Cause-of-Death Contributions to Educational Inequalities in Mortality in Austria between 1981/1982 and 1991/1992

This article uses census records and deaths records to analyze trends in educational inequalities in mortality for Austrian women and men aged 35–64 years between 1981/1982 and 1991/1992. We find an increasing gradient in mortality by education for circulatory diseases and especially ischaemic heart disease. Respiratory diseases and, in addition for women, cancers showed the opposite trend. Using decomposition analysis, we give evidence that in many cases changes in the age-structure within the 10-year interval had a bigger effect than direct improvements in mortality on the analyzed subpopulations.     

Supply chain relationship quality and its impact on firm performance

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of supply chain relationship quality (SCRQ) on firm performance (FP) through the mediators of supply chain management processes (SCMP) and supply chain performance (SCP). In the literature, these linkages have been examined separately; in contrast, this study takes a holistic perspective on the antecedents of FP. The model was tested using survey data from manufacturing companies. Variance-based structural equation modelling revealed that both SCMP and SCP lead to FP, unlike SCRQ. On the other hand, SCRQ affects SCMP. Drawing on the resource-based view, consistency in SCRQ can lead to not only efficient and effective supply chain management but also improvements in FP and SCP. This research has practical implications, providing supply chain decision makers with insights on enhancing FP. Supply chain decision makers will be able to benefit from the findings of our study by improving supply chain relationships with supply chain members and ensuring FP. This research also highlights how effective management of SCRQ, SCMP and SCP can provide better FP and a competitive advantage.     

Separating trend and cyclical dynamics in state space models with exogenous inputs

In the present study we compare three state rotation methods in modelling the impact of the US economy on the Finnish economy, i.e. Schur decomposition, eigenvalue analysis and singular value decomposition. Singular value decomposition is seen to provide a robust approximation of the state rotation in most cases studied, irrespective of whether the characteristic roots of the state transition matrix are complex. Thus, singular value decomposition seems to be a viable computational device not only in estimating the system matrices of the state space model, but also in state rotation, as compared to the more involved techniques based on eigenvalue analysis or Schur decomposition.     

Gambling behavior and psychological disorders of gamblers on German-style slot-machines

As part of a longitudinal study on gambling behavior, 300 gamblers who differed in the extent of their subjective stress were surveyed by clinical psychologists. Self ratings, interviewer ratings and questionnaires were used to assess socio-demographics, gambling behavior, psychological disturbance and social consequences. Our results lead to two central conclusions: 1. The amount of time spent on gambling activities per week and the number of years since starting gambling were not significant predictors of the extent of subjective stress related to gambling. 2. There are various sources for the subjective stress of gambling, such as marital discord and lack of social assertiveness. In a subgroup, stress was directly related to gambling. Generally, we found a higher incidence of alcohol abuse and depression in the stressed gamblers. Further research is indicated to obtain information on the etiology and development of these disturbances.This article was first published in Germany: Törne v. I, Konstanty, R: (1989), Spielverhalten und Störungsbilder bei Spielern an Geldspielautomaten, Suchtgefahren, 35, 14–34.     

Rethinking population distribution policies

Developed and developing nations are generally dissatisfied with the spatial distributions of their populations. Dissatisfaction is particularly acute on the part of developing nations which view their problems of population distribution as more serious than those of natural increase. The overwhelming majority of governments have already adopted policies to affect rates and patterns of internal migration or the configuration of their rural and urban populations. However, recent reviews of these policies suggest they have been only partially successful. Apparent policy deficiencies are reviewed and possible remedies suggested in regard to the need for intervention, the scope of policies, their objectives, instruments, and evaluation.     

Systematisierung der Erfolgsfaktoren von Wissensmanagement auf Basis der bisherigen empirischen Forschung

Zusammenfassung  Der vorliegende Beitrag leitet aus einer umfassenden Bestandsaufnahme der empirischen Forschung zum Wissensmanagement einen Bezugsrahmen der Erfolgsfaktoren ab. Ziel ist die Zuordnung der identifizierten Erfolgsfaktoren zu übergeordneten Aggregationsniveaus (Untersuchungsfelder, Kategorien und Dimensionen) und damit die Reduzierung von Komplexit?t und Systematisierung der bisherigen Befunde. Weiterhin sollen aus den Ergebnissen der vorliegenden Analyse Implikationen für die weitere Forschung im Wissensmanagement abgeleitet werden. Als Ergebnis resultiert ein Modell, welches die Inhalte als auch die hypothetischen Beziehungen zwischen den identifizierten Aggregationsebenen veranschaulicht. Er bildet damit Grundlage für eine weitere Analyse der Erfolgsfaktoren, ihrer Auspr?gungen und Interdependenzen. Aus der Heterogenit?t der Studien konnten weitere Implikationen für die theoretische Wissensmanagement-Forschung abgeleitet werden.

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Knowledge management factors of success: A review of empirical findings and a model for future research

Summary  This paper derives a framework of key success-factors from an in-depth review of empirical research in knowledge management. Our first objective was to reduce the complexity of previous findings in the field of knowledge management by developing a model-structure that focuses on the interdependencies of the identified variables and to develop a framework that would allow for further research. We thus iteratively aggregated the identified factors of success to superior fields of analysis (named research fields, categories and dimensions). Our second objective was to extract from the analysis further implications for future research. The derived hypothetical framework maps the identified levels of aggregation and its describing factors, as well as the hypothetical interdependencies among them. Therefore this framework not only structures the findings, but also provides a basis for further analysis that aims at sound confirmation of the knowledge management factors of success, their characteristics and interdependencies. The observed heterogeneity of existing research points towards further research implications for knowledge management theory.

Forschungsschwerpunkte: Mergers & Acquisitions, Projektmanagement, Wissensmanagement     

Combining Experts' Risk Judgments on Technology Performance of Phytoremediation: Self-Confidence Ratings, Averaging Procedures, and Formative Consensus Building

Expert panels and averaging procedures are common means for coping with the uncertainty of effects of technology application in complex environments. We investigate the connection between confidence and the validity of expert judgment. Moreover, a formative consensus building procedure (FCB) is introduced that generates probability statements on the performance of technologies, and we compare different algorithms for the statistical aggregation of individual judgments. The case study refers to an expert panel of 10 environmental scientists assessing the performance of a soil cleanup technology that uses the capability of certain plants to accumulate heavy metals from the soil in the plant body (phytoremediation). The panel members first provided individual statements on the effectiveness of a phytoremediation. Such statements can support policymakers, answering the questions concerning the expected performance of the new technology in contaminated areas. The present study reviews (1) the steps of the FCB, (2) the constraints of technology application (contaminants, soil structure, etc.), (3) the measurement of expert knowledge, (4) the statistical averaging and the discursive agreement procedures, and (5) the boundaries of application for the FCB method. The quantitative statement oriented part of FCB generates terms such as: "The probability that the concentration of soil contamination will be reduced by at least 50% is 0.8." The data suggest that taking the median of the individual expert estimates provides the most accurate aggregated estimate. The discursive agreement procedure of FCB appears suitable for deriving politically relevant singular statements rather than for obtaining comprehensive information about uncertainties as represented by probability distributions.     

Automated measurement of infant and mother Duchenne facial expressions in the Face-to-Face/Still-Face

Although still-face effects are well-studied, little is known about the degree to which the Face-to-Face/Still-Face (FFSF) is associated with the production of intense affective displays. Duchenne smiling expresses more intense positive affect than non-Duchenne smiling, while Duchenne cry-faces express more intense negative affect than non-Duchenne cry-faces. Forty 4-month-old infants and their mothers completed the FFSF, and key affect-indexing facial Action Units (AUs) were coded by expert Facial Action Coding System coders for the first 30 s of each FFSF episode. Computer vision software, automated facial affect recognition (AFAR), identified AUs for the entire 2-min episodes. Expert coding and AFAR produced similar infant and mother Duchenne and non-Duchenne FFSF effects, highlighting the convergent validity of automated measurement. Substantive AFAR analyses indicated that both infant Duchenne and non-Duchenne smiling declined from the FF to the SF, but only Duchenne smiling increased from the SF to the RE. In similar fashion, the magnitude of mother Duchenne smiling changes over the FFSF were 2–4 times greater than non-Duchenne smiling changes. Duchenne expressions appear to be a sensitive index of intense infant and mother affective valence that are accessible to automated measurement and may be a target for future FFSF research.     

Does European Union policy making explain accounting choices? An empirical analysis of the effects of investigations by the Directorate General for Competition on accounting choices

The hypothesis that political costs caused by the regulatory process impact upon accounting has been tested extensively and has found considerable empirical support. However, most studies use data from the United States. Whether the conclusions carry over to different institutional settings is an open question. This study exploits the fact that, in the European Union, there exists a policy area—competition policy—in which the European Commission can act in a manner significantly less constrained than in most other policy areas, imposing substantial fines on companies found to be in infringement of European competition regulations. Companies investigated by the Commission’s Directorate General for Competition have strong incentives to deflect attention and keep a low profile. It is conjectured that such companies will use income-decreasing accruals in order not to appear to be making unjustified profits. The results confirm this conjecture.     

Impact of Economic Conditions and Crises on Mortality and its Predictability

To investigate how economic conditions and crises affect mortality and its predictability in industrialized countries, we review the related literature, and we forecast mortality developments in Spain, Hungary, and Russia—three countries which have recently undergone major transformation processes following the introduction of radical economic and political reforms. The results of our retrospective mortality forecasts from 1991 to 2009 suggest that our model can capture major changes in long-term mortality trends, and that the forecast errors it generates are usually smaller than those of other well-accepted models, like the Lee-Carter model and its coherent variant. This is because our approach is capable of modeling (1) dynamic shifts in survival improvements from younger to older ages over time, as well as (2) substantial changes in long-term trends by optionally complementing the extrapolated mortality trends in a country of interest with those of selected reference countries. However, the forecasting performance of our model is limited (like that of every model): e.g., if mortality becomes extremely volatile—as was the case in Russia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union—generating a precise forecast will depend more on luck than on methodology and expert judgment. In general, we conclude that, on their own, recent economic changes appear to have minor effects on life expectancy in industrialized countries, but that the effects of these changes are greater if they occur in conjunction with other major social and political changes.