Taking time to understand theory

Purpose of the paper and literature addressedThe purpose of this paper is to examine how one of the most cited theories in sociology, structuration theory, might help inform our understanding of time in business networks. Structuration theory deals with the creation and maintenance of ideas and structures as well as with change and continuity processes. It defines a social system as any set of practices, patterns of interaction and social relationships that are relatively enduring.Research methodThis is a conceptual paper.Main contributionThis paper outlines improved theoretical and methodological bases in industrial marketing research, which specifically takes into consideration time. This new understanding draws upon Giddens structuration theory, and more recent critiques of his work.     

凝胶色谱法考察头孢唑林钠聚合反应

通过模拟不同贮存条件,采用凝胶色谱法对头孢唑林钠的聚合反应进行了研究,证明温度和水分两种因素是控制头孢唑林钠聚合反应的关键因素,并推断头孢唑林钠聚合反应可能为N型聚合反应。     

Doing femininity and respectability: social networks and social capital among female members of Dutch student organisations

This research explores the complexities that underlie the formation of women’s social networks at traditional social student organisations in the Netherlands, advancing theory on the intersectionality of gender and class in leisure space. Building on Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of social capital it investigates if these social networks are segregated, and to what extent their divisions depend on previously acquired economic, cultural and symbolic capital. It analyses the hierarchical structures and ‘ranking’ of women’s year clubs within student organisations, and examines how the enactment and achievement of femininity determines women’s ability to move through social space. Finally, it investigates the use of social capital for women’s career progression. Semi-structured interviews were held with 20 women who were current or former members of one of the most traditional Dutch student organisations, the corps. Their accounts were used to gather information about the meaning women gave to their membership, and shed light on the role of previously acquired capital in the formation of clubs. Our findings show that women’s previously acquired social capital allowed them easier access to corps’ space and advanced their ability to navigate it. The establishment and ranking of year clubs and their members demonstrate the power dynamics that operate within the corps and the way class underlines network formation. Femininity was deemed one of the important markers of respectability and the enactment and achievement of ‘proper’ femininity determined women’s recognition and position in corps space. Despite the hierarchies of placement in the corps, most women profit from the social capital they acquired during membership, and can use it in selective ways for career progression and acquisitions.     

Wage costs and labour demand with some reference to employment in the Netherlands

Summary This article evaluates some of the well-known theories of labour demand, with special reference made to macro-economic unemployment problems in the Netherlands. Two fields of problems have been distinguished. The first concerns the formulation of the new goals of economic policy. The second group regards the question of selecting the best fitting, in a statistical sense. As a final resolve, this approach defines that, what ever the best theory may be, there clearly exists a negative relation between wage costs and employment in the Netherlands. However, it is also determined that the negative effects of high wage costs are not so large as suggested in the Central Planning Bureau studies, based on a Solow-Robinson model of embodied technological progress.     

Existence,uniqueness and some comparative statics for ratio and Lindahl equilibria

We present a rigorous, yet elementary, demonstration of the existence of a unique Lindahl equilibrium under the assumptions that characterize the standard n-player public good model. Indeed, our approach, which exploits the aggregative structure of the public good model, lends itself to a transparent geometric representation. Moreover, it can handle the more general concept of the cost share or ratio equilibrium. Finally, we indicate how it may be exploited to facilitate comparative static analysis of Lindahl and cost share equilibria.      

The German federal employment program for regions with special employment problems: An evaluation

A special labor-market program to support regions with high unemployment was introduced in the Federal Republic of Germany in the summer of 1979. The program is evaluated through analyses of the determinants of the take-up rate and estimates of the impact on the unemployment rate using Box-Jenkins analysis. Evaluation of the program indicates some success with respect to training and public works creation, but also some serious shortcomings in design and implementation.     

An economic evaluation of perioperative enteral nutrition in patients undergoing colorectal surgery (SANICS II study)

Aims: The objective of this (trial based) economic evaluation was to assess, from a societal perspective, the cost-effectiveness of perioperative enteral nutrition compared with standard care in patients undergoing colorectal surgery.

Materials and methods: Alongside the SANICS II randomized controlled trial, global quality-of-life, utilities (measured by EQ-5D-5L), healthcare costs, production losses, and patient and family costs were assessed at baseline, 3?months, and 6?months. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) (i.e. cost per increased global quality-of-life score or quality-adjusted life year [QALY] gained) and cost effectiveness acceptability curves were visualized.

Results: In total, 265 patients were included in the original trial (n?=?132 in the perioperative enteral nutrition group and n?=?133 in the standard care group). At 6?months, global quality-of-life (83 vs 83, p?=?.357) did not differ significantly between the groups. The mean total societal costs for the intervention and standard care groups were €14,673 and €11,974, respectively, but did not reach statistical significance (p?=?.109). The intervention resulted in an ICER of –€6,276 per point increase in the global quality of life score. The gain in QALY was marginal (0.003), with an additional cost of €2,941, and the ICUR (Incremental cost utility ratio) was estimated at €980,333.

Limitations: The cost elements for all the participating centers reflect the reference prices from the Netherlands. Patient-reported questionnaires may have resulted in recall bias. Sample size was limited by exclusion of patients who did not complete questionnaires for at least at two time points. A power analysis based on costs and health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) was not performed. The economic impact could not be analyzed at 1?month post-operatively where the effects could potentially be higher.

Conclusions: This study suggests that perioperative nutrition is not beneficial for the patients in terms of quality-of-life and is not cost-effective.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02175979.

Trial registration: Netherlands National Trial Register identifier: NTR4670.     

Matrix balancing with unknown total costs: preserving economic relationships in the electric power sector

Many preferred matrix balancing methods suffer limitations when total costs (i.e. column sums) are unknown or uncertain. If the total cost (column) constraint is relaxed, economic relationships both between inputs to and/or amongst the sub-sectors may not be preserved (i.e. cost structure and row share, respectively). These relationships are significant in modeling, where production behavior depends on relative costs. This paper presents a share preserving cross-entropy (SPCE) approach which targets economic relationships directly and allows the column constraint to be relaxed. Further, the SPCE solution is identical to the RAS solution when the column constraint is imposed. This cross-entropy formulation complements an existing sum squared error-type approach. The two matrix balancing methods are demonstrated with a disaggregation of the electric power industry where only unit input costs are known with greater certainty. There is a clear trade-off between preserving economic relationships versus the column totals when compared to their column-constrained counterparts.