Women’s Entrepreneurship: closing the gender gap in access to financial and other services and in social entrepreneurship

This study explores differences between men and women entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. It explores the barriers and discriminatory effects that hinder women’s entrepreneurship, including access to finance in the European Union. The study includes four case studies covering the situation in the Czech Republic, Italy, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

A hazai kis - és középvállalatok teljesítményét befolyásoló stratégiai orientációk (The effect of strategic orientations on the performance of Hungarian SMEs)

A szerzők 300 magyar kis- és középvállalatot (KKV) tartalmazó mintán vizsgálják a különböző stratégiai orientációk teljesítményre gyakorolt hatását. Ismeretes, hogy a gazdasági környezet változása erősítheti (stimulálhatja), illetve korlátozhatja e kapcsolat szorosságát. Az eredmények alapján elmondható, hogy a modellben alkalmazott stratégiai orientációk közül elsősorban a vállalkozói orientáció és mérsékelt módon az ügyfélkapcsolati orientáció hat pozitívan a KKV-k teljesítményére. Megerősítést nyert az a sejtés, hogy a piaci és az innovációra irányuló orientáció akkor értékelődik fel, ha a környezetben turbulens (gyakran előre jelezhetetlen) erők hatnak. / === / The authors examine the effect of different strategic orientations on business performance on a sample of 300 small and medium sized enterprises (SME) in Hungary. It is widely known that the competitive environment might stimulate or hinder the relationship between strategic orientations and business performance. The results show that out of six strategic orientations the entrepreneurial orientation has the strongest effect on SME performance. Customer relationship orientation is also responsible for the performance development of SMEs, although to a lesser extent. Furthermore, it has been reinforced that market and innovation orientation takes its importance if there are turbulent forces in the environment.

The East-Central European new donors: mapping capacity building and remaining challenges

In the past decade, the East-Central European countries were provided significant external capacity building assistance in order to help their emergence as donors of foreign aid. This paper aims to map these capacity development programs and identify where they have helped and what challenges remain for the new donors. The main conclusion is that while capacity building has been instrumental in building organizational structures, working procedures and training staff, deeper underlying problems such as low levels of financing, lacking political will, the need for visibility and low staff numbers continue to hinder the new international development policies.

Munkahelyi tanulást befolyásoló tényezők – humán-számítógép együttműködés vizsgálata (Influencing factors of on-the-job learning – Analysis of human-computer collaboration)

A komplex, dinamikus, tudásalapú társadalomban nemcsak a tanulás formái, hanem a tanulás helyszínei is módosulnak, s a munkahely tanulásban betöltött szerepe felértékelődött. A munkahelyi környezet is számos átalakuláson esett át, az információs és kommunikációs technológiák (IKT) fejlődésével egyidejűleg lehetővé vált többek között a távmunka, jelentősen átformálva a munkavégzés és a munkahelyi interakciók módját. A kutatók arra keresték a választ kutatásukban, hogy a szervezeten belül milyen tényezők támogatják vagy gátolják a munkahelyi tanulást. A kutatás fő üzenete, hogy a tanulás keretrendszere, az egyéni képességek és az észlelt tanulási szituáció együttesen határozza meg a munkahelyi tanulást. A kutatók eredményüket kvalitatív kutatással feltárt három esettanulmányon keresztül ismertetik. ____ In a knowledge-based society not only the forms of learning have been changed but also the places of learning. The role of workplace in the learning process is becoming more important. Meantime, there has been a substantial change in the working conditions as the development in information and communication technologies (ICTs) makes it possible to telecommute transforming remarkably the way of working and the interactions at the workplace. The central question of the research is which intra-organizational factors support or hinder onthe- job learning. The main message of the research is that the learning framework, the individual cognitive competences and the perceived learning situation influence collectively on-the-job learning. Authors present the results of the qualitative research though three case studies.

The career development of Black female chief nurse executives

This qualitative study was designed to explore the career development of Black female chief nurse executives. Although a small proportion of Black female nurses have achieved positions at the nurse executive level, there remains a paucity of Black female nurse executives in this crucial position which raised the question of what factors contributed to this lack of advancement, but, more important, what factors have contributed to the success of the few who have achieved such level of success in healthcare organizations. The purpose of the study was to explore the career paths of Black female chief nurse executives with a view of understanding the factors which both facilitate and hinder the career development of these leaders in healthcare organizations. The guiding research question was, How do Black female nurse executives in this sample describe their career development? The participants in this study were Black female chief nurse executives located throughout the United States who, for the most part, were raised in segregation with a strong family foundation. To collect data, semistructured telephone interviews were conducted with 10 Black female chief nurse executives throughout the United States. The transcripts from the interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed. Using Super’s (1990, 1996), and Gottfredson’s (1981, 1996, 2002, 2005) career development theories and critical race theory (Crenshaw, 1995; Delgado, 2000) as the theoretical framework, the researcher found that the participants’ career development was influenced by (a) strong support system, (b) guidance, (c) influence of diversity, and (d) servant leadership. The findings help us understand the factors that have contributed to their successes as Black chief nurse executives. With the increasingly diverse population and concurrent increasing diversity in nursing and concerns about healthcare disparities, it is imperative that organizations attract, hire, develop, retain, and advance qualified Black nurses. Future studies addressing not only the career development of Black nurses but nurses in general might be informed by the present study’s findings. Recommendations are offered for nursing practice, education, and organizational policy.

Structural Characterization of Metal Hydrides for Energy Applications

Hydrogen can be an unlimited source of clean energy for future because of its very high energy density compared to the conventional fuels like gasoline. An efficient and safer way of storing hydrogen is in metals and alloys as hydrides. Light metal hydrides, alanates and borohydrides have very good hydrogen storage capacity, but high operation temperatures hinder their application. Improvement of thermodynamic properties of these hydrides is important for their commercial use as a source of energy. Application of pressure on materials can have influence on their properties favoring hydrogen storage. Hydrogen desorption in many complex hydrides occurs above the transition temperature. Therefore, it is important to study the physical properties of the hydride compounds at ambient and high pressure and/or high temperature conditions, which can assist in the design of suitable storage materials with desired thermodynamic properties. ^ The high pressure-temperature phase diagram, thermal expansion and compressibility have only been evaluated for a limited number of hydrides so far. This situation serves as a main motivation for studying such properties of a number of technologically important hydrides. Focus of this dissertation was on X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy studies of Mg2FeH6, Ca(BH4) 2, Mg(BH4)2, NaBH4, NaAlH4, LiAlH4, LiNH2BH3 and mixture of MgH 2 with AlH3 or Si, at different conditions of pressure and temperature, to obtain their bulk modulus and thermal expansion coefficient. These data are potential source of information regarding inter-atomic forces and also serve as a basis for developing theoretical models. Some high pressure phases were identified for the complex hydrides in this study which may have better hydrogen storage properties than the ambient phase. The results showed that the highly compressible B-H or Al-H bonds and the associated bond disordering under pressure is responsible for phase transitions observed in brorohydrides or alanates. Complex hydrides exhibited very high compressibility suggesting possibility to destabilize them with pressure. With high capacity and favorable thermodynamics, complex hydrides are suitable for reversible storage. Further studies are required to overcome the kinetic barriers in complex hydrides by catalytic addition. A comparative study of the hydride properties with that of the constituting metal, and their inter relationships were carried out with many interesting features.^

Navigating health sources on the Internet: A mixed-methods examination of online consumer reviews and expert text on psychotropic drugs

Purpose. The Internet has provided an unprecedented opportunity for psychotropic medication consumers, a traditionally silenced group in clinical trial research, to have voice by contributing to the construction of drug knowledge in an immediate, direct manner. Currently, there are no systematic appraisals of the potential of online consumer drug reviews to contribute to drug knowledge. The purpose of this research was to explore the content of drug information on various websites representing themselves as consumer- and expert-constructed, and as a practical consideration, to examine how each source may help and hinder treatment decision-making.^ Methodology. A mixed-methods research strategy utilizing a grounded theory approach was used to analyze drug information on 5 exemplar websites (3 consumer- and 2 expertconstructed) for 2 popularly prescribed psychotropic drugs (escitalopram and quetiapine). A stratified simple random sample was used to select 1,080 consumer reviews from the websites (N=7,114) through February 2009. Text was coded using QDA Miner 3.2 software by Provalis Research. A combination of frequency tables, descriptive excerpts from text, and chi-square tests for association were used throughout analyses.^ Findings. The most frequently mentioned effects by consumers taking either drug were related to psychological/behavioral symptoms and sleep. Consumers reported many of the same effects as found on expert health sites, but provided more descriptive language and situational examples. Expert labels of less serious on certain effects were not congruent with the sometimes tremendous burden described by consumers. Consumers mentioned more than double the themes mentioned in expert text, and demonstrated a diversity and range of discourses around those themes.^ Conclusions. Drug effects from each source were complete relative to the information provided in the other, but each also offered distinct advantages. Expert health sites provided concise summaries of medications’ effects, while consumer reviews had the added advantage of concrete descriptions and greater context. In short, consumer reviews better prepared potential consumers for what it’s like to take psychotropic drugs. Both sources of information benefit clinicians and consumers in making informed treatment-related decisions. Social work practitioners are encouraged to thoughtfully utilize online consumer drug reviews as a legitimate additional source for assisting clients in learning about treatment options.^

Filtering the international gender paradigm: Perspectives of gender in Barbados

My work presents a place-specific analysis of how gender paradigms interact across and within spatial scales: the global, the regional, the national and the personal. It briefly outlines the concepts and measures defining the international gender paradigm, and explores the filtration of this paradigm into assessments and understandings of gender and gender dynamics by and within Barbados. It does this by analyzing the contents of reports of the Barbados government to international bodies assessing the country’s performance in the area of gender equality, and by analyzing gender-comparative content of local print news media over the decade of the 1990s, and the first decade of the 2000s. It contextualizes the discussion within the realm of social and economic development. The work shows how the almost singular focus on “women” in the international gender paradigm may depreciate valid gender concerns of men and thus hinder the overall goal of achieving gender equality, that is, achieving just, inclusive societies.

Control of MNC environmental performance and the challenges of subsidiary network dimensions

The trend of green consumerism and increased standardization of environmental regulations has driven multinational corporations (MNCs) to seek standardization of environmental practices or at least seek to be associated with such behavior. In fact, many firms are seeking to free ride on this global green movement, without having the actual ecological footprint to substantiate their environmental claims. While scholars have articulated the benefits from such optimization of uniform global green operations, the challenges for MNCs to control and implement such operations are understudied. For firms to translate environmental commitment to actual performance, the obstacles are substantial, particularly for the MNC. This is attributed to headquarters' (HQ) control challenges (1) in managing core elements of the corporate environmental management (CEM) process and specifically matching verbal commitment and policy with ecological performance and by (2) the fact that the MNC operates in multiple markets and the HQ is required to implement policy across complex subsidiary networks consisting of diverse and distant units. Drawing from the literature on HQ challenges of MNC management and control, this study examines (1) how core components of the CEM process impact optimization of global environmental performance (GEP) and then uses network theory to examine how (2) a subsidiary network's dimensions can present challenges to the implementation of green management policies. It presents a framework for CEM which includes (1) MNCs' Verbal environmental commitment, (2) green policy Management which guides standards for operations, (3) actual environmental Performance reflected in a firm's ecological footprint and (4) corporate environmental Reputation (VMPR). Then it explains how an MNC's key subsidiary network dimensions (density, diversity, and dispersion) create challenges that hinder the relationship between green policy management and actual environmental performance. It combines content analysis, multiple regression, and post-hoc hierarchal cluster analysis to study US manufacturing MNCs. The findings support a positive significant effect of verbal environmental commitment and green policy management on actual global environmental performance and environmental reputation, as well as a direct impact of verbal environmental commitment on green policy management. Unexpectedly, network dimensions were not found to moderate the relationship between green management policy and GEP.

A study of the differences among African -American, Hispanic, and Anglo women on the perceived barriers and strategies to career advancement in public school administration

Women have been traditionally excluded from the ranks of principals and district administrators in public school systems throughout the country. Traditionally, Anglo women have been more successful than African American and Hispanic women in breaking down the barriers that impede their ascension to the top. The purpose of this study was to ascertain how African American, Hispanic, and Anglo higher-level female administrators perceive the barriers that hinder their progress, the effects of the barriers, and the strategies to overcome the barriers. ^ Two hundred, sixty female administrators employed with Miami-Dade County Public Schools and serving in the role of principal or higher were mailed a questionnaire consisting of 49 questions centering on personal and professional characteristics, perceptions of barriers, perceived effects of barriers, and strategies to overcome the barriers. One hundred, seventy-five questionnaires were returned. To analyze the respondents' personal and professional characteristics, cross tabulations were conducted on the demographic information and on the strategies. ANOVA was conducted on the barriers and the effects of the barriers by ethnic groups. Tukey's test for post-hoc comparisons was utilized to identify groups with means significantly divergent from those of other ethnicities. ^ The data revealed that Hispanic female higher-level administrators who returned the questionnaire were more likely to be married and have children as compared to Anglo and African American female administrators. When addressing the barriers to career success, African American females had a higher mean score on 14 of the 17 barriers to career success as compared to the other ethnic groups. Hispanic female administrators proved to be more successful in utilizing the strategies to overcome career barriers. The strategy, forming a “New Girl Network,” was the least utilized with 79 of the respondents reporting that they had never used it. ^ It is concluded that there is strong need for female administrators to network, mentor, and support one another. Also, it is imperative that the success of particular groups in certain areas is shared with others. ^

An investigation into the lived experiences of racism among African -American nurses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the lived experience of racism among African-American nurses. Utilizing a qualitative phenomenological approach, data were collected by interviewing 10 African-American nurses currently practicing in Dade county. The interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed using the seven step method of Colaizzi (1978). The findings of this study indicate that racism encompasses attitudes and beliefs which generate behaviors reflecting ethnocentric ideations. The process of racism creates glass ceilings that hinder the career advancement of African-American nurses. Internalizing these experiences of racism engenders feelings of betrayal and erodes unity and cohesion within the group. This study points out the need to openly confront racism in the nursing profession, from the classroom to the workplace.

Avaliação das técnicas de soldagem MIG-P CA e MIG-P CC+ aplicadas ao passe de enchimento em liga de alumínio AA5083

For contain beneficial properties, aluminum alloys are gaining more importance in different industrial areas, becoming the subject of study in several academic fields. When related to welding these alloys have some peculiarities that may hinder the union, such as microscopic oxide layer present on the metal surface. The MIG welding process, also known as GMAW, has developed versions that can be effective for welding aluminum. Knowing this, for this paper, two versions of pulsed MIG (CC + and CA) were chosen to evaluate which best suits pass by filling bevel on AA5083 aluminum sheets with 8 and 12 mm thick respectively. Furthermore, two types of wire, ER5087 and ER5183 were evaluated. To evaluate the process and versions of the wires, the high-speed cameras and thermal were used to monitor the metal transfer and the thermal behavior respectively, and the metallographic analysis for macrographic view of the weld beads and non-destructive testing by radiography for observation of possible discontinuities. It was found that the technique of MIG-P CA showed better results ahead of another technique both welding conditions imposed. When connected to the wires, they showed similar results, with uniform cords and seamless

Estudo de um compósito Nb-15%pCu obtidos por moagem de alta energia e sinterizados por fase líquida

There is great difficulty in forming a composite refractory metal niobium with copper. This is due to the fact that Nb-Cu system is almost mutually immiscible and may be neglected solubility between them. These properties hinder or prevent obtaining homogeneous and high-density structures, conventionally prepared. This study aims to analyze the use of high-energy milling process (MAE) to implement these natural difficulties, with regard to the densification of the sintered bodies. The MAE and the press were used in the preparation of powders, to obtain a fine and homogeneous distribution of the grain size. Four loads Nb and Cu powders containing 15% by weight of Cu were then milled for MAE in a planetary type ball mill under various milling times and speeds. The results obtained by MAE were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), according to the parameters of time and grinding speed. The samples were compacted under pressure of 200 MPa, were then sintered in liquid phase in a vacuum furnace at temperatures of 1100 ° C / 60 min and 1200 ° C / 60 min. Then it was used to characterize diffraction of X-rays to identify the phases. The microstructures of the sintered samples were observed and evaluated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Vickers Microhardness tests were performed, obtaining higher values for the sintered bodies in the largest of the post milling times and the larger grinding speeds. It was found that the liquid phase sintering of the samples that were processed by MAE produced at the end of a homogeneous and densified structure in 77,4% relative to the value of the theoretical density of the composite

Avaliação do acesso aos serviços de reabilitação física para vítimas de acidentes de trânsito: caminhos para melhoria da qualidade do sistema de saúde

The Physical Rehabilitation services (PR) are of fundamental importance in combating the global epidemic of Traffic Accidents (TA). Considering the numerous physical and social consequences of the survivors, quality problems in access to PR are a hazard to recovery of victims. It is necessary to improve the management of quality of services, assessing priority dimensions and intervening in their causes, to ensure rehabilitation available in time and suitable conditions. This study aimed to identify barriers to access to rehabilitation considering the perception of TA victims and professionals. The aim is also to estimate the access to rehabilitation and their associated factors. This is a qualitative and quantitative study of exploratory nature developed in Natal / RN with semi-structured interviews with 19 health professionals and telephone survey to 155 victims of traffic accidents. To explore barriers to access the speeches were transcribed and analyzed using the Alceste software (version 4.9). During the interviews used the following guiding question: “What barriers hinder or prevent access to physical rehabilitation for victims of traffic accidents?”. The names of classes and axes resulting from Alceste was performed by ad hoc query to three external researchers with subsequent consensus of the most representative name of analysis. We conducted multivariate analysis of the influence of the variables of the accident, sociodemographic, clinical and assistance on access to rehabilitation. Associations with p <0.20 in the bivariate analysis were submitted to logistic regression, step by step, with p <0.05 and confidence interval (CI) of 95%. The main barriers identified were: “Bureaucratic regulation”, “Long time to start rehabilitation”, “No post-surgery referral” and “inefficiency of public services”. These barriers were divided into a theoretical model built from the cause-effect diagram, in which we observed that insufficient access to rehabilitation is the product of causes related to organizational structure, work processes, professional and patients. Was constructed two logistic regression models: “General access to rehabilitation” and “Access to rehabilitation to public service”. 51.6% of patients had access to rehabilitation, and 32.9% in public and 17.9% in the private sector. The regression model “General access to rehabilitation” included the variables Income (OR:3.7), Informal Employment (OR:0.11), Unemployment (OR:0.15), Perceived Need for PR (OR:10) and Referral (OR: 27.5). The model “Access to rehabilitation in the public service” was represented by the “Referral to Public Service” (OR: 23.0) and “Private Health Plan” (OR: 0.07). Despite the known influence of social determinants on access to health services, a situation difficult to control by the public administration, this study found that the organizational and bureaucratic procedures established in health care greatly determine access to rehabilitation. Access difficulties show the seriousness of the problem and the factors suggest the need for improvements in comprehensive care for TA survivors and avoid unnecessary prolongation of the suffering of the victims of this epidemic.

Uma nova proposta de fluidos de perfuração aquosos à base de polímeros vinílicos e bentonita para poços de alta temperatura e pressão

The advance of drilling in deeper wells has required more thermostable materials. The use of synthetic fluids, which usually have a good chemical stability, faces the environmental constraints, besides it usually generate more discharge and require a costly disposal treatment of drilled cuttings, which are often not efficient and require mechanical components that hinder the operation. The adoption of aqueous fluids generally involves the use of chrome lignosulfonate, used as dispersant, which provides stability on rheological properties and fluid loss under high temperatures and pressures (HTHP). However, due to the environmental impact associated with the use of chrome compounds, the drilling industry needs alternatives that maintain the integrity of the property and ensure success of the operation in view of the strong influence of temperature on the viscosity of aqueous fluids and polymers used in these type fluids, often polysaccharides, passives of hydrolysis and biological degradation. Therefore, vinyl polymers were selected for this study because they have predominantly carbon chain and, in particular, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) for resisting higher temperatures and partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (PHPA) and clay by increasing the system's viscosity. Moreover, the absence of acetal bonds reduces the sensitivity to attacks by bacteria. In order to develop an aqueous drilling fluid system for HTHP applications using PVP, HPAM and clay, as main constituents, fluid formulations were prepared and determined its rheological properties using rotary viscometer of the Fann, and volume filtrate obtained by filtration HTHP following the standard API 13B-2. The new fluid system using polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) with high molar weight had higher viscosities, gels and yield strength, due to the effect of flocculating clay. On the other hand, the low molecular weight PVP contributed to the formation of disperse systems with lower values in the rheological properties and fluid loss. Both systems are characterized by thermal stability gain up to around 120 ° C, keeping stable rheological parameters. The results were further corroborated through linear clay swelling tests.