AN AGENT-BASED APPROACH TO CONSUMER´S LAW DISPUTE RESOLUTION

The high cost incurred by the resolution of conflicts is largely affected by the existing adversarial nature of the construction industry along with the use of non-efficient dispute resolution methods in construction projects. This paper studies opinion dynamics in the negotiation of construction disputes while trying to understand the behavior and extremism of each contractual party. The developed model uses an agent-based approach to show how each agent’s attitude can influence the negotiation process when solving a dispute. It can also be used to highlight the importance of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) methods and the use of a mediator in helping parties initiate negotiation and decrease the number of negotiation cycles needed to converge. The results showed that negotiation is not only affected by the attitude and character of the agents involved but it is also influenced by the delivery method of the project and the level of intensity of each agent. It was found that when the project is delivered through an Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) method, parties are more flexible and cooperative and will reach agreement within few negotiation cycles.

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Total etch dentin bonding systems: scanning electron microscopy of the resin-dentin hybrid layer

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100130092 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 50 (2) ◽

pp. 1092-1093

Author(s):

Jorge Perdigao

Keyword(s):

Composite Resin ◽

Mechanical Interlocking ◽

Hybrid Layer ◽

Agent Based ◽

Dentin Bonding ◽

Acid Agent ◽

Bond Strengths ◽

Main Component ◽

Bonding Systems ◽

New Generation

In 1955, Buonocore introduced the etching of enamel with phosphoric acid. Bonding to enamel was created by mechanical interlocking of resin tags with enamel prisms. Enamel is an inert tissue whose main component is hydroxyapatite (98% by weight). Conversely, dentin is a wet living tissue crossed by tubules containing cellular extensions of the dental pulp. Dentin consists of 18% of organic material, primarily collagen. Several generations of dentin bonding systems (DBS) have been studied in the last 20 years. The dentin bond strengths associated with these DBS have been constantly lower than the enamel bond strengths. Recently, a new generation of DBS has been described. They are applied in three steps: an acid agent on enamel and dentin (total etch technique), two mixed primers and a bonding agent based on a methacrylate resin. They are supposed to bond composite resin to wet dentin through dentin organic component, forming a peculiar blended structure that is part tooth and part resin: the hybrid layer.

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