A Fresh Look At The Equal Credit Opportunity Act

The subsequent material will illustrate that despite the fact that women have been required to meet both a different and a higher standard for them to be deemed creditworthy, studies have shown that they (especially single women) are in fact better credit risks than men. Nevertheless, in an investigation of special problems concerning the availability of credit, the National Commission on Consumer Finance identified difficulties that women in particular faced in obtaining consumer, as well as mortgage, credit

Green consumer segmentation: managerial and environmental implications from the perspective of business strategies and practices

With the new millennium, environmental concern entered a new phase, with stricter governmental regulations and incentives. Currently, within environmental issues, there is a broader challenge to commitment with economic and social goals. This is motivating companies and organizations to participate in transformation processes with the aim of minimizing the negative impacts of their activities. Within this context, new business philosophies, emerged empowering organizations to consider sustainability issues that have come to be viewed as an innovative and differentiating factor, providing competitive advantages (Fraj-Andres, MartinezSalinas, & Matute-Vallejo. Journal of Business Ethics, 88,263-286, 2009; Leipziger. The corporate responsibility code book. Greenleaf Publishing Limited, 2016; Leipziger. The corporate responsibility code book. Greenleaf Publishing Limited, 2016). Therefore, organizations have begun incorporating these concerns in their processes, adopting green management policies, and including green marketing strategies in order to remain competitive (Straughan & Roberts. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 16(6), 558-575, 1999; Rivera-Camino. European Journal of Marketing, 41, 1328-1358, 2007). From the marketing perspective, the importance of understanding green consumer behaviour in order to develop better segmentation and targeting strategies is highlighted. Green consumers are changing significantly. Consumers, although with some reluctance, are moving to greener products. The Mintel organization reported that the number of consumers buying green has tripled in recent years. Furthermore, it found that the number of consumers that never bought green products have decreased. These results show that widespread environmental awareness had an important role in purchasing behaviour, with more consumers considering the environmental impact of their buying decisions and looking for a greener alternative to their conventional purchasing options. The existing literature suggests that previous research regarding the green consumer profile has different perspectives. The first group of researchers attempted to characterize green consumer profile using sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, education, income and occupation. In tum, the second group of researchers used psychographic variables instead of sociodemographic ones (Mainieri, Barnett, Valdero, Unipan, & Oskamp. Journal of Social Psychology, 137(2), 189-204, 1997). This chapter aims to better explore the importance of green consumer segmentation and its implications from a management point of view. More specifically, the aim is to analyze which variables better characterize green consumers (sociodemographic and psychographic). At the end, a theoretical framework is proposed to enable and support organizations to better understand green consumer profile. It also enables managers and marketers to target and develop better marketing strategies for these segments.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Hospital Design and Wayfinding

A videotape simulation of the entrance drive to the new University of Michigan Hospital was used to test the effect on turning behavior of constructing a parking deck entrance directly off the hospital's drop-off circle. One hundred randomly sampled visitors were shown this videotape and asked where they would turn, if they were coming alone to visit a patient and needed to park their car. There were several turn-off areas along the entrance drive before the parking deck turn-off. Each turn-off had a sign listing its respective functions and directed drivers to continue straight ahead for parking. Half the visitors saw a videotape in which there was an entrance to the deck from the drop-off circle, and half saw a tape in which the entrance from the drop-off circle was absent. Each visitor saw two scenarios, one having the drop-off circle crowded with cars, and one uncrowded. The results of the study showed that the presence of the entrance to the deck from the drop-off circle did make a significant difference in reported turning behavior. The results of this study had a direct impact on the subsequent design decision. In addition, the results of this study are meaningful beyond the data themselves. The study used an inexpensive, simple, and highly imageable research technique, yet one rarely used in environment-behavior research. It was a "quick turn-around" research effortthat resolved a specific design dilemma. The study also demonstrates that signs alone are not sufficient to guide wayfinding behavior in large complex environments like hospitals.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67736/2/10.1177_0013916585173002.pd

Validation of nested Bordetella PCR in pertussis vaccine trial

A nested PCR, using a 239-bp sequence in the pertussis toxin promoter region, was developed and evaluated. The assay differentiates Bordetella pertussis, Bordetella parapertussis, and Bordetella bronchiseptica by restriction enzyme analysis of the amplified fragments. The diagnostic performance of the PCR was evaluated in a Swedish pertussis vaccine efficacy trial which took place from 1992 to 1995, including study children and household members and using culture and serology for laboratory confirmation of suspected cases. In total 2,421 nasopharyngeal aspirates were analyzed. The total diagnostic sensitivity for B. pertussis was 90.2% (194 of 215). During the study period samples were processed with and without the cation-exchange resin Chelex. The PCR diagnostic sensitivity for B. pertussis among the Chelex-treated aspirates was 94.9% (75 of 79), and that for B. pertussis among 124 aspirates in a consecutive non-Chelex-treated material was 89.5% (111 of 124). After Chelex treatment of the 13 PCR-negative samples, an additional six became PCR positive, giving a final sensitivity of 94.3%. In addition, PCR was positive for B. pertussis with 57 of 1,744 samples negative by culture but with available serological data. The specificity of PCR with these samples was supported by a significant increase in antibody levels between acute and convalescent sera in 45 cases and by epidemiological or clinical data in all but two of the remaining cases. PCR was also positive for B. pertussis with 26 of 415 aspirates from episodes lacking serology. The diagnostic sensitivity of PCR for B. parapertussis was 74.0% (37 of 50). There were an additional seven culture-negative B. parapertussis PCR findings, six from cases with significant antibody increases against filamentous hemagglutinin only and one from a case lacking serology. There were no samples positive for B. bronchiseptica. In conclusion, PCR detection of B. pertussis and/or B. parapertussis enabled us to identify 90 positive nasopharyngeal aspirates, in addition to the 262 culture-positive samples (an increase of 34%). Relating these cases to serology and clinical data indicated a PCR specificity approaching 100%.</jats:p