Empirical Technologies (United States)

Abstract In light of significant challenges in human resource management, organizations require clear insights into the factors that effectively foster positive attitudes, such as organizational commitment (OC) and organizational identification (OI). While OC has been thoroughly examined regarding its antecedents and variations across sectors, existing literature in Public Administration has yielded mixed or limited evidence with regard to factors that are more directly under organizational control. Furthermore, the interplay between OC and OI remains largely underexplored, particularly from a comparative perspective. This study bridges Social Exchange Theory and Social Identity Theory to investigate whether OI serves as a critical mediator in understanding how various organizational factors, specifically extrinsic, intrinsic, and social rewards, affect OC along the public–private continuum. Utilizing observational data from over 5,000 respondents in Switzerland across public, private, and semi-public organizations, the authors distinguish between factors that vary across institutional contexts in their capacity to influence OC directly or indirectly through OI, and those attributes for which institutional variability cannot be identified, as they primarily operate at the job or organizational level. In doing so, this research contributes to the scholarship on comparative studies of OC and the relationship between OI and OC, while offering actionable insights for HR managers navigating the complexities of workforce retention in an increasingly competitive talent landscape.

<p> </p> <p>Randomized experiments (<em>RCT</em>s) rule out bias from confounded selection of participants into conditions by design. Quasi-experiments (<em>QE</em>s) are often considered second-best because they do not share this benefit. However, when results from <em>RCT</em>s are used to generalize causal impacts, the benefit from unconfounded selection into conditions may be offset by confounded selection into locations. In this work we show that this tradeoff can lead to situations where estimates from <em>QE</em>s are less-biased from selection than are estimates from uncompromised <em>RCT</em>s. We establish the conditions theoretically, demonstrate the idea empirically, and discuss the implications of the results.</p>

The central aims of this dissertation were to empirically expand the extant knowledge on the extent to which OMCG membership is associated with the criminal careers of individual members, the ways in which OMCG membership is related to members’ criminal behavior, and the judicial reactions to OMCGs and OMCG membership. A multi-method approach was employed to address these research aims. The findings of the present dissertation contribute to a better understanding of the relationship between OMCG membership and crime. This dissertation suggests that OMCG membership influences the criminal careers of individual members, especially when it comes to membership of one of the most criminal OMCGs. Nevertheless, the involvement of OMCGs as collectives in members’ criminal behavior is limited: OMCGs, in most criminal cases, do not appear to orchestrate the criminal behavior to their members. OMCG membership predominantly contributes to the criminal behavior of individual members through various crime-promoting mechanisms, such as the ‘power of the patch’ and access to criminal ties. At the same time, Dutch law enforcement struggles to legally address OMCGs as criminal collectives and the symbolic contribution of fellow club members to crime through criminal law. Criminal law, after all, is primarily focused on individual liability and, therefore, has difficulties to address collective criminal behavior and criminal groups.

<p>We evaluate the role of selection bias in causal generalization. We compare levels of bias in estimates of average causal impacts from experiments and from non-experiments. To demonstrate we use data from 79 sites in the multisite trial of Tennessee's Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR), and we use results obtained during a randomized experiment of the Alabama Math Science and Technology Initiaitve (AMSTI). </p>

We examine how the linguistic content of news items affects the volatility of a firm's liquidity, and we consider whether accounting quality moderates the media content-liquidity volatility relation. Regarding the unconditional relation between media content and liquidity volatility, one view is media content could reduce liquidity volatility by providing additional information about fundamental values; another view is it could increase liquidity volatility by increasing investor uncertainty, particularly for negative news. Using data from Thomson Reuters News Analytics, we find evidence supporting the view that media content, positive and negative, has incremental information. Regarding the moderating role of accounting quality, pre-existing accounting information of higher quality could enhance investors' reactions to media content by providing a more precise baseline, or it could reduce investors' reactions to the news if investors anchor on higher quality financial statements. Our findings are consistent with more credible accounting information serving an anchor role, and suggest that investors condition their reaction to media content based on the quality of a firm's pre-existing accounting information.

Intravenous administration of vitamin C has been shown to decrease oxidative stress and, in some instances, improve physiological function in adult humans. Oral vitamin C administration is typically less effective, due in part to decreased vitamin C bioavailability. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of oral delivery of vitamin C encapsulated in liposomes. On 4 separate occasions, occurring in random order, 11 obese adults (age: 53 ± 2 years; body mass index: 34.1 ± 1.0 kg/m2 (mean ± SE)) were administered an oral placebo, or 4 g of vitamin C via: oral, oral liposomal, or intravenous delivery. The area under the plasma vitamin C concentration curve, determined over 4 hours, was greatest (P < 0.001) following intravenous administration (57.0 ± 6.9 (mg/dL)·h). Liposomal vitamin C delivery (10.3 ± 0.9) evoked a greater (P = 0.002) area under the curve than oral (7.6 ± 0.4) that in turn was greater (P < 0.001) than placebo (3.1 ± 0.4). Forearm ischemia‐reperfusion (20 minutes of occlusion) increased circulating thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, a marker of oxidative stress, 40 minutes post‐reperfusion (P < 0.03); this increase was prevented by all of the vitamin C treatments (P > 0.05). These data suggest that oral delivery of vitamin C encapsulated in liposomes: 1) produces circulating concentrations of vitamin C that are greater than traditional oral administration; and, 2) provides protection from ischemia‐reperfusion that is similar to the protection provided by intravenous administration.Support: Empirical Labs

ASTM F2624-07 prescribes applying flexion/extension, lateral bending, and axial rotation moments to test and evaluate extra discal motion preserving implants (EDMPI). The standard provides a suggested laterally oriented construct (LOC) for conducting flexion/extension (FE) testing. The suggested construct does not have a fixed center of rotation (COR). An alternate set of fixtures to conduct FE testing using a vertically oriented construct (VOC) with a fixed COR is presented. Testing was conducted to quantify the loads applied to an EDMPI using both types of fixtures, quantify shear loading applied to the actuator, determine whether results are frequency dependent, and evaluate whether the fixtures can differentiate between EDMPI using a measure of displacement amplitude. A miniature load cell was mounted to both fixtures to quantify load applied to an EDMPI during testing at several different applied loads or torques and at two testing frequencies (2 Hz and 5 Hz). Lateral actuator shear was measured using a dial indicator. The load cell was replaced with cylindrical test specimens made of stainless steel, titanium, polyether ether ketone, or a polyethylene cable slipped inside a polyurethane tube, and the testing repeated. Results indicated that both fixtures generated similar tensile/compressive loads at an EDMPI. The LOC fixture generated more actuator shear than the VOC. Using a VOC fixture rather than the LOC suggested in ASTM F2624-07 in FE testing may be a reasonable alternative for certain types of devices.