Firm Commitment Research Articles

Fulfillment lead time and capacity decisions under demand chasing

For fashion products that have rather uncertain consumer demands, retailers can use the demand-chasing tactic to mitigate the uncertainty. Specifically, the demand-chasing retailer can place small, initial orders to identify which products are popular and then press suppliers to deliver expedited reorders. Moreover, the retailer can reduce the required lead time, and the supplier can either ramp up capacity levels to fulfill the reorders in a timely manner or face hefty penalties. However, the supplier prefers receiving firm order commitments as far in advance as possible for better capacity planning. This conflict of interest regarding capacity levels creates tension, especially if the supplier and retailer have unequal channel powers. The goal of this research is to provide a better understanding of the required lead time and how it affects capacity decisions in a decentralized supply chain. We use game-theoretic models to show the implications of required lead time and channel power on capacity decisions. In addition, we propose contract mechanisms that can coordinate the supply chain and optimize capacity levels.

Student readiness for e-learning co-production in developing countries higher education institutions.

This study set out to conceptualize and empirically establish the determinants and consequences of student readiness for e-learning co-production in the context of higher education institutions in developing countries. Using an online systematized questionnaire and structural equation modeling, data were collected and analyzed from 317 university students in Ghana. The analysis of the findings identified firm resource commitment, student resource commitment, task socialization, self-efficacy, motivation, and effective communication as the determinants of student readiness for e-learning co-production and student satisfaction as its consequence. The findings provide higher education managers with the critical factors for enhancing students' readiness for e-learning co-production. It also provides higher education policymakers with the strategic factors when assessing institutions as well as developing and implementing national policies on higher education e-learning. For academic researchers, this study was limited to the Ghanaian context, thus, limiting the robustness of the conceptual model and the ability to generalize the findings to another cultural context. Thus, future studies should undertake a cross-national comparison between developed and developing countries.

EXAMINING THE ROLE OF FIRM SIZE IN COMMITMENT - SMALL FIRM PERFORMANCE RELATIONSHIP AMONG SOUTHEAST EUROPEAN SMES

Studies on the effect of the firm size and commitment on small firm performance indicators are inconclusive, especially in the geographic area of Southeast Europe. This study examines the role of firm size in the relationship between commitment and firm sales growth, operating profit and market share. Alterations in firm size and commitment are attributed to differences in market structures, namely, non-European union and European union member states. Results of the empirical research state that firm size and commitment have a positive and significant effect on performance indicators (sales growth rate, operating profit, and market share). Separating firms that originate from the European union member states from those that do not, suggested that firms that are not part of the European union rely on commitment more firmly than those that from the European union member states. Moreover, firm size moderates the relationship between commitment and firm performance indicators only in the non-European union countries. Larger firm size indicates a smaller effect of the commitment on firm performance for firms from the non-European union countries. The study concludes with limitations and practical implications of the empirical research.

Virtual Professional Learning for School Teachers to Support Them in Online Environment

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019) epidemic a pandemic and whole education system came to a standstill. An immediate transformation from an offline mode to online mode of teaching learning was needed. Majority of teachers in India were not prepared for digital pedagogy. Regardless of serious difficulties and deep-rooted traditional teaching and learning methods, they quickly involved themselves in their professional learning virtually and adopted the online teaching methods to keep the system going on. Thus, the present study is focused to find the answers of the questions emerged out of this situation such as: (i) how teachers prepared themselves to come forward for gigantic initiative? (ii) How did they learn the digital online techniques? (iii) How the deficiencies of electronic gadgets, such as mobile phones and tablets were arranged in short span of time and made available to all the stakeholders? This is a qualitative study using phenomenological enquiry as an approach, participants were selected with purposive sampling technique and data were collected through the in-depth (semi-structured) interviews of 15 school teachers, 5 school heads, and 5 block education mentors from Punjab state of India. The findings of the study indicated that with continuous motivation, school teachers took the initiative to come forward for digital teaching and learning. Some teachers out of firm professional commitment managed to pursue their professional learning mainly through their own efforts. In addition, the Education Department provided online crash courses to teachers. The clusters of teachers having sound knowledge of technology collaboratively trained the teachers at block levels. Majority of teachers have their own gadgets but underprivileged sections were provided mobiles and tablets by the government and non-government agencies. A quick shift to virtual professional learning resulted in significant improvements in the learning outcomes of students. Hence, the study will motivate the teachers of other states to pursue virtual professional learning to update themselves. Additionally, it suggests that teachers ought to be part of forums, interest groups, and online professional communities to interact with peers and know how the rest of the world is doing with digital education.

Whether corporate green bonds act as armour during crises? Evidence from a natural experiment

PurposeThe present study examines the rationale behind the increased global presence of corporate green bonds as a green financing tool to facilitate sustainable practices and eco-friendly investing. The authors investigate the intriguing question of whether the companies that issue green bonds are valued more by investors or not, and further extend our analysis by exploring whether the green image of companies helps to minimize the value erosion during a crisis and enhance the resilience of the stocks?Design/methodology/approachTo examine the association between environmental commitments and firm value, the authors use the COVID-19 crisis as an exogenous shock and create a perfect natural setting to eliminate the endogeneity bias from our estimations. Moreover, the authors use propensity score matching to choose a one-to-one match of green bond firms with a larger pool of brown bond firms and eliminate the “size effect” arising out of the disproportionate sample size of green and brown bond firms.FindingsThe results of the study indicate that green bond firms are valued more by investors compared to brown bonds firms. Hence, green bond issuance acts as a strong signal of a firm's environmental commitment and it is well recognized by the investors. One of the possible reasons for a higher value of green bond firms may be due to their ability to arrest value erosion during environmental shocks. The authors could not find any difference in the resilience of green and brown bond firms.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the growing literature in the area of impact investing, specifically on exponentially growing innovative instrument green bond. Our study integrates two areas of research, i.e. corporate finance and impact investing by examining the impact of green bond issuance on firm value and stock market returns. The results would help environmentally sensitive investors to devise their investment portfolios more efficiently.

Peran Masyarakat dalam Menarik Minat Kunjungan Wisatawan: Studi di Kampung Adat Prailiu Kabupaten Sumba Timur

This study aims to find out how the role and strategy of traditional village community prailiu attract tourist visit interest in east sumba regency. This study uses descriptive qualitative approach with three data collection techniques. First, field observation in traditional village Prailiu. Second, Interview with informants (pusposive sampling). Third, documentation that is related to traditional village prailiu. Data analysis technique uses SWOT analysis to formulate traditional village community strategy prailiu in attracting tourist visit interest in east sumba regency. This study shows that traditional village community has firm desire and commitment in developing tourism village. Then, there are a number of alternative strategies that have been formulated to attract tourist visit interest based on SWOT analysis namely : (1) S-O strategy such as tourism product development, Having a partnership with sector private, Increasing production quality of Tenun (woven fabric), increasing promotion and marketing. (2) S-T strategy such as making tourism package and conducting strengthen product packaging. (3) W-O strategy such as developing SDM, having partnership between woven fabric craftsman and expanding woven fabric marketing network. (4) W-T Strategy such as constructing public awareness, making serftification CHSE, providing health protocol training and providing training about tourism village management.

Stakeholder management, CSR commitment, corporate social performance: The moderating role of uncertainty in CSR regulation

AbstractIn spite of the burgeoning literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR), little is known about the mechanism through which stakeholder integration affects corporate social performance (CSP). Our study fills this gap in the CSR literature by testing a model that explains this mechanism. Using data from 228 firms, we found that stakeholder integration positively influences a firm's CSR commitment and this linkage is attenuated when uncertainty in CSR regulation is greater. In addition, the results revealed that a firm's CSR commitment mediates the relationship between stakeholder integration and CSP. Theoretical and practical contributions are discussed.

Towards sustainable development: Environmental innovation, cleaner production performance, and reputation

AbstractThe growing concerns regarding sustainability and a firm's effects on the environment explain the important role that environmental management may play in corporate reputation. Following the premises of the stakeholder approach and dynamic capability theory, we explore how a comprehensive environmental management (environmental innovation [EI] and cleaner production [CP]) impacts a firm's reputation. By analyzing a panel data of European manufacturing firms, we show that EIs benefit corporate reputation. Results also confirm that the higher effectiveness of CP initiatives, the higher a firm's reputation. Both dynamic capabilities improve the firm's legitimacy and stakeholders' perceptions concerning the firm's commitment to environmental sustainability. We offer relevant insights for the academic community as to how EI and CP represent proactive strategies that enhance reputation and provide practical implications for managers in order to respond to stakeholders' demands.

Pacifist Prophet: Papunhank and the Quest for Peace in Early America

Could one Native American prophet simultaneously embrace strict pacifism, Nativism, and resistance to European imperialism? Richard W. Pointer answers yes in his biography of Papunhank, a Munsee prophet baptized by Moravians in 1763 as Johannes. Pointer argues the same impulses that motivated Nativist prophets like Neolin drove Papunhank to embrace Moravian Christianity. He did so, Pointer argues, because the Moravian path fit with his own spiritual journey and its commitment to absolute pacifism. Papunhank’s pacifism, paired with his equally firm commitment to maintaining the independence of his community from both colonial predation and the Indigenous cultural practices he had rejected, make him a “surprising, countercultural figure in the eighteenth century”(5).Pacifist Prophet begins by exploring the context of Papunhank’s Munsee upbringing. Born around 1705, Papunhank lived most of his seventy years away from European or Indigenous recordkeepers. Pointer traces how the Munsee (living primarily in the lower Hudson Valley) had to navigate relationships with the powerful Six Nations and neighboring colonies. Chapter 2 examines Papunhank’s road to becoming a prophet and then his gradual moves toward Christianity. Pointer argues Papunhank’s first recorded statement in 1760 reveals that his “pilgrimage” involved “mostly indigenous spiritual practices and methods” (51). Papunhank’s journey began with a vision, which led him to gain renown as a prophet and healer. But a journey that began with the sort of neotraditionalist practices becoming common at the time led him first to absolute pacifism and then Christianity. Chapter 3 traces Papunhank’s meeting with Moravians that included both German missionaries and Indigenous converts. Although intrigued by the Quakers he met, Papunhank decided to join the Moravians, whose emphasis on Christ’s bloody sacrifice as a source of spiritual power, Pointer suggests, would have appealed to a Munsee worldview. Chapter 4 details Papunhank and his followers’ struggle to avoid both the conflict known as Pontiac’s War and the violent reprisals of Indian-hating whites. Chapter 5 traces their refounding of Wyalusing as a Moravian town with the permission of the Six Nations. Chapter 6 details how, in the wake of the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, Papunhank and the Munsee, Lenape, and Mahican converts living in Wyalusing decided to seek refuge in the Ohio Country. Chapter 7 covers the final years of Papunhank’s life, taken up with his efforts to keep the Indigenous Moravian communities of Schönbrunn and Gnadenhütten out of the Shawnee war with Virginia (known as Dunmore’s War) while staying in the good graces of the nearby Lenape. Papunhank’s death in May 1775 meant that he did not live to see the slaughter of the residents of Gnadenhütten—including his family—at the hands of Pennsylvania militia in 1782.Pacifist Prophet is a nuanced look at an unusual figure, grounded in deft use of German-language accounts of Papunhank’s Moravian coreligionists. And while this is a book about Papunhank, some of the author’s assessments would have been strengthened by more discussion of the Moravians and the Quakers whom Papunhank looked to as potential spiritual and political allies. Papunhank sought both to build an Indigenous Christian community and to nonviolently resist the European imperial project, but Pointer never fully spells out how he views the Quakers’ and especially the Moravians’ relationship with that project. Were they gentler agents of empire, or were they countercultural fringe actors swimming against that current, more in line with Papunhank’s own vision? Pointer acknowledges that much of his subject’s life will remain unknown; therefore, a closer look at the company he kept—who provided most of the surviving evidence of his life—would have clarified what will nevertheless be an important book for scholars of eighteenth-century Nativism and Christianity alike.

EXPLORING EMMA BOVARY’S DIFFUSED PERSONALITY IN GUSTAVE FLAUBERT’S MADAME BOVARY NOVEL

This study aimed to explore Emma’s diffused personality in the novel Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. This study used a qualitative approach. The data collection technique used documentation. The research instrument used the diffusion personality features by Kroger (2005) consisting of 12 features; low levels of autonomy, low level of self-esteem, low level of identity, having no firm identity-defining commitments nor interest in making them, demonstrate the lowest sense of personal continuity over time, difficulties in adapting to an environment, most self-focused, unsystematic approaches to solving problems, high level of neuroticism, high defense-mechanism, high level of external locus of control, and hopeless. Data analysis used content analysis. The research procedure was reading the novel, identifying the characters' behavior, thoughts, words, and action, classifying sentences or phrases that show 12 diffusion features, coding, and verification. The study showed that Emma has the twelve diffused personality features. This study proves that identity status can be detected in literary works.

Structural and Attitudinal Barriers to Bicycle Ownership and Cycle-Based Transport in Gauteng, South Africa

Policies that aim to facilitate and promote non-motorised transport (NMT), and in particular cycling, have been developed by many high-income countries facing increasingly congested roads and saturated public transport systems. Such policies are also emerging in many low- and middle-income settings where high rates of urbanisation have led to similar problems with motorised transport. The aim of the present study was to better understand the potential structural and attitudinal barriers to cycle-based transport in one such context: South Africa’s Gauteng Province, the industrial powerhouse of sub-Saharan Africa that has recently made a firm commitment to NMT. The study focussed on demographic and socioeconomic variation in bicycle and car ownership, and related this to: (1) the reported use of motorised and non-motorised transport (both private and public); and (2) perceived ‘problems’ with cycling. The analyses drew on interviews with key respondents from n = 27,490 households conducted in 2013 as part of the third Quality of Life survey undertaken by the Gauteng City Regional Observatory. The survey contained items on three outcomes of interest: household vehicle ownership (bicycles and cars); modes of transport used for the “trips” most often made; and respondents’ “single biggest problem with… cycling”. Respondent- and household-level demographic and socioeconomic determinants of these outcomes were examined using descriptive and multivariable statistical analyses, the latter after adjustment for measured potential confounders identified using a theoretical causal path diagram (in the form of a directed acyclic graph). Of the n = 26,469 households providing complete data on all of the variables examined in the present study, only n = 8722 (32.9%) owned a car and fewer still (n = 2244; 8.4%) owned a bicycle. The ownership of these assets was commonest amongst wealthier, economically active households; and those that owned a car had over five times the odds of also owning a bicycle, even after adjustment for potential confounding (OR 5.17; 95% CI 4.58, 5.85). Moreover, of household respondents who reported making ‘trips’ during the preceding month (n = 18,209), over two-thirds of those whose households owned a car (70.1%) reported private car-based transport for such trips, while only 3.2% of those owning a bicycle reported cycling. Amongst the specific responses given to the item requesting the “single biggest problem with… cycling” by far the commonest was “Don’t know how to cycle” (32.2%), less than half as many citing “Vehicle accident risk” (15.9%), and fewer still: “Destination is too far” (13.9%); “Crime” (10.3%); “Too much effort” (9.2%); or “Lack of good paths” (4.6%). While the first of these reasons was commonest amongst poorer households, concerns about risk and effort were both most common amongst better educated, economically active and wealthier/better serviced households. In contrast, concerns over (cycle) paths were only common amongst those owning bicycles. The low prevalence of household bicycle ownership, and the disproportionate number of households owning bicycles that also owned cars, might explain the very small proportion of the ‘the trips most often made’ that involved cycle-based transport (0.3%), and the preferential use of cars amongst households owning both bicycles and cars. Low levels of bicycle ownership might also explain why so many respondents cited “Don’t know how” as the “single biggest problem with… cycling”; although risk and effort were also substantial concerns (presumably for many who did, and some who did not, know how to cycle); the lack of suitable cycle lanes being only primarily a concern for those who actually owned bicycles. Structural and attitudinal barriers to cycle-based transport limit the use of cycle-based transport in Gauteng, not only amongst the vast majority of household respondents who lack the means to cycle (and the means to learn how), but also amongst those dissuaded from learning to cycle, purchasing a bicycle and/or using a bicycle they own by: the risks and effort involved; the lack of suitable cycle paths; and/or because they also own a car and prefer to drive than cycle.

Potentials of Adult Education for Knowledge Economy and Sustainability

Investing in human capital is the priority to make the most of the evolving economic opportunity. The world is dynamic and must be followed for the fulfillment and meeting up with technology and trend of time. It is of great importance to work with trend by incorporating a knowledge driven development. Human capital is gaining importance, the workers are becoming increasingly responsible for every aspect of their work and professional life. Successes in knowledge economy require commitment of both workers and firms, to continually learn and increase their skills and expertise which foster innovation. Adult learning and education is available for continuous change, making knowledge available for initials and continuing workforce. Adult learning and education equips people with the necessary knowledge, capabilities, skills competences and values to exercise and advance their rights and take control of their destinies.

Child food insecurity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: urgent need for policy evaluation and reform in Israel\u2019s school feeding programs

Even in high-income countries like Israel, children have been particularly vulnerable to the surge in food insecurity driven by quarantines, unemployment, and economic hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under normal circumstances, School Feeding Programs (SFPs) can help to ensure child food security. In the wake of the pandemic, policy makers worldwide have been challenged to adapt national SFPs to provide nutritional support to children (and indirectly to their families) during extended school closures. Most national SFPs implemented contingency plans to ensure continued nutritional support for children. In Israel, where SFPs were largely suspended during long periods of mandated school closing, there was a loss of 30–50% of feeding days for the ~ 454,000 children enrolled in the program. The lack of emergency contingency planning and failure to maintain Israeli SFPs during school closures reveals longstanding structural policy flaws that hindered coordination between relevant ministries and authorities and impeded the mobilization of funds and existing programs to meet the emergent need. The school feeding law does not identify child food security as an explicit aim, there are no benchmarks for monitoring and evaluating the program to ensure that the food aid reaches the children most in need, even routinely, and the Ministry of Education had no obligation to maintain the program and to marshal data on the participants that could be acted upon in the emergency. Moreover, because Israeli SFPs are “selective”, in other words, implemented according to community risk (low-income, high poverty rate) and geographical factors, attendant stigma and financial burdens can make participation in the program less attractive to families and communities that need them the most. We argue that Israel should make urgent, long-term improvements to the SFPs as follows: First, eliminating childhood food insecurity should be made an explicit goal of legislation in the broader context of national social, health, and nutritional goals, and this includes ensuring SFPs are maintained during emergencies. Second, the government should assume responsibility for the routine assessment and data collection on food insecurity among Israeli children. Third, SFPs should be subjected to rigorous independent program evaluation. Finally, a “universal” SFP providing nutritious diets would likely improve the health of all Israeli children, across all socioeconomic backgrounds. These steps to guarantee that Israeli children have food to realize their full physical and cognitive potential would emphasize Israel’s firm commitment to support multiple dimensions of health, educational achievement, and societal values, to combat the complex and long-term consequences of the pandemic, and to prepare for the next one.

Can PATH Study susceptibility measures predict e-cigarette and cigarette use among American youth 1 year later?

To investigate whether e-cigarette and cigarette susceptibility predict e-cigarette and cigarette use among American youth 1 year later. Longitudinal data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study-a four-stage, stratified probability cohort study of youth (12-17 years old) sampled from the United States civilian, non-institutionalized population. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the association between initial product-specific susceptibility and subsequent cigarette smoking and e-cigarette use while controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, exposure to nicotine users, and behavioral risk factors. The sample included 8841 adolescent never nicotine users at initial survey who participated in both wave 4 (2016-2017) and wave 4.5 (2017-2018) of PATH. We measured cigarette and e-cigarette susceptibility (defined as a lack of a firm commitment to not use cigarettes or e-cigarettes) among never nicotine users at baseline (wave 4) as well as cigarette and e-cigarette use at 12-month follow-up (wave 4.5). Youth e-cigarette susceptibility was statistically significantly (P < 0.05) associated with e-cigarette use 1year later, for both past 12-month (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.99; 95% CI, 2.29-3.90) and past 30-day e-cigarette use (aOR, 2.73; 95% CI, 1.78-4.16), but not with cigarette smoking (aOR, 1.05; 95% CI, 0.64-1.73 for past 12-month smoking and aOR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.29-1.45 for past 30-day smoking. Smoking susceptibility predicted subsequent smoking in the past 12 months (aOR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.09-3.03) and past 30 days (aOR, 3.32; 95% CI (1.33-8.29), but not e-cigarette use in the past 12 months (aOR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.77-1.19) or past 30 days (aOR, 1.11; 95% CI, 0.82-1.51). E-cigarette and cigarette susceptibility measures appear to predict product-specific use among youth 1year later.

Sustainability of the Portuguese North-Western Fishing Activity in the Face of the Recently Implemented Maritime Spatial Planning

The Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) for continental Portugal was approved in December 2019 and has established a novel framework for those players that carry out maritime activities. In light of this challenge, our work addresses the current status of the fishing activity in the north-western region of Portugal, where relevant small-scale fisheries (SSF) are still well established. Based on official statistical data and a stakeholder survey, structural, economic, and social issues that significantly influence the sustainability of this industry were studied. Throughout the 2012–2019 pre-COVID-19 period, the price revalorization of primary products in first-sale markets was the key aspect that allowed fisheries to partially counteract the loss of economic value associated with the decreased fishing production (a decline of 46% of the total nominal catches). Regarding the regional fishing trade network, the fact that a given species reaches a wide range of prices in closely located major landing ports (Matosinhos, Póvoa de Varzim, and Viana do Castelo) constitutes, nonetheless, an issue that deserves attention and optimization. A survey conducted among training professional fishers confirmed a deeply rooted family/regional tradition but revealed concerns about the future generational replacement. The trainees demanded stronger support from the government, a modernization process for fishing activity, as well as higher social salary standards. Moreover, they assigned a high relevance to the sustainability of aquatic resources. In conclusion, the results shown in the present study reveal a noticeable ability of the regional fishing industry to overcome the challenging economic circumstances that have occurred in the last few years. Against the new scenario decisively influenced by the MSP, a generation of future regional fishers that pursue high social and environmental standards is certainly a solid basis for an optimistic future performance of this activity. For that purpose, a firm commitment to the use of technology seems like a key strategy to adopt in order to further the sustainability of the fisheries in the north-western region of Portugal.

He’s Overqualified, She’s Highly Committed: Qualification Signals and Gendered Assumptions About Job Candidate Commitment

Evidence suggests that possessing more qualifications than is necessary for a job (i.e., overqualification) negatively impacts job candidates’ outcomes. However, unfair discounting of women’s qualifications and negative assumptions about women’s career commitment imply that female candidates must be overqualified to achieve the same outcomes as male candidates. Across two studies, experimental and qualitative data provide converging evidence in support of this assertion, showing that gender differences in how overqualification impacts hiring outcomes are due to the type of commitment—firm or career—that is most salient during evaluations. Overqualified men are perceived to be less committed to the prospective firm, and less likely to be hired as a result, than sufficiently qualified men. But overqualified women are perceived to be more committed to their careers than qualified women because overqualification helps overcome negative assumptions that are made about women’s career commitment. Overqualification also does not decrease perceptions of women’s firm commitment like it does for men: supplemental qualitative and experimental evidence reveals that hiring managers rationalize women’s overqualification in a way they cannot for men by relying on gender stereotypes about communality and assumptions about candidates’ experiences with gender discrimination at prior firms. These findings suggest that female candidates must demonstrate their commitment along two dimensions (firm and career), but male candidates need only demonstrate their commitment along one dimension (firm). Taken together, differences in how overqualification impacts male versus female candidates’ outcomes are evidence of gender inequality in hiring processes, operating through gendered assumptions about commitment. Funding: This research was funded by internal faculty research funds provided by Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University. Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1550 .

Susceptibility to tobacco use and associated factors among youth in five central and eastern European countries

BackgroundTobacco use among young people still remains a major public health problem. Thus, the aim of this study was to perform a cross-country comparison for the factors associated with susceptibility to tobacco use among youth from five central and eastern European countries.MethodsThe data used in the current analysis, focusing on youth (aged 11–17 years), who have never tried or experimented with cigarette smoking, was available from the recent Global Youth Tobacco Survey (Czech Republic (2016), n = 1997; Slovakia (2016), n = 1998; Slovenia (2017), n = 1765; Romania (2017), n = 3718; Lithuania (2018), n = 1305). Simple, multiple logistic regression analyses and random-effect meta-analysis were conducted to identify factors associated with tobacco use susceptibility as the lack of a firm commitment not to smoke.ResultsNearly a quarter of the students were susceptible to tobacco use in 4 of 5 countries. The following factors were identified, consistently across countries, as correlates of tobacco use susceptibility: exposure to passive smoking in public places (AOR from 1.3; p = 0.05 in Slovakia to 1.6; p < 0.01 in Czech Republic and Romania), peers smoking status (AOR from 1.8 p < 0.01 in Slovakia to 2.5; p < 0.01 Lithuania), opinion that smoking helped people feel more comfortable at celebrations (AOR from 1.3; p = 0.01 in Czech Republic to 1.9; p < 0.01 in Lithuania), noticing people using tobacco in mass media (AOR 1.5; p < 0.01 in Slovenia and 1.6; p < 0.01 in Lithuania), lack of knowledge on harmful effects of passive smoking (AOR 1.8; p < 0.01 in Slovakia and 2.4; p < 0.01 in Slovenia), lack of antismoking education provided by school (AOR 1.3; p < 0.05 in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia; 1.9; p < 0.01 in Lithuania), and family (AOR 1.5; p < 0.01 in Slovenia and Romania). Moreover those who believed that smoking makes young people look less attractive (AOR from 0.5; p < 0.01 in Romania to 0.7; p = 0.05 in Lithuania) and that people who smoke have less friends (AOR 0.7; p ≤ 0.06) turned out to be less susceptible to tobacco use initiation. In Czech Republic and Slovenia significantly higher susceptibility to tobacco use was observed among females as compared to males (AOR 1.4; p < 0.01), whereas in Romania opposite pattern, although not significant, was observed (p = 0.3). Having more money available for own expenses, positively correlated with smoking suitability in all countries (AOR > 1.5; p < 0.01) except Lithuania where youth with more money available tend to be less susceptible to tobacco use (p > 0.05). Youth who share the opinion that people who smoke have more friends were more susceptible to smoking in Romania (AOR 1.4; p = 0.04) but tend to be less susceptible in other countries. Exposure to advertisements at points of sale was significant correlate of tobacco use susceptibility in Slovakia and Slovenia (AOR 1.4 and 1.5 respectively; p < 0.05), with moderate heterogeneity between the countries.ConclusionsA high proportion of youth from central and eastern European countries was susceptible to tobacco use. Social factors, and those related to educational and policy issues as well as to attitudes regarding tobacco use were strongly, and consistently across countries, correlated with tobacco use susceptibility. Slight differences in susceptibility to tobacco use between the countries were related to: sex, money available for own expenses, exposure to advertisements at points of sale and opinion that people who smoke have more friends. These factors should be considered when designing and implementing anti-tobacco activities among young people.

Biobased Innovation as a Fashion and Textile Design Must: A European Perspective

Fashion industry investments drive the choice for textile solutions characterized by radical experimentation and a firm commitment to sustainability. In the last five years, textile innovations have been strongly related to biobased textile solutions evolving to become effectively feasible and strategic. The produced qualitative knowledge implementations consider new production patterns, innovative technical and digital know-how, and new consumption scenarios. The directions the industry is tracing may provide new opportunities for future textile development in the circular biobased economy. This paper presents a map of current European practices. It discusses the possible passage through a holistic paradigm that goes beyond the boundaries of the old productive systems to accompany the sector towards a new sustainable and transversal state. It also presents three selected best practices that return the actual context in which the phenomenon occurs. A model is presented to demonstrate how these circular processes of biobased materials production enable more process innovations which are developed through implementing the process itself: companies’ search for rethinking and implementing the traditional practices or designing new ones (as determined by the doctoral research of one of the authors).

De la abundancia a la exquisitez gastronómica. Una etnografía de las nuevas oportunidades para la atracción del turismo en Las Hurdes (Cáceres)

Las Hurdes has long been the symbol in Spain for the most atrocious hunger and extreme poverty. Different studies have shown how that dramatic association continues to condition many habits still in the present. Based on a qualitative ethnographic study, we have approached the way in which this past contin‑ ues influencing food and gastronomic habits and customs. This empirical material has allowed us to delimit different categories such as abundance, tradition, sustainability and exquisiteness that show an important change in the catering business in the area. This opens up a new avenue of tourist attractions that could well help tourism development, still largely insufficient in the region. In the conclusions, the public admin‑ istrations are urged to make a firm commitment to changing associations and to overcome the traditional difficulties of collaboration between public and private sectors.

Deformation Fringes Detection in SAR interferograms Using Deep Learning

The success achieved by using SAR data in the study of the Earth led to a firm commitment from space agencies to develop more and better space-borne SAR sensors. This involvement of the space agencies makes us believe that it is possible to increase the potential of SAR interferometry (InSAR) to near real-time monitoring. Among this ever-increasing number of sensors, the ESA’s Sentinel-1 (C-band) mission stands out and appears to be disruptive. This mission is acquiring vast volumes of data making current analyzing approaches inviable. This amount of data can no longer be analyzed and studied using classic methods raising the need to use and create new techniques. We believe that Machine Learning techniques can be the solution to overcome this issue since they allow to train Deep Learning models to automate human processes for a vast volume of data. In this paper, we use deep learning models to automatically find and locate deformation areas in InSAR interferograms without atmospheric correction. We train three state-of-the-art classification models for detection deformation areas, achieving an AUC of 0.864 for the best model (VGG19 for wrapped interferograms). Additionally, we use the same models as encoders to train U-net models, achieving a Dice score of 0.54 for InceptionV3. It is necessary more data to achieve better results in segmentation.