Benefits For Owners Research Articles

State Medicaid Expansion and the Self-Employed

This paper examines effects of state Medicaid Expansion via the Affordable Care Act on the self-employed. We first examine impacts on the probability of self-employment and find small and not significant estimated effects of Medicaid expansion on the likelihood of being self-employed. We then examine effects of Medicaid expansion on the probability of having health insurance for persons who are self-employed. State Medicaid expansion increased overall health insurance coverage rates, with especially large impacts for the unincorporated self-employed. Impacts on health insurance rates of the self-employed also strengthened over time. The results indicate that Medicaid expansion does not affect entry into self-employment but it does provide significant health insurance benefits for many small business owners with low incomes who otherwise would face considerable difficulty obtaining health insurance.

Nested Bilevel Optimization for DERA Operation Strategy: A Stochastic Multiobjective IGDT Model With Hybrid Endogenous/Exogenous Scenarios

An aggregation of distributed energy resources (DERs) can bring economic and technical benefits for the DER owners and system operator. However, the operation of DERs encounters various uncertainties, which can seriously impact the benefits of DER aggregation. This article presents a new operation optimization approach for an aggregator of DERs considering the unavailability of DERs (as discrete uncertainty sources) as well as forecast uncertainties of electricity prices, solar powers, and wind powers (as continuous uncertainty sources). The proposed approach for DER aggregator (DERA) operation optimization comprises stochastic multiobjective information-gap decision theory (IGDT) to model these discrete and continuous uncertain variables. Moreover, a hybrid endogenous/exogenous scenario generation method is incorporated into the proposed approach to enhance the efficiency of the stochastic programming part by producing decision-dependent scenario trees. The proposed approach is formulated as a nested bilevel optimization model. The proposed approach is compared with other DERA operation optimization models using an out-of-sample analysis method. The comparative results illustrate the superiority of the proposed stochastic multiobjective IGDT approach over various deterministic, stochastic, and IGDT methods. In addition, the high tractability of the proposed solution method is illustrated, while its linearization error for the stochastic multiobjective IGDT problem is well below 1%.

COVID-19 and Second Home Prices in Switzerland: An Empirical Insight

Abstract During the COVID-19 pandemic, second home ownership created several owner benefits. This paper analyses price changes of second homes during the pandemic. It derives propositions for the impact of the pandemic on the value of second homes for its owners. The contribution draws on panel data of transaction prices for second homes from Switzerland, a country with traditionally strong second home ownership, provided by Wüest Partner. The results show that there is a significant price increase for second homes – especially compared to apartments – after the start of the COVID-19 crisis. They also show that prices even in certain second-class destinations have risen significantly during the pandemic. Different research propositions are derived like that buyers might look for less crowded places in the pandemic, and the reduced benefits of intensive infrastructures during a pandemic.

Transferring Ethnopharmacological Results Back to Traditional Healers in Rural Indigenous Communities – The Ugandan Greater Mpigi Region Example

Abstract In ethnopharmacology, scientists often survey indigenous communities to identify and collect natural remedies such as medicinal plants that are yet to be investigated pharmacologically in a laboratory setting. The Nagoya Protocol provided international agreements on financial benefit sharing. However, what has yet only been poorly defined in these agreements are the non-financial benefits for local intellectual property right owners, such as traditional healers who originally provided the respective ethnomedicinal information. Unfortunately, ethnopharmacologists still rarely return to local communities. In this video article, the authors present a method for transferring results back to traditional healers in rural indigenous communities, taking the authors’ previous studies among 39 traditional healers in Uganda as an example. The authors’ approach is based on a two-day workshop, and the results are presented as original footage in the video article. The authors’ work demonstrated a successful method for ensuring bidirectional benefit and communication while fostering future scientific and community-work collaborations. The authors believe it is the moral duty of ethnopharmacologists to contribute to knowledge transfer and feedback once a study is completed. The workshop method, as an example for science outreach, might also be regarded as a valuable contribution to research on education theory and science communication.

Electric vehicles as distribution grid batteries: a reality check

The current transition towards electric mobility implies that a significant portion of electricity is drawn by and stored in the electric vehicle’s (EV) batteries. Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technologies can potentially give distribution system operators access to such energy to provide ancillary services, while remunerating the vehicle owners for their availability to participate. Although the benefits of stabilization and grid efficiency improvements are clear, is it appealing and lucrative for the vehicle owners to participate in such services? In this work, we answer this question by modelling the V2G system and performing economic projections of the possible benefits for EV owners. In particular, we present a novel way of parametrizing the electric vehicle driving profile and the V2G energy transfer to compute battery degradation costs. A profit model is developed to evaluate the profit earned by the vehicle owners offering their batteries. The profit is estimated on the basis of the owner’s inclination to buy and sell energy from the grid based on the electricity price. Using data of the German electricity market, we estimate a profit of 662 €/EV/Year for a vehicle with 100 kWh capacity, 95% battery round trip efficiency and driving 52 km per day. The remuneration is meaningful and can have the potential to encourage EV owners to participate in V2G service.

Leasing out unused meeting room capacity to reduce future office space needs: A case study of The Hague, Netherlands

Meeting rooms are reserved 30% of working hours but only used for 20% of that time. By implementing a strategy where the available capacity is leased to the wider market rather than just the building users, there is a positive impact on the economic, environmental, and social factors of the building and its surroundings. This study uses the building ‘The Globe’ in The Hague as a case study, and then projects the results to the entire city. In case of The Globe, implementing a lease out strategy achieves a reduction of 36% of the annual rent of the meeting rooms to the building's tenant. The owner benefits from a revenue increase of 12.5%, with the same operational expenses (except the reservation system), leading to a proportional higher valuation of the building. Annual energy consumption may be lowered by 6.2%. This study contributes to the literature by considering the total benefits that could be obtained by more efficient use of office space that is currently underused. The application of technology generates added value for economic, environmental, and social factors. These factors are important in real estate as they (among others) have a direct link to the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) analysis that investors make before proceeding with an investment.

Do common owners influence corporate social responsibility? Firm-level evidence from China

Using a sample of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2007 to 2018, this article explores the influence of common owners on corporate social responsibility (CSR). The results show that common owners significantly promote CSR investment, indicating that increased CSR represents a bright side to common owners, in contrast to their anticompetitive effect. Further analysis shows that the nature of state ownership significantly weakens the positive relationship between common owners and CSR investment. Prospector firms strengthen the positive influence of common owners on CSR investment, whereas defender firms weaken the effect. Moreover, common owners benefit from increasing CSR investment, and co-owned firms benefit by easing their financial constraints when they invest or increase their investment in social responsibility. The findings enhance the outstanding of how common owners affect corporate behavior and enrich the literature on common ownership and CSR investment.

Dog ownership, dog walking, and social capital

Evidence for social pathways to health benefits for dog owners appears positive but less well-developed. Our study aimed to estimate the differences in social capital by dog ownership and dog walking status among young-to-middle-aged adults and older adults in Japan. Data from 3606 residents living in Japan were used. Data on social capital, dog ownership, and dog walking were collected by questionnaires. Age-stratified multivariable linear regression models were used to estimate differences in social capital scores by dog ownership and dog walking status. Among young-to-middle-aged adults, the mean of the activities with neighbours score, adjusted for covariates, was significantly higher (p < 0.05) for the dog owner walkers group compared to the non-dog owners group. Among older adults, no significant differences in the marginal means of social capital scores were observed between the three groups of non-dog owners, dog owner non-walkers, and dog owner walkers. While the benefits of social capital for a healthy lifestyle have been well-documented, few means have been identified to intervene in social capital. Building on and expanding the known health benefits of dog ownership and dog walking, this study revealed modest support for the link between dog walking and activities with neighbours among young-to-middle-aged adults, but no meaningful associations were found for older adults. Additionally, no significant link was observed between dog walking and social cohesion among either age group. Future research can further improve the use of dog-based behavioural health interventions for fostering social capital.

A framework for day-ahead optimal charging scheduling of electric vehicles providing route mapping: Kowloon case study

With the ever-increasing growth of electric vehicles (EV)s in the power industry, their significance as a flexible load has increased drastically. On the other hand, uncontrolled charging of these vehicles can cause serious problems in the grid, such as a peak in demand, a decrease in the life expectancy of transformers and as a result, an increase in charging costs of EVs for the EV owners. In this paper, a framework for day-ahead optimal charging of EVs is proposed which through optimization of active and reactive power exchange at each time interval, could prevent the problems mentioned above and at the same time increase the benefit of EV owners and network operators simultaneously. Furthermore, taking into account the effective factors on electrical energy consumption of EVs and the driving pattern of their owners, a route mapping algorithm is developed based on the proposed framework, so as to provide the EV owners with better services. The simulations are carried out using a hybrid interior-point optimization approach, based on traffic and geographic data collected from the city of Kowloon and a standard IEEE 33 bus system is used. The simulation results show that integrating optimal charging of EVs with a route mapping algorithm into the proposed framework can reduce the loss costs of the network during the hours of EVs’ presence in the framework and the selling price of electricity to EV owners by 24.93% and 33.6%, respectively in comparison with the uncontrolled mode. Also, the average life expectancy of power transformers is increased by 2.97% in the optimal charging mode compared to the uncontrolled mode.

Optimal resiliency‐oriented charging station allocation for electric vehicles considering uncertainties

This paper presents a resiliency-oriented multi-objective approach for optimal allocation of electric vehicles' (EV) charging station (EVCS) within distribution network. In addition, the effect of implementation of the demand response programs (DRP) is considered while allocating EVCSs. For this purpose, an appropriate modeling for considering various uncertainties such as consumption load, energy price, and initial state of EV charge are firstly presented. Moreover, the uncertainty and dynamic risk of wind speed during extreme weather conditions, as an important parameter that affects lines outage and grid resiliency, are accurately modeled. In the proposed methodology of this paper, the benefits obtained by ENS reduction and power loss is optimally shared with the EVCS owner to incentivize the investors to cooperate with DISCO and to invest in the construction of EVCS. The formulated problem is solved by utilization of an NSGA-II-based method embedded by scenario-based approach and Monte-Carlo method. The proposed formulation is applied to a standard network (IEEE 9 buses), and related Pareto-front solutions for an economic-resilient EVCS allocation, while maximizing benefits of Distribution Company Operator (DISCO) and EVCS owner are calculated. The results show that, in case of allocation two EVCSs and applying DRP program, total profits of DISCO is increased by 36.70% and 40.07%, respectively, compared with traditional grid that there is no EVCS or DRP implementation. Moreover, applying DRP, with its positive effect on peak load and power losses, reduces the EVCS capacities.

Optimal Management of Mobile Battery Energy Storage as a Self-Driving, Self-Powered and Movable Charging Station to Promote Electric Vehicle Adoption

The high share of electric vehicles (EVs) in the transportation sector is one of the main pillars of sustainable development. Availability of a suitable charging infrastructure and an affordable electricity cost for battery charging are the main factors affecting the increased adoption of EVs. The installation location of fixed charging stations (FCSs) may not be completely compatible with the changing pattern of EV accumulation. Besides, their power withdrawal location in the network is fixed, and also, the time of receiving the power follows the EVs’ charging demand. The EV charging demand pattern conflicts with the network peak period and causes several technical challenges besides high electricity prices for charging. A mobile battery energy storage (MBES) equipped with charging piles can constitute a mobile charging station (MCS). The MCS has the potential to target the challenges mentioned above through a spatio-temporal transfer in the required energy for EV charging. Accordingly, in this paper, a new method for modeling and optimal management of mobile charging stations in power distribution networks in the presence of fixed stations is presented. The MCS is powered through its internal battery utilizing a self-powered mechanism. Besides, it employs a self-driving mechanism for lowering transportation costs. The MCS battery can receive the required energy at a different time and location regarding EVs accumulation and charging demand pattern. In other words, the mobile station will be charged at the most appropriate location and time by moving between the network buses. The stored energy will then be used to charge the EVs in the fixed stations’ vicinity at peak EV charging periods. In this way, the energy required for EV charging will be stored during off-peak periods, without stress on the network and at the lowest cost. Implementing the proposed method on a test case demonstrates its benefits for both EV owners and network operator.

MODAL BUDAYA DAN MODAL SOSIAL: PENUNJANG BERKEMBANGNYA TOKO BANGUNAN YUNA JAYA

: In fact, the development of a business does not only talk about how economic capital is managed by business actors. Cultural capital and social capital are also important aspects in the process of developing a business. This research uses qualitative methods with data collection techniques through interviews and participatory observation. The informant investigates the business owner and one of the customers. The results of the study indicate that the capital owned by the business owner benefits the business actor for running his business. Meanwhile, social capital in the form of trust can enhance existing social networks and build new social networks. The maintenance process is carried out by business owners through loyalty to sales / bosses and buyers. So, it can be concluded that social capital and cultural capital also play an important role in the process of developing a business.

Implementation of the Odoo Point of Sale ERP Module at Gordio Store

Gordio Store is a UMKM that is engaged in developing clothing convection in Tanah Abang Market, Central Jakarta. Operational business processes This business is still done manually and not yet computerized, so the transfer of information about sales is done manually.The ongoing sales business process at Gordio Store has become inefficient and the owner has experienced some difficulties, especially information on sales and sales transactions last week or month.Therefore, it is necessary to apply Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) technology with the aim of resolving these problems. The selection of software used is Odoo software, because it is considered open source and is easy to use and can also keep pace with changes and is integrated as a whole to meet the company's most complex operational needs. From the implementation results show that the Odoo application can overcome the problem of sales data information using the Point of Sale module in Gordio Store. It is expected that with this ERP system business operations can be more effective and efficient so that it is expected to provide more benefits for business owners.

Owner–Intruder contests with correlated resource values

We study a conflict of two individuals over a valuable resource. We construct a sequential game where the first individual, the Owner, decides whether to defend the resource and the other individual, the Intruder, decides whether to attack and try to steal the resource. Individuals know the value of the resource to themselves. This provides the individuals an estimate of the value of the resource to the opponent. We build a mathematical model that allows us to quantify and vary the accuracy of this estimate. We study how the outcomes of the game depend on the accuracy. We show that, in our setting, the accuracy does not matter to the Intruder but it does to the Owner. For resources of a large value, the Owner benefits from a smaller accuracy. However, for resources of a small value, the Owner benefits from a bigger accuracy.

Unsolicited but acceptable: Non-owners can access property if the owner benefits.

People are normally restricted from accessing property without permission from the owner. The principle that nonowners are excluded from property is central to theories of ownership, and previous findings suggest it could be a core feature of the psychology of ownership. However, we report six experiments on children (N = 480) and adults (N = 211) showing that this principle may not apply for actions that benefit the owner-actions like repairing broken property. In Experiment 1, 3-5-year-olds judged it more acceptable for a nonowner to repair broken property than to move it. Experiments 2 and 3 replicated this with 4-6-year-olds using different question wordings and showed that children also approve of replacing broken property. Experiment 4 showed these findings replicate regardless of whether the nonowner and owner are acquainted. Finally, Experiments 5 and 6 revealed a boundary condition on approval of unsolicited beneficial actions: Both 4-6-year-olds and adults judged repairing property more acceptable than modifying it to suit the owner's preferences. These findings suggest that restrictions on nonowners are less absolute than often claimed, and that participants' judgments depended on generic information about which actions are typically beneficial, rather than on consideration of owners' specific preferences. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

КОМУНІКАЦІЙНА СИСТЕМА В КОНТЕКСТІ СТРАТЕГІЧНОГО ПОТЕНЦІАЛУ ПІДПРИЄМСТВА

Economic processes taking place in Ukraine in recent years are causing significant changes in the economic conditions of domestic industry. Globalization of competition, increasing consumer demands for product quality highlight the need to create a certain benefit (value) for consumers, owners and other stakeholders. The main mechanism for the formation of such values is the potential of the enterprise. It will determine the uniqueness of the company's offer, its ability to retain stakeholders and create conditions for development. Today there is also a problem of complex analysis of elements of the communication system of the enterprise, clarification of communication and content of elements of organizational communications, due to the development of methods of analysis of communication networks, the introduction of new elements in the communication system (for example, communication climate, communication skills). Communication in general, as well as the structure and content of the communicative capabilities of the enterprise. The article considers the theoretical foundations of the communication system in the structure of the strategic potential of the enterprise, compares the essence of the concept of the communication system based on the studied works of domestic and foreign scientists. The definition of the communication system of a modern enterprise is specified taking into account the content of communicative abilities. A detailed definition of the latter can be formulated as what «a company can do» in the presence of a certain resource base, «Pool of resources», the use of which is organized within the administrative system. The formation of enterprise capabilities requires the solution of tasks: identification of causal links between resources and opportunities; analysis of the development of complex multi-element resources required by the organization; compatibility research, resource sequence. Focusing exclusively on production tasks to maximize production volumes can lead to serious problems: aging of manufactured products, deterioration of customer service, and so on. Therefore, the approach to the consideration of strategic industrial potential from the standpoint of realization of its production potential will be correct, but also takes into account other components, resources and opportunities.

Optimal operations of a closed-loop supply chain under a dual regulation

Implementations of a deposit-refund policy for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) have engendered significant economic and environmental benefits. This deposit-refund policy typically charges disposal fees (deposits) for producing new products and offers subsidies (refunds) for recycling used products. However, as the collected disposal fees are insufficient to cover disbursed recycling subsidies, the WEEE recycling industry faces increasing challenges. To address this issue, we introduce a dual regulation regime characterized by the deposit-refund policy and a minimal collection rate of used products. We establish a two-echelon closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) consisting of a brand owner and an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) under the dual regulation. We examine the impact of the dual regulation on four key aspects of the supply chain operations: the brand owner's collection strategy, the OEM's remanufacturing choice, the profits of the two members, and environmental performance. We then investigate how the government optimizes the levels of the unit subsidy and disposal fee by minimizing the deposit-refund policy deficit. Analytical results show that the brand owner's collection strategy and the OEM's remanufacturing strategy are closely related to the dual regulation regime. When the unit disposal fee increases, both members' profits suffer. While the brand owner benefits from a rising unit subsidy, its impact on the OEM's profit is contingent upon the collection and remanufacturing strategies. A stricter minimal collection rate regulation generally hurts the two members when it is an active constraint. The deposit-refund policy's impact on the environment depends on the collection and remanufacturing strategies and the unit environmental benefit of collection. Regulating the minimal collection rate is beneficial to the environment and helps to reduce the deposit-refund policy deficit under certain conditions.

Economic analysis of auxiliary service by V2G: City comparison cases

Due to the increasing realization of environmental protection and energy structure optimization, the scale of electric vehicles (EV) is gradually expanding. However, the scale-up of EV brings new challenges about the security and economics of power system. The use of vehicle-to-grid (V2G) can not only reduce the electrical load, but also provide additional benefits for EV owners. This paper presents a value analysis model for EV aggregators to participate in ancillary services by using V2G in Shanghai and Chengdu. The potential regulatory capacity and economic benefits of V2G are analyzed based on the various demands and charge prices in different area. The results show that V2G can obviously mitigate the load pressure and save charge cost for EV owners both in Shanghai and Chengdu.

Supplemental Material for Unsolicited But Acceptable: Non-Owners Can Access Property if the Owner Benefits

Supplemental Material for Unsolicited But Acceptable: Non-Owners Can Access Property if the Owner Benefits

Rethinking risk management in entrepreneurial SMEs: towards the integration with the decision-making process

PurposeThe main purpose of this study is twofold: first, to analyze how risk is considered and managed by entrepreneurial SMEs, where the original founder is still the entrepreneur running the business, and second to understand if risk management is integrated with decision making.Design/methodology/approachThis research is based on a multiple case study. Three entrepreneurial SMEs based in the North-West of Italy were selected to obtain a heterogeneous sample. They operate in the manufacturing sector and they have different size and corporate ownership.FindingsThe risk management process cannot be always formalized but an unconscious risk analysis is always carried out. Risk is intertwined with decision and entrepreneurial orientation. Nowadays, rethinking risk management means enhancing and improving the decision-making process and integrating the phases of the two processes by introducing an alternative new model (RM-DM) that stands for “risk management-decision making”.Research limitations/implicationsConclusions can be generalized at a theoretical level even though this multiple case study represents a contingent analysis.Practical implicationsThis research enhances the understanding of the potential benefits for entrepreneurial SME owners of a risk mind-set while making decisions. RM-DM model is an alternative tool to manage risks properly in SMEs, especially when a formalized process is not implemented, as it improves the way decisions are made and introduces a more reasoned approach to manage risks.Originality/valueThis empirical study introduces a unique model (RM-DM) that helps to rethink risk management in entrepreneurial SMEs, by integrating it with the decision making and by proposing an alternative tool to manage risks with a more structured approach.