The measurement of guanxi: Introducing the GRX scale

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in Industrial Marketing Management. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2010 Elsevier B.V.This study posits and examines a measurement scale for measuring guanxi based on three Chinese relational constructs – ganqing, renqing and xinren. Focusing on Anglo-Chinese buyer–seller relationships, the research reports the findings from six qualitative in-depth interviews and survey data obtained from over 200 Taiwanese trading companies. Based on exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses the findings from the final second-order confirmatory factor analysis of the guanxi model identified 11 items for measuring ganqing, renqing, xinren and guanxi respectively. The results offer a useful starting point in order for business practitioners to assess their guanxi and at the same time provide academics with a scale for operationalizing the measurement of guanxi

Input Sources and Properties of Position-Sensitive Oculomotor Fibres in the Rock Lobster, Panulirus Interruptus (Randall)

Sets of head-up, head-down, eye-up and eye-down motor fibres were studied in the oculomotor nerve of the rock lobster. An eye-withdrawal fibre was also investigated. Apart from the statocyst input, light distribution on the eyes has the strongest influence on the position-sensitive fibres. Weaker optokinetic input from moving targets is also present. Strongly habituating input is obtained from the antennal joints. This input causes orientation of the eye toward the direction in which the antenna points. The same antennule movement in the vertical plane can result in either excitation or inhibition of the head-down fibre, suggesting the presence of two opposing inputs, presumably from the statocysts and basal joint receptors of the antennule. The inputs on to the position-sensitive fibres which indicate body position are such as to stabilize the eye position in space during body movement. The optokinetic and antennal joint inputs are probably involved in tracking and antennal pointing reactions. The eye-withdrawal fibre is stimulated by touch of the head and around the eye, but is inhibited by the excited state

Would Gaze-Contingent Rendering Improve Depth Perception in Virtual and Augmented Reality?

Near distances are overestimated in virtual reality, and far distances are underestimated, but an explanation for these distortions remains elusive. One potential concern is that whilst the eye rotates to look at the virtual scene, the virtual cameras remain static. Could using eye-tracking to change the perspective of the virtual cameras as the eye rotates improve depth perception in virtual reality? This paper identifies 14 distinct perspective distortions that could in theory occur from keeping the virtual cameras fixed whilst the eye rotates in the context of near-eye displays. However, the impact of eye movements on the displayed image depends on the optical, rather than physical, distance of the display. Since the optical distance of most head-mounted displays is over 1m, most of these distortions will have only a negligible effect. The exception are 'gaze-contingent disparities', which will leave near virtual objects looking displaced from physical objects that are meant to be at the same distance in augmented reality.Comment: 5 page

Mechanisms of Action and Targets of Nitric Oxide in the Oculomotor System

Nitric oxide (NO) production by neurons in the prepositus hypoglossi (PH) nucleus is necessary for the normal performance of eye movements in alert animals. In this study, the mechanism(s) of action of NO in the oculomotor system has been investigated. Spontaneous and vestibularly induced eye movements were recorded in alert cats before and after microinjections in the PH nucleus of drugs affecting the NO–cGMP pathway. The cellular sources and targets of NO were also studied by immunohistochemical detection of neuronal NO synthase (NOS) and NO-sensitive guanylyl cyclase, respectively. Injections of NOS inhibitors produced alterations of eye velocity, but not of eye position, for both spontaneous and vestibularly induced eye movements, suggesting that NO produced by PH neurons is involved in the processing of velocity signals but not in the eye position generation. The effect of neuronal NO is probably exerted on a rich cGMP-producing neuropil dorsal to the nitrergic somas in the PH nucleus. On the other hand, local injections of NO donors or 8-Br-cGMP produced alterations of eye velocity during both spontaneous eye movements and vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR), as well as changes in eye position generation exclusively during spontaneous eye movements. The target of this additional effect of exogenous NO is probably a well defined group of NO-sensitive cGMP-producing neurons located between the PH and the medial vestibular nuclei. These cells could be involved in the generation of eye position signals during spontaneous eye movements but not during the VOR.Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria Grants 94/0388 and 97/2054Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid Grant 08.5/0019/1997Dirección General de Investigación Científica y Technológica Grant PB 93–117

A Low-Dimensional Model of Coordinated Eye and Head Movements

Eye and head movement data, were recorded under head fixed and head-free conditions, and compared with theoretical results obtained using a nonlinear model of eye-head coordination. The model explains slow, or pursuit movement correlated closely to target movement, and saccades, or quick phases of eye movement. Eye movement under head-fixed conditions was modeled by an externally forced Duffing equation, whilst properties of head movement are described by a second externally forced Duffing equation with lower eigen frequency. In the more natural, head-free conditions where both eye and head movements are used synergetically to pursue a visual target, the vestibulocular reflex (VOR) is represented by coefficients defining the mutual coupling between these two oscillatory systems. In the present model, the oscillator that models eye movement has an inhibitory influence on head movement; head to eye coupling coefficients are included to model the influence of the VOR mechanism. Individual eye and head movement patterns in different subjects can be adequately modeled by altering the coupling coefficients. In order to adequatcly simulate those changes introduced by microgravity conditions, the coefficients defining eye-head coordination (mutual coupling) must be changed. It may be hypothesized tlmt such changes in the neurovestibular system could introduce the instability in eye-head coordination, which is known to lead to space sickness.Whitehall Foundation (S93-24

Circulating markers of arterial thrombosis and late-stage age-related macular degeneration: a case-control study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to examine the relation of late-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD) with markers of systemic atherothrombosis. METHODS: A hospital-based case-control study of AMD was undertaken in London, UK. Cases of AMD (n=81) and controls (n=77) were group matched for age and sex. Standard protocols were used for colour fundus photography and to classify AMD; physical examination included height, weight, history of or treatment for vascular-related diseases and smoking status. Blood samples were taken for measurement of fibrinogen, factor VIIc (FVIIc), factor VIIIc, prothrombin fragment F1.2 (F1.2), tissue plasminogen activator, and von Willebrand factor. Odds ratios from logistic regression analyses of each atherothrombotic marker with AMD were adjusted for age, sex, and established cardiovascular disease risk factors, including smoking, blood pressure, body mass index, and total cholesterol. RESULTS: After adjustment FVIIc and possibly F1.2 were inversely associated with the risk of AMD; per 1 standard deviation increase in these markers the odds ratio were, respectively, 0.62 (95% confidence interval 0.40, 0.95) and 0.71 (0.46, 1.09). None of the other atherothrombotic risk factors appeared to be related to AMD status. There was weak evidence that aspirin is associated with a lower risk of AMD. CONCLUSIONS: This study does not provide strong evidence of associations between AMD and systematic markers of arterial thrombosis, but the potential effects of FVIIc, and F1.2 are worthy of further investigation

Characteristic and Correlation Between TIME and Complication After Destructive Eye Procedure Patient at Plastic and Reconstruction Division Sanglah Hospital\u27s Eye Clinic Bali-Indonesia

Destructive eye procedure can be carried out by enucleation, evisceration and excenteration. Some efforts have been developed to reduce the complications, but it still occur within several years after the operation. This research aims to find out the characteristic and correlation between time and complications in patient after destructive eye procedure at Plastic and Reconstruction Division Sanglah Hospital\u27s Eye Clinic. For addition, characteristic of other patients in plastic and reconstruction also provided. This report is an analytical cross sectional study. Data were collected retrospectively from medical report of patients with history of destructive eye procedure in Sanglah Hospital\u27s eye clinic from January 1st until December 31st 2010. Patient\u27s characteristics were presented as frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation. Correlations between variables were statistically analyzed with Correlation of Lambda. Eye trauma, anophthalmic socket and nasolacrimal duct obstruction were the most common diagnosis at plastic and reconstruction division Sanglah Hospital\u27s eye clinic. There were 17 patients with history of destructive eye procedure in this report, including 76.5% male and 23.5% female. There is 58.8% destructive eye procedure held in age 13-50 year, mean 30.75 (SD 19.81). Infection (35.3%), trauma (23.5%) and tumor (11.8%) were the most common cause of destructive eye procedure in this study. Complications of destructive eye procedure occur in 70.6% of patient with contracted socket was the most common complication (58.3%). There was medium correlation between time and complication after the procedure, but the correlation was not statistically significant (r = 0.40; p > 0.05). In conclusion, from this study we obtained that there was medium correlation between time and complication after the procedure, but the correlation was not statistically significant

Paroxysmal eye–head movements in Glut1 deficiency syndrome

Objective:To describe a characteristic paroxysmal eye–head movement disorder that occurs in infants with Glut1 deficiency syndrome (Glut1 DS).Methods:We retrospectively reviewed the medical charts of 101 patients with Glut1 DS to obtain clinical data about episodic abnormal eye movements and analyzed video recordings of 18 eye movement episodes from 10 patients.Results:A documented history of paroxysmal abnormal eye movements was found in 32/101 patients (32%), and a detailed description was available in 18 patients, presented here. Episodes started before age 6 months in 15/18 patients (83%), and preceded the onset of seizures in 10/16 patients (63%) who experienced both types of episodes. Eye movement episodes resolved, with or without treatment, by 6 years of age in 7/8 patients with documented long-term course. Episodes were brief (usually &lt;5 minutes). Video analysis revealed that the eye movements were rapid, multidirectional, and often accompanied by a head movement in the same direction. Eye movements were separated by clear intervals of fixation, usually ranging from 200 to 800 ms. The movements were consistent with eye–head gaze saccades. These movements can be distinguished from opsoclonus by the presence of a clear intermovement fixation interval and the association of a same-direction head movement.Conclusions:Paroxysmal eye–head movements, for which we suggest the term aberrant gaze saccades, are an early symptom of Glut1 DS in infancy. Recognition of the episodes will facilitate prompt diagnosis of this treatable neurodevelopmental disorder.</jats:sec