Governing individual learning in the transition phase of software maintenance offshoring: a dynamic perspective

Prior studies suggest that clients need to actively govern knowledge transfer to vendor staff in offshore outsourcing. In this paper, we analyze longitudinal data from four software maintenance offshore out-sourcing projects to explore why governance may be needed for knowledge transfer and how governance and the individual learning of vendor engineers inter-act over time. Our results suggest that self-control is central to learning, but may be hampered by low levels of trust and expertise at the outset of projects. For these foundations to develop, clients initially need to exert high amounts of formal and clan controls to enforce learning activities against barriers to knowledge sharing. Once learning activities occur, trust and expertise increase and control portfolios may show greater emphases on self-control.

The Role of BDNF, Leptin and Catecholamines in Reward Learning in Bulimia Nervosa

Background: A relationship between bulimia nervosa (BN) and reward-related behavior is supported by several lines of evidence. The dopaminergic dysfunctions in the processing of reward-related stimuli have been shown to be modulated by the neurotrophin brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and the hormone leptin. Methods: Using a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover design, a reward learning task was applied to study the behavior of 20 female subjects with remitted BN (rBN) and 27 female healthy controls under placebo and catecholamine depletion with alpha-methyl-para-tyrosine (AMPT). The plasma levels of BDNF and leptin were measured twice during the placebo and the AMPT condition, immediately before and 1 h after a standardized breakfast. Results: AMPT-induced differences in plasma BDNF levels were positively correlated with the AMPT-induced differences in reward learning in the whole sample (p = 0.05). Across conditions, plasma BDNF levels were higher in rBN subjects compared to controls (diagnosis effect; p = 0.001). Plasma BDNF and leptin levels were higher in the morning before compared to after a standardized breakfast across groups and conditions (time effect; p < 0.0001). The plasma leptin levels were higher under catecholamine depletion compared to placebo in the whole sample (treatment effect; p = 0.0004). Conclusions: This study reports on preliminary findings that suggest a catecholamine-dependent association of plasma BDNF and reward learning in subjects with rBN and controls. A role of leptin in reward learning is not supported by this study. However, leptin levels were sensitive to a depletion of catecholamine stores in both rBN and controls.

Acculturation and cultural identity of immigrant youth: The impact of courses in the language and culture of origin

Career choices in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are favoured by men and often avoided by women; on the other hand, women tend to choose fields such as the social sciences. This not only leads to a shortage of employees with STEM degrees, but also reinforces the prejudice that certain (personality) characteristics are ‘typically female’ or ‘typically male’. Career orientation motives of young women and men can have important implications for gender (a-)typical career choices. However, there is little empirical research on the correlates of career orientation motives in young women in the field of STEM. This study seeks to address this gap by outlining the components of career orientation motives and showing relationships among them. Therefore, our results provide insight into the circumstances and conditions that are associated with academic and career choices.