Subsequent Resource Allocation Research Articles

HADES: An NFV solution for energy-efficient placement and resource allocation in heterogeneous infrastructures

Network Function Virtualization (NFV) aims to replace traditional network functions running in proprietary hardware with software instances (i.e., Virtual Network Functions, VNFs) embedded in general-purpose virtualization solutions. Aware that the transition to a fully virtualized network infrastructure will pay a high energy cost, especially in IoT systems composed of a myriad of devices, energy efficiency is one of the key innovative targets of future networks. Edge computing should be considered in IoT environments to save time and energy by processing data near the producer devices. However, applying NFV in the context of IoT/Edge/Cloud environments complicates the placement of VNFs, due to the inherent heterogeneous nature of such environments and the variety of resource demands. This paper proposes an energy-aware placement of service function chains of VNFs and a resource-allocation solution for heterogeneous edge infrastructures that considers the computation and communication delays according to the VNFs’ location in the infrastructure. The solution has been integrated with the ETSI-sponsored project Open Source Management and Orchestration (OSM) as an extension called HADES, which allows the configuration of VNFs and their subsequent resource allocation and deployment at the edge, minimizing energy consumption and ensuring a quality of service. We have applied the deployment of augmented reality services in real and simulated scenarios. The results show up to a 59% reduction in power consumption and QoS compliance in all scenarios considered compared to default OSM placement and four other allocation policies. We prove that our solution has negligible power overhead, and validate the scalability and applicability of HADES.

Financial literacy and retirees' resource allocation decisions in New Zealand

We investigate the relationship between financial literacy, debt anxiety, risk tolerance, and subsequent resource allocation decisions for cohorts of retirees. Using a survey and the novel comparative method of Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Analysis we prioritise retirement allocation choices of older New Zealanders. Retirees display high financial literacy and together with debt anxiety this is significantly correlated with resource allocation preferences. Financial literacy reduces debt anxiety in men, increases the risk tolerance of women and is associated with a higher preference for KiwiSaver. Greater debt anxiety is associated with debt repayment, and debt avoidance in old age is critical to long-term wellbeing.

How did development zones affect China’s land transfers? The scale, marketization, and resource allocation effect

The land transfer is an important policy tool for development zones (DZs) to guide the allocation of industrial resources. The immovability of land and its high reallocation cost make the efficiency loss caused by any land resource mismatch more challenging to remedy. Therefore, exploring the effects of the establishment of DZs on the land transfer policies of local governments and subsequent resource allocation can contribute to the rational control of land transfer policies. Accordingly, this study used propensity score matching, difference-in-differences estimation, and the instrumental variable method to quantify the associations among the establishment of DZs, land transfer, and resource allocation efficiency in China. The results show that the establishment of DZs promotes local governments to expand the area of transferred industrial land and increases the ratio of listing transfers, which reduces the marketization degree of land transfers. Furthermore, the establishment of DZs weakens the selection effect of land transfers, which distorts resource allocation and hinders the resource allocation efficiency of the manufacturing industry. The results suggest that it is necessary to switch from the traditional “extensive” land development strategy to the economical and intensive use of DZ land. The marketization of land transfer in the DZs should be increased and land should be allocated to firms with higher marginal output.

PATH ANALYSIS ON ESCALATION OF COMMITMENT OF INVESTORS IN DIFFERENT PROJECT SCENARIOS OF PPPS

In public-private partnerships (PPPs), escalation of commitment (EOC) of investors often occurs when receiving negative feedback, leading to a great waste of resources and not conducive to the sustainable development of PPPs. The degree of project completion and decision-making responsibilities of investors with different conscientiousness and neuroticism may affect subsequent resource allocation and further influence their escalation behaviour. Thus, through scenario simulation, this paper constructs path analysis to illustrate the formation mechanism of EOC by investors with diverse conscientiousness and neuroticism in different degrees of decision-making responsibilities and project completion, in which confidence in completing the projects may present a mediating effect. The empirical results show that completion degree and decision-making responsibilities both positively affect investors’ EOC and that the interaction is significant. The impact mechanism of conscientiousness and neuroticism on EOC varies in different project scenarios. Then, some targeted recommendations are proposed to curb EOC. The findings provide scientific evidence for governments to conduct effective governance of EOC in PPPs.

Improving healthcare systems and services in the face of population ageing: policy considerations for low- and middle-income countries.

Worldwide, the proportion and absolute numbers of over 60-year-olds in the population is rising: it was 1 billion in 2019 and is expected to get to 1.4 billion in 2030 and 2.1 billion by 2050, with the progression being more pronounced in developing countries. Degenerative and non-communicable diseases are more common with ageing, which means they would become the major disease problems for countries. Long-term care poses financial risks to individuals/families and governments. These warrant urgent policy and structural adjustments of health systems in low- and middle-income countries to cater for the probable change in health needs and make their society more age-sensitive. There is the need for policymakers to begin to change focus from traditional models of healthcare delivery and give more attention to aged care and create separate financing mechanisms/programmes for the elderly, most of whom are already unemployed, to protect them from the effects of cream-skimming by private health insurers. Informed decisions on healthcare purchasing can be made using Economic Evaluation, as well as Programme Budgeting and Marginal Analysis, a presentation of discrete categories of healthcare expenditure (specialties, disease-groups, etc.) and the resources appropriated to each as an aid to reviewing subsequent resource allocation. Reforms in healthcare financing should pay particular attention to the elderly considering that technical efficiency concerns of the private sector may mean that they are discriminated against. There is need for retraining/reorientation of health workers on identification and comprehensive management of NCDs, including palliative care, in a culturally competent way, on the essence of shifting from an acute care model to a chronic care model, and on providing services to people within defined catchment areas.

Bladder cancer research funding in Canada and the United States: A comparison between stakeholder priorities and resource allocation from 2017 to 2019.

422 Background: There is an increasing emphasis on patient-centered research to encourage cancer care that is responsive to patients' needs. Previously, the Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network (BCAN) Patient Survey Network (PSN) engaged patients and other key stakeholders and compiled a prioritized list of research questions in bladder cancer. However, it is uncertain whether these priorities have successfully guided subsequent resource allocation by funding agencies. The purpose of this study was to understand how bladder cancer research funding has been allocated in recent years and to determine whether funding patterns have aligned with patient and caregiver priorities. Methods: We investigated publicly available research databases online or contacted agencies directly to determine bladder cancer research fund allocation in Canada and the US from 2017 to 2019. Each funding competition and all funded projects were evaluated to assess whether they aligned with previously identified priority research areas. Trends in funding allocation were assessed and several key variables including country, year, agency focus, cancer stage, and funding amount were analyzed. Results: Fifteen agencies provided funding to bladder cancer research between 2017 and 2019, amounting to a total of $78,525,974 in funding for 298 projects across Canada and the US. Of this funding, $23,268,258 (30%) went towards projects addressing the stakeholder-identified high priority research questions, $15,575,064 (20%) went towards projects addressing lesser priority questions, and the remaining $39,682,652 (50%) funded projects addressing questions which did not align with previously identified stakeholder priorities. General agencies (non-bladder cancer-specific) funded more priority (high and lesser) projects than bladder cancer-specific agencies (p < 0.001). Among projects addressing non-muscle invasive bladder cancer, 36% of funding went to high priority areas, compared to 13% and 27% for muscle-invasive bladder cancer and metastatic bladder cancer, respectively. Among the top 10% of projects (n = 30) with the greatest funding amount (combined $43,249,792), 45% of the funding went to high priority areas, 21% went to lesser priority areas, and 34% went to non-priority areas. Conclusions: Of nearly $80,000,000 USD allocated to bladder cancer research in recent years, approximately half was allocated to projects addressing stakeholder-identified priority areas while half was allocated to projects that were not aligned with stakeholder priorities. More work is needed to ensure stronger alignment between stakeholder-identified priority areas and funding allocation in bladder cancer research.

A qualitative assessment of factors influencing implementation and sustainability of evidence-based tobacco use treatment in Vietnam health centers

BackgroundEffective strategies are needed to increase implementation and sustainability of evidence-based tobacco dependence treatment (TDT) in public health systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Our two-arm cluster randomized controlled trial (VQuit) found that a multicomponent implementation strategy was effective in increasing provider adherence to TDT guidelines in commune health center (CHCs) in Vietnam. In this paper, we present findings from a post-implementation qualitative assessment of factors influencing effective implementation and program sustainability.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews (n = 52) with 13 CHC medical directors (i.e., physicians), 25 CHC health care providers (e.g., nurses), and 14 village health workers (VHWs) in 13 study sites. Interviews were transcribed and translated into English. Two qualitative researchers used both deductive (guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research) and inductive approaches to analysis.ResultsFacilitators of effective implementing of TDT included training and point-of-service tools (e.g., desktop chart with prompts for offering brief counseling) that increased knowledge and self-efficacy, patient demand for TDT, and a referral system, available in arm 2, which reduced the provider burden by shifting more intensive cessation counseling to a trained VHW. The primary challenges to sustainability were competing priorities that are driven by the Ministry of Health and may result in fewer resources for TDT compared with other health programs. However, providers and VHWs suggested several options for adapting the intervention and implementation strategies to address challenges and increasing engagement of local government committees and other sectors to sustain gains.ConclusionOur findings offer insights into how a multicomponent implementation strategy influenced changes in the delivery of evidence-based TDT. In addition, the results illustrate the dynamic interplay between barriers and facilitators for sustaining TDT at the policy and community/practice level, particularly in the context of centralized public health systems like Vietnam’s. Sustaining gains in practice improvement and clinical outcomes will require strategies that include ongoing engagement with policymakers and other stakeholders at the national and local level, and planning for adaptations and subsequent resource allocations in order to meet the World Health Organization’s goals promoting access to effective treatment for all tobacco users.Trial registrationNCT02564653, registered September 2015

Qualitative Assessment of Factors Influencing Implementation Effectiveness and Sustainability of Strategies for Increasing Tobacco Use Treatment in Vietnam Health Centers

PURPOSE Effective strategies are needed to increase the implementation and sustainability of evidence-based tobacco dependence treatment (TDT) in public health systems in low- and middle-income countries. Our cluster randomized controlled trial (VQuit) found that a multicomponent implementation strategy was effective in increasing provider adherence to TDT guidelines in community health centers (CHCs) in Vietnam. In this paper, we present findings from a postimplementation qualitative assessment of factors that influence implementation effectiveness and program sustainability. METHODS We conducted semistructured qualitative interviews (N = 52) with 13 CHC medical directors (ie, physicians), 25 CHC health care providers, and 14 village health workers (VHWs) in 13 study sites. Interviews were transcribed and translated into English. RESULTS Facilitators of implementation effectiveness included training that increased confidence and skill, satisfaction with point-of-service tools, increasing patient demand for TDT, and, for the intervention arm, the value of a VHW referral system that reduced provider burden. The primary challenge to sustainability is the competing priorities driven by the Vietnam Ministry of Health, which may result in fewer resources for TDT compared with other health programs. However, providers and VHWs described several options for adapting the implementation strategies to address challenges and increase the engagement of local government committees and other sectors to sustain gains. CONCLUSION Our findings offer insight into how a multicomponent implementation strategy influenced changes in the delivery of evidence-based TDT. In addition, these results illustrate the dynamic interplay between barriers to and facilitators of sustaining TDT at the policy and community/practice level, particularly in the context of centralized public health systems, like that of Vietnam. Sustaining gains in practice improvement and clinical outcomes will require strategies that include ongoing engagement with policymakers and other stakeholders at the national and local level, as well as planning for adaptations and subsequent resource allocations, to meet Article 14 goals.

Reciprocity Among Preschoolers in Relation to Resource Allocation Toward Siblings, Friends, and Strangers.

Children at age 6 years differentially treat kin, friends, and strangers in resource allocation games by being more altruistic toward kin. However, it is unknown how previous allocation experience as a recipient influences the potential kinship effect in subsequent resource allocations. The present study investigated how 4- to 6-year-old children allocated resources between themselves and a sibling, a friend, or a stranger in three allocation tasks after the recipient had previously shared or nonshared with the participant. Results showed that, when a share would induce cost on the self, 6-year-old children were likely to share with a sibling whether the sibling had previously shared or not, but they would share only with friends or strangers who had previously shared. When a share would induce no cost, participants across ages were likely to share with a recipient who had previously shared. When the decision option was between sharing equally and sharing altruistically, participants would allow the recipient to have more only when the recipient was a sibling or friend who had previously allocated altruistically. These findings suggest that kin altruism in resource allocation emerges at around 6 years of age and that reciprocity partly overrides and partly reinforces kin altruism.

Do Perceived Operational Impacts Affect the Portfolio of Carbon‐Abatement Technologies?

AbstractFirms face a variety of stakeholder pressures to improve their environmental performance. A firm's perceptions of these pressures can radically affect its strategic reactions and subsequent resource allocation decisions. Previous studies do not explain how perceived operational impacts may influence a firm's investment in environmental technologies. This study examines the relationship between perceived impacts on process and product and carbon preventive projects within firms' environmental technology portfolio. Using carbon emissions and carbon disclosure data, we find that higher perceived process‐related impacts are associated with a higher proportion of carbon preventive projects, while perceived product‐related impacts have the opposite effect. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment

Identity change in organizations: a philosophical exposition

Purpose– This paper aims to describe how organization’s identity changes in the course of time. Focus is on project-based companies.Design/methodology/approach– The paper first highlights the concept of process thinking. Then follow descriptions of notions of identity and identity change as change processes. After that, three different identity change processes – negotiation of meaning, lauguaging and interaction – are illustrated. And after that follows the main content of the paper, namely, descriptions of identity changes in organizations. These descriptions focus on two approaches: “Unintentional identity change” and “Intentional identity change”.Findings– Identity provides organizations with powerful understanding of theories of who they are. These understandings guide subsequent resource allocation decisions. Identity change in an organization can be categorized into unintentional and intentional identity changes. Unintentional identity changes takes place through the previously mentioned three processes. Instead, intentional identity change takes place through strategy planning.Practical implications– Finding a viable view through which organizations can understand how their identities chance in the course of time is a very important issue. Therefore, in this paper, the authors have sought to offer a brief illustration of this area.Originality/value– In the literature, rather, a lot of attention has been focused on how identities are constructed, and what is their role, for example, in the companies’ strategic management and marketing. However, less attention has been paid to how identities are involved in organizations’ change processes. That is why the goal of this paper is to address that lack by studying identity change in organizations.

Health related quality of life trajectories of patients in opioid substitution treatment

BackgroundWhile opioid substitution treatment (OST) provides the opportunity for substantial improvements in health related quality of life (HRQoL), this relationship is seldom documented and poorly understood. Our objectives were to identify differences in trajectories of HRQoL among chronic opioid-dependent patients and factors associated with improvement and deterioration in HRQoL following enrolment in opioid substitution treatment. MethodsIn the North American Opiate Medication Initiative (NAOMI) randomized controlled trial, the Euroqol (EQ-5D) and other measures of demographic, health and drug use characteristics were collected at baseline and quarterly follow-up. Latent class growth analysis was applied to identify classes of HRQoL trajectories during treatment, while baseline correlates of class membership and factors associated with changes in HRQoL were identified in multivariate analyses. ResultsThree classes of individual HRQoL growth trajectories were identified: class 1: low and constant (19.5%), class 2: moderate and improved (61.2%), and class 3: high and constant (19.3%). Class 1 members were younger and more likely to be female, while class 3 members were less likely to have chronic conditions and had lower illicit drug use severity at baseline. Changes in HRQoL were associated with improvements in housing status (positive), medical events (negative) and decreases in illicit drug use (positive). ConclusionsInsight into the extent of HRQoL response and characteristics of patients responding to treatment can be used to design interventions that maximize HRQoL improvement. Given its role in economic evaluation and subsequent resource allocation decisions, HRQoL should be considered an endpoint in treatment evaluations for opioid dependence.

Vicarious entrapment: Your sunk costs, my escalation of commitment

Individuals often honor sunk costs by increasing their commitment to failing courses of action. Since this escalation of commitment is fueled by self-justification processes, a widely offered prescription for preventing escalation is to have separate individuals make the initial and subsequent resource allocation decisions. In contrast to this proposed remedy, four experiments explored whether a psychological connection between two decision-makers leads the second decision-maker to invest further in the failing program orchestrated by the initial decision-maker. Across three different contexts (financial investments, personnel decisions, and auctions), we found that multiple forms of psychological connectedness (perspective-taking, shared attributes, and interdependent mindsets) led decision-makers to vicariously justify others’ initial decisions and escalate their own commitment to these decisions – even in the face of direct financial costs to themselves, and even among economics students trained in the irrationality of honoring sunk costs. The ability of subtle psychological connections to undermine the conventional prescription for de-escalation has important implications for organizations, public policy, and theories of escalation.

Biology, oviposition preference and impact in quarantine of the petiole-galling weevil, Coelocephalapion camarae Kissinger, a promising candidate agent for biological control of Lantana camara

The petiole-galling weevil, Coelocephalapion camarae Kissinger (Coleoptera: Brentidae), native to Mexico, was introduced into quarantine in South Africa to evaluate its potential to supplement the biological control programme against the invasive varieties of Lantana camara L. (Verbenaceae). The weevil occurs over a wide, native, geographic range, indicating its physiological potential to establish and persist throughout the range of climatic conditions under which the target weed grows in South Africa. The adults are highly selective in their choice of oviposition site, and only leaf-petioles with a width larger than 1.5 mm are accepted. Emerging larvae burrow into the vascular tissue and induce gall formation. Galling disrupts the transport of water and nutrients to and from the leaf, causing it to desiccate. During glasshouse studies the effect of galling on plant growth was tested on two different lantana varieties. The apionine both reduced lantana biomass accumulation (from 2 to 43% dry mass), and altered subsequent resource allocation away from the roots in both lantana varieties. Root growth increment loss over the duration of the trials on medium-density beetle-colonized plants (10 adult pairs) was between 109 and 144%, and increased from 109 to 117% in high-density beetle-colonized plants (20 adult pairs). These studies suggest that C. camarae could make a valuable contribution to the biocontrol programme against L. camara , and that studies on its host specificity are warranted.

DYNAMIC MODELS FOR PREVENTIVE MANAGEMENT AND REAL TIME CONTROL OF FOREST FIRES

In this paper, a new methodology based on system modelling and optimization is developed to determine forest fire risk, and subsequent resource allocation, over a regional area. A forest fuel moisture model and a propagation model are developed, in order to determine the dynamic risk assessment. The objective of resource allocation is twofold. In the preventive phase means and crews are re-allocate on the basis of the forecast risk, in order to successfully fight initially spread fires. In the real-time phase, optimal decision techniques must be used in order to determine the optimal composition of means that are sent to signalled fires.

Managing Time: The Effects of Personal Goal Setting on Resource Allocation Strategy and Task Performance

One key to understanding motivated behavior is examining the behavior of individuals as they work on multiple tasks under a time constraint. This article is an exploration of the influence of self-set goals on subsequent resource allocation to different tasks. Participants were given a variety of tasks from which they were to choose how to allocate their time and effort. Results indicated that the use of self-set goals structured the work pattern, with less switching between tasks relative to the work pattern of a group of participants who did not set goals. In addition, those who set goals reported less task-related cognitive interference, indicating that they were not as distracted while they worked. Participants who did not set goals, however, performed at a higher level on some of the tasks. It is suggested that self-set goals may often be chosen at an easily attainable level, creating a structured and focused work environment but not necessarily eliciting the motivational properties typically associated with goal setting.

Authorship

Disputes associated with achieving recognition for work done may affect both morale and subsequent resource allocation to medical researchers. To assess authorship disputes brought to the Ombuds Office. The Ombuds Office, Harvard Medical School, Dental School, School of Public Health, and affiliated hospitals. Change in number of queries related to authorship between 1991 to 1992 and 1996 to 1997. Disputes increased from 8 (2.3%) of 355 issues brought to the office in 1991 to 1992 to 59 (10.7%) of 551 issues in 1996 to 1997. They also increased from involving 0.06% of the total population of faculty, staff, and students affiliated with the schools in 1991 to 1992 to 0.33% of the total population in 1996 to 1997. Such problems appear to occur more often for women (53% of complaints in 1994-1995 through 1996-1997) and for non-US citizens (21 % of complaints in 1991-1992 through 1996-1997). Authorship disputes are increasingly frequent. Institutions should increase enforcement of published authorship standards and place more emphasis on managerial skills for laboratory and research department heads.

Social policy and social inequality in Nigeria: Examples from four states, using indicators of level of living approach

In this paper, it has been demonstrated that wide disparities exist among the various local government areas of different states of Nigeria, notwithstanding the country's golden social policy goal of building an egalitarian and oppresion-free society. If the results obtained in the four states used as case studies above are anything to go by then Nigeria has to be more serious in developing ways and means of bridging the gap between the advantaged and the disadvantaged areas of the country. Part of this would involve more positive discrimination in favour of the less privileged areas in subsequent resource allocations by governments, community leaders and individual philanthropists (Oyebanji 1984). Really there is no doubt that if all areas had equal amount of influence in the manner that common resources are distributed, there definitely would have been greater degree of equality. In general, the relatively more advanced areas in each state are either urban centers and/or the seat of government — whether state or local government — or those in which the efforts of governments have been heavily subsidized through community self-help projects. The reality of this situation in the Nigerian environment has already been established elsewhere (Oyebanji 1980). Consequently it will be of immense benefit to the states under study to promote both widespread urbanization on the one hand and the spirit of self-involvement on the other hand. Despite the social relevance of this type of research however, the limitation imposed by lack of valuable and reliable data in Nigeria is extremely serious. Nevertheless, if the social state of the nation has to be carefully monitored, there must be a very marked improvement in the present social data bank of the country. As the present study has emphasized, data on many vital aspects of level of living are either dearth or non-existent altogether. Consequently, social reporting in Nigeria currently has a long way to go. It is therefore important to point out that for now the results of this and similar studies should be regarded as exploratory but nevertheless very valuable.