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1 – 10 of 19Vincenza Cinquegrana, Anna Costanza Baldry and Stefano Pagliaro
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of contextual factors on the attribution of responsibility to female victims of an intimate partner violence…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of contextual factors on the attribution of responsibility to female victims of an intimate partner violence (IPV) episode. The victim’s infidelity and the perpetrator’s alcohol abuse constituted the contextual factors in the investigation. The bystander’s age, gender, and attitude towards gender roles were predicted to influence the attribution of responsibility to an IPV victim, and their willingness to help.
Design/methodology/approach
An experimental study was conducted with 464 Italian participants with two independent conditions incorporated into a fictional scenario, measuring the different levels of the dependent variables under investigation. The participants were randomly assigned to different conditions provided their answers via an anonymous questionnaire.
Findings
The participants attributed more responsibility to the victim when they admitted infidelity, controlling for gender role norms and sexism. Attribution of responsibility, male gender, and attitudes towards the male gender role were significantly associated with less willingness to help the victim.
Practical implications
The results point to the importance of increasing the bystander’s role in preventing IPV by addressing gender role norms and their impact on the justification of violence.
Originality/value
The study complements the existing literature by providing new evidence of the barriers that prevent the bystander’s intervention in IPV episodes. A clearer understanding of these barriers will help to develop strategies that aim to prevent violence in the future.
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Anna Costanza Baldry, Vincenza Cinquegrana, Camillo Regalia and Eleonora Crapolicchio
The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and poor general health reported by female victims of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and poor general health reported by female victims of intimate partner stalking (IPS) and victims’ forgiveness or lack of forgiveness towards their perpetrators, controlling for escalation of stalking, age of victims and dispositional forgiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 120 Italian female victims of IPS, who had obtained an administrative protective order (PO) issued by police in stalking cases (Ammonimento), took part in a retrospective study that examined the relationship between the presence or absence of victims’ forgiveness of perpetrators and victims’ PTSD symptoms and general well-being. Interviews took place after one, two or three years following the PO.
Findings
All participants reported some level of direct or indirect stalking, and up to 98 per cent had suffered both. In half of all cases, a PO had been breached within a year of its issuance. Positive forgiveness was not associated with lower PTSD symptoms and was marginally associated with well-being. Negative forgiveness (e.g. holding a grudge, desiring revenge) was associated with greater PTSD symptoms; holding a grudge was significantly associated with poorer general health.
Research limitations/implications
Victims of IPS experience a state of fear and anxiety due to the constant risk of being attacked, followed and controlled. Compared to studies about the protective role of forgiveness in community couples, this study found that among couples where stalking is present not only positive forgiveness does not take place at the same rate, but it is also not associated with the increased well-being. On the contrary, lack of forgiveness by stalked victims was related to PTSD symptoms and poorer health. Harbouring negative feelings, such a desire for revenge and holding a grudge towards a perpetrator, worsened woman’s mental health. These findings are novel and may assist the criminal justice system, law enforcement and service providers in their efforts to help women who are victims of IPS.
Originality/value
This study addresses the relationship between forgiveness and lack of forgiveness among victims of IPS and PTSD symptoms and victims’ poor health. Although longitudinal studies are needed to establish any causal relationship between stalking and mental health and the possibly mediating effects of forgiveness, this study is a first contribution to this important field of inquiry.
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David Farrington and Anna Baldry
This article reviews individual risk factors for bullying, especially gender, age, aggressiveness, low intelligence and achievement, hyperactivity‐impulsiveness, low…
Abstract
This article reviews individual risk factors for bullying, especially gender, age, aggressiveness, low intelligence and achievement, hyperactivity‐impulsiveness, low empathy, low self‐esteem, depression, unpopularity, and physical and biological features. It also reports individual, family and socio‐economic predictors and correlates of bullying discovered in a longitudinal survey of 411 London boys. The most important individual risk factors are low impulsiveness and low empathy, and they could be targeted in cognitive‐behavioural skills training programmes.
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Nicola Graham‐Kevan, Jane Ireland, Michelle Davies and Douglas Fry
The study aims to provide insight on the relationship between a newly implemented workplace concept, its intentions, the actual use and ultimately its ability to function…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to provide insight on the relationship between a newly implemented workplace concept, its intentions, the actual use and ultimately its ability to function as a strategic tool. By addressing the intended and unintended consequences of planned spatial arrangements, the interest lies in studying underlying factors affecting the concepts’ ability to function as a strategic tool.
Design/methodology/approach
The case study builds on semi-structured interviews and observational studies from a larger Norwegian organisation that recently implemented an activity-based workplace concept. Concept descriptions and architectural drawings have also been important sources to study how the concept was interpreted and used by different groups.
Findings
Taking a socio-material perspective, the findings illustrate that spatial aspects and different concept structures, together with issues such as employee mobility and time spent in the office, different work processes, management style and departmental cultures influenced the way the activity-based workplace concept was perceived and taken into use.
Originality/value
The findings indicate that social and cultural aspects may play a more significant role in the adaptation process than previously emphasised. The article further provides knowledge on how organisations, in planning and implementation of such concepts, may address the right issues to overcome challenges and achieve the higher strategic ends.
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Mari Anna Chatarina Skogland and Geir Karsten Hansen
The purpose of the paper is to explore the use of, and challenges associated with, spatial change management strategies. This is done through a discussion on how spatial…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to explore the use of, and challenges associated with, spatial change management strategies. This is done through a discussion on how spatial environments may be utilised to effect organisational change. The intention is to provoke new thinking on physical change initiatives and to challenge the often highly deterministic view on the effects of contemporary workspace concepts.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is structured as a case study-based literature review, drawing on literature from the fields of environmental psychology, organisational branding, corporate real estate and facility management, as well as organisational change management.
Findings
The study indicates that space management strategies may fail because of the lack of understanding of how organisational events and other contextually specific aspects correlate with the physical change initiative. Succeeding with the spatial strategy requires a strong focus on socio-material relationships and the employee meaning-making process during the spatial change process.
Originality/value
Contrary to the traditional and rational focus on functional space management strategies, the paper takes a socio-material approach suggesting that there is a need for more empirically based research into the employee meaning-making process and the role of human and organisational practices in the development of new workplace concepts. Focusing on how organisational members understand and “make use of” spatial environments may substantially improve organisations and building consultants’ abilities to strategically manage the physical change initiative and achieve the intended ends.
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The purpose of this paper is to explore how strategic alignment of the corporations’ real estate with the organisational strategy may be used to facilitate change within…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how strategic alignment of the corporations’ real estate with the organisational strategy may be used to facilitate change within an organisation’s collaborative culture. The focus is on the interconnectedness between spatial and behavioural artefacts in the transition process to a new workplace concept.
Design/methodology/approach
The discussion builds on observational studies and semi-structured interviews with 65 employees in a Norwegian organisation.
Findings
The findings indicate that the physical change, when supported by behavioural artefacts as change management actions, paved way for a cultural change towards increased collaboration between employees and across hierarchical levels. However, misalignments between the new workplace concept and existing behavioural artefacts and cultural constructs also restricted the organisation in fully achieving the intended ends.
Research limitations/implications
Applying a socio-material perspective with explicit focus on issues such as management and culture in workplace studies is important to develop better models for strategic use of a corporations’ real estate.
Originality/value
When new workplace concepts are implemented with the aim of effecting organisational change they require support of a focused change management process where both spatial and behavioural artefacts are designed to support employee adaptation to the new concept. By conducting the change as a continuous iterative process, extending beyond the moving process itself, the corporate real estate management (CREM) may add to the success by guiding and steering the organisation in the right direction.
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Lindsay Blank, Susan Baxter, Elizabeth Goyder, Paul Naylor, Louise Guillaume, Anna Wilkinson, Silvia Hummel and Jim Chilcott
This paper reports on a systematic review of the published literature on the effectiveness of whole‐school behavioural interventions, which aim to promote emotional and…
Abstract
This paper reports on a systematic review of the published literature on the effectiveness of whole‐school behavioural interventions, which aim to promote emotional and social well‐being among young people in secondary education. The findings are based on 27 studies of varying designs with some limitations. The results suggest that the literature is not well developed, and has a substantial skew towards interventions conducted in the United States. However, it does suggest that conflict resolution training is successful in promoting pro‐social behaviours in the short term, and that the use of peer mediators may be effective for longer‐term outcomes. The evidence relating to preventing bullying and disruptive behaviour is more varied, with evidence of mixed effectiveness being identified for the roles of the community, teachers, young people, external agencies and parents.
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As public authorities and private companies increasingly outsource facilities management services to external suppliers, a new service industry with its own culture and…
Abstract
Purpose
As public authorities and private companies increasingly outsource facilities management services to external suppliers, a new service industry with its own culture and contracting practices is developing. The aim of this paper is to examine how procurement processes and contract models relate to trust and collaboration in interorganizational relationships in FM.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on interviews with leading Swedish clients, consultants and service providers.
Findings
Contract‐related formalization serves purposes of learning and coordination as well as of performance control. Thus, services need different contract design and different management depending on the interaction patterns they entail. Detailed specifications and monitoring may be needed in order to increase mutual understanding, build trust and foster a sustainable industry‐level contracting culture.
Research limitations/implications
The findings refer to the Swedish situation, where the legal role of the formal contract differs from that in common law countries.
Practical implications
Typically, low‐level interaction relations such as technical property services need a focus on fostering trust, while high‐contact soft services call for transparency and distance. Further, detailed specification and formalized monitoring are more important for non‐strategic support services that may otherwise be left unmanaged and receive low attention from client management.
Originality/value
The paper relates general literature on trust and contract to the FM industry, identifies variations in contracting needs depending on the type of service and considers industry‐level development.
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Eeva Määttänen, Riikka Kyrö, Anna Aaltonen, Anna-Liisa Sarasoja and Seppo Junnila
The study aims to investigate the effects of a remote energy management service to the energy consumption of retail buildings. The study focuses on analysing the changes…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to investigate the effects of a remote energy management service to the energy consumption of retail buildings. The study focuses on analysing the changes in energy consumption after the implementation of a facility service concept where building processes are optimized with a remote energy management system. The paper seeks to demonstrate that remotely operated building management practices, which allow high competence service for all facilities, have a positive impact, beyond traditional facility services, on energy and environmental performance of buildings.
Design/methodology/approach
The research analyses the metered energy consumption of two retail building portfolios comprising altogether 44 properties. Additionally, secondary data are collected from archive reviews, observation and interviews.
Findings
The research shows that remote energy management service reduced the total energy consumption during the two-year service period by 12 and 6 per cent depending on the portfolio. Electricity consumption was found to decrease by 7 per cent and heating energy by 26 per cent on the average in the first portfolio, and 7 and 4 per cent in the second one, respectively.
Research limitations/implications
Variation between buildings was found to be relatively high as the individual characteristics and history of the different buildings inevitably affect the achieved results.
Practical implications
The study indicates that remote energy management offers an effective means to reduce the energy consumption and costs, and ultimately climate impacts derived from buildings.
Originality/value
The study adds to the knowledge of facilities management in context to energy management and environmental performance of buildings.
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