Quality of information and the goals and targets of the organization: A model and method

In this paper a framework is presented for the ex-post evaluation of the quality of information in organizations. The framework brings together several approaches to quality that can be found in the literature, which however, offers no approach to the evaluation of the goal-related aspects of quality. Therefore such an approach is described in the second half of this paper.Information;Quality;Models;Organizations;organization and management

A contingency approach to quality systems implementation

This paper describes a framework for the implementation of quality systems. It is argued that there is no one best way to implement quality systems valid for all situations. Following Galbraith, a contingency approach is presented that enables the reader to select the optimal implementation strategy for a particular situation. The approach is based on well-established organization theory and validated by the experiences of senior quality consultants.Project Management;Uncertainty;Quality;implementation;organization and management

Standardization and certification of information systems development

Information Systems;Development;Standardization;management information systems

Role of FDG-PET/CT in the evaluation of infectious and inflammatory disease

Infectious and inflammatory diseases are amongst the most common reasons for patients to visit the hospital, often presenting with symptoms such as fever and general malaise. In most cases, physicians can establish the correct diagnosis by recognizing guiding symptoms or conventional diagnostics. Some patients, however, may not exhibit any guiding symptoms, or may be suspected of multiple potential sources of infection. Especially in patients with bacteremia of unknown origin, it is of vital importance to identify the infection focus as soon as possible, as this allows targeted treatment and reduces morbidity and mortality. 18F-FDG-PET/CT is a nuclear imaging technique that allows visualization of glucose uptake throughout the entire body. As most inflammatory diseases and infection foci exhibit increased glucose uptake, it is a very promising technique in patients who are suspected of such a disease. The research in this thesis was aimed at exploring the added value of FDG-PET/CT in these patients. In patients with bacteremia of unknown origin, FDG-PET/CT can correctly identify the infection focus in approximately two thirds of patients. And in children with fever of unknown origin, the correct diagnosis can be established in approximately half of all patients based on FDG-PET/CT. Several factors that may affect the diagnostic sensitivity of FDG-PET/CT were analyzed as well, such as the use of antibiotics or immunosuppressants before the procedure, serum glucose level, infection parameters, and detected pathogens. Bottlenecks of FDG-PET/CT and promising new technologies are discussed as well

ICT as an Enabler for Innovation Adoption

In this paper we investigate how two online services (a portal and a digital library) may influence the adoption of an innovation. It is known from prior surveys that the installation services branch of the Dutch building industry has a relatively slow adoption rate for innovations. We examine if these two online services can influence the attitude towards the adoption of innovations. From the academic literature we have derived a list of factors that influence the attitude towards adoption by individuals. We limited this project to a number of factors that are commonly referred to as technological factors. Using an online digital library and a custom-built portal, we conducted a field experiment with a post-test only control group design for one particular innovative product (a gas-analysis device); the test was performed using a survey. Our main finding is that the portal has a significant and positive effect towards the adoption of the innovation by an individual. We did not find a significant impact for the use of the digital library. On the basis of this experiment, we propose that online services that offer a high degree of interaction amongst their users are more likely to induce an increase in the willingness of an individual to adopt an innovation.innovation;adoption;digital library;portal;field experiment.

The discipline of fear: The securitisation of International Relations post-9/11 in historical perspective

Este artículo sostiene que las Relaciones Internacionales como disciplina académica (RRII) han entrado a formar parte de una creciente preocupación con la “seguridad” tras el 11 de septiembre. Esto no siempre ha sido así, e incluso actualmente existen también teorías alternativas dentro de la corriente principal de la disciplina. Sin embargo, la perspectiva de la seguridad estuvo determinada por dos momentos concretos en los que el miedo a un ataque inminente sobre Estados Unidos y sus aliados se articuló de manera muy dramática. El primero tuvo lugar entre la constitución original de la disciplina durante los años de entreguerras y el asedio de posguerra hacia la URSS. Aquí el papel de las RRII fue definir como racional la asunción de un ataque nuclear sorpresa, equiparando a la URSS como estado “totalitario” similar a las potencias del Eje, una de las cuales atacó Pearl Harbour. El segundo puede situarse en la década de los setenta cuando la amenaza de la revuelta del Tercer Mundo bajo el estandarte de la liberación nacional fue rebautizada como “terrorismo internacional” promovido por la extrema derecha y los militaristas israelíes en Estados Unidos, creando de esta manera una continuidad entre la supuesta amenaza soviética y los casos pos-soviéticos de revuelta antioccidental. De todo ello el artículo concluye que las RRII han servido para colocar a políticos y líderes de opinión bajo una “disciplina de miedo” que es insuficientemente reconocida, y menos aún retada por parte de investigadores de RRIIThis paper argues that International Relations as an academic discipline (IR) since 9/11 has become part of a growing preoccupation with ‘security’. This has not always been the case, and still today there are alternative theorisations also within the mainstream of the discipline. The security perspective however was shaped by two particular junctures in which the fear of impending attack on the USA and its allies was articulated at its most dramatic. The first occurred between the original establishment of the discipline in the interwar years and the postwar siege laid on the USSR. Here the role of IR was to define as rational the assumption of a nuclear surprise attack, equating the USSR as a ‘totalitarian’ state similar to the Axis Powers, one of which did attack Pearl Harbour. The second can be traced back to the 1970s when the threat of Third World revolt under the banner of national liberation was re-baptised ‘international terrorism’ at the instigation of the Israeli Far Right and militarists in the US, thus creating a continuity between the supposed Soviet threat and post-Soviet instances of anti-Western revolt. From this the paper concludes that IR has functioned to place policy-makers and opinion leaders under a ‘discipline of fear’ which is insufficiently recognized, let alone challenged by IR scholar

Modes de relations étrangères. Élargir le champ des relations internationales

De la même manière que l’étude de l’économie se sera développée en distinguant entre différents modes de production, l’étude des relations internationales pourrait elle aussi profiter d’une distinction entre modes de relations étrangères. De cette manière, l’étude des relations internationales pourrait peut-être être sauvée d’une virtuelle non-pertinence dans un monde au sein duquel les frontières de l’État apparaissent de plus en plus perméables, sauf pour les pauvres. Ainsi la préhistoire du système d’États westphalien, qui est partout autour de nous, pourrait-elle être plus convenablement intégrée dans notre compréhension de la politique mondiale et de l’économie politique mondiale. Dans cet article, deux modes de relations étrangères seront distingués : les relations tribales et les relations entre empire et nomades. Nous avancerons que loin d’avoir été dépassés par l’histoire des relations internationales, ces modes peuvent toujours éclairer la réalité contemporaine de la politique mondiale.Just as the study of economics moved ahead by distinguishing between modes of production, International Relations (ir) may profit from distinguishing modes of foreign relations. In this way, ir can perhaps be saved from virtual irrelevance in a world in which state boundaries are increasingly permeable to all but the poor. Also, the prehistory of the Westphalian state system, which is everywhere around us, may be properly integrated into the understanding of world politics and global political economy. In this paper, two modes of foreign relations prior to relations of multiple sovereignty (ir properly speaking) will be distinguished : tribal relations, and empire/nomad relations. It will be argued that far from have been overcome by later history, these modes still inform the contemporary reality of world politics/global political economy