For-profit Model Research Articles

“More than Words”: A Legal Approach to the Risks of Commercial Chatbots Powered by Generative Artificial Intelligence

Abstract The recent commercial release of a new generation of chatbot systems, particularly those leveraging Transformer-based large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, has caught the world by surprise and sparked debate about their potential consequences for society. While concerns about the existential threat posed by these technologies are often discussed, it is crucial to shift our focus towards the more immediate risks associated with their deployment. Such risks are further compounded by the lack of proactive measures addressing users’ literacy and the for-profit model via which these chatbots are distributed. Drawing on research in computer science and other fields, this paper looks at the immediate risks triggered by these products and reflects on the role of law within a broader policy directed at steering generative artificial intelligence technology towards the common good. It also reviews the relevant amendments proposed by the European Parliament to the European Commission’s proposal for an AI Act.

The footballing past in the bustling paths: the museumization of topophilia at the seedbed of the Mohun Bagan Athletic Club in North Kolkata

ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to examine a kind of open-air museumization of topophilic aspects of football in the birthplace of the Mohun Bagan Athletic Club in North Kolkata, West Bengal, India. While dealing with some graffiti, memorial plaques, and relief sculptures implanted in some public lanes of the Bagbazar-Sovabazar-Shyambazar area, it explores a sports-landscape bonding, which becomes instrumental for reminiscing, representing, and interpreting the heritage of an age-old football club during the new millennium. In doing so, this paper not only differs from the extant scholarships, which perceive museumizing of football only within the narrow premises of modern museums but also postulates that museumization of sports in an urban public space does not always get swayed by the for-profit model.

A For-Profit Model of Microcredit

Microcredit is a proven means of poverty alleviation. However, its implementation in India is flawed. High interest rates, incompetent use of credit, and insufficient loan-sizes are just some of the problems well-documented in literature. This paper seeks to assess if these problems can be alleviated by a for-profit model of microcredit, and hence if this model can sustainably improve financial inclusion in India. The role of profit-motives in Indian microcredit has only been analyzed from a theoretical perspective thus far, so this paper adds to existing research by bringing in an empirical perspective through data from Microfinance Institutions from the MIX Markets database. A baseline binary Logistic Classifier is trained, alongside proposed models of a Decision Tree Classifier and a Gradient-boosted Tree Classifier. Feature analysis is conducted on the models, and the results are used to devise profit-maximizing strategies. These strategies are then analyzed to assess if profit-driven companies can improve financial inclusion in a socially desirable manner. The study finds that for-profit incentives can increase the spread, efficiency, and accessibility of microcredit while potentially fostering competent use of credit and reducing the cost of borrowing. However, the study also notes the requirement for regulation in the growth and means of enforcing repayment in such for-profit models. Further, the study observes that a for-profit model may increase credit risk and will fail to allocate credit to the lowest strata of the poor. As such, for-profit firms must be complemented by not-for-profit MFIs to improve financial inclusion across the board.

Care for a Profit?

We vindicate the widespread intuition that there is something morally problematic with for-profit corporations providing care to young children and elders. But instead of putting forward an empirical argument showing that for-profit corporations score worse than not-for-profits when it comes to meeting the basic needs of these vulnerable groups, we develop a philosophical argument about the nature of the relationship between a care organisation, its role-occupants, and care recipients. We argue that the correlation between profit and lower-quality care is a result of intrinsic features of a for-profit model, combined with conceptual features of meaningful caring relationships, such that non-profits are the most reliable institutional providers of adequate care. Our claim is that care requires a kind of commitment that for-profit institutions are constituted to avoid, and that non-profit institutions are constituted to embrace.

A Comparative Assessment of Long-Term Care Financing and Service Delivery Models

The face of public long term care (LTC) funded largely through the Medicaid program is changing rapidly in the U.S. Over the last decade, most states have moved to managed LTC programs in various forms, with a growing number transferring all their programs, home and community based (HCBS) and nursing home services, to a Medicaid (MLTC) model. The amount of rigorously conducted and reported evaluation results on these programs are still very limited. Enough information is available, however, from other sources for at least preliminary comparison of relative cost-effectiveness of MLTC vs. traditional, non-profit models of public LTC services delivery and financing, as discussed in this paper. This comparison will show that, at this point, the MLTC programs are not more cost-effective than the traditional model of LTC administration. In fact, these initial assessments seem to indicate that the traditional model may be superior to the corporate for-profit MLTC model.

Systematic shifts in scaling behavior based on organizational strategy in universities.

To build better theories of cities, companies, and other social institutions such as universities, requires that we understand the tradeoffs and complementarities that exist between their core functions, and that we understand bounds to their growth. Scaling theory has been a powerful tool for addressing such questions in diverse physical, biological and urban systems, revealing systematic quantitative regularities between size and function. Here we apply scaling theory to the social sciences, taking a synoptic view of an entire class of institutions. The United States higher education system serves as an ideal case study, since it includes over 5,800 institutions with shared broad objectives, but ranges in strategy from vocational training to the production of novel research, contains public, nonprofit and for-profit models, and spans sizes from 10 to roughly 100,000 enrolled students. We show that, like organisms, ecosystems and cities, universities and colleges scale in a surprisingly systematic fashion following simple power-law behavior. Comparing seven commonly accepted sectors of higher education organizations, we find distinct regimes of scaling between a school’s total enrollment and its expenditures, revenues, graduation rates and economic added value. Our results quantify how each sector leverages specific economies of scale to address distinct priorities. Taken together, the scaling of features within a sector along with the shifts in scaling across sectors implies that there are generic mechanisms and constraints shared by all sectors, which lead to tradeoffs between their different societal functions and roles. We highlight the strong complementarity between public and private research universities, and community and state colleges, that all display superlinear returns to scale. In contrast to the scaling of biological systems, our results highlight that much of the observed scaling behavior is modulated by the particular strategies of organizations rather than an immutable set of constraints.

Monetary Reform of G.Ya. Sokolnikov

The article covers the transformations in the sphere of commodity-money relations during establishment of Soviet power. The period under review starts from the chaotic monetary policy in the first post-revolutionary years with attempts to abandon money exchange to the period of creating stable money circulation in the country. NEP brings positive changes, when trade resumes, monetary wages are required, and a for-profit model (khozraschyot) is established. Theoretically, the advantage of a fixed equivalent of value is proved, and stable money is needed, the basis of which is gold. The State Bank is restored. It becomes possible to issue a bank card backed by gold. Under the People's Commissariat of Finance, a Currency Department is created. G. Ya. Sokolnikov is appointed to the post of People's Commissar, a group of specialists is selected, among them N. Kutler, L. Yurovsky, V. Tarnovsky. The reform begins with the implementation of two denominations that have eliminated many varieties of banknotes and reduced their number. The chervonets becomes the main monetary unit, which has a gold content and security. In 1924, the reform is completed. The Soviet Union is able to restore the national economy. The article states that the reform proved the viability of the Soviet currency, as well as the high qualification and theoretical training of its performers. Being in more difficult conditions than other countries participating in the First World War, the Soviet Union carried out monetary reform before them and with a higher result.

Potential for social entrepreneurship in tourism in the city of Chennai

Purpose Tamil Nadu, the southern provincial state of India attracts the highest number of domestic as well as international tourist to India. Chennai, the capital city of Tamil Nadu is the much sought-after destination for tourists and attracts a large number of visitors. Considering the transformational role of tourism with its focus on community-in-need, tourism can usher opportunities for both not-for-profit and for-profit social entrepreneurship (SE). At this juncture, the number of poor people in the city is relevant, which is almost 40% of the population seeking livelihood opportunities. SE operating for-profit model is often construed sustainable and appropriate in the context of tourism. Considering the relevance of such innovative actional approaches, this study aims to explore the potential of for-profit SE in the the city of Chennai. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted the exploratory sequential method. The social drivers and challenges of SE in Chennai were explored through expert in-depth interview and the dimensions of challenges were explored through factor analysis. Findings The study result indicates that the social drivers of SE in tourism can be broadly classified into concurrent social drivers and latent social drivers, which encompass the potential for social bricoleur, social constructionist and social engineer typologies. There are five dimensions for the challenges for institutionalizing tourism-based SE in the city of Chennai i.e. community concerned, industry specific, sustainability centric, governance oriented and collaboration centered. The study concluded with future directions for the institutionalizing SE, creating social value and fostering community-level transformation in tune with sustainable development goals (SDGs) in tourist destinations of the city of Chennai. Research limitations/implications The study considered existing wage employees of various vendors in tourist destinations of the city with an assumption that these wage employees are interested in entrepreneurship possibility. Practical implications SE assumes relevance in the context of inclusive tourism and toward the attainment of SDGs through tourism, as an economic activity. The outcome of the study can be a catalyst to stimulate alternative business models for local development; persuading existing business enterprises to follow more responsible business practices in city destinations, thus promoting more pragmatic socio-economic outcomes to the underprivileged, through tourism. Originality/value Social drivers and challenges are unique in the context of tourism especially in the Indian context as there was no such attempt to consolidate these aspects as a move toward inclusive tourism by strengthening the grass-root level participation.

Quality and innovation in American higher education accreditation: the case of the University of Phoenix

ABSTRACT In 1978, the University of Phoenix was among the first for-profit universities to receive accreditation from a prestigious regional agency: the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Its accreditation marked a turning point in broader acceptance for the for-profit model in higher education and gave the University of Phoenix access to its primary source of revenue: federal financial aid. This case offers an example of how innovation in US higher education can happen rapidly and with relatively little controversy. The decentralised nature of accreditation means that new schools can shop around to find an accreditor that best meets their needs. Because accreditors are so closely entwined with federal actors, they will greenlight innovative programmes when they serve the federal interest. Finally, because higher educational quality is difficult to assess, accreditors can use output-based metrics, which are better at supporting novelty than input-based standards.

The commodification of temporary housing

Since the 1970s, temporary uses of vacant spaces have become a preferred urban development strategy to revitalise centrally-located neighbourhoods. In the housing sector, however, temporary uses are barely registered as they provide only short-term shelter in buildings shortly before demolition. Therefore, they do not secure a stable right to housing. In Switzerland, nevertheless, temporary uses are increasingly gaining momentum in the housing segment. Since the 2010s, besides institutionalised but non-profit temporary housing, a for-profit model has emerged. This commodified model is managed on the owners' behalf and is based on loaning law contracts that require payment for operating costs, but not rent. Consequently, the legal protection of the temporary users' rights, namely low-income families, single parents, people with social aid, and students remains weak. This article detects the mechanisms at play explaining the reasons for the shift towards profit-seeking in temporary housing by using an institutionalist and actor-centred analysis approach. Through a qualitative single case study analysis of Zurich, Switzerland, the phenomenon will be analysed in a city confronted with increasing affordable housing shortage and densification pressure.

Online For-Profit Colleges and Universities and the Evolving Role of Academic Librarianship

This presentation reports on a survey of academic librarians and their attitudes on several interrelated professional issues in the online for-profit college and university environment. Librarians from this sector offer a unique perspective on librarianship best practices for online educational delivery. They also present a clearheaded understanding on the impact of profit-based decision making on academic librarian values, responsibilities, and sense of professional duty. In addition to the survey results, this presentation discusses how academic librarianship has responded to the growing prevalence of virtual education delivery, and what roles the for-profit model might proffer for academic librarians going forward.

Wasteful or sensible? Donor imageries in İstanbul’s food banks

AbstractThis paper explores how the staff of İstanbul’s food banks perceive the donors and the donations. The paper begins by exploring the literature on food banks; what food banks recover and redistribute; and the role food banks play in managing food insecurity. Next, how these three issues are represented in different models of food banks are discussed: in the non-profit model, the donors are “socially aware citizens” who contribute to the common good by helping to feed the hungry; whereas, for the for-profit model they are “caring capitalists” doing their best to reduce their carbon footprint and eliminate food waste while effectively managing the costs of waste disposal. In the municipal social markets, in contrast, the donors are “prodigal consumers” who cannot make correct resource allocation decisions and waste food as a result. For all the models, the donors are predominantly individuals or households and waste generation is perceived as a consumer problem, whereas in practice the donors are mostly corporations giving away their surplus stock. The paper concludes by underlining that this misperception shifts the conversation on waste generation and management away from production and supply chain problems and disciplines individuals as consumers.

“People are reading your work,” scholarly identity and social networking sites

PurposeScholarly identity refers to endeavors by scholars to promote their reputation, work and networks using online platforms such as ResearchGate, Academia.edu and Twitter. This exploratory research investigates benefits and drawbacks of scholarly identity efforts and avenues for potential library support.Design/methodology/approachData from 30 semi-structured phone interviews with faculty, doctoral students and academic librarians were qualitatively analyzed using the constant comparisons method (Charmaz, 2014) and Goffman’s (1959, 1967) theoretical concept of impression management.FindingsResults reveal that use of online platforms enables academics to connect with others and disseminate their research. scholarly identity platforms have benefits, opportunities and offer possibilities for developing academic library support. They are also fraught with drawbacks/concerns, especially related to confusion, for-profit models and reputational risk.Research limitations/implicationsThis exploratory study involves analysis of a small number of interviews (30) with self-selected social scientists from one discipline (communication) and librarians. It lacks gender, race/ethnicity and geographical diversity and focuses exclusively on individuals who use social networking sites for their scholarly identity practices.Social implicationsResults highlight benefits and risks of scholarly identity work and the potential for adopting practices that consider ethical dilemmas inherent in maintaining an online social media presence. They suggest continuing to develop library support that provides strategic guidance and information on legal responsibilities regarding copyright.Originality/valueThis research aims to understand the benefits and drawbacks of Scholarly Identity platforms and explore what support academic libraries might offer. It is among the first to investigate these topics comparing perspectives of faculty, doctoral students and librarians.

Deliver Us From Injustice: Reforming the U.S. Healthcare System.

For the last fifty years, the United States healthcare system has done an extremely poor job of delivering healthcare in a just and fair manner. The United States holds the dubious distinction of being the only industrialized nation in the world lacking provisions to ensure universal coverage. We attempt to provide some of the reasons this dysfunctional system has persisted and show that healthcare should not be a commodity. We begin with a brief historical overview of healthcare delivery in the United States since WWII. This is followed by a critical analysis of the for-profit model including reasons to support the view that healthcare should not be a free market commodity. We also demonstrate how special interest groups have been able to win support for their practices based on propaganda rather than fact. A brief analysis of the Affordable Care Act is offered along with critical comments regarding its ineffectiveness. We conclude with a brief overview of international approaches that have resulted in universal coverage and suggest the United States ought to adopt an approach similar to those outlined so that it no longer stands as the only industrialized nation to ignore the glaring problems that exist.

MEDICAID MANAGED LONG-TERM CARE PROGRAMS VS. THE TRADITIONAL MODEL: COMPARATIVE COSTS AND OUTCOMES

Several states have adopted Medicaid Managed Long-Term Care (MLTC) programs over the last several years. At this point at least 30 states are either administering such models or have plans to in the near future. We do not, however, know much yet about the relative cost-effectiveness of the MLTC model when compared to the traditional non-profit model of Medicaid LTC. Is the for-profit MLTC model actually generating savings in the Medicaid program while improving the quality of care? This symposia is designed to address the question through three presentations on experiences with MLTC programs in the states of Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania and a fourth presentation offering a national overview and critique of Medicaid MLTC in comparison to the traditional Medicaid LTC program still administered through non-profit Aging Network organizations. The state focused presentations describe the current status and results of MLTC in three states that vary in their specific features, extent of formal accountability for outcomes and the political contexts in which the programs currently function. The presentations also include discussions of the implications of each states experiences for the future of Medicaid LTC policy at the state and federal levels. The fourth presentation is a critical analysis of the main differences between the traditional non-profit model of Medicaid LTC services and the for-profit MLTC programs in terms of commonly accepted criteria of cost-effective LTC services, such as access, quality of care and per-person costs and differences in the roles of advocacy and accountability.

How Single Institutional Review Boards Manage Their Own Conflicts of Interest: Findings From a National Interview Study.

Conflicts of interest (COIs) are important ethical concerns because they may affect scientific decision making, research integrity, and the safety and fairness of studies. No research to date has examined COIs of single institutional review boards (sIRBs), which are now mandated by the National Institutes of Health, and will be by the revised Common Rule in 2020, for all multisite research. This study investigated how different types of sIRBs manage their own COIs by documenting existing processes for and comparing commercial, government, and academic sIRBs. One hundred three personnel from 20 commercial, government, or academic sIRBs participated in semistructured interviews about their processes for and experiences with managing COIs when conducting multisite research review. Variability in COI management policies exist across types of sIRBs. Commercial sIRBs were aware of their own COIs given their for-profit model, and managed them by using firewalls, relying on external reviewers, and turning down potential clients. Government sIRBs described unique COIs stemming from the same agency funding the sIRB and the research being reviewed. They addressed these by discussing concerns about COIs, using firewalls, relying on nonaffiliated reviewers, and having broad COI policies. In contrast to commercial and government sIRBs, academic sIRBs did not report any specific policies to manage their COIs, which are similar to those of local IRBs. As sIRBs become increasingly common, researchers will need to weigh the different COIs inherent to each type of sIRB. Additionally, academic sIRBs may consider implementing specific policies for managing their COIs.

Do Hybrid Firms Out-Provide Traditional Business Structures? An Examination of Prosocial Behavior in North Carolina Firms

With the rise of social enterprises has come a push for formal hybrid legal forms. Hybrid structures formalize a for-profit model with a social mission but carry no tax benefits. Using the case of North Carolina, this article examines a sample of formal hybrid firms and variation in their prosocial practices compared with informal social enterprises and traditional for-profit and nonprofit entities. Using firm-level survey data, Poisson estimations reveal that formal hybrid firms are associated with additional production-related prosocial practices as compared with traditional for-profits, informal social enterprises with both for-profit and nonprofit structures, and traditional nonprofits. This study contributes to the literatures on organizational identity and prosocial behavior as well as to the field of social enterprise by offering a comparison of formal and informal hybrid identification with a relatively large sample quantitative analysis.

Flight Bans and the Ebola Crisis: Policy Recommendations for Future Global Health Epidemics

Commercial airlines are positioned to be the most effective means to address global infectious disease epidemics. However, during the Ebola epidemic in 2014, many countries responded by shutting down borders and banning flights to Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia in attempts to “quarantine” the outbreak. Later studies demonstrated that these flight bans were not only ineffective in controlling the spread of disease but, at times, kept vital humanitarian assistance from reaching the epidemic, effectively providing conditions for the outbreak to grow. This paper examines lessons learned from commercial airline and nation-state behaviors during the Ebola outbreak to recommend how airlines can navigate between the constraints of their for-profit model and responses from nations during the next infectious disease crisis. To address these issues, we propose that before the next global epidemic, the WHO establish an Essential Air Corridor Policy (EAC) centered on global recognition of the need to keep commercial airlines running to affected countries. This policy would have the WHO organize an auction for airlines to bid on service to epidemic-affected areas while also providing a system of incentives to staff members and other airlines employees. The policy would also mandate that leaders from the airline join talks by global experts on the disease and establish mechanisms to ensure airlines have the latest safety protocols for cleaning equipment and surveillance and quarantine of passengers according to the nature of the disease.

Understanding Food Sharing Models to Tackle Sustainability Challenges

The current global scene is characterized by a huge paradox: on one side, there is the scourge of poverty, on the other, 1.3billiontonnes of food is wasted around the world every year.To address these problems, alternative distribution formats aimed at reducing food waste - and generating a positive social impact - are emerging, particularly food banks and social supermarkets. Recently, opportunities created by digital technology and the phenomenon of the sharing economy have boosted the increasing number of web platforms and food sharing apps that are being developed by existing organizations or by new entities that work exclusively online.The main aim of this research is to highlight – following an overview of existing food sharing models - how alternative distribution systems change in response to digitalization, and how the value propositions they claim change in the online context.A hierarchical cluster analysis based on a sample of 52 food sharing cases was carried out. Three categories of models have emerged: - the “sharing for money” model, which is primarily a B2C for-profit model to reduce waste and, at the same time, generate revenue; - the “sharing for charity” model in which food is collected and given to non-profit organizations; - the “sharing for the community” model which is a P2P model where food is shared amongst consumers.By way of conclusion we suggest that food bank seems to be replicated online in the same way in the online context (the “sharing for charity” model). However the model of the social supermarket does not seems to be replicated in the same way in the digital context, but changes towards a more profit oriented approach (the “sharing for money” model). Additionally, in the digital scenario, a new model emerges: the “sharing for the community”.Finally, the study highlights some preliminary evidences on the effects of the new forms of sharing on social inequality.

Characteristics of Part-Time Online Instructors: A Comparison of For-Profit to Nonprofit Faith-Based Institutions

ABSTRACTAs the for-profit business model and a reliance on adjunct faculty continues to grow among faith-based institutions, little research exists on the differences in the characteristics of part-time online faculty in for-profit versus nonprofit environments that could provide guidance to administrators. This study utilized a descriptive, nonexperimental survey design employing the chi-squared test (χ2) as a statistical tool to analyze the categorical data. This descriptive exploratory study compares part-time online faculty in for-profit and nonprofit environments based on results from a convenience sample of 1,034 online instructors from 19 faith-based institutions in the United States. Information presented in this paper includes demographic characteristics, types of students served, religious commitment, course logistics, and student–instructor interaction. Part-time online instructors from for-profit or nonprofit faith-based institutions were similar in several personal characteristics such as age and household income, as well as in their motivation to become a part-time online instructor. However, there also were several statistically significant differences noted, most notably their religious commitment (χ2[40, N = 1,034] = 111.93, p < .001; Cramer's V = 0.329) and religious affiliation (χ2[20, N = 1,028] = 107.59, p < .001; Cramer's V = 0.324). Recommendations for faith-based institutions of higher learning by type included increasing the diversity of instructors at nonprofit institutions, screening applicants for mission fit at for-profit institutions, and increasing compensation at both types of institutions.