How Companies Restrain Means–Ends Decoupling: A Comparative Case Study of CSR Implementation

We use the concept of means–ends decoupling to examine why companies continue to be major contributors to environmental and social problems despite committing increasingly to corporate social responsibility (CSR). Specifically, we ask: How do companies restrain (versus fail to restrain) means–ends decoupling? We answer this question through a comparative case study of four multinational companies with different levels of means–ends decoupling. Based on interviews and secondary data, we inductively identify two distinct approaches to CSR implementation: experimental vs. consistency-oriented CSR implementation. Experimental CSR implementation means that companies (1) produce CSR knowledge about what is happening in specific CSR contexts and use this knowledge to (2) adapt CSR practices to local circumstances – an interplay that restrains means–ends decoupling. Consistency-oriented CSR implementation lacks this interplay between knowledge production and practice adaptation, which fosters means–ends decoupling. Our model of experimental versus consistency-oriented CSR implementation advances two streams of research. First, we advance research on means–ends decoupling by highlighting the importance of experimentation for restraining means–ends decoupling. Second, we advance research on the impact of CSR activities by questioning the widespread assumption that consistency should be at the heart of CSR implementation

YOUNG ITALIANS' MEDIA USE AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS IMMIGRATION

This paper describes a study aimed at analyzing whether and how certain technologies usage practices can lead to the construction of different perceptions in relation to social phenomena. In particular, the study enquires how the evolution in the way young people get informed, can lead to different attitudes towards a phenomenon such as immigration. The work aims to understand what kind of relationship exists between different media usage types and (over)exposure to the news – made possible by the web, particularly social media – and the perception (in cognitive and evaluative terms) of the presence of immigrants in Italy. To answer these questions, an empirical research was conducted using a qualitative and quantitative approach. In particular, the quantitative study was carried through a survey on a sample of 200 subjects and illustrates how the information system, new information technologies and media consumption strongly influence the way young Italian see the world, confirming a bias between their perception and what statistical data say about the environment in which they are living

Multi Facet Learning in Hilbert Spaces

We extend the kernel based learning framework to learning from linear functionals, such as partial derivatives. The learning problem is formulated as a generalized regularized risk minimization problem, possibly involving several different functionals. We show how to reduce this to conventional kernel based learning methods and explore a specific application in Computational Condensed Matter Physics

Gaussian Approximation Potentials: the accuracy of quantum mechanics, without the electrons

We introduce a class of interatomic potential models that can be automatically generated from data consisting of the energies and forces experienced by atoms, derived from quantum mechanical calculations. The resulting model does not have a fixed functional form and hence is capable of modeling complex potential energy landscapes. It is systematically improvable with more data. We apply the method to bulk carbon, silicon and germanium and test it by calculating properties of the crystals at high temperatures. Using the interatomic potential to generate the long molecular dynamics trajectories required for such calculations saves orders of magnitude in computational cost.Comment: v3-4: added new material and reference

Super-paramagnetic clustering of yeast gene expression profiles

High-density DNA arrays, used to monitor gene expression at a genomic scale, have produced vast amounts of information which require the development of efficient computational methods to analyze them. The important first step is to extract the fundamental patterns of gene expression inherent in the data. This paper describes the application of a novel clustering algorithm, Super-Paramagnetic Clustering (SPC) to analysis of gene expression profiles that were generated recently during a study of the yeast cell cycle. SPC was used to organize genes into biologically relevant clusters that are suggestive for their co-regulation. Some of the advantages of SPC are its robustness against noise and initialization, a clear signature of cluster formation and splitting, and an unsupervised self-organized determination of the number of clusters at each resolution. Our analysis revealed interesting correlated behavior of several groups of genes which has not been previously identified

Are Alkynyl Spacers in Ancillary Ligands in Heteroleptic Bis(diimine)copper(I) Dyes Beneficial for Dye Performance in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells?

The syntheses of 4,40 -bis(4-dimethylaminophenyl)-6,60 -dimethyl-2,20 -bipyridine (1 ), 4,40 -bis(4-dimethylaminophenylethynyl)-6,60 -dimethyl-2,20 -bipyridine (2 ), 4,40 -bis(4- diphenylaminophenyl)-6,60 -dimethyl-2,20 -bipyridine (3 ), and 4,40 -bis(4-diphenylaminophenylethynyl)- 6,60 -dimethyl-2,20 -bipyridine (4 ) are reported along with the preparations and characterisations of their homoleptic copper(I) complexes [CuL2 ][PF6 ] (L = 1 -4 ). The solution absorption spectra of the complexes exhibit ligand-centred absorptions in addition to absorptions in the visible region assigned to a combination of intra-ligand and metal-to-ligand charge-transfer. Heteroleptic [Cu(5 )(Lancillary )]+ dyes in which 5 is the anchoring ligand ((6,60 -dimethyl-[2,20 -bipyridine]- 4,40 -diyl)bis(4,1-phenylene))bis(phosphonic acid) and Lancillary = 1 -4 have been assembled on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO)-TiO2 electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Performance parameters and external quantum e ciency (EQE) spectra of the DSCs (four fully-masked cells for each dye) reveal that the best performing dyes are [Cu(5 )(1 )]+ and [Cu(5 )(3 )]+ . The alkynyl spacers are not beneficial, leading to a decrease in the short-circuit current density (JSC ), confirmed by lower values of EQEmax . Addition of a co-absorbent (n -decylphosphonic acid) to [Cu(5 )(1 )]+ lead to no significant enhancement of performance for DSCs sensitized with [Cu(5 )(1 )]+ . Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) has been used to investigate the interfaces in DSCs; the analysis shows that more favourable electron injection into TiO2 is observed for sensitizers without the alkynyl spacer and confirms higher JSC values for [Cu(5 )(1 )]

Back to the future: asymmetrical DπA 2,2'-bipyridine ligands for homoleptic copper(I)-based dyes in dye-sensitized solar cells

Metal complexes used as sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) are conventionally constructed using a push-pull strategy with electron-releasing and electron-withdrawing (anchoring) ligands. In a new paradigm we have designed new D π A ligands incorporating diarylaminophenyl donor substituents and phosphonic acid anchoring groups. These new ligands function as organic dyes. For two separate classes of D π A ligands with 2,2'-bipyridine metal-binding domains, the DSCs containing the copper(I) complexes [Cu(D π A) 2 ] + perform better than the push-pull analogues [Cu(D D )(AA) ] + . Furthermore, we have shown for the first time that the complexes [Cu(D π A) 2 ] + perform better than the organic D π A dye in DSCs. The synthetic studies and the device performances are rationalised with the aid of density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT) studies

Bethe Ansatz Equations for General Orbifolds of N=4 SYM

We consider the Bethe Ansatz Equations for orbifolds of N =4 SYM w.r.t. an arbitrary discrete group. Techniques used for the Abelian orbifolds can be extended to the generic non-Abelian case with minor modifications. We show how to make a transition between the different notations in the quiver gauge theory.Comment: LaTeX, 66 pages, 9 eps figures, minor corrections, references adde

Serum metabolomic profiles identify ER-positive early breast cancer patients at increased risk of disease recurrence in a multicentre population

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