On regional security governance once again: how analysis of the Southern Caucasus can advance the concept

Already introduced to the academic and political debate some years ago, the concept of “security governance” still needs to be clarified. In particular, four main shortcomings need to be overcome to make the concept more useful for an assessment of current security dynamics: in the first place, attention has been devoted more to “governance” than to “security”, while failing to consider the role of the understandings and perceptions of the actors involved in the governance system. Second, the literature on the actors (governmental or not) involved is still fragmented. Third, the literature on security governance has too often been detached from reflections on regionalism, while it would be useful to further explore the relationship between cognitive definitions of regional and security dynamics. Fourth, the literature has predominantly focused on Europe and the transatlantic area, overlooking processes of “region-building” in security terms in other “unexpected” geographical spaces. After proposing avenues to overcome the current gaps in the literature, the Southern Caucasus is chosen as a case study to show the different instances of security governance emerging, thanks to definitions of the region in security terms that have involved regional and external actors, of a state and non-state nature

First Among Equals: The Effect of Team Leader Characteristics on the Internal Dynamics of Cross-Functional Product Development Teams

Drawing upon the Path-Goal Theory of leadership, this study examines the effect of team leader characteristics on an array of conflict resolution behavior, collaboration, and communication patterns of cross-functional new product development (NPD) teams. A hierarchical linear model analysis based on a survey of 246 members from 64 NPD teams suggests that participative management style and initiation of goal structure by the team leader exert the strongest influence on internal team dynamics. Both these leadership characteristics had a positive effect on functional conflict resolution, collaboration, and communication quality within the NPD team; while discouraging dysfunctional conflict resolution and formal communications. Comparatively, team leader’s consideration, initiation of process structure, and position had a surprisingly weak effect on internal team dynamics. Further the findings underscore the differential effects on various dimensions of team dynamics, the importance of controlling for project and team characteristics, and the use of multi-level modeling for studying nested phenomena related to NPD teams. Implications of these findings are discussed

Refined forest land use classification with implications for United States national carbon accounting

The United States provides annual estimates of carbon sources and sinks as part of its National Green-house Gas Inventory (NGHGI). Within this effort, carbon stocks and fluxes are reported for six land use categories that are relevant to economic sectors and land use policy. The goal of this study is to develop methodologies that will allow the US to align with an internationally agreed upon forest land use definition which requires forest to be able to reach 5 m in height at maturity. Models to assess height potential are available for a majority of US forests except for woodland ecosystems. We develop a set of models to assess height potential in these systems. Our results suggest that ∼13.5 million ha of forests are unlikely to meet the international definition of forests due to environmental limitations to maximum attainable height. The incorporation of this height criteria in the NGHGI results in a carbon stock transfer of ∼848 Tg from the forest land use to woodland land use (a sub-category of grasslands) with minimal effect on sequestration rates. The development of a forest land use definition sensitive to climatic factors in this study enables a land use classification system that can be responsive to climate change effects on land uses themselves while being more consistent across a host of international and domestic carbon reporting efforts

Fractionation of Li, Be, Ga, Nb, Ta, In, Sn, Sb, W and Bi in the peraluminous Early Permian Variscan granites of the Cornubian Batholith: precursor processes to magmatic-hydrothermal mineralisation

The Early Permian Variscan Cornubian Batholith is a peraluminous, composite pluton intruded into Devonian and Carboniferous metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks. Within the batholith there are: G1 (two-mica), G2 (muscovite), G3 (biotite), G4 (tourmaline) and G5 (topaz) granites. G1-G2 and G3-G4 are derived from greywacke sources and linked through fractionation of assemblages dominated by feldspars and biotite, with minor mantle involvement in G3. G5 formed though flux-induced biotite-dominate melting in the lower crust during granulite facies metamorphism. Fractionation enriched G2 granites in Li (average 315 ppm), Be (12 ppm), Ta (4.4 ppm), In (74 ppb), Sn (18 ppm) and W (12 ppm) relative to crustal abundances and G1 granites. Gallium (24 ppm), Nb (16 ppm) and Bi (0.46 ppm) are not significantly enriched during fractionation, implying they are more compatible in the fractionating assemblage. Sb (0.16 ppm) is depleted in G1-G2 relative to the average upper and lower continental crust. Muscovite, a late-stage magmatic/subsolidus mineral, is the major host of Li, Nb, In, Sn and W in G2 granites. G2 granites are spatially associated with W-Sn greisen mineralisation. Fractionation within the younger G3-G4 granite system enriched Li (average 364 ppm), Ga (28 ppm), In (80 ppb), Sn (14 ppm), Nb (27 ppm), Ta (4.6 ppm), W (6.3 ppm) and Bi (0.61 ppm) in the G4 granites with retention of Be in G3 granites due to partitioning of Be into cordierite during fractionation. The distribution of Nb and Ta is controlled by accessory phases such as rutile within the G4 granites, facilitated by high F and lowering the melt temperature, leading to disseminated Nb and Ta mineralisation. Lithium, In, Sn and W are hosted in biotite micas which may prove favourable for breakdown on ingress of hydrothermal fluids. Higher degrees of scattering on trace element plots may be attributable to fluid–rock interactions or variability within the magma chamber. The G3-G4 system is more boron-rich, evidenced by a higher modal abundance of tourmaline. In this system, there is a stronger increase of Sn compared to G1-G2 granites, implying Sn in tourmaline-dominated mineral lodes may represent exsolution from G4 granites. G1-G4 granite abundances can be accounted for by 20–30% partial melting and 10–40% fractionation of a greywacke source. G5 granites are analogues of Rare Metal Granites described in France and Germany. These granites are enriched in Li (average 1363 ppm), Ga (38 ppm), Sn (21 ppm), W (24 ppm), Nb (52 ppm) and Ta (15 ppm). Within G5 granites, the metals partition into accessory minerals such as rutile, columbite-tantalite and cassiterite, forming disseminated magmatic mineralisation. High observed concentrations of Li, In, Sn, W, Nb and Ta in G4 and G5 granites are likely facilitated by high F, Li and P, which lower melt temperature and promote retention of these elements in the melt, prior to crystallisation of disseminated magmatic mineralisation

Not All Managers Are Managerial: A Self-Evaluation of Women Middle-Managers' Experiences in a UK University

The focus of this small-scale self-evaluation is the implementation of a new middle-management role in a post-92 UK university. A realist appreciative inquiry was undertaken with five women who had been promoted to a middle-management role 18 months prior to the inquiry. This evaluation for knowledge offered an opportunity to reflect on experiences in practice and sought to understand the experiences of the women in this role and how they cope with the challenges middle-management brings. Particular challenges (instability-generating) accorded with existing literature and included: lack of role clarity, lack of pre-preparation for management role, colleagues’ views of management, including perceptions of women in management roles and malicious intent of managed academics in rare cases. Supportive factors (provisional-stability-generating) included: personal resilience, informal peer support, external support and reflection. The co-evaluators offered reflections for the future from this co-evaluation. These suggest that training may contribute to provisional-stability in role and should be considered for new entrants to middle-management. The alternative construct of humanistic management is proposed as a way of understanding these women’s values-based decision-making practices in complex situations

Death anxiety resilience; a mixed methods investigation

Research was conducted examining how death anxiety influenced PTSD and mental health among people who have experienced a life-threatening event. This study was conducted using undergraduate university students in Lithuania. The study used a mixed-method design and in phase 1, participants (N = 97) completed self-report questionnaires that gathered information on demographics, death anxiety, trauma and well-being. Data indicated a significant correlation between death anxiety and PTSD, but not psychiatric co-morbidity. Phase 2 attempted to further explore the phenomenological experience of participants with full PTSD, and 6 semi-structured interviews were conducted. IPA analysis found three major themes in response to the life-threatening event; self-efficacy, religious coping and existential attitude. Overall these coping mechanisms allowed participants to develop resilience against the effects of death anxiety and minimize its negative impact on mental health