Do Givers Really Gain? A study of relationship benefits and sacrifices in BNI a referral network organisation

The purpose of this study is to explore how relationship benefits and sacrifices matter in relation to members of referral networks and how these aspects affect overall member satisfaction. This study has an explanatory research approach since it aims to, by testing hypotheses; explain the impact relationship benefits and sacrifices have on satisfaction. It is based on both qualitative and quantitative data, where the qualitative material acts as preparation for the quantitative data collection in order to structure reliable and relevant hypothesis and survey questions. The study is based on previous existing literature and theories on relationship marketing as well as referral networking. Relationship benefits and sacrifices have also been studies as well as the Relationship Profitability Model. The study builds upon a case study about BNI- Business Network International, in Sweden and Denmark. The study has three explorative parts; firstly face-to-face interviews were performed in order to develop relevant hypotheses. Surveys were conducted based on the qualitative data as well as on previous research with the purpose to identify the referral network member’s opinions on relationship benefits and sacrifices. Observations during the BNI meetings further assisted in understanding the structure of BNI. Results show that all benefits (functional, social and psychological) have an impact on the BNI members’ overall CSI (Customer Satisfaction Index) and all benefits have a positive correlation with the members CSI. All sacrifices except one have an impact on BNI members’ CSI. Functional benefits have the greatest impact on members overall satisfaction, both when analyzing the aspects individually and in totality. ‘Business opportunities’ is the benefit that impact member CSI the most. Psychological benefits have in totality the second highest impact on members overall satisfaction, where ‘trust’ is the benefit which has the highest impact among these. This leaves social benefits with the least impact on members overall satisfaction. Functional benefits are also considered most important to the BNI members. This study contributes to the relationship marketing field since it applies mentioned previous theories regarding B2C and B2B to a relationship network context where power is more equal than in a buyer-seller relationship. The theoretical contribution of this study is therefore that referral marketing is studied in a network context as well as at member level. In summary this study contributes to an overall understanding of impact and importance of relationship benefits and sacrifices in a referral network

Dispersal of young-of-the-year brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) from spawning beds

Stocking of brown trout eggs Salmo trutta L. and construction of spawning beds are common measures in habitat restored streams. However, knowledge about how young-ofthe-year (YOY) trout disperse from stocking points and spawning beds, and how it relates to biotic and abiotic factors, are sparse. This study was conducted to explore dispersal differences among families, if dispersal is restricted to a limited area, if habitat characteristics have an impact on the dispersal, and if trout managers have to take YOY trout dispersal into account for successful restoration. Dispersal of YOY trout was investigated at the end of the first growing season in a stream in northern Sweden where the former trout population had been depleted. Trout eggs from eight families were stocked in three stocking points in March 2015. In August and September 2015 the trout were located by the means of electrofishing. Body length was measured and tissue samples were collected from the anal-fin. A DNA analysis using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers was conducted to confirm origin of the individuals. More individuals were dispersed downstream than upstream and the majority of the individuals stayed within a distance of 200 m from the stocking point. Body length and dispersal direction did not have any effect on the distance dispersed. Only one of the families showed a different dispersal pattern than the others, individuals did not stay in the direct vicinity of the stocking point and were aggregated further downstream than other families. Habitat characteristics were found to have an impact on the number of trout located at specific stream sections and on the dispersal distance. These findings can make restoration projects more successful as they facilitate trout managers to find strategic egg stocking points.Vid habitatrestaurering av vattendrag är återskapande av lekbottnar och utsättning av öringsrom Salmo trutta L. vanliga åtgärder. Dock är kunskapen om hur årsöringar sprider sig från lekbottnar och utsättningspunkter, och hur det kan relateras till biotiska och abiotiska faktorer, begränsad. Denna studie har utförts för att undersöka spridningsskillnader mellan familjer av öring, om spridning är begränsad till ett specifikt område, om habitat har en påverkan på spridning och om hänsyn bör tas till årsöringars spridningsmönster i restaureringsprojekt. Årsöringarnas spridning undersöktes i slutet av första tillväxtsäsongen i ett vattendrag i norra Sverige som inte hade någon befintlig öringspopulation. I mars 2015 sattes rom från åtta familjer ut i tre olika utsättningspunkter. Under elfisken i augusti och september 2015 mättes öringarnas kroppslängd och vävnadsprover togs från analfenan. En DNA analys utfördes med hjälp av Single Nucleotide Polymorphism(SNP)- markörer för att fastställa vilka familjer individerna tillhörde. Fler individer spred sig nedströms än uppströms. Majoriteten av alla individer spred sig inte längre än 200 m från utsättningspunkten. Kroppslängd och spridningsriktning visade sig inte ha någon effekt på spridningsavståndet. En av familjerna uppvisade ett avvikande spridningsmönster i jämförelse med de andra familjerna, individerna stannande inte i utsättningspunktens direkta närhet och de var aggregerade längre nedströms än de andra familjerna. De undersökta habitatvariablerna visade sig ha en påverkan på antalet öringar i habitatet och spridningsavståndet. Resultatet av denna studie kan underlätta vid restaureringsarbeten genom att fungera som underlag för lämplig placering av romutsättningspunkter

Släpp tyglarna och ta kontrollen - en studie om mjuka värdens betydelse inom ledarskap

Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att diskutera betydelsen av mjuka värden inom ledarskap. Jag diskuterar detta genom följande frågeställning: Hur kan samspel med en häst utveckla ledares och chefers känslomässiga skicklighet och mellanmänskliga relationer? Problemformulering: Det svenska samhället speglar idag ledare och chefer som främst tänker logiskt och strukturerar effektivt. Länge har företag som har sökt efter nya lämpliga chefs- och ledarkandidater tittat på komponenter som att kandidaten har ett högt IQ, en logisk, analytisk och ekonomisk skicklighet. När valet har stått mellan en mer rationellt tänkande person och en mer känslomässigt utrustad person har jobbet nästan alltid tillfallit den förstnämnda. Ledarens IQ och tekniska färdigheter är nödvändiga men för att bli en fulländad ledare behöver han utveckla sin känslomässiga kompetens menar en del forskare. Fokus på mjuka värden som relationer, engagemang, värderingar, känslor har ökat inom ledarskapsdiskursen de senaste åren men det är fortfarande sparsamt representerat inom den vetenskapliga litteraturen. Metod: Kvalitativ metod i form av deltagande observationer och intervjuer med chefer och ledare som tränar sitt ledarskap med hjälp av häst som verktyg. En kvalitativ forskning har utförts då jag anser att det valda forskningsområdet kräver djupa svar och observationsbeskrivningar för att ge en rättvisande bild. Resultat: När chefern och ledarna förstår sig själv och kan hantera sina känslor är de redo att möta sina medarbetare, leda och hantera dem så att en relation kan utvecklas. Relationen byggs upp med hjälp av en ömsesidig respekt, ärlig kommunikation och ett samarbete där alla får vara med och påverka

Does cold and wet weather at hatching affect the survival of capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus L.) chicks in Sweden?

Tjäderpopulationen Tetrao urogallus L. har under det senaste årtiondet minskat i täthet i stora delar av sitt utbredningsområde. Det är därför viktigt att undersöka faktorerna som kan påverka tjäderns fortplantning och överlevnad. Det råder delade meningar kring den främsta orsaken till nedgången. De flesta är eniga om att klimatet har en påverkan, men samspel mellan olika faktorer och lokala förhållanden är oftast avgörande för hur stor denna påverkan blir. Syftet med vår undersökning var att testa hypotesen rörande att låga temperaturer i samband med nederbörd leder till en högre mortalitet hos tjäderkycklingar perioden efter kläckning. Vi var intresserade av att se om denna hypotes stämmer, samt att se om effekten i så fall var gemensam för alla län i Sverige. Resultatet har framställts genom att analysera länsvis avskjutningsstatistik erhållet från Svenska Jägareförbundet samt dygnsvärden av medeltemperatur och nederbördssummor från SMHI. Dataunderlaget var väl fördelat över landet från åren 1960 - 2012. För att se effekten av vädrets påverkan på de unga kycklingarna har vi valt att undersöka perioden 1 - 30 juni då största delen av kläckningen sker inom detta tidsintervall. Vår studie stödjer inte hypotesen om att låga temperaturer i samband med nederbörd leder till en högre mortalitet hos tjäderkycklingarna just efter kläckning i Sverige. Länen uppvisar dock en viss skillnad sinsemellan. Resultatet är pålitligt då ingen signifikans hittades i 15 av 16 län. Andra faktorer så som predation kan tänkas spela en viktig roll när det gäller populationsstorleken hos tjäder.The capercaillie Tetrao urogallus L population has decreased in many parts of its range over the past decade. That is why it is important to study the factors that may influence capercaillie reproduction and survival. There are different opinions about the main reason for the decline. Most agree that the climate has an influence, but the interplay between various factors and local conditions is often critical to how great this impact will be. The aim of our study was to test the hypothesis concerning how low temperatures associated with precipitation leads to a higher mortality in capercaillie chicks the period after hatching. We were interested to see if this hypothesis is valid in Sweden, and to see if the effect was the same for all counties. The results have been obtained by analyzing shooting statistics from each county obtained from the Swedish Hunters Association and the daily values of average temperature and rainfall distributed across the country over the years of 1960 - 2012. To see the effect of the weather's impact on the chickens we have chosen to examine the period from June 1 to June 30 which is the time period when most of the hatching occurs. Our analysis does not support the hypothesis that the precipitation and cold temperatures has an effect on the population size of capercaillie in Sweden. The counties, however, shows a slight difference between them. The result is reliable as no significance was found in 15 of 16 counties. Other factors such as predation may play an important role in the population size of capercaillie

Organizational approaches to collaboration in vocational rehabilitation—an international literature review

<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Collaboration between welfare organizations is an important strategy for integrating different health and welfare services. This article reports a review of the international literature on vocational rehabilitation, focusing on different organizational models of collaboration as well as different barriers and facilitating factors.</p><p> <strong>Methods: </strong>The review was based on an extensive search in scientific journals from 1995 to 2010, which generated more than 13 000 articles. The number of articles was reduced in different steps through a group procedure based on the abstracts. Finally, 205 articles were read in full text and 62 were included for content analysis. <strong></strong></p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Seven basic models of collaboration were identified in the literature. They had different degrees of complexity, intensity and formalization. They could also be combined in different ways.  Several barriers and facilitators of collaboration were also identified. Most of these were related to factors as communication, trust and commitment.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>There is<strong> </strong>no optimal model of collaboration to be applied everywhere, but one model could be more appropriate than others in a certain context. More research is needed to compare different models and to see whether they are applicable also in other fields of collaboration inside or outside the welfare system.</p

Dispersal of brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) fry in a low gradient stream - implications for egg stocking practices

Stocking of eggs is a common strategy to support declining or reintroduce extirpated salmonid populations. Data on how juveniles disperse from stocking points is crucial to be able to design efficient stocking programs. Detailed information of dispersal is limited for many salmonids, for example, brown trout. In this study, dispersal distance was measured at the end of the first growing season in a low gradient (0.7%) stream in Sweden where the trout population had been depleted. Eggs from 17 separate sets of parents were stocked as eyed eggs in March. During the following fall fry were sampled throughout the stream. The majority of the fry dispersed downstream and remained within a distance of 200 m from the stocking point with no difference between sizes of fry and the presence of a competing cohort or not. There was no dissimilarity in dispersal distances across offspring originating from different parents indicating absence of genetic influence. Our results suggest that, in streams similar to our study site, stocking points should be separated by approximately 330 m in order to avoid overlap in habitat use of fry from different stocking points and that the presence of competing cohorts, fry size and within population variability in dispersal can be neglected

Intrapartum zigzag pattern of fetal heart rate is an early sign of fetal hypoxia : A large obstetric retrospective cohort study

Introduction The aim of the present study was to identify possible associations of fetal heart rate (FHR) patterns during the last 2 hours of labor with fetal asphyxia expressed by umbilical artery acidemia at birth and with neonatal complications in a large obstetric cohort. Material and methods Cardiotocographic recordings from 4988 singleton term childbirths over 1 year were evaluated retrospectively and blinded to the pregnancy and neonatal outcomes in a university teaching hospital in Helsinki, Finland. Umbilical artery pH, base excess and pO(2), low Apgar scores at 5 minutes, need for intubation and resuscitation, early neonatal hypoglycemia, and neonatal encephalopathy were used as outcome variables. According to the severity of the neonatal complications at birth, the cohort was divided into three groups: no complications (Group 1), moderate complications (Group 2) and severe complications (Group 3). Results Of the 4988 deliveries, the ZigZag pattern (FHR baseline amplitude changes of >25 bpm with a duration of 2-30 minutes) occurred in 11.7%, late decelerations in 41.0%, bradycardia episodes in 52.9%, reduced variability in 36.7%, tachycardia episodes in 13.9% and uterine tachysystole in 4.6%. No case of saltatory pattern (baseline amplitude changes of >25 bpm with a duration of >30 minutes) was observed. The presence of the ZigZag pattern or late decelerations, or both, was associated with cord blood acidemia (odds ratio [OR] 3.3, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.3-4.7) and severe neonatal complications (Group 3) (OR 3.3, 95% CI 2.4-4.9). In contrast, no significant associations existed between the other FHR patterns and severe neonatal complications. ZigZag pattern preceded late decelerations in 88.7% of the cases. A normal FHR preceded the ZigZag pattern in 90.4% of the cases, whereas after ZigZag episodes, a normal FHR pattern was observed in only 0.9%. Conclusions ZigZag pattern and late decelerations during the last 2 hours of labor are significantly associated with cord blood acidemia at birth and neonatal complications. The ZigZag pattern precedes late decelerations, and the fact that normal FHR pattern precedes the ZigZag pattern in the majority of the cases suggests that the ZigZag pattern is an early sign of fetal hypoxia, which emphasizes its clinical importance.Peer reviewe

Intrapartal cardiotocographic patterns and hypoxia-related perinatal outcomes in pregnancies complicated by gestational diabetes mellitus

Aims In previous reports, cardiotocographic (CTG) fetal heart rate (FHR) monitoring has shown only limited benefits in decreasing adverse perinatal outcomes in pregnancies complicated by gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether an association exists between the recently reported ZigZag pattern (FHR baseline amplitude changes of > 25 bpm with a duration of 2-30 min) and asphyxia-related neonatal outcomes in GDM pregnancies. Methods Intrapartal CTGs were recorded in a one-year cohort of 5150 singleton childbirths. The following CTG changes were evaluated: ZigZag pattern, saltatory pattern, late decelerations, episodes of tachycardia and bradycardia, reduced variability, and uterine tachysystole. The cohort was divided into three groups: women with GDM, women with normal oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and women with no OGTT performed. Umbilical artery (UA) blood gases, Apgar scores, neonatal respiratory distress, and neonatal encephalopathy were used as outcome variables. Results GDM was diagnosed in 624 (12.1%), OGTT was normal in 4115 (79.9%), and OGTT was not performed in 411 (8.0%) women. Hypoxia-related ZigZag patterns (OR 1.94, 95% CI 1.64-2.34) and late decelerations (OR 1.65, 95% CI 1.27-2.13) of FHR, as well as a greater risk of fetal asphyxia (UA pH < 7.10 and/or UA BE < -12.0 meq/L and/or Apgar scores < 7 at 5-min) (OR 6.64, 95% CI 1.84-12.03) were observed in those with GDM compared with those without GDM. Conclusions GDM is associated with intrapartal ZigZag pattern and late decelerations, cord blood acidemia and low 5-min Apgar scores at birth indicating increased occurrence of fetal hypoxia in GDM pregnancies.Peer reviewe

Seasonal alterations in circadian melatonin rhythms of the European wild boar and domestic gilt,

Peer reviewe