In nature, gregarious animals, insects, or bacteria usually exhibit paradoxical behaviors in the form of group fission and fusion, which exerts an important influence on group’s pattern formation, information transfer, and epidemiology. However, the fission-fusion dynamics have received little attention compared to other flocking behavior. In this paper, an intermittent selective interaction based control algorithm for the self-organized fission-fusion behavior of flocking system is proposed, which bridges the gap between the two conflicting behaviors in a unified fashion. Specifically, a hybrid (...) velocity coordination strategy that includes both the egalitarian and selective interactions is proposed, where the egalitarian interaction is to maintain the flock’s order and achieve the fusion behavior while the selective interaction strategy is for the response to external stimulus information and generates the fission behavior. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the proposed control algorithm can realize the self-organized fission-fusion behavior of flocking system under a unified framework. The influences of the main control parameters on the performance of the fission-fusion behavior are also discussed. In particular, the trade-off parameterαbalances the exploration and exploitation behaviors of flocking system and significantly enhances its movement flexibility and environmental adaptivity. (shrink)

This study examines the impact of chief executive officer ability on firms’ corporate social responsibility performance. We find that firms’ CSR performance increases with CEO ability. Specifically, firms with more able CEOs are associated with more socially responsible activities and fewer socially irresponsible activities, and are associated with more stakeholder CSR rather than third-party CSR. We further find that the positive relation between CEO ability and CSR is weakened for CEO who is also the chair of the board and for (...) CEO who is close to retirement; and is weakened when the CSR emphasis exerted by a firm’s external environment is high. Our results are robust after controlling for firm fixed effects and to the use of multiple measures of CSR performance and CEO ability. Overall, our evidence is consistent with our conjecture that more able CEOs have less career concerns so that these CEOs are more willing to undertake long-term investments in socially beneficial activities, leading to better CSR performance. (shrink)

Firms are central to wealth creation and distribution, but their role in economic inequality in a society remains poorly studied. In this essay, we define and distinguish value distribution from value creation and value appropriation. We identify four value distribution mechanisms that firms engage in and argue that shareholder wealth maximization approach skews the value distribution toward shareholders and top executives, which in turn contributes to rising economic inequalities around the world. We call on organizational scholars to study the value (...) distribution role of firms and its consequences for society, and introduce the articles in this volume of the special issue on economic inequality, business, and society. (shrink)

This study examines the effects of corporate governance mechanisms on CSR performance in an emerging economy, China. Because of the need of gaining legitimacy in the new institutional context, Chinese firms have to adopt global CSR practices in order to remain competitive. Using the corporate governance framework, this study examines how board composition, ownership, and TMT composition influence corporate social performance. The propositions are tested using data gathered from 471 firms in China. By and large, empirical findings supported the hypothesized (...) relationships. (shrink)

Recent literature suggests that ethical leadership helps to inhibit followers’ unethical behavior, largely built on the premise that followers view ethical leaders as ethical role models and socially learn from them, thereby engaging in more ethical conduct. This premise, however, has not been adequately tested, leaving insufficient understanding concerning the conditions under which this social learning process occurs. In this study, we revisit this premise, theorizing that not all followers will equally regard the same ethical leader as being a personal (...) ethical role model, thereby bounding the leader’s effects in reducing followers’ unethical behavior. We integrate the role of follower self-concepts into social learning theory, hypothesizing that the extent followers emulate their ethical leaders is contingent on how they identify with ethics as well as the particular leader. We test our hypotheses with three-wave survey data collected from 214 employees, finding that ethical leaders are viewed as being role models only amongst followers higher in moral identity and leader identification, and that followers’ perceptions that the leader is an ethical role model mediated the effect of ethical leadership on followers’ unethical behavior. Interestingly, results for the full-model tests show that ethical leadership evokes unethical behavior amongst followers lower in both moral identity and leader identification. These results suggest that ethical leadership is not a universally useful practice to decrease unethical behavior and that a more nuanced understanding of its contingent effects needs to be better understood. (shrink)

This study examines the relation between a firm’s business strategy and its corporate social responsibility performance. Using a comprehensive measure of business strategy based on the Miles and Snow theoretical framework, we find that firms following an innovation-oriented strategy are associated with better CSR performance than those following an efficiency-oriented strategy. Specifically, compared with defenders, prospectors engage in more socially responsible activities, fewer socially irresponsible activities, and perform better in both stakeholder- and third-party-related CSR areas. Taken together, our results suggest (...) that business strategy is an important determinant of CSR performance. Prospectors take advantage of CSR, as their innovation-oriented strategy allows them not only to benefit more from CSR, but also to have more tolerance for the uncertainty, risk, and long time-horizon associated with CSR engagement. (shrink)

An accumulating amount of research has documented the harmful effects of abusive supervision on either its victims or third parties (peer abusive supervision). The abusive supervision literature, however, neglects to investigate the spillover effects of abusive supervision through third-party employees’ (i.e., peers’) mistreatment actions toward victims. Drawing on social learning theory, we argue that third parties learn mistreatment behaviors from abusive leaders and then themselves impose peer harassment and peer ostracism on victims, thereby negatively affecting victims’ performance. Further, we posit (...) that, if a victim has a proactive personality, this will weaken these indirect, negative effects. We conducted two studies, both with three-wave longitudinal data, to verify the hypotheses. The results of Study 1 evidence the significant indirect effects of abusive supervision on employee creative performance via both peer harassment and peer ostracism. Contrary to our moderation hypothesis, the analysis shows that victims’ proactive personality strengthens rather than weakens the negative indirect effects of peer harassment. Study 2 generally replicated the results of Study 1 with employee’s objective job performance as outcome. Our research contributes to the abusive supervision literature by highlighting a social learning process of third-party peer mistreatment, suggesting a spillover channel of abusive supervision on the victim’s performance. (shrink)

Chinese Hui medicine is a unique Chinese traditional medicine system formed by the integration of traditional Islamic Arabia medicine and China traditional Chinese medicine. It is also the cream of ancient Eastern and Western traditional medicine. Hui medicine is based on its unique concepts of Hui medical philosophy, such as the theory of Zhenyi Vitality and the theory of seven elements. It is the only traditional national medicine developed by inheriting Islamic Arab medical philosophy and integrating Chinese traditional Chinese medical (...) philosophy theory. Hui medicine likes to use the application method characterized by aromatic Hui medicine (also known as ship medicine). It has high traditional treatment effect in Hui orthopedics and traumatology, Hui medicine of brain, Hui medicine of gynecology, Hui medicine of ophthalmology, Hui medicine of dermatology, Hui medicine of anorectal, etc. There is a relatively complete traditional medical system of Hui medicine. The Sinicized Islamic philosophical system guides the philosophical concept of Hui medicine. Hui medicine absorbs and combines the essence of traditional Chinese medicine, which forms the theoretical system of “Zhenyi (True one)”, “Vitality”, “Yin and Yang”, “Qixing”, “Four natures”, “Four body fluids” “Viscera Qi activity” and “Four parts and seven diseases” systems, which have been formed in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. The characteristics of Hui medicine application are based on the formulation of aromatic drugs, and the nature of cold, hot, dryness, and humidity is conducted for each drug, as well as the drug strength (toxicity) of each drug is graded in grades 1 - 4. Therefore, Hui medicine is a traditional ethnic medicine combined with Chinese and Western medicine. (shrink)

This volume explores the cross-linguistic diversity, and possibly inconsistency, of the span of linguistic means that signal reported speech and thought. The integration of broad linguistic (viewpoint in conversation and narrative) and cognitive (theory of mind and understanding the inner life and thought of others) strategies for handling mixed points of view will be considered.

This study attempts to investigate the relationships among the ethical beliefs of Chinese consumers and orientations based on attitudinal attributes: materialism and moral philosophies (idealism and relativism). In addition, this study examines Chinese consumers' ethical beliefs in relation to five selected demographic characteristics (gender, age, religion, family income and education). Based on this exploratory study of 284 Chinese consumers, the following statistically significant findings were discovered. First, Chinese consumers regard that a passively benefiting activity is more ethical, but actively benefiting (...) from an illegal or a questionable activity is unacceptable. Second, the two dimensions of passively benefiting and no harm/no foul can be used to distinguish the consumers who endorse higher levels of idealism or relativism. Third, Chinese consumers with a high level of materialism are more likely to actively benefit from illegal and questionable activities, and the passively benefiting actions. Finally, the more ethical Chinese consumers seem to be younger, be religious, and have a lower family income. (shrink)

Providing ethically competent care requires nurses to reflect not only on nursing ethics, but also on their own ethical traditions. New challenges for nurse educators over the last decade have been the increasing globalization of the nursing workforce and the internationalization of nursing education. In New Zealand, there has been a large increase in numbers of Chinese students, both international and immigrant, already acculturated with ethical and cultural values derived from Chinese Confucian moral traditions. Recently, several incidents involving Chinese nursing (...) students in morally conflicting situations have led to one nursing faculty reflecting upon how moral philosophy is taught to non-European students and the support given to Chinese students in integrating the taught curriculum into real-life clinical practice settings. This article uses a case study involving a Chinese student to reflect on the challenges for both faculty members and students when encountering situations that present ethical dilemmas. (shrink)

Music not only regulates mood but also promotes the development and maintenance of empathy and social understanding. Since empathy is crucial for well-being and indispensable in social life, it is necessary to develop strategies to improve empathy and prosocial behaviors. To fulfill this aim, researchers have extensively investigated the effect of intensive musical training on the development of empathy. Here, we first summarize evidence showing the powerful influence of musical training on the development of empathy and then discuss psychological mechanisms (...) responsible for those observations. The conclusions drawn from most previous studies were mainly based on behavioral measurements, while the neural basis of musical training in the development of the empathic brain is still unclear. Fortunately, brain imaging research has contributed greatly to our understanding of the neural underpinnings associated with musical training and its possible connection to the development of the empathic brain. One of the most distinctive signatures of musical training is structural and functional changes of multiple brain regions, and such changes might be related to some of the empathic behaviors observed in musically trained children. Therefore, intensive musical training in childhood may increase levels of empathy, and applied research is required to optimize the training strategy before implementing music education in empathy regulation. Moreover, future longitudinal studies are needed to better understand neural mechanisms underlying the causal effect of musical training on empathy development. These findings have important implications for understanding the development of the empathic brain and for improving prosocial behaviors. (shrink)

Although the effects of pro-organizational motives on pro-organizational behaviors [i.e., unethical pro-organizational behavior and organizational citizenship behavior ] and their boundaries have been explored to some extent, extant studies are rather piecemeal and in need of synthesis and extension. Based on prior motivational research on pro-organizational behaviors, we developed a comprehensive contingent model in which moral identity and impression management motives would moderate the links between pro-organizational motives, UPB, and OCB. Adopting a time-lagged design, we collected data from 218 salespeople (...) in an internet technology service company in China. Results showed that pro-organizational motives were positively related to UPB and OCB. Moral identity weakened the impact of pro-organizational motives on UPB but strengthened the influence of pro-organizational motives on OCB. Furthermore, we found that impression management motives strengthened the effects of pro-organizational motives on UPB and OCB, and the interaction of impression management motives and pro-organizational motives was stronger on UPB than on OCB. Theoretical and practical implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed. (shrink)

Business Ethics: A European Review, EarlyView.

Business groups dominate the economic landscape in many economies around the world. While business groups overcome the institutional voids arising due to inefficiencies of external markets, they also possess market power, which could be economically and socially counterproductive, especially for unaffiliated firms. Drawing on the transaction cost and industrial organization economics, we examine whether the presence of business group affiliated firms in industries restricts the entry of unaffiliated firms or firms affiliated with small- and medium-size business groups. Findings based on (...) Indian firms suggest that investments by business group affiliated firms in an industry have an inverted U-shaped relationship with the investment by unaffiliated firms. However, investments by firms affiliated with large-sized business groups have a U-shaped relationship with the investment by affiliates of small and medium business groups. These findings suggest that the market power of business groups and entry barrier relationship is contingent on the size of the business groups. (shrink)

Chinese consumers comprise a unique subculture that exerts a considerable influence on the market and are treated as a collective group by researchers. However, few studies have examined the effects of collectivism and consumer attitudinal attributes on consumer ethics. Although the practice of religion was prohibited in China before economic reforms in the late 1970s, religion remains a major factor that affects the ethical judgment of consumers. The present study, based on the Hunt–Vitell model, examines the influence of culture and (...) personal characteristics on consumer ethics. A total of 284 Chinese consumers were surveyed. Structural equation modeling was used to test hypothesized relationships in the research model. The results indicate that collectivism had a significant explanatory power for four dimensions of consumer ethical beliefs: actively benefiting from illegal activities; passively benefiting from questionable activities; actively benefiting from deceptive legal activities; and engaging in no harm and no foul activities. However, consumer attitude toward business significantly explained only the passive dimension of consumer ethics, and religious beliefs significantly explained only the active dimension of consumer ethical beliefs. (shrink)

This study adopts qualitative research methods, and the research texts are three Zhang Yimou films that reflect the history and social culture of the Republic of China, namely Red Sorghum, Ju Dou, and Raise the Red Lantern, also known as the Red Trilogy. This study explores the phenomenon of consuming history through the art form of films. The study finds that history is not only concerned and used by historians and archaeologists but can also be used by artists and consumed (...) by the audience. The consumption (use) of history by artists and audiences is not consuming its complete authentic history. In Zhang Yimou's Red trilogy films, the history and social culture of the Republic of China are arranged and designed. The audience can get a feeling that goes straight to the heart by watching these artfully processed. Re-made history, which is different from the historical knowledge read through words in history books, this kind of consumption is more intuitive, attractive, and acceptable to the audience. By watching these films, the audience colloquially learns about history, and although it is not a serious and complete history, it gains cultural value just as much. (shrink)

This research, focusing on the 'Oracle Bone Script' of Anyang City, China, holds significant academic value. It delves into the discovery of oracle bones and their use for divination and sacrifice during the Shang Dynasty, shedding light on the social, political, economic, and cultural aspects of the time, as well as local wisdom. The study investigates the connection between oracle bones and the lives and society of the local people in Anyang, including the construction of identity and the utilization of (...) oracle bones' value. The main findings of the study, titled 'Oracle Bone Script Culture of Anyang, China,' highlight the inseparable link between 'self-identity construction' and 'value utilization of inheritance.' These two elements interact to shape a distinctive oracle bone culture that mirrors the self-identity of the people of Anyang. The research's academic significance lies in its exploration of ancient cultural identity and its provision of crucial educational and informational value for the cultural development policies of various countries. (shrink)

Direct electrical stimulation has been widely applied in both guidance of lesion resection and scientific research; however, the design and selection of intraoperative cognitive mapping tasks have not been updated in a very long time. We introduce updated mapping tasks for language and non-language functions and provide recommendations for optimal design and selection of intraoperative mapping tasks. In addition, with DES becoming more critical in current neuroscientific research, a task design that has not been widely used in DES yet was (...) introduced for more delicate mapping of brain functions especially for research purposes. We also illustrate the importance of designing a common task series for DES and other non-invasive mapping techniques. This review gives practical updated guidelines for advanced application of DES in clinical and neuroscientific research. (shrink)

It has been demonstrated that the propagation of information and awareness regarding a disease can assist in containing the outbreak of epidemics. Previous models for this coevolving usually introduced the dependence between these two processes by setting a lower but time-independent infection rate for individuals with awareness. However, a realistic scenario can be more complicated, as individual vigilance and the adopted protective measures may depend on the extent of the discussion on the disease, whereas individuals may be irrational or lack (...) relevant knowledge, leading to improper measures being taken. These can introduce a time-varying dependence between epidemic dynamics and awareness prevalence and may weaken the effect of spreading awareness in containing a pandemic. To better understand this effect, we introduce a nonlinear dependence of the epidemic infection rate on awareness prevalence, focusing on the effect of different forms of dependence on the coevolving dynamics. We demonstrate that a positive correlation between vigilance and awareness prevalence can enhance the effect of information spreading in suppressing epidemics. However, this enhancement can be weakened if some individuals are irrational. Our results demonstrate the importance of rational behavior in the strategy of containing epidemics by propagation of disease information. (shrink)

Post-Theories in Literary and Cultural Studies brings to attention the post-theoretical discussions on the changing perceptions in literary and cultural studies. In four sections the volume presents essays that trace the engagement of post-theory with post-postmodernism, posthumanism, ethics, and politics.

A correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-021-04793-5.

Teoria e práticas semióticas -- Literatura e ideologia -- Apontamentos para a questão do ícone -- Arquitetura como processo de linguagem -- Por uma classificação da linguagem escrita.

In this first original collection of essays on Catholic Biblical Ethics ever done in English, renowned Jesuit moral theologian James Keenan brings together distinct voices from numerous cultures and language groups. The result is a volume representing a truly global community of Catholic ethics scholars. The Bible and Catholic Theological Ethics deepens contemporary understandings of the relationship between the Holy Bible and the world of Catholic ethical reflection. Like the four other books in the prestigious CTEWC Series, this volume aims (...) at offering a more systematic, comprehensive, and global perspective than typical Anglo-centric or North American-focused offerings. (shrink)

Commentary on Mīmāṃsābhāṣya of Śabarasvāmi, which in turn is a commentary of Mīmāṃsāsūtra of Jaimini, basic work on the Mīmāṃsā school in Hindu philosophy; contains texts of Mīmāṃsābhāṣya and Mīmāṃsāsūtra.