Search results

1 – 10 of 10
Article
Publication date: 6 July 2015

Sandra Wooltorton, Anne Wilkinson, Pierre Horwitz, Sue Bahn, Janice Redmond and Julian Dooley

Academic approaches to the challenge of enhancing sustainability in research in university contexts illustrate that universities are affected by the very same values and…

1909

Abstract

Purpose

Academic approaches to the challenge of enhancing sustainability in research in university contexts illustrate that universities are affected by the very same values and socio-ecological issues they set out to address, making transformation difficult at every level. A theoretical and practical framework designed to facilitate cultural transformation is therefore necessary for conceptualising the problem and delineating possible strategies to enhance sustainability in research. Organisational change is also required, possibly on a university-by-university basis, where cross-institutional learning may be possible with personal behaviours that enhance collaboration across disciplinary and administrative divides.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper contends that action research, in particular, community action research (CAR), offers the best approach to this task because it focusses on learning and change, and these are both essential to cultural transformation. A case study from a university in Western Australia is used to demonstrate this approach.

Findings

The case study analysis shows some evidence for the presence of knowledge for organisational transformation, and that future monitoring cycles will be needed to detect the extent of the change.

Originality/value

The paper introduces CAR as an approach to advance the change for sustainability in higher education and discusses some of the implications for universities who are looking to incorporate sustainability as a major part of their culture.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 16 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 August 2023

Bonnie McBain, Liam Phelan, Anna Ferguson, Paul Brown, Valerie Brown, Iain Hay, Richard Horsfield, Ros Taplin and Daniella Tilbury

The aim of this paper is to outline the collaborative approach used to craft national learning standards for tertiary programs in the field of environment and sustainability in…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to outline the collaborative approach used to craft national learning standards for tertiary programs in the field of environment and sustainability in Australia. The field of environment and sustainability is broad and constituted by diverse stakeholders. As such, articulating a common set of learning standards presents challenges.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors developed and used a staged collaborative curriculum design methodology to engage more than 250 stakeholders in tertiary environmental education, including discipline scholars, students, professional associations and employers and other environmental educators. The approach was adaptive, to ensure underrepresented stakeholders’ perspectives were welcomed and recognised. The project was commissioned by the Australian Council of Environmental Deans and Directors (ACEDD) and funded by the Federal Government’s Office for Learning and Teaching.

Findings

The collaborative approach developed and used for this work facilitated an inclusive process that valued diversity of perspectives, rather than marginalise diversity in favour of a perspective representing a minimum level of agreement. This is reflected in the standards themselves, and is evidenced by participant feedback, piloting of the standards and their subsequent application at multiple universities. Achieving this required careful planning and facilitation, to ensure a democratisation of the stakeholder consultation process, and to build consensus in support of the standards. Endorsement by ACEDD formalised the standards’ status.

Originality/value

Collaborative curriculum design offered the opportunity to foster a shared sense of common purpose amongst diverse environmental education stakeholders. This approach to curriculum design is intensive and generative but uncommon and may be usefully adapted and applied in other contexts. The authors note one subsequent instance where the approach has been further developed and applied in transforming a generalist science program, suggesting the methodology used in this case may be applied across other contexts, albeit with appropriate adjustments: the authors offer it here in the spirit of supporting others in their own complex curriculum design challenges.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 25 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 June 2023

Clayton Kuma, Peni Fukofuka and Sue Yong

This paper aims to investigate the practice of accounting in the Seventh-day Adventist church of the Pacific Islands and pays particular attention to the coexisting of two control…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the practice of accounting in the Seventh-day Adventist church of the Pacific Islands and pays particular attention to the coexisting of two control devices: accounting and religion.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper implemented a qualitative field study design collecting interview data from church members from the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Fiji. Data were also collected through focus group discussions, document reviews, website analysis and participant observations. Pierre Bourdieu’s thinking on symbolic violence, doxa and capital are used to interpret the findings.

Findings

This paper’s main contribution shows that while there is a divine and profane divide, social agents, given their agency, can move back and forth from one side of the divide to the other. Accounting as a control device does not include features such as faith, which is helpful for decision-making; accordingly, religion is relied upon when it comes to decision-making. In contrast, accounting has features that are useful for stewardship purposes. Accordingly, when it comes to the church’s stewardship function accounting in the form of financial reports is relied upon.

Research limitations/implications

Pacific Island culture almost permeates all facets of life, including church life; however, this study did not clarify this. Later studies can explore the implications of culture on the deployment of accounting in a religious setting.

Practical implications

This rich empirical study describes the control dynamics and the tension between accounting and religion in a religious organisation. Accounting needs to adapt to churches’ unique characteristics, whereby religious/doctrinal beliefs must be accounted for and respected. Unlike in the corporate world, accountants in churches cannot fully practice their training or exercise the kind of influence they usually hold in organisations due to their religious belief systems.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this research is one of a few studies on the religion-accounting relationship. While the focus of earlier studies was generally on a secular and sacred divide, this study looks at coexisting of accounting and religion. This study adds to the sparse literature on accounting and religion and their controlling influence.

Details

Pacific Accounting Review, vol. 35 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0114-0582

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 July 2013

Terri R. Lituchy, David Ford and Betty Jane Punnett

The purpose of this paper is to consider effective leadership in Africa and the African diaspora. This paper reports the results of emic research in Uganda, Barbados, Canada and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to consider effective leadership in Africa and the African diaspora. This paper reports the results of emic research in Uganda, Barbados, Canada and the USA.

Design/methodology/approach

A Delphi technique using open‐ended questions solicited ideas regarding leadership from knowledgeable participants, avoiding researcher bias.

Findings

There were differences among the groups on several attributes that made leaders effective. Ugandans suggested a good leader was “honest and trustworthy”; Canadians and respondents from the USA said “being inspirational/charismatic” Barbadians cited “being a visionary”.

Research limitations/implications

Having data for only one African country and the small sample sizes from all countries limit the generalizability of the findings. The results do, however, provide a base of knowledge on which to build future studies on Africa and the diaspora.

Originality/value

The emic approach overcomes the western bias identified by scholars in most African research. Similarities and differences identified provide evidence of the importance of culture in effective leadership. The results provide a basis for developing further research studies.

Details

African Journal of Economic and Management Studies, vol. 4 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-0705

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2004

Rita Klapper

Across the European Union there has been an increase in the number of programmes and initiatives aiming to promote small business and entrepreneurship. In line with this general…

3638

Abstract

Across the European Union there has been an increase in the number of programmes and initiatives aiming to promote small business and entrepreneurship. In line with this general trend, enterprise creation and entrepreneurship are increasingly recognised as vital for French post‐industrial society, yet France is lagging behind Spain, the UK, Italy and the USA in terms of enterprise creation. This article discusses entrepreneurship education and the role of the Grandes Ecoles. Draws on primary research into student attitudes to entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship and concludes that both societal and educational aspects as well as the creation of entrepreneurial environment at a management school are key to promoting an entrepreneurial student population.

Details

Education + Training, vol. 46 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0040-0912

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 August 2010

Naim Kapucu, Tolga Arslan and Fatih Demiroz

The purpose of this paper is to analyze scholarly discussions and findings regarding collaborative emergency management (CEM). Several aspects such as leadership, decision making…

10740

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze scholarly discussions and findings regarding collaborative emergency management (CEM). Several aspects such as leadership, decision making, intergovernmental and interorganizational relations, technology applications in CEM have been investigated.

Design/methodology/approach

Literature review was conducted using three popular search data bases, Academic Search Premier, Academic OneFile, and Info Track OneFile using the following keywords: CEM, collaborative and emergency and management, collaborative networks, emergency networks, emergency network, interorganizational networks, Interorganizational and networks, intergovernmental and networks, and National Emergency Management Network (NEMN).

Findings

The paper emphasizes that high expectations of public and stakeholders in emergency and disaster management require effective use of resources by collaborative networks.

Practical implications

Emergency and disaster managers should be able to adopt their organization culture, structure and processes to the collaborative nature of emergency management.

Originality/value

The paper focuses on a very important subject in emergency and disaster management using NEMN as example.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 19 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 June 2019

Brent Burmester, Snejina Michailova and Christina Stringer

Modern slavery is a problem that international business (IB) research can no longer ignore. Multinational enterprises (MNEs) are often contributors to the persistence of modern…

1351

Abstract

Purpose

Modern slavery is a problem that international business (IB) research can no longer ignore. Multinational enterprises (MNEs) are often contributors to the persistence of modern slavery, by virtue of the regulatory challenge they pose to states and their insufficient oversight of supply chains. The purpose of this paper is to show that governance inadequacies with respect to modern slavery will be lessened if IB scholars give more attention to MNEs’ governing role within and beyond global value chains.

Design/methodology/approach

A set of arguments is presented in support of intensified effort in IB research with respect to studying the role of MNEs in transnational labour governance. The paper draws inspiration from IB theory and the conceptualisation of the MNE in neighbouring disciplines that regard it as a bearer of duties toward labour, consistent with its role in multilevel governance. Insights from the literature on global and multi-level governance are utilised.

Findings

The paper construes modern slavery as a multi-level governance challenge and argues that MNE capabilities and responsibilities with respect to labour governance and the deterrence of slavery exceed those identified on the margins of IB literature. MNEs are underappreciated as governors within the multilevel transnational labour governance system. The IB discipline is in a strong position to develop our understanding of the MNE’s different roles in governance and thereby contribute to the reduced incidence of modern slavery.

Originality/value

This paper represents an attempt to mobilise the IB academy to help eliminate slavery from workplaces that rely on MNE patronage or where labour rights abuses are made possible by MNE diversion of governance resources. It places particular emphasis on the use and abuse of MNEs’ governance capabilities in the sphere of international relations and calls attention to over-simplification of the MNE, IB’s primary unit of analysis.

Details

critical perspectives on international business, vol. 15 no. 2/3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1742-2043

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 August 2018

Vinitha Siebers

The purpose of this paper is to gain insight in how South African local governments organize citizen engagement. The new South African constitution provides ways to construct and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to gain insight in how South African local governments organize citizen engagement. The new South African constitution provides ways to construct and implement citizen engagement at local level. However, understanding citizen engagement at local level is still a challenge and municipalities search for proper structures and mechanisms to organize citizen engagement efficiently.

Design/methodology/approach

Interviews with different municipal actors were analyzed using a single case study method. As a primary unit of analysis, a specific project in which citizen engagement is organized was used. In addition, document analysis and a focus group were used to deepen understanding.

Findings

The findings reveal that citizen engagement is a viable strategy to identify the needs of the community if facilitated by a third party and that learning leadership is important when organizing citizen engagement.

Originality/value

The value of this research is the exploration of the citizen engagement process. It sheds light on the conditions that play a role when a local government organizes citizen engagement. As local governments search for ways to effectively organize and structure citizen engagement, insight into these conditions is helpful.

Details

International Journal of Public Leadership, vol. 14 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-4929

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 May 2013

Paule Poulin, Lea Austen, Catherine M. Scott, Cameron D. Waddell, Elijah Dixon, Michelle Poulin and René Lafrenière

When introducing new health technologies, decision makers must integrate research evidence with local operational management information to guide decisions about whether and under…

Abstract

Purpose

When introducing new health technologies, decision makers must integrate research evidence with local operational management information to guide decisions about whether and under what conditions the technology will be used. Multi‐criteria decision analysis can support the adoption or prioritization of health interventions by using criteria to explicitly articulate the health organization's needs, limitations, and values in addition to evaluating evidence for safety and effectiveness. This paper seeks to describe the development of a framework to create agreed‐upon criteria and decision tools to enhance a pre‐existing local health technology assessment (HTA) decision support program.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors compiled a list of published criteria from the literature, consulted with experts to refine the criteria list, and used a modified Delphi process with a group of key stakeholders to review, modify, and validate each criterion. In a workshop setting, the criteria were used to create decision tools.

Findings

A set of user‐validated criteria for new health technology evaluation and adoption was developed and integrated into the local HTA decision support program. Technology evaluation and decision guideline tools were created using these criteria to ensure that the decision process is systematic, consistent, and transparent.

Practical implications

This framework can be used by others to develop decision‐making criteria and tools to enhance similar technology adoption programs.

Originality/value

The development of clear, user‐validated criteria for evaluating new technologies adds a critical element to improve decision‐making on technology adoption, and the decision tools ensure consistency, transparency, and real‐world relevance.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 27 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 November 2020

Sousana K. Papadopoulou, Maria Mantzorou, Desspina Koutridou, Elias Tassoulas, Styliani Sakellaropoulou, Fani Biskanaki, Efthymis Xatziapostolou and Dimitrios Papandreou

The purpose of this paper is to critically summarize the current data concerning the impact of obesity and micronutrient adequacy and supplementation on the risk and severity of…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to critically summarize the current data concerning the impact of obesity and micronutrient adequacy and supplementation on the risk and severity of COVID-19 disease, and their potential impact on treatment and rehabilitation.

Design/methodology/approach

PubMed, Scopus and Google Scholar databases were thoroughly searched to identify studies concerning obesity and nutritional status, vitamin and other micronutrients adequacy with COVID-19 severity.

Findings

Individuals with higher body mass index are in greater risk of severe disease and need for mechanical ventilation. Concerning micronutrient adequacy, no published studies at the present time have evaluated the effect of supplementation on the risk and the treatment of the novel disease.

Originality/value

Recently, COVID-19 has monopolized the interest of the medical community regarding diet and nutritional status and it possibly plays an important role in disease severity.

Details

Nutrition & Food Science , vol. 51 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0034-6659

Keywords

1 – 10 of 10