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1 – 10 of 198
Article
Publication date: 4 September 2017

Daniela Christen and Andreas Balthasar

Health monitoring of the migrant population in most European countries shows that migrants have a lower standard of health conditions than the resident population. One of the…

Abstract

Purpose

Health monitoring of the migrant population in most European countries shows that migrants have a lower standard of health conditions than the resident population. One of the problems is that the interaction between migrants and general practitioners (GPs) is not optimal. Most of the migrants are not able to fully understand the GP’s advice or instructions. GPs report that they are not adequately supported by health institutions, and they are asking for new solutions. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic review to find existing international approaches to improve the interaction between GPs and their migrant patients.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature search identified 2,387 articles, 36 of which met the full inclusion criteria. In total, 12 of the included studies referenced approaches for improving GPs’ communication skills. Seven articles described solutions for a better understanding of cultural differences, and six articles listed approaches to health education for GPs. One article highlighted how health information can improve the interaction between GPs and migrants, and four articles detailed new technologies that could improve and enhance quality of care. The last six articles included good practice strategies described by GPs.

Findings

This paper provides an overview of international approaches from the viewpoint of GPs. It concludes that there is no single instrument or method that works in all situations. There are, however, a wide range of approaches available that could lead to substantial improvements in the quality of care for the migrant population.

Research limitations/implications

Different health systems in the reviewed countries and changing roles of GPs must be taken into consideration when making statements about successful approaches. Migrants have different backgrounds and cannot all be categorized as one and the same group of patients. Another limitation of the review concerns the evidence level of the articles included, since most of the studies do not reach high level of evidence. In addition, there is a need to analyze aspects of the relationship between GPs and the migrant population that have been neglected up to now, such as financial issues, patients’ expectations, or lack of trust.

Originality/value

This paper provides an overview of international approaches from the viewpoint of GPs.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 September 2013

Andreas Kuehn

This article compares the use of deep packet inspection (DPI) technology to the use of cookies for online behavioral advertising (OBA), in the form of two competing paradigms. It

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Abstract

Purpose

This article compares the use of deep packet inspection (DPI) technology to the use of cookies for online behavioral advertising (OBA), in the form of two competing paradigms. It seeks to explain why DPI was eliminated as a viable option due to political and regulatory reactions whereas cookies technology was not, even though it raises some of the same privacy issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The paradigms draw from two-sided market theory to conceptualize OBA. Empirical case studies, NebuAd's DPI platform and Facebook's Beacon program, substantiate the paradigms with insights into the controversies on behavioral tracking between 2006 and 2009 in the USA. The case studies are based on document analyses and interviews.

Findings

Comparing the two cases from a technological, economic, and institutional perspective, the article argues that both paradigms were equally privacy intrusive. Thus, it rejects the generally held view that privacy issues can explain the outcome of the battle. Politics and regulatory legacy tilted the playing field towards the cookies paradigm, impeding a competing technology.

Originality/value

Shifting the narrative away from privacy to competing tracking paradigms and their specific actors sheds light on the political and the regulatory rationales that were not considered in previous research on OBA. Particularly, setting forth institutional aspects on OBA – and DPI in general – the case studies provide much needed empirical analysis to reassess tracking technologies and policy outcomes.

Details

info, vol. 15 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6697

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2022

Andrea Müller and Werner Schmidt

The paper examines the work and interactions of staff councils in German municipalities and the power resources the staff councils have at disposal. The paper also discusses the…

Abstract

Purpose

The paper examines the work and interactions of staff councils in German municipalities and the power resources the staff councils have at disposal. The paper also discusses the relationship between staff councils and trade unions and suggests a modification of the prominent concept of the “dual system of interest representation” to a “trimorphic system of interest representation” for the public sector.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws on case studies of staff councils in municipalities and administrative districts, relying on semi-structured interviews, group discussions and document analysis.

Findings

Staff councils operate in an extensively regulated field. The major task of staff councils is to monitor that employers follow collective agreements and the law. Staff councils' existence and co-determination rights of staff councils are provided by law; however, staff councils not only use institutional, but also organisational and – occasionally – political power resources, whereas structural and societal power resources are rarely actively used. The relationship between staff councils and trade unions often plays an important role and is in many cases characterised by mutual support.

Originality/value

Although staff councils are a widespread and a very interesting type of representation because staff councils represent both employees and civil servants who are employed in two distinctly different employment systems, staff councils are widely under-researched. This paper enriches empirical knowledge about labour relations and introduces the notion of a “trimorphic system of interest representation”.

Details

Employee Relations: The International Journal, vol. 45 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0142-5455

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 March 2012

Andreas Mueller and Michael Schade

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion about how to develop a common identity of local stakeholders of places (e.g. politicians, local companies, residents)…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the discussion about how to develop a common identity of local stakeholders of places (e.g. politicians, local companies, residents). Such a common identity is regarded as an essential aspect to market a place consistently to external target groups (e.g. tourists, companies, qualified workers, students).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper follows a conceptual approach by transferring semiotic (symbolism) and sociological concepts (symbolic interactionism) to the concept of place branding. Moreover, a practical example of how to identify potential place symbols of cities is presented within the case study of the German town of Bremen.

Findings

Symbols are identified to be of special importance for the development of group identity of local stakeholders of places. Moreover, symbols are presented as essential aspects of a feeling of belonging to a place (place commitment).

Research limitations/implications

As semiotic theory has not yet been transferred to the context of place branding this paper is opening up a new subject and needs to be understood as a first approach to constitute a theoretical framework. An empirical analyses needs to be carried out in order to proof the theories in the place branding context.

Practical implications

The paper explains that symbols can be established by the arrangement of public discourses like, e.g. competitions for place logos, place mascots or place songs. Moreover, it is pointed out, how already established place symbols which are not yet part of branding strategies can be identified in order to strengthen place identity.

Social Implications

Following the semiotic concept of symbolism the paper explains a high participation of residents as a necessity to establish and negotiate the meaning of symbols in order to strengthen place identity.

Originality/value

Because of being the first paper putting the semiotic theory of symbolism in the focus of the interdisciplinary discussion of branding the originality of the paper can be regarded as high.

Details

Journal of Place Management and Development, vol. 5 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8335

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 January 2016

Dan Xu, James Ferris Whidborne and Alastair Cooke

The growing use of small unmanned rotorcraft in civilian applications means that safe operation is increasingly important. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the fault…

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Abstract

Purpose

The growing use of small unmanned rotorcraft in civilian applications means that safe operation is increasingly important. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the fault tolerant properties to faults in the actuators of an C 1 adaptive controller for a quadrotor vehicle.

Design/methodology/approach

C 1 adaptive control provides fast adaptation along with decoupling between adaptation and robustness. This makes the approach a suitable candidate for fault tolerant control of quadrotor and other multirotor vehicles. In the paper, the design of an C 1 adaptive controller is presented. The controller is compared to a fixed-gain LQR controller.

Findings

The C 1 adaptive controller is shown to have improved performance when subject to actuator faults, and a higher range of actuator fault tolerance.

Research limitations/implications

The control scheme is tested in simulation of a simple model that ignores aerodynamic and gyroscopic effects. Hence for further work, testing with a more complete model is recommended followed by implementation on an actual platform and flight test. The effect of sensor noise should also be considered along with investigation into the influence of wind disturbances and tolerance to sensor failures. Furthermore, quadrotors cannot tolerate total failure of a rotor without loss of control of one of the degrees of freedom, this aspect requires further investigation.

Practical implications

Applying the C 1 adaptive controller to a hexrotor or octorotor would increase the reliability of such vehicles without recourse to methods that require fault detection schemes and control reallocation as well as providing tolerance to a total loss of a rotor.

Social implications

In order for quadrotors and other similar unmanned air vehicles to undertake many proposed roles, a high level of safety is required. Hence the controllers should be fault tolerant.

Originality/value

Fault tolerance to partial actuator/effector faults is demonstrated using an C 1 adaptive controller.

Details

International Journal of Intelligent Unmanned Systems, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-6427

Keywords

Content available

Abstract

Details

Journal of Place Management and Development, vol. 5 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8335

Article
Publication date: 24 October 2023

Kolawole Yusuff, Andrea Whittle and Frank Mueller

Existing literature has begun to identify the agonistic and contested aspects of the ongoing development of accountability systems. These “contests” are particularly important…

Abstract

Purpose

Existing literature has begun to identify the agonistic and contested aspects of the ongoing development of accountability systems. These “contests” are particularly important during periods of change when an accountability “deficit” has been identified, that is, when existing accountability systems are deemed inadequate and requiring revision. The purpose of this paper is to explore one such set of contests in the case of large technology and social media firms: the so-called “big tech”. The authors focus specifically on “big tech” because of increasing societal concerns about the harms associated with their products, services and business practices.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors analysed four US Congressional hearings, in which the CEO of Facebook was held to account for the company's alleged breaches and harms. The authors conducted a discourse analysis of the dialogue between the account giver (Mark Zuckerberg) and account holders (Members of Congress) in the oral testimony at the four hearings.

Findings

Two areas of contestation in the dialogue between the account giver and account holders are identified. “Epistemic contests” involved contestation about the “facts” concerning the harms the company had allegedly caused. “Responsibility contests” involved contestation about who (or what) should be held responsible for these harms and according to what standards or criteria.

Originality/value

The study advances critical dialogical accountability literature by identifying two areas of contestation during periods of change in accountability systems. In so doing, they advanced the theory by conceptualising the process of change as underpinned by discursive contests in which multiple actors construct and contest the “problem” with existing accountability systems. The outcomes of these contests are significant, the authors suggest, because they inform the development of reforms to the accountability system governing big tech firms and other industries undergoing similar periods of contestation and change.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 December 2018

Aqib Mashood Khan, Muhammad Jamil, Ahsan Ul Haq, Salman Hussain, Longhui Meng and Ning He

Sustainable machining is a global consensus and the necessity to cope up the serious environmental threats. Minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) and nanofluids-based MQL(NFMQL) are…

Abstract

Purpose

Sustainable machining is a global consensus and the necessity to cope up the serious environmental threats. Minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) and nanofluids-based MQL(NFMQL) are state-of-the-art sustainable lubrication modes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of process parameters, such as feed rate, depth of cut and cutting fluid flow rate, on temperature and surface roughness of the manufactured pieces during face milling of the AISI D2 steel.

Design/methodology/approach

A statistical technique called response surface methodology with Box–Behnken Design was used to design experimental runs, and empirical modeling was presented. Analysis of variance was carried out to evaluate the model’s accuracy and the validation of the applied technique.

Findings

A comprehensive analysis revealed the superiority of implementing NFMQL in comparison to MQL within the levels of process parameters. The comparison has shown a significant reduction of temperature under NFMQL at the tool-workpiece interface from 16.2 to 34.5 per cent and surface roughness from 11.3 to 12 per cent.

Practical implications

This research is useful for practitioners to predict the responses in workshop and select appropriate cutting parameters. Moreover, this research will be helpful to reduce the resource which will ultimately save energy consumption and cost.

Originality/value

To cope with the industrial challenges and tribological issues associated with the milling of AISI D2 steel, experiments were conducted in a distinct machining mode with innovative cooling/lubrication. Until now, few studies have addressed the key lubrication effects of Al2O3-based nanofluid on the machinability of D2 steel under NFMQL lubrication condition.

Details

Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, vol. 71 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0036-8792

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 15 September 2020

Andreas Kuckertz, Elisabeth S.C. Berger and Alicia Prochotta

This study aims to investigate how Germans' misperceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship influence their attitudes towards entrepreneurial failure.

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Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate how Germans' misperceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship influence their attitudes towards entrepreneurial failure.

Design/methodology/approach

Adopting a multivariate regression analysis, the study used data collected from a commercial online market research panel (N = 2,027) reflecting the overall German working population. Attitudinal items on business failure were used to measure the study variables. The study controlled for age, education, employment status, gender, income, whether the respondent knows a failed entrepreneur and the German federal state in which the respondent resides.

Findings

The findings suggest that reservations about failed entrepreneurs become stronger as misperceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship worsen. The results also show that failure reservations vary regionally over the 16 German federal states.

Practical implications

Nationwide efforts regarding the stimulation of entrepreneurship and the acceptance of entrepreneurial failure are insufficient for removing failure reservations, as they neglect regional cultural differences. The results suggest that it is not enough just to invest in efforts to create a failure-friendly culture, and that a better general education about the realities of entrepreneurship is a prerequisite.

Originality/value

The study generates insights into how the overall population in an innovation-driven economy perceives entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial failure. Moreover, the work delves into the reasons why parts of German society reject failed entrepreneurs. Hence, this study can aid the drafting of effective policy initiatives at the regional and national levels.

Details

International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, vol. 26 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2554

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 August 2020

Alexander J. Wulf

In some political and economic situations, it may be desirable to have a company that operates with a legal structure that is midway between the two extreme poles of the private…

Abstract

Purpose

In some political and economic situations, it may be desirable to have a company that operates with a legal structure that is midway between the two extreme poles of the private sector (i.e. privatisation) and the public sector (i.e. nationalisation). In such situations none of the existing legal forms for private or public enterprises creates the institutional conditions necessary for a profitable, collectively owned enterprise. A possible solution to this problem is the participatory legal form of a group of affiliated public service organisations.

Design/methodology/approach

Taking a case study on the crisis-beset Berlin Brandenburg Airport Company (BER) as an example, the author examines how the proposed alternative legal form for collective enterprises could have improved the legal and institutional framework of the airport company.

Findings

The problems that arose with Berlin Brandenburg airport had multiple causes. Had the airport company adopted the legal form of a group of affiliated public service enterprises, it might have been better able to deal with many of its problems because the organisational structure would have been more suitable. The case study demonstrates that the improved governance framework offered by a group of affiliated public service enterprises could have reduced the likelihood of the large scale, spectacular failure of the project that occurred.

Originality/value

A company that operates as collectively owned property is midway between the two extreme poles of private property and state property. In political and economic situations where such a solution is sought the question arises as to which legal or corporate form will provide the best conditions for successful management. The current lack of suitable available legal forms may be a factor in preventing the number of companies in collective ownership from increasing. The article points towards this gap and introduces the legal form of a group of affiliated public service enterprises, i.e. a collectively owned state consortium of social community interest enterprises.

Details

Journal of Participation and Employee Ownership, vol. 3 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-7641

Keywords

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