Preload and Isometric Force Variability

Two experiments are reported, which examined the relative contributions of preload (resting force level), change of force, and the time taken to achieve the force in determining isometric force variability. The findings showed that change of force is the strongest determiner of peak force variability but that preload and time to peak force have smaller though systematic effects. A formula that predicts peak force variability is proposed, with preload as an additive effect to the ratio between the change of force level and the square root of time to peak force. These findings confirm that these three impulse variables are significant in predicting force variability and that the impact of rate of force on peak force variability is nonlinear.     

The benefit of surface uniformity for encoding boundary features in visual working memory

Using a change detection paradigm, the present study examined an object-based encoding benefit in visual working memory (VWM) for two boundary features (two orientations in Experiments 1-2 and two shapes in Experiments 3-4) assigned to a single object. Participants remembered more boundary features when they were conjoined into a single object of uniform color than when they were not bound together into an object. However, such an object-based benefit diminished or disappeared when those features occurred on different parts of an object, as defined by surface discontinuity or by negative minima of curvature. These results suggest that the number of boundary features that can be stored in VWM is influenced by the hierarchical structure of objects: surface uniformity facilitates the integration of two boundary features into a single object representation, but this integration is weakened when the features occur on different parts of an object.     

Diffusion of e-commerce in Denmark: An analysis of institutional intervention

This article analyzes the way a series of recent policy statements have been used to promote and shape the take-up of e-commerce in Denmark. Issuing periodic policy statements, with a combination of direct and indirect modes of intervention, is one of the roads governments are taking to influence the evolutions of ICT. The policy statements present the goals, launch initiatives, and assess achievements. Complementing a co-or self-regulation strategy, the policy statement approach has become particularly important in areas where governments seek to influence the take-up of a technology without appearing to tip the scales. She did her Ph.D. at the Center for Electronic Commerce, at Department of Informatics, Copenhagen Business School. Helle Zinner Henriksen has a degree in Law (University of Copenhagen, 1995). Her research interests include: Adoption and diffusion of Interorganizational Information Systems, e-government, and institutional regulation of electronic commerce and e-government. Kim Viborg Andersen is a researcher in organizational and policy aspects of IT. Andersen’s research encompasses various applications: economic models, EIS/BIS, health data network, EDI, e-commerce, and mobile applications primarily within the public sector domain. He is co-founder of the AIS SIG on e-government, vice-chair of the IFIP WG 8.4 on interdisciplinary e-business and on various editorial boards for journals. He is head of the Center for Research on Information Technology in Policy Settings (CIPS) at the Copenhagen Business School.     

Choosing the path to bargaining power: an empirical comparison of BATNAs and contributions in negotiation

Although the negotiations literature identifies a variety of approaches for improving one's power position, the relative benefits of these approaches remain largely unexplored. The empirical study presented in this article begins to address this issue by examining how the size of the bargaining zone affects the relative benefit of an advantage in one's BATNA (i.e., having a better alternative than one's counterpart) versus contribution (i.e., contributing more to the relationship than one's counterpart) for negotiator performance. Results indicate that whereas BATNAs exerted a stronger effect on resource allocations than contributions when the bargaining zone was small, an advantage in contributions exerted a stronger effect on resource allocations than BATNAs when the bargaining zone was large. These findings provide needed insight and supporting evidence for how to alter one's power relationship in negotiation.     

A Measure of Quality of Life in Elderly Tourists

This research enriches our knowledge of the tourist market in relation to the elderly, i.e., those age 65 and older and retired. The purpose of the research is to explore the missing link between travel behaviors of the elderly and how they contribute to Quality of Life (QoL). As a result, this study clarifies elderly tourist motivation and also aims to examine the relationship among motivation, constraints, leisure-life domain satisfaction, and overall life satisfaction by generating theoretical and practical implications related to those behaviors. Using a structural equation modeling approach, the research model identifies the relevant relationships among the constructs. The results reveal that motivation positively influences satisfaction with leisure-life domain. However, travel constraints do not affect leisure-life domain satisfaction. In addition, satisfaction with leisure-life domain is linked to overall life satisfaction among the elderly.     

Strong Attachment to Heroes: How Does It Occur and Affect People’s Self-Efficacy and Ultimately Quality of Life?

In spite of increasing evidence on the influence of heroes on the lives of ordinary people, there has been no formal study on the subject in relation to people’s attachment to a hero (or hero attachment). The current study proposed a consumer model to examine how a hero makes a positive impact on people’s lives in terms of their hero attachment, self-efficacy, and life satisfaction. Using observations from a survey, we examined both the direct and indirect effects that the contribution of a hero in people’s fundamental A-R-C (autonomy, relatedness, and competence) need fulfillment has on self-efficacy and ultimately on life satisfaction. We found that the impact of a hero in fulfilling the A-R-C needs has a direct, differential effect on self-efficacy and life satisfaction. More importantly, we found that the fulfillment of A-R-C needs by a hero significantly influences hero attachment, which in turn positively affects life satisfaction through self-efficacy. As the first empirical study on hero attachment in relation to people’s self-efficacy and life satisfaction, the study yields significant theoretical contributions and practical implications for practitioners and policy makers in the areas of public health, education, and quality of life.     

Spatial working memory load impairs signal enhancement, but not attentional orienting

The present study examined the effect of spatial working memory load on the attentional cuing effect. It is well-known that spatial working memory and spatial attention functionally overlap or share a common resource. Given this functional overlapping, it is possible that spatial working memory would also interact with the attentional cuing effect. Considering the distinction between channel selection and channel enhancement by attention (Prinzmetal, McCool, & Park, 2005), we expected that the interaction between spatial working memory and the cuing effect would differ with attentional processing type. Two experiments conducted with the spatial cuing paradigm showed that the magnitude of the cuing effect as measured by reaction time, reflecting channel selection, was uninfluenced by spatial working memory load. In contrast, spatial working memory load reduced the cuing effect as measured by accuracy, reflecting channel enhancement. These results suggest that spatial working memory load impairs signal enhancement by attention and does not influence attentional orienting per se. The interaction between spatial working memory and visual perception is also discussed.