Competitive Advantages as a Complete Mediator Variable in Strategic Resources, Dynamic Capabilities and Performance Relations in the Car Sales Sector

Taking the resource-based view –RBV- and the dynamic capability view –DCV- as an orientation, the main aim of this study is to develop the mediator role that competitive advantages play in the relations between strategic resources, dynamic capabilities and performance. The study takes place in a dynamic and changing sector: the sale of new cars in Portugal. The results show that (a) achieving competitive advantages, which are decisive for business results, depends on the available strategic resources and the generating of dynamic capabilities, (b) in dynamic and changing sectors strategic resources are essential to generate dynamic capabilities, (c) firms must center their attention on, more than results, the generating of sustainable competitive advantages as these act as a mediator variable of the effect of strategic resources and dynamic capabilities on performance. The data scrutiny uses structural equation modeling (SEM) through PLS as the statistical instrument. The sample comprises 89 firms which sell new cars in Portugal

Superconvergent patch recovery with constraints for three-dimensional contact problems within the Cartesian grid Finite Element Method

"This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Navarro-Jiménez, José M., Héctor Navarro-García, Manuel Tur, and Juan J. Ródenas. 2019. Superconvergent Patch Recovery with Constraints for Three-dimensional Contact Problems within the Cartesian Grid Finite Element Method. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering 121 (6). Wiley: 1297 1313. doi:10.1002/nme.6266, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/nme.6266. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving."[EN] The superconvergent patch recovery technique with constraints (SPR-C) consists in improving the accuracy of the recovered stresses obtained with the original SPR technique by considering known information about the exact solution, like the internal equilibrium equation, the compatibility equation or the Neumann boundary conditions, during the recovery process. In this paper the SPR-C is extended to consider the equilibrium around the contact area when solving contact problems with the Cartesian grid Finite Element Method. In the proposed method, the Finite Element stress fields of both bodies in contact are considered during the recovery process and the equilibrium is enforced by means of the continuity of tractions along the contact surface.The authors would like to thank Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2016/007), the Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad (DPI2017-89816-R), the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades (FPU17/03993), and Universitat Politècnica de València (FPI2015) for the financial support to this work.Navarro-Jiménez, J.; Navarro-García, H.; Tur Valiente, M.; Ródenas, JJ. (2020). Superconvergent patch recovery with constraints for three-dimensional contact problems within the Cartesian grid Finite Element Method. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering. 121(6):1297-1313. https://doi.org/10.1002/nme.6266S129713131216Wriggers, P. (2006). Computational Contact Mechanics. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-32609-0Marco, O., Sevilla, R., Zhang, Y., Ródenas, J. J., & Tur, M. (2015). Exact 3D boundary representation in finite element analysis based on Cartesian grids independent of the geometry. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering, 103(6), 445-468. doi:10.1002/nme.4914Navarro-Jiménez, J. M., Tur, M., Albelda, J., & Ródenas, J. J. (2018). Large deformation frictional contact analysis with immersed boundary method. Computational Mechanics, 62(4), 853-870. doi:10.1007/s00466-017-1533-xMarco, O., Ródenas, J. J., Navarro-Jiménez, J. M., & Tur, M. (2017). Robust h-adaptive meshing strategy considering exact arbitrary CAD geometries in a Cartesian grid framework. Computers & Structures, 193, 87-109. doi:10.1016/j.compstruc.2017.08.004Ródenas, J. J., Tur, M., Fuenmayor, F. J., & Vercher, A. (2007). Improvement of the superconvergent patch recovery technique by the use of constraint equations: the SPR-C technique. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering, 70(6), 705-727. doi:10.1002/nme.1903Zienkiewicz, O. C., & Zhu, J. Z. (1992). The superconvergent patch recovery (SPR) and adaptive finite element refinement. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 101(1-3), 207-224. doi:10.1016/0045-7825(92)90023-dRódenas, J. J., González-Estrada, O. A., Díez, P., & Fuenmayor, F. J. (2010). Accurate recovery-based upper error bounds for the extended finite element framework. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 199(37-40), 2607-2621. doi:10.1016/j.cma.2010.04.010Blacker, T., & Belytschko, T. (1994). Superconvergent patch recovery with equilibrium and conjoint interpolant enhancements. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering, 37(3), 517-536. doi:10.1002/nme.1620370309Díez, P., José Ródenas, J., & Zienkiewicz, O. C. (2007). Equilibrated patch recovery error estimates: simple and accurate upper bounds of the error. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering, 69(10), 2075-2098. doi:10.1002/nme.1837Nadal, E., Díez, P., Ródenas, J. J., Tur, M., & Fuenmayor, F. J. (2015). A recovery-explicit error estimator in energy norm for linear elasticity. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 287, 172-190. doi:10.1016/j.cma.2015.01.013Badia, S., Verdugo, F., & Martín, A. F. (2018). The aggregated unfitted finite element method for elliptic problems. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 336, 533-553. doi:10.1016/j.cma.2018.03.022Zienkiewicz, O. C., Zhu, J. Z., & Wu, J. (1993). Superconvergent patch recovery techniques - some further tests. Communications in Numerical Methods in Engineering, 9(3), 251-258. doi:10.1002/cnm.1640090309FUENMAYOR, F. J., & OLIVER, J. L. (1996). CRITERIA TO ACHIEVE NEARLY OPTIMAL MESHES IN THEh-ADAPTIVE FINITE ELEMENT METHOD. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Engineering, 39(23), 4039-4061. doi:10.1002/(sici)1097-0207(19961215)39:233.0.co;2-cBabuška, I., Strouboulis, T., & Upadhyay, C. . (1994). A model study of the quality of a posteriori error estimators for linear elliptic problems. Error estimation in the interior of patchwise uniform grids of triangles. Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering, 114(3-4), 307-378. doi:10.1016/0045-7825(94)90177-

Is Testimonial Injustice Epistemic? Let Me Count the Ways

This work was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Project FFI2016-80088-P, FPI Predoctoral Fellow BES-2017-079933), the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sports (FPU16/04185), the Spanish Ministry of Science (PID2019-109764RB-I00), Junta de Andalucia (B-HUM-459-UGR18), and the FiloLab Group of Excellence funded by the University of Granada.Miranda Fricker distinguishes two senses in which testimonial injustice is epistemic. In the primary sense, it is epistemic because it harms the victim as a giver of knowledge. In the secondary sense, it is epistemic, more narrowly, because it harms the victim as a possessor of knowledge. Her characterization of testimonial injustice has raised the following objection: testimonial injustice is not always an epistemic injustice, in the narrow, secondary sense, as it does not always entail that the victim is harmed as a knowledge-possessor. By adopting a perspective based on Robert Brandom’s normative expressivism, we respond to this objection by arguing that there is a close connection, conceptual and constitutive rather than merely causal, between the primary and the secondary epistemic harms of testimonial injustice, such that testimonial injustice always involves both kinds of epistemic harm. We do so by exploring the logic and functioning of belief and knowledge ascriptions in order to highlight three ways in which the secondary epistemic harm caused by testimonial injustice crystallizes: it undermines the epistemic agency of the victim, the epistemic friction necessary for knowledge, and the possibility of occupying particular epistemic nodes.Spanish Government FFI2016-80088-P BES-2017-079933 FPU16/04185 PID2019-109764RB-I00Junta de Andalucia B-HUM-459-UGR18FiloLab Group of Excellence - University of Granad

Motius de participació esportiva de nens brasilers en funció de les seves edats

Aquest treball té com a objectiu estudiar els motius de la pràctica esportiva en joves brasilers, en funció de les seves diferents edats. La mostra està constituïda per 171 joves brasilers de sexe masculí, amb edats compreses entre 8 i 14 anys. Per a la realització del treball es va aplicar una adaptació del Qüestionari de Motius de Participació de Gill, Gross i Huddleston (1983). Es van realitzar ANOVAS per a la comparació dels diferents grups d’edats que es van establir, així mateix es van realitzar Anàlisis Factorials per a cada un dels grups d’edats. Els resultats obtinguts mostren que els motius que porten a la pràctica esportiva dels joves presenten unes certes diferències, segons les seves edats; apareixen diferències significatives tant en alguns aspectes concrets com en els factors que es conformen. En general, sembla que els motius assenyalats són similars als apareguts en altres estudis realitzats anteriorment en altres contexts geogràfics, com ara USA i Espanya

Evolutionary Algorithms for Community Detection in Continental-Scale High-Voltage Transmission Grids

Symmetry is a key concept in the study of power systems, not only because the admittance and Jacobian matrices used in power flow analysis are symmetrical, but because some previous studies have shown that in some real-world power grids there are complex symmetries. In order to investigate the topological characteristics of power grids, this paper proposes the use of evolutionary algorithms for community detection using modularity density measures on networks representing supergrids in order to discover densely connected structures. Two evolutionary approaches (generational genetic algorithm, GGA+, and modularity and improved genetic algorithm, MIGA) were applied. The results obtained in two large networks representing supergrids (European grid and North American grid) provide insights on both the structure of the supergrid and the topological differences between different regions. Numerical and graphical results show how these evolutionary approaches clearly outperform to the well-known Louvain modularity method. In particular, the average value of modularity obtained by GGA+ in the European grid was 0.815, while an average of 0.827 was reached in the North American grid. These results outperform those obtained by MIGA and Louvain methods (0.801 and 0.766 in the European grid and 0.813 and 0.798 in the North American grid, respectively)

Quality management practices, knowledge management and key business results in SMEs and large organizations: a multi-group analysis

Following the Total Quality Management philosophy and the knowledge management (KM) approach, this contribution aims to study the influence of process management methodology (PMM) and partner management (PM) on KM, and the relationships between this variable and key business results. The conceptual model is tested on a sample of 225 Spanish companies. PLS-SEM approach was used to test the research model. In order to assess the moderating effects of organisational size, a multi-group approach was adopted using two subsamples with large companies and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The findings indicate that the use of PMM and partner involvement are key factors for KM to have a significant impact on the key business results (KBR). Moreover, the organisational size is determinant when analysing the effect of PMM and PM on K

Modelos predictivos de la deformación permanente de las capas de base de materiales granulares sueltos empleados en los firmes flexibles

Este V Congreso tivo lugar en León, entre o 30 de maio e o 1 de xuño de 2000.[Resumen:] Uno de los principales objetivos de la investigación del comportamiento de los firmes flexibles de carreteras consiste en establecer relaciones constitutivas que permitan dar predicciones exactas de la deformación permanente de los materiales granulares sueltos que conforman las capas de base. Durante años, diversos investigadores han intentado perfilar procedimientos que predigan la deformación permanente en estos materiales. En esta comunicación se va a realizar una breve descripción de los diferentes modelos constitutivos

Commitment, resources, export enterprise and business results

La presente investigación tiene un doble objetivo. En primer lugar, partiendo de las premisas del enfoque basado en los recursos (Resource-based view [RBV]), conocer cómo determinados factores internos (recursos y compromiso exportador) pueden influir en el nivel de emprendimiento que muestra la empresa exportadora en los mercados exteriores. En segundo lugar, conocer el efecto del emprendimiento exportador en los resultados empresariales. Las relaciones propuestas quedan plasmadas en un modelo conceptual que se contrastará a partir de una muestra multisectorial de 212 empresas exportadoras españolas. Los resultados revelan que: a) el emprendimiento exportador depende positivamente del compromiso exportador y de los recursos asociados a la experiencia y a la estructura; b) se corrobora el efecto positivo que el nivel de emprendimiento exportador genera en los resultados empresariales, por lo que es recomendable que las empresas exportadoras desarrollen procesos de internacionalización acelerados, con presencia en múltiples países simultáneamente y con elevada intensidad exportadora.The current research has two aims. Firstly, starting from the premises of the Resource-Based View –(RBV) to know how specific internal factors (resources and export commitment) can influence an exporting firm’s level of entrepreneurship in foreign markets. Secondly, to find out what the effect of export entrepreneurship is on business results. The relationships proposed are clearly reflected in a conceptual model which will be verified from a multisectorial sample of 212 Spanish exporting firms. The results reveal that: a) export entrepreneurship positively depends on export commitment and the resources associated with experience and structure; b) there is a positive effect of the level of export entrepreneurship on business results. It is recommended that export firms develop accelerated internationalization processes, be present in numerous countries simultaneously and have a high export intensity

Comportamiento resiliente en las capas de base de materiales granulares

Este V Congreso tivo lugar en León, entre o 30 de maio e o 1 de xuño de 2000.[Resumen:] La realizacion de modelos es un requerimiento importante para estudiar el comportamiento resiliente de los materiales granulares. Muchos investigadores han perfilado diferentes procedimientos para predecir la respuesta resiliente de dichos materiales. En la presente comunicacion se realiza una breve descripcion de los modelos de prediccion del comportamiento resiliente de este tipo de materiales bajo las cargas del trafico. Se concluye afirmando que se necesita un mayor esfuerzo en el desarrollo de modelos y procedimientos que tengan una base teorica solida y una aplicacion util y general