Wahrgenommene Qualität im Kontext von modischen Aspekten, Preisleistung und Service als Determinante des Kundenurteils im Textilversandhandel: Empirische Befunde zur Entwicklung eines integrativen Skalensystems

Based on the influential works on quality by Garvin (1984) we postulate, additional to perceived quality, the existence of aesthetical as well as serviceability aspects which are both to be considered as independent determinants of customers' overall judgement on a supplier. Additionally, due to its consistent connection to quality ratings (cf. Rao & Monroe, 1989), price has to be taken into account. Mail-order fashion retail was chosen as an area of study on account of the importance of aesthetic quality in its products(Abraham-Murali & Littrell, 1995) and because serviceability is considered an essential determinant of its success (Klassen & Glynn, 1992). Based on previous work, short scales for the measurement of the relevant constructs are derived and tested on a sample of customers using mail-order services (N = 1901). For price-performance ratio, one single item is used. The reliabilities of the scales measuring perceived quality (Alpha = .83), aesthetics (sportiness: Alpha = .67, elegance: Alpha = .58), serviceability (Alpha = .81) and the overall rating of the supplier (Alpha = .77) are promising but some are still in need of improvement. Altogether, these predictors explain 47% of the variance of customers' total judgement in a multiple regression. All of our predictors reach significance (p < .005): Perceived quality (Beta = .46), sportiness (Beta = .12), elegance (Beta = .08), serviceability (Beta = .14) and price-performance ratio (Beta = 16). There are no problematic collinearities. Differential regression weights for perceived quality and sportiness for people under and above 50 years indicate the scales' content validity. In conclusion, the results suggest an overall successful operationalization and substantiate the important and independent contribution of several quality subdimensions explaining customers' total judgement on a supplier.Aufbauend auf den einflussreichen Arbeiten von Garvin (1984) zur Qualität wird postuliert, dass neben der wahrgenommenen Qualität(perceived quality) auch ein ästhetischer (aesthetics) sowie ein serviceorientierter (serviceability) Qualitätsaspekt existieren, die als eigenständige Determinanten der Gesamtbewertung eines Warenanbieters durch den Kunden anzusehen sind. Der Preis ist dabei aufgrund seiner konsistenten Verbindung zur Qualitätseinschätzung (vgl. Rao & Monroe, 1989) ebenfalls zu berücksichtigen. Zur Untersuchung des Einflusses der Qualitätsdimensionen auf das Konsumentenurteil wird der Modeversandhandel gewählt, da hier für die Produkte die ästhetische Qualitätsdimension stark ausgeprägt ist (Abraham-Murali & Littrell, 1995) und der Service als eine wesentliche Erfolgsdeterminante angesehen wird (Klassen & Glynn, 1992). Aufbauend auf bisherigen Forschungsarbeiten werden kurze Skalen für die relevanten Konstrukte abgeleitet und an einer Stichprobe von Versandhandelskäufern (N = 1901) getestet. Für Preisleistung wird ein Einzelitem verwendet. Die Messgenauigkeiten der Skalen für wahrgenommene Qualität (Alpha = .83), ästhetische Aspekte (Sportlichkeit: Alpha = .67; Eleganz: Alpha = .58), Service (Alpha = .81) und Gesamtbewertung des Anbieters (Alpha = .77) erweisen sich als vielversprechend aber teilweise noch als verbesserungsbedürftig. Insgesamt können in einer multiplen Regression 47% der Varianz im Gesamturteil des Kunden durch die Prädiktoren vorhergesagt werden, die alle Signifikanz (p < .005) erreichen: Wahrgenommene Qualität (Beta = .46), Sportlichkeit (Beta = .12), Eleganz (Beta = .08), Service (Beta = .14), Preisleistung (Beta = .16). Es treten keine problematischen Kollinearitäten auf. Differentielle Regressionsgewichte für wahrgenommene Qualität und Sportlichkeit für Personen unter und über 50 Jahren sprechen für die Inhaltsvalidität der Skalen. Die Befunde deuten auf eine insgesamt gelungene Operationalisierung hin und untermauern den bedeutsamen und eigenständigen Erklärungsbeitrag verschiedener Qualitätssubdimensionen für die Gesamtbewertung eines Warenanbieters durch seine Kunden

VISIONS:the VISTA Star Formation Atlas I. Survey overview

VISIONS is an ESO public survey of five nearby (d &lt; 500 pc) star-forming molecular cloud complexes that are canonically associated with the constellations of Chamaeleon, Corona Australis, Lupus, Ophiuchus, and Orion. The survey was carried out with the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope for Astronomy (VISTA), using the VISTA Infrared Camera (VIRCAM), and collected data in the near-infrared passbands J (1.25 μm), H (1.65 μm), and KS (2.15 μm). With a total on-sky exposure time of 49.4h VISIONS covers an area of 650 deg2, it is designed to build an infrared legacy archive with a structure and content similar to the Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) for the screened star-forming regions. Taking place between April 2017 and March 2022, the observations yielded approximately 1.15 million images, which comprise 19 TB of raw data. The observations undertaken within the survey are grouped into three different subsurveys. First, the wide subsurvey comprises shallow, large-scale observations and it has revisited the star-forming complexes six times over the course of its execution. Second, the deep subsurvey of dedicated high-sensitivity observations has collected data on areas with the largest amounts of dust extinction. Third, the control subsurvey includes observations of areas of low-to-negligible dust extinction. Using this strategy, the VISIONS observation program offers multi-epoch position measurements, with the ability to access deeply embedded objects, and it provides a baseline for statistical comparisons and sample completeness – all at the same time. In particular, VISIONS is designed to measure the proper motions of point sources, with a precision of 1 mas yr−1 or better, when complemented with data from the VISTA Hemisphere Survey (VHS). In this way, VISIONS can provide proper motions of complete ensembles of embedded and low-mass objects, including sources inaccessible to the optical ESA Gaia mission. VISIONS will enable the community to address a variety of research topics from a more informed perspective, including the 3D distribution and motion of embedded stars and the nearby interstellar medium, the identification and characterization of young stellar objects, the formation and evolution of embedded stellar clusters and their initial mass function, as well as the characteristics of interstellar dust and the reddening law

VISIONS: The VISTA Star Formation Atlas -- I. Survey overview

© The Authors 2023. Open Access article, published by EDP Sciences, under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0).VISIONS is an ESO public survey of five nearby (d < 500 pc) star-forming molecular cloud complexes that are canonically associated with the constellations of Chamaeleon, Corona Australis, Lupus, Ophiuchus, and Orion. The survey was carried out with VISTA, using VIRCAM, and collected data in the near-infrared passbands J, H, and Ks. With a total on-sky exposure time of 49.4 h VISIONS covers an area of 650 deg$^2$, and it was designed to build an infrared legacy archive similar to that of 2MASS. Taking place between April 2017 and March 2022, the observations yielded approximately 1.15 million images, which comprise 19 TB of raw data. The observations are grouped into three different subsurveys: The wide subsurvey comprises shallow, large-scale observations and has visited the star-forming complexes six times over the course of its execution. The deep subsurvey of dedicated high-sensitivity observations has collected data on the areas with the largest amounts of dust extinction. The control subsurvey includes observations of areas of low-to-negligible dust extinction. Using this strategy, the VISIONS survey offers multi-epoch position measurements, is able to access deeply embedded objects, and provides a baseline for statistical comparisons and sample completeness. In particular, VISIONS is designed to measure the proper motions of point sources with a precision of 1 mas/yr or better, when complemented with data from VHS. Hence, VISIONS can provide proper motions for sources inaccessible to Gaia. VISIONS will enable addressing a range of topics, including the 3D distribution and motion of embedded stars and the nearby interstellar medium, the identification and characterization of young stellar objects, the formation and evolution of embedded stellar clusters and their initial mass function, as well as the characteristics of interstellar dust and the reddening law.Peer reviewe

A Role for All-Trans-Retinoic Acid in the Early Steps of Lymphatic Vasculature Development

The molecular mechanisms that regulate the earliest steps of lymphatic vascular system development are unknown. To identify regulators of lymphatic competence and commitment, we used an in vitro vascular assay with mouse embryonic stem cell-derived embryoid bodies (EBs). We found that incubation with retinoic acid (RA) and, more potently, with RA in combination with cAMP, induced the expression of the lymphatic competence marker LYVE-1 in the vascular structures of the EBs. This effect was dependent on RA receptor (RAR)-α and protein kinase A signaling. RA-cAMP incubation also promoted the development of CD31+/LYVE-1+/Prox1+ cell clusters. In situ studies revealed that RAR-α is expressed by endothelial cells of the cardinal vein in ED 9.5–11.5 mouse embryos. Timed exposure of mouse and Xenopus embryos to excess of RA upregulated LYVE-1 and VEGFR-3 on embryonic veins and increased formation of Prox1-positive lymphatic progenitors. These findings indicate that RA signaling mediates the earliest steps of lymphatic vasculature development

Partial Depolymerization and Solubilization of Poly[(R)-3-hydroxybutanoate] (PHB) and Its Copolymer with (R)-3-Hydroxyvalerate (BIOPOL®) by Treatment with Li-Amides/LiCI in Tetrahydrofuran at Low Temperature

The biopolymers PHB and PHB/PHV (mol. weight > 7·105 g·mol?1) from fermentations of certain lot numbers or PHB samples which had previously been precipitated from dichloroethane solution can be dissolved by treatment with excess lithium-di-isopropylamide in LiCl-containing tetrahydrofuran. The samples recovered from these solutions in good yields have molecular weights of 1000–5000 g·mol?1

Situation assessment as an ignored factor in the behavioral consistency paradigm underlying the validity of personnel selection procedures

This study contributes to the literature on why selection procedures that are based on the behavioral consistency logic (e.g., structured interviews and assessment centers) are valid predictors of job performance. We rely on interactionist theories to propose that individual differences in assessing situational demands explain true variance in performance in selection procedures and on the job. Results from 124 individuals in a simulated selection process showed that the assessment of situational demands was related to both selection and job performance. Individual differences in assessing situational demands also contributed to the criterion-related validity of assessment center and structured interview ratings, offering a complementary explanation as to why selection procedures based on the notion of behavioral consistency predict job performance

The FGFRL1 receptor is shed from cell membranes, binds fibroblast growth factors (FGFs), and antagonizes FGF signaling in Xenopus embryos

FGFRL1 (fibroblast growth factor receptor like 1) is the fifth and most recently discovered member of the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) family. With up to 50% amino acid similarity, its extracellular domain closely resembles that of the four conventional FGFRs. Its intracellular domain, however, lacks the split tyrosine kinase domain needed for FGF-mediated signal transduction. During embryogenesis of the mouse, FGFRL1 is essential for the development of parts of the skeleton, the diaphragm muscle, the heart, and the metanephric kidney. Since its discovery, it has been hypothesized that FGFRL1 might act as a decoy receptor for FGF ligands. Here we present several lines of evidence that support this notion. We demonstrate that the FGFRL1 ectodomain is shed from the cell membrane of differentiating C2C12 myoblasts and from HEK293 cells by an as yet unidentified protease, which cuts the receptor in the membrane-proximal region. As determined by ligand dot blot analysis, cell-based binding assays, and surface plasmon resonance analysis, the soluble FGFRL1 ectodomain as well as the membrane-bound receptor are capable of binding to some FGF ligands with high affinity, including FGF2, FGF3, FGF4, FGF8, FGF10, and FGF22. We furthermore show that ectopic expression of FGFRL1 in Xenopus embryos antagonizes FGFR signaling during early development. Taken together, our data provide strong evidence that FGFRL1 is indeed a decoy receptor for FGFs

Towards harmonized assessment of European forest availability for wood supply in Europe

The supply of wood in Europe on a sustainable basis is highly relevant for forestry and related policies, particularly in relation to (i) analysing global change mitigation strategies and carbon accounting (ii) establishing realistic forecasts and targets for wood resources, biomass and renewable energy and (iii) assessing and supporting strategies for an increased use of wood. Therefore, it is relevant to have robust information of the availability for wood supply. The main aim of this paper is to harmonize the concept of ‘forest available for wood supply’ (FAWS) at European level. The data employed in this study was acquired through two questionnaires. The first questionnaire, conducted under the framework of COST Action FP1001 and a second questionnaire was completed by national correspondents and members of the UNECE/FAO. The analysis showed that reasons for the exclusion of forest from FAWS are diverse. Legal restrictions and specifically ´Protected areas´ are considered by 79% of the countries while very few countries consider economic restrictions. A new FAWS reference definition is provided and the consequences of using this new definition in eight European countries were analysed. Application of the proposed definition will increase consistency and comparability of data on FAWS and will result in decreasing the area of FAWS at a European level.publishedVersio