Putting Process (Back) In: Research on the Internationalization Process of the Firm

This paper provides a critique of existing research on the internationalization process of the firm and proposes an agenda for future inquiry. In recent years, process approaches have received increasing attention in management research, leading to a more refined understanding of the distinction between process and variance paradigms. We apply a process lens to a well‐established sub‐field of international business, namely the internationalization process of the firm. We review how this research tradition has evolved over four decades. The review commences with a reassessment of the seminal ‘stage models’ that date back to the 1970s. It then proceeds to classify subsequent research on the basis of whether it includes process data and/or process theorizing. It is found that the majority of studies in this review do not combine process data with process theorizing. We show how, even in studies that contain some process elements, a process approach is not always sustained throughout the paper. On the basis of this review, six research themes are proposed, which would form the basis for a process agenda for future research.     

Ambidextrous Organizational Culture,Contextual Ambidexterity and New Product Innovation: A Comparative Study of UK and Chinese High‐tech Firms

Contextual ambidexterity is of paramount importance for new product innovation and organizational success, particularly in high‐tech firms operating in a dynamic environment. Whilst it is recognized that contextual ambidexterity is grounded in organizational culture, existing research has not crystallized what kind of organizational culture enables contextual ambidexterity and consequently new product innovation. In this paper, drawing on data from 150 UK and 242 Chinese high‐tech firms, we conceptualize ambidextrous organizational culture as a higher‐order construct consisting of organizational diversity and shared vision, and examine its impacts on contextual ambidexterity and consequently on new product innovation outcomes. Using structural equation modelling, we find significant relationships between ambidextrous organizational culture, contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes; contextual ambidexterity mediates the relationship between ambidextrous organizational culture and new product innovation outcomes. Our findings also suggest that the above relationships are robust in the UK–China comparative research context, and that contextual ambidexterity and new product innovation outcomes are dependent on business unit level heterogeneity (i.e. ambidextrous organizational culture and research and development strength) rather than industry or cross‐cultural differences.     

Stream salamander responses to varying degrees of urbanization within Maryland’s piedmont physiographic province

The main objective of this study was to determine how stream salamander assemblages and species respond to varying levels of impervious surface cover within Maryland’s Piedmont physiographic province. We sampled stream salamanders in 21 first-order streams located in watersheds representing a range of impervious surface cover (0–24 %) across the northeastern part of Maryland’s Piedmont region. Habitat data, including stream substrate and riparian characteristics, were measured at each site. Eurycea bislineata was the predominant species of stream salamander encountered during this study (> 99 % of individuals) and most of these individuals were larvae (> 92 %). Consequently, statistical analysis was limited to E. bislineata larvae. We were unable to detect a difference in E. bislineata abundances or body mass index’s among varying levels of impervious surface cover % or any individual site habitat variables alone. These results suggest that in smaller watersheds within the Piedmont of Maryland, local habitat variables, in conjunction with land use variables, are necessary in determining the abundance and body mass index of E. bislineata larvae populations. This study makes a strong case for halting the over-simplification of the relationship between urbanization and the presence/abundance of stream salamanders.

     

Lung Cancer Risk from Radon in Marcellus Shale Gas in Northeast U.S. Homes

The amount of radon in natural gas varies with its source. Little has been published about the radon from shale gas to date, making estimates of its impact on radon‐induced lung cancer speculative. We measured radon in natural gas pipelines carrying gas from the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Radon concentrations ranged from 1,520 to 2,750 Bq/m³ (41–74 pCi/L), and the throughput‐weighted average was 1,983 Bq/m³ (54 pCi/L). Potential radon exposure due to the use of Marcellus Shale gas for cooking and space heating using vent‐free heaters or gas ranges in northeastern U.S. homes and apartments was assessed. Though the measured radon concentrations are higher than what has been previously reported, it is unlikely that exposure from natural gas cooking would exceed 1.2 Bq/m³ (<1% of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's action level). Using worst‐case assumptions, we estimate the excess lifetime (70 years) lung cancer risk associated with cooking to be 1.8×10^?4 (interval spanning 95% of simulation results: 8.5×10^?5, 3.4×10^?4). The risk profile for supplemental heating with unvented gas appliances is similar. Individuals using unvented gas appliances to provide primary heating may face lifetime risks as high as 3.9×10^?3. Under current housing stock and gas consumption assumptions, expected levels of residential radon exposure due to unvented combustion of Marcellus Shale natural gas in the Northeast United States do not result in a detectable change in the lung cancer death rates.     

Gender,gambling settings and gambling behaviours among undergraduate poker players

A gender divide in gambling is commonly observed among college populations. This study examines whether settings where students gamble on poker mediate the relationship between gender and poker gambling behaviours. Undergraduate poker players, 126 females and 242 males, were randomly sampled from three universities in Montreal, Canada. Three outcomes measuring risky behaviours were considered: severity of gambling problems as measured by the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI), past-year poker spending and past-year poker debt. Multiple mediation analyses were conducted. The effect of gender on outcomes was analysed through three putative mediators: gambling on poker in private residences, in public locations or on the Internet. Male gender positively relates to risky gambling behaviours and occurrence of gambling in various settings. Risky gambling behaviours are positively related to gambling in various settings. Overall, the occurrence of playing poker in public locations and on the Internet emerged as significant mediators in relation to PGSI score, past-year poker spending and past-year poker debt. Given the nature of the processes by which gender is related to risky gambling behaviours among undergraduate students, gambling needs to be understood through a perspective that focuses as much on contexts as it does on individuals.     

Tomorrow's Leaders and Today's Agents of Change? Children,Sustainability Education and Environmental Governance

Children are central to the rhetoric supporting global climate agreements, yet they are also envisaged to play a strategic role in materialising such agreements. Along with other household actors, children are implicated in localised efforts to manage global resource sustainability. As learners in educational systems that are being redesigned to encompass messages of sustainability, children are moreover positioned as ‘agents of change’ through sustainability education. Drawing on theoretical work on children's agency and interdependence, this review calls for greater attention to the structural and relational dimensions of environmental knowledge transmission to inform sustainability education. This is presented as one move towards constructing what Middlemiss (2014) terms a more ‘socially sensitive’ model of sustainable development.     

Designing for “touch”, “reach” and “movement” in postwar (1946–1972) English primary and infant school environments

ABSTRACT

This article examines the use and interpretation of the terms “touch”, “reach” and “movement” in Ministry of Education (later, Department of Education) official publications known as Building Bulletins between the years 1949–1972. A close critical reading of Building Bulletins concerned primarily with school design for young children (infant and primary schools) in the English context has been carried out and the results of this exercise are discussed in the wider context of close relationships established between architects designing schools and leading progressive educationalists in Britain. The wider international context, particularly progressive educational design in the USA, is used to further understand the use and interpretation of these terms. The article contributes to a current interest among historians of education in exploring material and sensory histories of schooling.     

Perceptions of transition-related health and mental health services among transgender adults

The opportunity to live authentically is critical for the well-being of transgender individuals. For many this requires accessing transition-related services. Current knowledge of transition-related care is limited. This study aims to elucidate experiences and needs of transgender individuals (N = 65) related to (a) therapeutic support, (b) medical care, and (c) aspects of living authentically in order to inform the development and delivery of trans-affirmative services. Findings reveal challenges accessing health care providers with trans-specific competency; gaps between critical aspects of transition-related care and receipt of services; and heterogeneity of experiences and needs. Recommendations for improving transgender-affirmative services are provided.