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Repeated subconcussive head impacts are frequently experienced by athletes involved in competitive sports, such as boxing. The objective of the present study was to investigate the changes in working memory performance and memory retrieval-related neural oscillations in boxing athletes who experienced repeated subconcussive head impacts. Twenty-one boxing athletes (boxing group) and 25 matched controls (control group) completed a modified visual working memory task, and their continuous scalp electroencephalography (EEG) data were collected simultaneously. The behavioral measures and retrieval-related low-frequency neural oscillations were analyzed at each working memory set size in both groups. Subjects in the boxing group showed a reduced mean accuracy, diminished capacity estimates, and slower reaction time at demanding set sizes, and a marginally increased intra-individual coefficient of variation (ICV) for overall set sizes. Additionally, decreased event-related frontal theta synchronization, parieto-occipital alpha desynchronization, and frontal low beta synchronization were observed in the boxing group, suggesting underlying working memory dysfunction for efficient neurocognitive resource employment, inhibition of distracting stimuli, and post-retrieval control in the boxing group. Moreover, a negative correlation was found between frontal beta synchronization and reaction time for most set sizes in both groups. The present study was the first to reveal the underlying working memory deficits caused by the cumulative effects of boxing-related subconcussive head impacts from the perspective of behavior and EEG time-frequency oscillations. Joint analysis of EEG low-frequency oscillations and the innovative task with multiple challenging load conditions may serve as a promising way to detect concealed deficiencies within working memory processing.

Cognitive impairment caused by repetitive subconcussion has received increasing attention in recent years. Although the dysfunction of attention has been confirmed by neuropsychological research using scales, there is no event-related potentials (ERPs) research. The Attention Network Test (ANT) has been widely used to evaluate the three separate components of attention processing (alerting, orienting, and executive control). Twenty-seven paratroopers exposed to repetitive subconcussion (subconcussion group) and 25 matched healthy control participants (HCs group) were enrolled, and all of them performed the ANT test while continuous scalp electroencephalography data were recorded. On the behavioral performance level, the subconcussion group showed a slower task response, with an especially significant slower reaction time in alerting. Concerning ERP results, reduction amplitudes of cue-N1 in the alerting network were observed, indicating that this group was less able to make efficient use of cues and maintain an alerting state for incoming information. For the orienting network, no difference in N1 amplitude was observed between the two groups. Moreover, there was a reduced P3 amplitude in the executive control network in the subconcussion group compared with the HCs group, suggesting a dysfunction of attentional resource allocation and inhibition control in the former group. This study is, to our knowledge, the first analysis of the altered attention network caused by repetitive subconcussion from the perspectives of behavioral and neuropsychology levels. These preliminary results revealed the possible damage of the alerting and executive control networks and provided a reference for further research on subconcussion cognitive impairment.

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate how individuals' prosocial motivation affects their social entrepreneurship intentions (SEI) through the mediating effect of creativity and the moderating effect of family-to-work support.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire survey was conducted in the Pearl River Delta region in Guangdong, China, and data were collected from 318 respondents who had rich social work experience. To test the hypotheses, a hierarchical linear regression analysis was conducted using SPSS 24.0 software.FindingsResults offer empirical support for the hypotheses that creativity in social work plays a full mediating role in the relationship between individuals' prosocial motivation and SEI, and family-to-work support plays a positive moderating role in the relationship between creativity in social work and SEI.Research limitations/implicationsThis study shows the importance of prosocial motivation, creativity in social work and family support in driving individuals' social entrepreneurship intentions and behaviours. Future research needs to further examine how the dynamic relationships between these factors unfold over time, as well as consider the effect of other motivational factors on creativity and SEI.Practical implicationsThis study suggests that the cultivation of individual prosocial motivation is crucial and requires the efforts of family, school and society. Relevant organisations should encourage individuals to incorporate creative thinking into their work, as well as offer training opportunities. In addition, social entrepreneurs should also strengthen communication with their families and strive to gain their understanding and support.Originality/valueThe findings of this study extend existing views on the relationship between individuals' motivation and entrepreneurship intentions in the social entrepreneurship research field by focusing on the perspective of prosocial motivation. In particular, this study reveals the complex process of how prosocial motivation promotes SEI by identifying the role of creativity and family-to-work support, which has rarely been explored in the extant literature.

Background N6-methyladenosine (m6A) is the most common post-transcriptional modification at the RNA level. However, the exact molecular mechanisms of m6A epigenetic regulation in breast cancer remain largely unknown and need to be fully elucidated. Methods The integrating bioinformatics analyses were used to screen clinical relevance and dysregulated m6A “reader” protein YTHDF1 in breast cancer from TCGA databases, which was further validated in a cohort of clinical specimens. Furthermore, functional experiments such as the CCK-8 assay, EdU assay, wound healing assay, transwell invasion assay and cell cycle assay were used to determine the biological role of YTHDF1 in breast cancer. RIP, m6A-IP, and CLIP assays were used to find the target of YTHDF1 and further verification by RT-qPCR, western blot, polysome profiling assay. The protein–protein interaction between YTHDF1 and FOXM1 was detected via co-immunoprecipitation. Results Our study showed that YTHDF1 was overexpressed in breast cancer cells and clinical tissues specimens. At the same time, the high expression level of YTHDF1 was positively correlated with tumor size, lymph node invasion, and distant metastasis in breast cancer patients. YTHDF1 depletion repressed the proliferation, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transformation (EMT) and induced G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest of breast cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. We also demonstrated that FOXM1 is a target of YTHDF1. Through recognizing and binding to the m6A-modified mRNA of FOXM1, YTHDF1 accelerated the translation process of FOXM1 and promoted breast cancer metastasis. Whereas overexpression of FOXM1 in breast cancer cells partially counteracted the tumor suppressed effects caused by YTHDF1 silence, which further verified the regulatory relationship between YTHDF1 and FOXM1. Conclusion Our study reveals a novel YTHDF1/FOXM1 regulatory pathway that contributes to metastasis and progression of breast cancer, suggesting that YTHDF1 might be applied as a potential biomarker and therapeutic target. That also advances our understanding of the tumorigenesis for breast cancer from m6A epigenetic regulation.

Interviews are an important method for studying a wide range of phenomena, especially those that directly involve members of the so-called business elite, which typically includes CEOs, top managers, and boards of directors. While it is necessary to get close to these actors and their settings for gaining valuable research insights, interviews are challenging interactions to accomplish. Even when one has negotiated access, members of the business elite are typically time-constrained, knowledgeable, used to being in a dominant position, and visible in the public domain and involved in impression management. These particularities pose distinctive challenges for collecting rich and authentic empirical material about important organizational, managerial, and societal matters. Drawing on our own experience, as well as the literature on qualitative interviewing and elites research, we discuss how different research designs and interview practices can help deal with these challenges.

In this paper, we review the burgeoning but dispersed literature on chief executive officer (CEO) advice seeking, which has important effects on strategic decision making, the CEO’s and the board of directors’ effectiveness, and firms’ entrepreneurial orientation, innovativeness, and financial performance. We synthesize research findings about the key features of CEO advice seeking and its antecedents and outcomes across multiple levels of analysis. On the basis of our review, we identify important research gaps and develop a future research agenda that outlines new research questions and empirical foci that extend the current scope of analysis. We also highlight promising new theories and underutilized methods suitable for this area of research. With an integrative review and research agenda, we hope to stimulate cross-fertilization of different lines of inquiry and encourage new research that shines a spotlight on the remaining puzzles of CEO advice-seeking research.

Research Summary: An important challenge that new CEOs face is establishing a group of immediate collaborators, which we call the “strategic leadership constellation.” Drawing on a comparative case study, we show that due to constraints on the CEO to change the top management team (TMT), the composition of the strategic leadership constellation initially tends to differ from that of the TMT: in some cases, it consists of a subgroup of the TMT; in others, it also comprises individuals outside the TMT such as staff members or lower-level managers. We show that the discrepancies between the strategic leadership constellation and the TMT lead to tensions that trigger a process of convergence between these two bodies, particularly as the constraints on TMT change decrease and the CEO's needs evolve. Managerial Summary: A major challenge that new CEOs face is establishing a group of close collaborators, which we call the “strategic leadership constellation.” Our study shows that due to different constraints on changing the executive team, the composition of the strategic leadership constellation initially tends to differ from that of the executive team: in some cases, it consists of a subgroup of the executive team; in others, it also comprises individuals outside the executive team, such as staff members or lower-level managers. We show that the discrepancies between the strategic leadership constellation and the executive team lead to tensions that trigger a process of convergence between these two bodies, particularly as the constraints on changing the executive team decrease and the CEO's needs evolve.

The WRKY gene family is among the largest families of transcription factors (TFs) in higher plants. By regulating the plant hormone signal transduction pathway, these TFs play critical roles in some plant processes in response to biotic and abiotic stress. Various bodies of research have demonstrated the important biological functions of WRKY TFs in plant response to different kinds of biotic and abiotic stresses and working mechanisms. However, very little summarization has been done to review their research progress. Not just important TFs function in plant response to biotic and abiotic stresses, WRKY also participates in carbohydrate synthesis, senescence, development, and secondary metabolites synthesis. WRKY proteins can bind to W-box (TGACC (A/T)) in the promoter of its target genes and activate or repress the expression of downstream genes to regulate their stress response. Moreover, WRKY proteins can interact with other TFs to regulate plant defensive responses. In the present review, we focus on the structural characteristics of WRKY TFs and the research progress on their functions in plant responses to a variety of stresses.

Supplemental material, Online_Supplement-submitted for CEO Advice Seeking: An Integrative Framework and Future Research Agenda by Shenghui Ma, Yasemin Y. Kor and David Seidl in Journal of Management

EPCs identification. (TIF 15332 kb)

The early tenure of a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), also referred to as ‘the CEO post-succession process’, is a critical phase in the history of an organization, because it is associated with a high rate of organizational failure and CEO dismissal. Research on this important process has grown rapidly over the last decade, focusing particularly on the question of how the match between the CEO, the organization and the environment is created in the post-succession process. Yet, the respective literature is highly fragmented, which suggests that there is a need for a systematic review and evaluation of existing works. Adopting the conceptual vocabulary of the practice perspective, the authors review this literature in terms of what it reveals about (1) the practices adopted by new CEOs and other actors involved in the post-succession process, (2) the properties of the key practitioners involved, and (3) the practical context of the post-succession process. This review suggests that new CEOs are primarily involved in practices aimed at integrating the new CEO into the organization, and practices aimed at realigning the organization with its environment. The important insights that the existing literature affords are identified, and the gaps in this body of research are highlighted. On this basis, a concrete research agenda is developed in terms of topics, methodologies and theories.

The WRKY gene family is among the largest families of transcription factors (TFs) in higher plants. By regulating the plant hormone signal transduction pathway, these TFs play critical roles in some plant processes in response to biotic and abiotic stress. Various bodies of research have demonstrated the important biological functions of WRKY TFs in plant response to different kinds of biotic and abiotic stresses and working mechanisms. However, very little summarization has been done to review their research progress. Not just important TFs function in plant response to biotic and abiotic stresses, WRKY also participates in carbohydrate synthesis, senescence, development, and secondary metabolites synthesis. WRKY proteins can bind to W-box (TGACC (A/T)) in the promoter of its target genes and activate or repress the expression of downstream genes to regulate their stress response. Moreover, WRKY proteins can interact with other TFs to regulate plant defensive responses. In the present review, we focus on the structural characteristics of WRKY TFs and the research progress on their functions in plant responses to a variety of stresses.

A fundamental question in upper echelons research is how strategic decisions are made at the apex of the organization. While earlier studies typically focused on linking characteristics of CEOs and...

This study examines top managers’ sensegiving in strategic change. It focuses on how top managers’ actions of implementing an intended change contribute to the adjustment of interpretive schemes in...

An important challenge of new CEOs is to establish an effective group of immediate collaborators, which we call the “strategic leadership constellation.” Drawing on a comparative case study we show...

Taking charge is a major challenge that newly appointed chief executive officers (CEOs) has to face. In this paper, we focus on how new CEOs manage this challenge and establish influence in their organizations. Drawing on a longitudinal qualitative study of eight new CEOs, we identify important processes and practices of managing the post-succession period. Our findings show that in order to navigate through the dynamic post-succession period, CEOs use various practices in gaining initial acceptance, establishing an inner circle, managing board-relation, adjusting top management team and initiating strategic changes. We also found that the CEO’s low accountability for performance and the high expectation of strategic change in the first year create a space for new CEOs’ agency. Our findings suggest that the post- succession period can be better understood as two processes of leader integration and strategic change, which interact and co- evolve over time. Theoretical and practical implications of our find...

Sensegiving plays a critical role in the process of strategic change, especially when the change is under time pressure and broad interests are at stake. In order to gain acceptance and to create m...

Being considered legitimate is critical for CEOs to gain support and endorsement in their work. In order to create, maintain or enhance their legitimacy, CEOs rely on various strategies. However, m...

Based on an extensive review of the existing literature, this paper provides a systematic overview and evaluation of our knowledge regarding the particular processes that characterize the period wh...