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Mesh Parameterization is central to reverse engineering, tool path planning, etc. This work synthesizes parameterizations with un-constrained borders, overall minimum angle plus area distortion. This study aims to present an assessment of the sensitivity of the minimized distortion with respect to weighed area and angle distortions.

A Mesh Parameterization which does not constrain borders is implemented by performing: isometry maps for each triangle to the plane Z = 0; an affine transform within the plane Z = 0 to glue the triangles back together; and a Levenberg–Marquardt minimization algorithm of a nonlinear F penalty function that modifies the parameters of the first two transformations to discourage triangle flips, angle or area distortions. F is a convex weighed combination of area distortion (weight: α with 0 ≤ α ≤ 1) and angle distortion (weight: 1 − α).

The present study parameterization algorithm has linear complexity [𝒪(n), n = number of mesh vertices]. The sensitivity analysis permits a fine-tuning of the weight parameter which achieves overall bijective parameterizations in the studied cases. No theoretical guarantee is given in this manuscript for the bijectivity. This algorithm has equal or superior performance compared with the ABF, LSCM and ARAP algorithms for the Ball, Cow and Gargoyle data sets. Additional correct results of this algorithm alone are presented for the Foot, Fandisk and Sliced-Glove data sets.

The devised free boundary nonlinear Mesh Parameterization method does not require a valid initial parameterization and produces locally bijective parameterizations in all of our tests. A formal sensitivity analysis shows that the resulting parameterization is more stable, i.e. the UV mapping changes very little when the algorithm tries to preserve angles than when it tries to preserve areas. The algorithm presented in this study belongs to the class that parameterizes meshes with holes. This study presents the results of a complexity analysis comparing the present study algorithm with 12 competing ones.

The purpose of this paper is to explore environmental contamination from pesticide use in a Khao Kho Sub-district, Khao Kho District in Phetchabun Province, Thailand.

The study area was made up of four villages: Kanok Ngam, Lao Lue, Lao Neng and Phet Dam, all mostly highland areas whose inhabitants are mainly from the hill tribes. The 548 participants were recruited with inclusion criteria being that they must be living in the area over one year and are agriculturists or relevant who use pesticides. The data collection was divided into two parts: first, population data using a questionnaire; and second, samples of environmental media including agricultural products gathered to analyze the contamination of pesticides. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

The most planted crop was rice (53.52 percent). Regarding agricultural chemical uses, the study found that the majority of participants used herbicides (76.83 percent). In terms of herbicide uses, Glyphosate is the most used (39.59 percent). Furthermore, insecticide consumption uses were higher in Phet Dam village than the other villages. The most common uses were Carbaryl (20.66 percent), followed by β-Betoefluthrin (15.49 percent).

There were glyphosate and derivatives of glyphosate (Aminomethyl Phosphonic Acid) in soil and sediment samples, while herbicides and insecticides were not found in water and agricultural samples. Because these environmental contaminants are a major cause for health problems amongst producers and consumers alike, agriculturists should be supported by relevant organizations to increase organic crop cultivation methods and organic farming networks.

The purpose of this paper is to explain how the concept of socioemotional wealth can be combined with other important concepts in the family firm literature to develop a theory of the family firm.

This is a conceptual paper based on a review of the paper of Martin and Gómez-Mejía in this issue as well as the family business literature in general.

Martin and Gómez-Mejía (this issue) present a theoretical model and propositions on the relationship between socioemotional and financial wealth that advances understanding of family firm decision-making. That paper provides an initial step toward a theory of the family firm that can explain why firms select the family form of organization to conduct economic activities, what determines their scale and scope and why heterogeneity is observed among family firms. This commentary takes another step toward such a theory by discussing how the combined consideration of goals, governance and resources could be used to address the above three questions.

The precepts of a new theory of the family firm is presented that incorporates the concepts of goals (socioemotional wealth), governance (family ownership and control) and resources (familiness) of family firms to explain why family firms exist and potentially thrive as well as to explain the heterogeneity among family firms.

Human resource management is an understudied but burgeoning topic in the family business scholarly domain. This chapter provides a summary review of the existing literature on human resource management in family businesses and offers pathways for future research. The authors cluster the extant research into topic areas of compensation, recruitment and selection, training, employee performance, and turnover, and offer future research directions for each. In identifying gaps and tension in the literature, the chapter also highlights several broader theoretical pathways for future research. These opportunities include further inquiry into the outcomes of bifurcation bias, or the disparate treatment between family and non-family employees, the nuanced ways family firms recruit and select new employees, the role of high-performance work systems in family firms, the ways image considerations influence human resource practices in family firms, and the application of social network perspectives.

Reflexivity supports research teams in developing and implementing interdisciplinarity perspectives, but there is still limited literature on this topic. To fill this gap, we explore how reflexivity can support a research team in its interdisciplinary efforts to create new knowledge for disaster risk reduction.

We present the reflexive journey of our interdisciplinary research team consisting of Ecuador- and UK-based researchers from the social sciences, physical sciences and the arts and humanities and conducting multi-hazard research on Quito. By triangulating data obtained from different material collected during the reflexive journey, we discuss examples of how our team employed reflexivity towards interdisciplinarity.

The reflexive journey allowed our interdisciplinary team to acknowledge and give value to its diversity; to discuss disciplinary language differences, and to gradually develop interdisciplinary working practices and conversations. The journey demonstrates how reflexive practices within research teams allow researchers to overcome disciplinary differences and promote interdisciplinarity to reach research outcomes.

Our reflexive experience shows that adopting reflexivity can be effective in both enhancing interdisciplinarity and addressing the complex nature of risk.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of internationalization on performance in family firms, as well as the potential impact of moderators on this relationship.

This paper is a meta-analysis of the impact of internationalization on performance in family firms, as well as the role of several moderators shaping this relationship, based on 29 studies.

The findings indicate a significant positive effect of internationalization on family firm performance. This relationship was stronger in family firms with lower family ownership. Several methodological moderators were significant, such as the means of measuring performance and internationalization. The results also point to several cultural moderators, such as individualism, masculinity, low uncertainty avoidance and short-term orientation, which positively influence the main effect.

The authors provide discussions of the results, their practical and theoretical implications, as well as avenues for future research.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of human capital investment (HCI) on corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in SMEs. Analysing a sample of 1,136 firms (729 FBs and 407 NFBs) and using a PLS-PM methodology, our results support that HCI has a favourable impact on CSR practices in SMEs and that family business (FB) status plays a moderating role on these relationships.

We estimate the proposed model using partial least squares path modelling (PLS-PM), a variance-based structural equation (SEM) method, using SmartPLS 3.3 software. PLS simultaneously evaluates the reliability and validity of the variables (external model) and the estimation of the trajectories between these constructs (internal model). The PLS-PM technique is appropriate in this research because: 1. the model makes use of type A composites; 2. the proposed research model has some complexity since we pay attention to the existence of moderating effects; and 3. no specific distribution is required in PLS indicators.

The main findings of this study are: (1) HCI increases CSR practices in the SME context and (2) FB status exerts a positive influence on the relationship between HCI and CSR practices.

This study, grounded in RBV theory and the concept of “familiness,” uses employees' education and training to measure HCI in FBs. While other research focuses on employee competence and attitude to define HCI, future studies should explore all these elements to better understand their impact on CSR practices in SMEs. Additionally, factors like regulation, organisational culture and personal traits may influence the relationship between HCI and CSR practices, suggesting the need for further research. Future studies could also examine family SMEs by considering aspects such as family management or governance as moderating variables, contributing to the discussion on FB heterogeneity. Causes of heterogeneity in FBs include goals, governance structures and resources, supporting recent calls for a deeper understanding of these variations, particularly in how HCI affects CSR practices.

This study also highlights several practical contributions. Today’s complex business environment requires organisations to focus on a wide range of stakeholders to remain sustainable. Organisations must understand how HCI influences CSR practices, specifically how education and training for both employees and managers lead to greater sustainable practices. Therefore, awareness and training for family employees, CEOs and external staff are essential for the proper development of CSR practices. Increased education or training programs by public and private institutions or incentive schemes could help promote these practices within firms. Our results further suggest that governments and other organisations interested in business development should not assume that HCI is universally beneficial for CSR practices in all firms. Specifically, the study shows that HCI has a positive effect on different dimensions of CSR in SMEs, and this influence is even more pronounced in family SMEs. Therefore, government agencies and employers' associations should consider the impact of these factors—HCI and FB status—when designing and implementing more effective policies.

This study makes several theoretical contributions. It explores the influence of HCI on multiple dimensions of CSR, focusing on individual-level drivers like education and training for managers and employees. The findings reveal that HCI positively affects environmental, labour and social CSR practices, especially in SMEs. The study also highlights the unique role of FBs, showing that FB status strengthens the relationship between HCI and CSR due to their focus on long-term goals and community well-being. This research addresses gaps in understanding the heterogeneity of CSR practices between FBs and non-family businesses (NFBs).

This article is original, unpublished and all sources and contributions have been properly acknowledged.

The aim of this paper is to develop and test a behavioral theory of chief executive officer (CEO) succession and its performance consequences in family firms. Building upon performance feedback and slack research, the study hypothesizes that the effect of selecting a non-family outsider CEO on post-succession firm performance is contingent upon pre-succession firm performance aspirations level and the available slack resources.

The hypotheses are tested using a panel of 430 CEO successions in Italian family firms.

The findings show that a non-family outsider CEO is particularly valuable when performance resides far below aspiration levels, and there is a high availability of slack resources.

The study provides novel insights of the benefits and drawbacks of selecting non-family outsider CEOs offering behavioral-based theoretical explanations of performance consequences of CEO successions.