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Constructing professional and organisational fields: Lessons learned from the Australia Sports Medicine Federation (ASMF), also known as SMA

Robert Gurney (School of Business, MacEwan University, Edmonton, Canada)

Leadership in Health Services

ISSN: 1751-1879

Article publication date: 1 February 2016

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to fill an apparent gap in the literature addressing issues of leadership and change – the development and activities of constructing and leading sports sciences and medicine professions, and similarly, the construction and leadership of multidisciplinary/inter-disciplinary organisations that practice sports sciences and medicine.

Design/methodology/approach

This study incorporated explorations through conducting both interviews and survey questionnaires with members of Sports Medicine Australia (SMA). The interviews (qualitative) were semi-structured and asked questions addressing what changed, why change and how change was implemented.

Findings

The health sciences and medicine professions moving to specialised sports sciences and medicine disciplines and SMA, evolved through forces driving the need for change (legitimacy, resource dependency, positioning and core competencies).

Practical implications

The knowledge developed from understanding activities of change that traditional professions conducted to become specialised Disciplines and parallel changes in a single Discipline organisation evolving to an umbrella organisation (SMA), comprised a membership of specialised Disciplines, can act as a catalyst for inquiry by other professional and organisational groups.

Originality/value

The findings of this study contributes to the literature investigating change in professional and organisations fields. More specifically, this study promotes inquiry into leadership practices of sports sciences and medicine, as contributors to the field of health services.

Keywords

Citation

Gurney, R. (2016), "Constructing professional and organisational fields: Lessons learned from the Australia Sports Medicine Federation (ASMF), also known as SMA", Leadership in Health Services, Vol. 29 No. 1, pp. 111-114. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHS-11-2015-0037

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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