Exploring Culture-Specific Learning Styles in Accounting Education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review whether culture affects accounting students’ learning processes to identify practical guidance for accounting educators facing a culturally diverse classroom. In spite of a significant literature thread in accounting education on student learning, relatively, little emphasis has been placed on culture-specific learning differences. The literature gap is particularly acute with respect to practical culture-specific guidance for accounting educators. This paper is organized along three primary inquiries into the role of culture in accounting education: first, do we know if culture impacts learning? Second, how much do we know about culture-specific learning styles in the accounting field? Third, what implications do culture-specific learning styles carry for accounting educators? Design/methodology/approach – Initially, the author surveys culture-specific learning styles literature, after which a more in-depth analysis of accounting-specific literature is conducted. The author then provides a synthesis of the literature followed by a discussion of the implications for accounting educators. Findings – Culture-specific learning styles carry several implications for educators such as problems associated with overloading short-term memory, the importance of prior experience and the role of visual prompts and motivation among students and educators. Research limitations/implications – It is an opportunity for accounting educators to explore practical teaching techniques that address differences in learning styles that result from culture. Practical implications – Culture-specific learning styles carry several implications for educators. Problems with culture may ultimately be associated with overloading short-term memory. Likewise, prior experience is an important aspect of culture-specific learning and should be recognized by accounting educators. Last, not all motivation need be sourced from the student, and instructors may explore the role of visual prompts when teaching international students. Originality/value – This paper highlights the importance of culture-specific learning styles research in accounting education and the need for accounting educators to carefully consider cultural implications, as international accounting education standards are pursued. The dearth of research into culture-specific learning styles in accounting education is addressed

The QED Structure of the Photon

Measurements of the QED structure of the photon based on the reaction ee --> ee \gamma(*)(P^2)\gamma*(Q^2) --> ee mumu are discussed. This review is an update of the discussion of the results on the QED structure of the photon presented in Refs.[1], and covers the published measurements of the photon structure functions F_2, F_A nd F_B and of the differential cross-section dsig/dx for the exchange of two virtual photons.Comment: Invited talk given at the 7th International Workshop on Deep Inelastic Scattering and QCD, April 19 to 23, 1999, Zeuthen, to appear in the proceedings. 8pages 4 figure

Experimental cross sections of Ho 165 (α,n) Tm 168 and Er 166 (α,n) Yb 169 for optical potential studies relevant for the astrophysical γ process

Background: Optical potentials are crucial ingredients for the prediction of nuclear reaction rates needed in simulations of the astrophysical γ process. Associated uncertainties are particularly large for reactions involving α particles. This includes (γ,α) reactions which are of special importance in the γ process. Purpose: The measurement of (α,n) reactions allows for an optimization of currently used α-nucleus potentials. The reactions Ho165(α,n) and Er166(α,n) probe the optical model in a mass region where γ process calculations exhibit an underproduction of p nuclei which is not yet understood. Method: To investigate the energy-dependent cross sections of the reactions Ho165(α,n) and Er166(α,n) close to the reaction threshold, self-supporting metallic foils were irradiated with α particles using the FN tandem Van de Graaff accelerator at the University of Notre Dame. The induced activity was determined afterwards by monitoring the specific β-decay channels. Results: Hauser-Feshbach predictions with a widely used global α potential describe the data well at energies where the cross sections are almost exclusively sensitive to the α widths. Increasing discrepancies appear towards the reaction threshold at lower energy. Conclusions: The tested global α potential is suitable at energies above 14 MeV, while a modification seems necessary close to the reaction threshold. Since the γ and neutron widths show non-negligible impact on the predictions, complementary data are required to judge whether or not the discrepancies found can be solely assigned to the α width. © 2014 American Physical Society.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

A 7-year follow-up of sacral anterior root stimulation for bladder control in patients with a spinal cord injury: quality of life and users' experiences\ud

Study design: Cross-sectional descriptive study.\ud \ud Objectives: To assess long-term effects and quality of life (QoL) of using sacral anterior root stimulation (SARS) in spinal cord injured patients.\ud \ud Setting: Neurosurgical and Urological Departments of a large teaching hospital and a large rehabilitation centre in the Netherlands.\ud \ud Methods: In all, 42 patients with complete spinal cord injury (SCI) implanted between 1987 and 2000 were included. A questionnaire was constructed to determine complications, technical failures and personal experiences of the patients. The Qualiveen questionnaire was used and the outcome was compared with data obtained from a reference group of 400 SCI patients with neurogenic bladder problems not using the bladder controller. The Qualiveen questionnaire measures disease-specific aspects in four domains with respect to limitations, constraints, fears and feelings and general QoL aspects, suitable for use in SCI patients with urinary disorders.\ud \ud Results: The results of 37 patients are presented. Our results with the bladder controller with respect to medical and technical complications and infection rates are similar to the results presented by others. From users' experiences, the most important advantages reported were a decreased infection rate (68%), improved social life (54%) and continence (54%). Comparison of the obtained results of our patient group with the Qualiveen questionnaire with a reference group not using the bladder controller indicates that the specific impact of urinary disorders in the four domains on QoL is reduced and that general QoL is improved.\ud \ud Conclusion: SARS is effective and safe for neurogenic bladder management in patients with complete SCI. Users' experiences are positive. Furthermore, this therapy seems to reduce the effects of urinary-disorder-specific QoL aspects, and to increase the QoL in general\u

Competing tunneling trajectories in a 2D potential with variable topology as a model for quantum bifurcations

We present a path - integral approach to treat a 2D model of a quantum bifurcation. The model potential has two equivalent minima separated by one or two saddle points, depending on the value of a continuous parameter. Tunneling is therefore realized either along one trajectory or along two equivalent paths. Zero point fluctuations smear out the sharp transition between these two regimes and lead to a certain crossover behavior. When the two saddle points are inequivalent one can also have a first order transition related to the fact that one of the two trajectories becomes unstable. We illustrate these results by numerical investigations. Even though a specific model is investigated here, the approach is quite general and has potential applicability for various systems in physics and chemistry exhibiting multi-stability and tunneling phenomena.Comment: 11 pages, 8 eps figures, Revtex-

Two-dimensional frustrated Heisenberg model: Variational study

The stability of the ferromagnetic phase of the 2D quantum spin-1/2 model with nearest-neighbor ferro- and next-nearest neighbor antiferromagnetic interactions is studied. It turns out that values of exchange integrals at which the ferromagnetic state becomes unstable with respect to a creation of one and two magnon are different. This difference shows that the classical approximation is inapplicable to the study of the transition from the ferromagnetic to the singlet state in contrast with 1D case. This problem is investigated using a variational function of new type. It is based on the boson representation of spin operators which is different from the Holstein-Primakoff approximation. This allows us to obtain the accurate estimate of the transition point and to study the character of the phase transition.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, RevTe

Critical temperature and the transition from quantum to classical order parameter fluctuations in the three-dimensional Heisenberg antiferromagnet

We present results of extensive quantum Monte Carlo simulations of the three-dimensional (3D) S=1/2 Heisenberg antiferromagnet. Finite-size scaling of the spin stiffness and the sublattice magnetization gives the critical temperature Tc/J = 0.946 +/- 0.001. The critical behavior is consistent with the classical 3D Heisenberg universality class, as expected. We discuss the general nature of the transition from quantum mechanical to classical (thermal) order parameter fluctuations at a continuous Tc > 0 phase transition.Comment: 5 pages, Revtex, 4 PostScript figures include

The 106Cd(α, α)106Cd elastic scattering in a wide energy range for γ process studies

Date of Acceptance: 15/04/2015Alpha elastic scattering angular distributions of the 106Cd(α, α)106Cd reaction were measured at three energies around the Coulomb barrier to provide a sensitive test for the α + nucleus optical potential parameter sets. Furthermore, the new high precision angular distributions, together with the data available from the literature were used to study the energy dependence of the locally optimized α + nucleus optical potential in a wide energy region ranging from ELab=27.0MeV down to 16.1 MeV.The potentials under study are a basic prerequisite for the prediction of α-induced reaction cross sections and thus, for the calculation of stellar reaction rates used for the astrophysical γ process. Therefore, statistical model predictions using as input the optical potentials discussed in the present work are compared to the available 106Cd + alpha cross section data.Peer reviewe

How the Kano model contributes to Kansei engineering in services

Recent studies show that products and services hold great appeal if they are attractively designed to elicit emotional feelings from customers. Kansei engineering (KE) has good potential to provide a competitive advantage to those able to read and translate customer affect and emotion in actual product and services. This study introduces an integrative framework of the Kano model and KE, applied to services. The Kano model was used and inserted into KE to exhibit the relationship between service attribute performance and customer emotional response. Essentially, the Kano model categorises service attribute quality into three major groups (must-be [M], one-dimensional [O] and attractive [A]). The findings of a case study that involved 100 tourists who stayed in luxury 4- and 5-star hotels are presented. As a practical matter, this research provides insight on which service attributes deserve more attention with regard to their significant impact on customer emotional needs. Statement of Relevance: Apart from cognitive evaluation, emotions and hedonism play a big role in service encounters. Through a focus on delighting qualities of service attributes, this research enables service providers and managers to establish the extent to which they prioritise their improvement efforts and to always satisfy their customer emotions beyond expectation. Keywords: Kansei engineering, emotional feelings, Kano model, service

Finite-Size Scaling of the Ground State Parameters of the Two-Dimensional Heisenberg Model

The ground state parameters of the two-dimensional S=1/2 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg model are calculated using the Stochastic Series Expansion quantum Monte Carlo method for L*L lattices with L up to 16. The finite-size results for the energy E, the sublattice magnetization M, the long-wavelength susceptibility chi_perp(q=2*pi/L), and the spin stiffness rho_s, are extrapolated to the thermodynamic limit using fits to polynomials in 1/L, constrained by scaling forms previously obtained from renormalization group calculations for the nonlinear sigma model and chiral perturbation theory. The results are fully consistent with the predicted leading finite-size corrections and are of sufficient accuracy for extracting also subleading terms. The subleading energy correction (proportional to 1/L^4) agrees with chiral perturbation theory to within a statistical error of a few percent, thus providing the first numerical confirmation of the finite-size scaling forms to this order. The extrapolated ground state energy per spin, E=-0.669437(5), is the most accurate estimate reported to date. The most accurate Green's function Monte Carlo (GFMC) result is slightly higher than this value, most likely due to a small systematic error originating from ``population control'' bias in GFMC. The other extrapolated parameters are M=0.3070(3), rho_s = 0.175(2), chi_perp = 0.0625(9), and the spinwave velocity c=1.673(7). The statistical errors are comparable with those of the best previous estimates, obtained by fitting loop algorithm quantum Monte Carlo data to finite-temperature scaling forms. Both M and rho_s obtained from the finite-T data are, however, a few error bars higher than the present estimates. It is argued that the T=0 extrapolations performed here are less sensitive to effects of neglectedComment: 16 pages, RevTex, 9 PostScript figure