The topic of this bachelor thesis is a market research of the German returns behaviour in order to find out how companies in the online trade can best prevent customers from returning the ordered article. Returns are and remain an important part of the business model in online retailing. Without the …

With population aging and the expected shortage of formal and informal caregivers, emerging technologies for assistive living are on the rise. Focusing on the perspective of the prospective users of these technologies, this study investigates the perceived drivers and barriers that influence AAL adoption. …

The subject of this thesis is the effectiveness of the specific instance procedure of National Contact Points (NCPs), operating in the context of the Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (MNE Guidelines) of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). This thesis aims to create …

The concept of deterrence has dominated Western strategic thought for some seven decades. It shows no signs of easing its grip. In the face of any new security threat, such as terrorism or cyber-attacks, one of the fi rst questions to be asked is ‘ can this be deterred? ’ Even when the answer is not very …

The challenge of deterrence — discouraging states from taking unwanted actions, especially military aggression — has again become a principal theme in U.S. defence policy. This chapter reviews the fundamentals of deterrence in theory and practice. It surveys basic de fi nitions and types of deterrence, …

This chapter examines the theoretical principles that underpin conventional deterrence and its evolution in practice over the past century. It disaggregates conventional deterrence approaches into four strategic categories based on their geographic scope and the nature of the threats they employ, and …

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is back in the business of deterring aggression on the part of Russia. This return to great power deterrence has brought widely acknowledged military challenges related to power projection, force modernization, and burden sharing but also and notably a political …

In recent literature, much attention has been paid to factors that affect nuclear deterrence and stability from the outside: new missile defence systems, non-nuclear (conventional) high-precision long-range weapons, the in fl uence of third and threshold nuclear states, space weapons, and — more recently …

The U.S. provides extended nuclear deterrence to allies in Europe, Asia, and elsewhere. The 2018 NPR signals several potentially destabilizing policies, including lowering the threshold for use and adding low-yield capabilities, and it emphasizes the need for nuclear superiority. This chapter argues …

Abstract Historically, epidemics and plagues are repeatedly reported to have happened since the ancient civilizations (Egypt, Greece, Rome and imperial China). Most known examples of a devastating global pandemics in recent history are the ‘Black Death’ (14th century) and the global influenza (1918-1919), …