Dipolar-glass-like relaxor ferroelectric behaviour in the 0.5BaTiO3-0.5Bi(Mg1/2Ti1/2)O3 electroceramic

In this study, the dielectric and ferroelectric switching behaviour of 0.5BaTiO3-0.5Bi(Mg1/2Ti1/2)O3 (BT-BMT) ceramics are investigated. The BT-BMT ceramic exhibits a typical dipolar-glass-like, dielectric polarisation relaxation. This is attributed to the 15 distinct possible local A4B2 configurations around the O ions and the effect this unavoidable local compositional variability has on the dipole relaxation behaviour of inherent {1-D h111} dipole chains, arising from correlated off-centre displacements of Bi3+ and Ti4+ ions along local {111} directions. On the other hand, switchable polarisation under strong applied electric fields is observed on different length scales accompanied by the appearance of strong polarisation relaxation, as observed via time-delayed piezoresponse hysteresis loop measurements. These experimental results demonstrate that this BT-BMT ceramic is relaxor ferroelectric in nature, although it exhibits dipolar-glass-like dielectric relaxation behaviour.The authors J.W., Y.L., and R.L.W. acknowledge the support of the Australian Research Council (ARC) in the form of Discovery projects. Y.L. also appreciates support from the ARC Future Fellowships program

Unified Test of Causality and Cost of Carry Model : Pricing of the Kuala Lumpur Composite Index Futures Contract

This paper examines the causal relationship and the validity of the cost of carry model for pricing the FBMKLCI futures contracts. The test is carried out over the time period of 3/1/2006 – 30/6/2011 where it is split into two sub periods based on the changes in the index constituents and refresh times. The empirical work is carried out using the economic modelling based on the VECM framework for spot and futures prices. Our findings show that there is some (but weak) evidence against the cost of carry relationship between spot and futures prices in both our sub periods. This research also found bidirectional causality between spot and futures prices with a stronger causality from futures to spot. Strong mean reversion was found in the returns of both spot and futures returns suggesting overreaction in spot and futures price to new information

A behavioral approach to modelling strategy execution: The role of organizational support and the moderated mediation effect of engagement and communication

Much of the failure in strategy execution in organization is attributed to human factors. While there is abundance of studies which delve into strategy execution, literature pertaining to the behavioral strategy and its impact on strategy execution remains scarce. Interest towards behavioral strategy is recently renewed as a result of the rising concern of the non-progressive rate of successful strategy implementation in the practicing world. This study answers the call for more research on behavioral strategy by examining the role of engagement, a concept drawn from the theory of engagement and work-psychology literature, in explaining the support-execution relationship. Subsequently, the support-execution model of strategy execution is advanced by a joint investigation of the mediating role of strategy engagement as well as the moderating role of strategy communication in the mediated relationship. Using process macro in Statistical Package for Social Sciences, the model was tested with 224 middle level managers selected from the service industry in Malaysia. The result shows that strategy engagement mediates the relationship between organizational support and strategy execution. Moreover, strategy communication is found to moderate the relationship between firstly organizational support and strategy execution, and secondly strategy engagement and strategy execution. The moderated mediation analysis reveals that strategic communication moderates the mediated relationship between organizational support and strategy execution via strategy engagement. Results from the integrated moderated mediation model provide new insights into the interaction of behavioral variables and their effect on strategy execution in contemporary business environment

Negative magnetodielectric effect in CaCu₃Ti₄O₁₂

Real part of complex relative dielectric value is relatively decreased as large as  ∼5 % from 50 K to 200 K in CaCu₃Ti₄O₁₂, by applying a 6-T static magnetic field. CaCu₃Ti₄O₁₂ is thus implied primarily by the negative magnetodielectric effect, as a unified dielectric system in which 1-D finite dipole chains of B-site titanium ions, coexist with a collective of polaron-like 3d-electrons of A-site copper ions: the dipole chains are thermally activated for lattice ionic polarization above 50 K, and suppressed by the short-range hop of these quasi-particles, while their long-range movement are for bulk electronic polarization above 151 K.This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11004106) and the National 973 Project (Nos. 2011CB922101 and 2009CB623303)

Social influence processes on adolescents' food likes and consumption: the role of parental authoritativeness and individual self-monitoring

This cross-sectional study investigated how parents and friends influence adolescents’ food likes and consumption. 709 adolescent-parent and 638 adolescent-friend dyads completed a questionnaire, allowing us to compare target-parent and target-friend resemblances both on food likes and consumption, while distinguishing between cultural influence and dyadic unique influence. In addition, we identified two psychosocial predictors of resemblance, namely parenting style and adolescents' self-monitoring. As expected, results indicated that authoritative parenting style increased target-parent resemblance in food likes (directly) and consumption (indirectly), and self-monitoring orientation increased target-friend resemblance in food likes (directly) and consumption (indirectly). We also showed that target-friend resemblance was more culture-based than target-parent resemblance, suggesting that parental influence is more specific to the dyadic relation than is peer influence

Outer-context determinants in the sustainment phase of a reimbursement-driven implementation of evidence-based practices in children’s mental health services

Although there is increasing investment to implement evidence-based practices (EBPs) in public systems across the USA, continued or sustained use of EBPs after initial implementation remains a challenge. The low integration of EBPs in routine practice severely limits their public health impact, highlighting the need to understand factors that affect the return on costly investments in EBP implementation. This study aims to (1) characterize trajectories of EBP delivery volume through a reimbursement-driven implementation and (2) examine impacts of system-level policy regulatory activity and state-level mental health services funding on the implementation reimbursement strategy. This study involved secondary data analyses. Psychotherapy administrative claims and regulatory site visit data from the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health and California state mental health expenditures were extracted from 2010 to 2017. Multilevel regression examined EBP claims volume over time with state expenditures and regulatory compliance as predictors. EBP claims volume trajectories demonstrated a rapid initial increase, followed by a period of decrease, and a small increase in the final year. State mental health expenditures increased across time reflecting increased funding availability. State mental health expenditures and system regulatory compliance were inversely related to EBP claims volume. The impact of reimbursement-driven EBP implementation strategy is sensitive to multiple outer-context determinants. At the system level, commitment to fidelity of implementation regulations resulted in reduced use of the reimbursement strategy. Alternative reimbursement streams not tied to EBPs coupled with an expanded array of reimbursable services also impacted the use of the reimbursement strategy to implement EBPs.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-021-01149-

Team diversity and categorization salience : capturing diversity-blind, intergroup biased, and multicultural perceptions

It is increasingly recognized that team diversity with respect to various social categories (e.g., gender, race) does not automatically result in the cognitive activation of these categories (i.e., categorization salience), and that factors influencing this relationship are important for the effects of diversity. Thus, it is a methodological problem that no measurement technique is available to measure categorization salience in a way that efficiently applies to multiple dimensions of diversity in multiple combinations. Based on insights from artificial intelligence research, we propose a technique to capture the salience of different social categorizations in teams that does not prime the salience of these categories. We illustrate the importance of such measurement by showing how it may be used to distinguish among diversity-blind responses (low categorization salience), multicultural responses (positive responses to categorization salience), and intergroup biased responses (negative responses to categorization salience) in a study of gender and race diversity and the gender by race faultline in 38 manufacturing teams comprising 239 members

Group cognitive analytic therapy for female survivors of childhood sexual abuse

Objectives: The effectiveness of cognitive analytic therapy delivered in groups has been under-researched considering the popularity of the approach. This study sought to investigate the effectiveness of 24 sessions of group cognitive analytic therapy (GCAT) delivered in routine practice for female survivors of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). Methods: In a longitudinal cohort design, N = 157 patients were treated with 24 sessions of GCAT. Validated outcome measures were administered at assessment, pre-GCAT, and post-GCAT. This enabled rates of reliable and clinically significant change to be compared between wait time and active group treatment. The uncontrolled treatment effect size was then benchmarked against outcomes from matched studies. Results: On the primary outcome measure, GCAT facilitated a moderate effect size of 0.34 with 11% of patients completing treatment meeting ‘recovery’ criteria. The dropout rate was 19%. Significant improvements in interpersonal functioning, anxiety, and well-being occurred during GCAT in comparison with wait time on secondary outcome measures. Conclusions: Group cognitive analytic therapy appears a promising intervention for adult female CSA survivors, with further controlled evaluation indicated