TB STIGMA – MEASUREMENT GUIDANCE

TB is the most deadly infectious disease in the world, and stigma continues to play a significant role in worsening the epidemic. Stigma and discrimination not only stop people from seeking care but also make it more difficult for those on treatment to continue, both of which make the disease more difficult to treat in the long-term and mean those infected are more likely to transmit the disease to those around them. TB Stigma – Measurement Guidance is a manual to help generate enough information about stigma issues to design and monitor and evaluate efforts to reduce TB stigma. It can help in planning TB stigma baseline measurements and monitoring trends to capture the outcomes of TB stigma reduction efforts. This manual is designed for health workers, professional or management staff, people who advocate for those with TB, and all who need to understand and respond to TB stigma

Influencers and brands successful collaborations: A mutual reinforcement to promote products and services on social media

Brands and influencers are increasingly collaborating in the development of marketing campaigns. This work analyses to what extent the collaboration of influencers with renowned brands affects the effectiveness of the message and the influencer’s own reputation. The results of an experiment with more than four hundred Spanish consumers indicated that renowned brand-influencer collaborations, in comparison to non-renowned brand-influencer collaborations, enhanced consumers’ attitude towards the message, their purchase intentions and the perceived credibility of the influencer. Furthermore, positive attitude towards the message and intention to search for information are greater for services offered by renowned brands than for their products. This study contributes by bridging a gap in the literature and raises interesting implications for brand managers and their decisions to collaborate with influencers on social media

Siblings Influence on Young Adults\u27 Development: A Three-Study Dissertation

As the longest lasting close relationship, often extending from birth until death, sibling relationships play an important role throughout the life course. To date, however, only limited work has examined the process by which siblings influence each other during young adulthood. Given that developmental differences between older and younger siblings diminish in young adulthood, it is possible that bidirectional (older-to-younger as well as younger-to-older) are more likely as compared to adolescence (in which top-down or older-to-younger influence has primarily been explored). It is further possible that processes of observational learning, including modeling, and sibling differentiation continue into young adulthood, shaping sibling similarities and differences as well as young adults’ overall well-being. This three-study dissertation addressed these possibilities using extant data from three different studies. First, Study 1 examined the potential for bidirectional sibling influence on young adults’ binge drinking, marijuana use, risky sexual behaviors, and volunteering behaviors. Further, this study examined the degree to which sibling closeness exacerbated sibling similarities across these various domains. Next, Study 2 examined whether sibling relationship qualities (i.e., intimacy and conflict) mediated the longitudinal association between sibling differentiation and young adults’ well-being. Finally, Study 3 simultaneously examined whether and how domain specific sibling modeling and differentiation shaped sibling similarities and differences in young adults’ educational attainment, work prestige, and romantic relationship qualities. Across the three studies, findings suggested that through different processes, siblings continue to influence each other during young adulthood. Overall, evidence for bidirectional sibling influence emerged in domains in which development was ongoing for both older and younger siblings during young adulthood (e.g., risky sexual behaviors, romantic relationships); however, evidence for top-down (or older-to-younger) socialization was more persistent across risky behavior domains. Across Studies 1 and 3, results did not support hypotheses that sibling modeling would promote greater similarities between young adult siblings. Study 2, in contrast, provided evidence that sibling differentiation longitudinally and indirectly shaped young adults’ well-being through their sibling relationship qualities, albeit in a direction inconsistent with theoretical propositions. Discussion focuses on the themes found across the studies and outlines future directions for research with siblings during young adulthood

Corporate Governance and Disclosure of Information on Corporate Social Responsibility: An Analysis of the Top 200 Universities in the Shanghai Ranking

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and its disclosure in the university environment is a topic of current relevance, as it makes the entities’ commitments visible and provides indicators that enable them to improve the institution management and communication with stakeholders. The goal of this study is to determine to what extent the structure and mechanisms for governance and the demands of stakeholders influence policy for disclosing CSR information, both in general (more related to a strategic perspective) and specifically (more focused on specific social, environmental, economic, and educational issues). The results of our analysis of a sample of the top 200 universities in the Shanghai Ranking show no association of the profile and gender of the university’s rector and frequency of board meetings with CSR disclosure policy, but leadership team, the size of governance board, committees in the governance board and stakeholder participation are factors determining disclosure of information on matters of CSR. The results show that proximity to the day-to-day, diversification of functions, and communication with interest groups are crucial to transparency and disclosure of CSR information.This research was funded by R&D PROJECTS. EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND (ERDF) ANDALUSIA 2014-2020 OPERATIONAL PROGRAM, grant number B1-SEJ-387-UGR1

Determinants of consumers' perceived trust in IT-ecosystems

Digital ecosystems, or IT-ecosystems (ITEs), are composed of multiple and independent entities such as individuals, organizations, services, software, and applications. Together, these elements create a number of new independent systems that operate and communicate with their own infrastructure (man to machine; machine to machine; person to person), sharing one or several missions. A better understanding of how ITEs and their interconnected components create benefits and added value for different types of consumers is of particular importance to the establishment of digital environments and to managing their resources. Considering different components of perceived trust in ITEs, we rely in this paper on a multi-dimensional framework of trust effects that includes system-centric as well as user-centric determinants of trust. Based on our conceptual model, we develop two sets of propositions. The first ones address technological drivers of trust in ITEs, whereas the second set of propositions considers individual as well as social drivers of trust. The model and propositions are discussed with reference to preliminary empirical results as well as to future research steps and business implications

CEO dominance risk in the healthcare SOE: the case of Portugal

The aim of this research is to evaluate the “CEO dominance risk” in the Healthcare sector in Portugal among the institutions belonging to the state – the state-owned enterprises (SOEs). There is no abundant research on Corporate Governance (CG) related to SOEs. One of the reasons is that usually there are very few SOEs by industry, sometimes even just one (v.g. PostOffice, Railroad). To study these entities between several countries, one has to isolate the regulatory, legal, cultural and general business environment factors that are peculiar to each situation. In the Healthcare sector, each country despite being more or less social concerned, will always have a considerable number of public Hospitals. Due to the impact of New Public Management theories that spread all over the world, some of the public Hospitals transformed into corporation form, constituting SOEs. Hospital management has been considered a very complex one due to the clashes between professional values and culture and the hard realities of economic performance and cash constraints. In this environment, clinical professionals may become managers thus constituting a hybrid executive balancing these conflicting demands and not having the formal authority of a typical command and control organization. Previous researchers found that the average performance of firms is not affected by CEO dominance – the possibility to exercise their will despite or removing dissenting. However, they noted that the range of performance was wider when CEO dominance was present. Excellent and poor results would occur more often. In the public sector dominated by the balance of procedures and outcomes, there is a tendency to risk avoidance, thus considering CEO dominance a risk. This research was based in previous models and questionnaires, but adapted to the particular conditions of SOEs and legal framework in Portugal during the analysis period (2011-2015). A practical power index model was developed, and the results demonstrated that some Hospital CEO´s may have a dominant position but also exposes some underpowered situations. Regarding the motivation for Physicians to become CEOs and how they are perceived by their peers, the research confirmed the five groups expected and highlighted that on one side the most senior professionals are supported by their peers, and the younger ones are regarded as not having the required expertise.O objetivo deste estudo é avaliar a existência de “risco de dominância do CEO” (PCA) no setor público empresarial da saúde em Portugal. A investigação científica sobre a Governança Corporativa relacionada com o setor público empresarial não é abundante. Uma das razões deve-se a que normalmente existem poucas empresas públicas por setor de atividade, frequentemente apenas uma (v.g. Correios, Caminhosde-ferro). Para estudar estas entidades em vários países, há que isolar os aspetos regulatórios, legais, culturais e o ambiente de negócios em geral, que são peculiares a cada situação. No setor da Saúde pelo contrário, cada país, tenha maiores ou menores preocupações sociais, possui sempre um conjunto considerável de Hospitais públicos. Um dos impactes das teorias do New Public Management que se espalharam em todo o mundo, foi o da transformação de alguns destes Hospitais em estruturas empresariais, constituindo um setor público empresarial da saúde. A gestão de um hospital tem sido considerada uma das mais complexas devido ao confronto entre os valores e cultura dos profissionais clínicos e as duras realidades dos resultados económicos ou das restrições de tesouraria. Neste ambiente os profissionais clínicos poderão assumir papéis de gestores, tornando-se executivos híbridos que têm de balancear solicitações conflituantes e não têm a autoridade formal típica das organizações reguladas por comando e controlo. Estudos anteriores demonstraram que a média dos resultados das empresas não era afetada pela dominância do CEO – a possibilidade de exercer a sua vontade apesar de ou removendo as opiniões contrárias. Contudo, esses estudos assinalaram que a dispersão dos valores era maior quando em presença de dominância do CEO. Resultados excelentes ou muito fracos ocorriam frequentemente. Como o setor público é dominado pelo equilíbrio entre o procedimento e o resultado, existe uma tendência para evitar riscos, donde podemos considerar que no setor público dominância do CEO é um risco. Este estudo foi baseado em modelos e questionários anteriormente utilizados por investigadores internacionais, mas adaptados às condições do setor público e restrições legais em Portugal durante o período de análise (2011-2015). Um modelo prático de índice de poder foi desenvolvido e os resultados demonstram que em alguns hospitais existe o risco de dominância do CEO, mas também evidenciaram situações de falta de poder dos mesmos. Em relação às motivações dos Médicos para exercerem o cargo de CEO e como são avaliados pelos seus pares, este estudo confirmou os cinco grupos esperados, realçando que os mais seniores têm o apoio dos seus pares e que os mais jovens são percecionados como não tendo a necessária competênci

Effectiveness of an Empathic Chatbot in Combating Adverse Effects of Social Exclusion on Mood

From past research it is well known that social exclusion has detrimental consequences for mental health. To deal with these adverse effects, socially excluded individuals frequently turn to other humans for emotional support. While chatbots can elicit social and emotional responses on the part of the human interlocutor, their effectiveness in the context of social exclusion has not been investigated. In the present study, we examined whether an empathic chatbot can serve as a buffer against the adverse effects of social ostracism. After experiencing exclusion on social media, participants were randomly assigned to either talk with an empathetic chatbot about it (e.g., “I’m sorry that this happened to you”) or a control condition where their responses were merely acknowledged (e.g., “Thank you for your feedback”). Replicating previous research, results revealed that experiences of social exclusion dampened the mood of participants. Interacting with an empathetic chatbot, however, appeared to have a mitigating impact. In particular, participants in the chatbot intervention condition reported higher mood than those in the control condition. Theoretical, methodological, and practical implications, as well as directions for future research are discussed

Public perception of campus security issues at institutions of higher education in United States

Campus safety issues have become a growing epidemic in United States. Several factors for instance active shooter incidents across United States may have created a negative correlation between parental/public perception and campus safety. Social amplification or attenuation of risk (SAAR), the theoretical framework for this research study, may play an influential role in swaying public opinion about campus safety and institutional selection process. This dissertation utilized the SPELIT Power Matrix needs assessment model, SAAR theoretical framework, and servant leadership model to determine which sources of information and what factors are influential in the decision-making process for selecting an IHE. This study used social media to reach out to millions of people anonymously to seek individual opinions and collect data to further analyze which factors and influences can affect decision making outcomes. The researcher offers one potential researched-based solution, the security awareness foundation etiquette (SAFE) card, which can guide college bound prospective students elevate their awareness and make more informed decisions. The researcher used Wilcoxon matched pairs tests to compare the mean score of college decision factors to determine which college decision factors were most significant. The following college decisions factors were significant sorted by highest mean score: campus safety (M = 4.43), Major (M = 4.41), program (M = 4.39), and cost (M = 4.27). The following information sources were significant, sorted by highest mean score: campus visit (M = 4.33), opinion of graduates (M =3.92), ratings given by impartial organizations such as US News and World Report (M = 3.68), and counselor recommendation (M = 3.54). When college decision factors and information sources were compared, a significant relationship was discovered between social media as an information source and campus safety as a college decision factor, with a correlation coefficient of r = .29. IHEs generally avoid displaying campus safety issues or negative news, therefore most and perhaps not all IHEs appear to have a safe campus. The theoretical framework for this study suggests that by omitting such facts as campus safety, social attenuation of risk may be affecting college bound prospective students’ and respective parents’ decision-making outcomes