Comillas Pontifical University

Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) are monetary projects of digital public money at different stages of development, whose issuance corresponds to central banks. It is a digital representation of money with fiat currency’s legal nature. Still, like cash, and unlike electronic bank money, it has the guarantee of a central bank and not a deposit guarantee fund. This means that the monetary authority is responsible for the conditions of its issuance, distribution and value, as well as the network or infrastructure that supports its operation and possible programmability, whether retail (rCBDC) or wholesale (wCBDC). Among the most important examples of CBDC projects are the Chinese digital yuan and the digital euro, the latter still undergoing the study (or preparation) phase by the European Central Bank. The objective of this paper is to carry out a conceptual and comparative study on the development of these and other CBDC projects, providing a regulatory analysis of the consequences that the implementation of this new monetary and technological reality will bring to the banking system, as well as the impact that these digital currencies have on the banking market, the protection of users and their relationship with the rest of the Fintech environment. It will also discuss some of the initiatives taking place at the international level, such as the projects within the BIS Innovation Hub to address different issues that will define the final configuration of CBDCs in the near future.

Objective: to cross-culturally adapt and analyze the metric properties of the Adult Difficult Intravenous Access Scale into Brazilian Portuguese. Method: methodological study carried out in two stages: 1) Translation of the scale from the original version in English to Brazilian Portuguese, including an assessment by a committee of nine judges, back-translation and semantic analysis; 2) Analysis of metric properties with 130 adults admitted to a hemodynamics unit in which difficult peripheral venipunctures occurred. Participants were followed up to check for the occurrence of difficult peripheral venipunctures. The instrument’s inter-rater reliability and predictive validity were analyzed. Data collection was carried out from February 2021 to April 2023 in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Results: in the assessment carried out by the committee of judges, the items presented a Content Validity Index above 0.80, after the second round of assessment. Regarding semantic analysis, professionals considered the scale relevant, easy to apply and understand. The Kappa coefficient for individual items ranged between 0.68 and 1.0. For each item scored, adult patients are three times more likely to have difficult peripheral venipuncture. Conclusion: the final version of the scale was considered clear, reliable, and easy to understand. The instrument enables a predictive score of difficult peripheral venipuncture in adults. Descriptors: Validation study; Peripheral Catheterization; Adult; Surveys and Questionnaires; Nursing

Parental Reflective Functioning is considered a critical variable, both for the exercise of parenthood and for child development. For some years now, there has been a need for sufficiently sensitive and effective instruments to explore and evaluate Parental Reflective Functioning. This preliminary study presents the construction and validation of a short version of the Parent Development Interview-Revised, which we call Parent Development Interview-Brief. The main objective of this abbreviation is to maintain the semi-structured nature of the interview while decreasing the time needed to administer it. A multicenter and cross-sectional study with a normative sample of 60 mothers of children under five years of age with normotypical development is presented. To analyze the criterion validity of the Parent Development Interview-Brief, participants completed the Cuestionario de Apego Adulto [Adult Attachment Questionnaire] and the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form. The psychometric qualities of the new instrument are discussed, as well as the need for sufficiently sensitive, reliable, and effective tools to tap Parental Reflective Functioning for use in clinical contexts and research.

This study explores residents’ opinions with the aim of understanding their perceptions of tourism in order to implement sustainable tourism practices in a medium-sized city such as Cáceres, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site (WHS), in order to mitigate negative impacts such as gentrification and tensions. Using principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis these attitudes are studied and correlated with socio-demographic factors to enable effective planning of urban tourist accommodation. Residents recognize the benefits of tourism, such as economic growth and cultural preservation, but express concerns about the socio-economic and cultural impacts and emphasize the need to balance tourism growth with the needs of residents. The statistical analyses conducted reveal different attitudes towards tourism and highlight the importance of regulating and managing social and cultural impacts. The study argues for sustainable management strategies for tourism and proposes targeted measures to address community concerns and proactively prevent gentrification. By correlating perceptions with socio-demographic factors, it offers insights for the responsible integration of short-term rentals (VRUs) into urban areas.

This article focuses on the study of the specific social vulnerability of migrant minors during their arrival and the corresponding integration processes in the host countries. The analysis focuses on identifying risks of social vulnerability using a conceptual framework based on the notion of social exclusion. Using a multidimensional, processual approach, the construction of vulnerability in households with migrant minors is analysed in comparison with households with non‐migrant minors (in the EU, using Spain as a case study). Despite having an intermediate‐level mean income, and despite economic development in the country, Spain has seen a re‐emergence of child poverty that has had a significant impact on households with minors. The lack of targeted programmes and low levels of investment contributes to one in four minors living below the at‐risk‐of‐poverty line. The economic crisis of 2008 and the COVID‐19 pandemic have worsened the situation, especially in households with migrant minors.

Point-of-interest (POI) recommendations are essential for travelers and the e-tourism business. They assist in decision-making regarding what venues to visit and where to dine and stay. While it is known that traditional recommendation algorithms’ performance depends on data characteristics like sparsity, popularity bias, and preference distributions, the impact of these data characteristics has not been systematically studied in the POI recommendation domain. To fill this gap, we extend a previously proposed explanatory framework by introducing new explanatory variables specifically relevant to POI recommendation. At its core, the framework relies on having subsamples with different data characteristics to compute a regression model, which reveals the dependencies between data characteristics and performance metrics of recommendation models. To obtain these subsamples, we subdivide a POI recommendation data set on New York City and measure the effect of these characteristics on different classical POI recommendation algorithms in terms of accuracy, novelty, and item exposure. Our findings confirm the crucial role of key data features like density, popularity bias, and the distribution of check-ins in POI recommendation. Additionally, we identify the significance of novel factors, such as user mobility and the duration of user activity. In summary, our work presents a generic method to quantify the influence of data characteristics on recommendation performance. The results not only show why certain POI recommendation algorithms excel in specific recommendation problems derived from a LBSN check-in data set in New York City, but also offer practical insights into which data characteristics need to be addressed to achieve better recommendation performance.

Organizational spirituality addresses the complexities of the organizational landscape. It requires the embodiment of spiritual practices within organizations. As one such spiritual practice, spiritual discernment is closely linked to decision-making, a critical aspect of organizational functioning. However, there is a need to establish a clear link between organizational spirituality and spiritual discernment, as this integration provides a way for organizations to begin their spiritual development. This paper presents a conceptual framework that identifies and clarifies the employee-enabling conditions—such as practical wisdom, appreciation of beauty and excellence, and social intelligence—and explains how these conditions facilitate the practice of spiritual discernment. This study advances the field of organizational spirituality by linking organizational spirituality with spiritual discernment, expanding the understanding of how spirituality can be systematically integrated into decision-making processes, and highlighting the role of employee capabilities in this integration.

The book builds off a growing body of literature that connects human rights and pop culture (Dubin et al., 2022). It analyses the intersection between Indian cinema and human rights by bringing together leading academics from varying disciplines, such as Law, Cinema Studies, Literature, and other humanities fields, to explore this intersectionality. The result is a book that offers a comprehensive analysis of Indian cinema and human rights through discussions about how films have reflected upon and portrayed important rights issues in Indian society, as well as the failure of the government to close regulatory and other gaps that perpetuate human rights abuses. The book also more broadly evokes the question of whether governments, policymakers, the United Nations, and other organizations should engage more with film and pop culture as part of a broader strategy to improve compliance and change attitudes that frequently create obstacles towards human rights protection. At the same time, the chapter sets the stage for future research into the role of film elsewhere, such as fast-growing Nollywood film industry, which is quickly sweeping across a continent still very much plagued by human rights violations and patriarchal attitudes.

This paper presents an adaptive high-performance optimization tool for the real-time operation of Renewable-based Virtual Power Plants (RVPPs). The increasing integration of Renewable Energy Sources (RESs) into power systems introduces challenges due to their intermittent nature. Aggregating RES units into RVPPs creates a more controllable and competitive entity for energy market participation. However, real-time operation, particularly for ancillary services like Frequency Containment Reserve and automatic Frequency Restoration Reserve, remains challenging since the offered delivery of such ancillary services needs to be guaranteed at all times. In this paper, the proposed Adaptive High-performance Optimal Real-time operation Algorithm (AHORA) addresses these challenges by executing re-dispatches every four seconds, mitigating internal and external disturbances while ensuring compliance with System Operator requirements. The framework supports both event-driven and periodic activation strategies, enabling dynamic adaptation to system changes. Real-time implementation of the operation framework is carried out using OPAL-RT real-time simulator, verifying the RVPP’s ability to meet the demands of real-time applications effectively. Test results demonstrate that AHORA achieves a minimum of 85% of the required regulation in worst case disturbances and maintains service provision within a stringent 4-second window. The findings demonstrate AHORA’s practical applicability in enhancing the reliability and efficiency of renewable energy integration into modern power grids, providing a robust solution for managing the complexities of RVPP real-time operation.

Biophilic workplace design has been proposed as an effective strategy to increase employee well-being in open-plan offices. To expand our understanding of why and for whom indoor nature exposure increases well-being, the aim of this study was to evaluate vigor as a mediator and to examine whether nature relatedness is a direct antecedent of nature exposure or a moderator of the relationship between exposure to nature and vigor. Based on longitudinal data obtained from a two-wave panel design with white-collar workers in open-plan offices (Study 1, n = 345; Study 2, n = 291), using a rival model strategy and two dependent variables, i.e., job well-being and overall well-being, this study revealed that nature relatedness is a direct antecedent of nature exposure and that vigor mediates the relationship between nature exposure and the examined outcomes. These results indicate that although natural exposure increases employee well-being, the effects are indirectly driven by employees’ connection with nature. These findings have implications for the implementation of biophilic workplace design.

Corporate compliance with human rights has received little attention in the management literature. This papersaims to shed some light on this issue, by examining business recognition of Human Rights; in particular howcompanies state their own commitment with the Human Rights; the policies and procedures in place to ensurecompliance, including mechanisms of control and enforcement; and corporate performance vis-à-vis humanrights. Corporate Social Responsibility reports of Spanish IBEX-35 companies were used as the main source ofinformation. We conclude that companies have, at most, a formal commitment to certain human rights (labour,consumer protection and environment). External drivers such as financial markets and reputational hazards arekeys to explain differences among companies.

Despite widespread organizational interest in digital technologies (DT), digital transformation projects often fail largely due to employee resistance. However, research on this resistance is fragmented and lacks integration, providing only partial explanations of the phenomenon. To address this gap, this integrative review aims to identify barriers to DT adoption in the workplace. Sixty-three papers met the eligibility criteria and underwent rigorous analysis. The factors thus identified reveal that resistance originates from workers’ perceived job vulnerability. This explanation, however, is limited because of the assumptions it makes concerning the functions of technologies and the resources provided by jobs. By shifting the conceptualization of digital technologies from neutral tools to agents with causal powers and acknowledging the multifaceted nature of job resources, this review proposes a reconceptualization of resistance. Drawing from theories of social conflict, it integrates previous work to develop a three-stage model of resistance that reflects how perceived threats to resources influence employees’ perceptions, emotional responses, and subsequent actions in the workplace. Building on this model, we propose a comprehensive framework that uses four pathways to explain how resistance may unfold in the workplace. Furthermore, we propose several research directions to guide future investigations. In light of these findings, this integrative review also presents various theoretical and managerial implications.

This study investigated how children’s punishment affective states change over time, as well as when children begin to prioritise intentions over outcomes in their punishment decisions. Whereas most prior research sampled children from Anglo-America or Northwestern Europe, we tested 5- to 11-year-old children from Colombia and Spain (N = 123). We focused on punishment behaviour in response to ostensibly real moral transgressions, rather than punishment recommendations for hypothetical moral transgressions. We employed moral scenarios involving disloyalty (group-focused moral domain) and unfairness (individual-focused moral domain). Regarding punishment affective states, on average children did not derive much enjoyment from administering punishment, nor did they anticipate that punishment would feel good. Thus, children did not make the same emotional forecasting error adults commonly commit. Regarding the cognitive integration of outcomes and intentions, children began to punish failed intentional transgressions more harshly than accidental transgression, in both disloyalty and unfairness scenarios, much earlier than in previous behavioural studies: around 7 years of age rather than in late adolescence. This could be due to the lower processing demands and higher intention salience of our paradigm. Exploratory analyses revealed that children showed higher concern for disloyalty than unfairness. Punishment of disloyalty remained relatively stable in severity with increasing age, while punishment of unfairness decreased in severity. This suggests that the relative importance of moral concerns for the individual vs. the group may shift because of culture-directed learning processes.

In humans, dual-specificity Tyrosine-Phosphorylation-Regulated Kinase 1A is an enzyme encoded by the DYRK1A gene involved in various diseases, including DYRK1A syndrome, cancer, diabetes, and neurodegenerative pathologies such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). AD is the most prevalent form of dementia, accounting for 60–80% of cases and remains an unmet medical challenge with no cure and just palliative treatments. Recent studies have identified DYRK1A as a promising therapeutic target in AD, given its involvement in multiple biological functions and its alterations correlated with AD progression. In this work, we leverage multiple Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, including pre- dictive models and generative algorithms, to design non-toxic DYRK1A inhibitors. We construct a dual-target drug discovery framework integrating AI-driven meth- ods with classical techniques to identify novel compounds. An ensemble Quanti- tative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) model is employed for predicting compound affinities, while Directed Message Passing Neural Networks (DMPNN) are used to assess toxicity. In a generative phase, a Hierarchical Graph Genera- tion model (HGG) facilitated the design of potential DYRK1A inhibitors. Promis- ing candidate molecules were refined through classical docking studies, leading to their synthesis and experimental validation. As a result, pyrazolyl-1H -pyrrolo[2,3- b]pyridine was identified as a potent DYRK1A inhibitor, leading to the synthesis of a new derivative series. Enzymatic assays demonstrated nanomolar-level inhibitory activity, while anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties were confirmed through ORAC assays and LPS-induced pro-inflammatory response evaluations in BV2 mi- croglial cells. Pharmacological testing revealed that the mentioned compound and its derivatives exhibit significant DYRK1A inhibition alongside robust antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

El cine proyecta valores, puede ser un motor de la integración europea y contribuye a la formación de una identidad compartida (Comisión Europea, 2014). Para sustentar estas afirmaciones, es esencial identificar evidencias dentro de las películas. Este estudio sostiene que el cosmopolitismo crítico, como teoría y como marco metodológico, es adecuado para realizar este tipo de investigación. Además, sugiere que el concepto de europeización, que denota una identidad europea específica, puede ser un término más apropiado que el de integración para describir el proceso de transformación de Europa a lo largo del tiempo (Delanty, 2009). Se presenta aquí una propuesta metodológica para operacionalizar este marco y se aplica, mediante el análisis del discurso, a las películas galardonadas con el Premio LUX del Parlamento Europeo (2007-2019). Los resultados indican que estos largometrajes revelan tanto desafíos como oportunidades para superar las diferencias y abrazar la diversidad a través del diálogo intercultural. El artículo concluye que el cosmopolitismo crítico es un marco pertinente para analizar cómo el cine refleja y fomenta una identidad europea. Las películas ganadoras del Premio LUX muestran las etapas del proceso de europeización y el deseo de lograr una cultura normativa compartida, donde los valores comunes superen las diferencias.

Children with intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD) represent a growing proportion of children who are adopted or in foster care. This study aims to explore family adjustment in foster and adoptive families of children with IDD using the ABCX model of family adjustment. Sixty-two families with adopted and foster children with IDD between two and 36 years old in Spain participated in the study. Parents completed a self-reported questionnaire including measures of child demands, family strengths, adjustment of expectations and family adjustment to adoption. The combination of child demands, family strengths and family expectations predicted 55% of the variance of family adjustment (R2 = .55, F (3,56) = 25.571, p < .001), with C Factor being the most relevant (b = .458, p < .001). No differences were found in the adaptation process depending on the severity of the disability, the age of placement, or the adoption versus fostering process. Significant differences were found in the adaptation process dimensions depending on the special versus ordinary process. Differences were also found in some family dimensions depending on the diagnosis of the disability or the family stage. These findings highlight the importance of previous expectations and special processes in adopting children and young people with IDD.