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The digital age requires people of all ages to communicate and organise their lives through digital technologies. The project EQualCare investigates how the growing population of older people living alone is managing this transition, how it shapes their (non-)digital social networks and what changes on a local level need to be brought about. This paper aims to give insight into the process of participatory action research (PAR) with older people in the community across four countries and reflects on experiences made by academic and co-researchers.

Following the emancipatory underpinnings of PAR, which aims to reduce inequalities through collaboration and co-design, EQualCare involved nine teams of co-researchers across Finland, Germany, Latvia and Sweden making older people the centre of policy development. Co-researchers were involved in formulating research aims, collecting data, reflecting on data, formulating and disseminating recommendations for local policy stakeholders.

Co-researchers’ motivation to invest considerable time and effort was driven by a desire to create a more equal future for older people living alone. Moreover, they were keen to involve marginalised older people and became frustrated when this proved difficult. Power dynamics played a role throughout the process but became productive as roles and responsibilities were renegotiated. Doing PAR with older people can be emotionally challenging for co-researchers when negative feelings around ageing are encountered.

The paper advances understanding on the process of PAR in ageing research by reflecting on the social, cultural and political contexts of doing PAR with diverse sets of older people.

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the strategy and innovation of the Faculty of Adab and Humanities in developing the quality of education in digital era by using anthropology of education approach.

In accordance with the research purpose to demonstrate the strategy and innovation of the Faculty of Adab and Humanities in developing the quality of education in the digital era using an educational anthropology approach, the method used is descriptive qualitative, which refers to data in the form of interviews obtained from the field.

The results of this research indicate that there are strategies and innovations to develop the quality of higher education at the Faculty of Adab and Humanities in the digital era. These include adjusting the curriculum with the context of the era, implementing the learning process based on research and reinforcing on aspects of digital literacy among students through the innovation of the library based on digital.

This study can be considered in the process of evaluating policies related to quality reinforcing strategies and innovations at the Faculty of Adab and Humanities in facing the challenges of the times. The study is only limited to tracing and analyzing strategies and innovations to reinforce education in the Faculty of Adab and Humanities and their impact on human resource development. For further research, it can be done in more detail and depth and on a larger scale.

The purpose of this study is to identify LGBTQ+ perceptions of and experiences with hazards, vulnerabilities and disasters in the San Francisco Bay Area in the USA and to co-develop applied projects to “queer” disaster knowledge production and risk reduction activities in the region.

This is a community science project in which we collaborate with community members to enhance both community and scientific knowledge with the goal of utilizing it to produce a positive change to pressing social issues and their underlying causes. We do this through a series of four focus group workshops to identify community priorities, hazards, vulnerabilities and local action. We follow this with further ethnographic research and projects to apply findings from phase one.

The authors have found that: LGBTQ+ people in the Bay Area have unique experiences with hazards, vulnerabilities and disasters; there are significant gaps in the representation of LGBTQ+ hazard exposure in local scientific models that we can address through alternative methodologies; and tabletop exercises, learning modules and podcasts help orient and train disaster response agencies and personnel on LGBTQ+ inclusive operations.

This initiative entails novel approaches to community science for disaster risk reduction and creative collaboration with community-based organizations to foster the development of LGBTQ+ inclusive disaster risk reduction and response.

Exposing the hidden lives of female public relations (PR) practitioners requires deep connection with those lives. Stories need to be uncovered, interrogated, and ultimately told, to shine a light on the lived experiences of those working in PR. The methods used to collect these stories require deep immersion in the field and the ethnographic method is ideal for this. Ethnographic research methods have long been utilised to gain insights into the lived experiences of individuals and communities. This chapter provides an understanding of the strengths and limitations of ethnographic research methods in capturing the nuances of women's experiences of working in PR.

Organisational ethnography is an established field in business studies and has been used to investigate disciplines cognate to PR, including advertising and media, but, to date, has failed to be fully explored in PR research. This chapter examines the potential for ethnography to open new areas of PR theory and considers its potential as a means of bridging the gap between PR theory and practice.

Ethnography is not without its limitations; key concerns surround objectivity, the role of the researcher, and that of the participant, and ethics. Nonetheless, this method would appear to offer huge potential for the study of PR practices; the diverse nature of the sector makes it a rich area to study.

This chapter explores the potential of this method to offer an opportunity to investigate areas such as working practices, ethics in practice, power, gender, diversity, and culture.

The heritage and tourist attractiveness of Heritage Cities have aroused interest in establishing mechanisms to enhance their value based on the development of sustainability policies. The socioeconomic and socioenvironmental valuation of these heritage sites has become a necessary tool for decision-making.

Following the recommendations of International Council on Monuments and Sites – ICOMOS, this paper proposes a series of indicators and an exploratory model to define the factors that contribute to their valuation. Following the partial least squares structural equation modelling methodology, information was obtained from 363 intramural residents in the three Heritage Cities that currently have management plans in Spain.

The results show the importance of specifying indicators of sustainable mobility and socioeconomic and socioenvironmental sustainability for an adequate valorisation of heritage sites.

To this end, it is necessary to follow the guidelines of international bodies such as ICOMOS in relation to the management plans.

This study aimed to identify and analyse the key factors influencing the adoption of e-government services and to discern their implications for various stakeholders, from policymakers to platform developers.

Through a comprehensive review of existing literature and detailed analysis of multiple studies, this research organised the influential factors based on their effect: highest, direct and indirect. The study also integrated findings to present a consolidated view of e-government adoption drivers.

The research found that users' behaviour, attitude, optimism bias and subjective norms significantly shape their approach to e-government platforms. Trust in e-Government (TEG) emerged as a critical determinant, with security perceptions being of paramount importance. Additionally, non-technical factors, such as cultural, religious and social influences, play a substantial role in e-government adoption decisions. The study also highlighted the importance of performance expectancy, effect expectancy and other determinants influencing e-government adoption.

While numerous studies have explored e-government adoption, this research offers a novel classification based on the relative effects of each determinant. Integrating findings from diverse studies and emphasising non-technical factors introduce an interdisciplinary approach, bridging the gap between information technology and fields like sociology, anthropology and behavioural sciences. This integrative lens provides a fresh perspective on the topic, encouraging more holistic strategies for enhancing e-government adoption globally.

The purpose of the paper is to propose a shift from the ideal of immersion to a practice of “committed localism” in the ethnographic study of relational work in the post-bureaucratic and service-based economy.

The paper is based on ethnographic fieldwork following management consultancy projects in a hospital and a manufacturing company in Denmark. The approach was predicated on committed attention to the everyday of consultancy work activities and associated relational dynamics. This involved being present at the client sites, observing and listening in concrete situations of interaction and engaging in conversations with the multiple actors involved, both external consultants and members of client organisations.

The paper shows how “committed localism” was practiced in the ethnographic study of management consultancy as it is relationally accomplished in and through concrete situations of interaction between consultants and different actors in client organizations and the associated meaning production of the involved actors.

The paper develops the notion of “committed localism”, originally introduced by George Marcus, into a methodological concept to challenge the conventional ideal of immersion as the hallmark of “proper” ethnography. Such a shift is particularly pertinent for the ethnographic study of relational processes involving multiple actors occupying different positions in the temporary social spaces of contemporary workplaces.

Customer transformation is currently overlooked in service research. This article aims to conceptualize customer transformation and develop a research agenda to encourage more exploration in this area.

This conceptual article builds on the literature on transformation and related topics in psychology, sociology, education and anthropology.

The presented definition of customer transformation distinguishes itself from other related concepts such as minor change. The research agenda, structured around five themes, reveals four distinctive attributes of customer transformation that warrant academic investigation. These include the inability of businesses to guarantee transformations, the potential tension between transformational aspirations and immediate needs and well-being, the imperative of cultivating long-term engagement and the likelihood of encountering customer resistance. This highlights the criticality of embracing a customer-centric approach in transformational services.

Given the vastness of the topic, the literature review is limited and the research agenda could be widened. Furthermore, the dynamic nature of the subject introduces the possibility that the conceptual framework and research agenda may become outdated. Lastly, the universal applicability of the findings and the proposed conceptual framework are uncertain, necessitating potential validation across diverse contexts. The practical implications may also fall short of addressing the specific challenges encountered by different industries or businesses.

The article provides insights on customer transformation and strategies for businesses to support ongoing transformations, emphasizing personalized engagement and co-creating value to meet evolving customer aspirations.

The need for development and growth is more pressing and decisive than ever. This need is often not well understood and, as a result, is not addressed by either scholars or companies. This paper helps address that social need.

The research enriches the service literature by paving the way for a crucial subfield in service research. Additionally, it establishes a shared understanding of customer transformation by highlighting its distinct characteristics and analyzing their implications for service management, proposing a conceptual framework and research agenda.