From the manifestations of culture to the underlying sensemaking process. The contribution of semiotic cultural psychology theory to the interpretation of socio-political scenario

Several explanations of the current syndrome affecting advanced democracies make reference to a process of cultural change that has been triggered by the complex and interrelated phenomena known as globalization. The rise of populist-authoritarian parties, the advent of post-truth politics and the increasing dissatisfaction with democracy are seen by many political scientists as rather direct consequences of social and economic transformations which had changed the context in which the democratic process takes place. The main limitation of this literature is that it treats culture as a black box receiving inputs from the social context and translate them into political consequences. By doing so it cannot explain why the same conditions produce different consequences in different contexts and it is silent on the criteria to develop anti-crisis policies. This article argues that some of the insights offered by the Semiotic Cultural Psychology Theory, most notably the idea that cultural evolution is moved by the need to find affect-laden, simplified interpretations of the reality to restore the capacity of making sense on an uncertain socio-political context, can enhance the ability of political scientists to understand the current political phenomena and to develop methodological criteria to counteract the current scenario of democratic crisis.     

Strategic approaches to sustainability in fashion supply chain management

Today, the sustainability challenge has become a relevant issue in the fashion industry. However, given that the request for sustainability is relatively new in this industry, empirical research that could guide companies towards supply chain sustainability is lacking. This study aims to deepen the understanding of the main strategic approaches to sustainability used in fashion supply chain management (SCM). Ten case studies were examined in terms of the practices that characterise these approaches. Moreover, contextual factors, drivers and barriers that support or hinder different approaches were identified. To accomplish this goal, both environmental sustainability and social sustainability were investigated, and all the areas of fashion SCM (i.e. new product development, source, make, deliver, retail, return, governance) were considered simultaneously to offer a wide overview of this industry’s sustainability issue.     

All in the Family: How Do Social Capital and Material Wellbeing Affect Relational Wellbeing?

We use a unique dataset from Italy to investigate the impact of socioeconomic characteristics and social capital on family wellbeing and satisfaction. We assess wellbeing using four dimensions of satisfaction with family life: satisfaction with decision making processes, with relationships with partner and children, and with time spent with children. Social capital is measured through information about membership in organizations, trust, and interactions with others. We find that while socioeconomic characteristics in general do not have strong effects on family wellbeing, social capital matters for family life satisfaction.

     

Un indicateur de la qualité de l'emploi appliqué au Brésil

Dans les pays où les activités informelles et le travail précaire sont répandus, on peut s'interroger sur la pertinence des taux d'activité et de chômage. Pour analyser le marché du travail brésilien entre 2002 et 2011, les auteurs utilisent ici un indicateur multidimensionnel de la qualité de l'emploi, prenant en compte les revenus, l'existence d'un contrat de travail, le fait de cotiser à la sécurité sociale et l'ancienneté dans l'emploi. Les résultats montrent une augmentation significative de la qualité de l'emploi, surtout de 2009 à 2011, avec d'importantes variations d'un secteur d'activité à l'autre, ainsi qu'entre salariés et indépendants.     

Alternative uses of temporary work and new forms of work organisation

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between the use of temporary workers and the adoption of new forms of work organisation (NFWO) in production. This study aims to understand to what extent these two forms of human resources flexibility are synergic or mutually exclusive. In order to answer this main goal, we discuss different levels of temporary workers adoption in relation to different levels of use of NFWO, the level of integration of temporary workers within the overall production organisation and the joint and synergistic use of NFWO and temporary work. Evidence drawn from seven case studies in manufacturing plants in northern Italy is provided. Results highlight that, according to the characteristics of the production process, temporary workers and NFWO are not mutually exclusive, that temporary workers can be integrated with other workers in the shop floor, and that NFWO can also be adopted for temporary workers. In addition, NFWO has been proven to be a key enabler to integrate temporary workers within the organisation, thus showing an important synergistic effect between the two human resource flexibility practices.     

Purchasing performance management systems: an empirical investigation

This article aims at further developing the purchasing performance management systems (PPMSs) body of knowledge, assuming the wider perspective of the adoption process rather than key performance indicators (KPIs) only. In particular, the research questions are focused on understanding what are the most adopted indicators, what are the key elements characterising the implementation process and what are the differences among different organisational levels and different purchasing categories. The literature provides a framework for classifying purchasing KPIs, identifying the implementation process and the PPMS architecture, thus supporting the empirical research protocol. Nine case studies of large multinationals belonging to different industries are conducted. Empirical evidence shows that companies are still adopting mainly an external perspective, by focusing on performance measurement efforts on suppliers. Widely adopted indicators mainly measure cost, time and quality. However, the purchasing department has acquired an important role within the organisation and new performance indicators have been created; flexibility, innovation and sustainability are becoming increasingly important.     

On the mvue for the distribution in the multivariate normal regression

In the multivariate normal regression setting, the estimability of a distribution is studied generalizing earlier results for the univariate case. The MVUE of an estimable distribution is obtained.     

Testing for Spatial Autocorrelation: The Regressors that Make the Power Disappear

We show that for any sample size, any size of the test, and any weights matrix outside a small class of exceptions, there exists a positive measure set of regression spaces such that the power of the Cliff–Ord test vanishes as the autocorrelation increases in a spatial error model. This result extends to the tests that define the Gaussian power envelope of all invariant tests for residual spatial autocorrelation. In most cases, the regression spaces such that the problem occurs depend on the size of the test, but there also exist regression spaces such that the power vanishes regardless of the size. A characterization of such particularly hostile regression spaces is provided.     

Potential and ‘Power of a Collectivity to Act’<Superscript>*</Superscript>

This paper connects two notions: Hart and Mas-Colell’s ‘potential’, related to the value of coalitional games, and Coleman’s earlier notion of ‘power of a collectivity to act’, related to the easiness to make decisions by means of a voting rule. ^*This research has been supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología under project BEC2000-0875, and by the Universidad del País Vasco under project UPV/EHU000031.321-HA-7918/2000. The first author acknowledges financial support from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología under the Ramón y Cajal programme.