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The multi-objective optimisation of high-speed rail profile with small radius curve is studied in the paper. A multi-objective mathematical model for rail profile optimisation of high-speed railway is established. The CN60 rail profile is parameterised into a series of generalised functions of design variables. In order to guarantee the smoothness of the rail profile and meet the maximum grinding depth of rail in China, the constraints are employed. The wheel-rail vertical clearance and equivalent conicity of wheelset are taken as objective functions, and a rail wear prediction programme is compiled. Contact line method is employed to complete the detection algorithm of wheel-rail contact points. Finally, NSGA-II Algorithm is adopted to solve the Pareto-optimal front of the optimisation model. A set of solutions are retrieved from the Pareto optimal front solution as the optimised profile. The optimised rail profile and the original rail profile are matched with the LMA wheel profile (a certain worn type of wheel profiles for EMU in China) respectively. It is testified that the rail profile could effectively reduce the rail wear and improve curving performance. The new method proposed in this paper can provide some reference for the optimisation design of high-speed rail profile with small radius curve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the crude oil procurement practices of Chinese oil refineries to suggest improved procurement policies that can reduce the cost associated with fluctuating oil prices in the international spot market. In the industrial environment, the purchase price of crude oil is based on the spot price at the time of delivery rather than that at the time of ordering. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop a procurement model that factors in the spot prices at both the time of ordering and the time of delivery so that the total procurement cost can be minimised over the planning horizon. First, the shortcomings of the current procurement policy of a typical Chinese refinery are presented. A model to address these shortcomings is then developed and embellished by incorporating market information dynamics through Bayesian learning. The effectiveness of the proposed models is compared with the current practice using the historical spot price data of crude oil from two representative spot markets; this comparison verifies that the model with Bayesian sampling performs well empirically and can result in considerable cost savings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the underlying mechanism of the community climate on knowledge-sharing intention in virtual communities. Based on social cognitive theory, a theoretical model was developed and empirically tested using a web-based survey of 525 members from an online question and answer (Q&A) community in China. Results showed that knowledge-sharing self-efficacy and outcome expectation played a chain mediation role in the relationship between the community climate and knowledge-sharing intention. This study is among the first to examine whether and how community climate influences knowledge sharing. Our research findings unpack the mechanism of the community climate on knowledge-sharing intention, and provide practical insights on how to use community climate to facilitate users to share knowledge in online Q&A communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increased popularity of mobile learning, there is a growing demand on the understanding of how the scalable technology, such as mobile devices, influences individual learning behaviours as well as their learning outcome. A theoretical model was built based on the adaptive structuration theory (AST) and the knowledge spiral theory. Using this model, we examined the relationship between structural sources, individuals' adaptive structural behaviours, and their perceived learning. A Structural Equation Modeling method was employed in our empirical study. Findings indicate that users' task adaptation had a positive influence on their perceived learning, In addition, their exploitive technology adaptation influenced the ultimate perceived learning, but the impact of users' exploratory technology adaptation on learning was mediated by their task adaptation. Contrary to expectations, the effect of computer self-efficacy on exploitive and exploratory technology adaptation was negative, and exploratory technology adaptation negatively affected exploitive task adaptation. A detailed discussion of the findings and implications are provided in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper reports on a research study that aims to identify and explain barriers to knowledge sharing (KS) in the provision of healthcare referral services in Chinese healthcare organisations. Design: An inductive case study approach was employed, in which 24 healthcare professionals and workers from four healthcare organisations in the province of Hubei, Central China, were interviewed using semi-structured scripts. Results: Through data analysis, 14 KS barriers emerged in four main themes: interpersonal trust barriers, communication barriers, management and leadership barriers, and inter-institutional barriers. A cause-consequence analysis of the identified barriers revealed that three of them are at the core of the majority of problems, namely, the absence of national and local policies for inter-hospital KS, lack of a specific hospital KS requirement, and lack of mutual acquaintance. Conclusions: To resolve KS problems, it is of great importance that healthcare governance agencies, both at the national and regional levels, take leadership in the process of KS implementation by establishing specific and strong policies for inter-institutional KS in the referral process. This paper raises important issues that exceed academic interests and are important to healthcare professionals, hospital managers, and Information communication technology (ICT) managers in hospitals, as well as healthcare politicians and policy makers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scarlet fever is an acute respiratory infectious disease and the incidence rate is increasing from 2011 throughout the world. In this paper, the mathematical models are proposed, which incorporate both direct transmissions and indirect transmissions of scarlet fever. The threshold conditions for disease invasion are obtained in terms of the basic reproduction number. The peak value, final size and epidemic time in a seasonal prevalence are investigated numerically. Furthermore, the effects of seasonal fluctuations on disease outbreak are also studied on the basis of real data in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic dishonesty has remained high in Chinese college students. We examined Chinese college senior students' everyday academic practices, especially academic dishonesty, considering the contextual changes inside and outside higher learning settings in China. Data were collected from 120 college seniors from four universities and were analyzed using a qualitative content-based exploratory approach in NVivo 10. Three themes were identified, including college seniors' perceptions of academic dishonesty, contextual influences on academic dishonesty, and seniors' personal attitudes about academic misconduct. Interview results indicated that the contextual changes have reduced cheating both at the national level and at the college level; however, some contextual factors stubbornly remain unchanged, suggesting that the current, contextual climate on and beyond the Chinese college campuses should be restructured, not necessarily exclusively using top-down approaches. A theoretical model was provided to illustrate mechanisms associated with these students' academic misconduct. Suggestions are discussed regarding future research and implications made for university personnel practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops a mathematical model to calculate the average waiting time for passengers transferring from rail transit to buses based on the statistical analysis of primary data collected in Beijing. An important part of the average waiting time modelling is to analyse the distributions of passenger arrival rates. It is shown that the lognormal and gamma distributions have the best fit for direct transfer and non-direct transfer passengers, respectively. Subsequently, an average waiting time model for transferring passengers is developed based on passenger arrival rate distributions. Furthermore, case studies are conducted for two scenarios with real and estimated data, resulting in relative errors of −3.69% and −3.77%, respectively. Finally, the paper analyses the impacts of bus headway, the headway of rail cars, and the proportion of direct transfer passengers on average waiting time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a moderated mediation model based on deontic justice theory to investigate the impact of unethical peer behavior on employee performance. Data were collected in China through two survey studies, with two measurement points (separated by approximately 3 weeks) in each study. The data in study 1 were obtained from 271 employees of 17 firms, and the data in study 2 were collected from 225 employees of 9 firms. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to confirm the factorial validity of the measures employed in the studies. The hypothesized moderated mediation model was tested using hierarchical multiple regression analysis. The results show that employee deontic justice mediates the negative relationship between unethical peer behavior and employee performance, and a stronger ethical climate tends to strengthen this indirect relationship. This study extends previous research by introducing deontic justice theory to explore the unconscious process that relates unethical peer behavior to employee performance. The theoretical and practical implications of this paper are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the effects of capital openness on financial crises and contagion. In the model, we analyze four channels of contagion involved in the process of financial crisis: monsoon effects, spillovers, self-fulfilling expectations and new information. We empirically test the data from China, an economy with capital account controls, and find that the fundamentals of China (PRC) are now in a vulnerable area which yields multiple equilibria. Consequently, the Chinese economy is easily affected via the channels discussed in this paper. Finally we suggest that the capital account of China should be opened gradually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an input–output based methodology – structural decomposition analysis (SDA) plus linkage analysis, for identifying the key factors and sectors that affected production-source CO2emissions in China. The proposed methodology extends the SDA to account for the import substitution effect within an open economy such as China and incorporates the emission linkage by which the effect of the input mix on CO2emissions can be understood in depth. Empirical results indicate that, between 2005 and 2010, improving emission intensity and input intensity had helped to reduce CO2emissions; meanwhile, capital investment explained the majority of the increases in CO2emissions brought about by final demand, and import substitution was also observed to increase CO2emissions. Moreover, nine key emission sectors have been identified, and in this regard, domestic inputs became more CO2-intensive in 2010 than it was in 2005. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In the past decade, Beijing has experienced dramatic spatial restructuring. In this paper, we test whether the conventional monocentric model of urban spatial structure can explain recent developments in Beijing's land market. Using official land transaction data from 2008 through 2012, we find that (1) for commercial, mixed-use, and residential land parcels, both land prices and development intensities do not decline with distance from the urban center; (2) for industrial land parcels, land prices increase with distance from the urban center. These insignificant and positive land-price gradients defy the predictions of the monocentric model; such results are explained by examining Beijing's evolution from a monocentric to a polycentric spatial configuration, which has been driven by various urban planning efforts and institutional reforms. Our analysis of post-Olympic Beijing land market dynamics leads to a fresh understanding of the city's emerging polycentric metropolitan structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After being abolished for over three decades, the spring of social work in China finally arrived in the early 1990s. Recognizing that the contribution of social work can make for the building of a socialist harmonious society, the Chinese government is dedicated to building a grand team of social workers in China. By 2020, there will be three million social workers to serve society. While celebrating the arrival of this new era for social work, concerned parties dare not underestimate the difficulties they will encounter in this immensely challenging mission. This paper describes the road leading to the arrival of the spring of social work in China with special focus on the challenges that threaten the accomplishment of this mission. A consortium cum collaboration model in which the quadruple-partnership (government, schools of social work, NGOs and other related institutions/individuals) for the promotion of a tri-foci development (service, education and research) in China is proposed as one way of addressing the challenges. With a healthy and balanced development of social work, a harmonious, humane and just society may arrive soon. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, a discrete mathematical model is formulated to describe tuberculosis (TB) progression from latent infection to active disease. The data of national TB epidemiology surveys in China are taken to estimate the TB progression rate for children aged 0–14 years. The progression rate obtained in this paper gives a detailed and better estimate of TB progression rate among children. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Through research on the gravity model, the paper studies the geometric characteristics of urban influence domain and the principles for the change of urban influence domain along with the evolution of distance decay index, calculates the distribution of the gravitational field by using ARCGIS, establishes a spatial cluster system for the megalopolis in china, delineates urban influence domains by dissolving spatial features, and compartmentalizes China into 13 economic regions based on the megalopolis clusters and urban influence domains combining with the physical and economic locations. Major conclusions are: the distribution of urban gravitational field is the manifestation of regional unbalanced development; the spatial structure and characteristic of urban system can be studied through the distribution situation of urban gravitational field; the urban influence domains in China have not formed the mosaic structure of a standard regular hexagon; the economic region with weak urban gravitational field may be compressed by the region with stronger urban gravitational field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim: Even though the beneficial effects of elderly learning are widely acknowledged, many older Chinese people are still not involved. This paper aims to examine the barriers that affect the level of educational participation of older adults in China. Methodology: Using a focus group methodology, 43 older participants (aged 55 years and over) were assigned to five focus groups based on gender and (in)activity rate in Xi’an, China. The focus groups were conducted to identify the individual learning experiences including motivation, learning preferences, and, especially, participation barriers between older adults who have already participated in the Universities of the Third Age (U3As) and others who have not. Strategies to overcome or minimize these barriers were also raised in focus group interviews. Results: The results have demonstrated that barriers associated with situational factors were reported the most; informational barriers and dispositional barriers were perceived as the least obstructive. The active group was characterized by a more optimistic mood in dealing with these learning barriers. The study also suggests that the Selective Optimisation with Compensation Model of successful ageing can be useful in explaining older adults’ strategy for coping with the barriers. Conclusion: The findings of the study provide policy makers and U3A practitioners an insight into the barriers to educational participation. These findings provide input to develop targeted intervention strategies and tailor-made measures to reduce these constraints and increase participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teachers are considered to be one of the most important influences in the lives of students. Teachers' assessments of students may be a primary source of information on children's mental and behavioral health; however, this topic has received little attention in research. We examined this issue through linking teachers' ratings of students and mental and behavioral outcomes of children affected by HIV. The hypothesis is that teacher ratings will be predictive of specific child mental and behavioral health outcomes. A quantitative cross-sectional design with self-administered paper-and-pencil instruments was used. The sample included 1221 children (aged 6–18, grades 1–11) affected by HIV including 755 orphans who lost one or both parents to AIDS and 466 vulnerable children living with HIV-infected parents in a central province of China. The corresponding teacher sample included 185 participants. Each child completed an assessment inventory of demographic information and mental and behavioral health measures. Teachers completed a questionnaire about children's school performance. SEM analyses revealed a good model fit according to all fit indices: comparative fit index = 0.93, root mean square error of approximation = 0.07, and standardized root mean square residual = 0.04. Structural equation modeling revealed that problem ratings by teachers were positively associated with child loneliness and behavioral problems, social competence ratings by teachers were negatively related to child depression, and personal growth and social interaction ratings by teachers were negatively related to child loneliness, depression, and trauma. The current study represents a unique contribution to the field in that it recognizes that teachers can be a valuable source of information on children's psychological health. Results from this study have implications for health prevention and intervention for children and families suffering from HIV/AIDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China is undergoing a transition from offline to online advertising, but little is known about the causal relationship regarding credibility transfer from non-web advertising to web advertising. Meanwhile, web advertising usage behaviour is largely overlooked. The purpose of this study is to explore the formation of customers' attitude towards web advertising (ATT) which further impacts their online information acquisition behaviour, from the perspectives of advertising value and credibility transfer. This paper develops a research model drawing upon advertising value, credibility transfer, ATT and tie. Data collected from Chinese online shopping customers were used to test the model. The results indicate that perceived informativeness, perceived entertainment and credibility contribute to the formation of ATT, which further impacts web advertising usage for getting information. Meanwhile, tie positively moderates the credibility transfer from non-web advertising to web advertising. These findings and their implications for theory and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Web accessibility can help reduce the digital divide between persons with disabilities and the web by providing easy access to information on the Internet. Providing web accessibility can be an important element that manifests a firm's corporate social responsibility (CSR) and employees can play a vital role in this process. This paper examines how employees can impact a firm's decision to fulfil their CSR regarding web accessibility. We propose that employees’ intention to exert pressure on a firm is primarily influenced by three psychological needs, namely need for control, need for belonging, and need for meaningful existence. Additionally, perceived importance of CSR moderates the relationship between need for meaningful existence and intention. We empirically test the research model using data collected from 106 Chinese employees. The results suggest that for employees to pressure their firms to improve the accessibility of their websites, it is imperative to enhance their perceived importance of web accessibility, and their need for belonging and for a meaningful existence. We present the theoretical and managerial implications arising from our findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the contribution of multinational R&D activity in China within an evolving policy environment which increasingly emphasizes indigenous innovation and the reduction of dependence on foreign sources of technology. This drive to ensure the development of Chinese-owned technology in the medium term is an understandable attempt by China to move up the value chain from being a major low-cost manufacturing node within global production networks and develop a more sustainable economic model. On the basis of considerable field investigations of multinational R&D centres in Shanghai, consideration is given to both the contribution of this activity to innovation and the implications for it arising from indigenous innovation policy. Will there be unintended consequences arising from a policy which uses market access and public procurement to capture elements of global R&D activity within China's territory? [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study is the first to examine the role of partner type in sexual practices of men who have sex with men (MSM) in China. Using cross-sectional self-administered questionnaires (N=692) with MSM in six Chinese cities (Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xi'an, Dalian and Beijing) in 2008, this paper examines MSM's sexual practices, particularly condom use with different male and female partner types. We categorise sexual partner relationships into five types: partner/spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend, acquaintance, stranger and sex worker and hypothesise that the greater the affective distance between the partners, the greater the likelihood of engaging with intimate act and the lesser likelihood condom use. Results show that respondents had more MSM than heterosexual experiences. Relationships tended to be short-term, multiple (more than two) and concurrent (simultaneously two or more) principally with other men and to a lesser degree with women. Findings reveal that affective distance varied with partner types. Respondents performed more intimate acts (e.g., kissing, caressing) with intimate or stable partners (partner/spouse, boyfriend/girlfriend) than casual or unknown partners (acquaintance, stranger, sex worker). Condom use decreased when the affective distance with a partner increased. We conclude that partner type is a key factor of HIV infection among MSM in China; short-term, multiple and concurrent relationships are clear risk factors. Future research should focus on the subjective varied meanings of relationships, the idea of trust and the dynamics with different relationships to understand HIV infection of MSM in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enterprise bankruptcy forecasting is vital to manage credit risk, which can be solved through classifying method. There are three typical classifying methods to forecast enterprise bankruptcy: the statistics method, the Artificial Neural Network method and the kernel-based learning method. The paper introduces the first two methods briefly, and then introduces Support Vector Machine (SVM) of the kernel-based learning method, and lastly compares the bankruptcy forecasting accuracies of the three methods by building the corresponding models with the data of China's stock exchange data. From the positive analysis, we can draw a conclusion that the SVM method has a higher adaptability and precision to forecast enterprise bankruptcy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zhejiang Province, as a major province of economic strength in China, has economically well-developed coastal areas, which are heavily damaged during landfall typhoons. In this paper, typhoons that could cause serious damages to Zhejiang Province will be labeled as “disastrous typhoons,” and the corresponding wind velocities will be labeled as “disastrous wind velocities.” It is suggested that typhoons exceeding certain threshold-values be selected as samples for calculation, and this method is called threshold-value sampling. According to the typhoon measurement data and by using the P-III distribution function, the disastrous wind velocity of certain recurrence interval in typhoon-resistant and engineering design projects was calculated. The calculation results show that the disastrous wind velocity of the largest landfall typhoon of coastal areas for the next 10 years is 41.8 m/s, the disastrous wind velocity in the next 50 years is 49.7 m/s, and 52.9 m/s in the next 100 years. It can be seen at the same time that the wind velocity calculated by the P-III distribution model is more similar to the actual conditions compared to the wind velocity calculated by the Weibull distribution model. This method is conceptually clear, easy to use, and generates ideal results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the role of direct real estate investment and securitised properties in a multi-asset portfolio with financial assets available in Hong Kong, in a variety of time horizons. Grounded on the mean-variance framework within the Modern Portfolio Theory, the study extends it by deploying the Exponentially Weighted Moving Average (EWMA) technique to estimate the variance and covariance, which reduces estimation errors, owed to the lack of 'dynamic update' capabilities in the standard model. Additionally, a constraint on the allocation to direct real estate investment is imposed in the portfolio optimisation problem to examine how percentage changes in the allocation to real properties affect the return and risk of the optimal portfolio. The experimental results show that the private domestic plays a more important role than property stocks in an optimal multi-asset portfolio, in all time horizons, with allocation ranging from 23-27%. Also, for an optimal portfolio with shorter time horizons, lesser-value direct real estate (Class A/B) tends to be included, while luxury property investment is the main asset for portfolios with longer time horizons. This proffers some implications for fund managers in Hong Kong in the management of portfolio investment when real estate is involved, subject to various levels of returns, risks and longevity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of enhancing the manufacturing abilities of Chinese small- and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (SMMEs), the present paper reports on a framework of order evaluation and negotiation of collaborative manufacturing for SMMEs in networked manufacturing environments. First, the background and problem domain are introduced. Then the information required to evaluate and negotiate orders is examined in a collaborative manufacturing process. Based on this information, a framework of order evaluation is built on the profit and due date, and then an order negotiation model framework, combined with an order evaluation model, is also presented. At the same time, a standardized negotiation process is described in more detail. Finally, a case study is presented to illustrate how business-to-business SMMEs evaluate and negotiate an order with a business-to-customer SMME to obtain the best profit-due date trade-off. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fluvial processes are considerably complicated in the braided reach of the Lower Yellow River; and the lateral or transverse channel deformation process is especially pronounced. The state-of-the-art of simulation techniques for the channel deformation in the Lower Yellow River was analyzed in this paper, and such a conclusion was drawn that existing mathematical alluvial models only can simulate the longitudinal channel deformation and cannot simulate such the lateral deformation as lateral erosion and failure of bank. Then a new two-dimensional (2D) composite model was developed herein, consisting of a 2D flow and sediment transport submodel and a riverbank-erosion submodel. This model not only can simulate the longitudinal and lateral channel deformations, but also can be used to simulate the fluvial processes of natural alluvial rivers with complex bed morphology. Through using the proposed composite model, the flood routing and channel deformation processes during the August 1982 flood were simulated. The maximum stage along the reach and the discharge hydrograph at the outlet so obtained were in good agreement with the observed data. Simulated results of the channel deformation processes showed that during the flood season, the main channel scours and the flood plain deposits; during the dry season, the main channel deposits and banks of the floodplain retreat due to lateral erosion by the flow and failure under gravity. Such results accord with the annual varying law of bed scouring and deposition in the braided reach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preventive maintenance (PM) has long been recognized as a method to increase equipment reliability and availability. However, for equipment in complex plant installations like toll road/tunnel systems, to carry out PM on all components may not be feasible, or, may end up with excessive maintenance costs. This paper describes how a risk-based maintenance management model was formulated to systematically prioritize PM activities. The model was based on the five core elements of the risk management process (RMP): identification, measurement, assessment, valuation, and control and monitoring. This model was applied to a toll road/tunnel company in Hong Kong to enhance the PM operations of its lighting system. The improvements recommended in this case study show that the application of RMP in preventive maintenance could effectively identify and assess potential risks for equipment and facilities. The RMP results provide quantified information for decision-makers to select the best course of actions for implementing a more cost-effective risk-based PM system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pervasive social networking sites (SNSs) access has forced people to pay continuous attention to the overwhelming volume of information which ultimately increases their usage. The extensive use of SNSs has contributed to the overuse of technology and that can lead to overload which may produce negative behavioural consequences. This study used cognitive load theory as foundation of the model to examine the effect of overloads and discontinuous intentions incorporating SNS addiction, social media self-efficacy and SNS fatigue. To test the proposed model and hypothesis, a total of 371 Chinese university students participated in the study. Findings reveal that information and communication overload exert a direct impact on SNS addiction, and the relationship between SNS addiction and discontinuous intentions amongst users is negatively significant. The moderated mediation analysis result indicates that social media self-efficacy moderates the mediating effect of SNS addiction between overloads (information and communication) and discontinuous intentions. Moreover, the relationship between SNS addiction and discontinuous intentions is partially mediated by SNS fatigue. Implications emphasise that SNS providers should effectively prevent the negative behavioural response of SNS users by providing training on the effective use of SNSs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study measured the social participation score of the Chinese elderly, described its decayed trajectory based on birth cohort, and analyzed the gender differences of factors that affected the social participation of the elderly based on MIMIC model by groups. Results showed that age, economic status, and living status were the influencing factors with significant gender differences on social participation level of Chinese elderly. At any age, the social participation of Chinese elderly women was lower than that of elderly men, and this gap widened with age. Social participation of older women was more vulnerable to economic conditions. Living with children had a significant negative impact on the social participation of elderly women. There was no significant gender difference in the influence of marital status and educational level on the social participation of the elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leaders have been thought to play a vital role in influencing employees' unethical behavior. However, what happens to leaders and followers in the aftermath of unethical conduct has received little attention in the literature. Drawing from the correspondent inference theory, we examine the conditions under which leaders attribute their followers' unethical behavior to poor moral character and eventually assign them low performance ratings. Through a two-wave research design and data from 290 matched employee–leader dyads, we found that a leader is more likely to infer that a follower who has engaged in unethical behavior is of poor moral character when the leader has a higher moral identity, and the leader will impose lower performance ratings on this follower when the leader prefers lower moral decoupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has become pervasive in the contemporary world that organisations leverage crowdsourcing to solicit ideas or innovations from the public. However, challenges exist in how to design tasks in an appropriate way to stimulate crowdsourcees' investing more resources in crowdsourcing activities. Motivated thus, draw on the valence theory, we propose a model to explain the influence of task design characteristics on solvers' committed resources with the consideration of the mediating role of task difficulty-significance factors. The model was assessed by using data collected from 274 crowdsourcees on two large Chinese crowdsourcing platforms. As hypothesised, crowdsourcing type, deadline, task incentives and task volume are found to positively affect perceived task significance, whereas crowdsourcing type and deadline negatively impact perceived task difficulty, personality has an indirect impact on perceived task significance by effectively enhancing solvers' positive traits and alleviating their vulnerable attitudes. In addition, we find that perceived task significance partially mediates the effect of task design and committed resources, while perceived task difficulty mediates the associations between crowdsourcing type, deadline and committed resource. The theoretical contributions and practical implications are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rising popularity of SNS games, virtual goods are expected to generate revenue for game providers. However, previous findings may be at odds with changes in this new virtual environment, while some social platforms lack understanding of what motivates users to purchase virtual goods in SNS games either. Considering the social nature of SNS games, this study adopted the self-presentation theory to explore these factors. A conceptual model was proposed and subsequently empirically tested with 302 samples collected from the questionnaire survey. The results show that the desire for online self-presentation is significantly influenced by SNS games involvement, online self-presentation norms, interactivity, and perceived usability. The results also indicate that the effect of the desire for online self-presentation on intention to purchase virtual goods is significant. In addition, the moderated role of perceived usability on the relationship between interactivity and the desire for online self-presentation is established as well. Our findings contribute to the literature on SNS games as well as self-presentation. It also lends insights into how SNS providers can tap this source of revenue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintenance strategies are commonly used for repairable products or items to reduce the warranty cost in the warranty coverage. This study proposes a new warranty maintenance strategy for two-dimensional extended warranty (EW) based on dynamic usage rate. Unlike previous studies that assumed a constant usage rate, the present study regards the consumer usage rate as dynamic in the two-dimensional EW coverage. A maintenance model is constructed to determine the optimal maintenance degree of warranty claim points and help service providers accurately estimate and reduce warranty cost. A numerical example of an automobile made in China is discussed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model. The formulated model can effectively reflect the changes in the consumer usage rate and thus helps service providers develop an accurate maintenance strategy. Meanwhile, the developed model can better reduce warranty cost compared with maintenance strategies with minimal repair. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Great East Japan Earthquake and the subsequent tsunami that hit and severely damaged the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station resulted indirectly in the shutdown of most of the nuclear power plants in Japan. To compensate for the lost nuclear power supply, more fossil fuels were used. People became concerned that this could be disadvantageous for domestic manufacturing industries and accelerated their offshoring to Asia, especially China, through foreign direct investment (FDI). We used a world trade computable general equilibrium (CGE) model with endogenous FDI from Japan to China to quantify the impact of the power crisis on the Japanese manufacturing sectors. We found that the power crisis as well as FDI would adversely affect several sectors that use power intensively, but would benefit the transportation equipment (TEQ), electric equipment (EEQ) and machinery sectors, despite the common expectation that these sectors would undergo a so-called ‘hollowing-out.’ [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Innoculation of pneumococcal vaccines among the elderly is an effective public health policy to prevent pneumococcal diseases and it is widely promoted by many developed countries. The pneumococcal vaccination rate among the elderly in China was only 3.7% in 2019, it grew rapidly during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the psychological and demographic-economic factors related to the uptake behavior of pneumococcal vaccination among the Chinese elderly by using an integrated model based on the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), and knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP). The theoretical model was tested via structural equation modeling (SEM) with data collected from 516 Chinese older adults aged 60 years and older. Our results suggested that knowledge, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, attitude, and trust had a significant correlation with behavioral intention; behavioral intention and trust had a positive correlation with the uptake behavior, gender, and and education level and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exerted significant moderating effects. To increase the coverage of pneumococcal vaccination among the elderly, it is necessary to provide effective health education by authoritative experts, thereby enhancing their knowledge and positive attitude towardthe vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The saying "mental illness is like any other illness" has increasingly become pervasive in promoting mental health literacy among the public in China. This discourse is based on the fact that mental illness is attributed to primarily biogenetic causes. This study comprises an investigation of the impact of causal attributions of mental illness on the social withdrawal inclination of people with chronic mental illnesses (PCMIs) in China. Drawing on attribution theory and a sample of PCMIs, the current authors further question the effectiveness of biogenetic discourse to combat social stigma and to integrate PCMIs into society. In addition, in response to the proliferation of discussion on the digital inclusion of those with mental disabilities, this study constructs a structural model in which the varied effects of supportive communication are used as bridging factors, including face-to-face, telephonic and social media communication. The results indicate a stronger social withdrawal inclination when the PCMIs attributed their illnesses to biogenetic causes. In addition, biogenetic attribution was also found to potentially hinder the PCMIs from using the telephone and social media to seek supportive communication, while psychosocial attribution was found to have potential to combat PCMIs' social withdrawal inclination. In this vein, this study calls for further investigation on the conditional factors upon which digital inclusion might work for PCMIs in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies on education generally find that higher education has a positive impact on various aspects of life. Nevertheless, studies focused on elderly people and their psychosocial health and development seldom view higher education as an important factor. Our aim was to explore the relation between higher education and ego integrity, a measure based on Erikson's concept of psychological maturity in later life. We used four national samples of non-institutionalized elderly people from Cameroon (N = 238), China (N = 254), Czech Republic (N = 167), and Germany (N = 240). Relationships between ego integrity and several possible moderator variables were tested by multivariate regressions in each sample. Between-subject ANOVA was employed to test differences in ego integrity between university educated and non-university educated people. We found that ego integrity is affected by culture in interaction with gender and the level of education attained. University-educated people reported higher ego integrity than persons with lower education in three of four cultural samples, which suggests a relatively stable relationship between university education and ego integrity when controlling for gender, age, and working status. These findings highlight the importance of education in late adulthood. In terms of policies and practice, they underscore the importance of reduction of educational inequalities as well as desirability of improved access to higher education, expansion of opportunities for the achievement of complete education in later life, and facilitation and support of lifelong learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the influence of different emotions and social consensus on moral decision-making using a mixed 2 (emotion: positive, negative) × 2 (social consensus: high, low) experimental design. The results showed that the main effect of social consensus was significant: the moral decision-making level of participants under the condition of low social consensus was lower than that of participants under the condition of high social consensus, while no main effect of emotion emerged. Second, the results showed that emotion and social consensus have interactive effects on moral decision-making. When social consensus was high, there was no significant difference in moral decision-making between individuals with positive emotions and individuals with negative emotions. When social consensus was low, individuals with negative emotions were more likely to make immoral decisions than individuals with positive emotions. These results reveal that emotion and social consensus work together in affecting moral decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares the soft power capital and public diplonwcy strategies of Taiwan and the People's Republic of China. The premise is that Taiwan's international status and the absence of formal diplomatic recognition by major powers are a serious constraint on Taiwan's ability engage in meartingful outreach with the global community. The focus of the discussion is a paradox: Taiwan should be more successful at soft power since it is the personification of political values which should make it attractive to the liberal-democratic world; and yet the People's Republic of China - an authoritanan regime - is attracting far more attention and seems to possess and exercise far more soft power capital than Taiwan. This suggests that measurements of hard power and the models advanced by traditional approaches to international relations are more convincing ways to understand Taiwan's present predicament and its soft power. However, current strategies - operationalised by both Taiwan and the PRC ∼ enjoy limited success for different reasons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A generic system embodies basic principles and insights that are common to a set of diverse cases and situations. This paper presents a new generic system that we name the dynastic cycle structure. It is based on a stylized model of events from the Chinese history. The model describes resource allocation between social, asocial and control uses in political economies, markets and firms that experience cyclical behaviour and homeostasis symbolizing low levels of performance. Numerical simulations with the model are used to understand the internal dynamics and to test several policy scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban–rural divide becomes an obstacle to the development of e-government in China. This research devotes to promoting the adoption of e-government in China. It investigates the attitudes of urban residents versus rural residents toward e-government use in Chongqing, one of most important municipalities of China which is fraught with a serious urban–rural divide. A research model is created to assess the differences between urban and rural residents according to previous literatures and theories. A Structural Equation Model approach is employed to examine the research model. The survey data were collected from 596 urban residents and 477 rural residents in Chongqing. The results reveal that there are differences between urban and rural groups. Many enabling factors and inhibiting factors in previous studies, such as perceived behavioural control and resistance to change, can positively influence rural residents' intentions to use but fail to exert great effects on urban residents' motivations. Thus, it is necessary for government agencies in China to take actions based on those significant enabling factors and inhibiting factors to promote e-government acceptance. In addition, it is also necessary to conduct deeper research on e-government acceptance of urban residents in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gamification can be an effective mechanism of engaging individual users (i.e. solvers) in task solving on competitive crowdsourcing platforms. However, past literature lacks a nuanced understanding of how gamification elements can affect solvers' crowdsourcing behaviour via intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. We conceptualised two typical gamification elements (points and immediate performance feedback). Borrowing from self-determination theory, we modelled the effects of points and immediate performance feedback on both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations that, in turn, affect solvers' crowdsourcing participation. Using a survey data of 295 solvers from a large competitive crowdsourcing platform in China, we found that points are positively related to intrinsic and extrinsic motivations, while immediate performance feedback only enhances intrinsic motivation. Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations positively affect solvers' crowdsourcing participation. The findings of this study enrich our understanding of the mechanisms of the two gamification elements and provide practical insights on how to enhance solvers' participation in crowdsourcing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While previous research suggests that smartphone overuse relates to users' adverse health issues such as insomnia, nomophobia, and poor eyesight, few studies have explored the mediating role of such health issues in the relationship between smartphone overuse and academic performance. Guided by the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, this study develops a model to understand the relationships among students' smartphone overuse, health issues (i.e. insomnia, nomophobia, and poor eyesight), and academic performance. Moreover, we introduce a moderating role of health information literacy in the relationship between smartphone overuse and health issues. To validate the model, we collect representative data through a large-scale field survey at a public university in China. 6,855 valid responses are retained for data analysis using a structural equation modelling technique. The main results are: (1) health issues – insomnia, nomophobia, and poor eyesight – partially mediate the relationship between smartphone overuse and students' academic performance; (2) health information literacy can moderate the relationship between smartphone overuse and the health issues including insomnia and poor eyesight, while the relationship between smartphone overuse and nomophobia is not affected. Finally, we draw related theoretical and practical implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescent mental health has become a growing concern. One unique challenge to adolescents' willingness to seek professional mental health support is the concern of confidentiality breach by their parents. This concern may carry more weight in collectivistic cultures, such as China. The current study utilized a large parent sample (N = 460) recruited from six high schools and attempted to integrate cultural self-construal and parenting styles in the context of parental attitudes toward mental health professionals and desires to breach confidentiality. Parental independent self-construal was related to more positive attitudes toward mental health professionals through higher authoritative parenting and negatively associated with authoritarian parenting. On the other hand, interdependent self-construal was related to less positive attitudes toward mental health professionals via higher authoritarian parenting and lower authoritative parenting. More positive attitudes toward mental health professionals, in turn, were related to lower desire to breach confidentiality. Permissive parenting did not play a significant role in this process. The present study illustrates the importance of understanding culturally specific factors and parental influences in therapeutic practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper employs a version of the error correction model to investigate China's demand for international reserves in the period 1980:1 to 1990:4. China's officially quoted reserves included the net foreign exchange balance of the country's foreign exchange bank (Bank of China) during this period, but the reserves truly owned by the state were substantially smaller than the officially quoted reserves. We test the behaviour of both concepts and their relevance for decision making of reserve holdings. Factors derived under the traditional inventory models as well as disturbances from the domestic markets and debt repayment ability were considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human adenovirus infection is a common cause of upper and lower respiratory illness and easily breaks out in schools and the army. In an adenovirus epidemic, a large number of samples would be collected for laboratory diagnosis, and it is urgent to optimize the current sampling strategy. We researched the application of laboratory detection in the adenovirus epidemic and optimized the range of laboratory pathogen detection in the adenovirus epidemic by summarizing previous theoretical achievements, research reports, and experts' opinions and by using mathematical model tools. Under certain assumptions, a susceptible-infectious-quarantined-recovered (SIQR) model was established to describe the adenovirus epidemic and optimize the range of laboratory pathogen detection. Some standards and implementation rules suggest that when the number of cases is less than 10 or 20, all patients should be sampled for laboratory examination, and when the number of cases is more than 10 or 20, at least 10 or 20 samples should be collected. In practice, the sampling range can be appropriately expanded. A total of 21 studies were analyzed, and the sampling rate of adenovirus infection was 31% (95%CI: 24%~38%). The mathematical model suggested that the screening of asymptomatic people in the latent stage can slow the spreading of the epidemic, but the detection range will be too large. These findings may be helpful for policymaking during an adenovirus epidemic and to avoid proceeding with laboratory testing blindly. Furthermore, it may also provide some guidance for optimizing the sampling strategy of other diseases, especially for respiratory tract infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on the emergency facility location-allocation problem has important theoretical and practical significance for responses to large-scale emergencies. During the actual planning of disaster supply warehouses (DSWs), reconstruction and expansion projects usually need to fully exploit different levels of designated facilities to achieve resource integration. This article presents a hierarchical supplement location-allocation (HSLA) optimization model for DSWs in both the preparedness and response phases to address the above concerns. The model minimizes the total number and cost of DSWs for the facility location problem and the total distance for delivering supplies at all levels for the supply allocation problem. A modified particle swarm optimization algorithm is applied to derive solutions to the HSLA model. The model is demonstrated for the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei (BTH) region in China. The results show that twelve of the 180 counties, which account for 6.03% of the total area of the BTH region are not covered by county-, prefectural- and provincial-level DSWs. In addition, three sets of optimization schemes for the location-allocation problem for DSWs at the three levels and one final mixed optimal scheme (one county-level DSW, two prefectural-level DSWs, and one provincial-level DSW should be newly built or upgraded in four counties) are suggested based on the supplemental optimization site selection. This model is believed to remain more consistent with the knowledge of DSW planners and policy makers by incorporating the multi-level coverage and supplemental site selection concept into the location-allocation problem. The method can be easily duplicated to expand or build new emergency facilities at different levels in addition to DSWs. The results provide a scientific reference for DSW location-allocation planning in the BTH region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Population aging is a social and economic concern for China. It is essential to understand types of social support networks available to elderly people living in China. Objectives: The aim of this research was to identify network types among Chinese older adults and to examine the differential relationship of the network types, health outcomes and health-related behaviors. Methods: Secondary analysis of data compiled by the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (n = 9749) was extracted. Network types were derived through latent class analysis with Mplus 6.12 software. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, one-way ANOVA, multiple logistic regression and path analysis. Results: Four types of social networks were identified, these included private (16%), non-couple-focused (15%), couple-focused (47%) and diverse (22%). Compared with elders belonging to other networks, elders in diverse network possessed the healthiest status and the highest health-related behaviors score. Health-related behaviors played a role in mediating social network types to health outcomes was identified. Findings were aligned to the conceptual model pathway proposed by Berkman (2000). Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that types of social networks for elders are significantly correlated to health-related behaviors and health outcomes. Detail and understanding of the correlations are useful to inform healthcare practice and policy and to assist the development of appropriate interpersonal interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have emphasized the effect of childhood emotional abuse on students' aggressive behavior; however, few studies have examined the effects of personality and gender when studying childhood emotional abuse and aggressive behavior. To fill this gap, the current study aimed to explore the mediating effect of personality and the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and aggressive behavior among Chinese college students. A sample of 1253 students aged from 18 to 24 years completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, and Buss-Warren Aggression Questionnaire. The results showed that neuroticism and psychoticism partially mediated the relationship between childhood emotional abuse and aggressive behavior. Moreover, a multigroup analysis found that the mediating effect of neuroticism was significant for women but not for men and that the mediating effect of psychoticism was significant for men but not for women. These findings suggest that caregivers should pay more attention to the development of children's personalities, which may ameliorate the deleterious effect of childhood emotional abuse on aggressive behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discrimination of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) is a persistent issue in China, which affects their psychological health. However, the association between psychological factors and adherence to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has not been systematically investigated before. Therefore, this study examined the impact of social support, depression, and medication-taking self-efficacy on ART adherence among PLWHA based on Cha et al.'s model, and included "stigma" to the original model to explain the psychological mechanism. Of the 504 participants receiving HAART, 37.8% had mild-to-severe depression. According to structural equation modeling, social support was directly associated with depression, stigma, and adherence; depression partially mediated the positive relationship between social support and adherence self-efficacy and the negative association between stigma and self-efficacy. The modified and extended Cha et al.'s model had a satisfactory fit. Interventions to improve mental health through mental health services, social support, and enhancement of adherence self-efficacy beliefs are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]