Search results

Recent developments in microwave GaAs technology are yielding devices with higher power capabilities and increased levels of integration. The mechanical and thermal properties of GaAs and other microwave materials play a key role in the design and assembly of microwave power circuits. Thermal management is a critical element of microwave power circuit design. Thermal properties of microwave materials are discussed and compared with standard microelectronic materials. Material selection criteria are described. Assembly and packaging techniques also affect the overall performance of the GaAs power circuit. The high operating frequencies of microwave circuits make ordinary circuit elements, such as wire bonds and printed conductors, reactive. In addition, electrical performance criteria, such as high current or low impedance, create unique assembly demands. The successful development of a GaAs‐based microwave product is dependent on careful attention to the material properties and precise assembly methods. Techniques of automated assembly and processing are discussed, with ah eye towards maintaining high quality and reliability.

The moral ethos profiles (MEPs) of six Hong Kong companies were investigated via questionnaires and in‐depth qualitative interviews and analyzed according to the Kohlberg stages model. In five of the companies, the MEPs obtained via interviews were consistent with those obtained from the questionnaires. Interviews and questionnaires were also used to investigate how managers in these companies tackled ethical dilemmas (both real work‐based ones of their own and hypothetical ones). In the company with the consistently least virtuous MEP, managers used more lower‐stage ethical reasoning to tackle ethical dilemmas. There was, however, no difference between managers in companies with the most virtuous and moderately virtuous MEPs in terms of the stage‐level of ethical reasoning they used to tackle ethical dilemmas. The study helped to refine a moral ethos questionnaire.

Using an index of English‐French Canadian ethnicity developed on the basis of language use in various social communication situations, this study investigates the relationship between ethnicity and use (ownership) of several financial services. A significant result is found in all cases even after removing the effects of income, family life cycle and size.

A significant proportion of the world’s adult population is insufficiently active. One approach used to overcome barriers and facilitate participation in physical activity is social marketing. The purpose of this paper are twofold: first, this review seeks to provide a contemporary review of social marketing’s effectiveness in changing physical activity for the better; and second, it seeks to ascertain the extent that Andreasen’s (2002) six social marketing benchmark criteria have been applied in social marketing interventions targeting physical activity.

In total, 94 articles covering 26 social marketing interventions were identified following systematic literature review procedures.

None of the interventions gave evidence that they addressed all six social marketing benchmark criteria, and only four interventions addressed five criteria. The results indicate that three of the benchmark criteria, namely, behavioural objectives, formative research, and marketing mix are well utilised in social marketing interventions. Inclusion of market segmentation, exchange and competition offers potential to extend further on social marketing’s effectiveness in increasing physical activity.

The results of the current study indicate that increasing the number of benchmark criteria used in an intervention to at least four increases the chances of achieving positive behavioural outcomes.

The article aims to cast a novel light on the extended theoretical conceptualisation of corporate citizenship, in as far as it criticises the insufficient embedding of international corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporate social performance (CSP) and sustainability initiatives in the geopolitical reality and conflictuality of the global business environment.

The article offers a unique interdisciplinary take on relevant research in international CSR, political science, international relations and philosophy. Its methodology is based on a literature review of these different fields.

The article argues that the rules‐based nature of international CSR is based on experience in the relatively benign market context of high‐income economies. However, the transposition of the code‐and‐compliance approach to the more conflictual context of emerging markets leads to the failure of international CSR. Its insufficient catering to the particular pressures exerted on operation in these markets reveals an idealist bias. This explains the implicit endorsement of “end‐of‐history” scenarios and other neo‐liberal assumptions in international CSR. The article argues that this disposition does not pay credit to the need to find adequate responses to the situation. Quite to the contrary, the firm entrenchment of (neo‐)liberalism in the mental mapping of CSR blocks the way to an exploration of realist alternatives. The article concludes by suggesting a shift in the CSR research agenda, from rules to institutions and agency. It proposes historical material on leadership in emergency situations and a new reading of Machiavelli to illustrate possible avenues.

The article is based on a qualitative review and discussion of the literature, which it presents in a new light. It does not present empirical or quantitative research data. It points to a conceptual abyss separating the theory and reality of international CSR. This is particularly problematic in the light of recent deliberative models positing a “new political role” for the corporation. While this article follows the new model in its criticism of the traditional separation of politics and business, it advocates that further research is necessary to elucidate how a more realistic apprehension of global conflict and its impact on business can be combined with the “arms reach principle”. Furthermore it urges that a new model must factor in the frequent “dirty hands” problems occurring in international business.

The article argues that, contrary to the dominant liberal discourse in business ethics and CSR, an increasing potential for Machiavellian behavior in the corporate sector is to be expected. This is due to the absence of arbitrages, in an environment experiencing a rapid expansion of global corporate activity. This renders “code‐and‐compliance” CSR ineffective. The article recommends the “reframing” of CSR, to specifically include “dirty hands” issues.

One stumbling block to a correct understanding of the contemporary challenges impacting international business operations is the (neo‐)liberal globalisation paradigm ‐ a narrative in whose manufacture business schools and management scholars are complicit.

The article contributes to the discussion on “systemic CSR”. The fundamental nature of the critique, as well as its interdisciplinary orientation and original recommendations, make the contribution unique.

The purpose of this study is to show the procedure, application and main features of the hybrid numerical-analytical approach known as generalized integral transform technique by using it to study magnetohydrodynamic flow of electrically conductive Newtonian fluids inside flat parallel-plate channels subjected to a uniform and constant external magnetic field.

The mathematical formulation of the analyzed problem is given in terms of a streamfunction, obtained from the Navier–Stokes and energy equations, by considering steady state laminar and incompressible flow and constant physical properties.

Convergence analyses are performed and presented to illustrate the consistency of the integral transformation technique. The results for the velocity and temperature fields are generated and compared with those in the literature as a function of the main governing parameters.

A detailed analysis of the parametric sensibility of the main dimensionless parameters, such as the Reynolds number, Hartmann number, Eckert number, Prandtl number and electrical parameter, for some typical situations is performed.

A growing literature emphasizes violence occurring in public places. Yet, police seldom report such violence separately from violent incidents occurring elsewhere. This paper aims to distinguish assaults that occur in public vs private, outdoors vs indoors and in homes vs the night-time economy.

The authors reorganize police data to classify 1,062 assault locations for Boulder, Colorado, USA, 2020–2021, providing basic descriptive statistics that are seldom calculated or published.

In this city, almost two-thirds of police-recorded assaults occur away from home, often within night-time economy zones. Almost half of police-recorded assaults occur outdoors.

Public assaults are probably under-reported and under-recorded in police data. The share of assaults occurring in public is likely to vary greatly among cities, along with reporting practices.

Public assaults can create special problems for police and social services. Poor management of public space can contribute to such violence. Alcohol policy and enforcement in public places is especially relevant to public assaults. Poor urban design might explain some of the problem.

Public assaults are seen by many people and may do extra harm to children and even adults.

Police reports and academic work based on them seldom distinguish public from private assaults and seldom enumerate outdoor assaults in comparison to those indoors. In addition, statistics estimating violence in the night-time economy might not compare risks to other settings.

This article aims to report on the development and validation of a bribery measurement index for the business sector, which, based on institutional theory, seeks to overcome the limitations of traditional measurements, recognizing the dynamics that originate the phenomenon and identifying process components.

To construct the index, correlational and principal component analysis techniques were used, as well as rigorous statistical tests, validating the instrument in a sample of 2,963 companies in Latin America, including Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Peru.

The result was an instrument composed of two dimensions: (1) anti-bribery game rules, composed of regulations knowledge and anti-bribery efforts, and (2) bribery as a perceived habit, allowing an objective representation of reality due to its internal consistency, concurrent and discriminant validity.

This instrument is one of the few that focuses on measuring bribery in the business sector in terms of corrupt practices, applicable for both public and private institutions to promote game rules against bribery. Additionally, the proposed theoretical model can be used to measure other phenomena with similar characteristics.

This article empirically highlights different variables that make bribery possible. The results can be helpful in the design of strategies to prevent this type of behavior. It also highlights the importance of designing mechanisms to record information related to bribery and the different expressions of corruption in order to explain its different nuances.

Este artículo informa sobre el desarrollo y validación de un índice de medición de soborno para el sector empresarial, que, basado en la teoría institucional, busca superar las limitaciones de las mediciones tradicionales, reconociendo las dinámicas que originan el fenómeno e identificando los componentes del proceso.

Para la construcción del índice se utilizaron técnicas de análisis correlacional y de componentes principales, así como rigurosas pruebas estadísticas, validando el instrumento en una muestra de 2.963 empresas de América Latina, entre ellas Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala, México y Perú.

El resultado fue un instrumento compuesto por dos dimensiones: (1) reglas de juego antisoborno, compuestas por conocimiento normativo y esfuerzo antisoborno (2) soborno como hábito percibido, permitiendo una representación objetiva de la realidad debido a su consistencia interna, validez concurrente y discriminante.

Este artículo pone en evidencia empírica diferentes variables que hacen posible el soborno. Los resultados pueden ser útiles en el diseño de estrategias para prevenir este tipo comportamiento, también destaca la importancia de diseñar mecanismos para registrar la información relacionada con la lucha contra el soborno.

Este instrumento es uno de los pocos que se enfoca en medir el soborno en el sector empresarial en términos de prácticas de corrupción, útil para instituciones tanto públicas como privadas para promover mejores reglas de juego en contra del soborno. Adicionalmente el modelo teórico propuesto puede ser utilizado para medir otros fenómenos con características similares.

This paper aims to propose comparing the performance of three algorithms based on different population-based heuristics, particle swarm optimization (PSO), artificial bee colony (ABC) and method of musical composition (DMMC), for the districting problem.

In order to compare the performance of the proposed algorithms, they were tested on eight instances drawn from the Mexican electoral institute database, and their respective performance levels were compared. In addition, a simulated annealing-based (simulated annealing – SA) algorithm was used as reference to evaluate the proposed algorithms. This technique was included in this work because it has been used for Federal districting in Mexico since 1994. The performance of the algorithms was evaluated in terms of the quality of the approximated Pareto front and efficiency. Regarding solution quality, convergence and dispersion of the resulting non-dominated solutions were evaluated.

The results show that the quality and diversification of non-dominated solutions generated by population-based algorithms are better than those produced by Federal Electoral Institute’s (IFE’s) SA-based technique. More accurately, among population-based techniques, discrete adaptation of ABC and MMC outperform PSO.

The performance of three population-based techniques was evaluated for the districting problem. In this paper, the authors used the objective function proposed by the Mexican IFE, a weight aggregation function that seeks for a districting plan that represents the best balance between population equality and compactness. However, the weighting factors can be modified by political agreements; thus, the authors decided to produce a set of efficient solutions, using different weighting factors for the computational experiments. This way, the best algorithm will produce high quality solutions no matter the weighting factors used for a real districting process. The computational experiments proved that the proposed artificial bee colony and method of musical composition-based algorithms produce better quality efficient solutions than its counterparts. These results show that population-based algorithms can outperform traditional local search strategies. Besides, as far as we know, this is the first time that the method of musical composition is used for this kind of problems.