Artificial Intelligence and Human Resources Management: A Bibliometric Analysis

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly present in organizations. In the specific case of Human Resource Management (HRM), AI has become increasingly relevant in recent years. This article aims to perform a bibliometric analysis of the scientific literature that addresses in a connected way the application and impact of AI in the field of HRM. The scientific databases consulted were Web of Science and Scopus, yielding an initial number of 156 articles, of which 73 were selected for subsequent analysis. The information was processed using the Bibliometrix tool, which provided information on annual production, analysis of journals, authors, documents, keywords, etc. The results obtained show that AI applied to HRM is a developing field of study with constant growth and a positive future vision, although it should also be noted that it has a very specific character as a result of the fact that most of the research is focused on the application of AI in recruitment and selection actions, leaving aside other sub-areas with a great potential for application

Body fat assessment in international elite soccer referees

Soccer referees are a specific group in the sports population that are receiving increasing attention from sports scientists. A lower fat mass percentage (FM%) is a useful parameter to monitor fitness status and aerobic performance, while being able to evaluate it with a simple and quick field-based method can allow a regular assessment. The aim of this study was to provide a specific profile for referees based on morphological and body composition features while comparing the accuracy of different skinfold-based equations in estimating FM% in a cohort of soccer referees. Forty-three elite international soccer referees (age 38.8 ± 3.6 years), who participated in the 2018 Russian World Cup, underwent body composition assessments with skinfold thickness and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Six equations used to derive FM% from skinfold thickness were compared with DXA measurements. The percentage of body fat estimated using DXA was 18.2 ± 4.1%, whereas skinfold-based FM% assessed from the six formulas ranged between 11.0% ± 1.7% to 15.6% ± 2.4%. Among the six equations considered, the Faulkner's formula showed the highest correlation with FM% estimated by DXA (r = 0.77; R2 = 0.59 p < 0.001). Additionally, a new skinfold-based equation was developed: FM% = 8.386 + (0.478 × iliac crest skinfold) + (0.395 × abdominal skinfold, r = 0.78; R2 = 0.61; standard error of the estimate (SEE) = 2.62 %; p < 0.001). Due to these findings, national and international federations will now be able to perform regular body composition assessments using skinfold measurements. (c) 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Exome-Wide Association Study of Competitive Performance in Elite Athletes

The aim of the study was to identify genetic variants associated with personal best scores in Turkish track and field athletes and to compare allelic frequencies between sprint/power and endurance athletes and controls using a whole-exome sequencing (WES) approach, followed by replication studies in independent cohorts. The discovery phase involved 60 elite Turkish athletes (31 sprint/power and 29 endurance) and 20 ethnically matched controls. The replication phase involved 1132 individuals (115 elite Russian sprinters, 373 elite Russian endurance athletes (of which 75 athletes were with VO2max measurements), 209 controls, 148 Russian and 287 Finnish individuals with muscle fiber composition and cross-sectional area (CSA) data). None of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) reached an exome-wide significance level (p < 2.3 × 10−7) in genotype–phenotype and case–control studies of Turkish athletes. However, of the 53 nominally (p < 0.05) associated SNPs, four functional variants were replicated. The SIRT1 rs41299232 G allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish (p = 0.047) and Russian (p = 0.018) endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes and was associated with increased VO2max (p = 0.037) and a greater proportion of slow-twitch muscle fibers (p = 0.035). The NUP210 rs2280084 A allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish (p = 0.044) and Russian (p = 0.012) endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes. The TRPM2 rs1785440 G allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes (p = 0.034) and was associated with increased VO2max (p = 0.008). The AGRN rs4074992 C allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish sprint/power athletes compared to endurance athletes (p = 0.037) and was associated with a greater CSA of fast-twitch muscle fibers (p = 0.024). In conclusion, we present the first WES study of athletes showing that this approach can be used to identify novel genetic markers associated with exercise- and sport-related phenotypes

Body image perception and body composition in early adolescents: a longitudinal study of an Italian cohort

Background: Adolescence is a sensitive period of life in which everyone faces physical and psychological changes. No longitudinal studies considering changes in body image perception and body composition in Italian adolescents have been carried out. The aims of this study were to evaluate the longitudinal change in body composition and weight status in a sample of Italian students of both sexes over the 3 years of middle school and to analyse the influence of these parameters on the perception and satisfaction of one’s own body image. Methods: Sixty-four males and seventy females were followed longitudinally from 11 to 14. Age at first measurement was 11.8 ± 0.3 yrs. in males and 11.9 ± 0.3 yrs. in females, then the students were measured again after 1 year and 2 years. Anthropometric measurements were collected and body composition was assessed by skinfolds. Maturity status was detected by age at menarche in females and by estimated age at peak height velocity in males; sports practice was assessed by a questionnaire. Body Silhouette Charts were used to assess body image perception. The degree of body image dissatisfaction and improper perception of weight status were evaluated. Univariate and multivariate analyses were applied. Results: Height, sitting height, leg length, and weight increments were higher in males than in females, and in both sexes the sitting height increment was higher than that of leg length. Skinfold thicknesses and percentage of body fat, showed a decrease in males and an increase in females over the 3 years. About 90% of the sample practiced sport during the 3 years. No significant variations in body image perception were observed among repeated measures but significantly differences were observed between sexes. Although the girls showed a lower incidence of overweight and obesity than boys, girls had a higher dissatisfaction than males. Males were less accurate in one’s perception of one’s own weight status. Conclusions: The changes in body composition observed in the sample of the present study were in accordance with their maturity stage. An increase in parameters connected with adiposity is observed in females and a decrease in males. Body image perception did not seem to change with growth, but associations were found between body image perception and BMI and sex. Monitoring body image perception in young adolescents, especially in females and in overweight/obese subjects, is a priority to prevent nutritional disorders