Opportunity knocks? Parking regulations and automotive thefts in the age of coronavirus

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
George Hasnah

Purpose This paper aims to explore the relationship between adjustments in parking regulations in major American cities in response to the 2019 novel coronavirus and vehicle thefts. Design/methodology/approach Vehicle theft data from the 25 most populous American cities were collected between 2019 and 2020. Information was also collected on the type, severity and number of changes to parking enforcement regulations made in March and April 2020 in response to the outbreak of the coronavirus in the USA. Findings This analysis shows that the relaxation of parking regulations is associated with a significant increase in the number of vehicle thefts in major metropolitan areas. Research limitations/implications Although this research cannot prove a cause and effect relationship, statistical analysis of the data shows that policy change and vehicle thefts are related variables. Practical implications Guide for future policies-increase awareness; promote safety; promote accountability. Originality/value The comparison of increased vehicle thefts to parking enforcement policies; to policymakers, the general public.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry Shephard ◽  
Qudsia Kalsoom ◽  
Ritika Gupta ◽  
Lorenz Probst ◽  
Paul Gannon ◽  
...  

Purpose Higher education is uncertain which sustainability-related education targets should be sought and monitored. Accepting that something needs to be measurable to be systematically improved, the authors explored how measures relate to potential targets. This paper aims to focus on dispositions to think critically (active open-minded thinking and fair-minded thinking in appraising reasoning) as measures and explored how they related to sustainability concern as an indicative educational target. Design/methodology/approach This research included the development and testing of research instruments (scales) that explored dispositions to critical thinking and sustainability concern. Authors researched these instruments within their own correspondence groups and tested them with university students and staff in Pakistan, the USA, Austria, India and New Zealand. The authors also asked a range of contextualising questions. Findings Respondents’ disposition to aspects of active, open-minded thinking and fair-minded thinking do predict their concern about facets of sustainability but their strength of religious belief was an important factor in these relationships and in their measurement. Practical implications This research demonstrates the complexity of monitoring dispositions to think critically and sustainability concern in educational systems, particularly in circumstances where the roles of religious beliefs are of interest; and suggests ways to address this complexity. Originality/value This research integrates and expands discourses on ESD and on critical thinking in diverse disciplines and cultures. It investigates measurement approaches and targets that could help higher education institutions to educate for sustainable development and to monitor their progress, in ways that are compatible with their culture and values.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali İhsan Akgün ◽  
Yener Altunbaş ◽  
Yurtsev Uymaz

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore whether the choice of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) vs Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) is associated with the frequency and likelihood of accounting irregularities and fraud in US banks. Design/methodology/approach The authors examine the relationship between financial reporting standards and accounting irregularities in publicly listed US banks. Using a sample of 4,284 banks with accounting irregularities observed in the USA over the period of 1996–2014. They used logit model to estimate the likelihood of corporate misreporting having been committed in terms of accounting irregularities. Findings The authors show that banks that use US GAAP exhibit better operating performance than fraudulent banks that use IFRS except for certain variables. They also find that fraudulent banks are more likely to commit accounting irregularities when they have to follow IFRS and banks have relatively better bank performance. Practical implications Overall, the empirical findings result consistent with Kohlbeck and Warfield’s (2010) find that accounting standards are linked to fewer accounting irregularities. Originality/value In this study, accounting irregularities have a significant effect on bank performance during the Dodd–Frank period. It finds that banks that choose to use IFRS are more likely to have accounting irregularities and to engage in fraud.


2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Niki Hynes ◽  
Barbara Caemmerer ◽  
Emeline Martin ◽  
Eliot Masters

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of a positive country image (CI) by companies. First, it examines how organisations embed dimensions of a positive country image into their external marketing communications. Second, it examines the alignment between the countries’ image dimensions and those of the company and how company values and actions could act to either use, abuse and detract from an established CI. Design/methodology/approach – A two-part methodology was adopted. Two countries with strong positive CIs were chosen for comparison purposes. Content analysis of web sites, together with interviews with company representatives, were undertaken. Findings – The use of the CI/country-of-origin framework is extended from an extrinsic “made in” cue for consumers, to being part of the value offering of a particular product or service from an organisational perspective is extended. Evidence is structured into a framework of companies which use and/or contribute to the CI. Research limitations/implications – The two chosen countries both have positive CIs: future research should examine this relationship in countries with different images. The sample size is relatively small and future research should determine the generalisability of the proposed typology. Practical implications – Generating, communicating and maintaining a CI requires co-ordinated efforts from policy makers but needs to be built on solid foundations of reality: companies using CIs should be cognisant of the alignment between their actions, messages and the CI. Originality/value – This study extends prior work by examining the relationship between CI, company strategy, products and services offered and the manner in which companies action's can affect CI.


2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 10-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Q. Yang

Purpose – This study aims to ascertain the trends and changes of how academic libraries market and deliver information literacy (IL) on the web. Design/methodology/approach – The author compares the findings from two separate studies that scanned the Web sites for IL-related activities in 2009 and 2012, respectively. Findings – Academic libraries intensified their efforts to promote and deliver IL on the web between 2009 and 2012. There was a significant increase in IL-related activities on the web in the three-year period. Practical implications – The findings describe the status quo and changes in IL-related activities on the libraries’ Web sites. This information may help librarians to know what they have been doing and if there is space for improvement. Originality/value – This is the only study that spans three years in measuring the progress librarians made in marketing and delivering IL on the Web.


2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (12) ◽  
pp. 1178-1193
Author(s):  
Tony Burns

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between Amartya Sen’s notion of adaptation and his views on identity politics by focussing on the issue of slavery and, more specifically, on the example of the happy or contented slave. Design/methodology/approach The paper is text based. The methodological approach adopted is that of conceptual analysis, as is typical for work of this kind. Findings The paper concludes that the example of the happy or contented slave is indeed a fruitful one for those interested in exploring the relationship between Sen’s views on “the adaptation problem” and his views on identity politics, especially in relation to the subjection of women. Here Sen’s debt to the ideas of Mary Wollstonecraft and John Stuart Mill is particularly important. Research limitations/implications One implication of the argument of the paper is that there is a need to consider more carefully the differences that exist between the views of Wollstonecraft and Mill, so far as the example of the happy or contented slave is concerned. Practical implications One practical implication of the paper is that, hopefully, it establishes the continued relevance of the ideas of thinkers such as Wollstonecraft and Mill today, not least because of the influence that they have had on theoreticians such as Amartya Sen. Social implications The paper addresses issues which are of considerable social and political significance, especially for women in underdeveloped societies today. Originality/value The example of the happy or contented slave has not received much discussion in the literature on Sen, although Sen himself has suggested that the distinction between happiness and contentment is an important one, which does merit further discussion.


2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 149-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorna Montgomery ◽  
Janet Anand ◽  
Kathryn Mackay ◽  
Brian Taylor ◽  
Katherine C. Pearson ◽  
...  

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the similarities and differences of legal responses to older adults who may be at risk of harm or abuse in the UK, Ireland, Australia and the USA. Design/methodology/approach – The authors draw upon a review of elder abuse and adult protection undertaken on behalf of the commissioner for older people in Northern Ireland. This paper focusses on the desk top mapping of the different legal approaches and draws upon wider literature to frame the discussion of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the different legal responses. Findings – Arguments exist both for and against each legal approach. Differences in defining the scope and powers of adult protection legislation in the UK and internationally are highlighted. Research limitations/implications – This review was undertaken in late 2013; while the authors have updated the mapping to take account of subsequent changes, some statutory guidance is not yet available. While the expertise of a group of experienced professionals in the field of adult safeguarding was utilized, it was not feasible to employ a formal survey or consensus model. Practical implications – Some countries have already introduced APL and others are considering doing so. The potential advantages and challenges of introducing APL are highlighted. Social implications – The introduction of legislation may give professionals increased powers to prevent and reduce abuse of adults, but this would also change the dynamic of relationships within families and between families and professionals. Originality/value – This paper provides an accessible discussion of APL across the UK and internationally which to date has been lacking from the literature.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xingyu Wen ◽  
Jing Zhang ◽  
Mincheol Whang ◽  
Kaixuan Liu

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the relationship between bra's visual impression and bra parts, and then to explore the application of visual impression in bra design.Design/methodology/approachFirstly, 82 female undergraduates are asked to answered this questionnaire online, which is about the importance of parts in bra design. In the part of data analysis, the method of principal part analysis (PCA) are used to get the relationship between bra's parts, and reduce dimension of factors that influence bra design. After that, those group of features are further discussed from the perspective of visual design. Finally, design an application based on conclusion.FindingsTo get the influence features of bra appearance and improve the visual design effect, this paper matches the bra parts with visual features (color, texture, shape and space) and presents four main features of bra design: “color,” “visual texture,” “design shape” and “spatial expression” together with corresponding bra parts and technique of expression. Moreover, user interface in bra cloud customization is designed.Practical implicationsThe conclusion, which shows the corresponding relationship between bra visual effect and its basic parts, has an important role in bra visual design. First, it can be useful for design idea with different technique of expression, which may supply a theoretical basis for design. Secondly, the combination of bra parts and visual features can be used to evaluate the appearance.Originality/valueDiscussing the bra visual impression based on bra's basic parts and visual features provides a theoretical method for bra design and its appearance evaluation.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Szymanski ◽  
Ivan Valdovinos ◽  
Evodio Kaltenecker

Purpose This study aims to examine the relationship between cultural distances between countries and their scores in the Corruption Perception Index (CPI), which is the most commonly used measure of corruption in international business (IB) research. Design/methodology/approach The authors applied fixed-effect (generalized least squares) statistical modeling technique to analyze 1,580 year-country observations. Findings The authors found that the CPI score is determined to a large extent by cultural distances between countries, specifically the distance to the USA and to Denmark. Research limitations/implications CPI is often used as a sole measure of state-level corruption in IB research. The results show that the measure is significantly influenced by cultural differences and hence it should be applied with great caution, preferably augmented with other measures. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to look at cultural distances as determinants of CPI score. The authors empirically test whether the CPI is culturally biased.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Livingstone

Purpose The paper aims to rediscover the subtle heart and discuss its importance in relation to conversations regarding sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Based on the imaginal approach of the author’s doctoral research, this paper is informed by the discourse of transpersonal psychology, attempting to open a space through which it becomes possible to perceive the heart differently. Findings This paper discusses the idea that knowledge as generated through the heart has been rendered subservient to knowledge generated through the mind/brain through a dominant/medical narrative (Bound Alberti, 2012). This means that the heart’s wisdom and the heart’s benevolent qualities cannot gain traction at the level at which decisions are made in society. Research limitations/implications While the heart is not unproblematic, and can carry notions of moral superiority, this paper is written as an appeal to create safe enough spaces to bring the heart back into conversation at the level of political discourse. Practical implications This paper suggests that it is the approach of the heart, the qualities and characteristics that the heart embodies, and the different way of being in the world that the heart makes possible, which could play an important role in guiding us towards a more sustainable world. When taken seriously, the heart offers a way of engaging with, and thinking about, ideas of relationship, wholeness and interconnection – all of which have been identified as important by numerous scholars in relation to engaging with global challenges (de Witt, 2016). Social implications This paper suggests that it is the approach of the heart and the different way of being in the world that the heart makes possible, which could play an important role in guiding humanity towards a more sustainable world. Originality/value Since the late 1900s, scholars have been calling for creative thinking in relation to engaging with the myriad of issues facing our planet, and this paper is written as a response to that call – creating a platform for the heart to speak and making a case for its importance in conversations relating to sustainability.


2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 715-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregor Gall ◽  
Jack Fiorito

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to give a critique of the extant literature on union commitment and participation in order to develop remedies to identified weaknessesDesign/methodology/approachThe paper uses a critical assessment of extant literature.FindingsA number of critical deficiencies exist in the literature to which remedies are proposed.Research limitations/implicationsThe remedies need testing through empirical research.Practical implicationsFuture research needs to have different research foci and questions.Social implicationsWith a reorientation of future research on union commitment, participation and leadership, unions may be better able to benefit from academic research in the area.Originality/valueThe paper suggests that a reorientation of future research on union commitment, participation and leadership will allow more incisive and more robust contributions to be made to understanding unions as complex social organisms.


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