Organizational Networks Research Articles

Peluang Penerapan Beyond Budgeting sebagai Upaya Optimalisasi Manajemen Perusahaan Studi Kasus PT Asuransi Jasindo Syariah


 The insurance sector is important for the Indonesian economy. Insurance companies must be able to manage their budget well and precisely because otherwise it will result in company losses. Budgeting discrepancies will result in insurance companies having difficulty achieving financial targets, including providing claims. Therefore, this research aims to find out the comparison of the concepts of traditional budgeting and beyond budgeting and how company management performs using traditional budgeting. Apart from that, this research aims to find out how prepared the company is to implement beyond budgeting. This research is a qualitative research involving case studies conducted at PT. Jasindo Syariah Insurance. The data collection techniques used in this research include semi-structured interview techniques and data triangulation. Of the total of 12 beyond budgeting principles, the level of implementation varies. The Anticipation System principle has been implemented throughout the company. The principles of Governance, Accountability for Dynamic Results, Organizational Networks, Relative Targets and Resource Allocation have been partially implemented by the company. On the other hand, the principles of Manager Empowerment, Market Coordination, Supportive Leadership, Continuous Strategy Determination, Speed ​​of Information Distribution and Rewards are relatively small which have been implemented by companies. The research findings highlight the significant potential beyond budgeting for Jasindo Syariah Insurance Company.
 Keywords: Beyond budgeting, traditional budgeting.

Innovative Supervision on Organizational Networks: finding the suitable scale.

Introduction: Organizing integrated care in networks of collaborating care organizations is a complex challenge. One of the aspects of this challenge concerns determining the suitable scale of such networks. Scale is not a simple question of macro/meso/micro but an outcome of the interplay between many different interests, values and perceptions of organizations participating in a network. Another aspect of the challenge of integrated networks is the organization of the supervision of these networks. Contemporary arrangements and instruments for supervision are mostly aimed at individual organizations and not aimed at a integrated network of organizations and the specific functioning of such a network. Supervision on a network as-a-whole instead of individual participant, could make it more feasible for those participants to overcome their own specific interest in order to strive for the common interest of the network.
 Organizing innovative supervision on networks and determining the suitable for networks are two connected and interfering challenges. Our workshop will inform about this challenge and on our first research findings from the extensive research program “External and Internal Supervision Methods and Modalities for Organizational Networks Addressing Complex Societal Issues (EISON)”, developed by Professor Minkman, amongst others.
 Context & problem: Integral care networks are already always searching and negotiating for het most suitable scale for there endeavors. What are the borders of the network, which organizations should be included? There are several factors in play to determine the suitable scale, in dynamic and complex ways. Meanwhile, when a network is formed, both internal and external supervision of the network should be organized in an innovative manner. This is in itself a puzzling task, and the dynamic and negotiation of finding a suitable scale makes it even harder. 
 Target audience: We aim to check and validate our initial findings, valuable to improve the discussion about the appropriate scale of integrated care network, and what this means for the supervision of the network-as-a-whole. Our primary target audience consists of participants in long term care organizations operating in integral networks and directors of those participating organizations. However, all professionals involved in integrated care networks can participate.
 Facilitation: The workshop will be facilitated by Sander Merkus, senior researchers at Vilans. He will be accompanied by two other researchers from the EISON project - these are yet to be determined, but would probably be Roman Pankow (Tilburg University) and Marjolein Camphuijsen (VU Amsterdam). 
 
 They will first give and introduction (10 minutes), then continue with a case study example and preliminary findings (20 minutes). Then we will engage in active interaction with the audience, in order to reflect on the findings: are they recognizable, are there any examples from other networks that the members of the audience can give (20 minutes), and we will finish with 5 minutes of feedback and closing, summarizing the key learnings to take home: an increased consciousness for the importance of innovative network supervision, while increasing the sensitivity for matters of scale in integrated care networks. 

Home Care Services and Early Detection & (Risk)Signaling: An Indispensable Link in Integrated Primary Care

Summary: Funded by the city of Antwerp, this project wants to optimize the preventive role and position of Home Care Services (HCS) in primary care by (1) improving the early detection en (risk)signaling of the home care professionals, (2) and elaborating the bridging function between HCS and the different primary care disciplines and sectors through shared vision and goals, suitable tools, communication systems and clear procedures in information sharing.
 Short description: HCS provide essential (non-medical) support that a person or a family in need of care requires in order to continue to live independently at home. Typical for Home Care Services is that employees spend many hours in close contact to the person or family in need of care. As a confidant to the client they quickly pick up on behavior changes, evolution in illness or condition. They are often the “eyes and ears” to a multidisciplinary team of care providers surrounding a client or patient. Or at least: they could be. All too often this indispensable role of HCS is insufficiently recognized by welfare organizations and medical care providers.
 The confidant position and early detection role of HCS professionals can bridge gaps between other professional care givers and a (psychologically or mentally vulnerable) client/patient, via signalization and referral to best placed (mental) health care or welfare actors.
 Several conditions need to be fulfilled for HCS to being able to effectively play this part in an integrated care system, like shared vision and goals, suitable tools, clear procedures in information sharing, recognition of HCS professionals as equal partners in primary care. All these conditions are being addressed in this project.
 Target group: All independent living persons in need of care and their care givers. In the first phase the project focusses on people with a psychological or mental vulnerability. 
 Project design
 * Involved actors:
 All HCS active in the City of Antwerp, in intense collaboration with a network of mental health care organizations, the social health services of the City of Antwerp. A sounding board is established to ensure the involvement of all relevant parties (project intervision, monitoring, adjustment).
 
 * Co –design approach: the target groups are therefore being involved via focus groups and quality surveys, throughout the project.
 * Possible restrictions:
 
 Legal restrictions on information sharing (e.g. GDPR, professional secrecy)
 Diversity in ways of financing of organizations.
 A broad and diverse set of (online) communication tools and ways of information sharing between health care sectors
 
 Next steps:
 
 Roll out of training programs to add to the competences of HCS professionals.
 Adjustment of internal and external communication protocols.
 Development and testing of uniform and shared (digital) communication tools.
 Application of uniformized methods concerning early detection, signalization and guidance in all vulnerable client situations.
 
 Learning for the international audience:
 
 Insights regarding the project's approach
 Importance of the role and contribution of a home care service (with lower-skilled staff) compared to the (highly-skilled) GP or home care nurse.
 
 
 

The co-development of a mobile navigation app in an integrated care network in Ontario, Canada

Introduction: The complexity of navigating health and social care services is a common challenge to both providers and patients and their families. In the nineties, navigation programs arouse to assist cancer patients accessing services. Since then, those programs expanded to additional patient populations. Navigation programs can take various forms including virtual navigation. Virtual navigation in healthcare is a proactive process by which patients obtain information and support via internet resources to manage their illness demands.
 Approach: With a commitment to facilitate 24/7 access to its attributed population, Burlington Ontario Health Team (BOHT)-an integrated care network in Ontario- developed a mobile navigation app. Developing this app utilized experienced-based co-design approach. This approach took place via organizing a working group that included all stakeholders within the BOHT network of organizations and patient/caregiver partners. Over several months, the working group built potential personas of users, mapped their system navigation needs, created an inventory of navigation services within the network and designed the navigation app. Creation of the app was an iterative process including several testing and feedback loops to improve content and usability.
 Results: The first iteration of Burlington Navigation app was launched in Fall of 2021 accompanied by a comprehensive communication plan. The plan included digital signals at the hospital and primary care offices, social media posts and presentations to local providers including primary care physicians, community navigators. The first iteration focused on linking to health, social and community services offered by BOHT’s members and collaborators, and also services that were widely used in the community. Based on the feedback we received afterwards, the second iteration included links to provincial services. The third iteration includes capability to create a trusted account verified in the background by the same technology Interac uses. This will allow secure and seamless access to integrated services without a need for a separate username and password as well as access to the provincial patient portal
 Implications/highlights: Burlington Navigation app was the first community-based navigator app co-designed with patient partners, providers and community volunteers with lived experiences within the health and social care systems in Ontario. It resonated well with the users (providers and patients/caregivers) as local information became available at their fingertips. The success of the app allowed it to guide other OHTs on a similar digital navigator design journey. It also became the blueprint for a provincial solution for a multi-tenant navigator, which would allow multiple OHTs to showcase the local navigation information (based on geolocation) as well as provincial offerings.
 Conclusion: Sharing our journey co-developing the Burlington navigation app demonstrates that when local health integrated care networks utilize experienced-based co-design approaches to planning healthcare interventions, this has the potential to a) develop solutions that are well perceived by patients and providers and b) scale and spread these local solutions to larger-scale solutions that can improve the experiences of a wider spectrum of providers and patients.

Исследование проблематики методик определения типа контента во входящем трафике

Content filtering in the context of cybersecurity and trusted environments is an important tactic used to ensure network security and functionality. It works by restricting access to certain websites, emails, files or other content that may contain harmful elements or pose a significant risk of infection. Content filtering ensures the security not only of an individual user's data, but also of an entire network of organizations and institutions, helping to minimize the risk of malicious security breaches. The study of methods for determining the type of content in incoming traffic is a relevant and important area in the field of information security and network analytics. In today's Internet space, a significant amount of data is transmitted through networks, and one of the key tasks is the classification of this traffic to ensure security and effective network management. Methods for determining the type of content in incoming traffic are a set of algorithms and approaches that allow you to automatically determine what type of data is transmitted over the network. In the course of studying the problems of methods for determining the type of content in incoming traffic, data on network traffic is collected, a data set is selected for training the model, we consider classifier algorithms and focus on metrics for assessing classification efficiency. The results of the study can be used to create effective systems for detecting malicious or unwanted content, filtering data, or optimizing the operation of network resources. The study of methods for determining the type of content in incoming traffic is of practical importance and can be applied in various fields, including information security, network analytics, monitoring of network resources and optimization of network processes.

Contribution of Public Scientific and Technical Associations to Development of Mass Inventiveness in USSR from Mid-1950s to Mid-1960s

The article examines the role of public scientific and technical associations in the implementation of the Soviet Union’s science and technology policy aimed at stimulating inventive activity and expediting the introduction of new technology into production. Considering mass invention and rationalization as a crucial resource for ensuring the country’s competitiveness, especially in industries not related to the defense-industrial complex, the state essentially fully administered the activities of scientific and technical societies. The evolution of the mass invention management system is demonstrated. Organizational and economic mechanisms aimed at stimulating innovative activity are analyzed, revealing the most effective and indemand practices. It is noted that public associations had high potential for solving scientific and technical tasks, possessing a large number of qualified personnel, an extensive network of primary organizations, and a centralized management apparatus. However, administrative pressure, the imposition of ideological directives not inherent to scientific and technical societies, the creation of numerous associations with duplicative functions, and the pursuit of increasing quantitative indicators constrained the possibilities of scientific and technical societies, ultimately leading to formalism in the work of public associations.

Paradox of Authority and the International Criminal Court

The creation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has been one of the boldest progressive moves in the history of international relations. At the heart of the Rome Statute is a commitment to the spirit and principle of international criminal justice. States under the jurisdiction of the ICC agree to cede sovereignty over individual perpetrators suspected of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes unless they are able and willing to prosecute perpetrators of these crimes at home. Even heads of state have not been immune from the formal legal authority of the ICC. Given the reach of its ambitions, it is unsurprising that the ICC has struggled to achieve some of its goals. It has, though, become a focal point for a vibrant and committed network of international advocates, lawyers, and civil society organizations committed to advancing international criminal justice. States also recognize the ICC’s importance. This article focuses on the impact of backlash on the authority of the ICC and on the status of international criminal justice.

Chert exploitation and production in Sardinia during the Neolithic

This research deals with the modes of chert exploitation in Sardinia during the Neolithic, combining information on major chert sources identified across the island with the technological analysis on several stratigraphic reliable series. It focuses on the changes in raw material selection and on the evolution of technological behaviours between the 6th and the 4th millennium BCE. The data collected in this work allowed us either to shed a light on the role this lithic resource played in the production systems of Neolithic communities in Sardinia, and to catch differences in the modes of procurement, depending on the chronology and location of the sites. During the Early Neolithic, lithic raw material circulation in Sardinia did not occur through organized networks, but it seems to have relied on the high mobility of the local groups. It is only at the end of the 5th millennium BCE that well-organized exchange circuits started operating. These involved mainly obsidian and this raw material apparently consolidated in time, due to the role carried out by San Ciriaco and Ozieri Middle to Late Neolithic cultures in the control and development of the Monte Arci obsidian supply. Chert was never involved in these networks and was mainly exploited locally and opportunistically. However, from the end of the Neolithic, some outcrop in the Oligo-Miocene basin of Perfugas was exploited on a supra-local scale and for a relatively short period.

Enhancing freeze-thaw stability and flavor in surimi products: Impact of virgin coconut oil and fish oil incorporation

The study aimed to assess the impact of virgin coconut oil (VCO) and fish oil (FO) on the qualities of the freeze-thaw (F-T) treated surimi gels. In the fresh samples, VCO and FO had a weakening effect on the structure of surimi gels. While in the F-T treated samples, both VCO and FO exhibited a notable enhancement in gel strength, elevating it from 533.24 to 576.21 and 592.62 g cm, respectively (p < 0.05). Simultaneously, they increased the water holding capacity from 68.48% to 72.65% and 73.24%, respectively (p < 0.05), while also impeding the conversion of physically bound water to free water. Both VCO and FO resulted in a more uniform pore size and a more organized network structure of F-T treated surimi gels. Furthermore, they increased storage modulus of F-T treated surimi and its gels, which indicated the enhanced solid-like behavior of samples. Flavor analysis demonstrated that both F-T treatment and oil oxidation increased the flavor compound content. Both kinds of oil could significantly increase ester and alkane content while lowering the undesirable fishy compounds, and VCO exhibiting a better effect on the flavor enhancement than FO. The inclusion of these oils played a pivotal role in inhibiting the growth of ice crystals and minimizing damage to surimi during F-T treatments. In conclusion, this study introduces novel strategies for the production of frozen surimi gel products, leveraging the beneficial effects of VCO and FO in enhancing gel properties, flavor profiles, and overall product quality.

Turning Waste into Means: Human Hair Business in a West Bengal Village

The present study is a part of an ongoing research conducted on human hair business at a rural-level entrepreneurship run by the people living in Lohabarh village under Bhagwanpur-1 Block in Purba Medinipur district of West Bengal, India. This business is also found in many other villages of this administrative block. It deals with the fallen hair tangles which serve as the main raw materials collected from different rural and urban areas of West Bengal. The products like hair wigs or hair extensions are sold in national and international markets through local and foreign traders or through online platforms. Therefore, a large network of business organizations is involved in the whole process. The study aims to know the process of turning the waste into reusable product along with the exploration of the nature of business organization and to understand the networks connected to international market from such a rural-level entrepreneurship so that the local and global interaction is realized in this context. The study reveals how people do this work at the village level and how it is circulated outside the village. It has enquired about the people involved and the extent of dividends contributing to their economic prosperity. It is revealed that a group of economically backward people had an occupational shift to this work, and it helped them to uplift their economic conditions considerably.

CONTRIBUTIONS REGARDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF COMPUTER INCIDENT MANAGEMENT IN A PUBLIC ORGANIZATION PROVIDING SERVICES TO CITIZENS

The scientific work presents research on implementing computer incident management within a public organization providing services to citizens. The increasing digitization of activities in the public sector brings many advantages, such as efficiency, increasing the quality of services, and shortening working times. On the other hand, digitization can be achieved with extensive technology with equipment used within the local IT network to carry out activities, store databases, and interconnect with other IT systems. All these equipment and computer systems have a certain degree of vulnerability, and there is a risk of computer incidents. The research proposed by the authors comes up with proposals in this field of computer incident management, offering solutions by carrying out a procedure for solving a computer incident. Following the research, several policies have been implemented on the servers in the local network at the level of the entire local domain and the implementation of policies at the level of each workstation in the organization's local network to avoid computer incidents such as cyber-attacks. Backup solutions have been implemented on a NAS-type device to eliminate the risks of computer incidents during a hard disk failure or data loss. Solutions have also been implemented to eliminate the risks of computer incidents due to the failure of computer devices within the local network following problems that may occur with the electricity supply network. The research identified and found solutions to eliminate some vulnerabilities in the wireless network, which can lead to computer incidents. At the paper's end, conclusions from this research are presented.

Impact of the COVID-19 Health Crisis on Key Populations at Higher Risk for, or Living With, HIV or Hepatitis C Virus and People Working With These Populations: Multicountry Community-Based Research Study Protocol (EPIC Program).

Information concerning the impact of the COVID-19 health crisis on populations most affected by HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV; or key populations [KP]), and those working with these populations in community settings, is limited. Community-based organizations working in the field of HIV and viral hepatitis are well placed to identify and meet the new needs of KP owing to the health crisis. This study aims to describe the development and implementation of an exploratory and descriptive multicountry, community-based research program, EPIC (Enquêtes Pour évaluer l'Impact de la crise sanitaire covid en milieu Communautaire), within an international network of community-based organizations involved in the response to HIV and viral hepatitis. The EPIC program aimed to study the impact of the COVID-19 health crisis on KP or people living with HIV or HCV and people working with these populations at the community level (community health workers [CHWs]) and to identify the key innovations and adaptations in HIV and HCV services. A general protocol and study documents were developed and shared within the Coalition PLUS network. The protocol had a built-in flexibility that allowed participating organizations to adapt the study to local needs in terms of the target population and specific themes of interest. Data were collected using surveys or interviews. From July 2020 to May 2022, a total of 79 organizations participated in the EPIC program. Across 32 countries, 118 studies were conducted: 66 quantitative (n=12,060 among KP or people living with HIV or people living with HCV and n=811 among CHWs) and 52 qualitative (n=766 among KP or people living with HIV or people living with HCV and n=136 among CHWs). The results of the EPIC program will provide data to describe the impact of the health crisis on KP and CHWs and identify their emerging needs. Documentation of innovative solutions that were put into place in this context may help improve the provision of services after COVID-19 and for future health crises. DERR1-10.2196/45204.

Global Remodeling of Host Proteome in Response to Leishmania Infection.

The protozoan parasite Leishmania possesses an intrinsic ability to modulate a multitude of pathways in the host, toward aiding its own proliferation. In response, the host reprograms its cellular, immunological, and metabolic machinery to evade the parasite's lethal impact. Besides inducing various antioxidant signaling pathways to counter the elevated stress response proteins like heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), Leishmania also attempts to delay host cell apoptosis by promoting anti-apoptotic proteins like Bcl-2. The downstream modulation of apoptotic proteins is regulated by effector pathways, including the PI3K/Akt survival pathway, the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) signaling pathway, and STAT phosphorylation. In addition, Leishmania assists in its infection in a time-dependent manner by modulating the level of various proteins of autophagic machinery. Immune effector cells, such as mast cells and neutrophils, entrap and kill the pathogen by secreting various granular proteins. In contrast, the host macrophages exert their leishmanicidal effect by secreting various cytokines, such as IL-2, IL-12, etc. An interplay of various signaling pathways occurs in an organized network that is highly specific to both pathogen and host species. This Review analyzes the modulation of expression of proteins, including the cytokines, providing a realistic approach toward understanding the pathophysiology of disease and predicting some prominent markers for disease intervention and vaccine support strategies.

Scaling up One Health: A network analysis in Lao PDR

BackgroundOne Health focuses on sustainable health for humans, animals, and ecosystems. The approach has been well demonstrated, yet most efforts have not been scaled up. Understanding the organisations involved in scaling up processes is critical to translating research into practice. The Lao People's Democratic Republic has successfully implemented One Health projects for multiple decades; however, the organisational network has not been described and scaling up efforts have been limited. MethodsData from organisations involved in One Health projects over the past five years were collected by key-informant interview or workshop. The network was investigated using a mixture of quantitative network analysis and qualitative thematic analysis. ResultsThe organisational network was quantitatively described as sparse and centralised. Organisations were required to harness pre-existing relationships to maximise scarce resources and make co-ordination and alignment of priorities more efficient. A lack of international organisations in the top 10% of resource sharing metrics suggests a potential disconnect between donors. This was reflected in the challenges faced by national organisations and a feeling of being stretched thin over numerous externally funded projects with donor-driven priorities. ConclusionsIt appears that high-level political support for country ownership of development and aid priorities remains unrealised. Developing network capacity and capability may assist scaling up efforts and build resilience in the network and its core organisations. This may allow for the inclusion of more development, education, environment, and water, sanitation, and hygiene organisations that were perceived to be lacking. Future One Health programmes should focus on practical activities that do not overload staff capacity. There is much for One Health to learn about the art of scaling up and organisations are encouraged to include implementation science in their research to inform future scaling up efforts.

BYOA and Security: Examining Perspective-Taking and Self-Determination

ABSTRACT Bring your own applications (BYOA) in organizational networks introduces security risks. We examine whether individuals who BYOA at work are motivated to use multi-factor authentication (MFA) to protect the organization’s security, a practice we describe as bring your own security (BYOS). The behaviors are examined through dual theoretical lenses (a) intrinsic motivation, capturing the personal satisfaction related to the use, and (b) perspective-taking, capturing the user’s ability to consider information security from the organization’s perspective. We analyzed survey data of 154 samples using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Our results demonstrate that while the intrinsic motivation path is instrumental in influencing MFA use, perspective-taking offers significant explanatory power to information security behaviors. This article extends the current knowledge of the impact of perspective-taking on voluntary security behavior, which makes a novel and significant contribution to cybersecurity research and practice.

From Social Networks to Political Parties: Indigenous Party-Building in Bolivia

While existing scholarship recognizes the centrality of social organizations for party-building efforts, how network structures condition party-building remains underexamined. This article argues that a core property of the network environments within which proto-parties emerge—structural resilience—shapes opportunities for proto-parties’ expansion and consolidation. More resilient network structures—those with multiple pathways available for expansion—decrease proto-parties’ vulnerability to structural threats and allow them to circumvent competition. To evaluate this theory, I examine the organizational networks of three comparable indigenous party-building efforts in Bolivia. Using original network data and a mixed-methods approach, I demonstrate that MAS-IPSP succeeded in establishing itself as the indigenous party because of the structural resilience of the network environment within which it originated. By contrast, its counterparts failed when targeted network attacks undermined their access to organizational spaces critical to their expansion strategies. The findings reveal often-overlooked variation in the relationship between social organizations and political parties.

Institutional mosaic of financial institutions in the late Qing China and synthesis of organizational forms: from piaohao and qianzhuang to the central bank

Objective: to determine the peculiarities of forming the banking system in late imperial China in terms of the interaction between traditional Chinese banking institutions, imported institutional forms, and state reform strategies. Methods: qualitative methods (comparative analysis, generalization), historical and genetic method.Results: based on a wide array of historical data, the history of the Chinese banking system development during the Qin dynasty decline is demonstrated. By the time of the Chinese economy “forced opening” by Western powers during the Opium Wars, China had its own quasi-banking institutions based on the established clan networks of trade organizations that covered the credit needs of the traditional economy. The local development of modern industries in China required modern approaches to the organization of banking activities. The lacuna was filled by foreign banks, which actually monopolized modern banking in China, and later by state-owned banks. It is shown that by the end of the Qing period all three participants of the banking industry – traditional banks, foreign banks and state banks – covered the needs of the Chinese economy. It is concluded that the banking industry of the late imperial period was a mosaic institutional fabric, combining both traditional and westernized elements and embedding clan ties traditional for China.Scientific novelty: the article is the first attempt in Russia to comprehensively examine the evolution of the banking system of late Qing China.Practical significance: the main conclusions of the article can be used in scientific and pedagogical activities in the study of economic history of traditional China, and may enrich the concepts of institutional economics concerning the limits and possibilities of institutional transformations.

Multimolecular Competition Effect as a Modulator of Protein Localization and Biochemical Networks in Cell-Size Space.

Cells are small, closed spaces filled with various types of macromolecules. Although it is shown that the characteristics of biochemical reactions in vitro are quite different from those in living cells, the role of the co-existence of various macromolecules in cell-size space remains still elusive. Here, using a constructive approach, it is demonstrated that the co-existence of various macromolecules themselves has the ability to tune protein localization for spatiotemporal regulation and a biochemical reaction system in a cell-size space. Both experimental and theoretical analyses reveal that enhancement of interfacial effects by a large surface-area-to-volume ratio facilitates membrane localization of molecules in the cell-size space, and the interfacial effects are alleviated by competitive binding to lipid membranes among multiple proteins even if their membrane affinities are weak. These results indicate that competition for membrane binding among various macromolecules in the cell-size space plays a role in regulating the spatiotemporal molecular organization and biochemical reaction networks. These findings shed light on the importance of surrounding molecules for biochemical reactions using purified elements in small spaces.

Health policy counterpublics: Enacting collective resistances to US molecular HIV surveillance and cluster detection and response programs.

Health policies and the problems they constitute are deeply shaped by multiple publics. In this article we conceptualize health policy counterpublics: temporally bounded socio-political forms that aim to cultivate particular modes of conduct, generally to resist trajectories set by arms of the state. These counterpublics often emerge from existing social movements and involve varied forms of activism and advocacy. We examine a health policy counterpublic that has arisen in response to new forms of HIV public health surveillance by drawing on public documents and interview data from 2021 with 26 stakeholders who were critical of key policy developments. Since 2018, the national rollout of molecular HIV surveillance (MHS) and cluster detection and response (CDR) programs in the United States has produced sustained controversies among HIV stakeholders, including among organized networks of people living with HIV. This article focuses on how a health policy counterpublic formed around MHS/CDR and how constituents problematized the policy agenda set in motion by federal health agencies, including in relation to data ethics, the meaningful involvement of affected communities, informed consent, the digitization of health systems, and HIV criminalization. Although familiar problems in HIV policymaking, concerns about these issues have been reconfigured in response to the new sociotechnical milieu proffered by MHS/CDR, generating new critical positions aiming to remake public health. Critical attention to the scenes within which health policy controversies play out ought to consider how (counter)publics are made, how problems are constituted, and the broader social movement dynamics and activist resources drawn upon to contest and reimagine policymaking in public life.

Food quality and supply chain networks in dynamic business environments: evidence from the Nigerian shrimp subsector

PurposeResearch efforts aiming to improve understanding of how various organisational relationships contribute to better food quality (FQ) in a constantly changing business environment are limited. This study examines the effects of supply chain (SC) organisations on the quality of food products across multi-tiered segments with dynamic business situations.Design/methodology/approachGuided by a conceptual research framework based on contingency theory and netchain analysis, moderation-based partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyse multi-tiered data from 405 shrimpers and 238 women processors in Akwa-Ibom, Lagos and Ondo states in Nigeria.FindingsThe authors' findings show that unpredictable business environments such as market turbulence (MT), power asymmetry (PA) and distrust (DT) not only directly influence SC organisations but also moderate how organisational networks contribute to improved FQ. Further results reveal that closer vertical ties such as relational contracts are prerequisites for small-scale actors to guarantee improved FQ along multiple nodes of the food system.Originality/valueThis is the first study to examine, from a contingency and multi-tiered perspective, how small-scale actors can maintain FQ across interdependent nodes of a food chain in a developing country context and to explore the complex interplay between SC networks and the quality of highly perishable food products in unpredictable business environments. Relevant theoretical and policy implications are discussed.