The use of information technology in less developed environments:the case of Greece

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The role of information and communication technology in small Italian logistics enterprises

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) is widely regarded as a key integration enabler in contemporary supply chain configurations. Furthermore, recent years have seen the vertical disintegration of supply chains as increasing numbers of manufacturers and retailers outsource significant parts of their supply chain functionality. In this environment, Third Party Logistics (3PL) providers - the majority of which are small companies - play a pivotal role. This raises important questions about the usage of ICT in this sector. However, there is a paucity of research in the field of small 3PLs with little empirical investigation into the usage of ICT by such firms. This paper presents the results of a survey on ICT systems usage in a sample of small Italian 3PLs. The results provide a technological profile of the surveyed companies, as well as an analysis of the role of ICT in customising services and of the factors influencing technology adoption.

Who speaks up for Inés Fonseca? Representing violence against vulnerable subjects and the ethics of care in fictional narrative about Alzheimer’s disease:Ahora tocad música de baile (2004) by Andrés Barba

This paper studies the Spanish fictional novel by Andrés Barba, Ahora tocad música de baile (2004), one of the first cultural texts dealing entirely with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to appear in Spain. It argues that the significance of Barba’s fictional novel rests on two important issues: the ethics of representation of violence against vulnerable subjects and the ethics of care. The paper analyses how these two issues allow Barba to create a story in which the verbal and physical abuse to which the person living with Alzheimer’s disease is subjected places the reader, on the one hand, as voyeur/witness of the abuse; and, on the other, as interpreter, and ultimately judge, of the fine line that separates euthanasia, assisted suicide, and murder. The open ending of the novel defers all ethical and moral judgment to the reader. It examines how the novel offers a monolithic perspective about AD, in which care is presented as a burden. In fact, this study shows that the novel’s multi-layered structure and polyphonic nature places the emphasis on stigmas, stereotypes and negative metaphors around AD, as found in contemporary social discourses.

Action research: minimising the impact of disruptive incidents for rail passengers through improved sharing of information

This paper reports on an action research project based in the UK rail industry; it used a novel type of Soft Systems Methodology (known as PrOH Modelling) to facilitate change in a major Train Operating Company (TOC). The project looked at a number of different disruptive incidents to compare and contrast practice via the Mitigate, Prevent, React and Recover (MPRR) Framework. One incident is detailed in depth. The paper also looks at the general process of conducting action research. This work will be of interest for researchers in the rail sector and for those conducting operations action research projects.

Public attitudes on the ethics of deceptively planting false memories to motivate healthy behavior

Researchers have proposed that planting false memories could have positive behavioral consequences. The idea of deceptively planting “beneficial” false memories outside of the laboratory raises important ethical questions, but how might the general public appraise this moral dilemma? In two studies, participants from the USA and UK read about a fictional “false-memory therapy” that led people to adopt healthy behaviors. Participants then reported their attitudes toward the acceptability of this therapy, via scale-rating (both studies) and open-text (Study 2) responses. The data revealed highly divergent responses to this contentious issue, ranging from abject horror to unqualified enthusiasm. Moreover, the responses shed light on conditions that participants believed would make the therapy less or more ethical. Whether or not deceptively planting memories outside the lab could ever be justifiable, these studies add valuable evidence to scientific and societal debates on neuroethics, whose relevance to memory science is increasingly acute.