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The puropse of this paper is to explore the extent to which principles of lean product development are applied to product design and engineering at automotive companies in South Africa (SA). Survey, interview and observational data form the basis for an adaptation of Toyota’s lean product development system (LPDS) (Morgan and Liker, 2006) to the South African automotive product engineering context.

All seven automotive manufacturers then operating in SA (including Toyota) were investigated, together with sample of those suppliers carrying out product engineering and/or design locally. A questionnaire based on the LPDS, and follow-up interviews were used to ascertain the extent to which lean principles informed product engineering, and identify areas where there was scope for improvement.

The survey established that while SA automotive companies have a strong manufacturing focus there is very limited local product design and development (PD&D), as this tends to be carried out centrally for multinationals. However, global product designs require modifications to suit local conditions and many decisions about manufacturability are taken locally. This broad area of design-related activity will be termed product engineering. The study found considerable scope for increasing the extent to which aspects of product engineering were influenced by lean thinking. An adapted version of the LPDS is proposed to aid lean thinking in product engineering in this context.

This study provides information on the application of lean thinking in product engineering, an area that has attracted far less attention than manufacturing and PD&D. Furthermore it addresses a significant sector of an important emerging economy, and contributes a practitioner perspective to what is predominantly a theoretical literature.

The purpose of this paper is to focus on consumers’ reactions to cross-border acquisitions (CBA) by exploring the role of consumer perceptions of the psychic distance between the country of the acquirer and that of the target firm when the acquiring corporation has a good or poor reputation.

A 2×2 experimental design which manipulated psychic distance and acquirer’s corporate reputation was conducted in Italy. The study considers an Italian food target firm and compares four foreign acquiring firms with different combinations of corporate reputation (good/poor) and psychic distance to Italy (small/large).

The authors found that the degree of psychic distance between the countries of the acquiring and targeted firms was inversely related to Italian consumers’ intentions to repurchase the products of the post-acquisition target, and unrelated to the acquirer’s corporate reputation.

This is the first study focusing on psychic distance in the context of CBA, especially from the perspective of consumer behavior, which can help to better understand certain negative reactions toward the acquisition of a business.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate a police department's Post-Crisis Assistance Program (PCAP) for consumers who experienced a police-abated mental health crisis. The authors analyzed three questions: First, does PCAP reduce a consumer's future mental health calls for service (CFS)? Second, does PCAP reduce a consumer's odds of being arrested? Third, does PCAP reduce the odds of a consumer being taken into emergency protective custody (EPC)?

The authors use propensity score matching to analyze data from a sample of individuals (n=739) who experienced a police-abated mental health crisis.

The authors find that PCAP consumers generated fewer mental health CFS, were less likely to be arrested, and were less likely to be taken into EPC than non-PCAP consumers six months following a police-abated mental health crisis.

The research only examined outcomes six months after a mental health crisis. The authors encourage future research to examine whether the benefits of PCAP persist over longer periods of time.

The study demonstrates that partnerships between police departments and local mental health groups can help police officers better serve citizens with mental health conditions.

To the knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate the impact of a PCAP for citizens experiencing police-abated mental health crises.

The purpose of this article is to assess consumer evaluations of bonus packs offered with price discounts.

Four laboratory experiments and a content analysis were conducted.

The opportunity to obtain a price discount was available for approximately 25 per cent of the bonus packs found in a content analysis. Consumers evaluated an offer containing a low bonus amount and a high price discount more positively than an offer containing a high bonus amount and a low price discount, despite both offers providing a similar underlying price per unit. Moreover, consumer evaluations of a bonus pack can be enhanced by providing a price discount rather than offering it at the regular price.

Future research could examine consumer reactions to bonus packs offered with discounts contingent on obtaining multiple quantities (e.g. BOGO; a multiple-unit price providing a lower price per unit than the single unit’s price) to determine whether the results of the present research extend to these situations.

Manufacturers and retailers can evoke more positive consumer reactions to a bonus pack offered with a price discount if specifying a high amount for the latter rather than the former (if high amounts cannot be specified for both). It is possible for retailers to enhance consumer evaluations of a bonus pack by providing a price discount.

This research is the first to examine consumer evaluations of promotional offers containing both a bonus pack and a price discount.

The purpose of this paper is to review and generate themes evident in research on primary and post-primary (secondary) school leadership in the Republic of Ireland (Ireland) from 2008 to 2018.

This paper follows the steps of a systematic review and thematic synthesis.

Following the review, six themes are identified and described, summarising the most current school leadership research in Ireland.

Potential future directions of research are identified.

No review of research on school leadership in Ireland is currently available and this is timely given the policy context’s recent focus on school leadership. The steps taken to conduct the review are clearly outlined.

The paper focuses on how knowledge visualization supports the development of a particular multiobjective decision-making problem as a portfolio optimization problem in the context of interorganizational collaboration between universities and a large automotive company. This paper fits with the emergent knowledge visualization literature because it helps to explain decision-making related to the development of a multiobjective optimization model in Lean Product Development settings. We investigate how using ad hoc visual tools supports knowledge translation and knowledge sharing, enhancing managerial judgment and decision-making.

The empirical case in this study concerns the setting up of a multiobjective decision-making model as a portfolio optimization problem to analyze and select alternatives for upgrading the lean production process quality at an FCA plant.

The study shows how knowledge visualization and the associated tools work to enable knowledge translation and knowledge sharing, supporting decision-making. The empirical findings show why and how knowledge visualization can be used to foster knowledge translation and sharing among individuals and from individuals to groups. Knowledge visualization is understood as both a collective and interactional process and a systematic approach where different players translate their expertise, share a framework and develop common ground to support decision-making.

From a theoretical perspective, the paper expands the understanding of knowledge visualization as a system of practices that support the development of a multiobjective decision-making method. From an empirical point of view, our results may be useful to other firms in the automotive industry and for academics wishing to develop applied research on portfolio optimization.

Three broad behavioral categories have been related to organizational goals: task (in‐role), citizenship (extra‐role), and counterproductive behaviors. Because most studies modeling these behaviors have been conducted in culturally similar contexts (individualistic and relatively low power distance settings), the purpose of this paper is to test the invariance of such a triad categorization of performance in collectivistic and high power distance contexts.

Data of employees' proficiencies (n = 1,022) in 34 work activities representing the three behavioral performance categories were factor analyzed. Data were collected by adapting existing behavioral‐based instruments exhibiting strong psychometric properties.

Although results corroborate the existence of a triad categorization of employee behaviors, culture‐specific variations attesting to the partitioning of in‐role behaviors according to the distribution of power in organizations were found. Results also suggest that collectivistic individuals narrowly conceptualize extra‐role behaviors by excluding discretionary interpersonal actions.

The paper's findings contribute to our understanding of how job performance varies in a global economy. These variations must be considered in appraisal instruments, especially in organizations operating across cultural contexts.

This paper is believed to be the first to test the cultural invariance of a triad categorization of relevant employee behaviors.

Throughout the last decade, a number of empirical studies have assessed the effectiveness of body-worn cameras (BWCs) among law enforcement agencies across the United States. The purpose of this paper is to examine officers' perceptions regarding the impact this technology has had on police-community relations, as well as the working relationship between police and other actors in the criminal justice system (e.g. prosecutors, jurors).

The author conducted focus groups with officers (n = 89) from two local law enforcement agencies in California that had adopted BWCs in recent years. Participating officers discussed advantages and disadvantages they associated with BWCs, as well as how BWCs have impacted their relationship with the public and justice system personnel.

Officers recognized advantages to using BWCs, including the potential for positive changes in police behavior and the ability to protect officers against false citizen complaints. Officers also identified a number of disadvantages (or consequences) they associate with BWCs, such as the depreciation of credibility behind an officer's word and the impact of video footage on prosecutorial decision-making.

Prior studies have gathered officers' perceptions regarding BWCs, but very few have assessed whether and how the use of this technology by law enforcement influences other actors within the criminal justice system. The findings from this study may prompt further empirical consideration regarding BWCs, especially with regard to whether police use of this technology significantly impacts citizens' trust in the police and how their use may impact prosecutorial and juror decision-making.

This study aims to develop a multi-material stereolithography (MMSL) technique to directly fabricate a biphasic osteochondral scaffold.

A bespoke prototype MMSL system was developed based on a bottom-up mask projection approach. The system was controlled by a multi-material fabrication algorithm with minimum number of switching cycles during fabrication. A variable-power light source was used to fabricate materials with significantly different curing characteristics. The light-curable poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) hydrogel and beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) ceramic suspension were used for fabricating the biphasic osteochondral scaffold.

The bonding strength of the multi-material interface is shown to be mainly affected by the type of photopolymer, rather than the switching of the materials in MMSL. Lighting power densities of 2.64 and 14.98 mW/cm2 were used for curing the PEGDA hydrogel and the ß-TCP ceramic suspension, respectively. A biphasic osteochondral scaffold with complex interface was successfully fabricated.

This study proposes a potential technical method (MMSL) for manufacturing a complex biphasic osteochondral scaffold composing a PEGDA hydrogel/ß-TCP ceramic composite in a time-efficient and precise manner. The designed bone-cartilage scaffold interface and the surface of the cartilage scaffold can be precisely manufactured.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the combined crime rate and staffing levels of a patrol area affect patrol officers’ productivity. Specifically, the author identified and analyzed two macro-level correlates of patrol officer productivity: reported violent crimes per officer and reported property crimes per officer (a beat’s “crime-to-cop” ratios).

Using hierarchical linear modeling, the author estimated the effects of a patrol area’s violent crimes per officer ratio and property crimes per officer ratio on the annual number of traffic citations, warrants, misdemeanor arrests, and felony arrests generated by patrol officers (n=302). The author also examined the effect of these crime-to-cop ratios on a more advanced productivity metric.

The results suggest that a patrol area’s rate of property crimes per officer is associated with a moderate decrease in an officer’s annual number of traffic citations, warrant arrests, and misdemeanor arrests; a patrol area’s rate of violent crimes per officer is also associated with a moderate decrease in an officer’s annual number of traffic citations; and a patrol area’s rate of violent crimes per officer is associated with a moderate increase in an officer’s annual number of warrant and misdemeanor arrests. Notably, the crime-to-cop ratios are not correlated with a more sophisticated patrol productivity metric.

The author analyzed data from a mid-sized US police department that uses a generalists policing style. It is unknown if these results translate to smaller or larger police departments, as well as those agencies practicing a specialized policing style.

The findings suggest that police scholars should not only recognize how the crime-to-cop ratios of a patrol area might impact patrol officer productivity, but also incorporate more sophisticated metrics of patrol officer activity in future studies. These findings likewise signal to police practitioners that an area’s crime-to-cop ratios should be considered when allocating officers and other resources across patrol areas.

To the authors knowledge, this is the first study to identify and examine the link between a patrol area’s crime-to-cop ratios and patrol officer productivity.