Partner selection for reverse logistics centres in green supply chains: a fuzzy artificial immune optimization approach

The design of reverse logistics networks has now emerged as a major issue for manufacturers, not only in developed countries where legislation and societal pressures are strong, but also in developing countries where the adoption of reverse logistics practices may offer a competitive advantage. This paper presents a new model for partner selection for reverse logistic centres in green supply chains. The model offers three advantages. Firstly, it enables economic, environment, and social factors to be considered simultaneously. Secondly, by integrating fuzzy set theory and artificial immune optimization technology, it enables both quantitative and qualitative criteria to be considered simultaneously throughout the whole decision-making process. Thirdly, it extends the flat criteria structure for partner selection evaluation for reverse logistics centres to the more suitable hierarchy structure. The applicability of the model is demonstrated by means of an empirical application based on data from a Chinese electronic equipment and instruments manufacturing company.

De controller als Businesspartner. Hoe beïnvloeden persoonskenmerken de ontwikkeling naar "Partner in Business"binnen de afdeling Financiën bij de provincie Gelderland?

Bij de provincie Gelderland is per 01-01-2009 een reorganisatie doorgevoerd waarbij o.a. de ondersteunende disciplines zoals Financiën zijn samengevoegd binnen één centrale afdeling. Binnen de afdeling Financiën is een team ‘Business control’ gevormd waarin de Financieel adviseurs zijn ondergebracht. Daarbij is vanaf 2009, in verschillende termen en bewoordingen, steeds de ambitie uitgesproken om van de “Financieel expert” naar “Partner in business” te groeien. De ervaring tot dusver laat zien dat deze ambitie in de praktijk moeizaam te realiseren is. Dit onderzoek richt zich op verschillende facetten die samenhangen met bovengenoemde ambitie. Daarbij richt het onderzoek zich vooral op de vraag wat de invloed daarbij is van de persoonskenmerken van de medewerkers. De onderzoeksvraag is: Hoe beïnvloeden de persoonskenmerken de ontwikkeling naar “Partner in Business” bij het team Business control binnen de afdeling Financiën bij de provincie Gelderland? Uit het literatuuronderzoek blijkt dat New Public Management (NPM) een belangrijke externe ontwikkelingen is voor de publieke sector. NPM heeft als doel om publieke organisaties meer resultaatgericht, meer gecoördineerd en efficiënter te laten werken. Bij NPM gaat het o.a. om begrippen als resultaatgerichtheid, output en efficiency. Aangezien de controller het management adviseert bij het efficiënt realiseren van de organisatiedoelstellingen is NPM van invloed op de (rol van) de controller. Een verandering in de rol van de controller is ook het gevolg van de veranderingen in de financiële functie. Uit diverse onderzoeken blijkt dat de controllersfunctie zich ontwikkelt van een administratieve, ten behoeve van het top-management controlerende functie, naar een beslissingsondersteunende functie voor alle geledingen van het management. Conijn et al. (2005) beschrijven de ontwikkeling in de financiële functie aan de hand van een denkmodel met daarin vier fasen met de bijbehorende archetypes Scorekeeper, Financial controller, Managementcontroller en Businesspartner. Naast deze ontwikkelingen zijn ook persoonsgerelateerde factoren van invloed op de rol van een controller binnen een organisatie. Vanuit de organisatiepsychologie worden de persoonlijke eigenschappen van mensen dikwijls in vijf verschillende dimensies gevat, ook wel ‘the big five’ genoemd. Het big five factor model gaat ervan uit dat elk persoon in meer of mindere mate de volgende vijf persoonlijke dimensies heeft: Extraversie, Meegaandheid, Zorgvuldigheid, Openheid en Emotionele stabiliteit. De situatie bij de provincie Gelderland is onderzocht aan de hand van een enquête. De enquête is uitgezet bij de 28 Financieel adviseurs met 17 representatieve respondenten. Hieruit blijkt dat de Financieel adviseurs bij de provincie Gelderland voornamelijk activiteiten verrichten die horen bij de rol van Financial controller en in mindere mate die van respectievelijk Managementcontroller, Businesspartner en Scorekeeper. Daarbij beschikken de Managementcontrollers en de Businesspartners meer over de persoonskenmerken Extraversie, Openheid en Emotionele stabiliteit dan de Scorekeepers en Financial controllers. De Scorekeepers beschikken juist het minst over deze drie persoonskenmerken ten opzichte van de andere drie typen controllers. Voor wat betreft de persoonskenmerken Zorgvuldigheid en Meegaandheid laten de resultaten van de enquête geen eenduidig beeld zien in de relatie tot de typen controllers die de Financieel adviseurs vervullen. Op basis van dit onderzoek en met inachtneming van het aantal van 17 respondenten bij de enquête, lijkt er een relatie te zijn tussen de persoonskenmerken van controllers en de rol die zij als controller vervullen. De rol van Businesspartner vraagt blijkbaar om een hoge mate van Extraversie, Openheid en Emotionele stabiliteit. Voor de provincie Gelderland betekent dit concreet dat bij de gewenste ontwikkeling van Financieel expert naar Partner in business rekening gehouden moet worden met de persoonskenmerken van de Financieel adviseurs. Hierdoor kan er een goede aansluiting tot stand worden gebracht tussen de controller als persoon en zijn/haar controllersrol binnen de organisatie. Kortom; de juiste persoon op de juiste plaats.

Alcoholic Beverage Preference and Dietary Habits in Elderly across Europe: Analyses within the Consortium on Health and Ageing: Network of Cohorts in Europe and the United States (CHANCES) Project

INTRODUCTION: The differential associations of beer, wine, and spirit consumption on cardiovascular risk found in observational studies may be confounded by diet. We described and compared dietary intake and diet quality according to alcoholic beverage preference in European elderly.

METHODS: From the Consortium on Health and Ageing: Network of Cohorts in Europe and the United States (CHANCES), seven European cohorts were included, i.e. four sub-cohorts from EPIC-Elderly, the SENECA Study, the Zutphen Elderly Study, and the Rotterdam Study. Harmonized data of 29,423 elderly participants from 14 European countries were analyzed. Baseline data on consumption of beer, wine, and spirits, and dietary intake were collected with questionnaires. Diet quality was assessed using the Healthy Diet Indicator (HDI). Intakes and scores across categories of alcoholic beverage preference (beer, wine, spirit, no preference, non-consumers) were adjusted for age, sex, socio-economic status, self-reported prevalent diseases, and lifestyle factors. Cohort-specific mean intakes and scores were calculated as well as weighted means combining all cohorts.

RESULTS: In 5 of 7 cohorts, persons with a wine preference formed the largest group. After multivariate adjustment, persons with a wine preference tended to have a higher HDI score and intake of healthy foods in most cohorts, but differences were small. The weighted estimates of all cohorts combined revealed that non-consumers had the highest fruit and vegetable intake, followed by wine consumers. Non-consumers and persons with no specific preference had a higher HDI score, spirit consumers the lowest. However, overall diet quality as measured by HDI did not differ greatly across alcoholic beverage preference categories.

DISCUSSION: This study using harmonized data from ~30,000 elderly from 14 European countries showed that, after multivariate adjustment, dietary habits and diet quality did not differ greatly according to alcoholic beverage preference.

Grafisk profilering i HRbranschen : Processen bakom skapandet av logotyp och grafisk profil till Dala HR Partner

Föreliggande undersökning genomförs i samarbete med uppdragsgivaren och HR-företaget Dala HR Partner. Syftet med undersökningen är att ta reda på hur logotyp och grafisk profil bör se ut för att på bästa sätt förmedla företagets mål och värderingar, seriös, kompetent, effektiv och trygg. En visuell innehållsanalys utfördes med syftet att få en bättre förståelse för hur andra HR-företag profilerar sig. Semi-strukturerade intervjuer utfördes med Dala HR Partners målgrupp samt en kompletterande enkätundersökning med personer med erfarenhet inom grafisk design för att få åsikter både från lekmän och yrkeserfarna. De olika materialinsamlingsmetoderna gav oss bra underlag till framtagningen av logotyp och grafisk profil som på bästa sätt skulle förmedla Dala HR Partners mål och värderingar, samt uppfylla de komponenter som utgör en fullständig grafisk identitet. Från undersökningen har det framgått att det är viktigt med en tanke bakom det visuella materialet för att egenskaperna ska förmedlas på bästa sätt. Valet av exempelvis färg och form har betydelse i hur företagets värderingar kommuniceras. Resultat av den slutgiltiga logotypen och grafiska profilen visar att de i stor utsträckning förmedlar Dala HR Partners värderingar och mål, seriös, kompetent, effektiv och trygg, vilket var målet med den här undersökningen och vårt examensarbete.

Comparison of In-Person Versus Telephone Interviews for Early Syphilis and HIV Partner Services in King County, Washington (2010-2014)

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Intimate Partner Violence and Pregnancy Intentions: A Qualitative Study

Aim and Objective In this qualitative study we explored women’s pregnancy intentions and experiences of intimate partner violence before, during and after pregnancy. Background Unintended pregnancies in the context of intimate partner violence can have serious health, social and economic consequences for women and their children. Design Feminist and phenomenological philosophies underpinned the study to gain a richer understanding of women’s experiences. Methods Eleven women who had been pregnant in the previous two years were recruited from community-based women’s refuges in one region of the United Kingdom. Of the eleven women, eight had unplanned pregnancies, two reported being coerced into early motherhood, and only one woman had purposively planned her pregnancy. Multiple in-depth interviews focused on participants’ accounts of living with intimate partner violence. Experiential data analysis was used to identify, analyse and highlight themes. Results Three major themes were identified: men’s control of contraception, partner’s indiscriminate response to the pregnancy, and women’s mixed feelings about the pregnancy. Participants reported limited influence over their sexual relationship and Accepted Article This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. birth control. Feelings of vulnerability about themselves and fear for their unborn babies’ safety were intensified by their partners’ continued violence during pregnancy. Conclusion Women experiencing intimate partner violence were more likely to have an unintended pregnancy. This could be attributed to male dominance and fear, which impacts on a woman’s ability to manage her birth control options. The women’s initial excitement about their pregnancy diminished in the face of uncertainty and ongoing violence within their relationship. Relevance to clinical practice Women experiencing violence lack choice in relation to birth control options leading to unintended pregnancies. Interpreting the findings from the victim-perpetrator interactive spin theory of intimate partner violence provides a possible framework for midwives and nurses to better understand and respond to women’s experiences of violence during pregnancy.

Native Women, Intimate Partner Violence, and Drug Use and Consequences: Prevalence and Associations Among Tribal College and University Students

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

On the Incorporation of Psychologically-Driven 'Music' Preference Models for Music Recommendation

There are hundreds of millions of songs available to the public, necessitating the use of music recommendation systems to discover new music. Currently, such systems account for only the quantitative musical elements of songs, failing to consider aspects of human perception of music and alienating the listener’s individual preferences from recommendations. Our research investigated the relationships between perceptual elements of music, represented by the MUSIC model, with computational musical features generated through The Echo Nest, to determine how a psychological representation of music preference can be incorporated into recommendation systems to embody an individual’s music preferences. Our resultant model facilitates computation of MUSIC factors using The Echo Nest features, and can potentially be integrated into recommendation systems for improved performance.

Simulation-based mentalizing generates a ‘proxy’ self-reference effect in memory

The self-reference effect (SRE) in memory is thought to depend on specialized mechanisms that enhance memory for self-relevant information. We investigated whether these mechanisms can be engaged “by proxy” when we simulate other people, by asking participants to interact with two virtual partners: one similar and one dissimilar to self. Participants viewed pairs of objects and picked one for themselves, for their similar partner, or their dissimilar partner. A surprise memory test followed that required participants to identify which object of each pair was chosen, and for whom. Finally, participants were shown both partners’ object pairs again, and asked to indicate their personal preference. Four key findings were observed. Overlap between participants’ own choice and those made for their partner was significantly higher for the similar than the dissimilar partner, revealing participants’ use of their own preferences to simulate the similar partner. Recollection of chosen objects was significantly higher for self than for both partners and, critically, was significantly higher for similar than dissimilar partners. Source confusion between self and the similar partner was also higher. These findings suggest that self-reference by proxy enhances memory for non-self-relevant material, and we consider the theoretical implications for functional interpretation of the SRE.

Perceptions of Social Supports and Services for Intimate Partner Violence Victims

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a complex issue. The present study explored how media exposure to female and male victims of IPV affected participants’ support for both groups. It was hypothesized that female victims would be supported more than male victims and that presenting stimuli that drew attention to male victims would not decrease support for female victims. Participants were presented with one of three posters, drawing attention to male victims, female victims, or both. A questionnaire was then used to assess perceptions of support for IPV victims, which was completed by 121 participants. Results indicated that females were supported more than males and that drawing attention to male victims did not decrease participants’ support for female victims. An exploratory analysis also revealed that women, overall, have high support for all victims, while men’s level of support changed depending on the type of information to which they were exposed.

Exploring the Process of Meaning-making after Partner Suicide

Meaning-making is increasingly recognized as a fundamental aspect of the grief experience. This study investigated the process of meaning-making in the narratives of individuals whose partners died by suicide, exploring their meaning reconstruction in response to this form of loss. The narratives of users of a public online grief support forum (n = 50) were analyzed using the Meaning of Loss Codebook (Gillies, Neimeyer, & Milman, 2014), which consists of core categories of meaning of loss in response to the death of a loved one. The results indicated that these individuals predominantly experienced negative affect, a lack of understanding associated with the loss, and a longing for their partners. The grief experience of participants in this study was marked by substantial psychological distress and an ongoing struggle to make sense of and find meaning in this type of loss. It is clear that grieving the loss of a partner as a result of suicide presents unique challenges to meaning-making in comparison to other types of loss. Given the importance of this aspect of adjustment to loss, these findings deepen the understanding of this component of grief and inform the provision of support for those grieving a loved one who died by suicide.

With or without you: does partner satisfaction and partner-directed violence influence the presence of a partner on women's Facebook cover profile photographs?

Social network sites (SNSs) provide new opportunities for online self-presentation of millions of users. The cover profile photograph (CPP) along with written information regarding relationship status is a central component of online self-presentation, although their associations with actual romantic relationships are not clear. We investigated relationships between the presence of a current romantic partner on the CPP and the displayed relationship status and partner satisfaction, partner-directed violence and women's intrasexual competition with peers. A total of 28 % of the 158 women with a Facebook profile and being involved in a romantic relationship had their romantic partners on their CPP. As predicted, women with their partners on the CPP were more satisfied with their romantic relationship than others. Furthermore, women who did not have their partner on the CPP tended to conceal or lie in their displayed mating status suggesting that this may be a strategy how to attract another potential mate. The partner-directed violence and intrasexual competition hypotheses were not supported. Overall, the CPP and an honestly displayed relationship status is an expression of relationship satisfaction amongst women.

A communication partner training program: Assessing conversational behaviors and attitudes towards communication in Persons with Aphasia and their Communication Partners

This study examined the conversational behaviors of eleven dyads consisting of a person with aphasia (PWA) and their familiar communication partner (CP), and investigated changes in behaviors as a result of attending a communication partner-training program CPT). Attitudes about communication were examined and related to conversational behaviors observed pre- and post- training. Results indicated that CPs and PWA used significantly more facilitating behaviors than barrier behaviors, although most dyads experienced some barriers. A comparison of pre-and post-CPT conversations revealed a significant interaction between time and type of behavior, with the increase in the number of facilitators approaching significance. Overall, persons with aphasia and their conversational partners expressed positive attitudes about communication. There were no significant correlations between scores on attitude surveys and behaviors pre or post-training. This study demonstrated that these dyads employed facilitative conversational behaviors even before CPT, and that facilitative behaviors can increase after a one-day training workshop.