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This scoping review explores the professional literature in allied healthcare to determine which self-assessments of mentor skills are the most valid and reliable for use in occupational therapy doctoral capstone programs. The aims of this scoping review include mapping evidence related to mentor assessments in healthcare, exploring implications for occupational therapy doctoral mentor training programs, and identifying common characteristics of mentor self-assessments for occupational therapy programs to consider when developing capstone mentoring resources. Researchers applied and reported via PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). A librarian and authors formulated keywords and database selections to search PubMed/MEDLINE/PMC, and Embase were searched from across healthcare professions for training outcomes, mentor self-assessment, mentor attributes, and use of researcher-developed assessments. The search was limited to English publications from the last 20 years. Data were extracted for quantitative information regarding study characteristics and qualitative information about mentoring skills. A total of 852 results were delivered across all databases. Nineteen papers met the final eligibility criteria and were included in the data extraction. Populations were included from several healthcare professions, including 11 nursing, four healthcare researchers, one pharmacy, one midwifery, one medicine, and one medical dietetics. Countries included the United States (n = 7), Finland (n = 5), United Kingdom (n = 4), Japan (n = 1), South Africa (n = 1) and Canada (n = 1). The authors identified four valid self-assessment tools, demonstrating III and IV levels of evidence, that may be implemented by occupational therapy programs as they develop resources for mentor programs. Occupational therapy programs can use the mentor attributes found in this scoping review to create their own mentor assessment measures or may choose to use a validated tool. The authors recommend additional research in mentor education and mentor skill acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pen-pal clubs (PPC) are used worldwide for students to learn about different cultures and other skillsets without the need for travel. Many medical students are interested in global health opportunities abroad but costs, scheduling, and other barriers allow few to participate in such experiences. It is important that medical students have nuanced global medical perspectives and can contribute to the global medical community. Objective: The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that an international medical student PPC improves medical students' perspectives of cultural competency and global health engagement. Methods: In 2021, a novel medical student PPC was established that began between an American and Japanese medical school. Following a shareholders meeting, it was decided that the number of medical schools involved globally be expanded through previous institutional affiliations and online presences. In total, the club connected 50 American medical students and 52 medical students from 17 high- and middle-income countries. The primary form of communication was online; pen-pals were encouraged to communicate monthly using provided topics, although frequency and way of communication was their discretion. In February 2022, American PPC members were emailed a qualitative survey to assess the PPC's impact. Results: The survey was completed by 42% of American PPC members, 95% of which were 22-26 years. Participants were preclinical medical students, 60% whom were female and the majority either white (47%) or Asian (43%). Overall, the PPC positively influenced American medical students' perception of global medicine, medical education, and their cultural competency after joining the PPC compared to prior (P = 0.004). Conclusion: PPCs encourage medical students to think from a global perspective and foster open-mindedness within varying social and cultural contexts. Having a global communication platform for students during medical school education may be an additional way to train aspiring global leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examined mixed reality research published during 1994-17, on a series of bibliometric measures including growth rate, global share, citation impact, top countries, organizations and authors, preferred media of research communication and bibliographic characteristics of high cited papers. The study finds that mixed reality research registered faster (35.49%) growth, low citation impact averaged to (6.93) citations per paper, contributed too low share (0.03%) of its total research output in 24 years as highly cited papers. The USA, Japan, and Germany are seen as the world leaders in the subject, each had contributed at least 11% global publications share in 24 years. The mixed reality research is widely scattered across 68 countries with top most productive organizations and authors accounting for modest (23.35% and 16.56%) global publications share and modest (29.53% and 24.37%) global citation share respectively during the period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the prevalence of postdoctoral fellows in fast-moving and competitive scientific research. We use the results of a new and original large-scale survey of scientists in Japan and the United States for the analyses. Descriptive statistics show that, in both Japan and the United States: (1) the mean citation time lag was shorter by about 2 years in the highly cited papers (top 1 %) compared to other normal papers; and (2) the perceived degree of competitive threat was also higher for the projects producing the highly cited papers compared to those for normal papers. We also found that the likelihood of participation of postdoctoral fellows is significantly higher in research with shorter mean time lag and higher competitive threat (while that of students is not), controlling for author size, suggesting that postdoctoral fellows are especially prevalent in research efforts in fast-moving and competitive scientific research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The knee, low back, and shoulder account for most overuse injuries in volleyball. Previous researchers have used methodology that did not examine the extent of injury burden and effect on performance. To develop a more accurate and complete understanding regarding the weekly prevalence and burden of knee, low back, and shoulder problems within the highest levels of men's volleyball, including the role that preseason complaints, match participation, player position, team, and age have on complaints. Descriptive epidemiology study. Professional volleyball clubs and the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I program. A total of 75 male volleyball players, representing 4 teams playing in their country's respective premier league (Japan, Qatar, Turkey, and the United States), participated over a 3-season period. Players completed a weekly questionnaire (Oslo Sports Trauma Research Centre Overuse Injury Questionnaire) reporting pain related to their sport and the extent to which knee, low back, and shoulder problems affected participation, training volume, and performance. Problems leading to moderate or severe reductions in training volume or performance or the inability to participate were considered substantial problems. The mean weekly prevalence of knee, low back, and shoulder problems based on 102 player-seasons was 31% (95% CI = 28%, 34%), 21% (95% CI = 18%, 23%), and 19% (95% CI = 18%, 21%), respectively. Most players (93%, 95/102 player-seasons) reported some level of knee (79%, n = 81/102 player-seasons), low back (71%, n = 72/102 player-seasons), or shoulder (67%, n = 68/102 player-seasons) complaints during the season. Most players (58%, n = 59/102 player-seasons) experienced at least 1 episode of substantial problems affecting the knee (33%, n = 34/102 player-seasons), low back (27%, n = 28/102 player-seasons), or shoulder (27%, n = 28/102 player-seasons). Players with preseason complaints had more in-season complaints than teammates without preseason problems (mean weekly prevalence: knee, 42% versus 8%, t49 = −18.726, P <.001; low back, 34% versus 6%, t32 = −12.025, P <.001; shoulder, 38% versus 8%, t30 = −10.650, P <.001). Nearly all included elite male volleyball players experienced knee, low back, or shoulder problems, and most had at least 1 bout that substantially reduced training participation or sport performance. These findings suggest that knee, low back, and shoulder problems result in greater injury burden than previously reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) has been investigated widely in the past 30 years, resulting in many research achievements in this field. Purpose: To perform a comprehensive bibliometric analysis to evaluate the 100 top-cited articles on the MPFL. Study design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: We searched the Scopus database in December 2022 using the terms "medial patellofemoral ligament" OR "MPFL." The search was confined to English-language articles, including technical notes, systematic reviews on clinical outcomes and/or complications, clinical studies, studies regarding complications, and basic science articles (either cadaveric or biomechanical); we excluded letters, case reports, personal opinions, guidelines, editorials, and narrative or other types of reviews. Analysis of the 100 top-cited articles was performed according to total number of citations, average citations per year (ACY), study type, country of origin, journal of publication, affiliated institution, and most published authors. Results: The total number of citations was 16,358 (range of citations per article, 72-692). The majority of articles were published as clinical studies (54%), with cadaveric studies being the second most common (21%). Most studies originated in the United States (32%), with Japan (15%) and Germany (13%) following. The American Journal of Sports Medicine published the majority of the 100 top-cited articles (37/100; 6304 citations) as well as the 10 top-cited articles according to ACY (7/10; mean, 285.14 citations). The most prolific authors were Nomura (8 articles); Burks (6 articles); and Inoue, Sillanpää, and Dreyhaupt (5 articles each). Conclusion: By analyzing the characteristics of the 100 top-cited articles, this study demonstrated that the MPFL is a growing and popular area of research, with the focus varying through timeline trends. Questions regarding MPFL anatomy, isometry, and biomechanics might have been answered adequately, but research regarding optimal fixation technique under various circumstances is still ongoing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The OLMAR method, which stands for the on-line moving average reversion method, is reported to be one of the most powerful among portfolio selection algorithms in the stock markets. In this research, we use intensive statistical and simulation analyses of long-term data on stock market changes to uncover the secrets of why and when the superiority appears. We find that there have been long-lasting fluctuations in the stock markets and that the OLMAR method actively makes use of such characteristics. In this paper, we analyze long-term stock data from Japan and the United States. The analyses confirm the following points. 1) The OLMAR method yields superior returns. 2) By using the moving average divergence rate provided by the OLMAR method, it is possible to detect specific fluctuation characteristics in long-term stock data from Japan and the United States. 3) Superior returns cannot be obtained from data in which specific fluctuation characteristics have been corrected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term “bourbon” has become increasingly popular in markets all over the globe. The popularity of the bourbon trend has been exploited for both labelling liquors and describing nonalcoholic products. Bourbon has several separate definitions, usually differing on the issue of the geographical scope of the spirit’s production. The bourbon liquor industry has experienced periods of significant downturn followed by periods of explosive revival, motivated mainly by foreign interest, from countries such as Japan, in the product In the 1970s, Japanese interest in whisky and US bourbon facilitated a resurgence of the then-struggling US bourbon industry. In 2018, production of bourbon reached its highest level since 1972. Compared to the exports of 1997, bourbon exports to foreign countries tripled in volume and price in 2018 There are minimal legal protections currently available to America’s bourbon producers to insulate their unique spirit from foreign competition. Despite successful adoption and use of geographical indications (GIs) in many countries, the United States has avoided employing GIs to insulate local products in international markets, with the exception of a few protections for regionally produced wines. GIs have been gaining significance as accessibility to international markets has increased substantially in recent years. In 2015, Japan joined the GI trend, agreeing to recognize GIs with the EU. Products such as Scotch whisky are recognized and protected as GIs in Japan. The previous year, the Japanese company Suntory acquired Jim Beam, a Kentucky-based company comprised of several well-known bourbon labels. The relationship between the US bourbon and Japanese whisky markets has a long history and an arguably longer future ahead. Many of the arguments for the use of GIs have not been updated since countries such as Japan joined the international trend towards GI adoption. Thus, this paper will use the bourbon industry as an example to illustrate and further arguments presented by advocates of GIs. Looking to the successful adoption of GI agreements in Japan, this paper will highlight the benefits of participation in GI recognition and advocate for the US’s entering into GI agreements with Japan and other international bodies generally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, a group of four democracies, the US, India, Japan, and Australia, was first proposed in 2007 by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in his 'confluence of two seas' speech that subsequently embarked on the path to the foundation of the group. Quad perceives China's economic growth, which enables her to transform the world order as a threat and aims at containing the growing Chinese assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region. The Malabar naval exercises in the Indian Ocean by the Quad members were one such exercise. This paper, aims to analyze the formation of Quad and will contemplate whether the group is causing confrontation or stability in the Asia-Pacific and Indo-Pacific regions. The paper will also assess that the Quad is designed to counter China's growing influence in the Asia-pacific and Indo-pacific regions. Containing China is likely to create a confrontation in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Japan is known as a country with low self-rated health despite high life expectancy. We compared socioeconomic inequalities in self-rated health in Japan with those in 32 European countries and the US using nationally representative samples. Methods: We analysed individual data from the Comprehensive Survey of Living Conditions (Japan), the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions, and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (US) in 2016. We used ordered logistic regression models with four ordinal categories of self-rated health as an outcome, and educational level or occupational class as independent variables, controlling for age. Results: In Japan, about half the population perceived their health as 'fair', which was much higher than in Europe (≈20–40%). The odds ratios of lower self-rated health among less educated men compared with more educated were 1.72 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.61–1.85) in Japan, and ranged from 1.67 to 4.74 in Europe (pooled; 2.10 (95% CI 2.01–2.20)), and 6.65 (95% CI 6.22–7.12) in the US. The odds ratios of lower self-rated health among less educated women were 1.79 (95% CI 1.65–1.95) in Japan, and ranged from 1.89 to 5.30 in Europe (pooled; 2.43 (95% CI 2.33–2.54)), and 8.82 (95% CI 8.29–9.38) in the US. Socioeconomic inequalities were large when self-rated health was low for European countries, but Japan and the US did not follow the pattern. Conclusions: Japan has similar socioeconomic gradient patterns to European countries for self-rated health, and our findings revealed smaller socioeconomic inequalities in self-rated health in Japan compared with those in western countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies on health and socio-economic determinants of later-life labour force participation have mainly come from high-income European countries and the United States of America (USA). Findings vary between studies due to different measures of socio-economic status and labour force outcomes. This study investigated longitudinal associations of physical incapacity and wealth with remaining in paid employment after age 60 in middle- and high-income countries. Using harmonised cohort data in the USA, England, Japan, Mexico and China (N = 32,132), multilevel logistic regression was applied for main associations. The age-related probabilities of remaining in paid employment by physical incapacity and wealth were estimated using marginal effects. This study found that physical incapacity predicted lower odds of remaining in paid employment in each country. Wealth was associated with higher odds of remaining in paid employment in the USA, England and Japan, but not in Mexico. Probabilities of remaining in paid employment were high in Mexico but low in China. The absolute difference in the probability of remaining in paid employment between the richest and the poorest groups was greater in the USA than that in any other country. In the USA, England and Japan, the inverse association between physical incapacity and remaining in paid employment could be partially compensated by wealth only when physical incapacity was not severe. National policies, including considering older adults' changing capacities for job placement and prioritising the provision of supportive services for socio-economically disadvantaged older adults, developing pathways for informal workers to access social security and pension coverage, and encouraging employers to hire socio-economically disadvantaged older workers and enhancing their employability, could be facilitated. Future studies, such as exploring health and socio-economic determinants of remaining in part-time and full-time paid employment separately in more countries, and the moderating effects of relevant policies on these associations, are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. To sort out the literature related to conjunctival bacteria and summarize research hotspots and trends of this field. Materials and Methods. The relevant literature data from 1900 to 2019 was retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database. After manual selection, each document record includes title, author, keywords, abstract, year, organization, and citation. We imported the downloaded data into CiteSpace V (version 5.5R2) to draw the knowledge map and conduct cooperative network analysis, discipline and journal analysis, cluster analysis, and burst keyword analysis. Results. After manual screening, there were 285 relevant papers published in the last 28 years (from 1991 to 2019), and the number is increasing year by year. The publications of conjunctival bacteria were dedicated by 1381 authors of 451 institutions in 56 countries/regions. The United States dominates this field (82 literatures), followed by Germany (23 literatures) and Japan (23 literatures). Overall, most cited papers were published with a focus on molecular biology, genetics, nursing, and toxicology. Most papers fall into the category of ophthalmology, veterinary sciences, and pharmacology and pharmacy. The only organized cluster is the "postantibiotic effect," and the top 5 keywords with the strongest citation bursts include "postoperative endophthalmiti(s)," "infectious keratoconjunctiviti(s)," "conjunctiviti(s)," "resistance," and "diversity". Conclusion. The global field of conjunctival bacteria has expanded in the last 28 years. The United States contributes most. However, there are little cooperation among authors and institutions. Overall, this bibliometric study organized one cluster, "postantibiotic effect", and identified the top 5 hotspots in conjunctival bacteria research: "postoperative endophthalmiti(s)," "infectious keratoconjunctiviti(s)," "conjunctiviti(s)," "resistance," and "diversity". Thus, further research focuses on these topics that may be more helpful to prevent ocular infection and improve prophylaxis strategies to bring a benefit to patients in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A growing body of research demonstrates that adapting the popular entertainment activity "escape rooms" for educational purposes as an innovative teaching method can improve the learning experience. Escape rooms promote teamwork, encourage analytical thinking, and improve problem solving. Despite the increasing development and use of escape rooms in health sciences programs and academic libraries, there is little literature on the use of this method in health sciences libraries with health professions students. Case Presentation: Staff at a health sciences library collaborated with faculty to incorporate escape rooms into library instruction in a variety of settings (in-person, hybrid, online) and formats (team, individual) with health professions students from various disciplines (optometry, pharmacy, medicine). The escape rooms described in this paper offered unique experiences for students through active learning. Discussion: Important considerations when planning escape rooms for health sciences library instruction include deciding on team-based or individual design, calculating potential costs in time and money, deciding on an in-person, hybrid, or online format, and determining whether grades should be assigned. Escape rooms can be an effective strategy for library instruction in the health sciences, working in multiple formats to bring game-based learning to a variety of health professions students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Records Management: Journal of the Records Management Society of Japan is the property of Records Management Society of Japan and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this paper, Teaching Expertise in Three Countries project is used as an example to show the significance and contribution of international comparative research and to think about the possible implications for policy in early childhood education. The project studied the development of expertise in preschool teaching in Japan, China, and the United States by employing 'video-cued multivocal ethnography' to explore how teaching expertise is defined in each of these countries and what processes help teachers acquire advanced teaching skills. This project has shown similarities and culturally specific notions, in what the participants have to say about characteristics of less and more experienced teachers. These research findings raise issues and challenges in early childhood education that resonate with the situation not only in the three countries but also possibly in other countries, such as problematizing the role of remembering and reflection in professional practice and the value of experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of New Architecture is the property of New Architecture Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The 19th century roots of social work in social justice movements within immigrant communities continue to thrive in contemporary social work. Yet relatively little attention has focused on the challenges faced by Asian immigrants, currently the second largest immigrant group in the U.S. Indeed, Asians in the U.S. have long been stereotyped as a "model minority," perpetuating the myth that Asian children do not need special attention when acculturating to U.S. schools. Yet parents report obstacles to their children's acculturation, including racism. As part of a larger ethnography, this study examines how Japanese immigrant and temporary resident parents understand their children's acculturation to the U.S. We conducted in-depth, individual interviews with 14 Japanese immigrant and temporary resident parents of school-aged children. They discussed acculturation challenges centered on differences in the Japanese and U.S. cultural self, and how they modified their socialization practices to support their children's acculturation. Rather than employing Japanese child rearing practices that implicitly guide children by shaping their environment, parents shifted to explicit efforts to ensure their children's development of Japanese cultural selves in the U.S. Such practices, however, may result in children losing a sense of independence and autonomy important to both U.S. and Japanese cultural selves. These experiences of Japanese parents challenge the stereotype of Asians as a model minority. We discuss social work implications for culturally appropriate support for acculturation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A major hurdle in pediatric formulation development is the lack of safety and toxicity data on some of the commonly used excipients. While the maximum oral safe dose for several kinds of excipients is known in the adult population, the doses in pediatric patients, including preterm neonates, are not established yet due to the lack of evidence-based data. This paper consists of four parts: (1) country-specific perspectives in different parts of the world (current state, challenges in excipients, and ongoing efforts) for ensuring the use of safe excipients, (2) comparing and contrasting the country-specific perspectives, (3) past and ongoing collaborative efforts, and (4) future perspectives on excipients for pediatric formulation. The regulatory process for pharmaceutical excipients has been developed. However, there are gaps between each region where a lack of information and an insufficient regulation process was found. Ongoing efforts include raising issues on excipient exposure, building a region-specific database, and improving excipient regulation; however, there is a lack of evidence-based information on safety for the pediatric population. More progress on clear safety limits, quantitative information on excipients of concern in the pediatric population, and international harmonization of excipients' regulatory processes for the pediatric population are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bibliometric analysis was carried out for champion data comparisons among prestigious nuclear research institutes (PNRI) existed in Japan, the U. S., France, and Germany. The analysis was relied on database INIS (IAEA), ECD (DOE), WOS (Thomson), and SCOPUS (Elsevier). INIS is advanced, key ex-post evaluating tool for determining general research paper-based champion. Over the 30-year time span of research paper publication, the world champion among 11 PNRI is JAERI confirmed by INIS but ORNL confirmed by ECD, WOS, and SCOPUS, the latter two collected journal submitted research paper. Five years ago JAERI is the 3rd ranked institutes following ORNL and ANL. INIS database results revealed that CEA/Grenoble is the French domestic champion regarding research paper publication. Five years ago it was CEA/Saclay. Results from analytical tools used in bibliometric studies should be viewed with careful consideration to learn of any influencing factors because different characteristics exhibited by individual databases can sometimes generate conflicting bibliometric results. This was true among INIS, ECD, WOS, and SCOPUS when looking at trends especially between 5-year periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper demonstrates that when one new job is generated by attracting a new business in the tradable sector in a local economy, a significant number of additional jobs are created in the nontradable sector when labor mobility is high. However, these multipliers disappear when labor mobility is low. This paper confirms that regions with higher labor inflow have larger multipliers. Furthermore, the spillover effect of agglomeration economies in the tradable sector is significantly positive on the nontradable sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal regions around the Pacific Ring of Fire share the risk of massive earthquakes and tsunamis. Along with their own political-economic, cultural and biophysical contexts, each region has their own history and experiences of tsunami disasters. Coastal areas of Washington State in the U.S. are currently at risk of experiencing a tsunami following a massive Magnitude 9 (M9) earthquake anticipated in the Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ). Looking ahead to consider adaptive planning in advance of a tsunami following this M9 event, this paper explores how lessons from recent megaquake- and tsunami-related experiences of risk-based planning and relocation in coastal areas of Japan and Chile could inform anticipatory action in coastal Washington State. Based on a comparison of earthquake and tsunami hazards, social factors, and the roles of government, this paper outlines a framework to compare policy contexts of tsunami risk-based planning and relocation in three Ring of Fire countries, including factors shaping the possible transfer of approaches between them. Findings suggest some aspects of comparative significance and commonalities shared across coastal communities in the three countries and at the same time highlight numerous differences in governance and policies related to planning and relocation. Although there are limitations to the transferability of lessons in disaster adaptive planning and anticipatory action from one national/regional context to another, we believe there is much more that Washington and the Pacific Northwest can learn from Japanese and Chilean experiences. In any context, risk reduction policies and actions need to garner political support in order to be implemented. Additional case study research and detailed analysis is still needed to understand specific lessons that may be applied to detailed risk-based planning and relocation programs across these different national contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. The bibliometric analysis uses the citation count of an article to measure its impact in the scientific community, yet there is still no comprehensive summary of gastric disease researches via bibliometric analysis. We aimed to evaluate the situations and trends of the most cited articles in gastric disease via bibliometric analysis and to provide physicians a practical guide in assessing the most influential articles written on this subject. Methods. The 100 top-cited articles in gastric disease were compiled using Web of Science. The articles selected were evaluated for their number of citations, year of publication, country of origin, type of study, and others. Results. The database had 484,281 articles published between 1965 and 2019. The most cited article received 4,017 citations and the least received 604, with a mean of 1,149 citations. We classified the articles into seven categories: gastric cancer (n = 53), Helicobacter pylori (n = 17), ulcer (n = 7), gastrointestinal stromal tumors (n = 6), gastritis (n = 5), gastric bypass surgery (n = 2), and others (n = 10). Altogether, 69 of the articles were from the USA (n = 41), the UK (n = 17), and Japan (n = 11). Among all the institutions, Royal Perth Hospital led the list with 5 articles. One-quarter of authors owned three or more of these top-cited articles. The 100 papers were published in 33 journals, and most of them were clinical researches (n = 47). Conclusions. Our study provides a historical perspective for the scientific progress of gastric disease, and the articles of significant findings that contributed great impact on the prevention and treatment of gastric disease had been identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incorporating systematic evidence with clinical expertise is a key element in the quest to improve quality of care and patient outcomes. The evidence supporting skin‐to‐skin contact in the first hour after birth is robust and includes significantly improved outcomes for both mother and infant. This paper compares available iterative data about newborn behaviour in the first hour after birth to further describe the observable behaviour pattern and to provide clinical insight for further research. Although the evidence for positive outcomes through skin‐to‐skin contact are robust, there is a dearth of research specifically focused on clinical practice. The methodology considers the four available data sets that used Widström's 9 stages, which consists of studies from Japan, Sweden, Italy and the United States, examining the parameters of each stage across settings from around the world. This research provides an expanded understanding of the timing of the newborn's progression through Widström's 9 observable stages. We found that newborns in all four data sets began with a birth cry and continued through the remaining stages of relaxation, awakening, activity, rest, crawling, familiarization, suckling and sleeping during the first hours after birth and consolidated the data into a Sign of the Stages chart to assist in further research. The evidence supports making a safe space and time for this important newborn behaviour. Clinical practices should encourage and protect this sensitive period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/objectives: Sedentary behavior (SB), defined as sitting (nonexercising), reclining, and lying down (posture), or by low energy expenditure, is a public health risk independent to physical activity. The objective of this systematic literature review was to synthesize the available evidence on amount of SB reported by and measured in older adults. Data source: Studies published between 1981 and 2014 were identified from electronic databases and manual searching. Large-scale population studies/surveys reporting the amount of SB (objective/ subjective) in older adults aged ≥ 60 years of age were included. Appraisal and synthesis was completed using MOOSE guidelines. Results: 349,698 adults aged ≥ 60 within 22 studies (10 countries and 1 EU-wide) were included. Objective measurement of SB shows that older adults spend an average of 9.4 hr a day sedentary, equating to 65-80% of their waking day. Self-report of SB is lower, with average weighted self-reports being 5.3 hr daily. Within specific domains of SB, older adults report 3.3 hr in leisure sitting time and 3.3 hr watching TV. There is an association with more time spent in SB as age advances and a trend for older men to spend more time in SB than women. Conclusion/ implications: Time spent sedentary ranges from 5.3-9.4 hr per waking day in older adults. With recent studies suggesting a link between SB, health, and well-being, independent of physical activity, this is an area important for successful aging. Limitations: Different methodologies of measurement and different reporting methods of SB made synthesis difficult. Estimated SB time from self-report is half of that measured objectively; suggesting that most self-report surveys of SB will vastly underestimate the actual time spent in SB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives This study examined the stability over time of activities of daily living (ADL) items in 3 comparable longitudinal data sets and evaluated ADL loss sequences for older adults in the United States, South Korea, and Japan. Research Design and Methods Data from the U.S. Health and Retirement Study, and its 2 international sister surveys, were analyzed. Participants were community-dwelling adults aged 60 and older. For each data set, Rasch analysis was implemented to determine if the ordering of items remained stable across multiple waves (2006–2014), such that a single ADL hierarchy may be derived from multiwave data. Results Data fitted the Rasch model well. Item calibrations were sufficiently stable across measurement periods in each data set, reflecting a stable frame of reference. Results were also robust to sample variations. The derived ADL hierarchies based on scaled logit scores revealed that "dressing" and "bathing" were relatively more difficult items for older adults in all study populations. Discussion and Implications Scale stability is essential when exploiting longitudinal data to analyze patterns in ADL disabilities. The consistency in ADL scales across measurement periods supports their use as screening tools and identifying those at risk for transitions in care. Interventions to reduce dependency in bathing and dressing can help improve independent functioning for community-dwelling older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) with conventional photon radiotherapy (XRT) are well-established treatment options for oligorecurrent/oligometastatic disease. Here, we review the available evidence surrounding the current use of proton beam therapy (PBT) in this setting. We describe how the particular physical properties of PBT could be used for the treatment of oligometastases/oligorecurences. Moreover, we further outline how current research has the potential to expand the therapeutic window of PBT whilst minimising the intrinsic uncertainties of this technique. This would potentially lead to an expansion of the commissioning of PBT to include these indications. Background: Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) with conventional photon radiotherapy (XRT) are well-established treatment options for selected patients with oligometastatic/oligorecurrent disease. The use of PBT for SABR-SRS is attractive given the property of a lack of exit dose. The aim of this review is to evaluate the role and current utilisation of PBT in the oligometastatic/oligorecurrent setting. Methods: Using Medline and Embase, a comprehensive literature review was conducted following the PICO (Patients, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcomes) criteria, which returned 83 records. After screening, 16 records were deemed to be relevant and included in the review. Results: Six of the sixteen records analysed originated in Japan, six in the USA, and four in Europe. The focus was oligometastatic disease in 12, oligorecurrence in 3, and both in 1. Most of the studies analysed (12/16) were retrospective cohorts or case reports, two were phase II clinical trials, one was a literature review, and one study discussed the pros and cons of PBT in these settings. The studies presented in this review included a total of 925 patients. The metastatic sites analysed in these articles were the liver (4/16), lungs (3/16), thoracic lymph nodes (2/16), bone (2/16), brain (1/16), pelvis (1/16), and various sites in 2/16. Conclusions: PBT could represent an option for the treatment of oligometastatic/oligorecurrent disease in patients with a low metastatic burden. Nevertheless, due to its limited availability, PBT has traditionally been funded for selected tumour indications that are defined as curable. The availability of new systemic therapies has widened this definition. This, together with the exponential growth of PBT capacity worldwide, will potentially redefine its commissioning to include selected patients with oligometastatic/oligorecurrent disease. To date, PBT has been used with encouraging results for the treatment of liver metastases. However, PBT could be an option in those cases in which the reduced radiation exposure to normal tissues leads to a clinically significant reduction in treatment-related toxicities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the utility of a biopsychosocial model to explain both higher body mass index (BMI) and disordered eating. The study was designed to examine the predictors of higher BMI and a number of measures of disordered eating (dietary restraint, drive for muscularity, drive for thinness, binge eating, and compensatory behaviour). Young adults (N = 838) recruited from seven countries, grouped into four regions (Europe, North American countries, Australia, Japan), completed an online survey, with each completion being 12 months apart. The survey included assessments of BMI and disordered eating, and a range of biological, psychological and sociocultural factors expected to predict both outcomes. Results revealed unique patterns of association between predictors and BMI as well as different measures of disordered eating in the four geographical regions. The findings identify the specific nature of biopsychosocial factors that predict both higher BMI and different aspects of disordered eating. They also demonstrate that caution needs to be exercised in generalising findings from one country to other countries. What is already known about this topic: The literature has already identified various aspects of the biopsychosocial model that predicts disordered eating and higher weight. These studies have primarily focused on disordered eating in cross-sectional studies among adolescents. Obesity and disordered eating have been shown to be related What this topic adds: The study identified the biopsychosocial factors that predict higher BMI and disordered eating among young adults over a 12-month period. The study examined all components of the biopsychosocial model in the one study. The study was conducted across seven countries and identified how these relationships vary from one country to another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing numbers of older workers continue to work after being eligible to claim a state pension, yet little is known about the quality of these jobs. We examine how psychosocial and physical job quality as well as job satisfaction vary over the late career in three contrasting national settings: Sweden, Japan and the United States. Analyses using random effects modelling drew on data from the Swedish Longitudinal Occupational Survey of Health (n = 13,936-15,520), Japanese Study of Ageing and Retirement (n = 3704) and the Health and Retirement Study (n = 6239 and 8002). Age was modelled with spline functions in which two knots were placed at ages indicating eligibility for pensions claiming or mandatory retirement. In each country, post-pensionable-age jobs were generally less stressful, freer and more satisfying than jobs held by younger workers, results that held irrespective of gender or education level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intermediate isolation system (IIS) is currently spreading and gaining significant popularity, mainly in Japan. However, its potentials are not so well-known in European countries, and in USA only one application to building retrofit is registered. The dynamic behaviour of intermediate isolation systems, more complex than the two-degree-of-freedom behaviour of base isolation systems, gives rise to a twofold control mode, which combines isolation and mass damping strategies. However, the research contributions provided in the scientific literature usually concentrate on one single control mode, either isolation or mass damping, and the relevant design methods and criteria. This paper addresses the IIS design problem from a wider perspective and presents an explorative study on the vibration characteristics and dynamic behaviour of IIS, in order to identify the range of different behavioural modes and to propose relevant design guidelines. For these aims, a parametric analysis is carried out, varying the main design parameters, namely: isolation period and ratio, location of isolation layer and mass ratio, distributions of stiffness and mass in the upper and lower structures. A classical modal approach is initially assumed for assessing the contributions of each vibration mode on the global dynamic behaviour of IIS, with a particular focus on the effect of coupling of higher modes. However, since IIS is a non-proportionally damped system, a state space formulation is subsequently adopted for establishing the cases for which the simplified classical approach, only considering two damping values for the isolation and structural parts, can be adopted in a preliminary design stage. Finally, frequency response analysis is carried out for identifying the ranges of predominant isolation and mass damping behaviour and the effect of mode coupling both in terms of local and global response of the isolated models. Design implications are finally derived from the analysis results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As constraints on government funding to public universities become a trend in higher education internationally, clarifying the impact of government policies on donor behavior from a comparative perspective is an issue of higher education research. This paper aims to explore the impact of government appropriations and tax policies on macro trends in donations to public research universities in Japan and USA. Panel data of donation revenue to public research universities in both countries is used to answer the following two research questions: (1) whether the trends in capital markets affect the donation revenue of public research universities operating under different tax systems in Japan and USA, and (2) how the level of government support to higher education affects donations to American and Japanese public research universities. The primary finding is that stock prices are positively associated with donations in USA; however, there is no evidence that stock prices have a positive impact on donations to Japanese public research universities. These contrasting results imply that higher stock prices do not always induce donations to universities and that it is important to consider each country's tax structure when looking for possible links between stock prices and donations to universities. Also, donor behavior is independent of the amount of government appropriations received by universities in both Japan and USA; therefore, the recent decreasing trends in government appropriations in both countries do not necessarily attract donors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Urban Studies (Sage Publications, Ltd.) is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Global corporate restructuring often involves U.S. and Japanese alliance partners in interlinked portfolio choices. This paper develops theory and propositions that study U.S. and Japanese restructuring as a process of strategic choice, and introduces the concept of the restructuring profile. Japanese-U.S. strategic linkages create choices in the form of a call option on portfolio reconfiguration for the Japanese firm, and a put option on financial restructuring for its U.S. partner. While Japanese competition forms an initiating force for U.S. restructuring, it also offers a source of capital for that purpose--a unique situation in which the Japanese firm is a part of both the problem and the solution in its U.S. partners restructuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reflects on the issue on plant science in Korea. It reveals that the theory on country's scientific focus was not transparent to the people involved in the research. It presents an analysis with the participation of top ten countries including Northern America, Europe, Japan, and Australia. It succumbs that the countries in Asia are smaller than those mentioned above with respect to research publication other than Japan. It explains that Korea and China have increased the number of papers being published annually which out put is equaled with Brazil.

Aims and objectives: To identify the current state of knowledge about the use of the sit‐to‐stand intervention with older people and to identify implications for further research. Background: Many older people experience mobility challenges which can negatively affect their well‐being. Physical activities are vital to improving or maintaining mobility. Although there is evidence that mobility challenged older people benefit from the sit‐to‐stand intervention, there is a need to systematically examine the state of knowledge about this intervention. Design: Scoping review using Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework. Methods: A systematic search of three databases was completed. Abstracts were evaluated for relevance using predetermined inclusion criteria. Studies that met the inclusion criteria had data extracted and were appraised for internal and external validity. Narrative synthesis was based on methods described by Popay and colleagues. Results: Of 3,041 papers, six studies met the inclusion criteria. Publications provided a range of sit‐to‐stand interventions with durations varying from four weeks to six months. The frequency of each intervention fluctuated from three to seven times/week with a duration of 15–45 min. Different professionals prompted the activity. Three themes were identified the following: (a) sit‐to‐stand activity as an intervention; (b) generalisability of findings; and (c) sustainability. Conclusions: Most of the studies reviewed indicated improvements in performance of the sit‐to‐stand activity and in motor function. However, issues with studies rigour do not allow us to make generalisations. Further research is needed to confirm the effectiveness of the intervention. Implications for practice: Healthcare providers are expected to offer evidence‐based patient care. This review details current knowledge about the sit‐to‐stand intervention with older people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Erroneous reports of adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) likely exacerbated the 2013 collapse of Japan's HPV immunization program. A similar phenomenon characterized the first months of COVID-19 immunization programs in the USA, UK, and Japan with high rates of reported anaphylaxis. These reports illustrate the susceptibility of supposedly objective medical judgments to public anxiety. Purpose and methods: This study documents inaccuracies in reported AEFIs using three quantitative methods. Results: One of these quantitative methods revealed that false-positive rates for anaphylaxis reports following HPV and later COVID-19 vaccination ranged from 74 to 91 percent. However, unlike HPV vaccinations in Japan, anaphylaxis reports following COVID-19 vaccines fell in Japan, the USA and the UK in the latter months of 2021. Nevertheless, false-positive rates for anaphylaxis reports remained high, suggesting a high degree of imprecision in serious AEFI reports from many countries for many vaccines. Japan's HPV immunization program indicates that media reports, patient hesitancy, healthcare providers' perspectives on vaccine safety, and consistency of government messaging, all influence report number and accuracy. A parallel publication analyzes in depth how such factors affect AEFI reports. Conclusion: Confidence in the safety of the COVID-19 vaccines may have been bolstered trough rapid monitoring of AEFI reports and communication of these findings. This may partly explain the different trajectories of serious AEFI following HPV immunizations in Japan and COVID-19 immunizations in the USA, UK, and Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Maternal vaccination is a promising strategy for protecting pregnant women and newborns against severe infections. This review aims to describe the current status and challenges associated with maternal vaccination against seasonal influenza, tetanus‐diphtheria‐pertussis (Tdap/DTaP), and novel coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID‐19) in Japan and other countries, mainly the United States and the United Kingdom. Methods: A literature search was conducted in PubMed and other public websites (e.g., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) to obtain information on maternal vaccination. Results: Inactivated vaccines are recommended for pregnant women by gynecologic societies in Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Among pregnant Japanese women, the influenza and COVID‐19 (two doses) vaccine coverage rates were 27.0%–53.5% (six studies) and 73.6% (one study), respectively; there are no studies on maternal vaccination with DTaP. Concerns regarding vaccine safety are a major barrier to maternal vaccination across countries. Maternal vaccination is effective in preventing severe disease in pregnant women and protecting infants aged <6 months, is generally safe, and does not increase the risk of adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. Providing accurate information regarding vaccination through healthcare providers and the government and government funding for vaccines may help improve maternal vaccination rates in Japan. Conclusion: Current coverage for maternal vaccination is still low globally mainly because of vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women. The government, drug‐regulatory authorities, and healthcare professionals must educate pregnant women about the effectiveness and safety of maternal vaccines and encourage vaccination when the benefits outweigh the risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the relationship between privacy and national politics in Japan and the U.S., focusing on fingerprint and DNA data issues. It discusses how the legal and political landscapes in both countries have influenced privacy rights, highlighting the historical evolution of privacy protections. It also emphasizes the contrasting approaches to privacy and the impact of different political regimes on privacy laws.

Copyright of Polish Journal of Allergology / Alergologia Polska is the property of Termedia Publishing House and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article presents a research paper on the images of Japan that readers of U.S. newspapers may create and the images of the U.S. that readers of Japanese newspapers might develop. It states that citizens of both countries would unlikely to reach accommodation on mutual conflicts if the potential for the development of equivalent images does not exist in both the U.S. and Japanese newspapers. It discusses systematic content analysis and impressionistic description of news in selected newspapers from the U.S. and Japan. It adds that readers from both countries are likely to gain different mental images on U.S.-Japan political and economic relations.

To what extent do countries and people within countries vary in their perceptions about the risks and benefits of engaging in risky activities? And to what extent are these variations influenced by risk domains? We used generalizability theory to identify and quantify the variance components in perceived risk and benefit ratings that are attributable to differences between cultures, across raters within cultures, and across risk domains. Our results, based on two archival datasets from the United States and Japan, revealed that, although there is nontrivial variability in risk and benefit perceptions between American and Japanese raters, the amount of variability was smaller between cultures compared with across raters within cultures. Moreover, investment risk perceptions and gambling benefit perceptions were predominantly influenced by differences across raters within cultures, and hence, large numbers of raters would be needed to properly represent ratings of the corresponding populations. Our findings suggest that variability in risk and benefit judgments across raters from different cultures should not be simply attributed to pure cultural differences. Rather, a multi‐faceted approach, where multiple sources of variance are simultaneously considered, should be adopted to properly understand and effectively influence judgments of risk and benefit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the recent impact by the COVID‐19 pandemic, nursing research has gone through unexpected changes across the globe. The purpose of this special report is to present the commonalities in the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on nursing research across four countries, including the United States, South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, and one region, that is, Hong Kong, and to make recommendations for future nursing research during the immediate postpandemic period and future pandemic situations. To identify the commonalities, seven researchers/leaders from the five countries/regions had discussions through 3 days of an international workshop. The content for this discussion paper derived from: (a) the exemplars/cases of the COVID‐19 impact on the research process, (b) researchers/leaders' presentations on the COVID‐19 impact, and (c) memos from the workshop. The materials were analyzed using a simple content analysis. The commonalities included: (a) "a heavy emphasis on teaching and fluctuating productivity," (b) "increased funding opportunities and governmental support," (c) "gendered experience complicated by professional differences," (d) "delays and changes/modifications in research process," (e) "limited research settings and difficulties in getting access," and (f) "increased online dissemination activities with positive changes in the image of nursing." With all collective wisdom that nurse researchers have obtained during the COVID‐19 pandemic, nursing research will evolve again for the successful future of the nursing discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emigration of scientists facilitates the formation of international networks. However, are ties in such networks maintained after the scientists return to their respective home countries? Using data from the Web of Science, this paper analyzes whether Japanese migrant scientists returning from the US maintain the collaborative research network ties that they formed during their stay in the US and, if so, what features of these ties contribute to maintaining these relationships. The geographical distance between the US and Japan can impede the transfer of knowledge that is transmitted most effectively through face-to-face interactions. However, social proximity may compensate for geographical distance. Accordingly, the ties that Japanese scientists have formed with other Japanese scientists living in the US are more likely to be maintained than the ties that they have formed with scientists of different ethnicities. Social proximity was also measured by past experiences in collaborative research. The ties to scientists with whom Japanese scientists collaborated more frequently or co-produced papers with higher citation counts are more likely to be maintained after the scientists return to Japan. When collaborative research of American and Japanese scientists is worthwhile, they obtain mutual benefits through a 'give and take' in which they compensate for one partner's lack of knowledge by the other partner's knowledge. In a research field with which the developmental gap between the US and Japan is great, ties are less likely to be maintained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents Economic Department working paper titled "Capturing Nanotechnology's Current State of Development via Analysis of Patents," by Masatsura Igami and Teruo Okazaki. It aims to capture current inventive activities in nanotechnologies based on the analysis of patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO). It states that the U.S., the European Union, and Japan have almost the same share in nanotechnology patent applications to the EPO, which relies strongly on countries' existing technologies and accumulated scientific knowledge.

It has been hypothesized that the ocean mesoscale (particularly ocean fronts) can affect the strength and location of the overlying extratropical atmospheric storm track. In this paper, we examine whether resolving ocean fronts in global climate models indeed leads to significant improvement in the simulated storm track, defined using low level meridional wind. Two main sets of experiments are used: (i) global climate model Community Earth System Model version 1 with non-eddy-resolving standard resolution or with ocean eddy-resolving resolution, and (ii) the same but with the GFDL Climate Model version 2. In case (i), it is found that higher ocean resolution leads to a reduction of a very warm sea surface temperature (SST) bias at the east coasts of the U.S. and Japan seen in standard resolution models. This in turn leads to a reduction of storm track strength near the coastlines, by up to 20%, and a better location of the storm track maxima, over the western boundary currents as observed. In case (ii), the change in absolute SST bias in these regions is less notable, and there are modest (10% or less) increases in surface storm track, and smaller changes in the free troposphere. In contrast, in the southern Indian Ocean, case (ii) shows most sensitivity to ocean resolution, and this coincides with a larger change in mean SST as ocean resolution is changed. Where the ocean resolution does make a difference, it consistently brings the storm track closer in appearance to that seen in ERA-Interim Reanalysis data. Overall, for the range of ocean model resolutions used here (1° versus 0.1°) we find that the differences in SST gradient have a small effect on the storm track strength whilst changes in absolute SST between experiments can have a larger effect. The latter affects the land-sea contrast, air-sea stability, surface latent heat flux, and the boundary layer baroclinicity in such a way as to reduce storm track activity adjacent to the western boundary in the N. Hemisphere storm tracks, but strengthens the storm track over the southern Indian Ocean. A note of caution is that the results are sensitive to the choice of storm track metric. The results are contrasted with those from a high resolution coupled simulation where the SST is smoothed for the purposes of computing air-sea fluxes, an alternative method of testing sensitivity to SST gradients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzed how South Korea’s intra-industry trade (IIT) with her major trading countries (i.e., China, the USA, and Japan (CUJ)) in the manufacturing sector changed over time for the period of 1994–2011. It was found that South Korea’s IIT with China mainly increased through economies of scale (ES), the ratio of inward and outward foreign direct investment to total investment (FDI), the ratio of intermediate cost to total cost (II), and R&D intensity (RD). On the other hand, South Korea’s IIT with the USA was found to mainly increase through ES, FDI, and RD. Finally, RD, FDI, and II variables are found to be the most important determinants for South Korea’s IIT with Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Just-in-time (JIT) provisioning of manufacturing inventories is a notable feature of Japanese manufacturing management. Kawasaki Motors, USA, has committed itself to JIT objectives, which result in moving toward lotless repetitive manufacturing, a streamlined mode of operation characterized by minimal inventories and "shop paper," plus flexible market response. Kawasaki USA has forged a hybrid process of effecting change, featuring Japanese JIT objectives but without Japanese-style consensus mechanisms for making decisions and effecting changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper identifies similarities and differences in the emphases and patterns that U.S. and Japanese managers attribute to a set of 22 generic competitive methods. It highlights the different ways that Japanese and American managers combine these methods to form general business strategies. Using factor analyses and smallest space analyses, the study shows differences in business strategy patterns between managers in Japan and the U.S. Such differences reflect the organizing principles underlying the strategy approaches in U.S. and Japanese firms. The organizing principle underlying U.S. responses is the desire to find way to differentiate a firm from its competitors. In contrast, the organizing principle underlying Japanese responses is a desire to establish a comprehensive, stable and defensible position. The paper discusses the implications of these results for strategic management and suggests directions for future U.S. and Japanese comparative strategy research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tests the hypothesis that country-specific advantage embedded in firms of a particular nationality is a motivation for international interfirm cooperation. A sample of domestic and international cooperative relationships formed by Japanese firms in the commercialization of biotechnology is used to identify factors which differentiate domestic from foreign partners. The findings support our hypothesis that country-specific advantage is a significant variable in explaining differences between cooperative relationships with partners of different countries. The results of this study indicate that interfirm cooperation has implications for the international competitiveness of both firms and nations in high technology industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]