scholarly journals SOCIAL CROWDFUNDING: A NEW MODEL FOR FINANCING REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT?

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Susana BERNARDINO ◽  
José FREITAS SANTOS ◽  
José CADIMA RIBEIRO
Keyword(s):  
Regional Development ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Stock Exchange ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Ventures

Crowdfunding is an increasingly attractive source to fund social projects. However, to our best knowledge, the study of crowdfunding for social purposes has remained largely unexplored in the literature. This research envisages a detailed examination of the role of crowdfunding on the early-stage of the social projects at regional level. By comparing the characteristics of the projects available in the Portuguese Social Stock Exchange platform with others that did not use this source of financial support, we envisage to show the critical role of crowdfunding on regional development. The use of inferential techniques (Chi-square test, the Cramer’s V statistic, the Goodman and Kruskal λ and the odds ratio) demonstrates that the use of the Portuguese Social Stock Exchange platform was linked to the geographical location of the social venture as well as its geographical scope. Also, social ventures located on rural regions are more likely to use social crowdfunding platforms than social ventures located in urban areas. Further, the circumstance of having the social ventures acting at a local or regional level seems to be strongly associated with the possibility of using crowdfunding for financing social projects.

Civic Participation and Social Embeddedness: Differences Between Urban and Rural Communities

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-67
Author(s):  
Tuuli-Marja Kleiner
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
Social Embeddedness ◽  
The Social ◽  
Multi Level

Does civic participation lead to a large social network? This study claims that high levels of civic participation may obstruct individual social embeddedness. Using survey data from the German Survey on Volunteering (Deutscher Freiwilligensurvey; 1999–2009), this study conducts macro- as well as multi-level regressions to examine the link between civic participation and social embeddedness. Findings reveal that civic participation on the sub-national regional level is not generally associated with social embeddedness, but it affects the participants’ and non-participants’ possibilities for friendships differently. This holds especially true in urban areas, but the effect cannot be found in rural areas. The analysis has implications for further research to enhance the social embeddedness of the excluded.

The Role of the Medial Prefrontal Cortex in Moderating Neural Representations of Self and Other in Primates

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Masaki Isoda
Keyword(s):  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Medial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Annual Review ◽  
Publication Date ◽  
Self And Other ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
The Social

As a frontal node in the primate social brain, the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) plays a critical role in coordinating one's own behavior with respect to that of others. Current literature demonstrates that single neurons in the MPFC encode behavior-related variables such as intentions, actions, and rewards, specifically for self and other, and that the MPFC comes into play when reflecting upon oneself and others. The social moderator account of MPFC function can explain maladaptive social cognition in people with autism spectrum disorder, which tips the balance in favor of self-centered perspectives rather than taking into consideration the perspective of others. Several strands of evidence suggest a hypothesis that the MPFC represents different other mental models, depending on the context at hand, to better predict others’ emotions and behaviors. This hypothesis also accounts for aberrant MPFC activity in autistic individuals while they are mentalizing others. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Neuroscience, Volume 44 is July 2021. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

Social Well-Being of the Elderly During the Period of Self-Isolation

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 33-40
Author(s):  
D.A. Bistiakina ◽  
◽  
T.V. Soloveva ◽  
E.G. Pankova ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
War Veterans ◽  
Social Organizations ◽  
The Social ◽  
Scientific Project ◽  
Coronavirus Infection

the article presents the results of the author’s research carried out within the framework of the scientific project “Transforming the social well-being of war veterans in the context of Russian transformations at the regional level”, analyzing the social well-being of older people during the period of the introduction of the forced self-isolation regime due to the danger of the spread of coronavirus infection. The role of state and public social organizations in mitigating the consequences of forced self-isolation of older people is revealed.

scholarly journals Faith Effect and Voice on Early Marriage in a Nigerian State

SAGE Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 215824402091951
Author(s):  
Jimoh Amzat
Keyword(s):  
Adolescent Girls ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Early Marriage ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Faith Leaders ◽  
The Social ◽  
Key Informant ◽  
Second Category ◽  
Depth Interviews

The rate of early marriage is 87% in northwest Nigeria, although it is 56% in Kaduna. One major issue is that early marriage is often rationalized as a religious norm. This study explores the role of faith leaders in advancing the cause of adolescent girls regarding the timing of marriage in Kaduna state. This qualitative study took place in three local government areas: Chikun (Mixed Christians and Muslims), Makarfi (majority Muslims), and Zangon-Kataf (majority Christians) were purposively selected to have a variety of mixed religious contexts. Using purposive sampling methods, the researcher conducted 24 focus group discussions with adolescent girls, 24 in-depth interviews with faith leaders, and 12 key informant interviews with other stakeholders. The study used a framework method for analyzing qualitative data. The study found that faith leaders play essential roles in rationalizing or discouraging early marriage through preaching and other activities. The study identifies three categories of faith leaders concerning early marriage. Some are proactive, discoursing about it. The second category is the passive faith leaders, somehow indifferent but has never preached against or in favor of early marriage. The last set consists of faith leaders promoting early marriage—who think early marriage is still beneficial. The study recommends that considering the social position of faith leaders and critical role in sanctioning marital unions, they could be considered as a vital link in efforts to curtail early marriage.

The Role of Social Networking in Capital Sourcing

2019 ◽  
pp. 097215091986886 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ameeta Jaiswal-Dale ◽  
Fanny Simon-Lee ◽  
Giovanna Zanotti ◽  
Peter Cincinelli
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Centrality Measures ◽  
Spontaneous Growth ◽  
Empirical Results ◽  
Road Map ◽  
The Social

The aim of this research is to apply the tool of social network analysis to situations in capital sourcing, including early stage financing. The study is conducted within the social network of Medical Alley Association of Minnesota (MAA). We investigate the correlation between the main centrality measures: closeness, degree and betweenness, and the amount of funding received by the 163 MAA members during 2009–2012. Companies benefit from their social network to get access to better financing. The empirical results also provide a road map to encourage the sponsored or spontaneous growth of other social networks in related fields. Despite the financial crisis, the empirical results show how competition works when firms have established relations with others. Where an intersection occurs is merely an empirical curiosity and the causation resides in the intersection of relations. The relation that intersects on an organization determines the player’s competitive advantage.

scholarly journals Excessive Neutrophil Extracellular Trap Formation Aggravates Acute Myocardial Infarction Injury in Apolipoprotein E Deficiency Mice via the ROS-Dependent Pathway

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zheliang Zhou ◽  
Shuning Zhang ◽  
Suling Ding ◽  
Mieradilijiang Abudupataer ◽  
Zhiwei Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Myocardial Infarction ◽  
Apolipoprotein E ◽  
Myocardial Injury ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Neutrophil Extracellular Trap ◽  
Coronary Artery Ligation ◽  
Infarct Zone ◽  
Dependent Pathway

Genetically human apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε32 is associated with a decreased risk of ischemic heart disease. ApoE deficiency in mice impairs infarct healing after myocardial infarction (MI). After the ischemic injury, a large number of neutrophils are firstly recruited into the infarct zone and then degrade dead material and promote reparative phase transformation. The role of ApoE in inflammation response in the early stage of MI remains largely unclear. In this study, we investigated the effect of ApoE deficiency on neutrophils’ function and myocardial injury after myocardial infarction. By left coronary artery ligation in ApoE-/- and wild-type (WT) mice, we observed increased infarct size and neutrophil infiltration in ApoE-/- mice. Within the infarct zone, more neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) were observed in ApoE-/- mice, while increased ex vivo NET formation was detected in ApoE-/- mouse-derived neutrophils through the NADPH oxidase-ROS-dependent pathway. Suppressing overproduced NETs reduced myocardial injury in ApoE-/- mice after ligation. In general, our findings reveal a critical role of apolipoprotein E in regulating Ly6G+ neutrophil activation and NET formation, resulting in limiting myocardial injury after myocardial infarction. In such a process, apolipoprotein E regulates NET formation via the ROS-MAPK-MSK1 pathway.

How Social Ventures Grow: Understanding the Role of Philanthropic Grants in Scaling Social Entrepreneurship

2020 ◽  
pp. 000765032097343
Author(s):  
Saurabh A. Lall ◽  
Jacob Park
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Institutional Logics ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Debt Finance ◽  
Social Ventures

Although early-stage finance is critical to the growth of most ventures, it is even more important for social ventures as they face the challenges of balancing their social and commercial objectives. Drawing on institutional logics and signaling theory, this study uses a panel data set of 3,401 nascent social ventures to investigate the important role philanthropic grant funding plays in the organizational and financial development of social ventures. We find mixed results, with positive effects on employment and subsequent access to debt finance, but no effects on revenues and access to equity. Our findings connect these theories by suggesting philanthropic grants provide social ventures with flexibility to invest in human capital without pushing them to pursue short-term financial objectives, and that receiving a philanthropic grant provides a signal that is interpreted differently by debt and equity financiers. These findings are especially relevant as funders increasingly use grants to support social entrepreneurship.

scholarly journals Critical Role of Matrix Metalloproteinase 14 in Adipose Tissue Remodeling during Obesity

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Li ◽  
Yueshui Zhao ◽  
Chuan Chen ◽  
Li Yang ◽  
Hyun-ho Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adipose Tissue ◽  
Transgenic Mice ◽  
Matrix Metalloproteinase ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Metabolic Phenotype ◽  
Regulatory Function ◽  
Body Weights ◽  
Adipose Tissue Remodeling

ABSTRACT Fibrosis is recognized as the major pathological change in adipose tissue during the development of obesity. However, the detailed mechanisms governing the interactions between the fibrotic components and their modifiers remain largely unclear. Here, we reported that matrix metalloproteinase 14 (MMP14), a key pericellular collagenase, is dramatically upregulated in obese adipose tissue. We generated a doxycycline-inducible adipose tissue-specific MMP14 overexpression model to study its regulatory function. We found that overexpression of MMP14 in the established obese adipose tissue leads to enlarged adipocytes and increased body weights in transgenic mice. Furthermore, the mice exhibited decreased energy expenditure, impaired lipid metabolism, and insulin resistance. Mechanistically, we found that MMP14 digests collagen 6α3 to produce endotrophin, a potent costimulator of fibrosis and inflammation. Unexpectedly, when overexpressing MMP14 in the early-stage obese adipose tissue, the transgenic mice showed a healthier metabolic profile, including ameliorated fibrosis and inflammation, as well as improved lipid and glucose metabolism. This unique metabolic phenotype is likely due to digestion/modification of the dense adipose tissue extracellular matrix by MMP14, thereby releasing the mechanical stress to allow for its healthy expansion. Understanding these dichotomous impacts of MMP14 provides novel insights into strategies to treat obesity-related metabolic disorders.

COUNSELLING ENTREPRENEURS AS RESOURCES IN REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1997 ◽  
Vol 05 (04) ◽  
pp. 447-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
GEOFFREY G. MEREDITH ◽  
DENNIS HOWARD
Keyword(s):  
Regional Development ◽  
Small Towns ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
Small Enterprise ◽  
Enterprise Development ◽  
Regional Economic ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Regional Enterprise ◽  
Intense Research

Regional economic or regional enterprise development has been subject to intense research by economists, planners, enterprise specialists and policy specialists for decades. The paper examines various models for regional economic or regional enterprise development and focuses on small towns and communities as an essential component of development. The paper reviews the role of entrepreneurs in enterprise strategies linked to towns and communities and the origins of entrepreneurs and strategies that might be adopted at the regional level to provide support for the entrepreneurial event. The results of a field study of over three hundred Australian regional development centres small enterprise clients, the strategies of those centres impact on entrepreneurs, reveal that the proposed objectives were not achieved and the strategies were in retrospect questionable. The paper concludes with recommended strategies for practitioners and policy makers dedicated to regional development and recognising the role of entrepreneurs in that process.

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