The definition, creation, and evolution of buyer-seller relationships

The theoretical and practical importance of relational exchange is well known. However, customers are often annoyed at companies’ relationship building attempts. In addition, the literature has three core problems: (1) the relational concept is not well defined; (2) little research has accounted for relationship dynamics; and (3) relational constructs’ conceptualizations have become ambiguous. The purpose of this dissertation is to build an integrative and comparative framework that not only delineates relationship stages, but also identifies the unique roles of all relational forms (e.g., firm-firm). Specifically, three research questions are addressed: (1) How is a relationship defined? (2) How is a relationship created? and (3) How does a relationship evolve? These research questions are addressed in three essays. Essay 1 develops the relationship definition, creation, and evolution framework based on the field’s 50 most influential articles and validated by survey data from 34 authors. Scholars define a relationship as “at least one interaction with future interactions expected”. Information sharing and cooperation are necessary elements for relationship creation. Correspondence analysis (CA) was used to map 271 constructs to the evolutionary framework. Using data provided from structured interviews, Essay 2 considered one relational form (i.e., customer-retailer) and compared the perspectives of relational parties (i.e., manager, sales-associate, and customer) on the research questions. A relationship is defined as “at least one exchange between parties that share information”. Twenty-one elements are noted as required for relationship creation. Relational constructs were mapped to the evolutionary framework using CA. Essay 3 addressed the relationship evolution question by developing and testing a conceptual model of relational exchange using survey data from 1407 customers in the context of their relationships with a coffee house chain. Respondents were segmented based on their relationship stage, and multi-group moderation analysis was performed. Nine of 41 structural paths are invariant across relationship stages. The essays illustrate the difference in perspectives of academics, practitioners, and customers as it relates to the research questions. Information sharing is noted as a key element of relationships in all essays. Support is also gained for the necessary use of relationship stage as a moderator in relational exchange research

Porridge and misogyny:rationalising inconspicuous misogyny in morning television shows

While in the last decade we made strides in the pursuit of gender equality, women's rights, dignity, and safety continue to be under threat around the world. There is a growing body of research documenting contemporary misogyny, mainly focused on extreme manifestations found in online environments. Conversely, we know less about how misogyny features in other spheres of our daily lives. The current study focuses on such an environment, namely segments from the British show This Morning in which guests are invited to take opposing stances on a variety of topics related to women's appearance, behaviour, competencies, and experiences with sexual harassment. Using discursive psychology, we identified two sets of argumentative discursive practices employed by guests who espoused misogynist views. First, when guests were prompted to present their controversial views, they constructed them as reasonable, strategically differentiating them from established misogynist tropes. By contrast, when guests’ views were challenged, they doubled down on their positions by drawing on scientific explanations for human behaviour that ostensibly justified bigoted views. This study sheds light onto the discursive mechanisms through which misogyny escapes eradication, and through which it mutates into subtler forms that are increasingly difficult to identify and denounce

Using observational facial descriptors to infer pain in persons with and without dementia

Abstract Background For patients with advanced dementia, pain diagnosis and assessment requires observations of pain-indicative behavior by others. One type of behavior that has been shown to be a promising candidate is the facial response to pain. To further test how pain-indicative facial responses are, we investigated the predictive power of observational facial descriptors to (i) predict the self-report of pain and (ii) to differentiate between non-painful and painful conditions. In addition, the expertise of the observers (nurses vs. healthy controls) and the cognitive status of the observed (dementia vs. cognitively healthy) were considered. Methods Overall 62 participants (32 nurses and 30 control subjects) watched 40 video-clips, showing facial expressions of older individuals with and without dementia during non-painful and painful pressure stimulation. After each clip, participants were asked to rate the videos using commonly used facial descriptors of pain and also to provide global pain estimate ratings of how much pain the observed individual might have experienced. Results Out of the 12 facial descriptors used, only 7 were able to differentiate between non-painful and painful conditions. Moreover, participants were better in predicting the pain self-report of the observed individuals when using facial descriptors than when using global pain estimates. Especially, the anatomically-orienting descriptors (e.g. opened mouth, narrowing eyes) showed greatest predictive power. Results were not affected by pain-expertise of the observers (nurses vs. control subjects) or diagnostic status of the observed (patients with dementia vs. cognitively unimpaired subjects). Conclusions The fine-grained and specific observation of facial responses to acute pain appeared to provide valid indication of pain that is not compromised when patients with dementia are observed. The regular professional training does not put nurses at advantage to detect pain via facial responses

Understanding SME Intention to Use the Internet for Managing Supplier Information

There is strong consensus that the Internet has the potential to positively impact firms, and SMEs in particular; however, not all firms have realized benefits from adoption. The present study extends research in the area by addressing the need to examine the “chain” of variables explaining Internet adoption. We do this by exploring SME owner/manager Internet-related usefulness and ease-of-use cognitions and intention to use the Internet for supplier information management. We also explore the influence of behavioral norms and two broader strategic perspectives, market and learning orientation, on the Internet-related cognitions. Findings have implications for researchers and practitioners by identifying factors that contribute to effectively leveraging the Internet in an important area for SMEs

Prozessierung von Biosensorlösungen : Herausforderungen während des Beschichtungs- und Trocknungsprozesses

Biosensoren sind ein weitverbreitetes analytisches Werkzeug und stellen mit ihrem einmaligen Funktionsprinzip einen Schlüssel für innovative Technologien dar. Als kommerzielles Produkt sind eine Vielzahl an Modifikationen von Biosensoren der zweiten Generation erhältlich. Dennoch besteht ein großes Interesse an der Weiterentwicklung der Glucosesensoren hin zur dritten Generation, welche auf eine mediatorfreie und somit direkte Übertragung der Elektronen setzen. Trotz der zahlreichen Fortschritte stellt die kommerzielle Verfügbarkeit von Biosensoren der dritten Generation eine große Herausforderung dar, da die Sensoren meist auf den fachgerechten Gebrauch im Labor ausgerichtet sind. Dies macht sie für eine kostengünstige Produktion im großen Maßstab und mit hoher Stückzahl ungeeignet. Daher werden verfahrenstechnische Kernkompetenzen benötigt, die die Prozessierung von Biosensorlösungen sowohl im kleinen Batch-Maßstab als auch kontinuierlich im großtechnischen Rahmen erlauben. Das nachhaltige Entwicklungspotential, das dadurch geboten werden kann, ist Gegenstand dieser Arbeit

Направления реализации образовательно-профилактической программы "Здоровую улыбку - детям" и их эффективность

СТОМАТОГНАТИЧЕСКИЕ БОЛЕЗНИ /профЗУБНЫХ БОЛЕЗНЕЙ ПРОФИЛАКТИКАДЕТИПРОФИЛАКТИЧЕСКАЯ СТОМАТОЛОГИ

Gratitude in Relationship Marketing: Theoretical Development and Directions for Future Research

Purpose – For centuries, gratitude has represented an integral component of social relationships, yet it remains relatively overlooked by marketing scholars in the study of commercial relationships. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how gratitude helps to build, maintain and transform commercial relationships and to suggest noteworthy areas of investigation for those researchers seeking to help companies understand the role of gratitude in relationship marketing. Design/methodology/approach – Gratitude\u27s role in relational exchange is explored by a review of relevant literature and two qualitative studies. Questions developed from the literature and exploratory interviews are then investigated in a main study through in-depth interviews with buyers and sellers of goods and services in both B2B and B2C contexts, leading to a grounded theoretical foundation. Generalizations and directions for future research are presented. Findings – Gratitude is a fundamental component of buyer-seller relationships and is critical for advancing relationship marketing theory and practice. Gratitude\u27s changing role as relationship stages advance is described. Research limitations/implications – The research is of an exploratory nature. Confirmation of the generalizations by other studies is suggested. This research is largely consistent with that from a markets-as-networks perspective and moves relationship marketing research toward a more extended view. Practical implications – Gratitude should be included along with other relational mediators in discussions and investigations of relationship success, and practiced by those that seek to build, develop and enhance their buyer-seller relationships. Originality/value – This paper provides a much needed exploration of a new and important topic in relationship marketing and a call for gratitude to be studied and implemented in a variety of relational exchange contexts. Specifically, it is the first to address the importance of gratitude to both buyers and sellers in B2B and B2C goods and services markets. It also is the first to document the changing role of gratitude through relationship stages

Psychological and psychosocial interventions for treatment-resistant schizophrenia:a systematic review and network meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Many patients with schizophrenia have symptoms that do not respond to antipsychotics. This condition is called treatment-resistant schizophrenia and has not received specific attention as opposed to general schizophrenia. Psychological and psychosocial interventions as an add-on treatment to pharmacotherapy could be useful, but their role and comparative efficacy to each other and to standard care in this population are not known. We investigated the efficacy, acceptability, and tolerability of psychological and psychosocial interventions for patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia.METHODS: In this systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA), we searched for published and unpublished randomised controlled trials (RCTs) through a systematic database search in BIOSIS, CINAHL, Embase, LILACS, MEDLINE, PsychInfo, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform for articles published from inception up to Jan 31, 2020. We also searched the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group registry for studies published from inception up to March 31, 2022, and PubMed and Cochrane CENTRAL for studies published from inception up to July 31, 2023. We included RCTs that included patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia. The primary outcome was overall symptoms. We did random-effects pairwise meta-analyses and NMAs to calculate standardised mean differences (SMDs) or risk ratios with 95% CIs. No people with lived experience were involved throughout the research process. The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO, CRD42022358696.FINDINGS: We identified 30 326 records, excluding 24 526 by title and abstract screening. 5762 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility, of which 5540 were excluded for not meeting the eligibility criteria, and 222 reports corresponding to 60 studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. Of these, 52 RCTs with 5034 participants (1654 [33·2%] females and 3325 [66·8%] males with sex indicated) comparing 20 psychological and psychosocial interventions provided data for the NMA. Mean age of participants was 38·05 years (range 23·10-48·50). We aimed to collect ethnicity data, but they were scarcely reported. According to the quality of evidence, cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis (CBTp; SMD -0·22, 95% CI -0·35 to -0·09, 35 trials), virtual reality intervention (SMD -0·41, -0·79 to -0·02, four trials), integrated intervention (SMD -0·70, -1·18 to -0·22, three trials), and music therapy (SMD -1·27, -1·83 to -0·70, one study) were more efficacious than standard care in reducing overall symptoms. No indication of publication bias was identified.INTERPRETATION: We provide robust findings that CBTp can reduce the overall symptoms of patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia, and therefore clinicians can prioritise this intervention in their clinical practice. Other psychological and psychosocial interventions showed promising results but need further investigation.FUNDING: DAAD-ASFE.</p

Influence of the Nature of Aminoalcohol on ZnO Films Formed by Sol-Gel Methods

Here we present comparative studies of: (i) the formation of ZnO thin films via the sol-gel method using zinc acetate dihydrate (ZAD), 2-methoxyethanol (ME) as solvent, and the aminoalcohols (AA): ethanolamine, (S)-(+)-2-amino-1-propanol, (S)-(+)-2-amino-3-methyl-1-butanol, 2-aminophenol, and aminobenzyl alcohol, and (ii) elemental analyses, infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, absorption and emission spectra of films obtained after deposition by drop coating on glass surface, and thermal treatments at 300, 400, 500 and 600 ◦C. The results obtained provide conclusive evidences of the influence of the AA used (aliphatic vs. aromatic) on the ink stability (prior to deposition), and on the composition, structures, morphologies, and properties of films after calcination, in particular, those due to the different substituents, H, Me, or iPr, and to the presence or the absence of a -CH2- unit. Aliphatic films, more stable and purer than aromatic ones, contained the ZnO wurtzite form for all annealing temperatures, while the cubic sphalerite (zinc-blende) form was also detected after using aromatic AAs. Films having frayed fibers or quartered layers or uniform yarns evolved to 'neuron-like' patterns. UV and photoluminescence studies revealed that these AAs also affect the optical band gap, the structural defects, and photo-optical properties of the films