Application of a Model of Planned Change to the Analysis of the Organization of Regional Problems

The definition of regional development we have posed focuses on regional development programs which alter the nature of development in a region in a direction which would not have occurred as a natural consequence of ongoing economic or social forces. The program thus imposes a "change" on the region which is the result of a "planned" policy decision. In the field of organization research, analysis of the management of planned change has been the focus of attention for twenty years. In this portion of the case analysis I hope to apply some of these concepts to gain further insights into the dynamics of regional development. The purpose of existing research in this area has been to clarify several dimensions of change in human systems. The most general purpose is to describe and model the process of inducing and maintaining change in human systems. Within the context of the modeling research, attention has been focussed on the nature of the mechanisms for implementing change in organizational settings. This research evolved into the development of strategies for the management of change in large organizations which has been directed toward application in the fields of management and consulting. The objects of this research fall within the first and second of these areas: the dynamics of inducing and maintaining change, and the nature of the implementation mechanisms

An Overview of Organizational Research in Regional Development: Five Parallel Case Studies

In this paper we present proposals for a program of research into problems of complex organizations. The area of interest is organization for integrated regional development and our research will be based on five regional development cases undertaken in different circumstances in various parts of the world. Organization theory is not a unified field of research but includes many complementary approaches. The authors of this paper reflect this diversity. However, in designing these research proposals we find important points of commonality. The overall research conception based on a multiorganization approach is one such point. This is supported by a common definition of integrated regional development, which we pose for the purpose of organization study, and a common specification for the case descriptions, which form the first output stages of our program. However, in the analytic stages, which follow these descriptions, we see value in following somewhat different approaches. This diversity should strengthen the value of the final output. In this paper we cover generally the scope and purposes of the overall program. The scope of case descriptions is presented together with an outline of the questions which are addressed in the post-description analytic stages

Correlation Between Lumbopelvic and Sagittal Parameters and Health-Related Quality of Life in Adults With Lumbosacral Spondylolisthesis.

Study Design:Secondary analysis of prospective, multicenter data. Objective:To evaluate impact of sagittal parameters on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults with lumbosacral spondylolisthesis. Methods:Adults with unoperated lumbosacral spondylolisthesis were identified in the Spinal Deformity Study Group database. Pearson's correlations were calculated between SF-12 (Short Form-12)/Scoliosis Research Society-30 (SRS-30) scores and radiographic parameters (C7 sagittal vertical axis [SVA] deviation, T1 pelvic angle, pelvic tilt [PT], pelvic incidence, sacral slope, slip angle, Meyerding slip grade, Labelle classification). Main effects linear regression models measured association between individual health status measures and individual radiographic predictor variables. Results:Forty-five patients were analyzed (male, 15; female, 30; average age 40.5 ± 18.7 years; 14 low-grade, 31 high-grade). For low-grade slips, SVA had strong negative correlations with SF-12 mental component score (MCS), SRS-30 appearance, mental, and satisfaction domains (r = -0.57, r = -0.60, r = -0.58, r = -0.53, respectively; P < .05). For high-grade slips, slip angle had a moderate negative correlation with SF-12 MCS (r = -0.36; P = .05) and SVA had strong negative correlations with SF-12 physical component score (PCS), SRS-30 appearance and activity domains (r = -0.48, r = -0.48, r = -0.45; P < .05) and a moderate negative correlation with SRS-30 total (r = -0.37; P < .05). T1 pelvic angle had a moderate negative correlation with SF-12 PCS and SRS-30 appearance (r = -0.37, r = -0.36; P ≤ .05). For every 1° increase in PT, there was a 0.04-point decrease in SRS appearance, 0.05-point decrease in SRS activity, 0.06-point decrease in SRS satisfaction, and 0.04-point decrease in SRS total score (P < .05). Conclusion:Lumbosacral spondylolisthesis in adults negatively affects HRQoL. Multiple radiographic sagittal parameters negatively affect HRQoLs for patients with low- and high-grade slips. Improvement of sagittal parameters is an important goal of surgery for adults with lumbosacral spondylolisthesis

Utilization of screening mammography in older women according to comorbidity and age: protocol for a systematic review

BACKGROUND: Approximately half of new invasive breast cancer cases diagnosed each year in the United States occur among women aged 65 years and older. The increasing life expectancy coupled with the attendant rise in breast cancer incidence and elimination of out-of-pocket expenses for screening mammography as a result of the Affordable Care Act could lead to higher utilization rates of screening mammography. Although research indicates that life expectancy should be a strong consideration when making screening decisions among older women, the extent to which screening mammography utilization is tailored to comorbidity and life expectancy is not well established. METHODS/DESIGN: To identify relevant studies, a systematic search of the literature will be conducted using PubMed and EMBASE between January 1, 1991, and March 1, 2016. Additional studies will be found through citation review or by contacting experts in the field. The inclusion criteria will be any study design comprised of women aged 65 and older, assessing women’s comorbidity, functional impairments, and/or health status, and reporting outcome measures that addressed mammography utilization within the last 1–5 years. For each study, two authors will independently abstract data regarding study eligibility and outcomes to determine relevance. Quantitative results will be extracted from text and tables, choosing preferably those adjusted for important confounders. DISCUSSION: The review will provide evidence on the impact of comorbidity, functional limitations, and health status on screening mammography utilization in older women and inform decision aids in this area. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42016032661 ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13643-016-0345-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Local processing in neurites of VGluT3- expressing amacrine cells differentially organizes visual information

Neurons receive synaptic inputs on extensive neurite arbors. How information is organized across arbors and how local processing in neurites contributes to circuit function is mostly unknown. Here, we used two-photon Ca2+ imaging to study visual processing in VGluT3-expressing amacrine cells (VG3-ACs) in the mouse retina. Contrast preferences (ON vs. OFF) varied across VG3-AC arbors depending on the laminar position of neurites, with ON responses preferring larger stimuli than OFF responses. Although arbors of neighboring cells overlap extensively, imaging population activity revealed continuous topographic maps of visual space in the VG3-AC plexus. All VG3-AC neurites responded strongly to object motion, but remained silent during global image motion. Thus, VG3-AC arbors limit vertical and lateral integration of contrast and location information, respectively. We propose that this local processing enables the dense VG3-AC plexus to contribute precise object motion signals to diverse targets without distorting target-specific contrast preferences and spatial receptive fields.</jats:p

Deficits of knowledge versus executive control in semantic cognition: Insights from cued naming

Deficits of semantic cognition in semantic dementia and in aphasia consequent on CVA (stroke) are qualitatively different. Patients with semantic dementia are characterised by progressive degradation of central semantic representations, whereas multimodal semantic deficits in stroke aphasia reflect impairment of executive processes that help to direct and control semantic activation in a task-appropriate fashion [Jefferies, E., & Lambon Ralph, M. A. (2006). Semantic impairment in stroke aphasia vs. semantic dementia: A case-series comparison. Brain 129, 2132-2147]. We explored interactions between these two aspects of semantic cognition by examining the effects of cumulative phonemic cueing on picture naming in case series of these two types of patient. The stroke aphasic patients with multimodal semantic deficits cued very readily and demonstrated near-perfect name retrieval when cumulative phonemic cues reached or exceeded the target name's uniqueness point. Therefore, knowledge of the picture names was largely intact for the aphasic patients, but they were unable to retrieve this information without cues that helped to direct activation towards the target response. Equivalent phonemic cues engendered significant but much more limited benefit to the semantic dementia patients: their naming was still severely impaired even when most of the word had been provided. In contrast to the pattern in the stroke aphasia group, successful cueing was mainly confined to the more familiar un-named pictures. We propose that this limited cueing effect in semantic dementia follows from the fact that concepts deteriorate in a graded fashion [Rogers, T. T., Lambon Ralph, M. A., Garrard, P., Bozeat, S., McClelland, J. L., & Hodges, J. R., et al. (2004). The structure and deterioration of semantic memory: A neuropsychological and computational investigation. Psychological Review 111, 205-235]. For partially degraded items, the residual conceptual knowledge may be insufficient to drive speech production to completion but these items might reach threshold when they are bolstered by cues. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

General features of the retinal connectome determine the computation of motion anticipation

Motion anticipation allows the visual system to compensate for the slow speed of phototransduction so that a moving object can be accurately located. This correction is already present in the signal that ganglion cells send from the retina but the biophysical mechanisms underlying this computation are not known. Here we demonstrate that motion anticipation is computed autonomously within the dendritic tree of each ganglion cell and relies on feedforward inhibition. The passive and non-linear interaction of excitatory and inhibitory synapses enables the somatic voltage to encode the actual position of a moving object instead of its delayed representation. General rather than specific features of the retinal connectome govern this computation: an excess of inhibitory inputs over excitatory, with both being randomly distributed, allows tracking of all directions of motion, while the average distance between inputs determines the object velocities that can be compensated for

Faculty perceptions of innovation and change dynamics in interprofessional education

Session presented on Monday, November 9, 2015 and Tuesday, November 10, 2015: The effectiveness of interprofessional teams is critical to the safe and effective delivery of health care. Improvements in team behavior rely on collaboration, and, result in reductions in medical error. Educators in the health professions are consequently encouraged to embed interprofessional education (IPE) into their curricula. However, integrating IPE presents structural, curricular and human factor challenges. Nurses and physicians comprise the dominant dyad in health care teams, therefore insights from nursing and medical faculty are essential for guiding IPE strategy. IPE research has focused heavily on learners, in pre-licensure and continuing education settings, but less is known about IPE from the faculty point of view. A phenomenological study of nursing and medical faculty perceptions regarding key factors in IPE was conducted to that end. This poster presents findings focused on the structural and change aspects revealed in that study. Collaboration and cooperation theories guided development of the study and construction of the research questions, a semi-structured interview guide, and data analysis. Faculty were asked to reflect on the pedagogical and environmental factors that helped students learn interprofessional teamwork and collaboration, and to describe their experiences. Interviews were conducted with 32 faculty from three Midwest universities. Approximately half the participants were nursing and half medical faculty. Data were analyzed thematically, and the perceived realities of the two faculty groups explored and compared for common themes. Two major thematic categories, student-centered, and environment and cultures, were used to organize 6 emergent themes: curricular methods/pedagogy, clinical environments, student roles/role understanding, educational program structures/cultures, faculty engagement/competency and development, and curricular change considerations. Findings related to the six major themes are reported elsewhere (Loversidge & Demb, 2014). During the data analysis, the researchers noticed strong references to innovation and change threaded throughout the participant\u27s descriptions of their lived experiences and felt this warranted a secondary analysis of the data. Innovation and change theories guided the secondary analysis. Two rounds of data coding, reduction, and analysis were conducted using NVivo10. Findings revealed faculty perspectives related to IPE innovation and change. Participants discussed processes they engaged in or observed that advanced or hindered IPE and focused on aspects of academic medical center structures, the presence of committed leadership, curricular restructuring, curricular funding, inter-college and departmental relationships and partnerships, and authentic/comprehensive faculty engagement. Changes in education and practice partnerships emphasizing the cultivation of positive collaborative environments were considered essential. Not only does IPE require innovative pedagogy and faculty proficiency, but supportive academic structures and clinical environments are also necessary. Achieving real change toward embedding IPE in curricula was described as an achievable but formidable task: an effort requiring both innovation and organizational change. These findings reveal implications for nursing and medical educators, which include addressing the structure of relationships between colleges and departments in academic medical centers, developing processes essential for realizing fundamental curriculum change, and managing forces for improving faculty engagement in IPE

AII amacrine cells discriminate between heterocellular and homocellular locations when assembling connexin36-containing gap junctions

Electrical synapses (gap junctions) rapidly transmit signals between neurons and are composed of connexins. In neurons, connexin36 (C×36) is the most abundant isoform; however, the mechanisms underlying formation of C×36-containing electrical synapses are unknown. We focus on homocellular and heterocellular gap junctions formed by an AII amacrine cell, a key interneuron found in all mammalian retinas. In mice lacking native C×36 but expressing a variant tagged with enhanced green fluorescent protein at the C-terminus (KO-C×36-EGFP), heterocellular gap junctions formed between AII cells and ON cone bipolar cells are fully functional, whereas homocellular gap junctions between two AII cells are not formed. A tracer injected into an AII amacrine cell spreads into ON cone bipolar cells but is excluded from other AII cells. Reconstruction of C×36-EGFP clusters on an AII cell in the KO-C×36-EGFP genotype confirmed that the number, but not average size, of the clusters is reduced - as expected for AII cells lacking a subset of electrical synapses. Our studies indicate that some neurons exhibit at least two discriminatory mechanisms for assembling C×36. We suggest that employing different gapjunction- forming mechanisms could provide the means for a cell to regulate its gap junctions in a target-cell-specific manner, even if these junctions contain the same connexin

Managerial and disciplinary responses to abandoned acquisitions in bidding firms: a new perspective

Manuscript Type: Empirical Research Question/Issue: Existing research suggests that internal and external corporate governance mechanisms substitute for one another to mitigate agency problems in bidding firms. This paper tests whether the interaction between these mechanisms is more complementary. Research Findings/Insights: While there is evidence for disciplinary responses to bids for unrelated targets involving strategic retrenchment and significant asset divestment, the influence of the information conveyed by this characteristic on the likelihood of post-abandonment discipline is not amplified when boards are less independent. Theoretical/Academic Implications: The results suggest that certain characteristics are used to distinguish between abandoned bidders which require discipline and those that do not. However, our findings do not suggest that interaction between internal and external governance mechanisms is contingent on board independence. Instead, these interactions between shareholders and boards seem to be contingent on a range of company, industry, and situation-specific factors. Practitioner/Policy Implications: While policy in the UK has focused on board independence as a means of effective corporate governance, our results suggest that this is not a panacea. Effective governance involves active owners, communicating their interests to boards, and boards responding accordingly. Further encouragement of such communication before, during, and after acquisitions will improve signals tomanagers that shareholders can target the necessary discipline of those whomthey perceive to need it most