The study looks into how governance qualities of decentralized governments mediate the impacts of decentralization on development. Based on a set-oriented approach, the study analyzed data from a nation-wide survey conducted with business managers from all provinces in Indonesia, and found evidence that, despite the country's uniform decentralization reform, individual provinces exhibited great variation in the qualities of their various physical and institutional infrastructures. Notably, these qualities assumed nested relations, with order and security as well as accountability and rule of law seemingly being the preconditions of basic infrastructure provision as well as local governments' coordination. Moreover, business investment decisions (measured as staff expansion and product innovation) were found to vary with some specific combinations of these infrastructural conditions. The result provides evidence supporting the argument that both physical and institutional infrastructures are instrumental to realize the supposed benefits of decentralization and supports the recent call of the literature to look into the political-institutional complex in the process of decentralization reform.
In this study, we develop a conceptual model to investigate how immigrants' cultural identity is related to their sociocultural adaptation and life satisfaction in the host society. In our model, we include two types of cultural identity (i.e., identity with the local society and with the home country), which are expected to have differential impacts on the outcome variables. We further propose that assimilation attitude and perception of discrimination serve as potential mediators in the above relationships. Several hypotheses are formulated and tested with a data set collected from a survey of 501 new immigrants from Mainland China to Hong Kong. The results of structural equation modeling indicate that local identity is positively related to assimilation attitude, which is then associated with sociocultural adaptation and life satisfaction of the respondents. Additionally, Mainland identity is found to be positively associated with immigrants' perceived discrimination, which is then negatively associated with their sociocultural adaptation and life satisfaction.
In: Bulletin of the World Health Organization: the international journal of public health = Bulletin de l'Organisation Mondiale de la Santé, Band 92, Heft 8, S. 555-564
Abstract East Asia harbors substantial genetic, physical, cultural and linguistic diversity, but the detailed structures and interrelationships of those aspects remain enigmatic. This question has begun to be addressed by a rapid accumulation of molecular anthropological studies of the populations in and around East Asia, especially by Y chromosome studies. The current Y chromosome evidence suggests multiple early migrations of modern humans from Africa via Southeast Asia to East Asia. After the initial settlements, the northward migrations during the Paleolithic Age shaped the genetic structure in East Asia. Subsequently, recent admixtures between Central Asian immigrants and northern East Asians enlarged the genetic divergence between southern and northern East Asia populations. Cultural practices, such as languages, agriculture, military affairs and social prestige, also have impacts on the genetic patterns in East Asia. Furthermore, application of Y chromosome analyses in the family genealogy studies offers successful showcases of the utility of genetics in studying the ancient history.
BACKGROUND: The annual medical litigation rate has increased yearly since 1987 in Taiwan. Policy makers keep going medical legislation reforms. The effectiveness of legislation reforms to reduce malpractice litigation risk is uncertain. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether medical legislation reform helps reduce the risk of medical litigation. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This retrospective study used national data obtained from Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taiwan. The period analyzed was from 1987 to 2018. The annual medical litigation rate was determined, types of medical negligence litigation were compared, medical appraisal results were summarized, and the importance of medical legislation was identified. INTERVENTIONS: After legislation reform vs before legislation reform. MEASUREMENTS: The main outcome showed trends in medical dispute assessments over time by adjusting for the general population (per 1, 000, 000 people). We established 2004 and 2012 as the 2 cut-points for further analysis of medical appraisal results due to legislation reform. RESULTS: With legislation reforms, the annual medical litigation rate decreased from 26.68 cases per million people in 2012 to 16.41 cases per million people in 2018. The annual medical litigation rate declined by approximately 38% from 2012 to 2018. Medical appraisal results were malpractice cases in 22.1% before Medical Care Act (2004 Reform) compared with 18.8% from 2004 to 2012 (odds ratio [OR], 0.82; 95% CI, 0.727–0.924; p=0.001), and 6.4% after mediation system introduced in 2012 (odds ratio [OR], 0.243; 95% CI, 0.205–0.288; p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Medical legislation reform has reduced the risk of malpractice litigation over time.
Ming-Ta Hsieh,1– 3 Li-Hui Lu,2 Chi-Wei Lin,1,4 Yun-Wen Chen5 1Department of Family Medicine and Community Medicine, E-Da Hospital, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; 2College of Law, National University of Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; 3Department of Nursing, College of Medicine, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; 4School of Medicine for International Students, College of Medicine, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; 5Pediatrician, Local Clinic, Kaohsiung City, TaiwanCorrespondence: Ming-Ta HsiehDepartment of Family Medicine and Community Medicine, E-Da Hospital, No. 1, Yida Road, Jiao-su Village, Yan-chao District, Kaohsiung City, 82445, TaiwanEmail kaplan210@yahoo.com.twBackground: The annual medical litigation rate has increased yearly since 1987 in Taiwan. Policy makers keep going medical legislation reforms. The effectiveness of legislation reforms to reduce malpractice litigation risk is uncertain.Objective: To determine whether medical legislation reform helps reduce the risk of medical litigation.Design, Setting, and Participants: This retrospective study used national data obtained from Ministry of Health and Welfare in Taiwan. The period analyzed was from 1987 to 2018. The annual medical litigation rate was determined, types of medical negligence litigation were compared, medical appraisal results were summarized, and the importance of medical legislation was identified.Interventions: After legislation reform vs before legislation reform.Measurements: The main outcome showed trends in medical dispute assessments over time by adjusting for the general population (per 1, 000, 000 people). We established 2004 and 2012 as the 2 cut-points for further analysis of medical appraisal results due to legislation reform.Results: With legislation reforms, the annual medical litigation rate decreased from 26.68 cases per million people in 2012 to 16.41 cases per million people in 2018. The annual medical litigation rate declined by approximately 38% from 2012 to 2018. Medical appraisal results were malpractice cases in 22.1% before Medical Care Act (2004 Reform) compared with 18.8% from 2004 to 2012 (odds ratio [OR], 0.82; 95% CI, 0.727– 0.924; p=0.001), and 6.4% after mediation system introduced in 2012 (odds ratio [OR], 0.243; 95% CI, 0.205– 0.288; p< 0.001).Conclusion: Medical legislation reform has reduced the risk of malpractice litigation over time.Keywords: medical malpractice, medical legislation reform, health policy
We create a novel measure of market-nurtured optimism in that managers become more optimistic if the market had responded more favorably, and to a larger extent to positive earnings surprises, than to negative earnings surprises. These market-nurtured managers are prone to engage in value-destructive mergers. The inclination is further reinforced by abundant internal cash. In contrast, a good governance structure mitigates the odds of engaging in mergers and the detrimental effect associated with mergers. The acquisitions launched by overconfident managers are associated with lower market value.