formal training on malaria at a post-secondary institution, although only 6.7% had qualifications which met licensure requirements. The study found widespread misconceptions relating to the cause, as well as prevention and treatment of malaria. A large majority of the vendors relied primarily on non-specific symptoms and limited physical exams for diagnoses, with less than one-tenth of the vendors recognizing that rapid or microscopic blood testing was necessary to confirm a clinical diagnosis of malaria. While most recognized mosquitoes as the primary vector for malaria, over two-fifths of the vendors held misconceptions about the factors that could increase the risk of malaria, and nearly a third believed that malaria could not be prevented. With respect to acute case management, three-quarters viewed as the best

Vendor-to-vendor education to improve malaria treatment by private drug outlets in Bungoma District, Kenya

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Makama Sammy

2003-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Private outlets are the main suppliers of uncomplicated malaria treatment in Africa. However, they are so numerous that they are difficult for governments to influence and regulate. This study's objective was to evaluate a low-cost outreach education (vendor-to-vendor programme to improve the private sector's compliance with malaria guidelines in Bungoma district, Kenya. The cornerstone of the programme was the district's training of 73 wholesalers who were equipped with customized job aids for distribution to small retailers. Methods Six months after training the wholesalers, the programme was evaluated using mystery shoppers. The shoppers posed as caretakers of sick children needing medication at 252 drug outlets. Afterwards, supervisors assessed the outlets' knowledge, drug stocks, and prices. Results The intervention seems to have had a significant impact on stocking patterns, malaria knowledge and prescribing practices of shops/kiosks, but not consistently on other types of outlets. About 32% of shops receiving job aids prescribed to mystery shoppers the approved first-line drug, sulfadoxine-pyremethamine, as compared to only 3% of the control shops. In the first six months, it is estimated that 500 outlets were reached, at a cost of about $8000. Conclusions Changing private sector knowledge and practices is widely acknowledged to be slow and difficult. The vendor-to-vendor programme seems a feasible district-level strategy for achieving significant improvements in knowledge and practices of shops/kiosks. However, alternate strategies will be needed to influence pharmacies and clinics. Overall, the impact will be only moderate unless national policies and programmes are also introduced.

Comparison of Two Buyer-Vendor Coordination Models

Science.gov (United States)

Diar Astanti, Ririn; Ai, The Jin; Gong, Dah-Chuan; Luong, Hunyh Trung

2018-03-01

This paper develops and compares two mathematical models for describing situation in coordination of buyer and vendor. In this case the vendor which is an Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMS) of automotive parts, are supplying different type of buyers, i.e. automotive industry, repair shop and automotive dealers. It is well known that automotive industries are operated in Just in Time (JIT) Production Environment, so that the demand behaviour from this buyer has different characteristics than the demand behaviour from other buyers. Two mathematical models are developed in order to depict two different manufacturing strategies as the vendor response dealing with different type of buyers. These strategies are dividing production lot size for each type of buyer and consolidating all buyer’s demand in to single production lot size.

Structuring vendor-client relationships–a combinatorial approach

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Volani, Natalia; Herbert-Hansen, Zaza Nadja Lee

a framework leading to a heuristically determined optimal solution for a company. Design/methodology/approach –Weighting Factor Comparison (WFC) and scale metrics are used in order to holistically determine a firm’s position regarding relationships with potential vendors. Each contributing factor is analyzed...... separately using different sub-frameworks, both qualitative and quantitative. Eventually a score is provided, which will be used as input for the holistic framework for the realization of the analysis. Data from a case study of a large multinational company and its relationship with three of its vendors has...... been used for validation purposes, whereas other factors have been compared to empirical data from literature research. Findings – The framework presented combines various approaches when handling vendor-client relationships and, therefore, minimizes subjectivity. The factors that have been proven...

Deployment of vendor capabilities and competences throughout the outsourcing process

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perunovic, Zoran; Christoffersen, Mads; Mefford, Robert N.

2012-01-01

Purpose - A vendor's capabilities are recognized as one of the most important factors for success in outsourcing. However, there is a lack of understanding of how vendors manage their capabilities throughout the outsourcing process. With an aim to contribute to filling this existing gap......, the purpose of this paper is to explore how vendors deploy their capabilities in order to win, run and renew the outsourcing contracts. Design/methodology/approach - The research question has been derived by integrating a resource-based view theory with a model of a vendor's process in outsourcing. A multiple......-case study of three contract electronic manufacturers has been employed to explore the research question. Findings - The results show that for achieving their outsourcing objectives, vendors use different capability mixes: the winning, the running, and the renewing. These mixes are created through...

Knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about the health hazards of biomass smoke exposure amongst commercial food vendors in Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Mokogwu, Ndubuisi; Agboghoroma, Orighomisan; Ahmed, Fahmi O.; Mortimer, Kevin

2018-01-01

Background Exposure to biomass smoke is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Africa. Commercial food vendors in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa are commonly exposed to biomass smoke from open fire cooking both at work and home. Little is known about the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of food vendors about the health hazards of biomass smoke exposure in Nigeria. Methods We did a descriptive cross sectional survey of the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of commercial food vendors in the cities of Benin and Calabar in Nigeria. We recruited respondents using a multi-stage approach. Structured interviewer-administered questionnaires were used for data collection. Results We recruited 308 participants (164, 53.2% female). The majority 185(60.2%) were married and had post-primary education 206(67.4%). The average monthly income was electricity or gas fuels were associated with good knowledge of the adverse health effects of biomass smoke exposure whilst female gender and having good knowledge of the adverse health effects of biomass smoke were associated with positive attitudes towards preventing exposure. Conclusion Commercial food vendors in our study had limited knowledge about the adverse health effects of biomass smoke exposure and negative attitudes towards preventing these adverse health effects. We suggest an educational intervention is needed to improve this knowledge. PMID:29377962

29 CFR 99.210 - Subrecipient and vendor determinations.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 true Subrecipient and vendor determinations. 99.210 Section 99.210 Labor Office of the Secretary of Labor AUDITS OF STATES, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, AND NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS Audits § 99.210 Subrecipient and vendor determinations. (a) General. An auditee may be a recipient...

Vendor Furnished Information (VFI); National Marine Standard VFI Guidelines

Science.gov (United States)

1999-02-28

vendors have global marketing perspectives and are continuously monitoring and applying innovations in technology. They propose new opportunities from the...strategic impact on shipbuilding programs. These vendors have global marketing perspectives and are continuously monitoring and applying innovations in

Selection of Vendor Based on Intuitionistic Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prabjot Kaur

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Business environment is characterized by greater domestic and international competitive position in the global market. Vendors play a key role in achieving the so-called corporate competition. It is not easy however to identify good vendors because evaluation is based on multiple criteria. In practice, for VSP most of the input information about the criteria is not known precisely. Intuitionistic fuzzy set is an extension of the classical fuzzy set theory (FST, which is a suitable way to deal with impreciseness. In other words, the application of intuitionistic fuzzy sets instead of fuzzy sets means the introduction of another degree of freedom called nonmembership function into the set description. In this paper, we proposed a triangular intuitionistic fuzzy number based approach for the vendor selection problem using analytical hierarchy process. The crisp data of the vendors is represented in the form of triangular intuitionistic fuzzy numbers. By applying AHP which involves decomposition, pairwise comparison, and deriving priorities for the various levels of the hierarchy, an overall crisp priority is obtained for ranking the best vendor. A numerical example illustrates our method. Lastly a sensitivity analysis is performed to find the most critical criterion on the basis of which vendor is selected.

Preserving maintenance know-how from a nuclear vendor's viewpoint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huemmeler, A.; Sprehe, J.

2002-01-01

The merging of Europe's major nuclear vendors to form Framatome ANP established the largest nuclear engineering corporation in the world, with a separate regional company based in the German market. The headquarters of the German company may be in Erlangen and the customers also see familiar faces at all locations in Germany. Within the new, globally aligned Framatome ANP, Siemens is contributing towards preserving this know-how on the domestic market. But we are still not satisfied. Not only do we wish to retain our expertise in the field of maintenance - in collaboration with the customers as well as other major service providers, but Siemens also wants to continuously improve and expand it even further in the future. (orig.) [de

Deployment of vendor innovation capability in contract electronic manufacturing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perunovic, Zoran; Mefford, Robert N.

2012-01-01

This paper explores deployment of innovation capability in outsourcing from the vendor perspective. Vendor’s innovation-related competences are used to capture vendor innovativeness. A multiple-case study was applied with two Contract Electronic Manufacturers. Based on the data analysis we propose...

Portfolio allocation under the vendor managed inventory: A Markov ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Portfolio allocation under the vendor managed inventory: A Markov decision process. ... Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management ... This study provides a review of Markov decision processes and investigates its suitability for solutions to portfolio allocation problems under vendor managed inventory in ...

An integrated vendor-buyer model with stock-dependent demand

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sajadieh, Mohsen S.; Thorstenson, Anders; Akbari Jokar, Mohammad R.

in a display area. The end-customer demand is assumed to be positively dependent on the amount of items shown in the display area. With the proposed model we determine the buyer's optimal shipment quantity and number of shipments, as well as the vendor's optimal production batch. The objective is to maximize...... total supply chain profit. The numerical analysis shows that it is more profitable for the buyer and the vendor to cooperate in situations when the demand is more stock-dependent. The analysis also shows the effect of double marginalization in this integrated vendor-buyer model....

An integrated vendor-buyer model with stock-dependent demand

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sajadieh, Mohsen S.; Thorstenson, Anders; Akbari Jokar, Mohammad R.

2010-01-01

We develop an integrated vendor-buyer model for a two-stage supply chain. The vendor manufactures the product and delivers it in a number of equal-sized batches to the buyer. The items delivered are presented to the end customers in a display area. Demand is assumed to be positively dependent...... on the amount of items displayed. The objective is to maximize total supply chain profit. The numerical analysis shows that buyer-vendor coordination is more profitable in situations when demand is more stock dependent. It also shows that the effect of double marginalization provides a link between the non...

An Integrated Vendor-Buyer Model with Stock-Dependent Demand

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thorstenson, Anders; Sajadieh, Mohsen S.; Akbari Jokar, Mohammad R.

2009-01-01

in the buyer's warehouse. The demand is assumed to be positively dependent on the amount of items shown in the display area. The proposed model determines the buyer's optimal shipment quantity and number of shipments, as well as the vendor's optimal production batch. The objective is to maximize total supply......-chain profit. The numerical analysis shows that as long as the maximum display area is not used, it is more valuable for the buyer and the vendor to cooperate in situations when the demand is more stock- dependent. It also shows the effect of double marginalization in this integrated vendor-buyer model....

Allegheny County WIC Vendor Locations

Data.gov (United States)

Allegheny County / City of Pittsburgh / Western PA Regional Data Center — This dataset contains the locations of Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program vendors. If viewing this description on the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data...

Blastocystis hominis among food vendors in Xochimilco markets.

Science.gov (United States)

Cruz Licea, Verónica; Plancarte Crespo, Agustín; Morán Alvarez, Cristina; Valencia Rojas, Silvia; Rodríguez Sásnchez, Gustavo; Vega Franco, Leopoldo

2003-01-01

Blastocystis hominis is a pathogenic protozoon that lives in the human bowel and causes diarrhea: the mode of transmission is a passive one, through the ingestion of stool-contaminated water or foods that contain infective forms of the parasite. The purpose of this study is to report the prevalence of Blastocystis hominis among food vendors in the markets within the Xochimilco jurisdiction, Mexico City, Mexico. A cross-sectional study was conducted in which food vendors answered an epidemiological questionnaire and underwent a serial stool culture. The frequency of the intestinal parasitoses reported was estimated and an analysis was carried out associating the presence of Blastocystis hominis with socio-economic and hygienic factors using the odds ratio at a 95% confidence interval. The frequency of intestinal parasites and commensals was 50.4%; Blastocystis hominis was found in 48 (41.7%) food vendors. The risk analysis showed that Blastocystis hominis was associated with: male gender, poor personal hygiene habits, personal history of parasitosis, and family history of parasitosis. The prevalence reported is high when compared with other populations studied. The relevance of this report lies on the fact that food vendors handle foods and could transmit the infection to consumers.

Business challenges in the vendor community. Panel Discussion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stamm, Steve; Sauger, John; Marano, Mark; Shave, Dana; Pierce, Robert; Smiarowski, Michael W.

2001-01-01

Full text of publication follows: The nuclear business community is undergoing immense changes and challenges due to consolidation of the power industry and plant owners, shifts in the needs of plant owners, addition of new competitors, loss of old competitors, aging of the workforce, loss of personnel to competing industries, and the advances in electronic communications. These changes have significantly perturbed existing business models and relationships in the nuclear industry as well as the broader power, engineering, construction, equipment, and commodities fields. Vendors have responded to these challenges in a number of different ways. The participants for this panel have been selected from a diverse set of vendor organization types so that a broad spectrum of evaluation and approaches will be discussed. The participants in this panel discussion will provide insights into their views of the challenges to a successful nuclear business. They will provide insights into the expectations and approaches by each party in the client vendor relationship. Also discussed will be an overview of the strategies that each panelist views as potential success paths to nurture and grow the client-vendor relationship today with their insights into the future. (authors)

11 CFR 100.78 - Sale of food or beverages by vendor.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 11 Federal Elections 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sale of food or beverages by vendor. 100.78...) Exceptions to Contributions § 100.78 Sale of food or beverages by vendor. The sale of any food or beverage by... contribution, provided that the charge is at least equal to the cost of such food or beverage to the vendor, to...

IPAD: A computer vendor's perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Feldman, H. D.

1980-01-01

The current IPAD technology and the state-of-the-art in computer technology are compared from the point of view of a computer vendor. Issues of engineering data management, distributed architectures, and user interfaces are covered.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-10-01

A fundamental premise of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) licensing and inspection program is that licensees are responsible for the proper construction and safe and efficient operation of their nuclear power plants. The total government-industry system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities has been designed to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. Licensees, contractors, and vendors each participate in a quality verification process in compliance with requirements prescribed by the NRC's rules and regulations (Title 10 Code of Federal Regulations). The NRC performs an overview of the commercial nuclear industry by inspection to determine whether its requirements are being met by licensees and their contractors, while the major inspection effort is performed by the industry within the framework of ongoing quality verification programs

IT vendor selection model by using structural equation model & analytical hierarchy process

Science.gov (United States)

Maitra, Sarit; Dominic, P. D. D.

2012-11-01

Selecting and evaluating the right vendors is imperative for an organization's global marketplace competitiveness. Improper selection and evaluation of potential vendors can dwarf an organization's supply chain performance. Numerous studies have demonstrated that firms consider multiple criteria when selecting key vendors. This research intends to develop a new hybrid model for vendor selection process with better decision making. The new proposed model provides a suitable tool for assisting decision makers and managers to make the right decisions and select the most suitable vendor. This paper proposes a Hybrid model based on Structural Equation Model (SEM) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) for long-term strategic vendor selection problems. The five steps framework of the model has been designed after the thorough literature study. The proposed hybrid model will be applied using a real life case study to assess its effectiveness. In addition, What-if analysis technique will be used for model validation purpose.

Space Livability of Street Vendors in Simpang Lima Public Space, Semarang

Science.gov (United States)

Widjajanti, R.; Wahyono, H.

2018-02-01

Street vendors in Semarang have been growing rapidly and uncontrolled. They always use public space such as public roads, sidewalks, parks and fields as trading locations. The street vendors’ activities in the public space are considered as the cause of declining on environmental quality and aesthetics of the city. All these years, the government often evicted the street vendors than organized and provides adequate space for them. As one of the actual urban activities, the street vendors’ activities should be accommodated by the government and the location for them is managed in the urban spatial plan. Street vendors need spaces which livable and suitable to their activities’ requirements, has a relationship with users (street vendors’ doers and consumers) and the activities of street vendors themselves. Research on the aspect of space for street vendors is still less in quantity, whereas space for them is an urgent matter for the government in managing their activities. This study aims to identify the livability of space based on the street vendors’ behavior in their location. This research used descriptive quantitative method with questionnaires and GIS as the mapping tool for street vendors’ location. The result of the research shows that the livability of street vendor space is based on the activity of street vendors (type of merchandise, trading places’ size, trade place assessment, space dimension, trading time, duration and period) and space conditions (access, natural elements, safety and parking space).

Expedited, uniform processing of multi-vendor gamma test data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zimmerman, R.E.

2002-01-01

Aim: Acceptance testing of gamma camera performance is time consuming. When data is collected from different vendors image format and methodology differences can result in disjointed and difficult to compare results. Even when performing NEMA specified tests consistent processing of data from multi-vendor cameras results in methodological inconsistencies. A more uniform and consistent method to process data collected from gamma cameras would be a boon to those involved in acquiring and processing such test data. Methods and Materials: Image J is an image processing program freely available on the Web at http://rsb.info.nih.gov/ij/. It can be run using a normal Web browser or installed on any computer. Since it is written in Java it is platform and operating system independent. Image J is very extensible, object based and has a large international user community in many imaging disciplines. Extensions to Image J are written using the Java programming language and the internal macro recording facility. Image J handles multiple image formats useful in nuclear medicine including DICOM, RAW, BMP, JPG, Interfile, AVI and QT. Extensions have been written to process and determine gamma camera intrinsic and extrinsic uniformity, COR errors, planar extrinsic resolution and reconstructed spatial resolution. The testing and processing adhere closely to NEMA specified procedures and result in quantitative measures of performance traceable to NEMA and manufacturers specifications. Results and Conclusions: Extensions to Image J written specifically to process gamma camera acceptance test data have resulted in considerable decrease in time to complete the analysis and allows a consistent, vendor independent, method to measure performance of cameras from multiple vendors. Quality control images from multiple camera vendors are also easily processed in a consistent fashion. The availability of this or similar platform and vendor independent software should lead to more complete

An Analysis of Errors Committed by Saudi Non-English Major Students in the English Paragraph Writing: A Study of Comparisons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammed Nuruzzaman

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The present study investigates the writing errors of ninety Saudi non-English major undergraduate students of different proficiency levels from three faculties, who studied English as a foundation course at the English Language Center in the College of Languages &Translation at King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia in the academic year 2016-17. The findings reveal that the common errors the Saudi EFL students make in writing English paragraphs fall under four categories namely grammar, lexis, semantics and mechanics. Then it compares the categories, types and frequency of errors committed by these three groups of students. Among these categories, grammar has been observed as the most error-prone area where students commit errors the most. The study also posits that among the three groups, the students of the College of Medicine make the minimum errors in all the types and the highest number of errors is committed by the students of Engineering College. The College of Computer Science is in the second position in making errors. The frequency of error types is also found different among these three groups.

A structural model of customer satisfaction and trust in vendors involved in mobile commerce

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suki, N.M.

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to provide an explanation of factors influencing customer satisfaction and trust in vendors involved in mobile commerce (m-commerce. The study sample consists of 200 respondents. Data were analyzed by employing structural equation modelling (SEM supported by AMOS 5.0 with maximum likelihood estimation in order to test the proposed hypotheses. The proposed model was empirically tested and results confirmed that users’ satisfaction with vendors in m-commerce was not significantly influenced by two antecedents of the vendor’s website quality: interactivity and customisation, and also two antecedents of mobile technology quality: usefulness and ease-of-use. Meanwhile, users’ trust towards the vendor in m-commerce is affected by users’ satisfaction with the vendor. Interestingly, vendor quality dimensions such as responsiveness and brand image influence customer satisfaction with vendors in m-commerce. Based on the findings, vendors in m-commerce should focus on the factors which generate more satisfaction and trust among customers. For vendors in general, the results can help them to better develop customer trust in m-commerce. Vendors of m-commerce can provide a more satisfying experience for customers.

An analysis of vendor innovation capability in the contract electronics manufacturing industry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perunovic, Zoran; Mefford, Robert; Christoffersen, Mads

2016-01-01

the contract, vendors can use different configurations of the competitive priorities of cost, quality, delivery and flexibility. The research aggregates the capabilities that influence the innovative capability of a vendor into the innovation-related capabilities (IRCs) of design, new product introduction......Limited academic research has been given to analysing the innovation capabilities of vendors in outsourcing contracts. This paper seeks to address this gap in the literature by enhancing our understanding of how the innovation capability of vendors is deployed to win, run and renew outsourcing...... contracts with their customers. Employing the resource-based view as a theoretical basis and undertaking in-depth case study analysis of three vendors in the electronic manufacturing services industry, the research shows that to achieve the outsourcing objectives of winning, running and renewing...

Vendor compliance with Ontario's tobacco point of sale legislation.

Science.gov (United States)

Dubray, Jolene M; Schwartz, Robert M; Garcia, John M; Bondy, Susan J; Victor, J Charles

2009-01-01

On May 31, 2006, Ontario joined a small group of international jurisdictions to implement legislative restrictions on tobacco point of sale promotions. This study compares the presence of point of sale promotions in the retail tobacco environment from three surveys: one prior to and two following implementation of the legislation. Approximately 1,575 tobacco vendors were randomly selected for each survey. Each regionally-stratified sample included equal numbers of tobacco vendors categorized into four trade classes: chain convenience, independent convenience and discount, gas stations, and grocery. Data regarding the six restricted point of sale promotions were collected using standardized protocols and inspection forms. Weighted estimates and 95% confidence intervals were produced at the provincial, regional and vendor trade class level using the bootstrap method for estimating variance. At baseline, the proportion of tobacco vendors who did not engage in each of the six restricted point of sale promotions ranged from 41% to 88%. Within four months following implementation of the legislation, compliance with each of the six restricted point of sale promotions exceeded 95%. Similar levels of compliance were observed one year later. Grocery stores had the fewest point of sale promotions displayed at baseline. Compliance rates did not differ across vendor trade classes at either follow-up survey. Point of sale promotions did not differ across regions in any of the three surveys. Within a short period of time, a high level of compliance with six restricted point of sale promotions was achieved.

A Database for Reviewing and Selecting Radioactive Waste Treatment Technologies and Vendors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

P. C. Marushia; W. E. Schwinkendorf

1999-01-01

Several attempts have been made in past years to collate and present waste management technologies and solutions to waste generators. These efforts have been manifested as reports, buyers' guides, and databases. While this information is helpful at the time it is assembled, the principal weakness is maintaining the timeliness and accuracy of the information over time. In many cases, updates have to be published or developed as soon as the product is disseminated. The recently developed National Low-Level Waste Management Program's Technologies Database is a vendor-updated Internet based database designed to overcome this problem. The National Low-Level Waste Management Program's Technologies Database contains information about waste types, treatment technologies, and vendor information. Information is presented about waste types, typical treatments, and the vendors who provide those treatment methods. The vendors who provide services update their own contact information, their treatment processes, and the types of wastes for which their treatment process is applicable. This information is queriable by a generator of low-level or mixed low-level radioactive waste who is seeking information on waste treatment methods and the vendors who provide them. Timeliness of the information in the database is assured using time clocks and automated messaging to remind featured vendors to keep their information current. Failure to keep the entries current results in a vendor being warned and then ultimately dropped from the database. This assures that the user is dealing with the most current information available and the vendors who are active in reaching and serving their market

Reproducibility of quantitative susceptibility mapping in the brain at two field strengths from two vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

Deh, Kofi; Nguyen, Thanh D; Eskreis-Winkler, Sarah; Prince, Martin R; Spincemaille, Pascal; Gauthier, Susan; Kovanlikaya, Ilhami; Zhang, Yan; Wang, Yi

2015-12-01

To assess the reproducibility of brain quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) in healthy subjects and in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) on 1.5 and 3T scanners from two vendors. Ten healthy volunteers and 10 patients were scanned twice on a 3T scanner from one vendor. The healthy volunteers were also scanned on a 1.5T scanner from the same vendor and on a 3T scanner from a second vendor. Similar imaging parameters were used for all scans. QSM images were reconstructed using a recently developed nonlinear morphology-enabled dipole inversion (MEDI) algorithm with L1 regularization. Region-of-interest (ROI) measurements were obtained for 20 major brain structures. Reproducibility was evaluated with voxel-wise and ROI-based Bland-Altman plots and linear correlation analysis. ROI-based QSM measurements showed excellent correlation between all repeated scans (correlation coefficient R ≥ 0.97), with a mean difference of less than 1.24 ppb (healthy subjects) and 4.15 ppb (patients), and 95% limits of agreements of within -25.5 to 25.0 ppb (healthy subjects) and -35.8 to 27.6 ppb (patients). Voxel-based QSM measurements had a good correlation (0.64 ≤ R ≤ 0.88) and limits of agreements of -60 to 60 ppb or less. Brain QSM measurements have good interscanner and same-scanner reproducibility for healthy and MS subjects, respectively, on the systems evaluated in this study. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Physician preference items: what factors matter to surgeons? Does the vendor matter?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Burns LR

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Lawton R Burns,1 Michael G Housman,2 Robert E Booth,3 Aaron M Koenig4 1Department of Health Care Management, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2Singularity University, Moffett Field, CA, 33B Orthopaedics, Langhorne, PA, 4Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Wang Ambulatory Care Center, Boston, MA, USA Background: The USA devotes roughly $200 billion (6% of annual national health expenditures to medical devices. A substantial proportion of this spending occurs during orthopedic (eg, hip and knee arthroplasties – two high-volume hospital procedures. The implants used in these procedures are commonly known as physician preference items (PPIs, reflecting the physician’s choice of implant and vendor used. The foundations for this preference are not entirely clear. This study examines what implant and vendor characteristics, as evaluated by orthopedic surgeons, are associated with their preference. It also examines other factors (eg, financial relationships and vendor tenure that may contribute to implant preference. Methods: We surveyed all practicing orthopedic surgeons performing 12 or more implant procedures annually in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The survey identified each surgeon’s preferred hip/knee vendor as well as the factors that surgeons state they use in selecting that primary vendor. We compared the surgeons’ evaluation of multiple characteristics of implants and vendors using analysis of variance techniques, controlling for surgeon characteristics, hospital characteristics, and surgeon–vendor ties that might influence these evaluations. Results: Physician’s preference is heavily influenced by technology/implant factors and sales/service factors. Other considerations such as vendor reputation, financial relationships with the vendor, and implant cost seem less important. These findings hold regardless of implant type (hip vs knee and specific vendor. Conclusion: Our

Ordering E-Books From a Print Book Vendor

OpenAIRE

Culley, Jennifer R.; Human, Cindy

2017-01-01

The University of Southern Mississippi began ordering e-books through its primary print book vendor, Midwest Library Service, in 2016. The demand to purchase e-books has steadily increased, and when the opportunity arose to save valuable staff time searching over several vendor sites for e-books and print books by consolidating the search interface, a change was made. There were multiple steps to set up this program; however, the time invested was worth it. While there were challenges along t...

Vendor-buyer ordering policy when demand is trapezoidal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Digeshkumar B. Shah

2012-10-01

Full Text Available A joint vendor-buyer strategy is analyzed which is beneficial to both the players in the supply chain. The demand is assumed to be trapezoidal. It is established numerically that the joint venture decreases the total cost of the supply chain when compared with the independent decision of the buyer. To entice the buyer to order more units, a permissible credit period is offered by the vendor to the buyer. A negotiation factor is incorporated to share the cost savings.

Vendor-based restrictions on pesticide sales to prevent pesticide self-poisoning - a pilot study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manjula Weerasinghe

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In South Asia, up to 20% of people ingesting pesticides for self-poisoning purchase the pesticide from a shop with the sole intention of self-harm. Individuals who are intoxicated with alcohol and/or non-farmers represent 72% of such high-risk individuals. We aimed to test the feasibility and acceptability of vendor-based restrictions on pesticide sales for such high-risk individuals. Methods We conducted a pilot study in 14 (rural = 7, urban = 7 pesticide shops in Anuradhapura District of Sri Lanka. A two-hour training program was delivered to 28 pesticide vendors; the aim of the training was to help vendors recognize and respond to customers at high risk of pesticide self-poisoning. Knowledge and attitudes of vendors towards preventing access to pesticides for self-poisoning at baseline and in a three month follow-up was evaluated by questionnaire. Vendors were interviewed to explore the practice skills taught in the training and their assessment of the program. Results The scores of knowledge and attitudes of the vendors significantly increased by 23% (95% CI 15%–32%, p < 0.001 and by 16% (95% CI 9%–23%, p < 0.001 respectively in the follow-up. Fifteen (60% vendors reported refusing sell pesticides to a high-risk person (non-farmer or intoxicated person in the follow-up compared to three (12% at baseline. Vendors reported that they were aware from community feedback that they had prevented at least seven suicide attempts. On four identified occasions, vendors in urban shops had been unable to recognize the self-harming intention of customers who then ingested the pesticide. Only 2 (8% vendors were dissatisfied with the training and 23 (92% said they would recommend it to other vendors. Conclusions Our study suggests that vendor-based sales restriction in regions with high rates of self-poisoning has the potential to reduce access to pesticides for self-poisoning. A large-scale study of the effectiveness

Return on investment for vendor computerized physician order entry in four community hospitals: the importance of decision support.

Science.gov (United States)

Zimlichman, Eyal; Keohane, Carol; Franz, Calvin; Everett, Wendy L; Seger, Diane L; Yoon, Catherine; Leung, Alexander A; Cadet, Bismarck; Coffey, Michael; Kaufman, Nathan E; Bates, David W

2013-07-01

In-hospital adverse events are a major cause of morbidity and mortality and represent a major cost burden to health care systems. A study was conducted to evaluate the return on investment (ROI) for the adoption of vendor-developed computerized physician oder entry (CPOE) systems in four community hospitals in Massachusetts. Of the four hospitals, two were under one management structure and implemented the same vendor-developed CPOE system (Hospital Group A), while the other two were under a second management structure and implemented another vendor-developed CPOE system (Hospital Group B). Cost savings were calculated on the basis of reduction in preventable adverse drug event (ADE) rates as measured previously. ROI, net cash flow, and the breakeven point during a 10-year cost-and-benefit model were calculated. At the time of the study, none of the participating hospitals had implemented more than a rudimentary decision support system together with CPOE. Implementation costs were lower for Hospital Group A than B ($7,130,894 total or $83/admission versus $19,293,379 total or $113/admission, respectively), as were preventable ADE-related avoided costs ($7,937,651 and $16,557,056, respectively). A cost-benefit analysis demonstrated that Hospital Group A had an ROI of 11.3%, breaking even on the investment eight years following implementation. Hospital Group B showed a negative return, with an ROI of -3.1%. Adoption of vendor CPOE systems in community hospitals was associated with a modest ROI at best when applying cost savings attributable to prevention of ADEs only. The modest financial returns can beattributed to the lack of clinical decision support tools.

Knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about the health hazards of biomass smoke exposure amongst commercial food vendors in Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Nwankwo, Ogonna N O; Mokogwu, Ndubuisi; Agboghoroma, Orighomisan; Ahmed, Fahmi O; Mortimer, Kevin

2018-01-01

Exposure to biomass smoke is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Africa. Commercial food vendors in Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa are commonly exposed to biomass smoke from open fire cooking both at work and home. Little is known about the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of food vendors about the health hazards of biomass smoke exposure in Nigeria. We did a descriptive cross sectional survey of the knowledge, attitudes and beliefs of commercial food vendors in the cities of Benin and Calabar in Nigeria. We recruited respondents using a multi-stage approach. Structured interviewer-administered questionnaires were used for data collection. We recruited 308 participants (164, 53.2% female). The majority 185(60.2%) were married and had post-primary education 206(67.4%). The average monthly income was biomass smoke exposure is harmful to human health. About three-quarters (221; 71.8%) were unconcerned as to the effect of exposure to fumes from biomass fuels on their health. Less than half of respondents (110, 41.6%) believed biomass smoke was harmful to health. Male gender, being single, having post-primary education and preferring electricity or gas fuels were associated with good knowledge of the adverse health effects of biomass smoke exposure whilst female gender and having good knowledge of the adverse health effects of biomass smoke were associated with positive attitudes towards preventing exposure. Commercial food vendors in our study had limited knowledge about the adverse health effects of biomass smoke exposure and negative attitudes towards preventing these adverse health effects. We suggest an educational intervention is needed to improve this knowledge.

Hygiene practices among street food vendors

African Journals Online (AJOL)

User

giene regulations to keep street food save for consumers. Journal of Medical ... UDS Publishers Limited All Right Reserved 2026-6294 ... authorities to enforce food safety regulations, unlike .... (50%) school food vendors sampled in Konongo.

Responsible vendors, intelligent consumers: Silk Road, the online revolution in drug trading.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Hout, Marie Claire; Bingham, Tim

2014-03-01

Silk Road is located on the Deep Web and provides an anonymous transacting infrastructure for the retail of drugs and pharmaceuticals. Members are attracted to the site due to protection of identity by screen pseudonyms, variety and quality of product listings, selection of vendors based on reviews, reduced personal risks, stealth of product delivery, development of personal connections with vendors in stealth modes and forum activity. The study aimed to explore vendor accounts of Silk Road as retail infrastructure. A single and holistic case study with embedded units approach (Yin, 2003) was chosen to explore the accounts of vendor subunits situated within the Silk Road marketplace. Vendors (n=10) completed an online interview via the direct message facility and via Tor mail. Vendors described themselves as 'intelligent and responsible' consumers of drugs. Decisions to commence vending operations on the site centred on simplicity in setting up vendor accounts, and opportunity to operate within a low risk, high traffic, high mark-up, secure and anonymous Deep Web infrastructure. The embedded online culture of harm reduction ethos appealed to them in terms of the responsible vending and use of personally tested high quality products. The professional approach to running their Silk Road businesses and dedication to providing a quality service was characterised by professional advertising of quality products, professional communication and visibility on forum pages, speedy dispatch of slightly overweight products, competitive pricing, good stealth techniques and efforts to avoid customer disputes. Vendors appeared content with a fairly constant buyer demand and described a relatively competitive market between small and big time market players. Concerns were evident with regard to Bitcoin instability. The greatest threat to Silk Road and other sites operating on the Deep Web is not law enforcement or market dynamics, it is technology itself. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier

Commitment tracking in the licensing renewal process: A perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gurican, Gregory M.; Breslauer, Stephen K.

1991-01-01

The NRC's proposed 10 CFR 54 defines 'Current licensing basis' as inclusive of all licensee commitments. During the last five years, the regulatory commitment tracking group (RCTG) has been developing guidance for member utilities to track such commitments. The RCTG guidance for commitment tracking assists utilities in developing a system to store and maintain commitments related to the CLB. But a majority believe it unlikely that any one commitment tracking system will capture all commitments contained in the proposed definition of a 'Current Licencing Basis'. For future renewal applications the NRC proposes that utilities must identify and compile all licensing basis commitments. In addition, utilities 'shall maintain...(them) in an auditable and retrievable form'. Some utilities are already compiling and tracking licensing basis commitments; others are not. (author)

Poverty alleviation from the perspective of street vendors in Lesoth ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The aim of this paper was to examine from the perspective of street vendors how they are fighting poverty and the extent of winning this endemic cankerworm. The findings of this paper are informed by a study carried in 2007 on poverty and street vendors in Lesotho. Questionnaires and focus group discussions were used ...

Common QA/QM Criteria for Multinational Vendor Inspection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

This VICWG document provides the 'Common QA/QM Criteria' which will be used in Multinational Vendor Inspection. The 'Common QA/QM Criteria' provides the basic consideration when performing the Vendor Inspection. These criteria has been developed in conformity with International Codes and Standards such as IAEA, ISO and so on that MDEP member countries adopted. The purpose of the VICWG is to establish areas of co-operation in the Vendor Inspection practices among MDEP member countries as described in the MDEP issue-specific Terms of Reference (ToR). As part of this, from the beginning, a survey was performed to understand and to identify areas of commonality and differences between regulatory practices of member countries in the area of vendor inspection. The VICWG also collaborated by performing Witnessed Inspections and Joint Inspections. Through these activities, it was recognized that member countries commonly apply the IAEA safety standard (GS-R-3) to the vendor inspection criteria, and almost ail European member countries apply the ISO standard (ISO9001). In the US, the NRC regulatory requirement in 10 CFR, Part 50, Appendix B is used. South Korea uses the same criteria as in the US. As a result of the information obtained, a comparison table between codes and standards (IAEAGS-R-3, ISO 9001:2008.10CFR50 Appendix Band ASME NQA-1) has been developed in order to inform the development of 'Common QA/QM Criteria'. The result is documented in Table 1, 'MDEP CORE QA/QM Requirement and Comparison between Codes and Standards'. In addition, each country's criteria were compared with the US 10CFR50 Appendix B as a template. Table 2 shows VICWG Survey on Quality Assurance Program Requirements. Through these activities above, we considered that the core requirements should be consistent with both IAEA safety standard and ISO standard, and considered that the common requirements in the US 10CFR50 Appendix B used to the survey

19 CFR 24.34 - Vouchers; vendors' bills of sale; invoices.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... that the above bill is correct and just and that payment has not been received. Vouchers, vendors... employee, in which case the voucher may be in the name of the officer or employee who made the payment. (c... 19 Customs Duties 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Vouchers; vendors' bills of sale; invoices. 24.34...

A framework for evaluating electronic health record vendor user-centered design and usability testing processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Ratwani, Raj M; Zachary Hettinger, A; Kosydar, Allison; Fairbanks, Rollin J; Hodgkins, Michael L

2017-04-01

Currently, there are few resources for electronic health record (EHR) purchasers and end users to understand the usability processes employed by EHR vendors during product design and development. We developed a framework, based on human factors literature and industry standards, to systematically evaluate the user-centered design processes and usability testing methods used by EHR vendors. We reviewed current usability certification requirements and the human factors literature to develop a 15-point framework for evaluating EHR products. The framework is based on 3 dimensions: user-centered design process, summative testing methodology, and summative testing results. Two vendor usability reports were retrieved from the Office of the National Coordinator's Certified Health IT Product List and were evaluated using the framework. One vendor scored low on the framework (5 pts) while the other vendor scored high on the framework (15 pts). The 2 scored vendor reports demonstrate the framework's ability to discriminate between the variabilities in vendor processes and to determine which vendors are meeting best practices. The framework provides a method to more easily comprehend EHR vendors' usability processes and serves to highlight where EHR vendors may be falling short in terms of best practices. The framework provides a greater level of transparency for both purchasers and end users of EHRs. The framework highlights the need for clearer certification requirements and suggests that the authorized certification bodies that examine vendor usability reports may need to be provided with clearer guidance. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

An Improved Unsupervised Modeling Methodology For Detecting Fraud In Vendor Payment Transactions

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Rouillard, Gregory

2003-01-01

...) vendor payment transactions through Unsupervised Modeling (cluster analysis) . Clementine Data Mining software is used to construct unsupervised models of vendor payment data using the K-Means, Two Step, and Kohonen algorithms...

Transportation Costs and Carbon Emissions in a Vendor Managed Inventory Situation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Turkensteen, Marcel; Larsen, Christian

2014-01-01

Recently, there has been much focus on carbon emissions and fuel consumption from road transport. In this paper, we consider a vendor deciding on the degree to which deliveries to geographically dispersed retailers should be consolidated. The vendor can consolidate shipments over time and deliver...

[The nutritional and dietary intake among community-dwelling elderly female users of mobile vendor vehicles].

Science.gov (United States)

Yoshimura, Yukio; Ito, Hideki; Yoshimura, Hidenori; Kamada, Chiemi; Okumura, Ryota; Shinno, Yuki; Suzuki, Taro; Horie, Kazumi; Takaya, Koji; Omi, Hideaki

2018-01-01

We compared the nutritional and dietary intakes of users of mobile vendor vehicles and users of stores to clarify the problems in the nutritional intake of users of mobile vendor vehicles. We conducted a questionnaire about the food accessibility among 257 elderly women (age: ≥65 years) who used mobile vendor vehicles and/or stores to shop. The nutritional intake was assessed using the 24-hour recall method. We used an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) to calculate the age-adjusted mean values for the total nutritional intake. The nutritional intake among users of mobile vendor vehicles included significantly lower intakes of energy (168 kcal), green vegetables, other vegetables, and meats. Furthermore, those who only shopped at mobile vendor vehicles consumed less energy and fewer nutrients than those who shopped at places other than mobile vendor vehicles. The comparison of the shopping frequency and nutritional intake of the subjects who used mobile vendor vehicles alone revealed that the energy and protein intakes of those who shopped once per week was significantly lower in comparison to those who shopped twice per week. Users of mobile vendor vehicles had lower intakes of macronutrients and various minerals and vitamins. Among the food groups, intakes of vegetables, meat, and dairy products were low. These findings suggest that the lack of means of shopping other than mobile vendor vehicles and shopping once per week may be associated with an inadequate dietary intake among users of mobile vendor vehicles. It would be desirable to develop the shopping environment is desirable.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly progress report, April 1996--June 1996

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1996-08-01

The federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. The Vendor Inspection System (VIS) of the Special Inspection Branch reviews and inspects the quality and suitability of vendor products, licensee-vendor interface, environmental qualification of equipment, and review of equipment problems found during operation and their corrective action. This report contains copies of all vendor inspection reports issued during the calendar year for which it is published.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly progress report, April 1996--June 1996

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-08-01

The federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. The Vendor Inspection System (VIS) of the Special Inspection Branch reviews and inspects the quality and suitability of vendor products, licensee-vendor interface, environmental qualification of equipment, and review of equipment problems found during operation and their corrective action. This report contains copies of all vendor inspection reports issued during the calendar year for which it is published

Pengurangan Bullwhip Effect dengan Metode Vendor Managed Inventory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fenny Rubbayanti Dewi

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Information distortion caused PT Multi Sarana Indotani got higher demand than the distributor. Demand variability in each echelon of the supply chain (bullwhip effect may occur due to lack of demand stability that the producer had difficulty in determining the amount of production. One of the collaboration methods that can be applied to overcome the information distortion as causes of the bullwhip effect is vendor managed inventory, where the needs of distributor and retailers monitored and controlled by the producer. In this case, vendor managed inventory applied to two echelons, producer, and distributor.

Licensee Contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from October through December 1991

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-08-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from April through June 1993

Licensee contractor and Vendor Inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-05-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January through March 1992

Strategic Repositioning for Convection Business Case Study: AR Vendor

OpenAIRE

Anindita, Pratisara Satwika; Toha, Mohamad

2013-01-01

The study aims to determine suitable position and strategy in order to reach superiority in convection business based on the company strengths and weaknesses. A study conducted in late 2012 at AR Vendor, a home-based convection company which focus on the t-shirt screen printing service. In response to the issue of the below average profit margin, the company has to rethink their position and strategy in handling the convection business environment. While AR Vendor business may growth in accor...

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-05-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from January 1991 through March 1991

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-02-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1990 through December 1990

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-05-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January 1993 through March 1993

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-09-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from April 1991 through June 1991

Licensee contractor and Vendor Inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1992 through December 1992

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-12-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1989 through September 1989

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-07-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from January 1990 through March 1990

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1989 through December 1989

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-11-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from July 1992 through September 1992

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-10-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from July 1991 through September 1991

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-11-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from April 1990 through June 1990

Results of Aging Tests of Vendor-Produced Blended Feed Simulant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russell, Renee L.; Buchmiller, William C.; Cantrell, Kirk J.; Peterson, Reid A.; Rinehart, Donald E.

2009-01-01

The Hanford Tank Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) is procuring through Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) a minimum of five 3,500 gallon batches of waste simulant for Phase 1 testing in the Pretreatment Engineering Platform (PEP). To make sure that the quality of the simulant is acceptable, the production method was scaled up starting from laboratory-prepared simulant through 15-gallon vendor prepared simulant and 250-gallon vendor prepared simulant before embarking on the production of the 3500-gallon simulant batch by the vendor. The 3500-gallon PEP simulant batches were packaged in 250-gallon high molecular weight polyethylene totes at NOAH Technologies. The simulant was stored in an environmentally controlled environment at NOAH Technologies within their warehouse before blending or shipping. For the 15-gallon, 250-gallon, and 3500-gallon batch 0, the simulant was shipped in ambient temperature trucks with shipment requiring nominally 3 days. The 3500-gallon batch 1 traveled in a 70-75 F temperature controlled truck. Typically the simulant was uploaded in a PEP receiving tank within 24-hours of receipt. The first uploading required longer with it stored outside. Physical and chemical characterization of the 250-gallon batch was necessary to determine the effect of aging on the simulant in transit from the vendor and in storage before its use in the PEP. Therefore, aging tests were conducted on the 250-gallon batch of the vendor-produced PEP blended feed simulant to identify and determine any changes to the physical characteristics of the simulant when in storage. The supernate was also chemically characterized. Four aging scenarios for the vendor-produced blended simulant were studied: (1) stored outside in a 250-gallon tote, (2) stored inside in a gallon plastic bottle, (3) stored inside in a well mixed 5-L tank, and (4) subject to extended temperature cycling under summer temperature conditions in a gallon plastic bottle. The following

An intutionistic fuzzy optimization approach to vendor selection problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prabjot Kaur

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Selecting the right vendor is an important business decision made by any organization. The decision involves multiple criteria and if the objectives vary in preference and scope, then nature of decision becomes multiobjective. In this paper, a vendor selection problem has been formulated as an intutionistic fuzzy multiobjective optimization where appropriate number of vendors is to be selected and order allocated to them. The multiobjective problem includes three objectives: minimizing the net price, maximizing the quality, and maximizing the on time deliveries subject to supplier's constraints. The objection function and the demand are treated as intutionistic fuzzy sets. An intutionistic fuzzy set has its ability to handle uncertainty with additional degrees of freedom. The Intutionistic fuzzy optimization (IFO problem is converted into a crisp linear form and solved using optimization software Tora. The advantage of IFO is that they give better results than fuzzy/crisp optimization. The proposed approach is explained by a numerical example.

Comparison of advanced reactors program of different international vendors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agnihotri, N.K.

2001-01-01

The full text follows. Proposal for presenting a paper on Advanced Reactor Program Given below is the abstract for Track 6 session on Advanced Reactor at the ninth International Conference on Nuclear Engineering being held in Nice, France from April 8. through 12. 2001. This paper will provide an update on Advanced Reactor Program of different vendors in the United States, Japan, and Europe. Specifically the paper will look at the history of different Advanced Reactor Programs, international experience, aspect of economy due to standardization, and the highlights of technical specifications. The paper will also review aspects of Economy due to standardization, public acceptance, required construction time, and the experience of different vendors. The objective of the presentation is to underscore the highlights of the Reactor Program of different vendors in order to keep the attendees of the conference up-to-date. The presentation will be an impartial overview from an outsider's (not part of the Nuclear Steam Supply System's staff). (author)

Dynamics of vendor innovation capability: Evidence from the Electronics Manufacturing Services industry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perunovic, Zoran; Mefford, Robert; Christoffersen, Mads

2012-01-01

and innovation. The first is the realization that vendor capabilities have been recognized as one of the most important factors for the success of outsourcing. The second refers to the fact that, even though innovation capability is required, vendors are still being selected, and their performance evaluated......, by traditional manufacturing capabilities, such as cost, quality, delivery, and flexibility. Taking a vendor’s perspective in outsourcing, we develop and present a conceptual framework for studying vendor innovation capability. We propose to test this framework in the Electronic Manufacturing Services Industry....

Respiratory symptoms of vendors in an open-air hawker center in brunei darussalam.

Science.gov (United States)

Nazurah Bt Abdul Wahid, Nurul Nor; Balalla, N B P; Koh, David

2014-01-01

We studied respiratory problems among vendors exposed to cooking fumes in an open-air hawker center. Exposure to cooking fumes from either the use of fossil fuels or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has been shown to be associated with adverse respiratory health effects. We conducted a cross-sectional study among 67 food vendors exposed to cooking fumes as well as 18 merchandise sellers at an open-air hawker center in Brunei Darussalam. Past medical and smoking history and exposure to cooking fumes were obtained. The validated American Thoracic Society Questionnaire with a translated Malay version was used to ask for respiratory symptoms. Compared to merchandise sellers (n = 18), cooking vendors (n = 67) had a higher self-reported respiratory symptoms (50.7% for those cooking and 33.3% for merchandise sellers). Cough (28.3%) was the main respiratory symptom experienced in cooking vendors and breathlessness (22.2%) among merchandise sellers. Half (50.0%) of cooking vendors who worked for more than 10 years had cough and 27.3% had phlegm. Those cooking with charcoal were two times more likely to have cough than those cooking with LPG. Cooking vendors with a job duration of more than 10 years were thrice more likely to have cough. Cooking vendors in the open-air hawker center exposed to cooking fumes had more respiratory symptoms compared to non-exposed merchandise sellers. The type of fuel used for cooking and duration of work was associated with increased prevalence of cough.

11 CFR 100.138 - Sale of food and beverages by vendor.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 11 Federal Elections 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sale of food and beverages by vendor. 100.138...) Exceptions to Expenditures § 100.138 Sale of food and beverages by vendor. The sale of any food or beverage..., is not an expenditure, provided that the charge is at least equal to the cost of such food or...

MDEP Protocol VICWG-01. MDEP Protocol: Witnessed, Joint, and Multinational Vendor Inspection Protocol

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

The Multinational Design Evaluation Programme (MDEP) was launched in 2006 by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) with the aim of developing innovative approaches to leverage the resources and knowledge of national regulatory authorities reviewing new reactor designs. MDEP full members are regulators from Canada, People's Republic of China, Finland, France, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, South Africa, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The United Arab Emirates and Turkey are associate members. The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) acts as the Technical Secretariat for the MDEP. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) participates in many of the MDEP activities, including harmonisation efforts. The Vendor Inspection Cooperation Working Group (VICWG) is one of the issue-specific working groups that the MDEP members are undertaking with one long term goal of the VICWG being to maximize the use of the results obtained from other regulator's efforts in inspecting vendors. To accomplish this goal, it is vital that the regulators learn about each other's procedures, processes, and regulations. To facilitate the learning process the VICWG is coordinating vendor inspections among the involved regulatory authorities with the purpose of enhancing the understanding of each other's vendor inspection procedures. This programme is administered by the NEA. Involvement in specific inspections provides a number of opportunities for member state regulators to witness other regulators' inspection methods, gain useful information on the quality systems and manufacturing arrangements of specific vendors and where appropriate, actively participate in the inspection. The purpose of this protocol is to provide guidance to regulators that wish to carry out vendor inspections or participate in or witness other regulators' vendor inspections. It also provides

EXAMINING FACTORS IN FLUENCING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND TRUST TOWARDS VENDORS ON THE MOBILE INTERNET

OpenAIRE

Norazah Mohd Suki

2012-01-01

This study aims to examine factors influencing customer satisfaction and trust towards vendors on the mobile Internet. Data were analysed among 200 respondents who completed the questionnaire by employing multiple regression analysis. Results revealed that customer satisfaction towards the vendor was significantly influenced by ease-of-use, responsiveness, and brand image. Meanwhile, customer trust towards the vendor in m-commerce is affected by responsiveness, brand image and...

A study on relationship between social entrepreneurship and organizational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yadollah Hemmati

2013-08-01

Full Text Available During the past few years, organizational commitment has been a major concern in different types of business activities including banking industry. In this paper, we present an empirical investigation to study the relationship between social entrepreneurship and organizational commitment. The proposed study of this paper adapts a standard questionnaire developed by Meyer and Allen [Meyer, J. P., & Allen, N. J. (1991. A three-component conceptualization of organizational commitment. Human resource management review, 1(1, 61-89]. Cronbach alpha has been calculated for affective commitment, employee engagement and normative commitment as 0.77, 0.79 and 0.61, respectively. The results of survey indicate that affective commitment, employee engagement and normative commitment have positively influenced organizational commitment, significantly. In addition, Freedman test has indicated that normative commitment is number one priority with mean rank of 2.85 followed by affective commitment with mean rank of 2.47 and employee engagement with the mean rank of 2.26.

ALLOCATING VENDOR RISKS IN THE HANFORD WASTE CLEANUP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keisler, Jeff M.; Buehring, William A.; McLaughlin, Peter D.; Robershotte, Mark A.; Whitfield, Ronald G.

2004-01-01

Organizations may view outsourcing as a way to eliminate risk. This application uses a decision analytic approach to determine which risks can be shared or shifted to vendors and which ones should be borne by the buyer. In this case, we found that allocating risks incorrectly could increase costs dramatically. This approach was used to develop the Request for Proposals (RFP) for the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) privatization initiative for the Hanford Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS). We describe this application and/SUMmarize technical and organizational lessons learned in the years following. The model used an assessment protocol to predict how vendors would react to proposed risk allocations in terms of their actions and their pricing

Building Relationships between Small Manufacturing Enterprises and Vendors: Findings from the TIDE Program

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Estrin, Len; Foreman, John

2003-01-01

.... Additionally, vendors and value-added resellers (VARs) are reluctant to target this market. For vendor/VAR-SME relationships to succeed, both parties must redefine many of the roles and rules that guide the sales process...

Dissolution of FFTF vendor fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lerch, R.E.

1979-08-01

Dissolution experiments were performed on FFTF vendor fuel (both mechanically mixed and coprecipitated) during 1974, 1975, and 1976. A marked improvement was noted in the completeness of fuel dissolution from 1974 to 1976. The reason for this is unknown but may have been attributable to slight changes in fuel fabrication conditions. In general, the bulk of the fuel pellets tested dissolved to greater than 99.9% in nitric acid alone

Dissolution of FFTF vendor fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lerch, R.E.

1979-08-01

Dissolution experiments were performed on FFTF vendor fuel (both mechanically mixed and coprecipitated) during 1974, 1975, and 1976. A marked improvement was noted in the completeness of fuel dissolution from 1974 to 1976. The reason for this is unknown but may have been attributable to slight changes in fuel fabrication conditions. In general, the bulk of the fuel pellets tested dissolved to greater than 99.9% in nitric acid alone.

Hanford Tank Farm Vapors Abatement Technology and Vendor Proposals Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burns, H. H.; Farrar, M. E.; Fink, S. D.

2016-01-01

Suspected chemical vapor releases from the Hanford nuclear waste tank system pose concerns for worker exposure. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) contracted the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) to explore abatement technologies and strategies to remediate the vapors emitted through the ventilation system. In response, SRNL conducted an evaluation of technologies to abate, or reduce, vapor emissions to below 10% of the recognized occupational exposure limits (OELs). The evaluation included a review of published literature and a broadly communicated Request for Information to commercial vendors through a Federal Business Opportunities (Fed Biz Opps) web posting. In addition, SRNL conducted a workshop and post-workshop conference calls with interested suppliers (vendors) to assess proposals of relevant technologies. This report reviews applicable technologies and summarizes the approaches proposed by the vendors who participated in the workshop and teleconference interviews. In addition, the report evaluates the estimated performance of the individual technologies for the various classes of chemical compounds present in the Hanford Chemicals of Potential Concern (COPCs) list. Similarly, the report provides a relative evaluation of the vendor proposed approaches against criteria of: technical feasibility (and maturity), design features, operational considerations, secondary waste generation, safety/regulatory, and cost / schedule. These rough order-of-magnitude (ROM) cost estimates are intended to provide a comparison basis between technologies and are not intended to be actual project estimates.

Hanford Tank Farm Vapors Abatement Technology and Vendor Proposals Assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Burns, H. H. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL); Farrar, M. E. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL); Fink, S. D. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL)

2016-09-20

Suspected chemical vapor releases from the Hanford nuclear waste tank system pose concerns for worker exposure. Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) contracted the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) to explore abatement technologies and strategies to remediate the vapors emitted through the ventilation system. In response, SRNL conducted an evaluation of technologies to abate, or reduce, vapor emissions to below 10% of the recognized occupational exposure limits (OELs). The evaluation included a review of published literature and a broadly communicated Request for Information to commercial vendors through a Federal Business Opportunities (Fed Biz Opps) web posting. In addition, SRNL conducted a workshop and post-workshop conference calls with interested suppliers (vendors) to assess proposals of relevant technologies. This report reviews applicable technologies and summarizes the approaches proposed by the vendors who participated in the workshop and teleconference interviews. In addition, the report evaluates the estimated performance of the individual technologies for the various classes of chemical compounds present in the Hanford Chemicals of Potential Concern (COPCs) list. Similarly, the report provides a relative evaluation of the vendor proposed approaches against criteria of: technical feasibility (and maturity), design features, operational considerations, secondary waste generation, safety/regulatory, and cost / schedule. These rough order-of-magnitude (ROM) cost estimates are intended to provide a comparison basis between technologies and are not intended to be actual project estimates.

Career commitment and job performance of Jordanian nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Mrayyan, Majd T; Al-Faouri, Ibrahim

2008-01-01

Career commitment and job performance are complex phenomena that have received little attention in nursing research. A survey was used to assess nurses' career commitment and job performance, and the relationship between the two concepts. Predictors of nurses' career commitment and job performance were also studied. A convenience sample of 640 Jordanian registered nurses was recruited from 24 teaching, governmental, and private hospitals. Nurses "agreed" on the majority of statements about career commitment, and they reported performing "well" their jobs. Using total scores, nurses were equal in their career commitment but they were different in their job performance; the highest mean was scored for nurses in private hospitals. Using the individual items of subscales, nurses were willing to be involved, on their own time, in projects that would benefit patient care. The correlation of the total scores of nurses' career commitment and job performance revealed the presence of a significant and positive relationship (r = .457). Nurses' job performance, gender, and marital status were the best predictors of nurses' career commitment: they explained 21.8% of variance of nurses' career commitment. Nurses' career commitment, time commitment, marital status, and years of experience in nursing were the best predictors of nurses' job performance: they explained 25.6% of variance of nurses' job performance. The lowest reported means of nurses' job performance require managerial interventions.

JOB ANXIETY, ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT AND JOB ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

and work experience with job satisfaction. ... were more likely to perceive the appraisal as unfair and inappropriate (Desai and ... Working freedom, salary and fringe benefits are the major factors ..... Men, women and attitudinal commitment:.

Are all certified EHRs created equal? Assessing the relationship between EHR vendor and hospital meaningful use performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Holmgren, A Jay; Adler-Milstein, Julia; McCullough, Jeffrey

2017-11-24

The federal electronic health record (EHR) certification process was intended to ensure a baseline level of system quality and the ability to support meaningful use criteria. We sought to assess whether there was variation across EHR vendors in the degree to which hospitals using products from those vendors were able to achieve high levels of performance on meaningful use criteria. We created a cross-sectional national hospital sample from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology EHR Products Used for Meaningful Use Attestation public use file and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Medicare EHR Incentive Program Eligible Hospitals public use file. We used regression models to assess the relationship between vendor and hospital performance on 6 Stage 2 Meaningful Use criteria, controlling for hospital characteristics. We also calculated how much variation in performance is explained by vendor choice. We found significant associations between specific vendor and level of hospital performance for all 6 meaningful use criteria. Epic was associated with significantly higher performance on 5 of the 6 criteria; relationships for other vendors were mixed, with some associated with significantly worse performance on multiple criteria. EHR vendor choice accounted for between 7% and 34% of performance variation across the 6 criteria. A nontrivial proportion of variation in hospital meaningful use performance is explained by vendor choice, and certain vendors are more often associated with better meaningful use performance than others. Our results suggest that policy-makers should improve the certification process by including more "real-world" scenario testing and provider feedback or ratings to reduce this variation. Hospitals can use these results to guide interactions with vendors. Vendor choice accounts for a meaningful proportion of variation in hospital meaningful use performance, and specific vendors are consistently associated

Cloud Challenges for an ERP Vendor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rebsdorf, Mads; Hedman, Jonas

2014-01-01

. In this paper, we present a case study of small and mid-sized Nordic ERP vendor. The case study describes company evolution and challenges when starting to compete strategically with SaaS offerings. We conclude by presenting a phased business model that deals with the old on-premises business as well...... as the companies’ new SaaS initiatives....

Evaluation of a committed fusion site. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-07-01

This report is divided into five technical sections. Section 2 is a summary. In Section 3, which covers device and site analyses the major characteristics of devices that might be placed at the site, as envisioned by major fusion laboratories, are described; the characteristics of a site (baseline site) which would accommodate these devices are defined; and various approaches to a committed site meeting the baseline site requirements are discussed. Section 4 describes the scenarios selected to represent possible site development outcomes; these scenarios are evaluated with respect to comparative cost and schedule effects. Section 5 presents a brief evaluation of the effects fusion-fission hybrids might have on the committed site. Major conclusions and recommendations are discussed in Section 6

Study of locations’characteristics for stabilization of street vendors in Surakarta City

Science.gov (United States)

Rahayu, M. J.; Buchori, I.; Widjajanti, R.

2018-01-01

Street vendors are usually centered around particular areas where they have made adaptations based on their activities, instead of scattered all over the city. These locations tend to be close to street vendors’ primary activities and consumers, occupy the public lands, and are productive and accessible. The Municipality of Surakarta has managed the street vendors in the form of stabilization and relocation. In Surakarta, there are 24 areas used for stabilization of street vendors varying in characteristics and quantities. This study uses a spatial analysis aiming to explain the characteristics of locations used for stabilization of street vendors and to identify their physical condition and arrangement. Furthermore, all of the research results will be used as the criteria in choosing the new locations that are suitable for the street vendors’ characteristics and consumers’ preference. The results show that the locations are on the roadsides of the neighborhood, local, and secondary collector roads. The traffic conditions in the stabilization areas are ranging from the very busy until relatively busy level since they are close to activities for trade, education, recreation, offices, and settlements.

Food Safety Knowledge, Behavior, and Attitudes of Vendors of Poultry Products Sold at Pennsylvania Farmers' Markets

Science.gov (United States)

Scheinberg, Joshua; Radhakrishna, Rama; Cutter, Catherine N.

2013-01-01

A needs assessment survey was developed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of poultry vendors at farmers' markets in Pennsylvania, on food safety, regulation, and poultry production. Vendors were administered a 32-question paper survey, in person, during market hours. The results revealed critical vendor practices and identified important…

Escalation of Commitment in the Surgical ICU.

Science.gov (United States)

Braxton, Carla C; Robinson, Celia N; Awad, Samir S

2017-04-01

Escalation of commitment is a business term that describes the continued investment of resources into a project even after there is objective evidence of the project's impending failure. Escalation of commitment may be a contributor to high healthcare costs associated with critically ill patients as it has been shown that, despite almost certain futility, most ICU costs are incurred in the last week of life. Our objective was to determine if escalation of commitment occurs in healthcare settings, specifically in the surgical ICU. We hypothesize that factors previously identified in business and organizational psychology literature including self-justification, accountability, sunk costs, and cognitive dissonance result in escalation of commitment behavior in the surgical ICU setting resulting in increased utilization of resources and cost. A descriptive case study that illustrates common ICU narratives in which escalation of commitment can occur. In addition, we describe factors that are thought to contribute to escalation of commitment behaviors. Escalation of commitment behavior was observed with self-justification, accountability, and cognitive dissonance accounting for the majority of the behavior. Unlike in business decisions, sunk costs was not as evident. In addition, modulating factors such as personality, individual experience, culture, and gender were identified as contributors to escalation of commitment. Escalation of commitment occurs in the surgical ICU, resulting in significant expenditure of resources despite a predicted and often known poor outcome. Recognition of this phenomenon may lead to actions aimed at more rational decision making and may contribute to lowering healthcare costs. Investigation of objective measures that can help aid decision making in the surgical ICU is warranted.

Diverse basal and stress-related phenotypes of Sprague Dawley rats from three vendors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pecoraro, Norman; Ginsberg, Abigail B.; Warne, James P.; Gomez, Francisca; la Fleur, Susanne E.; Dallman, Mary F.

2006-01-01

Based on observed phenotypic differences in growth and ACTH responses to stress in Sprague Dawley rats obtained from different vendors, we ran head-to-head comparisons on rats obtained from three different vendors, Harlan, Charles River, and Simonsen, with respect to baseline phenotypic differences

Management of Globally Distributed Software Development Projects in Multiple-Vendor Constellations

Science.gov (United States)

Schott, Katharina; Beck, Roman; Gregory, Robert Wayne

Global information systems development outsourcing is an apparent trend that is expected to continue in the foreseeable future. Thereby, IS-related services are not only increasingly provided from different geographical sites simultaneously but beyond that from multiple service providers based in different countries. The purpose of this paper is to understand how the involvement of multiple service providers affects the management of the globally distributed information systems development projects. As research on this topic is scarce, we applied an exploratory in-depth single-case study design as research approach. The case we analyzed comprises a global software development outsourcing project initiated by a German bank together with several globally distributed vendors. For data collection and data analysis we have adopted techniques suggested by the grounded theory method. Whereas the extant literature points out the increased management overhead associated with multi-sourcing, the analysis of our case suggests that the required effort for managing global outsourcing projects with multiple vendors depends among other things on the maturation level of the cooperation within the vendor portfolio. Furthermore, our data indicate that this interplay maturity is positively impacted through knowledge about the client that has been derived based on already existing client-vendor relationships. The paper concludes by offering theoretical and practical implications.

Initial results of strand produced in Phase 2 of the SSCL Vendor Qualification Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erdmann, M.; Capone, D. II; Coleman, S.; Jones, B.; Seuntjens, J.

1993-05-01

In 1991, the Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory (SSCL) instituted a program to qualify specific superconductor manufacturers for production of cable acceptable for use in both Collider Dipole (CDM) and Quadrupole (CQM) magnets. The SSCL Vendor Qualification Program (VQP) was designed with two Phases. Phase 1 was divided into two additional phases, 1A and 1B, which ran concurrently. In Phase 1B, each vendor was directed to manufacture roughly 3000 kg of cable using a ''baseline'' process. The baseline process was agreed to by both the SSCL and the vendor at the beginning of the VQP. In this phase, process control was closely monitored with the use of statistical methods and each vendor was graded based on these results. Phase 1A, known as the R ampersand D phase, was developed to allow each vendor an opportunity to optimize and improve on their baseline process in terms of both cost and manufacturability. In this phase, multifilament billets were designed to explore several key variables such as alternate alloy sources, process modifications and improved billet designs. At the end of Phase 1, the results from both 1A and 1B were evaluated at a review between the SSCL and each vendor, and a final Phase 2 process was generated and fixed using the best results. In Phase 2, each vendor is required to manufacture roughly 6000 kg of superconducting cable under a firm fixed price contract which can then be used to create an accurate price estimate for competitive bidding on the full rate production CDM and CQM contracts. At the end of Phase 2, each vendor must meet the minimum requirements outlined in the contract to become a qualified superconducting cable supplier. For one requirement, critical process variables identified by the SSCL Conductor Department at the beginning of the VQP will be evaluated to determine the quality and uniformity of the material produced during Phase 2 of the program

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, January--March 1996. Volume 20, Number 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-05-01

A fundamental premise of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing and inspection program is that licensees are responsible for the proper construction and safe and efficient operation of their nuclear power plants. The Federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. Each licensee, contractor, and vendor participates in a quality verification process in compliance with requirements prescribed by the NRC's rules and regulations (Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations). The NRC does inspections to oversee the commercial nuclear industry to determine whether its requirements are being met by licensees and their contractors, while the major inspection effort is performed by the industry within the framework of quality verification programs. This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January 1996 through March 1996

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, January--March 1997. Volume 21, Number 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-07-01

A fundamental premise of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing and inspection program is that licensees are responsible for the proper construction and safe and efficient operation of their nuclear power plants. The Federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. Each licensee, contractor, and vendor participates in a quality verification process in compliance with requirements prescribed by the NRC's rules and regulations (Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations). The NRC does inspections to oversee the commercial nuclear industry to determine whether its requirements are being met by licensees and their contractors, while the major inspection effort is performed by the industry within the framework of quality verification programs. This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January 1997 through March 1997

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, July--September 1997. Volume 21, Number 3

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-11-01

A fundamental premise of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing and inspection program is that licensees are responsible for the proper construction and safe and efficient operation of their nuclear power plants. The Federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. Each licensee, contractor, and vendor participates in a quality verification process in compliance with requirements prescribed by the NRC`s rules and regulations (Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations). The NRC does inspections to oversee the commercial nuclear industry to determine whether its requirements are being met by licensees and their contractors, while the major inspection effort is performed by the industry within the framework of quality verification programs. This periodical covers the results if inspections that were performed by the NRC`s Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, and that were distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July through September 1997.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, July - September 1997. Volume 21, Number 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-11-01

A fundamental premise of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensing and inspection program is that licensees are responsible for the proper construction and safe and efficient operation of their nuclear power plants. The Federal government and nuclear industry have established a system for the inspection of commercial nuclear facilities to provide for multiple levels of inspection and verification. Each licensee, contractor, and vendor participates in a quality verification process in compliance with requirements prescribed by the NRC's rules and regulations (Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations). The NRC does inspections to oversee the commercial nuclear industry to determine whether its requirements are being met by licensees and their contractors, while the major inspection effort is performed by the industry within the framework of quality verification programs. This periodical covers the results if inspections that were performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, and that were distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July through September 1997

Innovation in partnership sourcing from a vendor's pespective

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Barlach, Anders; Simonsen, Jesper

2011-01-01

-driven innovation at the IT vendor CSC Scandihealth A/S. CSC Scandihealth’s business strategy regarding effects-driven innovation is described and related to a partner sourcing model with a client, a hospital in the North Region of Denmark. The chapter analyses how innovation can be organized and the different......This chapter describes three generic categories of assets for technological innovation: 1) process innovative assets, 2) product innovative application assets, and 3) aesthetic design assets (Christensen, 1995). These different types of innovation are used as a framework for discussing effects...... stakeholders, contexts, and perspectives undertaken by the vendor and the client while engaging in partnership sourcing supported by effects-driven innovation. The experiences and challenges are discussed on the basis of a number of projects with the vendor’s clients....

Coordinating vendor-buyer decisions for imperfect quality items considering trade credit and fully backlogged shortages

Science.gov (United States)

Khanna, Aditi; Gautam, Prerna; Jaggi, Chandra K.

2016-03-01

Supply chain management has become a critical issue for modern business environments. In today's world of cooperative decision-making, individual decisions in order to reduce inventory costs may not lead to an overall optimal solution. Coordination is necessary among participants of supply chain to achieve better performance. There are legitimate and important efforts from the vendor to enhance the relation with buyer; one such effort is offering trade credit which has been a driver of growth and development of business between them. The cost of financing is a core consideration in effective financial management, in general and in context of business. Also, due to imperfect production a vendor may produce defective items which results in shortages. Motivated with these aspects, an integrated vendor-buyer inventory model is developed for imperfect quality items with allowable shortages; in which the vendor offers credit period to the buyer for payment. The objective is to minimize the total joint annual costs incurred by the vendor and the buyer by using integrated decision making approach. The expected total annual integrated cost is derived and a solution procedure is provided to find the optimal solution. Numerical analysis shows that the integrated model gives an impressive cost reduction, in comparison to independent decision policies by the vendor and the buyer.

Vendors: Gifts Are the Exception to the Rule.

Science.gov (United States)

Natale, Jo Anna

1992-01-01

Informal interviews with several people working in different industries reveal that, without exception, the vendors say companies do not routinely offer school officials gifts and entertainment to sway purchasing decisions, but that it does happen. (MLF)

Skills development in the informal sector in India: The case of street food vendors

Science.gov (United States)

Pilz, Matthias; Uma, Gengaiah; Venkatram, Rengan

2015-04-01

The informal sector dominates India's economic life, so issues of skills development are particularly important. On the basis of a survey of 49 street food vendors in the Indian cities of New Delhi and Coimbatore, the authors of this article demonstrate that informal learning is a particularly significant form of vocational education and training. Vendors do not acquire skills in formal vocational education and training (VET) settings; for them, opportunities for learning on the job in family businesses or in informal employment are especially important. Unlike other studies, the authors' findings show that street food vendors have a wide range of specialist knowledge, skills and expertise required to conduct their business which they deploy profitably. These skills are not confined to preparing and selling food but also extend to areas such as price setting and marketing. All the street food vendors interviewed identified strongly with their occupation and expressed pride in it. Around half voiced a wish for further training. In this context, the authors suggest promoting non-formal learning settings geared explicitly to street food vendors' difficult working conditions. In line with a few other international innovative schemes, they term this a "non-formal apprenticeship" approach.

Impact of information technology on vendor objectives, capabilities, and competences in contract electronic manufacturing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perunovic, Zoran; Mefford, Robert; Christoffersen, Mads

2012-01-01

IT impacts vendor capabilities. The research framework integrates four concepts/theories: the resource-based view (RBV), the concept of manufacturing strategy, the concept of business performance, and the concept of IT impact on business performance. Two case companies are studied, one with a high level...... proposed. The method gives valuable insights into how IT enables competences, enhances capabilities, and contributes to the fulfillment of vendor objectives. A model of how IT affects a vendor's competitiveness is proposed. In addition, two initiatives for optimizing the utilization of IT are suggested....

Abnormal brain structure in youth who commit homicide

Science.gov (United States)

Cope, L.M.; Ermer, E.; Gaudet, L.M.; Steele, V.R.; Eckhardt, A.L.; Arbabshirani, M.R.; Caldwell, M.F.; Calhoun, V.D.; Kiehl, K.A.

2014-01-01

Background Violence that leads to homicide results in an extreme financial and emotional burden on society. Juveniles who commit homicide are often tried in adult court and typically spend the majority of their lives in prison. Despite the enormous costs associated with homicidal behavior, there have been no serious neuroscientific studies examining youth who commit homicide. Methods Here we use neuroimaging and voxel-based morphometry to examine brain gray matter in incarcerated male adolescents who committed homicide (n = 20) compared with incarcerated offenders who did not commit homicide (n = 135). Two additional control groups were used to understand further the nature of gray matter differences: incarcerated offenders who did not commit homicide matched on important demographic and psychometric variables (n = 20) and healthy participants from the community (n = 21). Results Compared with incarcerated adolescents who did not commit homicide (n = 135), incarcerated homicide offenders had reduced gray matter volumes in the medial and lateral temporal lobes, including the hippocampus and posterior insula. Feature selection and support vector machine learning classified offenders into the homicide and non-homicide groups with 81% overall accuracy. Conclusions Our results indicate that brain structural differences may help identify those at the highest risk for committing serious violent offenses. PMID:24936430

Content analysis of e-cigarette products, promotions, prices and claims on Internet tobacco vendor websites, 2013-2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Rebecca S; Derrick, Jason; Liebman, Aliza K; LaFleur, Kevin

2017-11-03

To identify the population of Internet e-cigarette vendors (IEVs) and conduct content analysis of products sold and IEVs' promotional, claims and pricing practices. Multiple sources were used to identify IEV websites, primarily complex search algorithms scanning over 180 million websites. In 2013, 32 446 websites were manually screened, identifying 980 IEVs, with the 281 most popular selected for content analysis. This methodology yielded 31 239 websites for manual screening in 2014, identifying 3096 IEVs, with 283 selected for content analysis. While the majority of IEVs (71.9%) were US based in 2013, this dropped to 64.3% in 2014 (plocated in at least 38 countries, and 12% providing location indicators reflecting two or more countries, complicating jurisdictional determinations.Reflecting the retail market, IEVs are transitioning from offering disposable and 'cigalike' e-cigarettes to larger tank and "mod" systems. Flavored e-cigarettes were available from 85.9% of IEVs in 2014, with fruit and candy flavors being most popular. Most vendors (76.5%) made health claims in 2013, dropping to 43.1% in 2014. Some IEVs featured conflicting claims about whether or not e-cigarettes aid in smoking cessation. There was wide variation in pricing, with e-cigarettes available as inexpensive as one dollar, well within the affordable range for adults and teens. The number of Internet e-cigarette vendors grew threefold from 2013 to 2014, far surpassing the number of Internet cigarette vendors (N=775) at the 2004 height of that industry. New and expanded regulations for online e-cigarette sales are needed, including restrictions on flavors and marketing claims. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Gaining Leverage Over Vendor Lock to Improve Acquisition Performance and Cost Efficiencies

Science.gov (United States)

2014-04-30

Virginia Wydler, MITRE Corporation Open Systems Architecture License Rights: A New Era for the Public– Private Market -Place Nickolas Guertin, DASN RDT...if only one vendor can replace or upgrade those key components, that de facto monopolist may be able to exert excess negotiating leverage over...instead of sole source subcontractor procurement. The Program Office should have the prime vendor to provide a full market research data in accordance

The relationship between hospital and ehr vendor market dynamics on health information organization presence and participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Sunny C; Adler-Milstein, Julia

2018-05-08

Health Information Organizations (HIOs) are third party organizations that facilitate electronic health information exchange (HIE) between providers in a geographic area. Despite benefits from HIE, HIOs have struggled to form and subsequently gain broad provider participation. We sought to assess whether market-level hospital and EHR vendor dynamics are associated with presence and level of hospital participation in HIOs. 2014 data on 4523 hospitals and their EHR vendors were aggregated to the market level. We used multivariate OLS regression to analyze the relationship between hospital and vendor dynamics and (1) probability of HIO presence and (2) percent of hospitals participating in an HIO. 298 of 469 markets (64%) had HIO presence, and in those markets, 47% of hospitals participated in an HIO on average. In multivariate analysis, four characteristics were associated with HIO presence. Markets with more hospitals, markets with more EHR vendors, and markets with an EHR vendor-led HIE approach were more likely to have an HIO. Compared to markets with low hospital competition, markets with high hospital competition had a 25 percentage point lower probability of HIO presence. Two characteristics were associated with level of hospital HIO participation. Markets with more hospitals as well as markets with high vendor competition (compared to low competition) had lower participation. Both hospital and EHR vendor dynamics are associated with whether a market has an HIO as well as the level of hospital participation in HIOs.

Electronic health record usability: analysis of the user-centered design processes of eleven electronic health record vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

Ratwani, Raj M; Fairbanks, Rollin J; Hettinger, A Zachary; Benda, Natalie C

2015-11-01

The usability of electronic health records (EHRs) continues to be a point of dissatisfaction for providers, despite certification requirements from the Office of the National Coordinator that require EHR vendors to employ a user-centered design (UCD) process. To better understand factors that contribute to poor usability, a research team visited 11 different EHR vendors in order to analyze their UCD processes and discover the specific challenges that vendors faced as they sought to integrate UCD with their EHR development. Our analysis demonstrates a diverse range of vendors' UCD practices that fall into 3 categories: well-developed UCD, basic UCD, and misconceptions of UCD. Specific challenges to practicing UCD include conducting contextually rich studies of clinical workflow, recruiting participants for usability studies, and having support from leadership within the vendor organization. The results of the study provide novel insights for how to improve usability practices of EHR vendors. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Networking activities and perceptions of HIV risk among male migrant market vendors in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wenqing; Muessig, Kathryn E; Li, Mingqiang; Zhang, Ying-Xia; Zhang, Yingxia

2014-02-01

HIV research among internal migrants in China has not fully explored the contexts and perceptions of "risk". In 2011, urban markets in Liuzhou, China were mapped, and sixty male vendors, age 22-56, were selected for in-depth interviews on migration, social and family life, and perceptions and practices of sexual risk behavior. Participants were evenly divided among higher income shop and small stall vendors. All men were sexually active. Only the shop vendors reported non-marital sexual partners, including concurrent partners (n = 15), commercial partners (n = 10), and other sexual relationships (n = 11). Shop vendors engaged in networking activities that facilitated commercial and non-commercial high-risk sex. Perceptions of HIV risk from commercial sex led some men to doubt the protective ability of condoms and rely on local (unproven) self-protection techniques. Networking activities played a role in high-risk sex and shaping migrants' risk perceptions and health practices. The networks created through these processes could also be used to facilitate health promotion activities.

Health information technology vendor selection strategies and total factor productivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Eric W; Huerta, Timothy R; Menachemi, Nir; Thompson, Mark A; Yu, Feliciano

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to compare health information technology (HIT) adoption strategies' relative performance on hospital-level productivity measures. The American Hospital Association's Annual Survey and Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Analytics for fiscal years 2002 through 2007 were used for this study. A two-stage approach is employed. First, a Malmquist model is specified to calculate hospital-level productivity measures. A logistic regression model is then estimated to compare the three HIT adoption strategies' relative performance on the newly constructed productivity measures. The HIT vendor selection strategy impacts the amount of technological change required of an organization but does not appear to have either a positive or adverse impact on technical efficiency or total factor productivity. The higher levels in technological change experienced by hospitals using the best of breed and best of suite HIT vendor selection strategies may have a more direct impact on the organization early on in the process. However, these gains did not appear to translate into either increased technical efficiency or total factor productivity during the period studied. Over a longer period, one HIT vendor selection strategy may yet prove to be more effective at improving efficiency and productivity.

Internet cigarette vendor compliance with credit card payment and shipping bans.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Rebecca S; Ribisl, Kurt M

2014-02-01

Most Internet cigarette sales have violated taxation and youth access laws, leading to landmark 2005 agreements with credit card companies, PayPal, and private shippers (United Parcel Service, Federal Express, DHL) to cease participation in these transactions. Despite their promise at the time, loopholes allowed for check payment and U.S. Postal Service (USPS) shipping. This study assessed actual vendor compliance with the payment and shipping bans using a purchase survey. In late 2007 and early 2008, an adult buyer attempted to order cigarettes from the 97 most popular Internet cigarette vendors (ICVs) using banned payment and shipping methods. When banned payment or shipping methods were unavailable, purchases were attempted with alternate methods (e.g., checks, e-checks, USPS). Twenty-seven of 100 orders were placed with (banned) credit cards; 23 were successfully received. Seventy-one orders were placed with checks (60 successfully received). Four orders were delivered using banned shippers; 79 of 83 successfully received orders were delivered by the USPS. About a quarter of ICVs violated the payment ban, others adapted by accepting checks. Most vendors complied with the shipping ban, perhaps because USPS was an easy substitute shipping option. Better enforcement of the bans is needed; the 2009 Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act closed the USPS loophole by making cigarettes nonmailable material; evaluation of enforcement efforts and adaptations by vendors are needed. These sorts of bans are a promising approach to controlling the sale of restricted goods online.

Differences between Homicides Committed by Lone and Multiple Offenders in Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jisun; Cho, Joon Tag

2018-05-16

The aim of this study was to differentiate between homicides committed by multiple offenders and homicides committed by lone offenders. Using data on homicide incidents that occurred in South Korea between 1985 and 2008, we compared 134 homicides committed by multiple offenders, with 369 homicides committed by lone offenders. A greater proportion of homicides committed by multiple offenders involved injuries to the victim's head compared to homicides by lone offenders. Homicides committed by multiple offenders were more likely to involve blunt instruments and ligatures, whereas homicides by lone offenders were more likely to involve sharp instruments. In addition, a majority of the homicides committed by multiple offenders were planned. The results of this study have practical implications for homicide investigations, as well as theoretical implications for homicide research on the difference in offense behaviors based on the number of offenders. © 2018 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Willingness of Herbal Medicine Practitioners and Herbs Vendors to ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Willingness of Herbal Medicine Practitioners and Herbs Vendors to Contribute Financially to Conservation of Medicinal Plants in Ibadan, ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... The earlier version of this paper had some errors.

A single-vendor and a single-buyer integrated inventory model with ordering cost reduction dependent on lead time

Science.gov (United States)

Vijayashree, M.; Uthayakumar, R.

2017-09-01

Lead time is one of the major limits that affect planning at every stage of the supply chain system. In this paper, we study a continuous review inventory model. This paper investigates the ordering cost reductions are dependent on lead time. This study addressed two-echelon supply chain problem consisting of a single vendor and a single buyer. The main contribution of this study is that the integrated total cost of the single vendor and the single buyer integrated system is analyzed by adopting two different (linear and logarithmic) types ordering cost reductions act dependent on lead time. In both cases, we develop effective solution procedures for finding the optimal solution and then illustrative numerical examples are given to illustrate the results. The solution procedure is to determine the optimal solutions of order quantity, ordering cost, lead time and the number of deliveries from the single vendor and the single buyer in one production run, so that the integrated total cost incurred has the minimum value. Ordering cost reduction is the main aspect of the proposed model. A numerical example is given to validate the model. Numerical example solved by using Matlab software. The mathematical model is solved analytically by minimizing the integrated total cost. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis is included and the numerical examples are given to illustrate the results. The results obtained in this paper are illustrated with the help of numerical examples. The sensitivity of the proposed model has been checked with respect to the various major parameters of the system. Results reveal that the proposed integrated inventory model is more applicable for the supply chain manufacturing system. For each case, an algorithm procedure of finding the optimal solution is developed. Finally, the graphical representation is presented to illustrate the proposed model and also include the computer flowchart in each model.

CITY POLLUTION: THE CASE STUDY OF VENDORS AND ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

User

2017-12-15

Dec 15, 2017 ... He noted that some beg holding a cup or plate in their hands ... Beggars and vendors have been accused of causing a number of conflicts in streets .... Since we sleep on street pavements, we empty bins in search of boxes, ...

DEVELOPMENT OF A SPREADSHEET BASED VENDOR MANAGED INVENTORY MODEL FOR A SINGLE ECHELON SUPPLY CHAIN: A CASE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karanam Prahlada Rao

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Vendor managed inventory (VMI is a supply chain initiative where the supplier assumes the responsibility for managing inventories using advanced communication means such as online messaging and data retrieval system. A well collaborated vendor manage inventory system can improve supply chain performance by decreasing the inventory level and increasing the fill rate. This paper investigates the implementation of vendor managed inventory systems in a consumer goods industry. We consider (r, Q policy for replenishing its inventory. The objective of work is to minimize the inventory across the supply chain and maximize the service level. The major contribution of this work is to develop a spreadsheet model for VMI system, Evaluation of Total inventory cost by using spreadsheet based method and Analytical method, Quantifying inventory reduction, Estimating service efficiency level, and validating the VMI spread sheet model with randomly generated demand. In the application, VMI as an inventory control system is able to reduce the inventory cost without sacrificing the service level. The results further more show that the inventory reduction obtained from analytical method is closer to the spread sheet based approach, which reveals the VMI success. However the VMI success is impacted by the quality of buyersupplier relationships, the quality of the IT system and the intensity of information sharing, but not by the quality of information shared.

Democratic Model of Public Policy Accountability. Case Study on Implementation of Street Vendors Empowerment Policy in Makassar City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rulinawaty Kasmadsi

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Policy accountability is a form of manifestation of public officials responsible to the people. One form of policy accountability that is discussed here is street vendors policy accountability, because they are a group of citizens who have the economic activities in public spaces. The existence of this policy how-ever, the number of street vendors from year to year increase in Makassar City. Therefore, this study seeks to uncover and explain the democratic policy ac-countability through the street vendors’ responses and expectations to the implementation of street ven-dors empowerment policy in Makassar City; and to uncover and explain the democratic policy account-ability through the stakeholders’ responses and ex-pectations to the implementation of street vendors empowerment policy in Makassar City. To achieve these objectives, the study uses democracy theory, in which this theory focuses on togetherness in dis-cussing solutions to the various problems of street vendors and in the policy implementation as well.This study used a qualitative design and case studies strat-egy. Data collection techniques used was observa-tion, interview, and documentation. Data were ana-lyzed with case description its settings. The results of this study pointed out that the interests and needs of the street vendors are not met through the empow-erment policies vendors. This is caused by the ab-sence of accountability forum as a place of togeth-erness all of street vendors empowerment stakehold-ers’. Street vendors empowerment policy in Makassar City are designed base on a top-down approach, so they are considered as objects, which must accept all government programs aimed at them.

Geographic and socioeconomic distribution of food vendors: a case study of a municipality in the Southern Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Nappi Correa

Full Text Available Abstract: The objective of this study was to identify the food vendor distribution profile of the city of Florianópolis, Santa Catarina State, Brazil, and investigate its association with the socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of different municipal regions. This descriptive, cross-sectional study obtained the location of food vendors from secondary data from different institutional sources. The density of different types of food vendors per 1,000 inhabitants in each municipal weighted area was calculated. The Kruskal-Wallis test compared the mean density of food vendors and the weighted income areas. The lowest-income regions had the lowest density of butchers, snack bars, supermarkets, bakeries/pastry shops, natural product stores, juice bars, and convenience stores. The identification of these areas may encourage the creation of public policies that facilitate healthy food startups and/or maintenance of healthy food vendors, especially in the lowest-income regions.

Outsourcing Maintenance Operations to Off-Shore Vendors: Some Lessons from the Field

OpenAIRE

Sam Ramanujan; Hal Lou

1997-01-01

Ever since Eastman Kodak announced that it was outsourcing its information systems (IS) function in 1988 to IBM, DEC and Businessland, large companies have found it acceptable to transfer their IS assets, leases and staff to third party vendors. In the recent past, there is a trend towards selective sourcing in which organizations opt to use third party vendors for certain IS functions which represent 20-60% of the IS budget while still retaining a substantial internal IS department. This pap...

Multi-vendor loyalty programs: influencing customer behavioral loyalty?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teresa eVillacé-Molinero

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Loyalty programs are a consolidated marketing instrument whose adoption in many sectors has not been associated with appropriate comprehension of either their management elements or their effects. The purpose of this research is to contribute to knowledge about the effect of loyalty programs on repeat purchase behavior. More specifically, it seeks to see discover whether joining a program changes the buying behavior of its members, and, if so, to study the profile of those whose behavior changes most. The intention was also to provide new study variables pertaining to multi-vendor loyalty programs, such as where they are joined or purchases in associated outlets as a result of behavioral loyalty. Research was carried out using a sample of 1,200 individuals (31,746 purchases belonging to a multi-vendor loyalty program. The study period was 13 years, 4 months, and split into two phases: before and after the joining the program. Different methodological approaches, such as the use of transactional databases that included pre-program-enrollment data and of the same sampling units throughout the study, were incorporated into the research with the aim of advancing academic knowledge regarding multi-vendor loyalty programs. Moreover, a type of program and market hardly dealt with in the relevant literature was analyzed. The results showed while the loyalty program had managed to reduce the time between purchases, it had not affected purchase volume or average expenditure. They also demonstrated the existence of a differential profile of customers who had changed their buying behavior to a greater extent. Finally, recency was identified as being the decisive variable in behavioral change.

Multi-Vendor Loyalty Programs: Influencing Customer Behavioral Loyalty?

Science.gov (United States)

Villacé-Molinero, Teresa; Reinares-Lara, Pedro; Reinares-Lara, Eva

2016-01-01

Loyalty programs are a consolidated marketing instrument whose adoption in many sectors has not been associated with appropriate comprehension of either their management elements or their effects. The purpose of this research is to contribute to knowledge about the effect of loyalty programs on repeat purchase behavior. More specifically, it seeks to discover whether joining a program changes the buying behavior of its members, and, if so, to study the profile of those whose behavior changes most. The intention was also to provide new study variables pertaining to multi-vendor loyalty programs, such as where they are joined or purchases in associated outlets as a result of behavioral loyalty. Research was carried out using a sample of 1200 individuals (31,746 purchases) belonging to a multi-vendor loyalty program. The study period was 13 years, 4 months, and split into two phases: before and after the joining the program. Different methodological approaches, such as the use of transactional databases that included pre-program-enrollment data and of the same sampling units throughout the study, were incorporated into the research with the aim of advancing academic knowledge regarding multi-vendor loyalty programs. Moreover, a type of program and market hardly dealt with in the relevant literature was analyzed. The results showed while the loyalty program had managed to reduce the time between purchases, it had not affected purchase volume or average expenditure. They also demonstrated the existence of a differential profile of customers who had changed their buying behavior to a greater extent. Finally, recency was identified as being the decisive variable in behavioral change.

Multi-Vendor Loyalty Programs: Influencing Customer Behavioral Loyalty?

Science.gov (United States)

Villacé-Molinero, Teresa; Reinares-Lara, Pedro; Reinares-Lara, Eva

2016-01-01

Loyalty programs are a consolidated marketing instrument whose adoption in many sectors has not been associated with appropriate comprehension of either their management elements or their effects. The purpose of this research is to contribute to knowledge about the effect of loyalty programs on repeat purchase behavior. More specifically, it seeks to discover whether joining a program changes the buying behavior of its members, and, if so, to study the profile of those whose behavior changes most. The intention was also to provide new study variables pertaining to multi-vendor loyalty programs, such as where they are joined or purchases in associated outlets as a result of behavioral loyalty. Research was carried out using a sample of 1200 individuals (31,746 purchases) belonging to a multi-vendor loyalty program. The study period was 13 years, 4 months, and split into two phases: before and after the joining the program. Different methodological approaches, such as the use of transactional databases that included pre-program-enrollment data and of the same sampling units throughout the study, were incorporated into the research with the aim of advancing academic knowledge regarding multi-vendor loyalty programs. Moreover, a type of program and market hardly dealt with in the relevant literature was analyzed. The results showed while the loyalty program had managed to reduce the time between purchases, it had not affected purchase volume or average expenditure. They also demonstrated the existence of a differential profile of customers who had changed their buying behavior to a greater extent. Finally, recency was identified as being the decisive variable in behavioral change. PMID:26941677

Tobacco Taxation, Smuggling, and Street Tobacco Vendors in Eritrea

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

The bulk of the smuggled cigarettes are sold by street vendors, many of them women and children, ... and its implications for government revenue;; identify the reasons why people sell on the streets; and, ... Agent(e) responsable du CRDI.

Tobacco Products Sold by Internet Vendors Following Restrictions on Flavors and Light Descriptors

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Rebecca S.; Ribisl, Kurt M.

2015-01-01

Introduction: The 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act bans characterizing flavors (e.g., grape, strawberry) in cigarettes, excluding tobacco and menthol, and prohibits companies from using misleading descriptors (e.g., light, low) that imply reduced health risks without submitting scientific data to support the claim and obtaining a marketing authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This observational study examines tobacco products offered by Internet cigarette vendors (ICV) pre- and postimplementation of the ban on characterizing flavors in cigarettes and the restriction on misleading descriptors. Methods: Cross-sectional samples of the 200 most popular ICVs in 2009, 2010, and 2011 were identified. Data were analyzed in 2012 and 2013. Results: In 2011 the odds for selling cigarettes with banned flavors or misleading descriptors were 0.40 times that for selling the products in 2009 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.18, 0.88). However, 89% of vendors continued to sell the products, including 95.8% of international vendors. Following the ban on characterizing flavors, ICVs began selling potential alternative products. In 2010, the odds for selling flavored little cigars were 1.71 (95% CI = 1.09, 2.69) times that for selling the product in 2009 and, for clove cigars, were 5.50 (95% CI = 2.36, 12.80) times that for selling the product in 2009. Conclusions: Noncompliance with the ban on characterizing flavors and restriction on misleading descriptors has been high, especially among international vendors. Many vendors appear to be circumventing the intent of the flavors ban by selling unbanned flavored cigars, in some cases in lieu of flavored cigarettes. PMID:25173777

The optimal replenishment policy for time-varying stochastic demand under vendor managed inventory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Govindan, Kannan

2015-01-01

A Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) partnership places the responsibility on the vendor (rather than on buyers) to schedule purchase orders for inventory replenishment in the supply chain system. In this research, the supply chain network considers the Silver-Meal heuristic with an augmentation...... quantity replenishment policy between both traditional and VMI systems. We consider time-varying stochastic demand in two-echelon (one vendor, multiple retailers) supply chains. This paper seeks to find the supply chain that minimizes system cost through comparing performance between traditional and VMI...... systems. A mathematical model is developed, and total supply chain cost is used as the measure of comparison. The models are applied in both traditional and VMI supply chains based on pharmaceutical industry data, and we focus on total cost difference compared through the use of Adjusted Silver-Meal (ASM...

The Dynamic Environment of Crypto Markets: The Lifespan of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) and Vendors Selling NPS

OpenAIRE

Elle Wadsworth; Colin Drummond; Paolo Deluca

2018-01-01

The Internet has played a major role in the distribution of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), and crypto markets are increasingly used for the anonymous sale of drugs, including NPS. This study explores the availability of individual NPS and vendors on the crypto markets and considers whether crypto markets are a reliable platform for the sale of NPS. Data was collected from 22 crypto markets that were accessed through the hidden web using the Onion Router (Tor). Data collection took place b...

Buyer-vendor coordination for fixed lifetime product with quantity discount under finite production rate

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qinghong; Luo, Jianwen; Duan, Yongrui

2016-03-01

Buyer-vendor coordination has been widely addressed; however, the fixed lifetime of the product is seldom considered. In this paper, we study the coordination of an integrated production-inventory system with quantity discount for a fixed lifetime product under finite production rate and deterministic demand. We first derive the buyer's ordering policy and the vendor's production batch size in decentralised and centralised systems. We then compare the two systems and show the non-coordination of the ordering policies and the production batch sizes. To improve the supply chain efficiency, we propose quantity discount contract and prove that the contract can coordinate the buyer-vendor supply chain. Finally, we present analytically tractable solutions and give a numerical example to illustrate the benefits of the proposed quantity discount strategy.

The relationship between organizational commitment and nursing care behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Naghneh, Mohammad Hossein Khalilzadeh; Tafreshi, Mansoureh Zagheri; Naderi, Manijeh; Shakeri, Nehzat; Bolourchifard, Fariba; Goyaghaj, Naser Sedghi

2017-07-01

Nursing care encompasses physical, emotional, mental and social needs, in order to improve a patient's health and wellbeing. Caring is the central core and the essence of nursing. The important issue of care is access to proper care and increasing patients' satisfaction. Job performance of nurses is affected by many factors including organizational commitment. This study aimed to determine the relationship between organizational commitment and nurses caring behavior. In this cross-sectional study, 322 nurses from selected Hospitals of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran were randomly selected and enrolled in the study in 2015. The self-reported data by nurses were collected through demographic characteristics questionnaire, Meyer & Allen organizational commitment model and Caring Behavior Inventory (CBI). Data were analyzed with SPSS statistical software version 20, using t-test and ANOVA. The majority of nurses (63%) were female. The mean score and standard deviation of organizational commitment and caring behavior of nurses were 74.12±9.61 and 203.1±22.46, respectively. The results showed a significantly positive correlation between organizational commitment and caring behavior (p=0.001). In this study the caring behavior of nurses with higher organizational commitment were significantly better than the others. Managers and nurse leaders should pay more attention to improve organizational commitment of nurses, in order to improve nurses' performance.

What's in Your Techno-Future? Vendors Share Their Views.

Science.gov (United States)

Gerber, Carole

1995-01-01

Examines vendors' views on the future of CD-ROM technology. Topics include the library role, single point access, costs, tape backup, user-friendly library automation systems and databases, improved quality, the growth of Internet access, and perspectives on technology in schools. (AEF)

Coordinated clinical and financial analysis as a powerful tool to influence vendor pricing.

Science.gov (United States)

Logan, Catherine A; Wu, Roger Y; Mulley, Debra; Smith, Paul C; Schwaitzberg, Steven D

2010-01-01

As costs continue to outpace reimbursements, hospital administrators and clinicians face increasing pressure to justify new capital purchases. Massachusetts Health Care Reform has added further economic challenges for Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH), as resources formerly available to treat the uninsured have been redirected. In this challenging climate, many hospitals still lack a standardized process for technology planning and/or vendor negotiation. : The purpose of this study was to determine whether a simple, coordinated clinical and financial analysis of a technology, Endoscopic Carpal Tunnel Release (ECTR), is sufficient to impact vendor pricing at Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), a disproportionate share hospital (DSH) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This case study addressed the topic of technology adoption, a complex decision-making process every hospital administration faces. Taking note of other hospitals approaches to instill a strategic management culture, CHA combined a literature review on clinical outcomes and financial analysis on profitability. Clinical effectiveness was evaluated through a literature review. The financial analysis was based on a retrospective inquiry of fixed and variable costs, reimbursement rates, actual payer mix, and profitability of adopting ECTR over open carpal tunnel release at CHA. This clinical and financial analysis was then shared with the vendor. A literature review revealed that although there are short-term benefits to ECTR, there is little to no difference in long-term outcomes to justify a calculated incremental loss of $91.49 in revenue per case. Sharing this analysis with the vendor resulted in a 30% price reduction. A revised cost analysis demonstrated a $53.51 incremental gain in revenue per case. CHA has since elected to offer ECTR to its patients. Smaller hospital systems often have modest leverage in vendor negotiations. Our results suggest that the development of adoption criteria and an evidence

Tobacco products sold by Internet vendors following restrictions on flavors and light descriptors.

Science.gov (United States)

Jo, Catherine L; Williams, Rebecca S; Ribisl, Kurt M

2015-03-01

The 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act bans characterizing flavors (e.g., grape, strawberry) in cigarettes, excluding tobacco and menthol, and prohibits companies from using misleading descriptors (e.g., light, low) that imply reduced health risks without submitting scientific data to support the claim and obtaining a marketing authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This observational study examines tobacco products offered by Internet cigarette vendors (ICV) pre- and postimplementation of the ban on characterizing flavors in cigarettes and the restriction on misleading descriptors. Cross-sectional samples of the 200 most popular ICVs in 2009, 2010, and 2011 were identified. Data were analyzed in 2012 and 2013. In 2011 the odds for selling cigarettes with banned flavors or misleading descriptors were 0.40 times that for selling the products in 2009 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.18, 0.88). However, 89% of vendors continued to sell the products, including 95.8% of international vendors. Following the ban on characterizing flavors, ICVs began selling potential alternative products. In 2010, the odds for selling flavored little cigars were 1.71 (95% CI = 1.09, 2.69) times that for selling the product in 2009 and, for clove cigars, were 5.50 (95% CI = 2.36, 12.80) times that for selling the product in 2009. Noncompliance with the ban on characterizing flavors and restriction on misleading descriptors has been high, especially among international vendors. Many vendors appear to be circumventing the intent of the flavors ban by selling unbanned flavored cigars, in some cases in lieu of flavored cigarettes. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Internet little cigar and cigarillo vendors: Surveillance of sales and marketing practices via website content analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Rebecca S; Derrick, Jason C

2018-04-01

Cigar sales have nearly doubled as cigarette sales have dropped, and large cigars have been replaced by little cigars and cigarillos (LCCs). Many LCCs are flavored, are perceived as less harmful than cigarettes, and have become increasingly available from e-commerce sources. We conducted surveillance of the online retail environment in 2013 and 2014 for LCCs in order to describe characteristics of Internet tobacco vendors selling LCCs and their sales and marketing practices, youth access practices, and their practices in relation to cigarette and other tobacco product sales. In 2013, we identified and manually screened 32,446 websites, yielding 500 unique Internet LCC vendors. In 2014, we identified 511 vendors selling LCCs from a list of 31,239 manually screened websites. We then selected 249 in 2013 and 263 in 2014 for content analysis focusing on six domains including demographics, youth access, payment and delivery, products for sale, promotions and claims, and prices. Just over half of vendors in both years were located solely in the U.S. with 70.1% of those selling flavored LCCs in 2013 and 76.1% in 2014. Nearly half only used proven ineffective age verification strategies and another 10% made no attempts to verify age at all. Most vendors accepted credit cards and advertised using the United States Postal Service. Half of vendors featured a variety of health warnings and most featured promotions. Federal bans on flavored cigarettes and restrictions on age verification, payment, and shipping for Internet tobacco sales should be extended to include LCCs. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

24 CFR 232.510 - Commitment and commitment fee.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT MORTGAGE AND LOAN INSURANCE PROGRAMS UNDER NATIONAL HOUSING ACT AND OTHER AUTHORITIES MORTGAGE INSURANCE FOR NURSING HOMES, INTERMEDIATE CARE FACILITIES, BOARD AND CARE HOMES, AND... of Fire Safety Equipment Fees and Charges § 232.510 Commitment and commitment fee. (a) Issuance of...

The role of water vendors in water service delivery in developing countries: a case of Dala local government, Kano, Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Muhammad Tajuri

2017-06-01

In Nigeria, more than 60 million people are required to meet Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target for improved water by 2015 and is unlikely to be achieved only by public supply. To cover these water availability gaps water vendors exist and ignoring their role is potentially deceptive. The aim of this paper is to assess the role of water vendors in meeting these peoples' need and elicit household's willingness-to-pay for improved supply. The research includes cross-sectional mixed method in which questionnaire survey was performed to 218 households; and interviews and focus group discussion were conducted with water vendors. Findings reveal that water vendors supplied most households irrespective of season. Retail vendors buy 25 l at ₦4.00 (0.013) from wholesale vendors and resale at ₦20.08 (0.07) during dry and at ₦14.02 (0.05) in wet season. The price is 28 and 40 times the cost of in-house connection from Kano State Water Board (KNSWB) during rainy and dry season, respectively. Vendors who buy from hand-dug wells pay ₦100.00 (0.33) per day and draw as much water within that day. Furthermore, willingness-to-pay for in-house connection was elicited as ₦367.00 (1.20), lower than monthly flat fixed tariff set by KNSWB. The study recommends recognizing vendors formally in form of public private partnership so that technical and financial support be given, thus their activities and charges be regulated. People's perception on water should be changed through education and enlightening. Further research should focus on estimating total volume of water supplied by water vendors.

48 CFR 804.1102 - Vendor Information Pages (VIP) Database.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... (VIP) Database. 804.1102 Section 804.1102 Federal Acquisition Regulations System DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS Contract Execution 804.1102 Vendor Information Pages (VIP) Database. Prior to January 1, 2012, all VOSBs and SDVOSBs must be listed in the VIP database, available at http...

A study of VHI scores and acoustic features in street vendors as occupational voice users.

Science.gov (United States)

Natour, Yaser S; Darawsheh, Wesam B; Bashiti, Sara; Wari, Majd; Taha, Juhayna; Odeh, Thair

to investigate acoustic features of phonation and perception of voice handicap in street vendors. Eighty-eight participants (44 street vendors, 44 controls) were recruited. The mean age of the group was 38.9±16.0 years (range: 20-78 years). Scores of the Arabic version of the Voice Handicap Index (VHI-Arab) were used for analysis. Acoustic measures of fundamental frequency (F 0 ), jitter, shimmer, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were also analyzed. Analysis showed a significant difference between street vendors and controls in the total score of the VHI-Arab (p<0.001) as well as scores of all three VHI-Arab subsections: functional (p<0.001), physical (p<0.001), and emotional (p=0.025). Weak correlations were found among all of the VHI scores and acoustic measures (-0.219≤ r≤0.355), except for SNR where a moderate negative correlations were found (r=-0.555; -0.4) between the VHI (physical and total) scores and SNR values. Significant differences also were found in F 0 , jitter, and SNR among specific subgroups of street vendors when stratified by weekly hours worked (p<0.05), and in jitter (p=0.39) when stratified by educational level. Perception of voice handicap and a possible effect on vocal quality in street vendors were noted. The effect of factors, namely work hours and educational level, on voice quality should be further studied. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Practice patterns and organizational commitment of inpatient nurse practitioners.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Janet; Brennan, Mary; Musil, Carol M; Fitzpatrick, Joyce J

2016-07-01

Nurse practitioners (NPs) deliver a wide array of healthcare services in a variety of settings. The purpose of this study was to examine the practice patterns and organizational commitment of inpatient NPs. A quantitative design was used with a convenience sample (n = 183) of NPs who attended the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) national conference. The NPs were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire, the Practice Patterns of Acute Nurse Practitioners tool and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire. Over 85% of inpatient practice time consists of direct and indirect patient care activities. The remaining nonclinical activities of education, research, and administration were less evident in the NP's workweek. This indicates that the major role of inpatient NPs continues to be management of acutely ill patients. Moderate commitment was noted in the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire. Supportive hospital/nursing leadership should acknowledge the value of the clinical and nonclinical roles of inpatient NPs as they can contribute to the operational effectiveness of their organization. By fostering the organizational commitment behaviors of identification, loyalty, and involvement, management can reap the benefits of these professionally dedicated providers. ©2015 American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

Host-country policy – commitment or no-commitment: a theoretical analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mukherjee, A.

2000-01-01

This paper develops a model of foreign entry strategy and examines welfare of the host-country under two situations - (i) where host-country government commits to the tax policy, (ii) where host-country government does not commit to the tax policy. It turns out that under the non-committed

Salmonellae carrier status of food vendors in Kumasi, Ghana | Feglo ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

230 females of 28 males) healthy food vendors for Salmonella typhi, and S. paratyphi A, B, and C, using stool culture, the widal test, and standard microbiological identification methods. Main outcome measures: Prevalence of chronic typhoidal ...

Socio - demographic characteristics of child street vendors in Nnewi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Involvement of children in street trading is inimical, contrary to the Rights of the Child, and threatens holistic child development. Objective: To describe the sociodemographic characteristics of child street vendors in Nnewi. Method: A cross-sectional questionnaire survey of children selling wares on the streets of ...

Organizational commitment and job satisfaction among nurses in Serbia: a factor analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Veličković, Vladica M; Višnjić, Aleksandar; Jović, Slađana; Radulović, Olivera; Šargić, Čedomir; Mihajlović, Jovan; Mladenović, Jelena

2014-01-01

One of the basic prerequisites of efficient organizational management in health institutions is certainly monitoring and measuring satisfaction of employees and their commitment to the health institution in which they work. The aim of this article was to identify and test factors that may have a predictive effect on job satisfaction and organizational commitment. We conducted a cross-sectional study that included 1,337 nurses from Serbia. Data were analyzed by using exploratory factor analysis, multivariate regressions, and descriptive statistics. The study identified three major factors of organizational commitment: affective commitment, disloyalty, and continuance commitment. The most important predictors of these factors were positive professional identification, extrinsic job satisfaction, and intrinsic job satisfaction (p job satisfaction and organizational commitment were identified as well; the most important of which was positive professional identification (p job satisfaction and organizational commitment of nurses, which formed a good basis for the creation of organizational management policy and human resource management policy in health institutions in Serbia. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

What's Your Money Worth? Materials Budgets and the Selection and Evaluation of Book and Serial Vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

Barker, Joseph W.

1992-01-01

Discusses budgets for library materials and how to select and evaluate book and serial vendors. Trends in automation, publishing, and economics that affect both libraries and vendors are discussed; and examples from the University of California at Berkeley that include serials service charges and approval plan discounts are presented. (six…

Shopping in Hospitality: Situational Constructions of Customer-Vendor Relationships among Shopping Tourists at a Bazaar on the German-Polish Border

Science.gov (United States)

Busch, Dominic

2010-01-01

This article presents an analysis of a short customer-vendor dialogue between a German couple and a Polish vendor at a food bazaar on the Polish border with Germany. In this situation, interactants have to negotiate and construct framings of hospitality abroad, customer-vendor relations, as well as intercultural relations. It is assumed that…

Patent Medicine Vendors in Rural Areas of Lagos Nigeria ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Purpose: To determine the compliance of patent medicine vendors (PMVs) in rural areas of Lagos State, Nigeria with set guidelines to regulate their practice and its implications for malaria control. Methods: A baseline cross-sectional study was conducted as part of an intervention study in two rural local government areas ...

How do different types of community commitment influence brand commitment? The mediation of brand attachment.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Ning; Zhou, Zhi-min; Su, Chen-ting; Zhou, Nan

2013-11-01

Although previous research indicates that participation in a brand community may foster consumer loyalty to the brand in question, research has seldom examined the mediating effect of community commitment on brand commitment. Drawing from the typologies of organizational commitment, we divide community commitment into three components: continuance community commitment (continuance CC), affective community commitment (affective CC), and normative community commitment (normative CC). We then assess the mediating role of brand attachment in the relationship between these three components and brand commitment. We test the hypotheses using a sample of online mobile phone brand communities in China. The empirical results reveal that brand attachment exerts an indirect (but not mediated) effect on the relationship between continuance CC and brand commitment and on the relationship between normative CC and brand commitment. We also find that it exerts a partial mediating effect on the relationship between affective CC and brand commitment. The findings contribute to the branding literature and have important implications for brand community management.

An evaluation of vendor managed inventory practices from small and medium indian enterprises

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shen, Lixin; Govindan, Kannan; Borade, Atul B.

2013-01-01

Vendor managed inventory has proven to be an effective tool for improving the supply chain performance by decreasing inventory-related costs and increasing customer service. It is quite evident from the literature that vendor managed inventory (VMI) has been successfully implemented in small...... and medium enterprises (SMEs). However, studies related to the implementation of VMI in Indian SMEs are very limited. Therefore, this study presents an empirical investigation of VMI practices in Indian SMEs using survey methodology. The paper evaluates the benefits, barriers, and effects of adopting VMI...

INPO and the industry: a commitment to excellence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colvin, J.F.

1985-01-01

Utilities in the United States have undergone major changes in their attitudes and methods of operating nuclear stations in the 6 yr since the accident at Three Mile Island. These changes reflect a strong commitment by the US utility industry to excellence in nuclear plant operations. Fundamental in this commitment was the formation of the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO), an organization created by the industry in the United States to serve as a focus and catalyst for these changes. With membership in INPO, nuclear utilities make a commitment to strive for excellence in the construction and operation of their nuclear plants. INPO has programs to help utilities in their efforts to achieve excellence. The most visible are the INPO evaluation programs. By the end of 1985, INPO will have evaluated most operating plants at least four times. Construction project evaluations are also being conducted. Twenty-one construction evaluations will have been conducted by the end of the year. Through each of its programs, INPO seeks to promote excellence and to help those operating and building nuclear plants in their commitment to excellence

Technical Evaluation Report 30: Vendor-Assisted Evaluation of a Learning Management System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrienne De Schutter

2004-04-01

Full Text Available A product evaluation was conducted of Desire2Learn, an online learning management system gaining popularity in educational institutions. Since an online trial version of the software was not available for evaluation, an inspection meeting with the vendor was arranged. This provided the evaluation team with an opportunity to examine the precautions necessary for ensuring the objectivity of a product evaluation based on vendor-supplied information. The report outlines the team’s use of evaluator-driven enquiry and a triangulated approach to information checking. The Desire2Learn product is assessed as a flexible and useful addition to the range of learning management system options.

Comparing image quality of print-on-demand books and photobooks from web-based vendors

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Jonathan; Bajorski, Peter; Burns, Peter; Fredericks, Erin; Rosen, Mitchell

2010-01-01

Because of the emergence of e-commerce and developments in print engines designed for economical output of very short runs, there are increased business opportunities and consumer options for print-on-demand books and photobooks. The current state of these printing modes allows for direct uploading of book files via the web, printing on nonoffset printers, and distributing by standard parcel or mail delivery services. The goal of this research is to assess the image quality of print-on-demand books and photobooks produced by various Web-based vendors and to identify correlations between psychophysical results and objective metrics. Six vendors were identified for one-off (single-copy) print-on-demand books, and seven vendors were identified for photobooks. Participants rank ordered overall quality of a subset of individual pages from each book, where the pages included text, photographs, or a combination of the two. Observers also reported overall quality ratings and price estimates for the bound books. Objective metrics of color gamut, color accuracy, accuracy of International Color Consortium profile usage, eye-weighted root mean square L*, and cascaded modulation transfer acutance were obtained and compared to the observer responses. We introduce some new methods for normalizing data as well as for strengthening the statistical significance of the results. Our approach includes the use of latent mixed-effect models. We found statistically significant correlation with overall image quality and some of the spatial metrics, but correlations between psychophysical results and other objective metrics were weak or nonexistent. Strong correlation was found between psychophysical results of overall quality assessment and estimated price associated with quality. The photobook set of vendors reached higher image-quality ratings than the set of print-on-demand vendors. However, the photobook set had higher image-quality variability.

Weaving History through the Major

Science.gov (United States)

Mayfield, Betty

2014-01-01

The benefits of including the study of the history of mathematics in the education of mathematics majors have been discussed at length elsewhere. Many colleges and universities now offer a History of Mathematics course for mathematics majors, for mathematics education majors, or for general credit. At Hood College, we emphasize our commitment to…

A Critical Examination of IT-21: Thinking Beyond Vendor-Based Standards

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Trupp, Travis

1999-01-01

.... This thesis takes a critical look at the IT-21 policy from an economic, security, availability, procurement, and practical level, and explores the role of vendor-based standards in the Navy computing architecture...

MODEL PEMILIHAN VENDOR TRUCKING PRIORITAS DAN ALOKASI ORDER UNTUK DELIVERY PROJECT ACCOUNT PERFETTI VAN MELLE INDONESIA (CASE STUDY : PT DAMCO INDONESIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erna Mulyati

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Proses pemilihan vendor sangat penting untuk diperhatikan dan dilaksanakan sebaik mungkin dalam upaya memberikan dan meningkatkan pelayanan yang diberikan demi terciptanya kepuasan pelanggan secara maksimal. PT Damco Indonesia harus mampu menentukan dan memilih mitra kerja terbaik yang memiliki kualitas kinerja sesuai dengan standar yang telah ditetapkan perusahaan, khususnya dalam memilih vendor. Kesalahan memilih Vendor dapat menyebabkan kerugian bagi perusahaan. Fuzzy Synthetic Evaluation merupakan suatu metode yang digunakan untuk menilai kinerja vendor yang memberi fleksibilitas  untuk  menampung  ketidakpastian  akibat  samarnya  informasi  yang dimiliki  maupun  unsur  preferensi  yang  subjektif  yang  dapat  digunakan  dalam masalah  pengambilan  keputusan. Metode ini digunakan untuk mendapatkan  Third Party Logistic (3PL yang akan digunakan untuk mengalokasikan order ke pelanggan. Pengalokasi order dilakukan dengan mengaplikasikan algoritma transportasi. Penulis menggunakan dua buah metode dalam algoritma ini yaitu Vogell’s Aproximation Method (VAM untuk penentuan tabel awalnya dan Modified Distribution Method untuk melakukan pengujian terhadap tabel awal yang terbentuk untuk melihat keoptimalannya. Hasil urutan kriteria performansi berdasarkan kuesioner pembobotan yang telah ditentukan melalui tahapan wawancara dan studi lapangan di perusahaan yaitu harga/tarif, network coverage, office equipment, infratruktur  dan kualitas pelayanan, dimana terdapat sub kriteria untuk kualitas yang terdiri dari kualitas alat angkut beserta umur peralatan, asuransi, dan ability to provide Custome Delivery. Hasil perhitungan dengan Fuzzy Synthetic Evaluation diperoleh hasil vendor PT Adi Sarana Armada  dan Muna Jaya Expres sama-sama memiliki  nilai keanggotaan  terbesar  yaitu  0,22  di kategori “baik” yang  berarti  bahwa  kedua vendor tersebut  memiliki  kinerja  yang lebih baik dibandingkan dengan vendor

VENDOR SELECTION AND DETERMINING PROCUREMENT QUOTAS IN CONDITIONS WHEN DISCOUNTS ARE OFFERED ON THE TOTAL VALUE OF THE CONTRACTED PROCUREMENT OF MANY DIFFERENT PRODUCTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zoran Babic

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Vendor selection is a very significant business problem for ensuring the competitiveness on the market. That is why companies pay great attention to this problem. To solve the vendor selection problems can be applied to a number of quantitative methods. Depending on the goals of the company the vendor selection can be a mono-criterion or multi-criterion programming problem. This paper deals with the problem of vendor selection and determining procurement quotas from selected vendors under conditions where vendors offer discounts to the total order value within a specified period where the buyer buys more products from the vendors. The total value of procurement costs in a given period is taken as an optimization criterion. In this paper the specific flour purchase problem is solved for a company that manufactures bakery products

VENDOR SELECTION AND DETERMINING PROCUREMENT QUOTAS IN CONDITIONS WHEN DISCOUNTS ARE OFFERED ON THE TOTAL VALUE OF THE CONTRACTED PROCUREMENT OF MANY DIFFERENT PRODUCTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zoran Babić

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Vendor selection is a very significant business problem for ensuring the competitiveness on the market. That is why companies pay great attention to this problem. To solve the vendor selection problems can be applied to a number of quantitative methods. Depending on the goals of the company the vendor selection can be a mono-criterion or multi-criterion programming problem. This paper deals with the problem of vendor selection and determining procurement quotas from selected vendors under conditions where vendors offer discounts to the total order value within a specified period where the buyer buys more products from the vendors. The total value of procurement costs in a given period is taken as an optimization criterion. In this paper the specific flour purchase problem is solved for a company that manufactures bakery products.

Asymmetries in commitment in an avian communication network

Science.gov (United States)

Randler, Christoph; Vollmer, Christian

2013-02-01

Mobbing of predators occurs within a conspecific and heterospecific context but has not been quantified within the framework of a communication network and analysed with respect to heterospecific reciprocity. Here, we used playbacks of mobbing calls to show that mobbing is unequally distributed within a community of deciduous forest birds. Five species (great tit Parus major, blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus, marsh tit Poecile palustris, nuthatch Sitta europaea and chaffinch Fringilla coelebs) responded to each other's playbacks of mobbing calls. Commitment to mob was measured by minimum distance, response latency and uttering of calls. Commitment was higher when conspecific calls were broadcast. Yet, responses to heterospecific calls were significantly different between the five species. Chaffinches had the lowest commitment, and blue tits tended to have the highest. The communication network is asymmetric. Some species invest more than they receive from other species. As mobbing might incur costs, these are unequally distributed across the community.

Occupational stress and organisational commitment of employees at higher educational institution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simbarashe Zhuwao

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between occupational stress and organisational commitment of employees at a higher education institution. A random sample (N=30 was chosen from academic staff within the university. The study used a quantitative design. The Organisational Stress Screening Tool (ASSET and Allen and Meyer’s Organisational Commitment Tool (OCT were administered. The study revealed that a statistical significant relationship exists between occupational stress and organizational commitment of employees. The study also showed that academic staff overall experienced average levels of occupational stress and organisational commitment. Job characteristics and work relationship were found to be the major sources of occupation stress. It is recommended that higher education institutions should improve employee participation in decision making to reduce employees’ stress as a result of unmanageable workloads and overload.

Organizational commitment of a health profession faculty: dimensions, correlates and conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Marchiori, Dennis M; Henkin, Alan B

2004-06-01

Health professions depend on their faculties to prepare new practitioners, conduct research and provide essential services. Organizational commitment is an important aspect of faculty effectiveness and job performance, and may impact on turnover, absenteeism and interpersonal trust. A survey of organizational commitment, including faculty demographics and workplace variables, was conducted. Respondents were full- and part-time chiropractic faculty working in the United States and Canada. More than 54% of the study population (n = 609) completed and returned the instrument. A large majority of the respondents were male (68.4%) and employed full-time (81.6%). Almost half (47.5%) of the respondents were assigned to the area of patient care at their institutions. This study provides an initial assessment of organizational commitment among chiropractic faculty. Tenure in higher education, gender and age were found to be the most important predictors of organizational commitment.

How often and under which circumstances do Mexican pharmacy vendors recommend misoprostol to induce an abortion?

Science.gov (United States)

Lara, Diana; García, Sandra G; Wilson, Kate S; Paz, Francisco

2011-06-01

Misoprostol was used by women across Mexico to induce abortion even before 2007, when first-trimester abortion was legalized in Mexico City. Pharmacy vendors' misoprostol recommendation practices across subregions of Mexico after abortion legalization warrant examination. Overall, 192 pharmacies in four regions of Mexico were randomly selected and visited by simulated clients presenting three scenarios (a young woman, an adult woman and a male partner). Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to explore associations between pharmacy, vendor and client characteristics and drug access. In 558 encounters with simulated clients, 78% of vendors provided information about misoprostol-18% recommended it spontaneously and 60% recommended it only after the client asked specifically for the drug. Fifteen percent of vendors recommended a potentially effective misoprostol dosing regimen. Mexico City-based pharmacies and those in the Central region were significantly less likely than those in the North region to require a prescription to sell misoprostol (odds ratios, 0.2 and 0.3, respectively). Independent pharmacies and those from low-?income areas were significantly more likely to sell misoprostol by the pill than chain pharmacies and those in medium-income areas (3.2 and 2.7, respectively). Access to misoprostol is influenced by neighborhood socioeconomic level, pharmacy location and pharmacy type. The frequently inaccurate and incomplete information provided to clients about using misoprostol for abortion suggests the need to improve pharmacy vendor training in medication abortion options and to develop ways to directly inform women about misoprostol use.

Performance outcomes and success factors of vendor managed inventory (VMI)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Claassen, M.J.T.; Weele, van A.J.; Raaij, van E.M.

2008-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to seek to investigate performance outcomes of vendor managed inventory (VMI) from a buyer's perspective and enablers for its successful application. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modelling through Partial Least Squares (PLS) is used to

Small Business Commitment | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Small Business Commitment Small Business Commitment Central to NREL's mission is our commitment to small business through a comprehensive and mature outreach program that combines proven techniques with the latest technology and best business practices. For More Information Contact Us Please email Rexann

Competition with Variety Seeking and Habitual Consumption: Price Commitment or Quality Commitment?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liyang Xiong

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates price and quality competition in a market where consumers seek variety and habit formation. Variety seeking is modeled as a decrease in the willingness to pay for product purchased on the previous occasion while habitual consumption may increase future marginal utility. We compare two competing strategies: price commitment and quality commitment. With a three-stage Hotelling-type model, we show that variety seeking intensifies while habitual consumption softens the competition. With price commitment, firms supply lower quality levels in period 1 and higher quality levels in period 2, while, with quality commitment, firms charge higher prices in period 1 and lower prices in period 2. However, the habitual consumption brings the opposite effect. In addition, with quality commitment variety seeking leads to a lower profit and a higher consumer surplus, while habitual consumption leads to the opposite results. On the other side, with price commitment these behaviors have no effect on the consumer surplus, although they still lower down the firm profits. Finally, we also identify conditions under which one strategy outperforms the other.

Measuring Library Vendor Cyber Security: Seven Easy Questions Every Librarian Can Ask

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alex Caro

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This article is based on an independent cyber security risk management audit for a public library system completed by the authors in early 2015 and based on a research paper by the same group at Clark University in 2014. We stress that while cyber security must include raising public knowledge in regard to cyber security issues and resources, and libraries are indeed the perfect place to disseminate this knowledge, librarians are also in a unique position as the gatekeepers of information services provided to the public and should conduct internal audits to ensure our content partners and IT vendors take cyber security as seriously as the library and its staff. One way to do this is through periodic reviews of existing vendor relationships. To this end, the authors created a simple grading rubric you can adopt or modify to help take this first step towards securing your library data. It is intended to be used by both technical and non-technical staff as a simple measurement of what vendor agreements currently exist and how they rank, while at the same time providing a roadmap for which security features or policy statements the library can or should require moving forward.

Practical Relativistic Bit Commitment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lunghi, T.; Kaniewski, J.; Bussières, F.; Houlmann, R.; Tomamichel, M.; Wehner, S.D.C.; Zbinden, H

2015-01-01

Bit commitment is a fundamental cryptographic primitive in which Alice wishes to commit a secret bit to Bob. Perfectly secure bit commitment between two mistrustful parties is impossible through an asynchronous exchange of quantum information. Perfect security is, however, possible when Alice and

Fuzzy Commitment

Science.gov (United States)

Juels, Ari

The purpose of this chapter is to introduce fuzzy commitment, one of the earliest and simplest constructions geared toward cryptography over noisy data. The chapter also explores applications of fuzzy commitment to two problems in data security: (1) secure management of biometrics, with a focus on iriscodes, and (2) use of knowledge-based authentication (i.e., personal questions) for password recovery.

Exploratory survey of informal vendor-sold fast food in rural South ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2011-03-16

Mar 16, 2011 ... transition, with increasing obesity prevalence mimicking that in urban areas. ... Understanding food availability within urban and rural contexts is important; of .... The reasons that vendors gave for the limited range of. Fast food ...

What are the sales practices of internet cigar vendors in China?

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Junling; Berg, Carla J; Huang, Lulu; Zheng, Pinpin; Fu, Hua

2015-05-01

To estimate the number of websites selling cigars in China and to examine their sales and marketing practices. Comprehensive searches were conducted using three keyword terms and two popular internet search engines. A total of 6000 sites were examined. Two raters examined the content of each site using a standardised coding instrument to assess geographic location, presence of warnings, products sold, and promotional strategies. We identified 106 internet cigar vendors, which were located in 16 cities, with most of them being located in developed cities (eg, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong). Only 6.6% of internet cigar vendors featured health warnings, and 14.2% featured minimum age of sale warnings. More than 80% of sites sold large cigars, 34.9% sold small or mini cigars, 42.5% sold cigarettes, 28.3% sold tobacco leaves, and 73.6% sold cigar accessories. Third-party online payment was the most frequently accepted payment method. Scanned images of cigars or cigar boxes (92.5%), reduced prices (84.0%), and diffusion of cigar-related information (67.9%) were the most frequently used promotional strategies.+ Internet cigar vendors undermine tobacco control policies and pose many challenges for tobacco control advocates in China. New legislation and enforcement should address these issues. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

The Impact of Subsistence Prime Vendor on the Subsistence Supplier Base

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Sanders, David

2000-01-01

.... This research will focus on one of these innovations, the Subsistence Prime Vendor (SPV) Program. The SPV program was implemented to reduce the inventories and to improve the quality of food products purchased to support military dining facilities...

The Street Vendors of Bangkok: Alternatives to Indoor Retailers at a Time of Economic Crisis

OpenAIRE

John Walsh

2010-01-01

Problem statement: During an economic crisis, consumers will use different techniques to make their money go as far as possible: More carefully comparing prices at point of sale locations, bringing out the coins they previously left unused in saving banks, switching to lower cost options and choosing to shop in less convenient locations in order to find discounts. One such option is to use street vendors rather than regular indoor retailers. Street vendors can provide cheaper goods because, i...

Spatiotemporal Expression of p63 in Mouse Epidermal Commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian Zhao

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The embryonic surface ectoderm is a simple flat epithelium consisting of cells that express the cytokeratins K8/K18. Before stratification, K5/K14 expression substitutes K8/K18 expression, marking the event called epidermal commitment. Previous studies show that the transcription factor p63 plays an essential role in epidermal commitment. However, detailed expression information of p63 during early epidermal development in mice is still unclear. We systematically studied the expression pattern of p63 in mouse epidermal commitment, together with K8 and K5. We show that p63 expression could be detected as early as E8.5 in mouse embryos preceding epidermal commitment. p63 expression first appears near the newly formed somites and the posterior part of the embryo, further expanding to the whole embryonic surface with particular enrichment in the first branchial arches and the limb buds. ΔNp63 is the major class of isoforms expressed in this period. Relative expression intensity of p63 depends on the embryonic position. In summary, there is a sequential and regular expression pattern of K8, p63 and K5 in mouse epidermal commitment. Our study not only contributes to understanding the early events during epidermal development but also provides a basal tool to study the function of p63 in mammals.

75 FR 71137 - Vendor Outreach Workshop for Women Owned Small Businesses in the National Capitol Region of the...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-22

... the Interior is hosting a Vendor Outreach Workshop for women owned small businesses in the National... meeting its business goals for small, small disadvantaged, 8(a), woman-owned, HUBZone, and service... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Office of the Secretary Vendor Outreach Workshop for Women Owned Small...

The role of private pesticide vendors in preventing access to pesticides for self-poisoning in rural Sri Lanka

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weerasinghe, Manjula; Pearson, Melissa; Peiris, Ravi

2014-01-01

they did want to help to improve identification of such customers. The community did not blame vendors when pesticides used for self-poison were purchased from their shops. Vendors have already taken steps to restrict access, including selling low toxic products, counselling and asking customer to return...

75 FR 48986 - Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the National Capitol Region of the United States

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-12

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Office of the Secretary Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the National Capitol Region of the United States AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior. ACTION... Interior are hosting a Vendor Outreach Workshop for small businesses in the National Capitol region of the...

Career Commitment in Nursing.

Science.gov (United States)

Gardner, Diane L.

1992-01-01

A longitudinal, repeated-measures descriptive survey used to measure career commitment and its relationship to turnover and work performance in 320 newly employed registered nurses at one hospital found that career commitment is not a stable phenomenon. The direct association between career commitment and turnover and with job performance is weak.…

11 CFR 116.3 - Extensions of credit by commercial vendors.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... of credit to nonpolitical debtors that are of similar risk and size of obligation. (b) Incorporated... similar to extensions of credit to nonpolitical debtors that are of similar risk and size of obligation... 11 Federal Elections 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Extensions of credit by commercial vendors. 116...

Does food vendor density mediate the association between neighborhood deprivation and BMI?: a G-computation mediation analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Y Tara; Laraia, Barbara A; Mujahid, Mahasin S; Tamayo, Aracely; Blanchard, Samuel D; Warton, E Margaret; Kelly, N Maggi; Moffet, Howard H; Schillinger, Dean; Adler, Nancy; Karter, Andrew J

2015-05-01

In previous research, neighborhood deprivation was positively associated with body mass index (BMI) among adults with diabetes. We assessed whether the association between neighborhood deprivation and BMI is attributable, in part, to geographic variation in the availability of healthful and unhealthful food vendors. Subjects were 16,634 participants of the Diabetes Study of Northern California, a multiethnic cohort of adults living with diabetes. Neighborhood deprivation and healthful (supermarket and produce) and unhealthful (fast food outlets and convenience stores) food vendor kernel density were calculated at each participant's residential block centroid. We estimated the total effect, controlled direct effect, natural direct effect, and natural indirect effect of neighborhood deprivation on BMI. Mediation effects were estimated using G-computation, a maximum likelihood substitution estimator of the G-formula that allows for complex data relations such as multiple mediators and sequential causal pathways. We estimated that if neighborhood deprivation was reduced from the most deprived to the least deprived quartile, average BMI would change by -0.73 units (95% confidence interval: -1.05, -0.32); however, we did not detect evidence of mediation by food vendor density. In contrast to previous findings, a simulated reduction in neighborhood deprivation from the most deprived to the least deprived quartile was associated with dramatic declines in both healthful and unhealthful food vendor density. Availability of food vendors, both healthful and unhealthful, did not appear to explain the association between neighborhood deprivation and BMI in this population of adults with diabetes.

Exploring the organizational impact of software-as-a-Service on software vendors the role of organizational integration in software-as-a-Service development and operation

CERN Document Server

Stuckenberg, Sebastian

2014-01-01

Software-as-a-Service has gained momentum as a software delivery and pricing model within the software industry. Existing practices of software vendors are challenged by a potential paradigm shift. This book analyzes the implications of Software-as-a-Service on software vendors using a business model and value chain perspective. The analysis of qualitative data from software vendors highlights the role of organizational integration within software vendors. By providing insights regarding the impact of Software-as-a-Service on organizational structures and processes of software vendors, this st

Vendor Managed Inventory:Retail Industry Perspective of Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Madjlesi Taklimi, Zahra

2011-01-01

The concept of Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) radically changes a traditional inventory management. Under the typical business model, the buyer or retailer is in total control of the timing and volume of the order, in order placing and managing the inventory plan. Whereas VMI is a supply chain initiative where the supplier is responsible for all decisions regarding inventories at the retailers, i.e. under VMI program the supplier is authorized to manage inventories of agreed-upon stock-keepin...

Organizational identification and commitment: correlates of sense of belonging and affective commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Dávila, Ma Celeste; Jiménez García, Gemma

2012-03-01

The general purpose of this work is to analyze the overlap between organizational identification and commitment. Specifically, our study focuses on the analysis of the differences and similarities between sense of belonging (a dimension of organizational identification) and affective commitment (a dimension of organizational commitment). In order to do this, we analyzed their discriminant validity and raised their relationship with variables that previous research had showed like precedent and subsequent variables of them: value congruence, perceived support, organizational citizenship behavior, and intention to continue in the organization. A total of 292 people at one organization completed surveys measuring the variables previously described. The results showed that sense of belonging and affective commitment are different concepts and they have different relationships with relation to precedent and subsequent variables. Affective commitment seems to be more useful than sense of belonging to predict organizational citizenship behavior aimed at the organization and intention to continue. Some practical implications are described.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, October--December 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-02-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1995 through December 1995

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, October--December 1996

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-03-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1996 through December 1996

Organizational commitment of military physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Demir, Cesim; Sahin, Bayram; Teke, Kadir; Ucar, Muharrem; Kursun, Olcay

2009-09-01

An individual's loyalty or bond to his or her employing organization, referred to as organizational commitment, influences various organizational outcomes such as employee motivation, job satisfaction, performance, accomplishment of organizational goals, employee turnover, and absenteeism. Therefore, as in other sectors, employee commitment is crucial also in the healthcare market. This study investigates the effects of organizational factors and personal characteristics on organizational commitment of military physicians using structural equation modeling (SEM) on a self-report, cross-sectional survey that consisted of 635 physicians working in the 2 biggest military hospitals in Turkey. The results of this study indicate that professional commitment and organizational incentives contribute positively to organizational commitment, whereas conflict with organizational goals makes a significantly negative contribution to it. These results might help develop strategies to increase employee commitment, especially in healthcare organizations, because job-related factors have been found to possess greater impact on organizational commitment than personal characteristics.

Knowledge Attitude And Practice Of Street Food Vendors In Selected Schools Within Bo City Southern Sierra Leone

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P.T. Lamin-Boima

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This paper attempts to investigate the lack of knowledge attitude and practices of street food vendors in Bo the Southern Province of Sierra Leone. A cross sectional study conducted among eighty-seven respondents vendors in forty-four in Bo City. Data was collected using a structured and semi structured questionnaire. The collected data is analysed using a simple descriptive statistics with the help Excel Microsoft ware. A statistical significance was found in relation to knowledge. Attitude towards food safety was negative self-reported practices by Street Food Vendors were statistically significant with low hygiene standards while predisposing factors showed relatively low personal hygiene poor environmental sanitation and low food safety practice. The realize consequences are utmost health risks of consuming street foods as food contamination has caused food borne diseases and outbreaks. It is recommended that standard training be provided for these vendors by the Bo City Council in collaboration with Njala University. It is essential that poor people in a developing country such as Sierra Leone be allowed to earn their livelihood by means of an easy-to-enter business such as street food vending when hygiene standards are sustained.

Does organizational culture mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and organizational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nor Hazana Abdullah

2015-02-01

Full Text Available To date, the relationships among organizational culture, transformational leadership and organizational commitment have been empirically investigated. However, majority of these studies have been focusing on direct effects of either transformational leadership or organizational culture on organizational commitment in large organizations. This approach might not only hinder our understanding on real predictors of organizational commitment but also obscure the presence of spurious relationships. Therefore, this study aims to determine the mediating effect of organizational culture on the relationship between transformational leadership and organizational commitment among small business employees. An explanatory research design was used with cross-sectional survey as data collection technique. Once the composite reliability, construct, and convergent and discriminant validity of the measurement constructs were established, a Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM was run to analyze the structural model and the mediating effect of organizational culture. The results showed that organizational culture mediates the effect of transformational leadership on organizational commitment among small business. This study cautions the generalization of findings obtained from large organizations to be extended to small organizations.

Evaluating the Release, Delivery, and Deployment Processes of Eight Large Product Software Vendors applying the Customer Configuration Update Model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jansen, S.R.L.; Brinkkemper, S.

2006-01-01

For software vendors the processes of release, delivery, and deployment to customers are inherently complex. However, software vendors can greatly improve their product quality and quality of service by applying a model that focuses on customer interaction if such a model were available. This

Employee organizational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Radosavljević Života

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper shows the results of research on organizational commitment as a type of attitudes that show the identification level of employees with their organizations and their willingness to leave them. The research has been conducted with intention to determine the level of organizational commitment on the territory of Novi Sad, as well as to question whether there is a difference between certain categories of examinees for each commitment base. The research comprised 237 examinees employed in organizations on the territory of Novi Sad. Status of independent variables have gained: gender, years of working experience, educational level, working experience in one or more organizations and estimation of level of personal potentials utility. The questionnaire used is taken from the Greenberg and Baron's 'Behaviour in Organizations', p. 170, done according to set of questions by Meyer and Allen, in 1991. The data have been worked on by calculating arithmetic mean, and by application of Pearson Chi-square test. The results have shown that there is a below average level of organizational (AS=2.88, with the most intensive continual (AS=3.23, and the least intensive normative organizational dedication (AS=2.41. The gender of examinees does not represent relevant source of differences in the levels of each type of three mentioned commitment. Years of working experience and level of educational attainment represent a significant source of differences for continual (YWE: Pearson Chi-square = 30,38; df = 8; p = .000 (LEA: Pearson Chi-square = 7,381; df = 2; p = .05 and normative (YWE: Pearson Chi- square = 20,67; df = 8; p = .000 (LEA: Pearson Chi-square = 10,79; df = 2; p = .00 base of commitment. Work in one or more organizations has shown as a significant source of differences in the level of continual commitment (Pearson Chi-square = 7, 59; df = 2; p = .05. The level of affective commitment is statistically significantly related only to the estimation

Alzheimer's: From Caring to Commitment

Science.gov (United States)

... Current Issue Past Issues Home Current issue contents Alzheimer's: From Caring to Commitment From Caring to Commitment ... Caring to Commitment During her sister’s battle with Alzheimer’s, Anne Murphy stayed by her side and continues ...

Effects of Ethical Climate on Organizational Commitment, Professional Commitment, and Job Satisfaction of Auditor in Malaysia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhaiza Ismail

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is to investigate the effect of the ethical climate on the organizational commitment, professional commitment and job satisfaction of Malaysian auditors. Using a survey questionnaire comprising instruments about the ethical climate, organizational commitment, professional commitment and job satisfaction, 263 usable responses were received. To achieve the objectives, mean scores, standard deviations, correlations and multiple regressions were performed. The study revealed that a significant positive influence of a caring ethical climate on professional and organizational commitment as well as job satisfaction existed. There was also a positive significant association between the law and code ethical climate and professional commitment. On the other hand, the study discovered that the instrumental ethical climate type had a significant negative relationship with organizational commitment and job satisfaction. A significant negative relationship was also revealed between the independent ethical climate type and organizational and professional commitment. A significant negative relationship between the rules ethical climate and job satisfaction was also discovered.

Major dealers' expert power in distribution channels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard Chinomona

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The importance of major dealers’ expertise in distribution channels and effects on exchange relations is widely acknowledged by many SMEs in Africa and yet there seem to be a paucity of research on this matter. To address this dearth, the current study attempts to examine the impact of major dealers’ expert power on SME manufacturers’ channel cooperation and the mediating influence of their trust, relationship commitment and satisfaction. The conceptualized model and five hypotheses are empirically validated using a sample of 452 manufacturing SMEs in Zimbabwe. The findings indicate that major dealers’ expert power may influence SME manufacturers’ trust, relationship commitment, relationship satisfaction and channel cooperation in a significant way. Managerial implications of the research findings are provided.

Relationship between organisational commitment and burnout syndrome: a canonical correlation approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Enginyurt, Ozgur; Cankaya, Soner; Aksay, Kadir; Tunc, Taner; Koc, Bozkurt; Bas, Orhan; Ozer, Erdal

2016-04-01

between two variable sets simultaneously to produce both structural and spatial meaning. What does this paper add? To our knowledge, CCA has not been used to determine the relationships between burnout and organisational commitment of physicians and other healthcare staff. Accordingly, the present study adds information regarding the relationship between burnout and organisational commitment variables determined using CCA. This analysis is used to describe the relationship between two variable sets simultaneously and allows for an easy method of interpretation. What are the implications for practitioners? Burnout syndrome is a major threat to both the health workforce and its organisations. In addition, it affects the quality and effectiveness of health care. Thus, the findings of the present study offer a solid foundation from which actions to decrease burnout levels in healthcare professionals can be implemented by successfully increasing levels of organisational commitment.

Scaling of an information system in a public healthcare market--infrastructuring from the vendor's perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Johannessen, Liv Karen; Obstfelder, Aud; Lotherington, Ann Therese

2013-05-01

The purpose of this paper is to explore the making and scaling of information infrastructures, as well as how the conditions for scaling a component may change for the vendor. The first research question is how the making and scaling of a healthcare information infrastructure can be done and by whom. The second question is what scope for manoeuvre there might be for vendors aiming to expand their market. This case study is based on an interpretive approach, whereby data is gathered through participant observation and semi-structured interviews. A case study of the making and scaling of an electronic system for general practitioners ordering laboratory services from hospitals is described as comprising two distinct phases. The first may be characterized as an evolving phase, when development, integration and implementation were achieved in small steps, and the vendor, together with end users, had considerable freedom to create the solution according to the users' needs. The second phase was characterized by a large-scale procurement process over which regional healthcare authorities exercised much more control and the needs of groups other than the end users influenced the design. The making and scaling of healthcare information infrastructures is not simply a process of evolution, in which the end users use and change the technology. It also consists of large steps, during which different actors, including vendors and healthcare authorities, may make substantial contributions. This process requires work, negotiation and strategies. The conditions for the vendor may change dramatically, from considerable freedom and close relationships with users and customers in the small-scale development, to losing control of the product and being required to engage in more formal relations with customers in the wider public healthcare market. Onerous procurement processes may be one of the reasons why large-scale implementation of information projects in healthcare is difficult

Measuring Asian nurses' organizational commitment: a critical analysis of the psychometric properties of two organizational commitment instruments.

Science.gov (United States)

Liou, Shwu-Ru; Tsai, Hsiu-Min; Cheng, Ching-Yu

2013-01-01

To analyze and compare the psychometric properties and cultural attributes of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire and the Organizational Commitment Scale to determine their appropriateness for measuring commitment of Asian nurses, the biggest portion of international nurses. The Organizational Commitment Questionnaire was cross-culturally cross-validated when compared with the Organizational Commitment Scale. Both instruments were not tested on Asian nurses. More studies are needed to validate the cultural properties of the Organizational Commitment Scale. Healthcare administrators can use culturally validated instruments, which concern cultural context, including languages and cultural values, to understand Asian nurses' organizational commitment and further lower turnover behavior among them. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Vendors woo South Africa as a potential new 'powerhouse' for nuclear

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shepherd, John

2014-01-01

South Africa is a country which is increasingly seen as a potential new nuclear market that promises to give one or more of the world's major nuclear vendors an important foothold on the continent. South Africa has two pressurised water reactors operating at the Koeberg nuclear plant. The 930-megawatt (MW) first unit entered commercial operation in July 1984, followed by the second (900 MW) unit in November 1985. These are the only commercial nuclear power plants on the continent of Africa. South Africa's updated draft integrated resources plan (IRP) for electricity for 2010-30, for which a public consultation period ended in February of this year, included revised projections. that suggested no new nuclear baseload capacity would be needed 'until after 2025'. A capacity 'at least 6,600 MW less' is required in terms of reliable overall generating capacity in 2030. However great South Africa's demand for a clean, affordable and reliable supply of nuclear-generated electricity, coupled with the economic benefits such developments will bring, investors also understand the potential for nuclear growth in this part of the world. (orig.)

Exploratory Study into the Microbiological Quality of Spinach and Cabbage Purchased from Street Vendors and Retailers in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Plessis, Erika M du; Govender, Sarasha; Pillay, Bala; Korsten, Lise

2017-10-01

Knowledge of the microbiological quality and prevalence of antibiotic resistance and virulence genes in bacterial isolates from leafy green vegetables supplied by formal suppliers (retailers) and informal suppliers (street vendors) in South Africa is limited. Because leafy vegetables have been implicated in foodborne disease outbreaks worldwide, 180 cabbage and spinach samples were collected from three major retailers and nine street vendors in Johannesburg, South Africa. Escherichia coli and coliforms were enumerated using Petrifilm plates. The prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella, and Shigella was determined using real-time PCR analysis. Identities of presumptive E. coli isolates from the fresh produce were confirmed using matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization time of flight mass spectroscopy. Isolates were characterized using phenotypic (antibiotic resistance) and genotypic (phylogenetic and virulence gene) analysis. Hygiene indicator bacteria levels on spinach from formal and informal retailers exceeded the maximum level specified by the Department of Health guidelines for fresh fruit and vegetables. E. coli counts for street vendor spinach were higher (P analysis; Shigella was not detected. Of the 29 spinach E. coli isolates, 37.9% were multidrug resistant. Virulence genes eae and stx 1 were present in 14 and 3% of the spinach E. coli isolates, respectively; the stx 2 gene was not detected. Eighty-six percent of these isolates belonged to phylogroup A, 3% belonged to group C, 7% belonged to group E, and 3% belonged to clade 1. The results from the current exploratory study on the microbiological quality of spinach bought from selected retailers highlight the need for continued surveillance on a larger scale, especially in the informal sector, to characterize the potential health risks to the consumer.

Postmarket Requirements and Commitments

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services — Provides information to the public on postmarket requirements and commitments. The phrase postmarket requirements and commitments refers to studies and clinical...

Canada's commitment to nuclear technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stewart, Murray J.

1998-01-01

This paper gives a broad update on all facets of the Canadian nuclear industry and demonstrates Canada's continuing commitment to nuclear technology. Canada has developed a global leadership position in nuclear technology for power generation, uranium production and isotope supply. This commitment is being further enhanced by successes in international markets with Candu technology, new uranium mine developments in our province of Saskatchewan, and expanding isotope capabilities including the construction of two new production reactors. Korea's economy is benefiting through collaboration with Canada's leading nuclear companies, both in Korea and Canada. These collaborations have the potential to expand considerably with the implementation of the Kyoto Framework Convention on Climate Change and the anticipated increased demand for new nuclear power generation installations in all major global markets. Much has been publicized about the situation surrounding Ontario Hydro Nuclear and its nuclear recovery program. This paper gives the background and highlights the actions within Ontario and Ontario Hydro designed to ensure the long term recovery of all twenty nuclear units in Ontario. The presentation at the conference will bring the audience completely up-to-date on recent events. (author)

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, January 1989--March 1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-04-01

This periodical covers the results of inspection performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from January 1989 through March 1989

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, October 1988--December 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-04-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organization during the period from October 1988 through December 1988

A Research on the Relationship between Organizational Commitment and Organizational Cynicism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Özlem GÜLLÜOĞLU IŞIK

2015-08-01

Full Text Available AbstractIn the process of transformation of an industrial production society into information and consumer society, organizational commitment has become among the most emphasized concepts in recent years. The organizational commitment is a psychological situation determining the relationship of the employee with his company and providing him the determination to continue to work. Its causes and outcomes have become the major research topic in recent years and many studies conducted in several segments such as nursing, police dept. tearchers..etc. One other aspect of the research is “organizational cynicism” defined as one’s negative attitude towards the company for which he/she works. It consists of telling that the organization lacks sincerity and honesty. The sources of organizational cynicism are mainly personality, violation of psychological contract and flaws in leadership behaviors. However, there is a little research on the possible relationship between organizational commitment and organizational cynicism. With the aim of contributing to the process of discussion concerning the topic, the relationship between organizational commitment and organizational cynicism is analyzed by means of this research. Organizational commitment and organizational cynicism scale was implemented to the employees of three and four star hotels carrying on business in Kayseri and results tried to be discussed according to organizational dynamics.

Xenophobic attacks on foreign shop owners and street vendors in Louis Trichardt Central Business District, Limpopo Province

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kholofelo Mothibi

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Xenophobic attacks in South Africa in 2008 and 2015 sent shockwaves through the country and the world. In these events, around 70 people were killed while thousands were displaced; and, property and products of street vendors and shop owners were destroyed. This phenomenological research project is confined to Louis Trichardt in Limpopo Province wherefrom a cohort of foreign street vendors and shop owners were interviewed. The lived experiences of being verbally and physically abused as well as of some acquaintances being killed, has clearly left them traumatised and living in fear. The article finds that contributory factors to xenophobic attacks experienced by foreign shop owners and street vendors range from competition over scarce resources, stereotypes and inter-group anxiety. Finally, it offers some recommendations about education for South Africans and measured police action.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, October 1997--December 1997

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-04-01

The periodical covers the results of inspections performed between October 1997 and December 1997 by the NRC's Quality Assurance, Vendor Inspection and Maintenance Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations

Neural networks as a tool for unit commitment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rønne-Hansen, Peter; Rønne-Hansen, Jan

1991-01-01

Some of the fundamental problems when solving the power system unit commitment problem by means of neural networks have been attacked. It has been demonstrated for a small example that neural networks might be a viable alternative. Some of the major problems solved in this initiating phase form...... a basis for the analysis of real life sized problems. These will be investigated in the near future...

Effects of Ethical Climate on Organizational Commitment, Professional Commitment, and Job Satisfaction of Auditor in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Ismail, Suhaiza

2015-01-01

The objective of this paper is to investigate the effect of the ethical climate on the organizational commitment, professional commitment and job satisfaction of Malaysian auditors. Using a survey questionnaire comprising instruments about the ethical climate, organizational commitment, professional commitment and job satisfaction, 263 usable responses were received. To achieve the objectives, mean scores, standard deviations, correlations and multiple regressions were performed. The study re...

Client-vendor knowledge transfer mechanisms in the context of information systems outsourcing

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Smuts, H

2015-08-01

Full Text Available and vendor, the organisation may be unable to derive maximum benefits from such partnerships. However, little research has been done up to date on how organisations deal with managing knowledge in outsourcing situations. In an attempt to quantify knowledge...

Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, and Turnover Intention: A Case Study on Employees of a Retail Company in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Rohani Salleh; Mishaliny Sivadahasan Nair; Haryanni Harun

2012-01-01

High employee turnover rate in Malaysia-s retail industry has become a major issue that needs to be addressed. This study determines the levels of job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and turnover intention of employees in a retail company in Malaysia. The relationships between job satisfaction and organizational commitment on turnover intention are also investigated. A questionnaire was developed using Job Descriptive Index, Organizational Commitment Questionnaire, and Lee and Mowday...

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, January 1995--March 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-05-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January 1995 through March 1995

Insect Consumption to Address Undernutrition, a National Survey on the Prevalence of Insect Consumption among Adults and Vendors in Laos.

Science.gov (United States)

Barennes, Hubert; Phimmasane, Maniphet; Rajaonarivo, Christian

2015-01-01

Insect consumption (entomophagy) is a potentially high nutritious and healthy source of food with high fat, protein, vitamin, fiber and micronutrient content. At least 2 billion people globally eat insects (over 1900 edible species) though this habit is regarded negatively by others. There is a limited amount of data on the perception and consumption of insects. We conducted a national cross-sectional survey in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos) to assess the prevalence and characteristics of insect consumption among adult lay people and insect vendors. We conducted a multi stage randomized national survey in 1303 households in 96 villages in 16 Lao provinces. Three insect vendors or collectors per village were also included. A standardized pretested questionnaire addressed the following issues: socioeconomic characteristics, type of insects consumed and frequency of consumption, reasons and trends in consumption as well as reports on side effects, over the last 10 years. A total of 1059 adults (Sex ratio F/M: 1.2, 30 ethnic groups), and 256 vendors were enrolled. A total of 1025 (96.8%) lay people were currently insect consumers, 135 (13.0%) daily or weekly consumers, and 322 (31.1%) consumed several times per month. For the majority (575, 55.6%) the consumption was infrequent (less than a few times per year) and only 22 (2%) had never eaten insects. Consumption started in childhood. Insect availability was seasonal (670, 63.2%) and respondents would have eaten more insects, if they had been more available (919, 86.7%). Hmong and Leu ethnic groups had significantly lower consumption levels than the general population. Eggs of weaver ants, short-tailed crickets, crickets, grasshoppers, and cicadas were the top 5 insects consumed. Consumption had decreased in the last decade, mostly due to less availability (869; 84.0%) and change of life (29; 5.5%). Of 1059, 80 (7.5%) reported allergy problems and 106 (10.0%) reported some use in traditional medicine. A

Insect Consumption to Address Undernutrition, a National Survey on the Prevalence of Insect Consumption among Adults and Vendors in Laos.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hubert Barennes

Full Text Available Insect consumption (entomophagy is a potentially high nutritious and healthy source of food with high fat, protein, vitamin, fiber and micronutrient content. At least 2 billion people globally eat insects (over 1900 edible species though this habit is regarded negatively by others. There is a limited amount of data on the perception and consumption of insects. We conducted a national cross-sectional survey in the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos to assess the prevalence and characteristics of insect consumption among adult lay people and insect vendors.We conducted a multi stage randomized national survey in 1303 households in 96 villages in 16 Lao provinces. Three insect vendors or collectors per village were also included. A standardized pretested questionnaire addressed the following issues: socioeconomic characteristics, type of insects consumed and frequency of consumption, reasons and trends in consumption as well as reports on side effects, over the last 10 years.A total of 1059 adults (Sex ratio F/M: 1.2, 30 ethnic groups, and 256 vendors were enrolled. A total of 1025 (96.8% lay people were currently insect consumers, 135 (13.0% daily or weekly consumers, and 322 (31.1% consumed several times per month. For the majority (575, 55.6% the consumption was infrequent (less than a few times per year and only 22 (2% had never eaten insects. Consumption started in childhood. Insect availability was seasonal (670, 63.2% and respondents would have eaten more insects, if they had been more available (919, 86.7%. Hmong and Leu ethnic groups had significantly lower consumption levels than the general population. Eggs of weaver ants, short-tailed crickets, crickets, grasshoppers, and cicadas were the top 5 insects consumed. Consumption had decreased in the last decade, mostly due to less availability (869; 84.0% and change of life (29; 5.5%. Of 1059, 80 (7.5% reported allergy problems and 106 (10.0% reported some use in traditional medicine. A

Inventory Control System by Using Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI)

OpenAIRE

Dona Sabila Alzena; Mustafid Mustafid; Suryono Suryono

2018-01-01

The inventory control system has a strategic role for the business in managing inventory operations. Management of conventional inventory creates problems in the stock of goods that often runs into vacancies and excess goods at the retail level. This study aims to build inventory control system that can maintain the stability of goods availability at the retail level. The implementation of Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) method on inventory control system provides transparency of sales data an...

The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission's vendor inspection program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grier, B.H.

1977-01-01

The NRC conducts a program of inspection at licensee contractors and vendors to assure that quality assurance programs meet applicable NRC requirements. This inspection program, which was begun in 1965 and restructured in 1974, is discussed. A trial program has recently been initiated to evaluate the use of the ASME N-stam inspection system to supplement NRC inspections. The criteria for NRC acceptance of such a third party inspection system are described in the paper. (author)

Statistical secrecy and multibit commitments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damgård, Ivan Bjerre; Pedersen, Torben P.; Pfitzmann, Birgit

1998-01-01

nothing about it. One definition is based on the L1-norm distance between probability distributions, the other on information theory. We prove that the two definitions are essentially equivalent. We also show that statistical counterparts of definitions of computational secrecy are essentially equivalent......We present and compare definitions of "statistically hiding" protocols, and we propose a novel statistically hiding commitment scheme. Informally, a protocol statistically hides a secret if a computationally unlimited adversary who conducts the protocol with the owner of the secret learns almost...... to our main definitions. Commitment schemes are an important cryptologic primitive. Their purpose is to commit one party to a certain value, while hiding this value from the other party until some later time. We present a statistically hiding commitment scheme allowing commitment to many bits...

Alcohol myopia and goal commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Timur Sevincer

2014-03-01

Full Text Available According to alcohol-myopia theory, acute alcohol consumption leads people to disproportionally focus on the salient rather than the peripheral aspects of a situation. We summarize various studies exploring how myopic processes resulting from acute alcohol intake affect goal commitment. After consuming alcohol student participants felt strongly committed to an important personal goal even though they had low expectations of successfully attaining the goal. However, once intoxicated participants were sober again (i.e., not myopic anymore they failed to act on their goal commitment. In line with alcohol-myopia theory, strong goal commitment as a result of alcohol intake was mediated by intoxicated (vs. sober participants disproportionally focusing on the desirability rather than the feasibility of their goal. Further supporting alcohol-myopia theory, when the low feasibility of attaining a particular goal was experimentally made salient (either explicitly or implicitly by subliminal priming, intoxicated participants felt less committed than those who consumed a placebo. We discuss these effects of acute alcohol intake in the context of research on the effects of chronic alcohol consumption on goal commitment.

An open, multi-vendor, multi-field-strength brain MR dataset and analysis of publicly available skull stripping methods agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

Souza, Roberto; Lucena, Oeslle; Garrafa, Julia; Gobbi, David; Saluzzi, Marina; Appenzeller, Simone; Rittner, Letícia; Frayne, Richard; Lotufo, Roberto

2018-04-15

This paper presents an open, multi-vendor, multi-field strength magnetic resonance (MR) T1-weighted volumetric brain imaging dataset, named Calgary-Campinas-359 (CC-359). The dataset is composed of images of older healthy adults (29-80 years) acquired on scanners from three vendors (Siemens, Philips and General Electric) at both 1.5 T and 3 T. CC-359 is comprised of 359 datasets, approximately 60 subjects per vendor and magnetic field strength. The dataset is approximately age and gender balanced, subject to the constraints of the available images. It provides consensus brain extraction masks for all volumes generated using supervised classification. Manual segmentation results for twelve randomly selected subjects performed by an expert are also provided. The CC-359 dataset allows investigation of 1) the influences of both vendor and magnetic field strength on quantitative analysis of brain MR; 2) parameter optimization for automatic segmentation methods; and potentially 3) machine learning classifiers with big data, specifically those based on deep learning methods, as these approaches require a large amount of data. To illustrate the utility of this dataset, we compared to the results of a supervised classifier, the results of eight publicly available skull stripping methods and one publicly available consensus algorithm. A linear mixed effects model analysis indicated that vendor (p-valuefield strength (p-value<0.001) have statistically significant impacts on skull stripping results. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An assessment of factors affecting organizational commitment among shift workers in India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. K. Jena

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to assess the organizational commitment among shift workers in ferroalloy industries of Odisha, India. Odisha is an under-developed state of India having full of natural resources. Many industries, particularly based on ferroalloys, have been set up in Odisha. Organisational commitment has been always a major issue in all types of organizations. To establish possible relationship between organisational commitment and important demographic variable (e.g age, marital status, tenure, job level and gender, a cross-sectional survey was conducted using a convenience sample of 240 shift workers at five ferroalloy companies in Odisha. It is believed that this study can add a new understanding that can be used to improve the organizational practices in developing countries, such as India.

Effectiveness of state and federal government agreements with major credit card and shipping companies to block illegal Internet cigarette sales.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kurt M Ribisl

2011-02-01

Full Text Available Most Internet vendors offer tax-free cigarettes making them cheaper than those sold at stores. This undermines the impact that higher prices have upon reducing consumption. Most Internet tobacco sales have violated taxation and youth access laws, which led to landmark voluntary agreements in 2005 with the major credit card companies and major private shippers to ban payment transactions and shipments for all Internet cigarette sales.To assess whether these bans increased the rate of Internet Cigarette Vendors (ICVs ceasing online sales, decreased the proportion of vendors offering banned payment and shipping options, and decreased consumer traffic to the most popular ICVs.Websites in a longitudinal study of ICVs were visited in 2003 (n = 338, 2004 (n = 775, 2005 (n = 664, 2006 (n = 762, and 2007 (n = 497 to assess whether they were in business and monitor their advertised sales practices. The number of unique monthly visitors to the 50 most popular ICVs at baseline was examined for the period one year before and two years after the bans to determine whether the bans altered traffic.Following the bans, the rate of ICVs ceasing online sales year to year increased, but due to an influx of new vendors, there was a net increase in ICVs. The proportion of vendors accepting banned payment options dropped from 99.2% to 37.4% after the bans, and the proportion offering banned shipping options dropped from 32.2% to 5.6%, but there was a corresponding increase in vendors offering non-banned payment options (e.g., personal checks and shipping options (e.g., US Postal Service. Following the bans, there was a 3.5 fold decline in traffic to the most popular ICV websites.This promising approach to controlling the sale of restricted goods online has implications for regulating other products such as alcohol, firearms, quack cures, and medicines sold without a prescription.

Effectiveness of state and federal government agreements with major credit card and shipping companies to block illegal Internet cigarette sales.

Science.gov (United States)

Ribisl, Kurt M; Williams, Rebecca S; Gizlice, Ziya; Herring, Amy H

2011-02-14

Most Internet vendors offer tax-free cigarettes making them cheaper than those sold at stores. This undermines the impact that higher prices have upon reducing consumption. Most Internet tobacco sales have violated taxation and youth access laws, which led to landmark voluntary agreements in 2005 with the major credit card companies and major private shippers to ban payment transactions and shipments for all Internet cigarette sales. To assess whether these bans increased the rate of Internet Cigarette Vendors (ICVs) ceasing online sales, decreased the proportion of vendors offering banned payment and shipping options, and decreased consumer traffic to the most popular ICVs. Websites in a longitudinal study of ICVs were visited in 2003 (n = 338), 2004 (n = 775), 2005 (n = 664), 2006 (n = 762), and 2007 (n = 497) to assess whether they were in business and monitor their advertised sales practices. The number of unique monthly visitors to the 50 most popular ICVs at baseline was examined for the period one year before and two years after the bans to determine whether the bans altered traffic. Following the bans, the rate of ICVs ceasing online sales year to year increased, but due to an influx of new vendors, there was a net increase in ICVs. The proportion of vendors accepting banned payment options dropped from 99.2% to 37.4% after the bans, and the proportion offering banned shipping options dropped from 32.2% to 5.6%, but there was a corresponding increase in vendors offering non-banned payment options (e.g., personal checks) and shipping options (e.g., US Postal Service). Following the bans, there was a 3.5 fold decline in traffic to the most popular ICV websites. This promising approach to controlling the sale of restricted goods online has implications for regulating other products such as alcohol, firearms, quack cures, and medicines sold without a prescription.

Decontamination, decommissioning, and vendor advertorial issue, 2008

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Agnihotri, Newal (ed.)

2008-07-15

The focus of the July-August issue is on Decontamination, decommissioning, and vendor advertorials. Articles and reports in this issue include: D and D technical paper summaries; The role of nuclear power in turbulent times, by Tom Chrisopher, AREVA, NP, Inc.; Enthusiastic about new technologies, by Jack Fuller, GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy; It's important to be good citizens, by Steve Rus, Black and Veatch Corporation; Creating Jobs in the U.S., by Guy E. Chardon, ALSTOM Power; and, and, An enviroment and a community champion, by Tyler Lamberts, Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. The Industry Innovations article is titled Best of the best TIP achievement 2008, by Edward Conaway, STP Nuclear Operating Company.

MDEP Common Position CP-VICWG-01. Common Position: Establishment of Common QA/QM Criteria for the Multinational Vendor Inspection CP-VICWG-01

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

This document provides a set of common positions for harmonizing inspection criteria called 'Common QA/QM Criteria' which will be used in Multinational Vendor Inspections. This document was prepared by the Vendor Inspection Co-operation Working Group (VICWG) of the Multinational Design Evaluation Program (MDEP). The 'Common QA/QM Criteria' provides the basic areas for consideration when performing Vendor Inspections. The criteria have been developed in conformity with International Codes and Standards such as IAEA, ISO, etc. that MDEP member countries have adopted

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Hand washing among Street vendors in Campus of Universitas Padjadjaran, West Java from June-November 2012

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tajul Al Adib

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Hand washing is a moderate step in preventing communicable diseases. Communicable diseases like diarrhea and respiratory tract infection can be reduced significantly just by practicing hand washing. Most of the people already knew how to wash their hand, but some of them still did not understand the objective and the correct ways of performing hand washing. The aim of the study was to evaluate knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing among street vendors. Methods: A descriptive study was conducted to 30 street vendors at the gate of Universitas Padjadjaran Campus from June to November 2012. The inclusion criterias were street vendors involved in food preparation, cooking, mixing, and willing to participate in this study. A questionnaire was developed to identify the knowledge, attitude and practice of hand washing. The level of the variable measured was divided into 3 categories: good, moderate, and poor. The collected data were analyzed and presented in table. Results: There were 12/30 of street vendors classified as having moderate knowledge and 25/30 as having good attitude and good practice of hand washing. Conclusions: The street vendors at the gate of Universitas Padjadjaran Campus had moderate knowledge, good attitude and good practice of hand washing.

Comparing fuzzy AHP and fuzzy TOPSIS for evaluation of business intelligence vendors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alireza Soloukdar

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The main objective of this study is to identify the most important criteria and indicators in selection of business intelligence vendors, and ranking the vendors of such tools using Fuzzy Analytical hierarchy Process (FAHP and Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (FTOPSIS, to compare results of these two methods and to provide appropriate solutions for the sample company, namely National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC. Spearman's rank correlation test was used for comparing the methods and determining their correlation. A strong positive correlation was observed between the ranks of business intelligence tools at the significance level of 0.05 in both methods. The results of the ranking by means of FAHP method show that IBM Company was the best one, followed by Oracle, SAS, QlikTech, SAP and Microsoft. However, based on the FTOPSIS method, Oracle was the leading company, followed by IBM, SAS and SAP and finally Microsoft.

Influencing factors on professional commitment in Iranian nurses: A qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Jafaraghaee, Fateme; Mehrdad, Neda; Parvizy, Soroor

2014-05-01

Dissatisfaction and tending to leave are some of the major nursing problems around the world. Professional commitment is a key factor in attracting and keeping the nurses in their profession. Commitment is a cultural dependent variable. Some organizational and socio-cultural factors are counted as the drivers of professional commitment. This study aimed to explore factors influencing the professional commitment in Iranian nurses. A qualitative content analysis was used to obtain rich data. We performed 21 in-depth face-to-face semi-structured interviews. The sampling was based on the maximum variation with the staff nurses and managers in 5 university affiliated hospitals. Constant comparative method used for data analysis. TWO MAIN CATEGORIES WERE EMERGED: "Challenging with different feelings" and "Managers' role". Challenging with different feelings had two subcategories: "Burnout" and "sense of valuing". The other theme was composed of three subcategories: "Gratitude or punishment climate", "manager's view of caring" and "knowledge-based vs. routine-based nursing". Findings revealed the burnout as a common sense in nurses. They also sensed being valued because of having a chance to help others. Impediments in the health care system such as work overload and having more concern in the benefits of organization rather than patient's care and wellbeing lead to a sense of humiliation and frustration. Congruence between the managers and nurses' perceived values of the profession would be a main driver to the professional commitment. Making a sense of support and gratitude, valuing the care and promoting the knowledge-based practice were among the other important factors for making the professional commitment.

Supply Inventory Management: Industrial Prime Vendor Program at the Air Force Air Logistics Centers

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

2002-01-01

... in maintenance, repair, and overhaul facilities. The IPV Program is a customer-oriented, supply-chain management initiative that transfers complete responsibility for bench-stock material to a third-party vendor...

Pledges of Commitment and Cooperation in Partnerships

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lachlan Deer

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We use experimental methods to investigate whether pledges of commitment can improve cooperation in endogenously-formed partnerships facing a social dilemma. Treatments vary in terms of the individual’s: (1 opportunity to commit to their partner; (2 the cost of dissolving committed partnerships; and (3 the distribution of these dissolution costs between partners. Our findings show that pledges of commitment alone can increase cooperation and welfare in committed partnerships. The introduction of relatively large and equally split costs yields similar gains. In contrast, when costs to dissolve committed partnerships fall solely on the individual choosing to break up, pledges of commitment fail to improve cooperation and welfare.

Scanner OPC signatures: automatic vendor-to-vendor OPE matching

Science.gov (United States)

Renwick, Stephen P.

2009-03-01

As 193nm lithography continues to be stretched and the k1 factor decreases, optical proximity correction (OPC) has become a vital part of the lithographer's tool kit. Unfortunately, as is now well known, the design variations of lithographic scanners from different vendors cause them to have slightly different optical-proximity effect (OPE) behavior, meaning that they print features through pitch in distinct ways. This in turn means that their response to OPC is not the same, and that an OPC solution designed for a scanner from Company 1 may or may not work properly on a scanner from Company 2. Since OPC is not inexpensive, that causes trouble for chipmakers using more than one brand of scanner. Clearly a scanner-matching procedure is needed to meet this challenge. Previously, automatic matching has only been reported for scanners of different tool generations from the same manufacturer. In contrast, scanners from different companies have been matched using expert tuning and adjustment techniques, frequently requiring laborious test exposures. Automatic matching between scanners from Company 1 and Company 2 has remained an unsettled problem. We have recently solved this problem and introduce a novel method to perform the automatic matching. The success in meeting this challenge required three enabling factors. First, we recognized the strongest drivers of OPE mismatch and are thereby able to reduce the information needed about a tool from another supplier to that information readily available from all modern scanners. Second, we developed a means of reliably identifying the scanners' optical signatures, minimizing dependence on process parameters that can cloud the issue. Third, we carefully employed standard statistical techniques, checking for robustness of the algorithms used and maximizing efficiency. The result is an automatic software system that can predict an OPC matching solution for scanners from different suppliers without requiring expert intervention.

Radiographers' commitment to continuing professional development: A single-centre evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stevens, Barry J.

2016-01-01

Purpose: This study aimed to examine radiographers' commitment to continuing professional development (CPD), and to ascertain what types of activities are preferred so a model for provision of departmental activities could be developed. Methods: An online survey was used to obtain information from all departmental radiographers regarding their commitment to CPD. Statistical analysis, using Spearman's Rho and Chi-Square test, was utilised to investigate any associations. Results: All radiographers (n = 57) were invited via email. A response rate of 67% (n = 38) prevailed. Radiographers feel CPD is important and a positive correlation existed with feelings regarding compulsory CPD (r value = .718, P value = .001). Thirty-four percent had logged the SOR-recommended twelve or more pieces of CPD in the last 2 years. One to three hours a month is the preferred amount of own time radiographers are willing to dedicate. Negative correlations exist between the amount of own time radiographers are willing to commit to CPD activities and their feelings regarding compulsory CPD (r value = −.419, P value = .009), and HCPC audit (r value = −.509, P value .001). Conclusion: Although radiographers recognise the importance of CPD many spend less than four hours of their own time a month on CPD. Departmental activities should be free, short lasting, lunchtime presentations with theory presentation that encourage interaction and discussion with inclusion of practical elements. Further research investigating the barriers that prevent radiographers from partaking in CPD and the causes for insufficient CPD records is recommended. - Highlights: • The large majority of radiographers feel CPD is important or very important to them. • The majority had positive opinions regarding compulsory CPD and HCPC audit. • 50% of radiographers commit less than 4 h of their own time to CPD. • As radiographers get older they log less CPD and commit less time to CPD. �

A Multiple Items EPQ/EOQ Model for a Vendor and Multiple Buyers System with Considering Continuous and Discrete Demand Simultaneously

Science.gov (United States)

Jonrinaldi; Rahman, T.; Henmaidi; Wirdianto, E.; Zhang, D. Z.

2018-03-01

This paper proposed a mathematical model for multiple items Economic Production and Order Quantity (EPQ/EOQ) with considering continuous and discrete demand simultaneously in a system consisting of a vendor and multiple buyers. This model is used to investigate the optimal production lot size of the vendor and the number of shipments policy of orders to multiple buyers. The model considers the multiple buyers’ holding cost as well as transportation cost, which minimize the total production and inventory costs of the system. The continuous demand from any other customers can be fulfilled anytime by the vendor while the discrete demand from multiple buyers can be fulfilled by the vendor using the multiple delivery policy with a number of shipments of items in the production cycle time. A mathematical model is developed to illustrate the system based on EPQ and EOQ model. Solution procedures are proposed to solve the model using a Mixed Integer Non Linear Programming (MINLP) and algorithm methods. Then, the numerical example is provided to illustrate the system and results are discussed.

Pursuing a Vendor-Endorsed ERP Award for Better Job Prospect: Students' Perceptions

Science.gov (United States)

Kung, LeeAnn; Kung, Hsiang-Jui

2017-01-01

This paper identifies factors that motivate students to pursue a vendor-endorsed ERP award by integrating concepts from motivation theory and constructs from technology acceptance literature. We developed a web-based survey with closed- and open-ended questions to collect both quantitative and qualitative data, respectively. Students in…

Work values and organizational commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Kidron, A

1978-06-01

Dubin, Champoux and Porter (1975) found a strong relationship between central life interests of workers and their commitment to the organization. This paper extends their findings by investigating the relationship between work values, defined as the Protestant Ethic of the worker, and commitment to the organization. A distinction is made between moral and calculative commitment, and it is shown that work values are related more to moral than calculative involvement.

Pledges of commitment and cooperation in partnerships

OpenAIRE

Lachlan Deer; Ralph-C. Bayer

2015-01-01

We use experimental methods to investigate whether pledges of commitment can improve cooperation in endogenously-formed partnerships facing a social dilemma. Treatments vary in terms of the individual's: (1) opportunity to commit to their partner; (2) the cost of dissolving committed partnerships; and (3) the distribution of these dissolution costs between partners. Our findings show that pledges of commitment alone can increase cooperation and welfare in committed partnerships. The introduct...

Mobile Fruit and Vegetable Vendors’ Impact on Food Deserts

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

Kathleen Y. L, BS, winner of PCD’s 2014 Student Research Paper Contest and medical student at the University of California, San Francisco, discusses her winning paper on the evaluation and placement of mobile fruit and vegetables vendors and their ability to alleviate food deserts in New York City.

Building commitment in a sports class

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olesen, Jesper; Nielsen, Jens Christian

The literature has traditionally considered commitment as an individual characteristic or condition of the individual. This means that one is inclined to think that it is those who have commitment who have the opportunity to become excellent performers within their sport. But what if commitment...

Perceived Sacrifice and Few Alternatives Commitments: The Motivational Underpinnings of Continuance Commitment's Subdimensions

Science.gov (United States)

Vandenberghe, Christian; Panaccio, Alexandra

2012-01-01

Using work on self-concepts and Conservation of Resources theory, the present research examined the motivational underpinnings of continuance commitment's subcomponents of perceived sacrifice and few alternatives. Study 1 (N=208) found job scope to be positively related to perceived sacrifice commitment, and negatively related to few alternatives…

Social Responsibility and Commitment in Management Institutes: Mediation by Engagement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manish Gupta

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Due to its major influence on individual’s performance, engagement is increasingly becoming popular among practitioners. While its influence on performance has been well established, research on the influence of variables related to organizations on engagement is still in its nascent stage. Therefore, this study examines the mediating role of employee engagement in the corporate social responsibility (CSR – organizational commitment relationship. Multiple regression results using responses from 150 academics working in Indian management institutes predominantly owned by business groups partially support the relationships hypothesized. The findings may encourage Indian management institutes owned by business groups to consider CSR in teaching and research as serious investment areas in order to have a more engaged and committed workforce.

Childcare needs of female street vendors in Mexico City.

Science.gov (United States)

Hernandez, P; Zetina, A; Tapia, M; Ortiz, C; Soto, I C

1996-06-01

This article reports on strategies developed by female street vendors (vendedoras ambulantes) in Mexico City to ensure the care of their young children in the absence of a specific and operational government policy to fulfil this need. The information concerning child care and health was gathered by a survey of 426 street traders selected by multi-stage random cluster sampling in four of the administrative districts (delegaciones politicas) of Mexico City during 1990. It was found that, as mothers of young children, street vendors most frequently looked after their children personally on the street or left them with other members of the family. Related factors were availability of alternative child care providers in the family, the age of the children and working conditions of the mother. Children who remained on the streets with their mothers suffered more frequently from gastro-intestinal diseases and accidents than the national average. The incidence of acute respiratory diseases, however, was similar in the cases of maternal care in the street and care by family members in another environment. Existing public health measures show a greater concern for the health of food consumers than that of workers in this area. Current public policy seeks to regulate street vending activities and to concentrate traders in ad hoc areas and facilities. Our research results document the need for actions that can contribute to an improvement in the care and health conditions of these young children.

Marketing service relationships: the role of commitment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wetzels, M.G.M.; Ruyter, de J.C.; Birgelen, van M.

1998-01-01

As with all relationships, it is commonly agreed on that partners in business must have a high degree of commitment towards their relationship. If commitment is lacking, the relationship will soon come to an end. Affective commitment, that is commitment based on attraction between partners, is to be

24 CFR 200.47 - Firm commitments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Firm commitments. 200.47 Section 200.47 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... Eligibility Requirements for Existing Projects Commitment Applications § 200.47 Firm commitments. A valid firm...

Commitment among Arab Adolescents in Israel.

Science.gov (United States)

Ben-Ari, Adital Tirosh; Azaiza, Faisal

1998-01-01

Examines 662 Arab adolescents' commitments to their own self-development, family, Arab people, and village along with the order in which these commitments are structured. Reveals that the two prevalent patterns of adolescent commitment, individualistic and collectivistic, demonstrate the adolescents' struggle with these value systems and the…

28 CFR 522.11 - Civil contempt commitments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Civil contempt commitments. 522.11..., CLASSIFICATION, AND TRANSFER ADMISSION TO INSTITUTION Civil Contempt of Court Commitments § 522.11 Civil contempt commitments. Inmates can come into Bureau custody for civil contempt commitments in two ways: (a) The U.S...

24 CFR 203.7 - Commitment process.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Commitment process. 203.7 Section 203.7 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban Development (Continued... Insurance, and Commitments § 203.7 Commitment process. For single family mortgage programs that are not...

Farmers Market Brings Fresh Produce and Products from Local Vendors | Poster

Science.gov (United States)

By Carolynne Keenan, Guest Writer Every summer, you can shop for fresh fruits, veggies, flowers, honey, and plenty of other homemade goodies at the NCI at Frederick Farmers’ Market. Buying at the Farmers’ Market means you’re supporting a local farmer, crafter, or other type of vendor. The products are brought to you, so you don’t have to drive to get freshly picked produce and

Factors Affecting Organizational Commitment in Navy Corpsmen.

Science.gov (United States)

Booth-Kewley, Stephanie; Dell'Acqua, Renée G; Thomsen, Cynthia J

2017-07-01

Organizational commitment is a psychological state that has a strong impact on the likelihood that employees will remain with an organization. Among military personnel, organizational commitment is predictive of a number of important outcomes, including reenlistment intentions, job performance, morale, and perceived readiness. Because of the unique challenges and experiences associated with military service, it may be that organizational commitment is even more critical in the military than in civilian populations. Despite the essential role that they play in protecting the health of other service members, little is known about the factors that influence Navy Corpsmen's organizational commitment. This study investigated demographic and psychosocial factors that may be associated with organizational commitment among Corpsmen. Surveys of organizational commitment and possible demographic and psychosocial correlates of organizational commitment were completed by 1,597 male, active duty Navy Corpsmen attending Field Medical Training Battalion-West, Camp Pendleton, California. Bivariate correlations and hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to determine significant predictors of organizational commitment. Of the 12 demographic and psychosocial factors examined, 6 factors emerged as significant predictors of organizational commitment in the final model: preservice motivation to be a Corpsman, positive perceptions of Corpsman training, confidence regarding promotions, occupational self-efficacy, social support for a Corpsman career, and lower depression. Importantly, a number of the factors that emerged as significant correlates of organizational commitment in this study are potentially modifiable. These factors include confidence regarding promotions, positive perceptions of Corpsman training, and occupational self-efficacy. It is recommended that military leaders and policy-makers take concrete steps to address these factors, thereby strengthening

Microbiological evaluation of drinking water sold by roadside vendors of Delhi, India

Science.gov (United States)

Chauhan, Abhishek; Goyal, Pankaj; Varma, Ajit; Jindal, Tanu

2017-07-01

Delhi has emerged as one of the greenest capital city of the world. Microbiological assessment of drinking water emphasizes estimation of the hygienic quality of the water sold with reference to community health significance. This study was conducted to evaluate the quality of drinking water sold by roadside vendors in east, west, north and south zones of capital of India. A total number of 36 samples (nine from each zone) were collected as per national guidelines and studied for microbiological assessment. All the drinking water samples were collected in gamma-sterilized bottles and were kept in an ice pack to prevent any significant change in the microbial flora of the samples during the transportation. The water samples were transported to the laboratory in vertical position maintaining the temperature 1-4 °C with ice pack enveloped conditions. Samples were analyzed for total MPN coliform per 100 ml and for the presence and absence of common human pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. All the samples were found to be contaminated with coliform organisms in the range of 14 to >1600 per 100 ml of sample. Out of 36 water samples, the occurrence of E. coli was 61 %, Salmonella 25 % S. aureus 14 % and P. aeruginosa 53 % as 22, 9, 5 and 19 samples were found contaminated, respectively. The numbers of coliform bacteria and presence of some common pathogenic bacteria suggested that the quality of drinking water sold by roadside vendors is not within the Indian standard and WHO guidelines laid down for drinking water quality. Hence, there is a vital need to study the root cause in terms of hygiene, sanitation of vendors and source of contamination to prevent waterborne diseases.

Microbial Quality, Nutritional Knowledge and Food Hygienic Practices among Street Food Vendors

Science.gov (United States)

Gowri, B.; Vasantha Devi, K. P.; Sivakumar, M.

2011-01-01

Since all categories of people from different socio-economic sectors purchase street foods; the street foods should not only be cheap but also hygienic and rich in nutrition. The investigators with their nutrition knowledge had an urge to study the nutrition knowledge of the vendors, whether the foods prepared are nutritionally sound or not?, are…

The Effect of Vendor Trustworthiness toward Online Purchase Intention through Costumer Trust

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Adiwijaya

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The using of internet technology in business field facilitates the online product sales. There are many challenges and obstacles faced by customers when they would like to buy product via online, for instance the process of technology adoption, online crime activities, etc. This situation creates customer doubtfullness and worries for engaging in purchasing product via online. Trust plays significant role in affecting customer intention to purchase products via online. The previous research findings showed the antecedents of customer trust but those findings only explained the phenomenon based on one single perspective for example from the customer perspective, the technology perspective, and the vendor perspective. The focus of this research is analyzing the influence of vendor trustworthiness (ability, benevolence, and integrity towards individual features (customer trust and customer purchase intention. The research has been done in Surabaya through questionairre survey design by using the customers who had purchase product via online as the respondent. Structural equation modelling is used to analyze the research data. The findings revealed the antecendent of customer trust and its influence on customer online purchase intention comprehensively.

Family Commitment and Work Characteristics among Pharmacists.

Science.gov (United States)

Gubbins, Paul O; Ragland, Denise; Castleberry, Ashley N; Payakachat, Nalin

2015-12-17

Factors associated with family commitment among pharmacists in the south central U.S. are explored. In 2010, a cross-sectional mailed self-administered 70 item survey of 363 active licensed pharmacists was conducted. This analysis includes only 269 (74%) participants who reported being married. Outcome measures were family commitment (need for family commitment, spouse's family commitment), work-related characteristics (work challenge, stress, workload, flexibility of work schedule), and job and career satisfaction. Married participants' mean age was 48 (SD = 18) years; the male to female ratio was 1:1; 73% worked in retail settings and 199 (74%) completed the family commitment questions. Females reported a higher need for family commitment than males ( p = 0.02) but there was no significant difference in satisfaction with the commitment. Work challenge and work load were significantly associated with higher need for family commitment ( p work status, and practice setting. Higher work challenge was associated with higher career satisfaction. Higher job related stress was associated with lower job satisfaction. High work challenge and work load may negatively impact family function since married pharmacists would need higher family commitment from their counterparts. The impact of work-family interactions on pharmacy career satisfaction should be further investigated.

Functional Flexibility in Women's Commitment-Skepticism Bias

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christina M. Brown

2015-04-01

Full Text Available If a woman overestimates her romantic partner's commitment, the cost to her fitness—reproduction without an investing partner—can be considerable. Error Management Theory predicts that women have an evolved bias to be skeptical of men's commitment in a relationship, which reduces the likelihood of making a costly false positive error. However, because error probabilities are inversely related, this commitment-skepticism bias simultaneously increases the likelihood of missed opportunities, or false negatives. False positives when gauging a partner's commitment are the more costly error for women, but missing an opportunity to secure a genuinely high-quality mate can also be quite costly. We predicted and found that women's mating cognitions are functionally flexible, such that women do not exhibit the commitment-skepticism bias when faced with behavioral evidence that a male partner is willing to commit (Study 1. This suggests that relationship-enhancing behaviors are one contextual cue that may lessen the bias. However, not all relationship-enhancing behaviors are equally diagnostic of a person's true commitment intent. When comparing men and women's commitment thresholds, we found that women require more behavioral evidence than men do to feel certain of their partner's commitment to them (Study 2.

Family Commitment and Work Characteristics among Pharmacists

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul O. Gubbins

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Factors associated with family commitment among pharmacists in the south central U.S. are explored. In 2010, a cross-sectional mailed self-administered 70 item survey of 363 active licensed pharmacists was conducted. This analysis includes only 269 (74% participants who reported being married. Outcome measures were family commitment (need for family commitment, spouse’s family commitment, work-related characteristics (work challenge, stress, workload, flexibility of work schedule, and job and career satisfaction. Married participants’ mean age was 48 (SD = 18 years; the male to female ratio was 1:1; 73% worked in retail settings and 199 (74% completed the family commitment questions. Females reported a higher need for family commitment than males (p = 0.02 but there was no significant difference in satisfaction with the commitment. Work challenge and work load were significantly associated with higher need for family commitment (p < 0.01, when controlled for age, gender, number of dependents, work status, and practice setting. Higher work challenge was associated with higher career satisfaction. Higher job related stress was associated with lower job satisfaction. High work challenge and work load may negatively impact family function since married pharmacists would need higher family commitment from their counterparts. The impact of work-family interactions on pharmacy career satisfaction should be further investigated.

Variation in the form of Pavlovian conditioned approach behavior among outbred male Sprague-Dawley rats from different vendors and colonies: sign-tracking vs. goal-tracking.

Science.gov (United States)

Fitzpatrick, Christopher J; Gopalakrishnan, Shyam; Cogan, Elizabeth S; Yager, Lindsay M; Meyer, Paul J; Lovic, Vedran; Saunders, Benjamin T; Parker, Clarissa C; Gonzales, Natalia M; Aryee, Emmanuel; Flagel, Shelly B; Palmer, Abraham A; Robinson, Terry E; Morrow, Jonathan D

2013-01-01

Even when trained under exactly the same conditions outbred male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats vary in the form of the Pavlovian conditioned approach response (CR) they acquire. The form of the CR (i.e. sign-tracking vs. goal-tracking) predicts to what degree individuals attribute incentive salience to cues associated with food or drugs. However, we have noticed variation in the incidence of these two phenotypes in rats obtained from different vendors. In this study, we quantified sign- and goal-tracking behavior in a reasonably large sample of SD rats obtained from two vendors (Harlan or Charles River), as well as from individual colonies operated by both vendors. Our sample of rats acquired from Harlan had, on average, more sign-trackers than goal-trackers, and vice versa for our sample of rats acquired from Charles River. Furthermore, there were significant differences among colonies of the same vendor. Although it is impossible to rule out environmental variables, SD rats at different vendors and barriers may have reduced phenotypic heterogeneity as a result of genetic variables, such as random genetic drift or population bottlenecks. Consistent with this hypothesis, we identified marked population structure among colonies from Harlan. Therefore, despite sharing the same name, investigators should be aware that important genetic and phenotypic differences exist among SD rats from different vendors or even from different colonies of the same vendor. If used judiciously this can be an asset to experimental design, but it can also be a pitfall for those unaware of the issue.

Variation in the form of Pavlovian conditioned approach behavior among outbred male Sprague-Dawley rats from different vendors and colonies: sign-tracking vs. goal-tracking.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher J Fitzpatrick

Full Text Available Even when trained under exactly the same conditions outbred male Sprague-Dawley (SD rats vary in the form of the Pavlovian conditioned approach response (CR they acquire. The form of the CR (i.e. sign-tracking vs. goal-tracking predicts to what degree individuals attribute incentive salience to cues associated with food or drugs. However, we have noticed variation in the incidence of these two phenotypes in rats obtained from different vendors. In this study, we quantified sign- and goal-tracking behavior in a reasonably large sample of SD rats obtained from two vendors (Harlan or Charles River, as well as from individual colonies operated by both vendors. Our sample of rats acquired from Harlan had, on average, more sign-trackers than goal-trackers, and vice versa for our sample of rats acquired from Charles River. Furthermore, there were significant differences among colonies of the same vendor. Although it is impossible to rule out environmental variables, SD rats at different vendors and barriers may have reduced phenotypic heterogeneity as a result of genetic variables, such as random genetic drift or population bottlenecks. Consistent with this hypothesis, we identified marked population structure among colonies from Harlan. Therefore, despite sharing the same name, investigators should be aware that important genetic and phenotypic differences exist among SD rats from different vendors or even from different colonies of the same vendor. If used judiciously this can be an asset to experimental design, but it can also be a pitfall for those unaware of the issue.

A survey on critical factors influencing organizational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamidreza Kheirkhah

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Organizational commitment is an important issue and organization attitude has become an area of study among many researchers in the fields of organizational behavior. In fact, there are many studies on human resource management where the effects of organizational commitment on other issues have been investigated and the purpose of this research is to find critical factors influencing on organizational commitment. Based on an exploration of the literature review and interviews, the proposed study of this paper extracts 24 variables and using factor analysis, we select the most important factors, which are grouped in four categories. The implementation of our factor analysis has revealed Affective commitment, Continuous commitment, Moral commitment and Enduring commitment are the most important factors influencing organizational commitment.

Vendor-derived differences in injury-induced pain phenotype and pharmacology of Sprague-Dawley rats

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, P J; Heegaard, A M; Kristensen, Sara Hestehave

2017-01-01

's adjuvant (CFA) hindpaw inflammation was induced in male SD rats sourced from three to four different vendors, respectively. Neuropathic hypersensitivity was evaluated over 58 days using von Frey filaments, pinprick stimulation and the hot plate test. Pharmacological sensitivity was evaluated by treatment...... with gabapentin (100 mg/kg, p.o.) or morphine (3 mg/kg, s.c.). CFA-induced hyperalgesia and sensitivity to morphine (0.3-6 mg/kg, s.c.) was measured using a digital Randall-Selitto device. In addition, paw weight gain was used as an index of peripheral oedema. RESULTS: Significant differences between the vendor...... to gabapentin varied enormously, the response to morphine was both robust and much more consistent between sub-strains. Despite a similar degree of CFA-induced hypersensitivity, the paw oedema level differed between sub-strains. Here, morphine dose-dependently alleviated the CFA-induced hypersensitivity...

Validating Teacher Commitment Scale Using a Malaysian Sample

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lei Mee Thien

2014-05-01

Full Text Available This study attempts to validate an integrative Teacher Commitment scale using rigorous scale validation procedures. An adapted questionnaire with 17 items was administered to 600 primary school teachers in Penang, Malaysia. Data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA with SPSS 19.0 and AMOS 19.0, respectively. The results support Teacher Commitment as a multidimensional construct with its four underlying dimensions: Commitment to Student, Commitment to Teaching, Commitment to School, and Commitment to Profession. A validated Teacher Commitment scale with 13 items measured can be proposed to be used as an evaluative tool to assess the level to which teachers are committed to their students’ learning, teaching, school, and profession. The Teacher Commitment scale would also facilitate the identifications of factors that influence teachers’ quality of work life and school effectiveness. The practical implications, school cultural influence, and methodological limitations are discussed.

VENDOR TRAINING AS NEW EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. V. Ponachugin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This article describes the history of the emergence of the current state and future prospects of vender's education, coupled with the development of computer technology and telecommunications. Obtained stages of development of vender's education in the foreign practice. The analysis of domestic and foreign sources for the problem moments in the formation of ideas about the authorized model of education. The article also takes into account the modern approaches, highlights the main characteristics by which we can talk about vender's education as an innovative educational form of education process for the Russian high school. The main prospects for the development, which allows to obtain measurable indicators to improve the quality of education are defined. Was analyzed the main aspects of the formation of innovative vender's Cisco's products in Russia. Noting the achievements and development trends vender's education in our country, as well as given the existing problems in this process. Experience of introduction of vendor courses in Minin University is described.

Farmers Market Brings Fresh Produce and Products from Local Vendors | Poster

Science.gov (United States)

By Carolynne Keenan, Guest Writer Every summer, you can shop for fresh fruits, veggies, flowers, honey, and plenty of other homemade goodies at the NCI at Frederick Farmers’ Market. Buying at the Farmers’ Market means you’re supporting a local farmer, crafter, or other type of vendor. The products are brought to you, so you don’t have to drive to get freshly picked produce and handmade products.

Review and Assessment of Commercial Vendors/Options for Feeding and Pumping Biomass Slurries for Hydrothermal Liquefaction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berglin, Eric J.; Enderlin, Carl W.; Schmidt, Andrew J.

2012-11-01

The National Advanced Biofuels Consortium is working to develop improved methods for producing high-value hydrocarbon fuels. The development of one such method, the hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) process, is being led by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). The HTL process uses a wet biomass slurry at elevated temperatures (i.e., 300 to 360°C [570 to 680°F]) and pressures above the vapor pressure of water (i.e., 15 to 20 MPa [2200 to 3000 psi] at these temperatures) to facilitate a condensed-phase reaction medium. The process has been successfully tested at bench-scale and development and testing at a larger scale is required to prove the viability of the process at production levels. Near-term development plans include a pilot-scale system on the order of 0.5 to 40 gpm, followed by a larger production-scale system on the order of 2000 dry metric tons per day (DMTPD). A significant challenge to the scale-up of the HTL process is feeding a highly viscous fibrous biomass wood/corn stover feedstock into a pump system that provides the required 3000 psi of pressure for downstream processing. In October 2011, PNNL began investigating commercial feed and pumping options that would meet these HTL process requirements. Initial efforts focused on generating a HTL feed and pump specification and then providing the specification to prospective vendors to determine the suitability of their pumps for the pilot-scale and production-scale plants. Six vendors were identified that could provide viable equipment to meet HTL feed and/or pump needs. Those six vendors provided options consisting three types of positive displacement pumps (i.e., diaphragm, piston, and lobe pumps). Vendors provided capabilities and equipment related to HTL application. This information was collected, assessed, and summarized and is provided as appendices to this report.

WE-G-BRA-09: Microsphere Brachytherapy Failure Mode and Effects Analysis in a Dual-Vendor Environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Younge, K C; Lee, C I; Feng, M; Novelli, P; Moran, J M; Prisciandaro, J I

2015-01-01

Purpose: To improve the safety and quality of a dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program with failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). Methods: A multidisciplinary team including physicists, dosimetrists, a radiation oncologist, an interventional radiologist, and radiation safety personnel performed an FMEA for our dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program employing SIR-Spheres (Sirtex Medical Limited, Australia) and Theraspheres (BTG, England). We developed a program process tree and step-by-step instructions which were used to generate a comprehensive list of failure modes. These modes were then ranked according to severity, occurrence rate, and detectability. Risk priority numbers (RPNs) were calculated by multiplying these three scores together. Three different severity scales were created: one each for harmful effects to the patient, staff, or the institution. Each failure mode was ranked on one or more of these scales. Results: The group identified 164 failure modes for the microsphere program. 113 of these were ranked using the patient severity scale, 52 using the staff severity scale, and 50 using the institution severity scale. The highest ranked items on the patient severity scale were an error in the automated dosimetry worksheet (RPN = 297.5), and the incorrect target specified on the planning study (RPN = 135). Some failure modes ranked differently between vendors, especially those corresponding to dose vial preparation because of the different methods used. Based on our findings, we made several improvements to our QA program, including documentation to easily identify which product is being used, an additional hand calculation during planning, and reorganization of QA steps before treatment delivery. We will continue to periodically review and revise the FMEA. Conclusion: We have applied FMEA to our dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program to identify potential key weaknesses in the treatment chain. Our FMEA results were used to

WE-G-BRA-09: Microsphere Brachytherapy Failure Mode and Effects Analysis in a Dual-Vendor Environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Younge, K C; Lee, C I; Feng, M; Novelli, P; Moran, J M; Prisciandaro, J I [Univ Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To improve the safety and quality of a dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program with failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA). Methods: A multidisciplinary team including physicists, dosimetrists, a radiation oncologist, an interventional radiologist, and radiation safety personnel performed an FMEA for our dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program employing SIR-Spheres (Sirtex Medical Limited, Australia) and Theraspheres (BTG, England). We developed a program process tree and step-by-step instructions which were used to generate a comprehensive list of failure modes. These modes were then ranked according to severity, occurrence rate, and detectability. Risk priority numbers (RPNs) were calculated by multiplying these three scores together. Three different severity scales were created: one each for harmful effects to the patient, staff, or the institution. Each failure mode was ranked on one or more of these scales. Results: The group identified 164 failure modes for the microsphere program. 113 of these were ranked using the patient severity scale, 52 using the staff severity scale, and 50 using the institution severity scale. The highest ranked items on the patient severity scale were an error in the automated dosimetry worksheet (RPN = 297.5), and the incorrect target specified on the planning study (RPN = 135). Some failure modes ranked differently between vendors, especially those corresponding to dose vial preparation because of the different methods used. Based on our findings, we made several improvements to our QA program, including documentation to easily identify which product is being used, an additional hand calculation during planning, and reorganization of QA steps before treatment delivery. We will continue to periodically review and revise the FMEA. Conclusion: We have applied FMEA to our dual-vendor microsphere brachytherapy program to identify potential key weaknesses in the treatment chain. Our FMEA results were used to

From controlled to committed.

Science.gov (United States)

Hess, J C

1996-02-01

Most of us agree that people are our most important resource. Yet we spend a minimal amount of time learning more about human behavior, communication, and how our attitudes and behavior impact employee performance. Instead we rely on traditional methods of negative reinforcement in an attempt to control our areas of responsibility. While these methods can render some short-term success, managers and organizations that succeed during these times of change and fierce competition will be those that take the time to understand and capture the power of a committed workforce. The committed workforce is energized, not simply compliant, as a result of having basic human needs for achievement satisfied, belonging to a group, and receiving recognition for its contributions. Committed workers typically describe the manager as one who has the ability to give them a great degree of control over their area of influence. We all know that we don't change our leadership style like we change clothes. Old habits die hard. it takes a personal commitment and lots of practice to rid outselves of habits and behavior that no longer serve our departments and facilities. This commitment, however, is crucial to survival. As managers, we must cope with increasing ambiguity and uncertainty in the workplace. To survive these challenges, we must improve our interpersonal skills and ability to successfully bring out the best in others. I believe that success will continue for managers who not only increase their knowledge and technical ability, but who also inspire their workers to move forward with a collective sense of enthusiasm and purpose.

Nurses' intention to leave: critically analyse the theory of reasoned action and organizational commitment model.

Science.gov (United States)

Liou, Shwu-Ru

2009-01-01

To systematically analyse the Organizational Commitment model and Theory of Reasoned Action and determine concepts that can better explain nurses' intention to leave their job. The Organizational Commitment model and Theory of Reasoned Action have been proposed and applied to understand intention to leave and turnover behaviour, which are major contributors to nursing shortage. However, the appropriateness of applying these two models in nursing was not analysed. Three main criteria of a useful model were used for the analysis: consistency in the use of concepts, testability and predictability. Both theories use concepts consistently. Concepts in the Theory of Reasoned Action are defined broadly whereas they are operationally defined in the Organizational Commitment model. Predictability of the Theory of Reasoned Action is questionable whereas the Organizational Commitment model can be applied to predict intention to leave. A model was proposed based on this analysis. Organizational commitment, intention to leave, work experiences, job characteristics and personal characteristics can be concepts for predicting nurses' intention to leave. Nursing managers may consider nurses' personal characteristics and experiences to increase their organizational commitment and enhance their intention to stay. Empirical studies are needed to test and cross-validate the re-synthesized model for nurses' intention to leave their job.

Romantic Relationship Commitment and Its Linkages with Commitment to Parents and Friends during Adolescence

Science.gov (United States)

De Goede, Irene H. A.; Branje, Susan; van Duin, Jet; VanderValk, Inge E.; Meeus, Wim

2012-01-01

This five-wave longitudinal study examines linkages between adolescents' perceptions of romantic relationship commitment and the development of adolescents' perceptions of commitment to parents and friends. A total of 218 early-to-middle adolescents (39.0 percent boys) and 185 middle-to-late adolescents (30.8 percent boys) participated.…

A study of customer commitment through the use of the conversion model in the South African motor vehicle industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nic Terblanche

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Consumer markets have become increasingly competitive. Numerous measures to gauge and predict loyalty and commitment have been developed to assist management in this respect. The marketing literature contains many examples illustrating that longer relationships achieve customer retention, and have been rewarded with a considerable increase in customer net present value. Customer retention is undoubtedly a major contributor to profitability in the long term. Research shows that the most successful measures for achieving customer retention are customer delight, customer satisfaction and customer commitment. This study makes a closer exploration of customer commitment, as measured by the Conversion Model, in the South African motor vehicle industry. The findings highlight the commitment segments of the most popular motor vehicle brands in South Africa, as well the typical marketing strategies for managing the different commitment segments.

26 CFR 48.6427-10 - Kerosene; claims by registered ultimate vendors (blocked pumps).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... (blocked pumps). 48.6427-10 Section 48.6427-10 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE...; claims by registered ultimate vendors (blocked pumps). (a) Overview. This section provides rules under... allowed by section 6427(l)(5)(B)(i). These claims relate to kerosene sold from a blocked pump. Claims...

A Content Analysis of Library Vendor Privacy Policies: Do They Meet Our Standards?

Science.gov (United States)

Magi, Trina J.

2010-01-01

Librarians have a long history of protecting user privacy, but they have done seemingly little to understand or influence the privacy policies of library resource vendors that increasingly collect user information through Web 2.0-style personalization features. After citing evidence that college students value privacy, this study used content…

MDEP Technical Report TR-VICWG-04. Technical Report: Assessment of Multinational Vendor Inspection of Valinox Nuclear

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

From July 7-11, 2014, the NRC led a team of inspectors representing regulators from France, the United Kingdom, and the United States in performing the first Multinational Design Evaluation Program (MDEP) multinational inspection at Valinox Nuclear in Montbard, France. Valinox Nuclear's primary product line is steam generator tubes for the nuclear industry. The purpose of the inspection was to assess Valinox's compliance with the quality assurance/quality control (QA/QM) criteria described in the Multinational Design Evaluation Program (MDEP) Vendor Inspection Cooperation Working Group (VICWG) Technical Report, TR-VICWG-03, 'Common QA/QM Criteria for Multinational Vendor Inspection', Revision 1, dated January 20, 2014, and MDEP Protocol, VICWG-01, 'Witnessed, Joint, and Multinational Vendor Inspection Protocol', Revision 2, dated March 20, 2014, respectively. The inspection also offered the inspectors an opportunity to pilot the VICWG draft common position document to gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of application of the common QA/QM criteria to vendor inspections performed by a multinational inspection team. During this inspection, the inspection team evaluated implementation of Valinox's quality assurance (QA) program with respect to 15 specific criteria: 1. Quality management system; 2. Grading; 3. Documentation of the quality management system; 4. Control of documents and records; 5. Responsibility and Leadership; 6. Human resources; 7. Process Implementation; 8. Control of planning and implementation changes; 9. Purchasing (including aspects of CSFI); 10. Control of implementation including Control of special processes; 11. Monitoring and measurement of product and service; 12. Assessment; 13. Non-conformances; 14. Corrective and preventive actions; and 15. Safety culture. By letter dated 26 August 2014, the NRC issued a vendor inspection report to Valinox Nuclear, which documented four findings (Non

A review of Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI): from concept to processes

OpenAIRE

Marquès , Guillaume; Thierry , Caroline; Lamothe , Jacques; Gourc , Didier

2011-01-01

International audience; In the modern supplier-customer relationship, Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) is used to monitor the customer's inventory replenishment. Despite the large amount of literature on the subject, it is difficult to clearly define VMI and the main associated processes. Beyond the short-term pull system inventory replenishment often studied in academic works, partners have to share their vision of the demand, their requirements and their constraints in order to fix shared obj...

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, July 1986-September 1986

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-11-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Program Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1986 thru September 1986. Also, included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to July 1986 that were not previously reported

Organizational and Client Commitment among Contracted Employees

Science.gov (United States)

Coyle-Shapiro, Jacqueline A-M.; Morrow, Paula C.

2006-01-01

This study examines affective commitment to employing and client organizations among long-term contracted employees, a new and growing employment classification. Drawing on organizational commitment and social exchange literatures, we propose two categories of antecedents of employee commitment to client organizations. We tested our hypotheses…

Risk and reward in the cloud. Choosing a cloud vendor involves weighing risks versus benefits.

Science.gov (United States)

Degaspari, John

2012-05-01

More hospitals are looking to the cloud as a viable way to store clinical, imaging, and financial data. Experts acknowledge its advantages, but caution it's a step that requires careful planning and vetting of potential cloud vendors.

Metallic artefact reduction with monoenergetic dual-energy CT: systematic ex vivo evaluation of posterior spinal fusion implants from various vendors and different spine levels.

Science.gov (United States)

Guggenberger, R; Winklhofer, S; Osterhoff, G; Wanner, G A; Fortunati, M; Andreisek, G; Alkadhi, H; Stolzmann, P

2012-11-01

To evaluate optimal monoenergetic dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) settings for artefact reduction of posterior spinal fusion implants of various vendors and spine levels. Posterior spinal fusion implants of five vendors for cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine were examined ex vivo with single-energy (SE) CT (120 kVp) and DECT (140/100 kVp). Extrapolated monoenergetic DECT images at 64, 69, 88, 105 keV and individually adjusted monoenergy for optimised image quality (OPTkeV) were generated. Two independent radiologists assessed quantitative and qualitative image parameters for each device and spine level. Inter-reader agreements of quantitative and qualitative parameters were high (ICC = 0.81-1.00, κ = 0.54-0.77). HU values of spinal fusion implants were significantly different among vendors (P metallic artefacts from implants than SECT. Use of individual keV values for vendor and spine level is recommended. • Artefacts pose problems for CT following posterior spinal fusion implants. • CT images are interpreted better with monoenergetic extrapolation using dual-energy (DE) CT. • DECT extrapolation improves image quality and reduces metallic artefacts over SECT. • There were considerable differences in monoenergy values among vendors and spine levels. • Use of individualised monoenergy values is indicated for different metallic hardware devices.

Investigation of Alien Wavelength Quality in Live Multi-Domain, Multi-Vendor Link Using Advanced Simulation Tool

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Martin Nordal; Nuijts, Roeland; Bjorn, Lars Lange

2014-01-01

This article presents an advanced optical model for simulation of alien wavelengths in multi-domain and multi-vendor dense wavelength-division multiplexing networks. The model aids optical network planners with a better understanding of the non-linear effects present in dense wavelength-division ......This article presents an advanced optical model for simulation of alien wavelengths in multi-domain and multi-vendor dense wavelength-division multiplexing networks. The model aids optical network planners with a better understanding of the non-linear effects present in dense wavelength......-division multiplexing systems and better utilization of alien wavelengths in future applications. The limiting physical effects for alien wavelengths are investigated in relation to power levels, channel spacing, and other factors. The simulation results are verified through experimental setup in live multi...

Commitment and Switching Intentions: Customers and Brands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juliana Werneck Rodrigues

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This study aims to evaluate the relationship between a customer’s brand switching intentions and his commitment to a brand. Based on a literature review, constructs related to customer brand commitment were identified (affective and continuance commitment, trust, satisfaction, switching costs and alternative attractiveness and their roles in the formation of brand switching intentions hypothesized. Through a cross-sectional survey, a sample of 201 smartphone users was collected to test the proposed relationships. Data analysis was carried out via structural equations modeling, with direct effects of trust, satisfaction, switching costs and alternative attractiveness upon the different kinds of commitment being verified. Furthermore, both types of brand commitment (affective and continuance were found to negatively impact a customer’s intention to switch brands. Regarding enterprise customer strategies, the research findings suggest that, if firms are able to track customer brand commitment, they could use such knowledge to develop better relationship strategies, minimizing customer defection and further developing customer value to the company.

Commitment Elements Reframed (Antecedents & Consequences) for Organizational Effectiveness

Science.gov (United States)

Fornes, Sandra L.; Rocco, Tonette S.

2004-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to identify theories of commitment in the workplace to develop a framework that helps the field create higher levels of commitment, productivity, and satisfaction. The paper is organized into five main sections: the method, commitment in the workplace, mapping workplace commitment, and the implications for HRD and…

Organizational Climate and Teacher Commitment

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Stephen Michael

2010-01-01

This study examined the relationship of school climate and teacher commitment in elementary schools in Alabama. A total of 67 elementary schools were surveyed and 1353 teachers voluntarily participated in the study. The instruments used in this study were the Organizational Climate Index (OCI) and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ).…

The relationship between some demographic characteristics and organizational commitment of nurses working in the Social Security Hospital of Khorramabad.

Science.gov (United States)

Sepahvand, Faribah; Atashzadeh-Shoorideh, Foorozan; Parvizy, Soroor; Tafreshi, Mansoureh Zagheri

2017-06-01

Reduction in organizational commitment of nurses results in deficiency of care services. Some demographic factors affect organizational commitment. The present study is intended to determine the organizational commitment of nurses and its relationship with demographic characteristics. This study was a descriptive correlation (cross-sectional) study in January and February of 2016 on 126 nurses who held Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) or Master of Science (M.Sc.) and at least one year of work experience in the Social Security Hospital of Khorramabad, selected using the census method. Data collection tools included a demographic characteristics form and Allen and Meyer questionnaire. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 20. Independent-samples t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to determine the relationship between organizational commitment and demographic characteristics. The majority of nurses had moderate organizational commitment, the highest score belonging to the continuance commitment (22.33%), and the lowest score belonging to the normative commitment (19.16%). Also, there was a significant correlation between the continuance commitment and work experience (p=0.001), the staff posts (p=0.01) and shifts (p=0.04). Considering the moderate level of subjects' organizational commitment in the present study, managers should take necessary measures to increase the attachment and organizational commitment of nurses and provide the ground for improving nursing services.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, October-December 1985. Volume 9, No. 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-02-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRCs vendor program branch that have been distribution to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1985 through December 1985

Development of vendor independent safety analysis capability for nuclear power plants in Taiwan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, J.-R.

2001-01-01

The Institute of Nuclear Energy Research (INER) and the Taiwan Power Company (TPC) have long-term cooperation to develop vendor independent safety analysis capability to provide support to nuclear power plants in Taiwan in many aspects. This paper presents some applications of this analysis capability, introduces the analysis methodology, and discusses the significance of vendor independent analysis capability now and future. The applications include a safety analysis of core shroud crack for Chinshan BWR/4 Unit 2, a parallel reload safety analysis of the first 18-month extended fuel cycle for Kuosheng BWR/6 Unit 2 Cycle 13, an analysis to support Technical Specification change for Maanshan three-loop PWR, and a design analysis to support the review of Preliminary Safety Analysis Report of Lungmen ABWR. In addition, some recent applications such as an analysis to support the review of BWR fuel bid for Chinshan and Kuosheng demonstrates the needs of further development of the analysis capability to support nuclear power plants in the 21 st century. (authors)

Unconditionally secure commitment in position-based quantum cryptography.

Science.gov (United States)

Nadeem, Muhammad

2014-10-27

A new commitment scheme based on position-verification and non-local quantum correlations is presented here for the first time in literature. The only credential for unconditional security is the position of committer and non-local correlations generated; neither receiver has any pre-shared data with the committer nor does receiver require trusted and authenticated quantum/classical channels between him and the committer. In the proposed scheme, receiver trusts the commitment only if the scheme itself verifies position of the committer and validates her commitment through non-local quantum correlations in a single round. The position-based commitment scheme bounds committer to reveal valid commitment within allocated time and guarantees that the receiver will not be able to get information about commitment unless committer reveals. The scheme works for the commitment of both bits and qubits and is equally secure against committer/receiver as well as against any third party who may have interests in destroying the commitment. Our proposed scheme is unconditionally secure in general and evades Mayers and Lo-Chau attacks in particular.

Emissions from street vendor cooking devices (charcoal grilling). Final report, January 1998--March 1999

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S.Y.

1999-06-01

The report discusses a joint US/Mexican program to establish a reliable emissions inventory for street vendor cooking devices (charcoal grilling), a significant source of air pollutants in the Mexicali-Imperial Valley area of Mexico. Emissions from these devices, prevalent in the streets of Mexicali, Mexico, were investigated experimentally by measuring levels of particulate matter, particle size distributions, volatile and semivolatile organic compounds, aldehydes, and oxides of nitrogen and sulfur, emitted when meat is cooked on a grill over a charcoal fire. To investigate the emission rate, both beef and chicken were tested. Furthermore, both meats were marinated with a mixture similar to that used by the street vendors. Some tests were conducted with non-marinated beef for comparison. Two blank runs were performed sampling charcoal fires without meat. Finally, a simple control device, normally used in an exhaust fan to trap grease over a kitchen stove, was evaluated for its effectiveness in reducing emissions

Sociosexual orientation, commitment, and infidelity: a mediation analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Mattingly, Brent A; Clark, Eddie M; Weidler, Daniel J; Bullock, Melinda; Hackathorn, Jana; Blankmeyer, Katheryn

2011-01-01

Individuals with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation (SO) are less committed to their romantic relationships and more likely to engage in infidelity. Furthermore, commitment is negatively associated with tendencies to cheat. However, no previous research has examined the possible mediating role of commitment in the relationship between SO and infidelity. The current study examined whether commitment mediated the relationship between SO and willingness to engage in three types of cheating behaviors (Ambiguous, Deceptive, and Explicit). Results suggested that commitment partially mediated the relationship between SO and infidelity, such that unrestricted individuals had lower commitment, which in turn led to a greater likelihood of cheating. Implications of this association and directions for future research are discussed.

Assessing organizational readiness for depression care quality improvement: relative commitment and implementation capability.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubenstein, Lisa V; Danz, Marjorie S; Crain, A Lauren; Glasgow, Russell E; Whitebird, Robin R; Solberg, Leif I

2014-12-02

Depression is a major cause of morbidity and cost in primary care patient populations. Successful depression improvement models, however, are complex. Based on organizational readiness theory, a practice's commitment to change and its capability to carry out the change are both important predictors of initiating improvement. We empirically explored the links between relative commitment (i.e., the intention to move forward within the following year) and implementation capability. The DIAMOND initiative administered organizational surveys to medical and quality improvement leaders from each of 83 primary care practices in Minnesota. Surveys preceded initiation of activities directed at implementation of a collaborative care model for improving depression care. To assess implementation capability, we developed composites of survey items for five types of organizational factors postulated to be collaborative care barriers and facilitators. To assess relative commitment for each practice, we averaged leader ratings on an identical survey question assessing practice priorities. We used multivariable regression analyses to assess the extent to which implementation capability predicted relative commitment. We explored whether relative commitment or implementation capability measures were associated with earlier initiation of DIAMOND improvements. All five implementation capability measures independently predicted practice leaders' relative commitment to improving depression care in the following year. These included the following: quality improvement culture and attitudes (p = 0.003), depression culture and attitudes (p commitment (p = 0.002) and prior depression quality improvement activities appeared to be associated with earlier participation in the DIAMOND initiative. The study supports the concept of organizational readiness to improve quality of care and the use of practice leader surveys to assess it. Practice leaders' relative commitment to depression care

Abortion in adolescence: who committed in Maceió?

OpenAIRE

Correia, Divanise Suruagy; Universidade Federal de Alagoas; Monteiro, Vera Grácia Neumann; UFRN/ UFAL; Egito, Eryvaldo Sócrates Tabosa; UFRN; Maia, Eulália Maria Chaves; UFRN

2009-01-01

The objective if this quantitative and cross study is to characterize female teenagers, from 12 to 19 years old, that committed abortion, in a representative random sample of 2592 adolescents in Maceió, in 2005. There were found 149 abortions, where most of them (81,9%) did not have a job, (85%) lived with the parents, (85,2%) were single, (69,8%) studied in a public school and (70,5%) were in high school. The majority had one abortion 93 % , but it stands out that 8,5 % of them aborted twice...

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, October 1987-December 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-02-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1987 thru December 1987. Also, included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to October 1987 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Licensee contractor and vendor inspeecxtion status report: Quarterly report, January 1988-March 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-05-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from January 1988 through March 1988. Also included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to January 1988 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, October 1986-December 1986

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-02-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Program Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from October 1986 through December 1986. Also, included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to October 1986 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report, July 1987-September 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-10-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1987 through September 1987. Also included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to July 1987 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report: Quarterly report April 1988--June 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-08-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Inspection Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from April 1988 through June 1988. Also included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to April 1988 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Commit* to change? A call to end the publication of the phrase 'commit* suicide'.

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Emma; Padmanathan, Prianka; Knipe, Duleeka

2016-12-06

Background. Countering stigma is a fundamental facet of suicide prevention efforts.  Integral to this is the promotion of accurate and sensitive language.  The phrase 'commit* suicide' has prompted marked opposition primarily due to the connotations of immorality and illegality.  Methods. The study investigated the frequency of the use of the wordstem 'commit', in relation to self-harm and suicidal behaviours, in the three leading suicide-specific academic journals between 2000 and 2015.  Results. One third (34%) of articles published since the year 2000 used the word 'commit*' when describing an act of self-harm or suicide. Over half of these articles (57%) used the phrase on more than one occasion, with 6% using it more than 10 times in the same manuscript. The percentage of papers utilising the word 'commit*' has fluctuated over time, but there is a promising downward trend in the use of this phrase from 33% in 2000 to 13% in 2015 ( p suicide. Whilst we call for collective responsibility amongst academics and clinicians, editors hold a unique position in ensuring that outdated, inaccurate and stigma-laden terms are expunged from the scientific literature.

Organizational culture and organizational commitment: Serbian case

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mitić Siniša

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the results of the impact of certain dimensions of organizational culture (Future Orientation, Power Distance, Human Orientation and Performance Orientation on organizational commitment in companies in Serbia. Through a survey, responses were obtained from a total of N = 400 middle managers from 129 companies. The results show a statistically significant correlation between the observed dimensions of organizational culture and organizational commitment dimensions. Also, there is a statistically significant predictive effect of certain dimensions of organizational culture on the dimensions of organizational commitment. The biggest influences on the dimensions of organizational commitment have dimensions Future Orientation - FO and Performance Orientation - PO. On the other hand, under the most affected dimension of organizational culture is the dimension of organizational commitment Organizational identification - OCM1.

Prevalence of foodborne pathogens in grilled chicken from street vendors and retail outlets in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico.

Science.gov (United States)

Díaz-López, A; Cantú-Ramírez, R C; Garza-González, E; Ruiz-Tolentino, L; Tellez-Luis, S J; Rivera, G; Bocanegra-García, V

2011-08-01

We analyzed a total of 70 grilled chicken samples bought randomly from street vendors and retail outlets in the city of Reynosa, Mexico, to determine the prevalence of Escherichia coli (Shiga toxin producing and enterotoxin producing), Salmonella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria spp., and Campylobacter spp. using microbiological methods and PCR detection of bacterial sequences. Of the 70 samples, 27 (38.5%) were from retail outlets and 43 (61.4%) from street vendors. All specimens were negative by both microbiological and molecular methods for Listeria monocytogenes, Shiga toxin 2 of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, lt of enterotoxin-producing E. coli, and st enterotoxin, and all were negative for Salmonella spp. and Campylobacter jejuni by PCR. Of the samples studied, 49 (70%) had undetectable levels of the foodborne pathogens studied with the methods used. In the remaining 21 (30%) specimens, at least one pathogen was isolated or detected, with E. coli being the pathogen most frequently isolated and with two samples bearing the hlyA gene. We found no statistical difference in bacterial prevalence between retail and street vendor samples. The presence of pathogens in grilled chicken is an important public health risk because of the great demand for and daily consumption of this product in this region.

Job satisfaction, organisation commitment and retention in the public workforce: a survey among pharmacists in Malaysia.

Science.gov (United States)

Chua, Gin Nie; Yee, Lai Jiuan; Sim, Bee Ai; Tan, Keat Hin; Sin, Ng Khai; Hassali, Mohammed Azmi; Shafie, Asrul Akmal; Ooi, Guat See

2014-08-01

The aims of the study were to assess job satisfaction and organisational commitment among pharmacists working in the public sector and its influence on their likelihood to stay within the public workforce. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among all fully registered pharmacists (FRPs) in the northern states of Malaysia in 2009 (n = 467). The questionnaire consisted of three sections to capture the demographic characteristics of the respondents, assess job satisfaction and organisational commitment of the respondents and their likelihood of staying in public service. A total of 247 FRPs (response rate 52.9%) in the northern region of Malaysia participated in this survey. Majority of the respondents were women (n = 205, 83.0%), of Chinese ethnicity (n = 155, 62.8%), graduates from public universities (n = 173, 70.0%), single (n = 172, 69.6%), with a median age of 27 years (interquartile range (IQR) 2.0) and had worked with the Ministry of Health for a median of 2.75 years (IQR 1.63). The mean job satisfaction and organisational commitment score were 58.09 (standard deviation (SD) 11.83) and 53.46 (SD 6.65) respectively out of a maximum possible score of 90. Majority of the respondents claimed that they were likely to stay in public service (n = 176, 71.3%). Their likelihood of staying in public service was affected by respondents’ gender, ethnicity, job satisfaction and organisational commitment. The findings from this study provide stakeholders with evidence on factors and issues affecting pharmacists’ job satisfaction and commitment in the public workforce as well as the likely turnover rate with an early cohort of pharmacists affected by the compulsory service.

Formalizing the Relationship Between Commitment and Basic Cryptographic Primitives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Sree Vivek

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Signcryption is a cryptographic primitive which offers the functionality of both digital signature and encryption with lower combined computational cost. On the other hand, commitment scheme allows an entity to commit to a value, where the entity reveals the committed value later during a decommit phase. In this paper, we explore the connection between commitment schemes, public key encryption, digital signatures and signcryption. We establish formal relationship between commitment and the other primitives. Our main result is that we show signcryption can be used as a commitment scheme with appropriate security notions. We show that if the underlying signcryption scheme is IND-CCA2 secure, then the hiding property of the commitment scheme is satisfied. Similarly, we show that if the underlying signcryption scheme is unforgeable, then the relaxed biding property of the commitment scheme is satisfied. Moreover, we prove that if the underlying signcryption scheme is NM-CCA2, then the commitment scheme is non-malleable.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Volume 19, No. 2: Quarterly report, April--June 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-08-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from April 1995 through June 1995

A weighted possibilistic programming approach for sustainable vendor selection and order allocation in fuzzy environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gupta, Pankaj; Govindan, Kannan; Mehlawat, Mukesh Kumar

2016-01-01

This paper focused on the analysis of imprecise information in terms of many critical parameters for a multi-objective multi-item vendor selection-order allocation problem with price-breaks. We used both quantitative and qualitative criteria taking into account the economic, technological, social...

Vendors woo South Africa as a potential new 'powerhouse' for nuclear

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shepherd, John [nuclear24, London (United Kingdom)

2014-04-15

South Africa is a country which is increasingly seen as a potential new nuclear market that promises to give one or more of the world's major nuclear vendors an important foothold on the continent. South Africa has two pressurised water reactors operating at the Koeberg nuclear plant. The 930-megawatt (MW) first unit entered commercial operation in July 1984, followed by the second (900 MW) unit in November 1985. These are the only commercial nuclear power plants on the continent of Africa. South Africa's updated draft integrated resources plan (IRP) for electricity for 2010-30, for which a public consultation period ended in February of this year, included revised projections. that suggested no new nuclear baseload capacity would be needed 'until after 2025'. A capacity 'at least 6,600 MW less' is required in terms of reliable overall generating capacity in 2030. However great South Africa's demand for a clean, affordable and reliable supply of nuclear-generated electricity, coupled with the economic benefits such developments will bring, investors also understand the potential for nuclear growth in this part of the world. (orig.)

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Volume 19, No. 2: Quarterly report, April--June 1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-08-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC`s Special Inspection Branch, Vendor Inspection Section, that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from April 1995 through June 1995.

Transformational Leadership and Organizational Commitment: A Study of UNC System Business School Department Chairs

Science.gov (United States)

Luton, Bill

2010-01-01

Ample evidence is available citing a positive relationship between transformational leadership and organizational commitment (Boerner et al., 2007; Bono & Judge, 2003; Bycio, Hackett, & Allen, 1995; Chen, 2004; Emery & Barker, 2007; Walumbwa, Orwa, Wang, & Lawler, 2005). The majority of research on leadership in higher education,…

Influence of Teacher Empowerment on Teachers' Organizational Commitment, Professional Commitment and Organizational Citizenship Behavior in Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Bogler, Ronit; Somech, Anit

2004-01-01

The present study focuses on the relationship between teacher empowerment and teachers' organizational commitment, professional commitment (PC) and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). It examines which subscales of teacher empowerment can best predict these outcomes. The data were collected through a questionnaire returned by a sample of…

The knowledge of emergency contraception and dispensing practices of Patent Medicine Vendors in South West Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Fayemi, Mojisola M; Oduola, Olufemi L; Ogbuji, Queen C; Osinowo, Kehinde A; Oyewo, Adejoke E; Osiberu, Olabimpe M

2010-09-01

Patent Medicine Vendors (PMVs) can play a critical role in increasing access to emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) in developing countries, but few studies have examined their knowledge and dispensing practices. Using cluster sampling, the authors selected and interviewed 97 PMVs (60.8 per cent female) in Oyo and Ogun States of Nigeria to assess their knowledge, dispensing practices, and referral for ECPs. About one-third (27.8 per cent) of respondents were not aware of ECPs, and only half knew that ECPs could prevent pregnancy. Forty per cent had ever dispensed ECPs. Reasons proffered by those who do not dispense ECPs included barriers from the State Ministry of Health, police, other regulatory agencies, and religious beliefs. Only 50.5 per cent have referral arrangements for clients. Strategies to increase access to ECPs through PMVs include training on counseling techniques and referral, effective government regulation, and community involvement. Where unsafe abortion is a major cause of maternal mortality, these strategies offer protection for many women in the future.

Job Satisfaction of Nurses and Its Moderating Effects on the Relationship Between Organizational Commitment and Organizational Citizenship Behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Chia-Tzu; Chang, Ching-Sheng

2015-01-01

Because nurses deliver care to patients on behalf of hospitals, hospitals should enhance the spontaneous organizational citizenship behaviors of front-line nurses to increase patient satisfaction and, hence, to increase the competitiveness of the hospital. However, a major gap in the literature is the lack of evidence-based studies of the correlations among job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and organizational citizenship behaviors in nursing personnel. Therefore, this study performed a cross-sectional survey of nurses in 1 large hospital in Taiwan; out of 400 questionnaires distributed, 386 valid questionnaires were collected, which was a valid response rate of 96.50%. The survey results revealed that organizational commitment has a significant positive effect on organizational citizenship behaviors (γ11 = 0.57, p organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behaviors (Δχ2 = 26.397, p organizational commitment and organizational citizenship behaviors.

Nurses organizational commitment: the discriminating power of gender.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferreira, Maria Manuela Frederico

2007-01-01

The study of the organizational commitment has risen interest within the organization's researchers, who have been trying to understand the intensity and stability of the individual's dedication to the organization. The interest that this construct has raised is based on the idea of the existence of an association of the organizational commitment with variables considered important to the increase of the organizational effectiveness and productivity. The aim of this article is to describe organizational commitment, in its affective, normative, and continuance dimensions, from nurse practitioners, and to analyze the differences of that commitment regarding gender. Data were collected by questionnaire. The sample is constituted by nurse practitioners who develop their professional activity in 6 Portuguese hospitals. Data were analyzed using means, standard deviation, and independent samples t test. The sample consists of 1201 nurses. The organizational commitment of the studied nurses is, on average, 2.87+/-0.69 (in 5-point scale). When we make an analysis regarding gender, we verify that the organizational commitment is higher in women, being the difference statistically significant (t = -2.07; P commitment in male and female nurses, and it is higher in all dimensions in female nurses; however, the difference is only significant to the organizational and continuance commitment.

Antecedents and Consequences of Affective Commitment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bloemer, J.M.M.; Odekerken-Schröder, G.J.

2003-01-01

The primary objective of this study is to assess the impact of three psychological antecedents (position involvement, volitional choice and informational complexity) on affective commitment in a financial service setting. Furthermore, this study addresses the consequences of affective commitment on

24-Hour Relativistic Bit Commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Verbanis, Ephanielle; Martin, Anthony; Houlmann, Raphaël; Boso, Gianluca; Bussières, Félix; Zbinden, Hugo

2016-09-30

Bit commitment is a fundamental cryptographic primitive in which a party wishes to commit a secret bit to another party. Perfect security between mistrustful parties is unfortunately impossible to achieve through the asynchronous exchange of classical and quantum messages. Perfect security can nonetheless be achieved if each party splits into two agents exchanging classical information at times and locations satisfying strict relativistic constraints. A relativistic multiround protocol to achieve this was previously proposed and used to implement a 2-millisecond commitment time. Much longer durations were initially thought to be insecure, but recent theoretical progress showed that this is not so. In this Letter, we report on the implementation of a 24-hour bit commitment solely based on timed high-speed optical communication and fast data processing, with all agents located within the city of Geneva. This duration is more than 6 orders of magnitude longer than before, and we argue that it could be extended to one year and allow much more flexibility on the locations of the agents. Our implementation offers a practical and viable solution for use in applications such as digital signatures, secure voting and honesty-preserving auctions.

Major dealers' expert power in distribution channels

OpenAIRE

Richard Chinomona; Marius Pretorius

2011-01-01

The importance of major dealers' expertise in distribution channels and effects on exchange relations is widely acknowledged by many SMEs in Africa and yet there seem to be a paucity of research on this matter. To address this dearth, the current study attempts to examine the relationship between major dealers' expert power and SME manufacturers' channel cooperation and the mediating influence of their trust, relationship commitment and satisfaction. The conceptualized model and five hypothes...

Sustainability Marketing Commitment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tollin, Karin; Bech Christensen, Lars

2017-01-01

sustainability in marketing, processes associated with sustainability marketing commitment, drivers of sustainability marketing at the functional level of marketing, and its organizational context. Using survey data from 269 managers in marketing, covering a broad range of industries in Sweden and Denmark, we...... took a structural modelling approach to examine construct relationships, mediation, and moderation effects. Overall, the findings show that marketing capabilities associated with the innovation of new products, services, and business models constitute a strong driver to leverage sustainability......Corporate sustainability is an important strategy and value orientation for marketing, but scarce research addresses the organizational drivers and barriers to including it in companies’ marketing strategies and processes. The purpose of this study is to determine levels of commitment to corporate...

7 CFR 3550.70 - Conditional commitments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

..., dealer-contractor, or seller must: (1) Have an adequate ownership interest in the property, as defined in... approval of an affirmative marketing plan. (b) Limitations. Conditional commitments for new or... as bad weather, materials shortages, or marketing difficulties. Conditional commitments may be...

Job Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment: Affective Commitment Predictors in a Group of Professionals

Science.gov (United States)

Ferretti, Maria Santa

Job satisfaction and organizational commitment have long been identified as relevant factors for the well-being of individuals within an organization and the success of the organization itself. As the well-being can be, in principle, considered as emergent from the influence of a number of factors, the main goal of a theory of organizations is to identify these factors and the role they can play. In this regard job satisfaction and organizational commitment have been often identified with structural factors allowing an organization to be considered as a system, or a wholistic entity, rather than a simple aggregate of individuals. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that job satisfaction has a significant, direct effect on determining individuals' attachment to an organization and a significant but indirect effect on their intention to leave a company. However, a complete assessment of the role of these factors in establishing and keeping the emergence of an organization is still lacking, due to shortage of measuring instruments and to practical difficulties in interviewing organization members. The present study aims to give a further contribution to what is currently known about the relationship between job satisfaction and affective commitment by using a group of professionals, all at management level. A questionnaire to measure these constructs, following a pilot study, was designed and administered to 1042 participants who were all professionals and had the title of industrial manager or director. The factors relating to job satisfaction and the predictive value of these factors (to predict an employee's emotional involvement with their organization) were simultaneously tested by a confirmative factorial model. The results were generalized with a multi-sample procedure by using models of structural equations. This procedure was used to check whether these factors could be considered or not as causes producing the measured affective commitment. The results

Examining client perceptions of partnership quality and the relationships between its dimensions in an IT outsourcing relationship

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Steven Lane

2011-03-01

Full Text Available This paper reports on an empirical study of the multidimensionality of partnership quality and the relationships between these dimensions. A two-phase survey was conducted for a range of organisations from different industry sectors to collect empirical data to test the validity and reliability of the measurement model for the multidimensionality of partnership quality. The measurement model for partnership quality was confirmed by the results of the data analyses. This research also aimed to identify the significant relationships between these dimensions using a second generation multivariate analysis technique—partial least squares(PLS. The findings from results of the data analyses show that inter-organisational trust, shared business understanding and to a lesser extent, functional and dysfunctional conflict between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor in an IT outsourcing relationship are the key determinants of partnership quality. The key outcome of high partnership quality between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor in an IT outsourcing relationship is mutual beneficial sharing of risks and benefits. Commitment is confirmed as a multidimensional construct of behaviour and temporal/continuance commitment but is not is influenced by the other dimensions of partnership quality. Trust and shared business understanding are the key drivers in the IT outsourcing relationship ensuring that the sharing of risks and benefits are realised and conflict is minimised leading to a high quality and ultimately successful partnership between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor. Furthermore behavioural commitment to the contractual obligations of an IT outsourcing relationship sustains an ongoing temporal commitment to the partnership between the client organisation and the outsourcing vendor.

The Impact of Trust on Organization Commitment

Science.gov (United States)

Robinson, Kimberly; Stinson, Thomas N. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

As the global economy continues to spawn competitive forces, organizations have sought to become more competitive by cutting costs, eliminating non-value added work, and using more automation. Jobs have become broader and more flexible leading to a leaner workforce with higher-level knowledge and skills and more responsibility for day-to-day decisions. More than ever, organizations depend on employees as the innovators and designers of products and processes and as a source of strategic advantage. Therefore employee commitment among knowledge workers is needed to maintain organizational viability. It would seem that stronger relationships due to greater dependency, involvement, and investment would develop between employers and high-technology workers resulting in more committed employees. However, the opposite has been evidenced as key knowledge workers are changing jobs frequently. This may be due to a perceived lack of commitment by management to its employees. The notion of exchange may dominate the development of organizational commitment whereby an individual decides what to give a firm (commitment, extra effort, better performance, etc.) based on what the firm gives them (e.g., trust and security). It is the relationship between an employee's organizational commitment and the responding level of trust in the organization that is examined in this paper. An experiment is described that will seek to identify this relationship. Preliminary results are expected to show a positive relationship whereby employee commitment is positively correlated with organizational trust.

Increasing supplemental nutrition assistance program/electronic benefits transfer sales at farmers' markets with vendor-operated wireless point-of-sale terminals.

Science.gov (United States)

Buttenheim, Alison M; Havassy, Joshua; Fang, Michelle; Glyn, Jonathan; Karpyn, Allison E

2012-05-01

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (formerly Food Stamp Program) participants can use their benefits at many farmers' markets. However, most markets have only one market-operated wireless point-of-sale (POS) card swipe terminal for electronic benefits transfer (EBT) transactions. It is not known whether providing each farmer/vendor with individual wireless POS terminals and subsidizing EBT fees will increase SNAP/EBT purchases at farmers' markets. To evaluate the effects of multiple vendor-operated wireless POS terminals (vs a single market-operated terminal) on use of SNAP benefits at an urban farmers' market. Time-series analyses of SNAP/EBT sales. The Clark Park farmers' market in West Philadelphia, PA, which accounts for one quarter of all SNAP/EBT sales at farmers' markets in Pennsylvania. Vendors were provided with individual wireless POS terminals for 9 months (June 2008-February 2009.) The pilot program covered all equipment and wireless service costs and transaction fees associated with SNAP/EBT, credit, and debit sales. Monthly SNAP/EBT sales at the Clark Park farmers' market. SNAP/EBT sales data were collected for 48 months (January 2007-December 2010). Time-series regression analysis was used to estimate the effect of the intervention period (June 2008-February 2009) on SNAP/EBT sales, controlling for seasonal effects and total SNAP benefits issued in Philadelphia. The intervention was associated with a 38% increase in monthly SNAP/EBT sales. Effects were greatest during the busy fall market seasons. SNAP/EBT sales did not remain significantly higher after the intervention period. Providing individual wireless POS terminals to farmers' market vendors leads to increased sales. However, market vendors indicated that subsidies for equipment costs and fees would be needed to break even. Currently, SNAP provides some support for these services for supermarket and other SNAP retailers with landline access, but not for farmers' markets. Copyright

User Manuals for a Primary Care Electronic Medical Record System: A Mixed Methods Study of User- and Vendor-Generated Documents.

Science.gov (United States)

Shachak, Aviv; Dow, Rustam; Barnsley, Jan; Tu, Karen; Domb, Sharon; Jadad, Alejandro R; Lemieux-Charles, Louise

2013-06-04

Tutorials and user manuals are important forms of impersonal support for using software applications including electronic medical records (EMRs). Differences between user- and vendor documentation may indicate support needs, which are not sufficiently addressed by the official documentation, and reveal new elements that may inform the design of tutorials and user manuals. What are the differences between user-generated tutorials and manuals for an EMR and the official user manual from the software vendor? Effective design of tutorials and user manuals requires careful packaging of information, balance between declarative and procedural texts, an action and task-oriented approach, support for error recognition and recovery, and effective use of visual elements. No previous research compared these elements between formal and informal documents. We conducted an mixed methods study. Seven tutorials and two manuals for an EMR were collected from three family health teams and compared with the official user manual from the software vendor. Documents were qualitatively analyzed using a framework analysis approach in relation to the principles of technical documentation described above. Subsets of the data were quantitatively analyzed using cross-tabulation to compare the types of error information and visual cues in screen captures between user- and vendor-generated manuals. The user-developed tutorials and manuals differed from the vendor-developed manual in that they contained mostly procedural and not declarative information; were customized to the specific workflow, user roles, and patient characteristics; contained more error information related to work processes than to software usage; and used explicit visual cues on screen captures to help users identify window elements. These findings imply that to support EMR implementation, tutorials and manuals need to be customized and adapted to specific organizational contexts and workflows. The main limitation of the study

User Manuals for a Primary Care Electronic Medical Record System: A Mixed Methods Study of User- and Vendor-Generated Documents

Science.gov (United States)

Dow, Rustam; Barnsley, Jan; Tu, Karen; Domb, Sharon; Jadad, Alejandro R.; Lemieux-Charles, Louise

2015-01-01

Research problem Tutorials and user manuals are important forms of impersonal support for using software applications including electronic medical records (EMRs). Differences between user- and vendor documentation may indicate support needs, which are not sufficiently addressed by the official documentation, and reveal new elements that may inform the design of tutorials and user manuals. Research question What are the differences between user-generated tutorials and manuals for an EMR and the official user manual from the software vendor? Literature review Effective design of tutorials and user manuals requires careful packaging of information, balance between declarative and procedural texts, an action and task-oriented approach, support for error recognition and recovery, and effective use of visual elements. No previous research compared these elements between formal and informal documents. Methodology We conducted an mixed methods study. Seven tutorials and two manuals for an EMR were collected from three family health teams and compared with the official user manual from the software vendor. Documents were qualitatively analyzed using a framework analysis approach in relation to the principles of technical documentation described above. Subsets of the data were quantitatively analyzed using cross-tabulation to compare the types of error information and visual cues in screen captures between user- and vendor-generated manuals. Results and discussion The user-developed tutorials and manuals differed from the vendor-developed manual in that they contained mostly procedural and not declarative information; were customized to the specific workflow, user roles, and patient characteristics; contained more error information related to work processes than to software usage; and used explicit visual cues on screen captures to help users identify window elements. These findings imply that to support EMR implementation, tutorials and manuals need to be customized and

State commitment to public participation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baranski, S.C.; Serie, P.J.

1989-01-01

This paper discusses how New York's approach to developing a new low-level radioactive waste disposal facility demonstrates a commitment to responsibility for waste generated within its borders. There is a strong, legislated commitment to meeting federal milestones and starting from scratch to select a suitable site and disposal method. Equally strong is the state's commitment to meaningful public participation. A statewide program is underway, including public information and education and interactive techniques. The public participation program is fully integrated with the technical and policy activities of the New York State Low-Level Radioactive Waste Siting Commission at all levels. The program is designed to progressively tailor techniques and coverage to the steps in site and method selection, and will focus most intensively on the communities where four sites are selected for full characterization

Metallic artefact reduction with monoenergetic dual-energy CT: systematic ex vivo evaluation of posterior spinal fusion implants from various vendors and different spine levels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guggenberger, R.; Winklhofer, S.; Andreisek, G.; Alkadhi, H.; Stolzmann, P. [University Hospital Zurich, Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Zurich (Switzerland); Osterhoff, G.; Wanner, G.A. [University Hospital Zurich, Department of Surgery, Division of Trauma Surgery, Zurich (Switzerland); Fortunati, M. [The Spine Center, Thun (Switzerland)

2012-11-15

To evaluate optimal monoenergetic dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) settings for artefact reduction of posterior spinal fusion implants of various vendors and spine levels. Posterior spinal fusion implants of five vendors for cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine were examined ex vivo with single-energy (SE) CT (120 kVp) and DECT (140/100 kVp). Extrapolated monoenergetic DECT images at 64, 69, 88, 105 keV and individually adjusted monoenergy for optimised image quality (OPTkeV) were generated. Two independent radiologists assessed quantitative and qualitative image parameters for each device and spine level. Inter-reader agreements of quantitative and qualitative parameters were high (ICC = 0.81-1.00, {kappa} = 0.54-0.77). HU values of spinal fusion implants were significantly different among vendors (P < 0.001), spine levels (P < 0.01) and among SECT, monoenergetic DECT of 64, 69, 88, 105 keV and OPTkeV (P < 0.01). Image quality was significantly (P < 0.001) different between datasets and improved with higher monoenergies of DECT compared with SECT (V = 0.58, P < 0.001). Artefacts decreased significantly (V = 0.51, P < 0.001) at higher monoenergies. OPTkeV values ranged from 123-141 keV. OPTkeV according to vendor and spine level are presented herein. Monoenergetic DECT provides significantly better image quality and less metallic artefacts from implants than SECT. Use of individual keV values for vendor and spine level is recommended. (orig.)

Retail Sugar From One Zambian Community Does Not Meet Statutory Requirements for Vitamin A Fortification.

Science.gov (United States)

Greene, Matthew D; Kabaghe, Gladys; Musonda, Mofu; Palmer, Amanda C

2017-12-01

Industrial food fortification is a major strategy to improve dietary micronutrient intakes and prevent deficiencies. Zambia introduced mandatory sugar fortification with vitamin A, at a target of 10 mg/kg, in 1998. Representative surveys conducted since that time do not support marked improvement in vitamin A status. To describe vitamin A concentrations in retail sugar, as well as vendor practices, perceptions of fortified foods, and sugar use practices. We conducted a census of sugar vendors in one Zambian community, capturing information on vendors, available brands and packaging options, and storage conditions. We purchased all brands and package types of sugar available at each vendor. In a 15% subsample, we conducted semi-structured interviews with vendor-consumer pairs. We tested 50% of sugar samples at random for vitamin A using an iCheck portable fluorimeter. The distribution of vitamin A in sugar in market samples was highly skewed, with a median of 3.1 mg/kg (25th-75th percentiles: 1.8-5.5) and a range from 0.2 to 29.9 mg/kg. Only 11.3% of samples met the 10 mg/kg statutory requirement. Sugar was primarily repackaged and sold in small quantities, with rapid turnover of stocks. Perceptions of fortification by vendors and consumers were generally positive. Vitamin A in fortified sugar fell well below statutory requirements. Our data point to challenges at regional depot and/or poor adherence to fortification standards at the factory level. A renewed commitment to monitoring and enforcement will be required for Zambia to benefit from a food fortification strategy.

The Influence of Organizational Commitment, Job Commitment and Job Satisfaction on Professionalism Perceived by Radiotechnologists Working in the Department of Radiation Oncology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gim, Yang Soo; Lee, Sun Young; Lee, Joon Seong; Gwak, Geun Tak; Park, Ju Gyeong; Lee, Seung Hoon; Hwang, Ho In; Cha, Seok Yong [Dept. of Radiation Oncology, Chunbuk National University Hospital, Jeonju (Korea, Republic of)

2012-09-15

The study is to check the specialty of radiotherapists working in the department of radiation oncology and find job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job commitment having an effect on professional parts. After making analysis of the mutual relation, it is to provide radiotechnologists with making progress in the future. From March 2 to March 30, we had carried out a survey with email. It is possible to have 272 questionnaires answered in the survey. We make use of SPSS 13.0 for Windows to analyze the data collected for study. Frequency and a percentage are meant to show general characteristics, and t-test and ANOVA to do the difference between general properties and professionalism. Pearson's correlation coefficient also is meant to do the correlation of professionalism, organizational job commitment and job satisfaction, and multiple regression analysis to do the factor for a relevant variable to affect professionalism. There are subdivisions in the professionalism informing us of the self-regulation 17.74{+-}2.32/3.55{+-}46, a sense of calling 17.58{+-}2.63/3.52{+-}53, reference of the professional 17.14{+-}2.39/3.43{+-}48, service to the public 15.97{+-}2.48/3.19{+-}50, and autonomy 15.68{+-}2.28/3.14{+-}46. Grand mean turns out to be 83.89{+-}7.63(Summation of items)/ 3.37{+-}0.49(Numbers of items). When it comes to a statistical relation between general characteristics and professionalism, the statistics have it that these come within age (P<.001), period of employment (P<.001), education status (P<.05), a monthly income (P<.001), radiotherapists who get a special license (P<.001), the position (P<.001), and an opportunity for developing (P<.001). As a result of organizational commitment, job commitment, and job satisfaction, grand mean in organizational commitment proves to be 81.10{+-}8.15/3.34{+-}34. There are subvisions showing affective commitment 28.64{+-}4.61/3.58, continuance commitment 27.54{+-}4.22/3.44{+-}53, and normative commitment

Optimal economic order quantity for buyer-distributor-vendor supply chain with backlogging derived without derivatives

Science.gov (United States)

Teng, Jinn-Tsair; Cárdenas-Barrón, Leopoldo Eduardo; Lou, Kuo-Ren; Wee, Hui Ming

2013-05-01

In this article, we first complement an inappropriate mathematical error on the total cost in the previously published paper by Chung and Wee [2007, 'Optimal the Economic Lot Size of a Three-stage Supply Chain With Backlogging Derived Without Derivatives', European Journal of Operational Research, 183, 933-943] related to buyer-distributor-vendor three-stage supply chain with backlogging derived without derivatives. Then, an arithmetic-geometric inequality method is proposed not only to simplify the algebraic method of completing prefect squares, but also to complement their shortcomings. In addition, we provide a closed-form solution to integral number of deliveries for the distributor and the vendor without using complex derivatives. Furthermore, our method can solve many cases in which their method cannot, because they did not consider that a squared root of a negative number does not exist. Finally, we use some numerical examples to show that our proposed optimal solution is cheaper to operate than theirs.

Global software development: Commitment, trust, and cultural sensitivity in strategic partnerships

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Søderberg, Anne-marie; Krishna, S; Bjørn, Pernille

2013-01-01

as through conscious relationship management with the clients. Three major themes describe important aspects of the strategic partnerships: 1) senior management commitment and employee identification with the projects, 2) mutual trust and transparency, and 3) cross-cultural understanding and sensitivity....... The article draws attention to the important collaborative work done by people who are able to span boundaries in the complex organizational set-up of global IT development projects....

Committed equivalent organ doses and committed effective doses from intakes of radionuclides

CERN Document Server

Phipps, A W; Kendall, G M; Silk, T J; Stather, J W

1991-01-01

This report contains details of committed equivalent doses to individual organs for intakes by ingestion and inhalation of 1 mu m AMAD particles of 359 nuclides by infants aged 3 months, by children aged 1, 5, 10 and 15 years, and by adults. It complements NRPB-R245 which describes the changes which have taken place since the last NRPB compendium of dose per unit intake factors (dose coefficients) and gives summary tables. Information on the way committed doses increase with the integration period is given in NRPB-M289. The information given in these memoranda is also available as a microcomputer package - NRPB-SR245.

Commitment Versus Persuasion in the Three-Party Constrained Voter Model

Science.gov (United States)

Mobilia, Mauro

2013-04-01

In the framework of the three-party constrained voter model, where voters of two radical parties ( A and B) interact with "centrists" ( C and C ζ ), we study the competition between a persuasive majority and a committed minority. In this model, A's and B's are incompatible voters that can convince centrists or be swayed by them. Here, radical voters are more persuasive than centrists, whose sub-population comprises susceptible agents C and a fraction ζ of centrist zealots C ζ . Whereas C's may adopt the opinions A and B with respective rates 1+ δ A and 1+ δ B (with δ A ≥ δ B >0), C ζ 's are committed individuals that always remain centrists. Furthermore, A and B voters can become (susceptible) centrists C with a rate 1. The resulting competition between commitment and persuasion is studied in the mean field limit and for a finite population on a complete graph. At mean field level, there is a continuous transition from a coexistence phase when ζpersuasion, here consensus is reached much slower ( ζpersuasive voters and centrists coexist when δ A > δ B , whereas all species coexist when δ A = δ B . When ζ≥Δ c and the initial density of centrists is low, one finds τ˜ln N (when N≫1). Our analytical findings are corroborated by stochastic simulations.

The dimensionality of professional commitment

OpenAIRE

Jeffrey J. Bagraim

2003-01-01

This paper examines the dimensionality of professional commitment amongst a sample of 240 South African actuaries. Data were obtained, via a mailed questionnaire, from members of the South African Actuarial Society employed in the financial services industry. Statistical analysis conducted on the data showed that the 3-component model first proposed by Meyer, Allen and Smith (1993) is appropriate for understanding professional commitment amongst South African professionals. The analysis also ...

Alcohol myopia and goal commitment

OpenAIRE

Sevincer, A. Timur; Oettingen, Gabriele

2014-01-01

According to alcohol myopia theory, acute alcohol consumption leads people to disproportionally focus on the salient rather than the peripheral aspects of a situation. We summarize various studies exploring how myopic processes resulting from acute alcohol intake affect goal commitment. After consuming alcohol student participants felt strongly committed to an important personal goal even though they had low expectations of successfully attaining the goal. However, once intoxicated participan...

The Behavioral Expression of Organizational Commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Randall, Donna M.; And Others

1990-01-01

Explored within empirical study context complexity of organizational commitment construct and respondent-generated behavioral manifestations of job attitude among plant workers (N=156). Found each commitment dimension related differently to work outcomes and that none of the dimensions was able to predict absenteeism or tardiness. (Author/CM)

Meaningful work, work engagement and organisational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madelyn Geldenhuys

2014-03-01

Research purpose: The aim of the study was to investigate the relationships amongst psychological meaningfulness, work engagement and organisational commitment and to test for a possible mediation effect of work engagement on the relationship between psychological meaningfulness and organisational commitment. Motivation for the study: Managers have to rethink ways of improving productivity and performance at work, due to the diverse, and in some instances escalating, needs of employees (e.g. financial support to uphold their interest in and enjoyment of working. Research approach, design and method: A quantitative approach was employed to gather the data for the study, utilising a cross-sectional survey design. The sample (n = 415 consisted of working employees from various companies and positions in Gauteng, South Africa. Main findings: The results confirmed a positive relationship between psychological meaningfulness, work engagement and organisational commitment. Further, psychological meaningfulness predicts work engagement, whilst psychological meaningfulness and work engagement predict organisational commitment. Practical/managerial implications: Employers identifying their employees’ commitment patterns and mapping out strategies for enhancing those that are relevant to organisational goals will yield positive work outcomes (e.g. employees who are creative, seek growth or challenges for themselves. Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the literature through highlighting the impact that meaningful work has on sustaining employee commitment to the organisation.

Islamic Counselling Model to Increase Religious Commitment (Study of Students at the University UIN Bandung

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fenti Hikmawati

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The study aims to test the effectiveness of Islamic counseling model for helping the students to tight their religious commitment. The religious commitment is covered in three major Islamic teachings: Iman (faith, Islam (surrender to Allah, and lhsan (state of being observed by Allah. The model of Islamic counseling aims to tight students' religious commitment must to be applied immediately because the preface study reveals some students' religious commitment were not strong enough, their behavior and thinking symptoms tend to not appropriate yet with Islam norm among their association and conception toward the truth of God. To achieve the aim, the study was carried out with three steps: (1 designing a model of counseling; (2 trying out field study, using pretest-post test control group experimental design with 140 students of Islamic Religion Education, the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teaching, State Islamic University, Sunan Gunung Djati, Bandung. Of 140 students, 70 students are from the classes: A (32 people, B (38 people, involved in control group and the test; 37 people from class C, and 33 students from class D involved in the experiment group, and; (3 designing a final model by revising the model tried-out. The variable involved three major Islamic dimensions: the iman, Islam, and ihsan of the students. The model was designed based on the theory put forward by Musfir bin Said Az-Zalmmi, that is, an integrated counseling model. The model combines and employs the ideas from other concepts into a tightly united concept, called Islamic concept. Upon completing analysis, it was found that the new concept is significantly effective to enhance students' religious commitment. A Model of Islamic Counseling (MIC is an alternative-counseling model that can be employed for teenagers/ students to enhance their religious commitment. The study recommends that: (1 MIC can be applied to fifth semester students in the Faculty of Tarbiyah State Islamic

Philanthropic Commitment Traits for Waqf in Higher Education

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Siti Khadijah, A. M.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Philanthropic commitment in the form of waqf is important particularly among younger working adults in ensuring sustainable flow of funds for charitable purposes. One of the vital usages of such funds is funding for higher education. A question is raised on the commitment of younger adults in such giving. This study examines waqf commitment traits among waqif (waqf contributors for higher education funding. The specific objective of this study is to measure the factors that influence the waqif to contribute their property or income into waqf for higher education fund. For the purpose of this study, 400 questionnaires have been distributed to working young adult respondents in the Klang Valley area. Waqf commitment attributes comprising of Religiosity, Trust, Altruism, Personal Characteristics, SelfImage, Psychological Benefits, Social Norms and Personal Satisfaction are examined. The findings reveal that Religiosity, Altruism, Personal Satisfaction and Commitment are significant attributes in explaining waqf commitment. However, Trust and Social Norm are not significant.

Commitment, enjoyment and motivation in young soccer competitive players.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Mas, Alexandre; Palou, Pere; Gili, Margarita; Ponseti, Xavier; Borras, Pere A; Vidal, Josep; Cruz, Jaume; Torregrosa, Miquel; Villamarín, Francisco; Sousa, Catarina

2010-11-01

Building upon Deci's and Ryan (1985) Self-determination theory as well as the sportive behavioral correlates of the model of Commitment (Scanlan et al., 1976), this study tries to establish the relationship between motivation and commitment in youth sport. For this purpose 454 young competitive soccer players answered the Sport Motivation Scale (SMS) and the Sport Commitment Questionnaire (SCQ) during the regular season. The SMS measures the three dimensions of the Motivational continuum (the Amotivation, the Extrinsic Motivation and the Intrinsic Motivation). The SCQ measures the Sportive Commitment and its composing factors such as the Enjoyment, the Alternatives to the sport, and the Social Pressure. Our findings provided a clear pattern of the influence of motivation in sport enjoyment and commitment, outlining the positive contribution of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to enjoyment and commitment. Amotivation, contributes positively to alternatives to sport and negatively to enjoyment and commitment, It should be noted that extrinsic motivation has a higher contribution to enjoyment whereas intrinsic motivation has a higher contribution to commitment.

Mobile Fruit and Vegetable Vendors’ Impact on Food Deserts

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2014-09-10

Kathleen Y. L, BS, winner of PCD’s 2014 Student Research Paper Contest and medical student at the University of California, San Francisco, discusses her winning paper on the evaluation and placement of mobile fruit and vegetables vendors and their ability to alleviate food deserts in New York City.  Created: 9/10/2014 by Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).   Date Released: 9/10/2014.

Effect of Distributive Justice on The Relationship between The Forms of Benefit Program and Job Commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Azman Ismail

2009-03-01

Full Text Available This study was conducted to examine the moderating effect of distributive justice in the relationship between the forms of benefits program and job commitment. A survey research method was used to gather 150 usable questionnaires from employees who have worked in Malaysian federal government linked companies in Sarawak (MFGLS. The outcomes of testing moderating model using a hierarchical regression analysis showed two major findings: (1 distributive justice had not increased the effect of physical and safety benefits (i.e., health care, insurance, loan and claim on job commitment, and (2 distributive justice had increased the effect of self-satisfaction benefits (i.e., promotion opportunity and training on job commitment. This result confirms that distributive justice does act as a partial moderating variable in the benefit program models of the organizational sector sample. In addition, the implications of this study to benefit system theory and practice, methodological and conceptual limitations, and directions for future research are also discussed. Keywords: Forms of Benefits Program, Distributive Justice and Job Commitment

Job insecurity, organisational commitment and work engagement ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

understanding the concept of job insecurity as represented by two core ... commitment as a unidimensional construct based on employees' emotional .... outcomes such as increased job satisfaction, organisational commitment, motivation.

The interplay between organizational commitment and personal values

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alicia Omar

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The study of employee’s commitment is capturing the attention of managers and researchers. Besides being one of the most effective alternatives for achieving the organizational goals, the importance of organizational commitment (OC lies in its ability to influence the efficiency and the wellbeing of members of an organization. The article examines the relationships between personal values and components of OC. Participants were selected from twelve Argentinean organizations. Subjects completed a questionnaire of personal data, and two scales to measure individualism- collectivism (vertical and horizontal, and organizational commitment, respectively. All subjects were classified into eight subgroups, after dichotomizing by median each dimensions of values (HI: horizontal individualism; VI: vertical individualism; HC: horizontal collectivism, and HV: vertical collectivism. The four most representative subgroups (N= 162 were selected, that is, who exhibited high scores in one of the four dimensions and lows in the remaining three. In such subgroups were calculated analysis of variance, post-hoc comparison tests, and correlation analysis. The more significant findings can be summarized in the following items: a collectivists (HC or VC show a higher level of affective commitment, while individualists relate to their companies through normative or continuance commitment; b women and senior employees exhibit greater levels of affective and normative commitment; c managers, employees with higher academic degree, and employees of large companies, feel attached to their organizations through normative commitment; d continuance commitment seems to work differently than affective and normative commitment because it has no associations with any of the socio-demographic variables studied. Strengths and limitations of the study are discussed, and suggestions are made for future research. 

Factors Contributing to Personal Commitment in Chinese Interethnic Couples

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xinmiao Zhong

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Interethnic relationships are increasingly common in many societies, yet interethnic couples have a higher divorce rate compared to intraethnic couples. Given these facts and the dearth of research, this study aimed to identify factors that contribute to couples’ commitment in interethnic relationships. This study investigated the personal commitment of Chinese interethnic couples in the United Kingdom and the United States. Specifically, whether love, dyadic adjustment and “couple cultural identity” (i.e. acculturation to the partner and couple’s similarity on individualism/collectivism would predict personal commitment and whether each variable would account for unique variance in personal commitment of the participants. Thirty-seven Chinese/non-Chinese heterosexual couples participated in the study and significant relationships between love and personal commitment, dyadic adjustment and personal commitment were found. Also, couple cultural identity was important for women’s personal commitment. Multiple regression and structural equation modelling showed that partners in interethnic relationships defined personal commitment in different ways with men emphasizing love and dyadic adjustment, and women emphasizing love and acculturation to their partner. The discovery of the importance of couple cultural identity in contributing to personal commitment, besides love and dyadic adjustment, helps researchers to gain a greater understanding of such relationships and to extend the research on interethnic relationships.

Análise estratégica na aplicabilidade do Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI na cadeia de abastecimento

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Hugo Pissaia Júnior

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we present the results of research on the strategic aspects in the business applicability of vendor-managed inventory (VMI for the supply chain. Given that companies' logistical challenges are related to the supply chain, management, planning, and control of the supply chain, the qualitative research performed by collecting data from ten customers of national distributors allowed the results obtained to point out the effectiveness of systemic resources in the supply chain of a company in the aftermarket. We describe comprehensively the competitive levels and environments in which the company operates and point out the heightened importance of planning the implementation of vendor-managed inventory to alleviate the cultural obstacles existing in information, thus avoiding barriers to the effectiveness of information exchange and to the efficiency of its results.

[A study of work values, professional commitment, turnover intention and related factors among clinical nurses].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Kuei-Ying; Chou, Chuan-Chiang; Huang, Jui-Lan

2010-02-01

The high rate of turnover in nursing positions is a global problem. There have been few studies done addressing the relationship between work values and nurse turnover intention. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between work values, professional commitment and turnover intention among clinical nurses. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between February 1st to March 10th, 2008 on a convenience sample of nurses, all of whom had at least a half year of work experience at one of four teaching hospitals in Taiwan. A total of 289 valid responses were received, with a response rate of 96.3%. Major findings included: (1) Nurses who were older, had more years of school, had worked more years, held specific job duties, earned a higher salary, held Buddhist beliefs, or were married with two or more children presented higher work values and professional commitment and lower turnover intention; (2) As a group, total work values and professional commitment scores corresponded negatively with turnover intention scores; (3) Significant factors affecting turnover intent in clinical nurses included professional commitment, institution characteristics, Buddhist beliefs and salary. These four variables accounted for 52.2% of the variation in turnover intention. This study indicated that nurses with higher work values and professional commitment tend to exhibit less turnover intention. It is highly recommended to develop strategies to bolster the teaching of altruistic values and professional commitment in nursing education in order to reduce turnover intent. Also, further studies on the influence of religious beliefs and organizational attributes on nurse turnover intentions are also suggested.

Non-interactive and Reusable Non-malleable Commitment Schemes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Damgård, Ivan Bjerre; Groth, Jens

2003-01-01

version based on the strong RSA assumption. For UC commitments, we show that existence of a UC commitment scheme in the CRS model (interactive or not) implies key exchange and - for a uniform reference string - even implies oblivious transfer. This indicates that UC commitment is a strictly stronger...... primitive than NM. Finally, we show that our strong RSA based construction can be used to improve the most efficient known UC commitment scheme so it can work with a CRS of size independent of the number of players, without loss of efficiency....

Best practice vendor risk management in today's interconnected world.

Science.gov (United States)

Beale, Ian

2017-01-01

This paper explains why vendor/third-party risk is so important to all organisations, as well as the principal risks that organisations must consider. It describes the responsibility of management to manage these risks with support from risk experts at the selection phase and through the ongoing relationship. Different sources of information about the management of the key risks and alternative ways of collecting the data are evaluated. The paper concludes by discussing how both customer and supplier organisations benefit from a balanced approach to risk management. The approach described in the paper applies to organisations of all types and sizes and can be applied to varied supply chains. The data and insights are based on research conducted by CEB.

The neuroprotective efficacy of MK-801 in focal cerebral ischemia varies with rat strain and vendor.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliff, H S; Marek, P; Miyazaki, B; Weber, E

1996-08-26

The present study was designed to evaluate whether the neuroprotective efficacy of MK-801 in focal cerebral ischemia was dependent on strain and/or vendor differences. MK-801 (0.12 mg/kg i.v. bolus followed by 0.108 mg/kg/h infusion or 0.60 mg/kg i.v. bolus followed by 0.540 mg/kg/h infusion) or saline was administered just after intraluminal middle cerebral artery occlusion. Administration of 0.540 mg/kg/h MK-801 provided strain/line-dependent neuroprotection in the following rank order: Simonsen Laboratories Sprague-Dawley rats > Simonsen Laboratories Wistar rats > Taconic Laboratories Sprague-Dawley rats. After 0.108 mg/kg/h MK-801 treatment, Simonsen Laboratories Wistar rats were the only strain/line that were significantly neuroprotected. These results indicate that the neuroprotective effect of an experimental drug may be influenced by rat strain and vendor differences.

Commitment to personal values and guilt feelings in dementia caregivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Gallego-Alberto, Laura; Losada, Andrés; Márquez-González, María; Romero-Moreno, Rosa; Vara, Carlos

2017-01-01

Caregivers' commitment to personal values is linked to caregivers' well-being, although the effects of personal values on caregivers' guilt have not been explored to date. The goal of this study is to analyze the relationship between caregivers´ commitment to personal values and guilt feelings. Participants were 179 dementia family caregivers. Face-to-face interviews were carried out to describe sociodemographic variables and assess stressors, caregivers' commitment to personal values and guilt feelings. Commitment to values was conceptualized as two factors (commitment to own values and commitment to family values) and 12 specific individual values (e.g. education, family or caregiving role). Hierarchical regressions were performed controlling for sociodemographic variables and stressors, and introducing the two commitment factors (in a first regression) or the commitment to individual/specific values (in a second regression) as predictors of guilt. In terms of the commitment to values factors, the analyzed regression model explained 21% of the variance of guilt feelings. Only the factor commitment to family values contributed significantly to the model, explaining 7% of variance. With regard to the regression analyzing the contribution of specific values to caregivers' guilt, commitment to the caregiving role and with leisure contributed negatively and significantly to the explanation of caregivers' guilt. Commitment to work contributed positively to guilt feelings. The full model explained 30% of guilt feelings variance. The specific values explained 16% of the variance. Our findings suggest that commitment to personal values is a relevant variable to understand guilt feelings in caregivers.

Technical executive’s organizational commitment at Malaysian Oil & Gas Industry

OpenAIRE

Firend, A.R; Binti Sofyan, P.

2016-01-01

This paper investigates the levels of organizational commitment among technical executive, identifies factors that influence organizational commitment in the Malaysian oil and gas industry, and examines the impact of organizational commitment on organizational performance. This research was conducted at Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering (MMHE). The framework adopted the three component-conceptualization of organizational commitment. Among the findings is that organizational commitment ten...

Survey of generational aspects of nurse faculty organizational commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Carver, Lara; Candela, Lori; Gutierrez, Antonio P

2011-01-01

To describe organizational commitment and generational differences in nursing faculty. The study provides new knowledge on generational differences in organizational commitment among nursing faculty with regard to work values, perceived organizational support, perceived person-organization fit, developmental experiences, and global job satisfaction. A cross-sectional, descriptive design was used with random stratified sampling procedures. Surveys measuring organizational commitment and related constructs were sent electronically to 4886 faculty, yielding a 30% response rate. Significant differences were noted between generations of faculty regarding organizational commitment and related measures. Include specific strategies for fostering commitment from each generation. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AFFECTIVE COMMITMENT ANDORGANIZATIONAL SILENCE: A CONCEPTUAL DISCUSSION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fitnat Nazlı Sayğan

2011-07-01

Full Text Available In this study, the affective commitment that is oneof the components oforganizational commitment put forth by Allen and Meyer (Allen, Meyer 1996will be differentiated from the other commitment components. The importance ofcreating an emotional commitment to organizations will be examined and theorganizational factors needed to form organizational commitment will beinvestigated. Also, organizational silence is a situation that the company avoided.In the study, the reasons and the drawbacks of silence are focused on and thefactors that cause employees to remain silent are discussed.The aim of this study is intended to manifest the relationship of ‘organizationalsilence' with affective commitment’ which is one ofthe components of‘organizational commitment’ on the basis of literature. In this study, a negativecorrelation between affective commitment and organizational silence is suggested

Making Commitments to Racial Justice Actionable

Science.gov (United States)

Diab, Rasha; Ferrel, Thomas; Godbee, Beth; Simpkins, Neil

2013-01-01

In this article, we articulate a framework for making our commitments to racial justice actionable, a framework that moves from narrating confessional accounts to articulating our commitments and then acting on them through both self-work and work-with-others, a dialectic possibility we identify and explore. We model a method for moving beyond…

The uncertainty of reference standards--a guide to understanding factors impacting uncertainty, uncertainty calculations, and vendor certifications.

Science.gov (United States)

Gates, Kevin; Chang, Ning; Dilek, Isil; Jian, Huahua; Pogue, Sherri; Sreenivasan, Uma

2009-10-01

Certified solution standards are widely used in forensic toxicological, clinical/diagnostic, and environmental testing. Typically, these standards are purchased as ampouled solutions with a certified concentration. Vendors present concentration and uncertainty differently on their Certificates of Analysis. Understanding the factors that impact uncertainty and which factors have been considered in the vendor's assignment of uncertainty are critical to understanding the accuracy of the standard and the impact on testing results. Understanding these variables is also important for laboratories seeking to comply with ISO/IEC 17025 requirements and for those preparing reference solutions from neat materials at the bench. The impact of uncertainty associated with the neat material purity (including residual water, residual solvent, and inorganic content), mass measurement (weighing techniques), and solvent addition (solution density) on the overall uncertainty of the certified concentration is described along with uncertainty calculations.

Automating Vendor Fraud Detection in Enterprise Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kishore Singh

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Fraud is a multi-billion dollar industry that continues to grow annually. Many organisations are poorly prepared to prevent and detect fraud. Fraud detection strategies are intended to quickly and efficiently identify fraudulent activities that circumvent preventative measures. In this paper we adopt a Design-Science methodological framework to develop a model for detection of vendor fraud based on analysis of patterns or signatures identified in enterprise system audit trails. The concept is demonstrated be developing prototype software. Verification of the prototype is achieved by performing a series of experiments. Validation is achieved by independent reviews from auditing practitioners. Key findings of this study are: i automating routine data analytics improves auditor productivity and reduces time taken to identify potential fraud, and ii visualisations assist in promptly identifying potentially fraudulent user activities. The study makes the following contributions: i a model for proactive fraud detection, ii methods for visualising user activities in transaction data, iii a stand-alone MCL-based prototype.

The Availability of MeSH in Vendor-Supplied Cataloguing Records, as Seen Through the Catalogue of a Canadian Academic Health Library

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pamela S. Morgan

2007-09-01

Full Text Available This study examines the prevalence of medical subject headings in vendor-supplied cataloguing records for publications contained within aggregated databases or publisher collections. In the first phase, the catalogue of one Canadian academic medical library was examined to determine the extent to which medical subject headings (MeSH are available in the vendor-supplied records. In the second phase, these results were compared to the catalogues of other Canadian academic medical libraries in order to reach a generalization regarding the availability of MeSH headings for electronic resources. MeSH was more widespread in records for electronic journals but was noticeably lacking in records for electronic monographs, and for Canadian publications. There is no standard for ensuring MeSH are assigned to monograph records for health titles and there is no library in Canada with responsibility for ensuring that Canadian health publications receive Medical Subject Headings. It is incumbent upon libraries using MeSH to ensure that vendors are aware of this need when purchasing record sets.

Does smoking cannabis affect work commitment?

Science.gov (United States)

Hyggen, Christer

2012-07-01

  This study aimed to examine the associations between cannabis use and work commitment.   We used a 25-year panel survey initiated in 1985 with follow-ups in 1987, 1989, 1993, 2003 and 2010. Registered data from a range of public registers were matched with individual responses for the entire period.   The panel survey was a nation-wide study set in Norway.   A total of 1997 respondents born between 1965 and 1968 were included in the panel.   Work involvement scale (WIS) was used to assess work commitment. Involvement with cannabis was based on self-reported smoking of cannabis within the last 12 months and exposure to cannabis through friends. This information was categorized into 'abstaining', 'exposed', 'experimented' and 'involved'. Control measures included socio-economic background, mental health (HSCL-10), education, work satisfaction, unemployment, receipt of social assistance, consumption of alcohol, alcohol-related problems and use of other illicit drugs.   The level of work commitment was associated with involvement with cannabis. In 1993, when the respondents were in their mid-20s, those who were involved or had experimented with cannabis displayed lower levels of work commitment than those who were abstaining or merely exposed to cannabis through friends (P labour market experiences, mental health and family characteristics (P Norway the use of cannabis is associated with a reduction in work commitment among adults. © 2012 The Author, Addiction © 2012 Society for the Study of Addiction.

77 FR 6579 - Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Information Technology (IT) Businesses in the National Capitol...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-08

... Technology (IT) Businesses in the National Capitol Region of the United States AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization of the Department of the Interior is hosting a Vendor Outreach Workshop for small IT businesses in the...

Implications of Mobility Patterns and HIV Risks for HIV Prevention Among Migrant Market Vendors in Kazakhstan

Science.gov (United States)

Gilbert, Louisa; Terlikbayeva, Assel; West, Brooke; Bearman, Peter; Wu, Elwin; Zhussupov, Baurzhan; Platais, Ingrida; Brisson, Anne

2011-01-01

Objectives. We examined the relationships between mobility characteristics and sexual risk behaviors among male and female migrant market vendors in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Methods. Participants completed a structured interview covering sociodemographics, mobility characteristics, sexual behaviors, and biomarkers for HIV, HCV, and syphilis. We used multivariate analyses to examine associations between mobility patterns and HIV risks after adjusting for sociodemographics. Results. Longer duration of a participant's last trip outside Almaty increased the odds of reporting multiple sexual partners. More frequent travel to visit family or friends was associated with multiple sexual partners and unprotected sex with steady partners. More frequent travel to buy goods in the past year was associated with multiple sexual partners. Men who traveled more often to buy goods were more likely to have purchased sex within the previous 90 days. Conclusions. Relationships between mobility patterns and sexual risk behaviors underscore the need for HIV-prevention strategies targeting the specific transmission dynamics that migrant vendors are likely to present. PMID:21493929

Genomics and epigenetics of sexual commitment in Plasmodium.

Science.gov (United States)

Bechtsi, D P; Waters, A P

2017-06-01

Malaria is the disease caused by the apicomplexan parasites belonging to the genus Plasmodium. Expanding our arsenal to include transmission-blocking agents in our fight against malaria is becoming increasingly important. Such an implementation requires detailed understanding of the biology of the Plasmodium life cycle stages that are transmissible. Plasmodium gametocytes are the only parasite stage that can be transmitted to the mosquito vector and are the product of sexual development in a small percentage of parasites that continually proliferate in host blood. The critical decision made by asexual erythrocytic stages to cease further proliferation and differentiate into gametocytes, as well as the first steps they take into maturity, have long remained unknown. Recent studies have contributed to a breakthrough in our understanding of this branch point in development. In this review, we will discuss the findings that have allowed us to make this major leap forward in our knowledge of sexual commitment in Plasmodium. We will further propose a model for the mechanism triggering the switch to sexual development, constructed around the proteins currently known to regulate this process. Further insight into sexual commitment and gametocyte development will help identify targets for the development of transmission-blocking malaria therapies. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

On Commitments and Other Uncertainty Reduction Tools in Joint Action

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael John

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we evaluate the proposal that a central function of commitments within joint action is to reduce various kinds of uncertainty, and that this accounts for the prevalence of commitments in joint action. While this idea is prima facie attractive, we argue that it faces two serious problems. First, commitments can only reduce uncertainty if they are credible, and accounting for the credibility of commitments proves not to be straightforward. Second, there are many other ways in which uncertainty is commonly reduced within joint actions, which raises the possibility that commitments may be superfluous. Nevertheless, we argue that the existence of these alternative uncertainty reduction processes does not make commitments superfluous after all but, rather, helps to explain how commitments may contribute in various ways to uncertainty reduction.

Exposure to science, perspectives on science and religion, and religious commitment in young adulthood.

Science.gov (United States)

Uecker, Jeremy E; Longest, Kyle C

2017-07-01

Social scientists know very little about the consequences of exposure to scientific knowledge and holding different perspectives on science and religion for individuals' religious lives. Drawing on secularization and post-secular theories, we develop and test several hypotheses about the relationships among exposure to scientific knowledge, perspectives on religion and science, and religious commitment using panel data from the National Study of Youth and Religion. Our findings indicate that religious faith is strongest among young adults who: (1) accommodate scientific knowledge into their religious perspective, or (2) reject scientific knowledge that directly contradicts their religious beliefs about the origins of the world. Young adults are also more likely to have lower religious commitment when they view science and religion as independent institutions, lending support to secularization ideas about how social differentiation secularizes individuals. We further find that mere exposure to scientific knowledge, in terms of majoring in biology or acknowledging conflict between the teachings of religion and science, is usually not sufficient to undermine religious commitment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Employee commitment and performance of manufacturing firms ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

445) between job satisfaction and employee organizational commitment. Multiple regression revealed that pay and job promotion are the important elements that influence employee commitment. It is recommended that manufacturing organizations should emphasize pay and job promotion to enhance higher employee ...

28 CFR 522.14 - Inmates serving civil contempt commitments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 28 Judicial Administration 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Inmates serving civil contempt... ADMISSION, CLASSIFICATION, AND TRANSFER ADMISSION TO INSTITUTION Civil Contempt of Court Commitments § 522.14 Inmates serving civil contempt commitments. We treat inmates serving civil contempt commitments in...

Gas de France, a major player in Europe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mandil, C.

1999-01-01

Present in approximately 20 countries, the Gaz de France group has, for several years now, committed itself to a major program for international development. This trend should speed up as the European gas market opens. Nowadays, GdF has nearly twelve million customers, including two million outside France. (author)

Assessing Outcomes of a Realistic Major Preview in an Introductory Sport Management Course

Science.gov (United States)

Pierce, David; Wanless, Elizabeth; Johnson, James

2014-01-01

This paper assessed the outcomes of a field experience assignment (FEA) in an introductory sport management course designed as a realistic major preview. Student learning outcomes assessed were commitment to the major, intent to pursue the major, expectation of a career in sports, and perceived preparation for a career in sports. A…

Concept analysis of professional commitment in Iranian nurses

Science.gov (United States)

Jafaragaee, Fateme; Parvizy, Soroor; Mehrdad, Neda; Rafii, Forough

2012-01-01

Aim: Professional commitment has been widely discussed during the last decade. There is no comprehensive definition about “professional commitment in Iranian nurses.” Hence, this study was conducted with the aim of analyzing the concept of professional commitment in Iranian nurses. Materials and Methods: Hybrid model was used in three phases. Firstly, in the theoretical phase, data were retrieved from the CINHAl, MEDLINE, PubMed, OVID, Google scholar, and SID databases. The literature search used the keywords “professional commitment” and “nursing.” The final sample included 27 papers published in English between 2001 and 2011.Secondly, in the fieldwork phase, deep interviews with five clinical nurses were carried out, and thirdly, in the final analytical phase, the obtained data from theoretical and fieldwork phases were combined and a comprehensive analysis was conducted. Results: Loyalty and tendency to remain in the profession and responsibility to the professional issues were extracted in theoretical phase. Commitment to promote caring abilities, satisfying of being a nurse, and belonging to the nursing profession were obtained in fieldwork phase. Finally, two main themes including “commitment to offering the best nursing care” and “commitment to promotion of the nursing profession” were extracted. Conclusion: Nursing is a humanistic profession; it has some particular characteristics due to the profession’s nature. In this paper, a definition composed of two main dimensions of professional commitment in nursing has been introduced. PMID:23922592

The organizational commitment of emergency physicians in Spanish public hospitals

Science.gov (United States)

Noval de la Torre, A; Bulchand Gidumal, J; Melián González, S

2016-12-30

Background. There are not too many studies that deal with the organizational commitment of emergency physicians. This commitment has been shown to impact organizational performance. The aim of this paper is to analyse the degree of commitment of the emergency physicians in Spanish public hospitals and the factors that may influence it. Method. Online survey using SurveyMonkey to emergency physicians in Spanish public hospitals. Results. Two hundred and five questionnaires were received, 162 from physicians and 43 from heads of the emergency service. Results show an intermediate level of commitment, with affective commitment showing the lowest level and continuance commitment showing the highest level. The capabilities of the physician have an influence on their affective commitment; specific training in emergency procedures and seniority has an influence on their continuance commitment; and the opinion they hold about the organization of their service influences affective commitment. Conclusions. Emergency physicians show an average involvement in the hospital in which they work (average 3.8 on a range of 1 to 5), feel an average affection for it (3.4), and have a high intention to keep working there (4.0). The resources the hospital has due to its level do not have an influence on this commitment, while the training and perceptions of the service do have an influence.

Sustainability Commitment, New Competitors’ Presence, and Hotel Performance: The Hotel Industry in Barcelona

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Pedro Aznar

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The hospitality industry is facing major challenges, among them the new competition from novel forms of supply in the sharing economy. Airbnb, Homeaway, and Niumba, among other websites offering accommodations, are having an important impact in the sector, changing existing conditions and the market for the traditional hospitality industry. In this context, a strategy based in differentiation can help to prevent drops in revenues and profitability. The main objective of this paper is analyse if commitment towards sustainability has a positive impact on financial performance and can be considered a positive strategy in this new environment. The empirical data refer to a sample of hotels in Barcelona, one of the most important tourist cities in Europe. Our results suggest that there is no clear relationship between sustainability and better financial performance; however, sustainability commitment is associated with a minimum size, which can also have positive effects in terms of economies of scale and finally affect profitability. Hotels more committed to environmental issues are located in areas with a lower density of Airbnb apartments, and this geographical distribution can be more positive than a situation of massive tourist concentration in specific areas with negative externalities for neighbours.

Involuntary Outpatient Commitment and the Elusive Pursuit of Violence Prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Swartz, Marvin S; Bhattacharya, Sayanti; Robertson, Allison G; Swanson, Jeffrey W

2017-02-01

Involuntary outpatient commitment (OPC)-also referred to as 'assisted outpatient treatment' or 'community treatment orders'-are civil court orders whereby persons with serious mental illness and repeated hospitalisations are ordered to adhere to community-based treatment. Increasingly, in the United States, OPC is promoted to policy makers as a means to prevent violence committed by persons with mental illness. This article reviews the background and context for promotion of OPC for violence prevention and the empirical evidence for the use of OPC for this goal. Relevant publications were identified for review in PubMed, Ovid Medline, PsycINFO, personal communications, and relevant Internet searches of advocacy and policy-related publications. Most research on OPC has focussed on outcomes such as community functioning and hospital recidivism and not on interpersonal violence. As a result, research on violence towards others has been limited but suggests that low-level acts of interpersonal violence such as minor, noninjurious altercations without weapon use and arrests can be reduced by OPC, but there is no evidence that OPC can reduce major acts of violence resulting in injury or weapon use. The impact of OPC on major violence, including mass shootings, is difficult to assess because of their low base rates. Effective implementation of OPC, when combined with intensive community services and applied for an adequate duration to take effect, can improve treatment adherence and related outcomes, but its promise as an effective means to reduce serious acts of violence is unknown.

Educational commitment and social networking: The power of informal networks

Science.gov (United States)

Zwolak, Justyna P.; Zwolak, Michael; Brewe, Eric

2018-06-01

The lack of an engaging pedagogy and the highly competitive atmosphere in introductory science courses tend to discourage students from pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. Once in a STEM field, academic and social integration has been long thought to be important for students' persistence. Yet, it is rarely investigated. In particular, the relative impact of in-class and out-of-class interactions remains an open issue. Here, we demonstrate that, surprisingly, for students whose grades fall in the "middle of the pack," the out-of-class network is the most significant predictor of persistence. To do so, we use logistic regression combined with Akaike's information criterion to assess in- and out-of-class networks, grades, and other factors. For students with grades at the very top (and bottom), final grade, unsurprisingly, is the best predictor of persistence—these students are likely already committed (or simply restricted from continuing) so they persist (or drop out). For intermediate grades, though, only out-of-class closeness—a measure of one's immersion in the network—helps predict persistence. This does not negate the need for in-class ties. However, it suggests that, in this cohort, only students that get past the convenient in-class interactions and start forming strong bonds outside of class are or become committed to their studies. Since many students are lost through attrition, our results suggest practical routes for increasing students' persistence in STEM majors.

48 CFR 750.7106-4 - Informal commitments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... foreign policy interests of the United States by assuring persons that they will be treated fairly and... CONTRACT MANAGEMENT EXTRAORDINARY CONTRACTUAL ACTIONS Extraordinary Contractual Actions To Protect Foreign Policy Interests of the United States 750.7106-4 Informal commitments. Informal commitments may be...

Sport commitment in adolescent soccer players

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Noelia Belando Pedreño

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to contribute to the postulates of the self-determination theory, the hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation by Vallerand, and social goals. A structural regression model was estimated to analyze the relations between social goals (responsibility and relationships, praise for autonomous behavior, satisfaction of the basic psychological needs and intrinsic motivation in commitment to sport. A sample of 264 young Spanish soccer players aged between 14 and 16 (M =14.74, SD =.77 participated in the study. Structural Equation Modeling results showed that the social responsibility goal, the social relationship goal and praise for autonomous behavior predicted perceived competence. Furthermore, the relationship goal also predicted the need for relatedness. Satisfaction of the basic psychological needs for competence and relatedness predicted intrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation positively predicted future commitment to sport. These results highlighted the importance of social goals, praise for autonomous behavior and psychological mediators in encouraging greater commitment in young soccer players. Future research should focus on the coach’s role in generating greater commitment to sport through the development of intervention methodologies based on social goals.

Commitment to Cooperation and Peer Punishment: Its Evolution

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Tatsuya Sasaki

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Theoretical and empirical studies have generally weighed the effect of peer punishment and pool punishment for sanctioning free riders separately. However, these sanctioning mechanisms often pose a puzzling tradeoff between efficiency and stability in detecting and punishing free riders. Here, we combine the key aspects of these qualitatively different mechanisms in terms of evolutionary game theory. Based on the dilemmatic donation game, we introduce a strategy of commitment to both cooperation and peer punishment. To make the commitment credible, we assume that those willing to commit have to make a certain deposit. The deposit will be refunded as long as the committers faithfully cooperate in the donation game and punish free riders and non-committers. It turns out that the deposit-based commitment offers both the efficiency of peer punishment and the stability of pool punishment and that the replicator dynamics lead to transitions of different systems: pool punishment to commitment to peer punishment.

Nurses' perception of ethical climate and organizational commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Borhani, Fariba; Jalali, Tayebe; Abbaszadeh, Abbas; Haghdoost, Aliakbar

2014-05-01

The high turnover of nurses has become a universal issue. The manner in which nurses view their organization's ethical climate has direct bearing on their organizational commitment. The aim of this study was to determine the correlation between nurses' perception of ethical climate and organizational commitment in teaching hospitals in the southeastern region of Iran. A descriptive analytical design was used in this study. The sample consisted of 275 nurses working in four teaching hospitals in the southeastern region of Iran. The instruments used in this study included a demographic questionnaire, Ethical Climate Questionnaire, and Organizational Commitment Questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out using Pearson's correlation, t-test, and descriptive statistic through Statistical Package for Social Science, version 16. The result of this research indicated a positive correlation among professionalism, caring, rules, independence climate, and organizational commitment. Therefore, findings of this study are a guideline for researchers and managers alike who endeavor to improve organizational commitment.

[Psychological commitment: adaptive functions, paradoxes, modalities and components].

Science.gov (United States)

Brault-Labbé, Anne

2017-12-01

The process of psychological commitment, its adaptive functions and some of the difficulties that go along with it are specific. A description of the multimodal model of commitment provides an illustration of how motivational, affective, cognitive and behavioural mechanisms can be combined. These lead to different ways of entering into the commitment, with differing consequences on how the individual functions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Honouring the Dual Commitment: Remittance Strategies of Ghanaian Migrants in Amsterdam

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Ntokozo Nzama

2014-08-01

Full Text Available This paper seeks to understand the rationale behind the practice of remittances and to examine its impact on the living standards and conditions of Ghanaian remitters living in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. This study investigates how remitters are able to sustain their lifestyles in a foreign country, and the sacrifices and compromises made in terms of their dual commitment to support families in Ghana and in the Netherlands. A qualitative approach using in-depth interviews was adopted in order to give research participants an opportunity to talk broadly about their lived experiences as Ghanaians residing in a foreign country and the challenges associated with sending remittances. Push factors such as political unrest, poverty, low income, and unemployment influenced movement out of Ghana. A better quality of life (better paying jobs, improved qualifications was the major pull factor that attracted migrants to the Netherlands. Remittances from migrants in the Netherlands supported the welfare of many households in Ghana, especially in terms of improved standards of living and better access to health care and education. Sending remittances is not “a feel good gesture” only, but an obligation to the family members back in Ghana. This study shows that there were major compromises and trade-offs in terms of migrant lifestyles because of their dual commitments.

The Impacts of Urban Politics on Female Street Vendors in Praia, Cape Verde

OpenAIRE

Pólvora, Jacqueline Britto

2015-01-01

Departing from transformations that are taking place on the space of the Plateau in Praia, Cape Verde, this paper discusses how these transformations are affecting the daily and working lives of the female street vendors in the city. It is an ethnographic study conducted with the ladies, also taking into account official data available from the institutional offices in Praia. It focuses on the tensions and disputes around the space, given significant changes that have been promoted by the ...

EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT ACROSS COUNTRIES AND TIMES - MEASUREMENT INVARIANCE

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Dana Mesner Andolšek

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Employee organisational commitment has been long and extensively studied until now (Meyer & Allen, 1997; Jaussi, 2007.An emphasis of current analysis was to verify its measurement characteristics, for the purpose of comparisons of levels of commitment across time and countries. A limited set of countries was chosen among those available in a sample from the data on Work Orientations II, ISSP 1997, purpose fully selected to reflect cultural and structural differences that was expected to affect change in levels of organisational commitment. With the use of structural equations models we first confirmed that a model for configural invariance for two factors measuring conceptually distinct components of Affective commitment (AC and Continuance commitment (CC respectively has better support than of one factor model. Metric and error term invariance was subsequently confirmed. Scalar equivalence, needed for valid comparison of mean levels of both components of commitment, was confirmed as well, with the exception of two country specific Tau coefficient. Finally, a model thus established was applied additionally on data from2005 ISSP. Acceptable fit was achieved for a common model containing both points in time and all countries, which allowed making more firm conclusions about the changes in AC and CC in different countries.

On the Performance Potential of Connection Fault-Tolerant Commit Processing in Mobile Environment

OpenAIRE

Tome Dimovski; Pece Mitrevski

2012-01-01

Mobile inventory, mobile commerce, banking and/or commercial applications are some distinctive examples that increasingly use distributed transactions. It is inevitably harder to design efficient commit protocols, due to some intrinsic mobile environment limitations. A handful of protocols for transaction processing have been offered, but the majority considers only a limited number of communication models. We introduce an improved Connection Fault-Tolerant model and evaluate its performance ...

Exploring Value Cocreation in Relationships Between an ERP Vendor and its Partners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sarker, Suprateek; Sarker, Saonee; Sahaym, Arvin

2012-01-01

cocreation within business-to business(B2B) contexts. Using a revelatory case study of the relationship between an ERP vendor with a global reputation and its partners, and informed by the resource-based view of the firm and related theoretical perspectives, we develop an understanding of value cocreation...... in B2B alliances associated with selling, extending, and implementing packaged software, specifically ERP systems. Our study reveals that there are different mechanisms underlying value cocreation within B2B alliances, and also points to several categories of contingency factors that influence...

[Culture and cultural gaps in work teams: implications for organisational commitment].

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez, José C; Lanero, Ana; Yurrebaso, Amaia; Tejero, Blanca

2007-05-01

Some theoreticians of organisational commitment have proposed that culture is an important determinant of organisational commitment. Nevertheless, very few studies have examined the role that work teams culture (subculture) and their cultural gaps play in commitment. This study is an attempt to overcome this lack. Using a sample of 375 work teams from various public and private organisations, it was found that the results confirmed our proposals. Cultural gaps were negatively related to commitment; the teams subculture was positively related to commitment, and more highly to commitment to values than to commitment to continuing. Contrary to the results of other studies, the demographic variables (age, time on the team, time in the company) were not significant, except that educational level was related to the commitment to continue. The implications of these results are analysed.

Which serial killers commit suicide? An exploratory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Lester, David; White, John

2012-11-30

In a sample of 483 serial killers, 6.2% were documented to have committed suicide. Those who committed suicide were found to come from more dysfunctional homes characterized by more psychiatric disturbance in the parents. The sexual acts involved in the murders by the suicides seemed to be more deviant in some aspects, such as committing more bizarre sexual acts or more often taping the murder. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

24 CFR 891.818 - Firm commitment application.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Firm commitment application. 891.818 Section 891.818 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban... Persons with Disabilities § 891.818 Firm commitment application. The sponsor will submit the firm...

Use of three-dimensional speckle tracking to assess left ventricular myocardial mechanics: inter-vendor consistency and reproducibility of strain measurements.

Science.gov (United States)

Badano, Luigi P; Cucchini, Umberto; Muraru, Denisa; Al Nono, Osama; Sarais, Cristiano; Iliceto, Sabino

2013-03-01

Since there is insufficient data available about the inter-vendor consistency of three-dimensional (3D) speckle-tracking (STE) measurements, we undertook this study to (i) assess the inter-vendor consistency of 3D LV global strain values obtained using two different scanners; (ii) identify the sources of inter-vendor inconsistencies, if any; and (iii) compare their respective intrinsic variability. Sixty patients (38 ± 12 years, 64% males) with a wide range of LV end-diastolic volumes (from 74 to 205 ml) and ejection fractions (from 17 to 70%) underwent two 3D LV data set acquisitions using VividE9 and Artida ultrasound systems. Global longitudinal (Lε), radial (Rε), circumferential (Cε) and area (Aε) strain values were obtained offline using the corresponding 3D STE softwares. Despite being significantly different, Lε showed the closest values between the two platforms (bias = 1.5%, limits of agreement (LOA) from -2.9 to -5.9%, P < 0.05). Artida produced significantly higher values of both Cε and Aε than VividE9 (bias = 6.6, LOA: -14.1 to 0.9%, and bias = 6.0, LOA = -28.2-8.6%, respectively, P < 0.001). Conversely, Rε values obtained with Artida were significantly lower than those measured using VividE9 platform (bias = -24.2, LOA: 1.5-49.9, P < 0.001). All strain components showed good reproducibility (intra-class correlation coefficients: 0.82-0.98), except for Rε by Artida, which showed only a moderate reproducibility. Apart from Lε, the inter-vendor agreement of Rε, Cε and Aε measured with Artida and VividE9 was poor. Reference values should be specific for each system and baseline and follow-up data in longitudinal studies should be obtained using the same 3D STE platform.

Third age university, social and institucional commitment

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Flora Moritz da Silva

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article brings reflections on the social commitment of permanent education programs for the elderly, at the universities, in the face of their institutional commitment to the plans. It was possible to rescue the responsibility concepts, social commitment and identify the elderly in the university, within the federal legislation, through bibliographical and documentary research. There was a survey of permanent education programs with at least 20 years, in 2016. It was carried out for the elderly in the 63 Brazilian Federal, and Public Universities and 17 cases were found. Thus, nine Pro-Rectors of Extension and a Unit Director accepted to participate in interviews by Skype or telephone, in the second semester of 2016, fulfilling the objective of describing the university authorities’ vision on the type of institutional support for such programs’ operation. Although it is possible to realize their relevance to the environment and the university, the institutional commitment is still far short of what is necessary.

Effects of Team and Organizational Commitment--A Longitudinal Study

Science.gov (United States)

Neininger, Alexandra; Lehmann-Willenbrock, Nale; Kauffeld, Simone; Henschel, Angela

2010-01-01

Retention management, i.e., keeping qualified employees, is a top priority for contemporary organizations. Commitment, and especially team commitment, can be the key to mastering this challenge. There is a lack of longitudinal research concerning the development and the direction of the effects of team commitment over time. In a longitudinal…

The dimensionality of professional commitment

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Jeffrey J. Bagraim

2003-10-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the dimensionality of professional commitment amongst a sample of 240 South African actuaries. Data were obtained, via a mailed questionnaire, from members of the South African Actuarial Society employed in the financial services industry. Statistical analysis conducted on the data showed that the 3-component model first proposed by Meyer, Allen and Smith (1993 is appropriate for understanding professional commitment amongst South African professionals. The analysis also showed that South African actuaries are highly committed to their profession. Opsomming Hierdie artikel ondersoek die dimensionaliteit van professionele toewyding by ‘n steekproef van 240 Suid-Afrikaanse aktuarisse. Die data is verkry deur ‘n posvraelys aan lede van die Suid-Afrikaanse Aktuariële Vereniging wat in die finansiële dienstesektor werksaam was. Statistiese ontledings wat uitgevoer is op die data dui aan dat die driekomponentmodel, aanvanklik voorgestel deur Meyer, Allen en Smith (1993, geskik is om professionele toewyding by Suid-Afrikaanse beroepslui te verstaan. Die ontleding dui verder aan dat Suid-Afrikaanse aktuarisse hoogs toegewyd is aan hulle professie.

Understanding the Links between Work Commitment Constructs.

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Hackett, Rick D.; Lapierre, Laurent M.; Hausdorf, Peter A.

2001-01-01

In a study of 852 nurses, work involvement (value of work in their lives) affected organizational and occupational commitment through its effect on job involvement. Job involvement indirectly affected intention to leave the organization or occupation. Work and job involvement and orgnanizational and occupational commitment were determined to be…

On Entry Deterrence and Imperfectly Observable Commitment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poulsen, Anders

2001-01-01

We analyse a simple entry-deterrence game, where a `Potential Intruder' only imperfectly observes the decision of an `Incumbent' to commit or to not commit to fight any entry by the Potential Intruder. Our game generalises the one studied in Bonanno (1992) by allowing for a richer information tec...

Education on the Internet: Anonymity vs. Commitment.

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Dreyfus, Hubert L.

1998-01-01

Argues that learning a skill requires the kind of commitment which is undermined by the Press (the Public) and the Internet, citing Soren Kierkegaard's "The Present Age", and states that learning by apprenticeship is impossible in cyberspace. Includes: aesthetic sphere--commitment to the enjoyment of sheer information; ethical…

Considerations in civil commitment of individuals with substance use disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Cavaiola, Alan A; Dolan, David

2016-01-01

Several states currently have enacted laws that allow for civil commitment for individuals diagnosed with severe substance use disorders. Civil commitment or involuntary commitment refers to the legal process by which individuals with mental illness are court-ordered into inpatient and/or outpatient treatment programs. Although initially civil commitment laws were intended for individuals with severe mental illness, these statutes have been extended to cover individuals with severe substance use disorders. Much of the recent legislation allowing for civil commitment of individuals with substance use disorders has come about in response to the heroin epidemic and is designed to provide an alternative to the unrelenting progression of opioid use disorders. Civil commitment also provides an opportunity for individuals with opioid use disorders to make informed decisions regarding ongoing or continued treatment. However, civil commitment also raises concerns regarding the potential violation of 14th Amendment rights, specifically pertaining to abuses of deprivation of liberty or freedom, which are guaranteed under the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution. This commentary examines these issues while supporting the need for effective brief civil commitment legislation in all states.

Motivated reconstruction: The effect of brand commitment on false memories.

Science.gov (United States)

Montgomery, Nicole Votolato; Rajagopal, Priyali

2018-06-01

Across 5 studies, we examine the effect of prior brand commitment on the creation of false memories about product experience after reading online product reviews. We find that brand commitment and the valence of reviews to which consumers are exposed, interact to affect the incidence of false memories. Thus, highly committed consumers are more susceptible to the creation of false experience memories on exposure to positive versus negative reviews, whereas low commitment consumers exhibit similar levels of false memories in response to both positive and negative reviews. Further, these differences across brand commitment are attenuated when respondents are primed with an accuracy motivation, suggesting that the biasing effects of commitment are likely because of the motivation to defend the committed brand. Finally, we find that differences in false memories subsequently lead to differences in intentions to spread word-of-mouth (e.g., recommend the product to friends), suggesting that the consequences of false product experience memories can be significant for marketers and consumers. Our findings contribute to the literatures in false memory and marketing by documenting a motivated bias in false memories because of brand commitment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Software-as-a-Service Vendors: Are They Ready to Successfully Deliver?

Science.gov (United States)

Heart, Tsipi; Tsur, Noa Shamir; Pliskin, Nava

Software as a service (SaaS) is a software sourcing option that allows organizations to remotely access enterprise applications, without having to install the application in-house. In this work we study vendors' readiness to deliver SaaS, a topic scarcely studied before. The innovation classification (evolutionary vs. revolutionary) and a new, Seven Fundamental Organizational Capabilities (FOCs) Model, are used as the theoretical frameworks. The Seven FOCs model suggests generic yet comprehensive set of capabilities that are required for organizational success: 1) sensing the stakeholders, 2) sensing the business environment, 3) sensing the knowledge environment, 4) process control, 5) process improvement, 6) new process development, and 7) appropriate resolution.

A Decision-Making Model for Deterring Food Vendors from Selling Harmless Low-Quality Foods as High-Quality Foods to Consumers

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Po-Yu Chen

2017-01-01

Full Text Available For certain types of foods, food vendors often label low-quality foods that are harmless to human health as foods of excellent quality and sell these falsely labeled products to consumers. Because this type of food poses no harm to human health, when public health units discover their act of false labeling or food adulteration, vendors are only penalized with a fine rather than having them assume criminal liability. Upon discovering vendors act of falsely labeling food, public health units typically punish the involved parties according to the extent of false labeling. Such static protective measure is ineffective. Instead, the extent of punishment should be based not only on the extent of false labeling, but also on the frequency of food sampling as well as the number of samples obtained for food inspections. Only through this dynamic approach can food adulteration or false labeling be effectively prevented. Adopting the standpoint of the public sector in food safety management, this study developed a mathematical model that facilitates discussion on the aforementioned problems. Furthermore, we discussed how the supply-demand environmental factors of the food market are influenced by the administrative means that the public health units have used to prevent food false labeling.

Collective dose commitments from nuclear power programmes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beninson, D.

1977-01-01

The concepts of collective dose and collective dose commitment are discussed, particularly regarding their use to compare the relative importance of the exposure from several radiation sources and to predict future annual doses from a continuing practice. The collective dose commitment contributions from occupational exposure and population exposure due to the different components of the nuclear power fuel cycle are evaluated. A special discussion is devoted to exposures delivered over a very long time by released radionuclides of long half-lives and to the use of the incomplete collective dose commitment. The maximum future annual ''per caput'' doses from present and projected nuclear power programmes are estimated

Quantum bit commitment with cheat sensitive binding and approximate sealing

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yan-Bing; Xu, Sheng-Wei; Huang, Wei; Wan, Zong-Jie

2015-04-01

This paper proposes a cheat-sensitive quantum bit commitment scheme based on single photons, in which Alice commits a bit to Bob. Here, Bob’s probability of success at cheating as obtains the committed bit before the opening phase becomes close to \\frac{1}{2} (just like performing a guess) as the number of single photons used is increased. And if Alice alters her committed bit after the commitment phase, her cheating will be detected with a probability that becomes close to 1 as the number of single photons used is increased. The scheme is easy to realize with present day technology.

The Influence of Culture on Teacher Commitment

Science.gov (United States)

Abd Razak, Nordin; Darmawan, I. Gusti Ngurah; Keeves, John P.

2010-01-01

Culture is believed to be an important factor that influences various aspects of human life, such as behaviour, thinking, perceptions and attitudes. This article examines the similarities and differences in the influence of culture on teacher commitment in three types of Malaysian primary schools. Since commitment to teaching has rarely been…

Policy Uncertainty, Investment and Commitment Periods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-07-01

Today's investment decisions in key sectors such as energy, forestry or transport have significant impacts on the levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions over the coming decades. Given the economic and environmental long-term implications of capital investment and retirement, a climate mitigation regime should aim to encourage capital investment in climate-friendly technologies. Many factors affect technology choice and the timing of investment, including investor expectations about future prices and policies. Recent international discussions have focused on the importance of providing more certainty about future climate policy stringency. The design of commitment periods can play a role in creating this environment. This paper assesses how the length of commitment periods influences policy uncertainty and investment decisions. In particular, the paper analyses the relationship between commitment period length and near term investment decisions in climate friendly technology.

Licensing Strategies of the Entreprising - But Vulnerable - `Intellectual property' Vendors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davis, Lee N.

This paper investigates in an exploratory manner the licensing strategies pursued by firms whose business model is based on developing and licensing out their intellectual property rights (IPRs). These are not traditional suppliers, since they do not engage in production or commercialization...... be differentiated along two main dimensions: whether the driving force behind the inventive process is "technology push" or "market pull", and the degree to which the innovative activities carried out by the IP vendor are mutually dependent upon the innovative activities of the other relevant market players....... On this basis, four main licensing strategies are identified. We investigate the relative benefits and costs of these four strategies, and the factors affecting licensing choices.Key words: Intellectual property, licensing, strategyJEL Codes: O31, OO34...

An empirical investigation on relationship between social capital and organizational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Alikhani

2014-02-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an empirical investigation to study the relationship between social capital and organizational commitment. The study considers the relationship between social capital with three components of organizational commitment; namely, affective commitment, continuous and normative commitment. The study has been applied among a sample of 292 regular employees who worked for an Iranian bank located in city of Tehran, Iran. The implementation of Pearson correlation has indicated that there were positive and meaningful relationships between social capital and affective commitment (r = 0.197, Sig. = 0.01, continuous (r = 0.308, Sig. = 0.01 and normative commitment (r = 0.423, Sig. = 0.01. In addition, the study has detected that women had more commitment on their organization than men did. The proposed study of this paper has also considered a regression model where organizational commitment is dependent variable and trust and communication are considered as independent variables. According to the results of regression analysis, an increase of one unit in trust and social capital communication will increase organizational commitment by 0.189 and 0.204, respectively.

Figures of criminal offences that are committed through mass media

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Mirvete Uka

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The rapid development of information technology created endless possibilities for the information and communication between people in the world. This made possible that within few seconds information could be elaborated. In the meantime that freedom of speech and opinion are protected with all international conventions and laws, this freedom and together with it also the possibilities and actual standards endanger to put in service of the persons which in one form or another, damage the general interest. The study seeks to explain cases, forms and methods of how the presence in media can be misused. Based in the Criminal Code of Republic of Kosovo there are the range of criminal offenses which can be committed through mass communication in general and sometimes also through more serious media, written or electronic. The major number of them has to do with such acts that help terrorism, encourage race and religious hatred and in different forms, the use of children for pornography, risking in this manner the greater values of humanism anywhere in the world. The fact of abolition of special dispositions for criminal offenses that are committed through media does not mean that the danger from committing these acts does not exist. It is based in the fact that criminal responsibility lays directly on the crime committer and not on the director or publisher of certain media, in the meantime the last ones should be careful not to be in the service of crime instigators by giving space to publication.

Using Object Storage Technology vs Vendor Neutral Archives for an Image Data Repository Infrastructure.

Science.gov (United States)

Bialecki, Brian; Park, James; Tilkin, Mike

2016-08-01

The intent of this project was to use object storage and its database, which has the ability to add custom extensible metadata to an imaging object being stored within the system, to harness the power of its search capabilities, and to close the technology gap that healthcare faces. This creates a non-disruptive tool that can be used natively by both legacy systems and the healthcare systems of today which leverage more advanced storage technologies. The base infrastructure can be populated alongside current workflows without any interruption to the delivery of services. In certain use cases, this technology can be seen as a true alternative to the VNA (Vendor Neutral Archive) systems implemented by healthcare today. The scalability, security, and ability to process complex objects makes this more than just storage for image data and a commodity to be consumed by PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System) and workstations. Object storage is a smart technology that can be leveraged to create vendor independence, standards compliance, and a data repository that can be mined for truly relevant content by adding additional context to search capabilities. This functionality can lead to efficiencies in workflow and a wealth of minable data to improve outcomes into the future.

Patriotism, organizational commitment and nurses' intention to report for work in emergencies.

Science.gov (United States)

Kagan, I; Itzhaki, M; Melnikov, S

2017-12-01

To examine the influence of nurses' patriotism and organizational commitment on their intention to report for work in a national emergency, in Israel. Healthcare systems need to forecast the number of staff likely to report for work in emergencies and mass casualty events. Patriotism and nurses' commitment to work are factors that prompt nurses to leave their families and report for duty, even knowing that they are putting themselves in danger. However, patriotism as a variable that might affect nurses' intention to report for work in emergencies has not been investigated. A descriptive, cross-sectional survey was used with a convenience sample of 152 registered nurses. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficients and t-tests were used to analyse the data. To examine the unique contribution of the independent variables to the explanation of the dependent variable - intention to report to work in emergency - multiple regression analysis was performed. Significant positive correlations were found between age, seniority and research variables (organizational commitment, patriotism and intention to report for emergency work). Patriotism differed by gender, ethnicity and religion. Patriotism and gender explained 23% of the variance regarding intention to report for emergency duty, with patriotism playing a major role. Patriotism has religious and cultural dimensions. Cultural differences explain the discrepancy in organizational commitment between Israeli-born nurses and immigrants. Emergency training drills for nurses should feature discussions on universal ethical principles in emergency planning, preparedness and responses. The willingness of ethnic/religious minorities and immigrants to report for work in a national emergency should be taken into consideration in healthcare system disaster planning, so as to lessen the impact of disparate patriotism. © 2017 International Council of Nurses.

Attachment to God, religious tradition, and firm attributes in workplace commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Kent, Blake Victor

2017-01-01

Research on organizational commitment suggests there is an association between American theists' emotional attachment to God and their emotional commitment to the workplace. A sense of divine calling has been shown to partially mediate this association but, beyond that, little is known. The purpose of this study is to shed further light on the relationship between secure attachment to God and affective organizational commitment. I do so by testing whether the employee's religious tradition is associated with affective organizational commitment and whether the employee's firm attributes moderate the relationship between attachment to God and organizational commitment. Results suggest that: 1) Catholics evince higher levels of organizational commitment than Evangelicals, and 2) firm size significantly moderates the relationship between attachment to God and organizational commitment across religious affiliations.

Sexually Violent Predators and Civil Commitment Laws

Science.gov (United States)

Beyer Kendall, Wanda D.; Cheung, Monit

2004-01-01

This article analyzes the civil commitment models for treating sexually violent predators (SVPs) and analyzes recent civil commitment laws. SVPs are commonly defined as sex offenders who are particularly predatory and repetitive in their sexually violent behavior. Data from policy literature, a survey to all states, and a review of law review…

Juvenile Court Commitment Rates: The National Picture.

Science.gov (United States)

Sosin, Michael

There is less geographic variation in the commitment rate of juvenile offenders than is commonly assumed. Apparently, judges across the country develop a similar standard of what percentage of youths they face should be committed. This standard may be similar across the country because it represents broadly shared ideals. However, there is much…

Commitment and the New Employment Relationship : Exploring a Forgotten Perspective: Employers Commitment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Torka, Nicole; Looise, Jan Kees; van Riemsdijk, Maarten

2005-01-01

In this article, we have endeavoured to integrate the concept 'employers’ commitment' into the understanding of the new employment relationship. HRM scholars and practitioners assume that changes in (international) market and employee characteristics lead to a transformation of the employer-employee

The Effect of Vendor Trustworthiness toward Online Purchase Intention through Costumer Trust (P.189-197

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Adiwijaya

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The using of internet technology in business field facilitates the online product sales. There are many challenges and obstacles faced by customers when they would like to buy product via online, for instance the process of technology adoption, online crime activities, etc. This situation creates customer doubtfullness and worries for engaging in purchasing product via online. Trust plays significant role in affecting customer intention to purchase products via online. The previous research findings showed the antecedents of customer trust but those findings only explained the phenomenon based on one single perspective for example from the customer perspective, the technology perspective, and the vendor perspective. The focus of this research is analyzing the influence of vendor trustworthiness (ability, benevolence, and integrity towards individual features (customer trust and customer purchase intention. The research has been done in Surabaya through questionairre survey design by using the customers who had purchase product via online as the respondent. Structural equation modelling is used to analyze the research data. The findings revealed the antecendent of customer trust and its influence on customer online purchase intention comprehensively.Keywords: Ability, Benevolence, Integrity, Consumer Trust, Purchase Intention, Online

Trust, Commitment and Competitive Advantage in SMEs Export Performance

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Md Daud Ismail

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The entry of small businesses into international markets has intensified. However, despite the growing presence of small businesses in international markets, studies into their international behavior, particularly regarding the effect of international relationships on international outcomes, remain limited. This study investigates the cross-border relationships of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs by examining the effects of the dimensions of the key relationship on the competitive advantage and performance of SMEs in export markets. These dimensions include trust and commitment. Results indicate that trust is significantly related to commitment and export performance. Commitment is positively related to competitive advantage but not to export performance. Trust affects competitive advantage through commitment. The effect of commitment on export performance is mediated by competitive advantage. The methodology and results are presented. The conclusion, implications, and limitations of this study are also discussed.

The Mediating Role of Conflict Management Styles Between Organizational Justice and Affective Commitment Among Academic Staffs in Malaysian Public Universities

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Mohd Kassim Muhammad Asyraf

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This study analyzes in deep the effects of two major dimensions in organizational justice such as procedural and distributive justice on affective commitment through three conflict management styles such as integrating, compromising, and avoiding styles. These relationships are analyzed in advance on the extent of academic staff in Malaysian Public Universities. Partial Least Squares of Structural equation modelling (SEM and Statistical Package Social Science (SPSS are utilized to determine the effect of the two variables and the mediating effect of the conflict management styles. The results exhibit that procedural and distributive justice is significantly related with integrating, and compromising styles while not significantly related to avoiding style. It also revealed that integrating and compromising styles were significant with affective commitment while avoiding style does not relate with affective commitment. In conclusion, the results also showed only integrating and compromising styles mediate the relationship between procedural and distributive justice and affective commitment.

Linking Affective Commitment, Career Self-Efficacy, and Outcome Expectations: A Test of Social Cognitive Career Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Conklin, Amanda M.; Dahling, Jason J.; Garcia, Pablo A.

2013-01-01

The authors tested a model based on the satisfaction model of social cognitive career theory (SCCT) that links college students' affective commitment to their major (the emotional identification that students feel toward their area of study) with career decision self-efficacy (CDSE) and career outcome expectations. Results indicate that CDSE…

Business Case Analysis of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center Medical/Surgical Prime Vendor Generation III Service Level Electron Program

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Markot, Peter B

2007-01-01

...) staffing and medical/surgical services offered under the Prime Vendor (PV) Generation III contract would provide the best supply chain management solution for Walter Reed Army Medical Center (WRAMC...

Annex I commitments: adverse economic impacts on developing countries: myth or reality?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pathak, M.K.; Gupta, S.; Bhandari, P. [Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi (India)

2000-07-01

This document examines the claim that legally binding commitments undertaken by Annex I Parties to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions would result in adverse economic impacts on developing countries. This is examined through the case of the Indian economy. The impact of a range of carbon taxes on trade between India and the US (a major trading partner) is analysed, using a partial, static framework. This study reveals that impacts on India of commitments of Annex I countries to comply with emissions reduction targets 'prima facie' are marginal. However, economies importing capital intensive products from Annex I countries are likely to have adverse second-order impacts. In such a scenario, there is a case for increased south-south trade with increased flows from countries with a large industrial base. Higher costs in Annex I countries will have a two-fold effect on developing economies in the long-term: more rapid evolution of their indigenous industrial base and positive environmental transitions that accompany development. (author)

How does burnout impact the three components of nursing professional commitment?

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Hao-Yuan; Shyu, Yea-Ing Lotus; Wong, May-Kuen; Chu, Tsung-Lan; Lo, Yuan-Yu; Teng, Ching-I

2017-12-01

While the impact of burnout on organisational commitment has been widely observed, its impact on nursing professional commitment has not previously been investigated. The literature has clarified that professional commitment has three distinct components: affective, continuance and normative. This study aims to investigate the relationships between burnout and the three components of nursing professional commitment. This was a cross-sectional study using questionnaires to collect data in one large medical centre. Responses from 571 nurses were used for regression analysis. Among the sampled nurses, 90.9% had professional commitment came from Meyer et al. (J Appl Psychol, 78, 1993 and 538) a formally validated instrument. Analytical results indicated that burnout is negatively related to affective and normative professional commitment (B ≤ -0.09, p professional commitment (B = 0.05, p > 0.05). Nurse managers aiming to improve nurses' professional commitment should consider reducing nurses' burnout, for example improving nursing optimism and reducing administrative tasks, as suggested by the literature. © 2017 Nordic College of Caring Science.

Experimental bit commitment based on quantum communication and special relativity.

Science.gov (United States)

Lunghi, T; Kaniewski, J; Bussières, F; Houlmann, R; Tomamichel, M; Kent, A; Gisin, N; Wehner, S; Zbinden, H

2013-11-01

Bit commitment is a fundamental cryptographic primitive in which Bob wishes to commit a secret bit to Alice. Perfectly secure bit commitment between two mistrustful parties is impossible through asynchronous exchange of quantum information. Perfect security is however possible when Alice and Bob split into several agents exchanging classical and quantum information at times and locations suitably chosen to satisfy specific relativistic constraints. Here we report on an implementation of a bit commitment protocol using quantum communication and special relativity. Our protocol is based on [A. Kent, Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 130501 (2012)] and has the advantage that it is practically feasible with arbitrary large separations between the agents in order to maximize the commitment time. By positioning agents in Geneva and Singapore, we obtain a commitment time of 15 ms. A security analysis considering experimental imperfections and finite statistics is presented.

Changes in commitment to change among leaders in home help services.

Science.gov (United States)

Westerberg, Kristina; Tafvelin, Susanne

2015-07-06

The purpose of the this study was to explore the development of commitment to change among leaders in the home help services during organizational change and to study this development in relation to workload and stress. During organizational change initiatives, commitment to change among leaders is important to ensure the implementation of the change. However, little is known of development of commitment of change over time. The study used a qualitative design with semi-structured interviews with ten leaders by the time an organizational change initiative was launched and follow-up one year later. Thematic content analysis was used to analyze the interviews. Commitment to change is not static, but seems to develop over time and during organizational change. At the first interview, leaders had a varied pattern reflecting different dimensions of commitment to change. One year later, the differences between leaders' commitment to change was less obvious. Differences in commitment to change had no apparent relationship with workload or stress. The data were collected from one organization, and the number of participants were small which could affect the results on workload and stress in relation to commitment to change. It is important to support leaders during organizational change initiatives to maintain their commitment. One way to accomplish this is to use management team meetings to monitor how leaders perceive their situation. Qualitative, longitudinal and leader studies on commitment to change are all unusual, and taken together, this study shows new aspects of commitment.

Three components of organizational commitment and job satisfaction of hospital nurses in Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Jahangir, Fridoon; Shokrpour, Nasrin

2009-01-01

To measure the relationship between job satisfaction and the 3 components of organizational commitment. Most of the research conducted in the West has shown a positive relationship between organizational commitment and job satisfaction of nurses; however, the relationship between the components of organizational commitment and job satisfaction is not well established in Iranian samples. This study aimed to investigate the level of organizational commitment and job satisfaction of the hospital nurses in Iran and the interrelationship between the 3 components of commitment and job satisfaction among them. Using the organizational commitment questionnaire developed by Meyer et al (J Appl Psychol. 1993;78:538-551), the 3 components of commitment were measured through a descriptive correlational design. Seven hundred eighty-six licensed nurses working in 12 hospitals participated in the study. One hundred ninety-eight of 220 returned questionnaires were identified as appropriate for the analysis. Affective commitment was positively related to job satisfaction, normative commitment, and experience in nursing, but it was negatively related to continuance commitment. Continuance commitment was negatively related to job satisfaction and affective commitment. Normative commitment was positively related to job satisfaction and affective commitment. The 3 components of commitment are variously related to job satisfaction. Nursing managers should pay attention to different components of commitment variously to promote the appropriate type of commitment needed for specific situation in which they work.

Lack of Commitment? Work Orientations of Finnish Employees in a European Comparison

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teemu Turunen

2014-05-01

Full Text Available It has been argued that individuals’ employment commitment, that is, their commitment to work in general is crucial in today’s labor markets where life-long employment relationships are less frequently offered by organizations. In addition, employees’ organizational commitment, that is, their commitment to their own organization is also vital for organizations and firms, affecting many areas of importance to them. This article asks how Finnish employees rank in both employment commitment and affective organizational commitment compared with employees in 15 other European countries. The data were collected in 2005–2007 through the International Social Survey Program (ISSP, Work Orientation Module III. The results show Finnish employees scoring below European averages in both types of commitment when employee-level and organizationlevel factors are taken into account. Employment commitment was highest in Norway and affective organizational commitment highest in Portugal. The perceived intrinsic rewards of the job were the strongest predictor of employment and affective organizational commitment in most of the countries researched, increasing both these types of commitment. However, the perceived social relations between management and employees were found to be the most powerful determinant of affective organizational commitment in Finland, with perceived good relations adding to the affective organizational commitment of employees. The data were analyzed mainly by means of a general linear model procedure.

Commentary: civil commitment statutes--40 years of circumvention.

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, William H; Grisso, Thomas

2010-01-01

There is a longstanding body of literature that describes how states' civil commitment statutes have been stretched or circumvented to accommodate institutional and systemic needs. The paper by Levitt and colleagues provides yet another example of this phenomenon: Arizona's use of its civil commitment statutes to detain unrestorable, incompetent criminal defendants for whom other provisions have not been developed. This commentary provides a brief overview of other examples of the stretching of commitment laws, providing a broader context for viewing the findings of Levitt and colleagues.

ANTI-FERTILITY EFFECTS OF SOME PLANTS USED BY THE STREET HERBAL VENDORS FOR BIRTH CONTROL

OpenAIRE

Sinha, Rajiv K.; Nathawat, G.S.

1989-01-01

The Herbal Vendors are the descendants of ancient mobile tribal medicine men. Now –a –days they sell crude Herbal Drugs on the streets of India. They have knowledge of medicinal plants – a skill which inherited from their forefathers. Also they are aware of the medicinal value of certain locally growing plants which are administered and control fertility and, do help family planning.

How could she? Psychosocial analysis of ten homicide cases committed by women.

Science.gov (United States)

Hellen, Florence; Lange-Asschenfeldt, Christian; Ritz-Timme, Stefanie; Verhülsdonk, Sandra; Hartung, Benno

2015-11-01

Ten percent of all homicide perpetrators are female and homicidal acts committed by women are mostly a result of interpersonal conflicts. We carried out a retrospective psychosocial analysis of ten homicide cases committed by women with an urban mid-European background. We evaluated characteristic determinants regarding 1) deed circumstances and motives, 2) the perpetrators, and 3) the victims. Results were compared with the literature on female and male homicides. Autopsy records of the Institute of Legal Medicine of the University Hospital of Düsseldorf, Germany, during the time period from 2006 to 2011 were searched for homicides committed by female perpetrators. Prosecution files were reviewed for further information. The sample comprised N = 10 female homicide perpetrators and eleven victims. The mentioned determinants of the homicide were fairly consistent. All deeds occurred in the domestic context; they were mostly unplanned. All perpetrators were socially isolated and faced socially challenging situations. Most perpetrators were of low socioeconomic status. Furthermore, all victims were helpless and/or dependent on the perpetrator. The presence of a major psychiatric disorder was uncommon and, in contrast to male perpetrators, most women had no previous convictions. The potential value of these core findings in our sample regarding prevention is discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd and Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine. All rights reserved.

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, April-June 1986. Volume 10, No. 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-09-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Program Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from April 1986 through June 1986. Also, included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to April 1986 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Licensee contractor and vendor inspection status report. Quarterly report, July-September 1985. Volume 9, No. 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1985-12-01

This periodical covers the results of inspections performed by the NRC's Vendor Program Branch that have been distributed to the inspected organizations during the period from July 1985 through September 1985. Also included in this issue are the results of certain inspections performed prior to July 1985 that were not included in previous issues of NUREG-0040

Military Internal Medicine Resident Decision to Apply to Fellowship and Extend Military Commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Barsoumian, Alice E; Hartzell, Joshua D; Bonura, Erin M; Ressner, Roseanne A; Whitman, Timothy J; Yun, Heather C

2018-02-06

Nationally, the number of internal medicine physicians practicing in primary care has decreased amidst increasing interest in hospitalist medicine. Current priorities in the Military Health System include access to primary care and retention of trained personnel. Recently, we have conducted a study of military internal medicine residents' decision to enter infectious disease. As part of our larger effort, we saw an opportunity to characterize factors impacting decision making of internal medicine residents' desire to apply for subspecialty training and to extend active duty service obligations. Questions were developed after discussion with various military graduate medical education and internal medicine leaders, underwent external review, and were added to a larger question set. The survey link was distributed electronically to all U.S. military affiliated residencies' graduating internal medicine residents in December 2016-January 2017. Data were analyzed by decision to apply to fellowship and decision to extend military obligation using Fisher's exact test or Pearon's chi-square test. Sixty-eight residents from 10 of 11 military residency programs responded, for a response rate of 51%. The majority (62%) applied to fellowship to start after residency completion. Reasons cited for applying to fellowship included wanting to become a specialist as soon as possible (74%), wishing to avoid being a general internist (57%), and because they are unable to practice as a hospitalist in the military (52%). Fellowship applicants were more likely to plan to extend their military obligation than non-applicants, as did those with longer duration of military commitments. No other factors, including Uniformed Services University attendance or participation in undergraduate military experiences, were found to impact plan to extend active duty service commitment. The majority of graduating internal medicine residents apply for fellowship and report a desire to avoid being a

Commitment bias : mistaken partner selection or ancient wisdom?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Back, Istvan H.

Evidence across the social and behavioral sciences points to psychological mechanisms that facilitate the formation and maintenance of interpersonal commitment. In addition, evolutionary simulation studies suggest that a tendency for increased, seemingly irrational commitment is an important trait

The effect of occupational meaningfulness on occupational commitment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Itai Ivtzan

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Existing research lacks a scholarly consensus on how to define and validly measure ‘meaningful work’ (e.g., Rosso, Dekas & Wrzesniewski, 2010. The following correlational study highlights the value of investigating meaningfulness in the context of occupational commitment. The study hypothesizes that occupational commitment is positively correlated with occupational meaningfulness, where meaningfulness is defined as the extent to which people’s occupations contribute to personal meaning in life. One-hundred and fifty-six full-time office based UK workers completed an online questionnaire including 18 questions measuring levels of occupational commitment (Meyer, Allen & Smith, 1993, in addition to six novel items measuring occupational meaningfulness. The results supported the hypothesis and also showed that the affective sub-type of occupational commitment had the highest correlation with occupational meaningfulness. Such results exhibit the importance of finding meaning at work, as well as the relevance of this to one’s level of commitment to his or her job. This paper argues that individuals should consider OM before choosing to take a specific role, whereas organizations ought to consider the OM of their potential candidates before recruiting them into a role. Possible directions for future research directions are also discussed.

Is There any Relationship between Narcissistic Personality and Organizational Commitment?

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Necmettin Cihangiroglu

2012-04-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: This study aimed at investigating whether there is a correlation between organizational commitment and narcissistic personalty traits. METHOD: In order to measure the GATA Occupation High School of Health Subordinate Officiers’ narcissistic personality traits Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI scala was used. In order to measure students’ organizational commitment Organizational Commitment Questionnaire was used. 229 questionnaire forms were distributed to the Occupation High School of Health Subordinate Officiers’ students, and 220 (%96 of them were returned. Totally 220 students were evaluated. FINDINGS: When students’ narcissistic scores were evaluated out of 16, it was found out that the highest narcissistic personality score (8,98 was taken by second year students, the highest score for organizational commitment (3,70 was taken by first year students, “exploitativeness” which is one of the sub-levels of narcissisim was observed at the highest level with an average of 0,73 out 1 full score, “entitlement” sub level was observed at the lowest level (0,29, “affective commitment” one of the sub-levels of commitment, had the highest average (3,84, “normative commitment” had the second highest average (3,71 and finally “continuance commitment” was observed at the lowest level (3,55. Statistically, there is no significant relationship found between narcissistic personality and organizational commitment. However, there is a significant relationship found between narcissistic personality and continuity commitment. There is a significant and opposite relationship found between organizational commitment and continuity commitment with superiority. There is similar relationship found between exploitation and continuity commitment. CONCLUSION: With respect to these findings, it is suggested that “Health Technicians” candidates’, who will be one of the indispensable constituents of health services

Regulatory commitment management and the managing of licensing documents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roxey, T.E.

1993-01-01

The Regulatory Commitment Management (RCM) Project was designed to strengthen Baltimore Gas ampersand Electric's (BG ampersand E's) ability to identify, implement, and maintain regulatory commitments. The first part of this project involved the development of a clear commitment management process. The second part was the development of a tool that enhances the ability to retrieve information from documents, and the third part of the project dealt with the actual identification of historical commitments. This paper represents the first opportunity for BG ampersand E to discuss some of the success of the second part and the preliminary findings of the third part of the project

BENEFICIAL COALITIONS: KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renata Winkler

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Presently, knowledge is considered as the most strategic resource of organizations. The literature on the subject often raises the issues of commitment. The purpose of the article was to discuss the associations between knowledge management and employee commitment. The article presents the stages of knowledge management and describes the category of commitment, taking account of several criteria. In the opinion of the authors, from the point of view of knowledge management particular importance can be attained to the way qualifications, skills, predispositions and knowledge of employees will be used, which, in turn, depends on "quality" of their commitment (its type, intensity, dimension and direction in achieving organizational goals.

The configural approach to organisational commitment: An application in Ghana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edward O. Akoto

2014-12-01

Research purpose: To test the theory on profiles of commitment in an African context (Ghana. Motivation for the study: Although the three-component model of organisational commitment has been extended to several regions of Africa, there is a paucity of research on profiles of commitment on the continent. Research approach, design and method: Cross-sectional data from two studies, with samples of 187 and 218, were analysed using k-means clusters. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA was then used to test the differences amongst profiles in their association with contextual variables, such as pay satisfaction, job security, strike propensity and two demographic factors. Main findings: In the k-means cluster analysis, a six-cluster solution emerged in both studies;the profiles include the highly committed and the uncommitted groups, as well as the profiles based on normative commitment and continuance commitment. Overall, the MANOVA post hoc outcome shows that the highly committed group reports higher mean scores on the positive outcome variables (e.g. job security than the uncommitted group. Conversely, the uncommitted group scored relatively higher on the negative organisational outcome (propensity to strike. Other mean differences were found in the respective studies on pay satisfaction, collectivism and the demographic factors. Practical/managerial implications: Employing the configural approach to the study of commitment in this region should increase our understanding of the patterns of attachment and their influence on behaviour. Different patterns of attachment exist within the organisation that may be beneficial or detrimental to behaviour on the job. It is, therefore, important for managers to identify these patterns and target organisational policy and resources appropriately. Contribution/value-add: This study applies the concept of commitment profiles to an untested region: an African context. It, therefore, adds to the literature on the

Hospital Based Customization of a Medical Information System

Science.gov (United States)

Rath, Marilyn A.; Ferguson, Julie C.

1983-01-01

A Medical Information System must be current if it is to be a viable adjunct to patient care within a hospital setting. Hospital-based customization provides a means of achieving this timeliness with maximum user satisfaction. It, however, requires a major commitment in personnel time as well as additional software and training expenses. The enhanced control of system modifications and overall flexibility in planning the change process result in enthusiastic support of this approach by many hospitals. The key factors for success include careful selection of local personnel with adequate vendor support, extensive QA control, thorough auditing/validation and direct user involvement.

Predicting Organizational Commitment from Organizational Culture in Turkish Primary Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Ipek, Cemalettin

2010-01-01

This study aims to describe organizational culture and commitment and to predict organizational commitment from organizational culture in Turkish primary schools. Organizational Culture Scale (Ipek "1999") and Organizational Commitment Scale (Balay "2000") were used in the data gathering process. The data were collected from…

Measurement of genotoxic air pollutant exposures in street vendors and school children in and near Bangkok

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruchirawat, Mathuros; Navasumrit, Panida; Settachan, Daam; Tuntaviroon, Jantamas; Buthbumrung, Nantaporn; Sharma, Suman

2005-01-01

The effects of air pollution on human health are a great concern, particularly in big cities with severe traffic problems such as Bangkok, Thailand. In this study, exposure to genotoxic compounds in ambient air was studied by analysis of particle-associated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and benzene through direct measurement of concentrations in air as well as through the use of different biomarkers of exposure: urinary 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) for PAHs and urinary t,t-muconic acid (t,t-MA) for benzene. The study was conducted in various susceptible groups of the population with different occupations in 5 traffic-congested areas of Bangkok, as well as in primary school children. The level of total PAHs on the main roads at various sites ranged from 7.10 to 83.04 ng/m 3 , while benzene levels ranged from 16.35 to 49.25 ppb. In contrast, ambient levels in nearby temples, the control sites, ranged from 1.67 to 3.04 ng/m 3 total PAHs and 10.16 to 16.25 ppb benzene. Street vendors selling clothes were exposed to 16.07 ± 1.64 ng/m 3 total PAHs and 21.97 ± 1.50 ppb benzene, levels higher than in monks and nuns residing in nearby temples (5.34 ± 0.65 ng/m 3 total PAHs and 13.69 ± 0.77 ppb benzene). Grilled-meat vendors in the same area were exposed to both total PAHs and benzene at even higher levels, possibly due to additional formation of PAHs during the grilling of meat (34.27 ± 7.02 ng/m 3 total PAHs; 27.49 ± 2.72 ppb benzene). At the end of the workday, urinary 1-OHP levels in street vendors (0.12 and 0.15 μmol/mol creatinine in clothes and grilled-meat vendors, respectively) were significantly higher than in controls (0.04 μmol/mol creatinine; P 3 and 4.71 ± 0.25 ppb, respectively, higher than those to which children living outside the city were exposed (1.25 ± 0.24 ng/m 3 total PAHs; 2.10 ± 0.16 ppb benzene). At the end of the school day, levels of urinary 1-OHP and t,t-MA were significantly higher (P < 0.001 and P < 0.01, respectively) in

Studying the impact of the organizational commitment on the job performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mojtaba Rafiei

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Success of any organization depends on the performance of its employees. Enhancing organizational commitment among employees is an important aspect to perform better. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of three components of organizational commitment; namely Affective, Continuance and Normative commitment, on employee’s performance. The study is applied among 244 employees of Cooperatives, Labor and Social Welfare department of Markazi Province using a single-stage cluster sampling. The study uses a standard questionnaire for organizational commitment developed by Allen and Meyer and job performance questionnaire developed by Patterson were used to gather data. Structural equations modeling (SEM technique has been used for data analysis. The result of this analysis indicates that the organizational commitment had a positive significant effect on the job performance. In addition, the study also showed that all three dimensions of organizational commitment, Affective, continuance, and normative commitment, had a positive significant effect on the job performance. From the findings, it has been proved that job performance was strongly associated with employee's commitment.

76 FR 32986 - Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the Texas Intermountain Region of the United States

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-07

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Office of the Secretary Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the Texas Intermountain Region of the United States AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior... region of the United States that are interested in doing business with the Department. This outreach...

Commit* to change? A call to end the publication of the phrase ‘commit* suicide’

Science.gov (United States)

Nielsen, Emma; Padmanathan, Prianka; Knipe, Duleeka

2016-01-01

Background. Countering stigma is a fundamental facet of suicide prevention efforts.  Integral to this is the promotion of accurate and sensitive language.  The phrase ‘commit* suicide’ has prompted marked opposition primarily due to the connotations of immorality and illegality.  Methods. The study investigated the frequency of the use of the wordstem ‘commit’, in relation to self-harm and suicidal behaviours, in the three leading suicide-specific academic journals between 2000 and 2015.  Results. One third (34%) of articles published since the year 2000 used the word ‘commit*’ when describing an act of self-harm or suicide. Over half of these articles (57%) used the phrase on more than one occasion, with 6% using it more than 10 times in the same manuscript. The percentage of papers utilising the word ‘commit*’ has fluctuated over time, but there is a promising downward trend in the use of this phrase from 33% in 2000 to 13% in 2015 ( p suicide. Whilst we call for collective responsibility amongst academics and clinicians, editors hold a unique position in ensuring that outdated, inaccurate and stigma-laden terms are expunged from the scientific literature. PMID:28286872

Acceptance and commitment therapy: the new wave of cognitive behavior therapy

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Wahyu Nanda Eka Saputra

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT is one of the major counseling theories today. However, reliability of this theory has received criticism from other theories, which claim to cognitive interventions do not provide added value on behavioral interventions. The theory criticized and showed dissatisfaction with the practice of CBT is the theory of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT. Furthermore, ACT is known to a new generation of CBT.ACT is one of the new counseling approach that can be applied to school counselors to deal with the issues of students in the school.

A Theoretical Bayesian Game Model for the Vendor-Retailer Relation

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Emil CRIŞAN

2012-06-01

Full Text Available We consider an equilibrated supply chain with two equal partners, a vendor and a retailer (also called newsboy type products supply chain. The actions of each partner are driven by profit. Given the fact that at supply chain level are specific external influences which affect the costs and concordant the profit, we use a game theoretic model for the situation, considering costs and demand. At theoretical level, symmetric and asymmetric information patterns are considered for this situation. There are at every supply chain’s level situations when external factors (such as inflation, raw-material rate influence the situation of each partner even if the information is well shared within the chain. The model we propose considers both the external factors and asymmetric information within a supply chain.

ANTECEDENTS OF ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITMENT OF BANKING SECTOR EMPLOYEES IN PAKISTAN

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Abdullah

2012-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to check the association of factors like work environment, job security,pay satisfaction and participation in decision making; with organizational commitment of theemployees, working in the banking sector of Pakistan. Two hundred and fifteen (215 responses toquestionnaire-based survey were collected from managerial and non-managerial employees, andanalyzed. The analysis showed positive correlations between the dependent and independentvariables. The relation between job security and organizational commitment was the most significant,indicating that a secure job can yield higher level of commitment. Work environment also had asignificant relation with organizational commitment, showing that a healthy and friendly workenvironment may enhance an employee’s commitment towards his work and organization. Paysatisfaction and participation in decision-making had low correlations with organizationalcommitment. Age and tenure seemed to affect the commitment of employees, with highercommitment shown for higher age and tenure; whereas gender did not show significant change incommitment level of employees.

[Volunteering in psychiatry: determining factors of attitude and actual commitment].

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Lauber, C; Nordt, C; Falcato, L; Rössler, W

2000-10-01

To assess public attitude, actual working commitment and the respective influence of demographic, psychological and sociological variables on voluntary help in psychiatry. Multiple logistic regression analysis of the results of a representative population survey in Switzerland. Public attitude is mostly positive, but the respective working commitment is small. Attitude depends on gender, psychological factors (social distance, stereotypes), and on attitude to community psychiatry. For the working commitment, clearly distinct predictors are found: age, emotions, participation, and perceived discrimination to the mentally ill. For both attitude and commitment, having a social profession and interest in mass media are predictors. Internationally compared, Switzerland has a positive attitude and a big commitment in lay helping in psychiatry. But attitude is different from actual commitment. Lay helpers' work must be limited to realizable tasks and they need professional recruitment, instruction, and supervision otherwise they tend to be over-burden. The unused potential of voluntary helpers has to be opened specifically, e.g. by involving mass media and opinion-makers.

Meanings for Sex and Commitment Among First Semester College Men and Women: A Mixed-Methods Analysis.

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Olmstead, Spencer B; Anders, Kristin M; Conrad, Kathryn A

2017-08-01

The purpose of this study was to replicate and extend research on the meanings for sex and commitment using a sample of first semester college students (N = 268). We examined responses to a series of open-ended questions about participants' meanings for sex and how they described these meanings as connected with relationship commitment. Our qualitative analyses replicated those of Olmstead, Billen, Conrad, Pasley, and Fincham (2013). Our largest group was the Committers (sex is indicative of love and trust and occurs after commitment is developed in a relationship), followed by Flexibles (sex can hold deep personal meaning, but can also be purely for pleasure and isn't always connected with commitment), and then Recreationers (sex is a basic need or purely for pleasure and is not associated with commitment). Groups were then examined based on demographic characteristics and pre-college hookup experience. Groups were found to differ by gender, relationship status and type, religiosity, and pre-college hookup experience. For example, a greater proportion of women than men were in the Committers group, whereas a greater proportion of men than women were in the Flexibles and Recreationers groups. Those in the Committers group had fewer pre-college hookup partners than Flexibles and Recreationers; however, Flexibles and Recreationers did not differ in number of pre-college hookup partners. We then followed up (at the end of the semester) with a subsample (n = 73) of participants to examine whether meanings for sex and commitment remained stable or changed over a brief period of time. The majority (82.2 %) of participants' meanings remained stable. For those whose meanings shifted, meanings became more consistent with those of the Committers group than the other two groups. Implications for research and sexual and relationship education are discussed.

The Relationship between Career Growth and Organizational Commitment

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Weng, Qingxiong; McElroy, James C.; Morrow, Paula C.; Liu, Rongzhi

2010-01-01

This research examines the relationship between employees' career growth and organizational commitment. Career growth was conceptualized by four factors: career goal progress, professional ability development, promotion speed and remuneration growth, while organizational commitment was conceptualized using Meyer and Allen's (1997) three component…

On the Complexity of Additively Homomorphic UC Commitments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trifiletti, Roberto; Nielsen, Jesper Buus; Frederiksen, Tore Kasper

2016-01-01

as the commitment protocol by Garay \\emph{et al.} from Eurocrypt 2014. A main technical improvement over the scheme mentioned above, and other schemes based on using error correcting codes for UC commitment, we develop a new technique which allows to based the extraction property on erasure decoding as opposed...... to error correction. This allows to use a code with significantly smaller minimal distance and allows to use codes without efficient decoding. Our scheme only relies on standard assumptions. Specifically we require a pseudorandom number generator, a linear error correcting code and an ideal oblivious......, we manage to add the additive homo- morphic property, while at the same time reducing the constants. In fact, when opening a large enough batch of commitments we achieve an amor- tized communication complexity converging to the length of the message committed to, i.e., we achieve close to rate 1...

Sport commitment and participation in masters swimmers: the influence of coach and teammates.

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Santi, Giampaolo; Bruton, Adam; Pietrantoni, Luca; Mellalieu, Stephen

2014-01-01

This study investigated how coach and teammates influence masters athletes' sport commitment, and the effect of functional and obligatory commitments on participation in masters swimming. The sample consisted of 523 masters swimmers (330 males and 193 females) aged between 22 and 83 years (M = 39.00, SD = 10.42). A bi-dimensional commitment scale was used to measure commitment dimensions and perceived influence from social agents. Structural equation modelling analysis was conducted to evaluate the influence of social agents on functional and obligatory commitments, and the predictive capabilities of the two types of commitment towards sport participation. Support provided by coach and teammates increased functional commitment, constraints from these social agents determined higher obligatory commitment, and coach constraints negatively impacted functional commitment. In addition, both commitment types predicted training participation, with functional commitment increasing participation in team training sessions, and obligatory commitment increasing the hours of individual training. The findings suggest that in order to increase participation in masters swimming teams and reduce non-supervised training, coach and teammates should exhibit a supportive attitude and avoid over expectation.

Factor analysis and Mokken scaling of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire in nurses.

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Al-Yami, M; Galdas, P; Watson, R

2018-03-22

To generate an Arabic version of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire that would be easily understood by Arabic speakers and would be sensitive to Arabic culture. The nursing workforce in Saudi Arabia is undergoing a process of Saudization but there is a need to understand the factors that will help to retain this workforce. No organizational commitment tools exist in Arabic that are specifically designed for health organizations. An Arabic version of the organizational commitment tool could aid Arabic speaking employers to understand their employees' perceptions of their organizations. Translation and back-translation followed by factor analysis (principal components analysis and confirmatory factor analysis) to test the factorial validity and item response theory (Mokken scaling). A two-factor structure was obtained for the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire comprising Factor 1: Value commitment; and Factor 2: Commitment to stay with acceptable reliability measured by internal consistency. A Mokken scale was obtained including items from both factors showing a hierarchy of items running from commitment to the organization and commitment to self. This study shows that the Arabic version of the OCQ retained the established two-factor structure of the original English-language version. Although the two factors - 'value commitment' and 'commitment to stay' - repudiate the original developers' single factor claim. A useful insight into the structure of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire has been obtained with the novel addition of a hierarchical scale. The Organizational Commitment Questionnaire is now ready to be used with nurses in the Arab speaking world and could be used a tool to measure the contemporary commitment of nursing employees and in future interventions aimed at increasing commitment and retention of valuable nursing staff. © 2018 International Council of Nurses.

Exercisers' identities and exercise dependence: the mediating effect of exercise commitment.

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Lu, Frank Jing-Horng; Hsu, Eva Ya-Wen; Wang, Junn-Ming; Huang, Mei-Yao; Chang, Jo-Ning; Wang, Chien-Hsin

2012-10-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the associations of exercise identity, exercise commitment, exercise dependence, and, particularly, the mediating effects of exercise commitment on the relationship between exercise identity and exercise dependence. 253 Taiwanese regular exercisers completed measures, including the Exercise Dependence Scale-Revised, the Exercise Identity Scale, the Exercise Commitment Scale, and the Godin Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire. Results showed that exercise identity, exercise dependence, and two types of exercise commitment were moderately to highly correlated. Furthermore, structural equation modelling indicated that a "have to" commitment partially mediated the relationship between exercise identity and exercise dependence. Based on the mediating role of a "have to" commitment, the findings are particularly informative to exercise instructors and for exercise program managers.

Possibility, impossibility, and cheat sensitivity of quantum-bit string commitment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Buhrman, H.; Christandl, M.; Hayden, P.; Lo, H.-K.; Wehner, S.

2008-01-01

Unconditionally secure nonrelativistic bit commitment is known to be impossible in both the classical and the quantum worlds. But when committing to a string of n bits at once, how far can we stretch the quantum limits? In this paper, we introduce a framework for quantum schemes where Alice commits

Predictors of career commitment and job performance of Jordanian nurses.

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Mrayyan, Majd T; Al-Faouri, Ibrahim

2008-04-01

Few studies focused on nurses' career commitment and nurses' job performance. This research aimed at studying variables of nurses' career commitment and job performance, and assessing the relationship between the two concepts as well as their predictors. A survey was used to collect data from a convenient sample of 640 Registered Nurses employed in 24 hospitals. Nurses 'agreed' to be committed to their careers and they were performing their jobs 'well'. As a part of career commitment, nurses were willing to be involved, in their own time, in projects that would benefit patient care. The highest and lowest means of nurses' job performance were reported for the following aspects: leadership, critical care, teaching/collaboration, planning/evaluation, interpersonal relations/communications and professional development. Correlating of total scores of nurses' career commitment and job performance revealed the presence of a significant and positive relationship between the two concepts. Stepwise regression models revealed that the explained variance in nurses' career commitment was 23.9% and that in nurses' job performance was 29.9%. Nurse managers should promote nursing as a career and they should develop and implement various strategies to increase nurses' career commitment and nurses' job performance. These strategies should focus on nurse retention, staff development and quality of care. Nurses' career commitment and job performance are inter-related complex concepts that require further studies to understand, promote and maintain these positive factors in work environments.

The measurement artifact in the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire.

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Caught, K; Shadur, M A; Rodwell, J J

2000-12-01

This study empirically examined the debate in the literature regarding the dimensionality of the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire. The sample comprised 803 employees from organizations in the information technology and hospitality industries. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire appears to have a two-factor structure, with one factor consisting of positively worded items and the other factor, negatively worded items. Scores on both factors correlated significantly with job satisfaction, suggesting that both factors appear to be measuring a similar aspect of organizational commitment and that they present as two factors given as measurement artifacts of the item wording.

New Graduate Nurses' Professional Commitment: Antecedents and Outcomes.

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Guerrero, Sylvie; Chênevert, Denis; Kilroy, Steven

2017-09-01

This study examines the factors that increase new graduate nurses' professional commitment and how this professional commitment in turn affects professional turnover intentions, anxiety, and physical health symptoms. The study was carried out in association with the nursing undergraduate's affiliation of Quebec, Canada. A three-wave longitudinal design was employed among nursing students. Nurses were surveyed before they entered the labor market, and then twice after they started working. Participants were contacted by post at their home address. The hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling. Professional commitment explains why good work characteristics and the provision of organizational resources related to patient care reduce nurses' anxiety and physical symptoms, and increase their professional turnover intentions. Pre-entry professional perceptions moderate the effects of work characteristics on professional commitment such that when participants hold positive pre-entry perceptions about the profession, the propensity to develop professional commitment is higher. There is a worldwide shortage of nurses. From a nurse training perspective, it is important to create realistic perceptions of the nursing role. In hospitals, providing a good work environment and resources conducive to their professional ethos is critical for ensuring nurses do not leave the profession early on in their careers. © 2017 Sigma Theta Tau International.

An integrated dataset on organisational retention attributes and commitment of selected ICT and accounting firms

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Odunayo Salau

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The article presented an integrated data on organisational retention strategies and commitment of selected ICT and Accounting firms in Nigeria. The study adopted a quantitative approach with a survey research design to establish the major determinants of employee retention strategies. The population of this study included staff and management of the selected firms. Data was analysed with the use of structural equation modelling and the field data set is made widely accessible to enable critical or a more comprehensive investigation. The findings identified critical attraction factors for the retention of sampled firms. It was recommended that ICT firms will need to adopt consistent range of strategies to attract and retain people with the right ICT skills, in the right place and at the right time. Keywords: Retention, Commitment, Reward, Satisfaction, Performance

Organisational values and organisational commitment: do nurses' ethno-cultural differences matter?

Science.gov (United States)

Hendel, Tova; Kagan, Ilya

2014-05-01

To examine the association between perceived organisational values and organisational commitment among Israeli nurses in relation to their ethno-cultural background. Differences and the discrepancy between individuals' organisational values and those of their organisational culture are a potential source of adjustment difficulties. Organisational values are considered to be the bond of the individual to their organisation. In multicultural societies, such as Israel, the differences in perception of organisational values and organisational commitment may be reflected within workgroups. Data were collected using a questionnaire among 106 hospital nurses. About 59.8% of the sample were Israeli-born. A positive correlation was found between organisational values and organisational commitment. Significant differences were found in organisational values and organisational commitment between Israeli-born-, USSR-born- and Ethiopian-born nurses. The socio-demographic profile modified the effect of organisational values on organisational commitment: when the nurse was male, Muslim, religiously orthodox and without academic education, the effect of organisational values on organisational commitment was higher. Findings confirm the role of culture and ethnicity in the perception of organisational values and the level of organisational commitment among nurses. Assessing ethno-cultural differences in organisational values and organisational commitment provides a fuller understanding of nurses' ability to adjust to their work environment and helps nurse managers devise means to increase nurses' commitment. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Petitioning for Involuntary Commitment for Chemical Dependency by Medical Services.