Actively Open-Minded Thinking, Bullshit Receptivity, and Susceptibility to Framing: Evaluating the Dual-Process Account in North America and Bulgaria

The framing effect occurs when different presentations of the same problem lead to predictably different preferences. The dual-process framework of higher cognition assumes that the effect violates rational principles, but alternative accounts and recent evidence have contested this interpretation. Contributing to this debate, we tested the dual-process assumption by investigating associations between susceptibility to framing and the willingness and ability to think in line with rational norms, conceptualized as actively open-minded thinking and pseudo-profound bullshit receptivity. We conducted two online studies among North American (N = 259) and Bulgarian (N = 248) university students and administered several framing problems within subjects, presumably a necessary condition for the associations to appear. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that susceptibility to framing was associated with decreased actively open-minded thinking and increased bullshit receptivity in both sites. Exploratory multi-group analyses demonstrated partial strong invariance and showed that the findings generalize across both sites in terms of direction and partially in terms of magnitude. These results broadly support the dual-process account of the framing effect. Our study further contributes to adapting existing measures to a novel setting and expanding the findings across borders and populations.

Smallholders Perception on Mutation Breeding's Muna Teak Demonstration Plot in Cariu Private Forest

Teak wood is the superior wood for carpentry, and the need for carpentry continues to increase in Indonesia. It has prompted various efforts to increase teak production, both in state forests and non-state forests. One of the efforts to increase teak production is using advanced science and technology, superior teak seedlings from mutation breeding. This study aims to describe smallholder's perception of the demonstration plot of Muna Teak from mutation breeding in the Cariu Private Forest, Bogor Regency. The research used two methods: Focused Group Discussion and semi-structured interviews by questionnaires. For the analysis, the study used the perceptual process framework) to explore the data from the two methods and present it descriptively. The result shows that smallholders had a good perception toward the mutation breeding Muna Teak demonstration plot. Smallholders can carry out intercropping (agroforestry) activities in the demonstration plot and increase their knowledge of forestry plant cultivation, especially teak. The activity provides an opportunity for smallholders to improve their welfare.

Recovery after stroke: the severely impaired are a distinct group

IntroductionStroke causes different levels of impairment and the degree of recovery varies greatly between patients. The majority of recovery studies are biased towards patients with mild-to-moderate impairments, challenging a unified recovery process framework. Our aim was to develop a statistical framework to analyse recovery patterns in patients with severe and non-severe initial impairment and concurrently investigate whether they recovered differently.MethodsWe designed a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate 3–6 months upper limb Fugl-Meyer (FM) scores after stroke. When focusing on the explanation of recovery patterns, we addressed confounds affecting previous recovery studies and considered patients with FM-initial scores <45 only. We systematically explored different FM-breakpoints between severe/non-severe patients (FM-initial=5–30). In model comparisons, we evaluated whether impairment-level-specific recovery patterns indeed existed. Finally, we estimated the out-of-sample prediction performance for patients across the entire initial impairment range.ResultsRecovery data was assembled from eight patient cohorts (n=489). Data were best modelled by incorporating two subgroups (breakpoint: FM-initial=10). Both subgroups recovered a comparable constant amount, but with different proportional components: severely affected patients recovered more the smaller their impairment, while non-severely affected patients recovered more the larger their initial impairment. Prediction of 3–6 months outcomes could be done with an R2=63.5% (95% CI=51.4% to 75.5%).ConclusionsOur work highlights the benefit of simultaneously modelling recovery of severely-to-non-severely impaired patients and demonstrates both shared and distinct recovery patterns. Our findings provide evidence that the severe/non-severe subdivision in recovery modelling is not an artefact of previous confounds. The presented out-of-sample prediction performance may serve as benchmark to evaluate promising biomarkers of stroke recovery.

Digital servitization strategies for SME internationalization: the interplay between digital service maturity and ecosystem involvement

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to understand how digital servitization enables the process of internationalization for industrial SMEs.Design/methodology/approachThe present study has adopted an exploratory multiple case study, conducting a total of 40 interviews in a two-phased approach to data collection. The first phase consisted of exploratory interviews with twenty-six industrial SMEs connected to the manufacturing industry in Sweden and Finland. Then, six SMEs were selected in the second phase to participate in additional in-depth interviews.FindingsFirst, this study identifies three gradual enabling phases concerned with the digital service maturity of SMEs consisting of digital awareness, digital service innovation and digital service mass customization. Second, the three interdependent phases of ecosystem knowledge synergy, ecosystem integration and ecosystem value co-creation were identified to improve ecosystem involvement. Finally, a process framework has been developed for SME internationalization consisting of a digital servitization innovation strategy, a digital servitization ecosystem strategy and a digital servitization scaling strategy.Originality/valueThe present research contributes to how digital servitization enables SME internationalization by demonstrating how the development of digital service offerings and ecosystem partnerships supports the internationalization process. This research extends the literature by proposing a process framework for the digital-servitization-enabled internationalization of SMEs. This process perspective provides a richer explanation of the complex interplay between servitization, digitalization and ecosystems choices, which supports the expansion into international markets.

Evaluation of Calcium Aluminate Slags and Pig Irons Produced from the Smelting-Reduction of Diasporic Bauxite

This work evaluates the characteristics of calcium aluminate slag and pig iron samples obtained from the smelting of calcined and reduced diasporic bauxite ore. The study is conducted in the Pedersen process framework, which is a method to produce alumina from low-grade resources. Parameters such as the effect of crucible type, lime addition, and atmospheric conditions are studied considering the characteristics of the product pig irons and calcium aluminate slags for further uses. The behavior of the bauxite and distribution of the species between slag and metal was assessed based on the applied analytical techniques and thermodynamic calculations. Iron was reduced and separated from the slags in the presence of carbon (graphite crucible) for both the reduced and calcined bauxite. Si and Ti were mainly concentrated in the slags. Iron was separated from the slag in the absence of carbon (alumina crucible) for the H2-reduced bauxite. The results show that slags with increased lime additions are composed mainly of 5CaO.Al2O3 and CaO.Al2O3, that are considered highly leachable compounds. An optimum CaO/Al2O3 mass ratio of 1.12 was suggested. The presence of O2 and/or OH- in the furnace atmosphere will result in the formation of 12CaO.7Al2O3.

Pandemic spread in communities via random graphs

Working in the multi-type Galton–Watson branching-process framework we analyse the spread of a pandemic via a general multi-type random contact graph. Our model consists of several communities, and takes, as input, parameters that outline the contacts between individuals in distinct communities. Given these parameters, we determine whether there will be an outbreak and if yes, we calculate the size of the giant-connected-component of the graph, thereby, determining the fraction of the population of each type that would be infected before it ends. We show that the pandemic spread has a natural evolution direction given by the Perron–Frobenius eigenvector of a matrix whose entries encode the average number of individuals of one type expected to be infected by an individual of another type. The corresponding eigenvalue is the basic reproduction number of the pandemic. We perform numerical simulations that compare homogeneous and heterogeneous spread graphs and quantify the difference between them. We elaborate on the difference between herd immunity and the end of the pandemic and the effect of countermeasures on the fraction of infected population.