Minimal feasible sets in variable resource constrained projects

To determine the reasonable resource dependent relations between activities for the purpose of exactly computing the total floats and the free floats of activities, correctly identifying critical activities and critical sequences in a project schedule with variable resource constraints, the concept of the minimal feasible set （MFS） is proposed and the properties of MFS are discussed. The methods to identify optimal MFSs and resource links are then studied. Furthermore, MFS is generalized to the situation that the preconditions of MFS are not satisfied. Contrastive results show that in establishing resource links and resolving floats, MFS is at least not inferior to other methods in all cases and is superior in most situations.

Natural resource dependence, public education investment,and human capital accumulation

This paper examines the relationships between natural resource dependence, public education investment, and human capital accumulation. It addresses why the “blessing” of abundant natural resources often turns into a “curse” in many countries and regions, focusing on the crowding-out effect of natural resources on human capital. According to our empirical analysis of provincial panel data from China, natural resource dependence is significantly and negatively correlated with human capital accumulation. The crowding-out effect of natural resources on human capital exists only in the central and western regions of China. Our introduction of an interaction term for natural resource dependence and public education investment underscores the possibility of investing in public education to reduce the crowding-out effect of natural resource dependence on human capital. The government should utilize the income of the natural resource sector to increase investment in education to enhance local human capital.

Community livelihood and its dependence on nature resources under pressure of conservation

Conflict between conservation and community livelihood is a significant issue in China.Based on Sustainable Livelihood Framework(SLA),this study systematically analyzed livelihoods assets of a community in a Yunnan snub-nosed monkey conservation area and found that the livelihood pentagon of the community was shaped by multiple but frail and unstable income sources,abundant natural resources with restricted use right,underutilized labors,inadequate financial resources,inconvenient physical capital and weak social capital.Villagers'income heavily depended on forest,and grazing and nontimber forest products(NTFP)collection are common and major income sources for villagers.However,differentiation of income dependence on forest among villagers'groups showed that there is no close correlation between the level of income and the level of income dependence on forest.Households'daily life also heavily depended on the forest due to heating and pig-feed cooking;hence,fuelwood cannot be easily replaced by any other energy resource for a long period.

The Dependency of Coastal Livelihood on Forest Resources, and Alternative Options in the Periphery of the Sundarbans Reserve Forest, Patharghata, Bangladesh

Dependency on forest resources poses a threat to the environment in Patharghata, Bangladesh. Therefore, this study explores the role of forest resource in the life and livelihood of coastal people as well as to understand the effectiveness of forest and status of forest dependency in and around south-central coast in Patharghata, Bangladesh. We collected data randomly from 105 household heads through both open and close-ended questionnaire. To investigate the forest dependency and people’s perception regarding alternative solutions, Microsoft excel software program has been applied. The findings reveal that usage of fuelwood in cooking, housing structure, fish catching, honey & fodder collection significantly contributes to household dependency on forest resources, while other variables seem to be insignificant. Our study amplifies that the share of forest income to the total household income was only 19% while other earning sources provided 81% income. The result shows that respondent people collect forest resources primarily for cooking purpose with a share of 71% where 9% forest resources are collected as fodder followed by 8% forest resource collection as food and sheltering purposes. Moreover, the study found that using alternative cooking system, artificial instruments, declaring the forest as tourist spot, changes in housing structure, occupation are some effective options to reduce forest dependency. The study concludes that these alternative options need more financial and other support from the government, non-government and other civil society organizations to cut down forest resource dependency.

Environmental, social, and governance performance and corporate innovation novelty

Environmental,social,and governance(ESG)performance,along with the novelty of innovation,are significant factors in promoting sustainable development for corporations.This study employs the Heckman two-stage model to examine the impact of ESG performance on innovation novelty using a dataset comprising A-share listed companies in the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Ex-changes from 2011 to 2020.The results indicate that enhanced ESG performance significantly fosters innovation by expanding innovation resources and mitigating agency problems.Further analysis reveals that this relationship is more pronounced under high economic policy uncer-tainty,a challenging information environment,elevated financing constraints,and in the context of digital transformation.This study not only expands the research on the economic implications of ESG performance for enterprise innovation behavior but also places a distinct emphasis on innovation quality rather than quantity.Additionally,this study enriches the existing literature on the factors influencing innovation novelty and extends research into the link between envi-ronmental protection and firm innovation,particularly from the perspective of stakeholder the-ory.Furthermore,this study holds practical significance for governments aiming to enhance ESG evaluation systems and establish guiding policies that encourage novel innovations,ultimately contributing to sustainable and high-quality development.Simultaneously,this study provides guidance to enterprises by encouraging them to embrace green development,improve social responsibility,and elevate their governance standards to promote innovation quality.

Impacts of building information modeling(BIM) implementation on design and construction performance: a resource dependence theory perspective

Drawing on resource dependence theory, this paper develops and empirically tests a model for understanding how the implementation of building information modeling(BIM) in construction projects impacts the performance of different project participating organizations through improving their interorganizational collaboration capabilities. Based on two sets of survey data collected from designers and general contractors in BIMbased construction projects in China, the results from partial least squares analysis and bootstrapping mediation test provide clear evidence that BIM-enabled capabilities of information sharing and collaborative decision-making as a whole play a significant role in determining BIMenabled efficiency and effectiveness benefits for both designers and general contractors. The results further reveal that designers and general contractors benefit from project BIM implementation activities significantly nonequivalently, and that this non-equivalence closely relates to the different roles played by designers and general contractors in BIM-enabled interorganizational resource exchange processes. The findings validate the resource dependence theory perspective of BIM as a boundary spanning tool to manage interorganizational resource dependence in construction projects, and contribute todeepened understandings of how and why project participating organizations benefit differently from the implementation of interorganizational information technologies like BIM.

Resignation of officials as independent directors and firm performance

In 2013,the Chinese government implemented Rule No.18,which suspended the directorships of incumbent government officials and precluded those who retired within the past three years from serving as independent directors for listed firms.The surprise implementation of Rule No.18 triggered a wave of resignations among official independent directors(OIDs).The event provided a unique opportunity to examine the impacts of the political connections of board members on firm performance.We applied a difference-in-difference technique to empirically investigate the effect of OID resignations on firm performance from the perspectives of resource dependence theory and social capital theory.The results indicate that the resignation of OIDs had a significantly negative effect on firm performance,as measured by Tobin's 0 and firm leverage.This also confirmed the importance of independent directors'political connection on firm performance,as discovered in prior research.However,this influence varied across OIDs'heterogeneity,external environment and firm ownership.The results indicate that political connections may not be necessary channels for firms to achieve success.

Construction of an Open Innovation Network and Its Mechanism Design for Manufacturing Enterprises： A Resource-Based Perspective

Innovation is the engine of development for enterprises, and there is an increasing trend to adopt an open innovation strategy. However, how to manage external resources in an open, collaborative and complementary manner, and in a shared environment that will yield the greatest networking effects, it is a challenging task. Because there is no such a satisfactory model for an open innovation strategy that combine operational mechanisms with the management of external resources. This article tries to fill the gap by adopting a resource-based perspective to construct an overall open innovation （OOI） business model. In this model, external resources are classified as industrial and non-industrial entities, to enable the identification of the interaction methods between manufacturing enterprises and external resources. The management of external resources involved in a Technology Open Innovation （TOI） cycle is given particular attention that includes： 1） the classification of the external resources of a TOI, 2） the general mechanisms extracted to promote qualified resources in and unqualified resources out, and 3） a business model to conceptualize the collaboration between enterprises and external resources. A case study of TOI is also provided to empirically verify its feasibility. This paper contributes to the literature by providing an original operational model and mechanism design for an open innovation strategy that is capable of managing external resources effectively.

An Institutional Analysis of the Multi-layered Characteristics of Social Organizations in China

The actual state of affairs of Chinese social organizations and the latest theoretical findings on the subject indicate that independence and autonomy are concepts that are interrelated but not fundamentally interchangeable; their actual organizational relationship is complex and varied. Exploration of the relationship between the two concepts is a necessary step in the construction and improvement of a rule-based interpretation of the characteristics of Chinese social organizations. Combining resource dependence theory with the institutional logics perspective enables us to analyze the multiple mechanisms influencing the relationship between independence and autonomy at the organizational level and to test for these mechanisms using a mixed methods research design. Our empirical findings indicate that social organizations gain greater autonomy when they have greater independence from government resources and when they strongly identify, structurally and behaviorally, with classical third sector theory. Organizations＇ behavioral identification can regulate the relationship between independence and autonomy. Further case studies support the value of the above findings. This shows that other mechanisms can often replace, offset or constrain the effects of resource dependence. In the real world, no single fixed theory can cover the independence-autonomy relationship.