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The purpose of this paper is to interrogate the relationship between self-reported levels of acute stress, perceived social support and interactions with robot animals in an academic library. The authors hypothesized that (1) participants would report lower stress and higher positive affect after their interaction with a robot support animal and (2) perceived supportiveness of the robot support animal would positively predict the amount of stress reduction the participants reported.

The authors hosted a robot petting zoo in the main library at a mid-sized Midwestern university during finals week. Participants were asked to rate their stress level prior to interacting with the robot pets (T1) and then after their interaction they were asked about their current stress level and the perceived supportiveness of the robot animal (T2). Data were analyzed using paired samples t-tests for the pretest and post-test scores.

The results showed a significant decrease in acute stress between T1 to T2, as well as a significant increase in happiness and relaxation. Participants reported feeling less bored and less tired after their interactions with the robot support animals. The findings also reveal that the degree to which individuals experienced a reduction in stress was influenced by their perceptions of the robot animal's supportiveness. Libraries could consider using robot pet therapy.

This study reveals the benefit of robot support animals to reduce stress and increase happiness of those experiencing acute stress in a library setting. The authors also introduce the concept of socially supportive contact as a type of unidirectional social support.

Librarians are working with telepresence robotics for various uses, particularly as a communication method inhabiting a space between video chat and face-to-face interactions. The library at (Blinded University) partnered with the (Blinded Laboratory) to showcase this emerging technology in a high-traffic setting utilized by students of every level and major. The purpose of this paper is to discuss patron reactions to this technology exhibition in the library, beta testing of a telepresence robot in various public services tasks, and library employee attitudes toward this unfamiliar technology before and after one-on-one training.

The project gathered data through three studies. In study 1, feedback forms were filled out by patrons who interacted with or piloted the robot. In study 2, observations by the librarians piloting the robot for various public services activities were recorded in a log. In study 3, employees were invited to complete a pretest designed to solicit perceptions and attitudes regarding the use of the robot, become trained in navigating the robot, and complete a posttest for comparison purposes. Results were analyzed to find trends and highlight perceived uses for the technology.

Patrons and library employees gave positive feedback regarding the novelty of the technology and appreciated its remote communication capability. Trialed uses of the technology for public services yielded positive results when the TR was used for public relations, such as at special events or in greeting tours, and yielded less positive results when used for reference purposes. Library employees comfort with and perceived utility of the robot grew consistently across departments, levels of experience and employment types after a personal training session.

Although libraries in recent years have surveyed users regarding TR technology, this paper captures quantitative and qualitative data from a library employee training study regarding perception of the technology. Exploration of the public services uses and library employee acceptance of TR technology is valuable to those contemplating expending time and resources in similar endeavors.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between import and economic growth for 62 countries.

The paper applies autoregressive distributed lag model (ARDL) for long‐run relation and Granger causality test, in order to detect the direction of short‐run and long‐run causal relationship.

The results indicate that the long‐run relationship exists in the USA, the UK, Japan, Iceland, Canada, Italy, Algeria, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Gabon, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, South Africa, Uruguay, Bolivia, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Lesotho, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Bangladesh, Benin, Chad, Congo, Gambia, Kenya, Madagascar, Togo, Zambia and Zimbabwe when economic growth is dependent variable. This result confirms the importance of import in the process of sustainable economic growth of these countries. In alternative combination when import is dependent variable, the long‐run relationship is found in the USA, the UK, Japan, Finland, Iceland, Canada, Italy, Brazil, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Iran, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, South Africa, Bolivia, Cameroon, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Lesotho, Morocco, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Philippines, Senegal, Sudan, Swaziland, Thailand, Tunisia, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo, Gambia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Togo and Zambia. These findings confirm the importance of source of economic growth for import. On the other hand, the results of Granger causality test indicate mixed results but the importance is that in the case of higher income countries, there is unidirectional long‐run causality found from import to economic growth (except the USA, Iceland and Italy), and bidirectional long‐run causal relationship exists between import and economic growth in low income countries except Madagascar and Mauritania.

This paper provides the largest sample, including 62 countries, examining the relationship between import and economic growth, from 1971 to 2009.

As with many other developing economies, Egypt pursues a policy of keeping domestic energy prices below border prices. This entails both financial subsidies to energy producers and users, and significant opportunity costs in terms of foregone foreign and government revenues. This article details the price structure and uses two models to assess the macroeconomic and microeconomic impacts of policies designed to correct the domestic/border price disparity.

This study draws on uncertainty management theory to advance our understanding of the relationship between leader integrity and employee voice.

The authors collected data in China by surveying 274 supervisor-subordinate dyads at two different points in time. In addition to the direct relationship between leader integrity and employee voice, they also examined the moderating effect of leader consultation and the mediating effect of perceived risk of voice.

The authors found that leader integrity had a positive effect on employee voice, and perceived risk of voice mediated this relationship. They also found that leader consultation moderated the relationship between leader integrity and employee voice, as well as moderating the mediating role of perceived risk of voice.

Although prior research has examined the relationship between leadership and voice, it has not clearly explicated the effects of leader integrity on voice. In addition, the findings of this study regarding the moderating role of leader consultation, and the mediating role of perceived risk of voice, offer novel insights regarding the nature of the relationship between leader integrity and employee voice.

This article provides the first assessment of the training program of African gendarmes from the so-called Sahel countries in the Special Training Center of the Spanish Civil Guard in Spain. This action is part of the European Union GAR-SI Sahel project, embedded in the framework of the international cooperation of the European Union with Africa and aims to create effective counter-terrorism police tactical units in the area.

The study exploits instructors' assessment on the evolution of the 167 participants over the program from 2017 to 2019 and the satisfaction of attendants with the training action, using 22 Likert-type items and an open question. It employs both quantitative tools (descriptive and inferential statistical methods and multivariate techniques) and qualitative methods (content analysis of participants' comments).

The research finds evidence of a high participants' performance according to trainers and large levels of satisfaction among participants. The authors also discuss the differences found by country of origin and rank of the gendarmes who participated in the trainings.

This study is the first to provide an evaluation of the police training actions embedded GAR-SI Sahel project, part of much larger initiative of cooperation of the European Union with Africa.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the prevalence and influence of social network website (SNW) content about alcohol use and abuse on job applicant reactions to their prospective immediate supervisor and toward applying for the job.

In Study 1, raters coded photographs and photo captions found on 1,048 personal SNWs of US managers or business owners. Approximately 22 percent of managers’ personal SNWs contained references to alcohol, providing a base rate large enough to warrant further research. In Study 2, laboratory experiment participants saw a fictitious company’s website including a professional managerial profile. A 3 × 3 factorial design then varied whether the prospective manager’s comments on his personal SNW emphasized professional activities, social drinking, or alcohol abuse; also, the manager’s friends’ comments emphasized work activities, social drinking, or alcohol abuse. A control group did not see a personal SNW.

Alcohol abuse information on personal SNWs – whether posted by the manager or by the manager’s friends – negatively affected attitudes toward the manager. Alcohol abuse information posted by the manager (but not by the manager’s friends) decreased the willingness of participants to apply for the position. These findings were consistent with the Brunswick Lens Model and the warranting hypothesis.

This is the first study to investigate managerial SNW content and it effects upon prospective job seekers’ attitudes.