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1 – 10 of 272Heather K. Moberly, Dong Joon Lee, Michael David Kessler and Esther Elizabeth Carrigan
The speed of information transfer, discovery, and evaluation is accelerating the timeline for young researchers to establish their scholarly identity. A clear scholarly identity…
Abstract
Purpose
The speed of information transfer, discovery, and evaluation is accelerating the timeline for young researchers to establish their scholarly identity. A clear scholarly identity is an essential element in developing and maintaining a scholar’s reputation. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
Texas A&M University is developing workflows and programmatic support for graduate students as they navigate a labyrinth of tools, such as ORCID iD, to establish and manage their identity and reputation.
Findings
This paper discusses the evolution of a collaboration between the Texas A&M University Libraries (A&M UL) and the Office of Research and Graduate Studies in the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences to educate graduate-level students about scholarly identity and reputation.
Originality/value
The collaboration between the Texas A&M UL and the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences Office of Research and Graduate Studies evolved into an intentional practice to assist emerging researchers as they navigate the labyrinth of standards and research information systems to establish their scholarly identity.
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Holt Zaugg, Curtis Child, Dalton Bennett, Jace Brown, Melissa Alcaraz, Alexander Allred, Nathaniel Andrus, Drew Babcock, Maria Barriga, Madison Brown, Lindsey Bulloch, Todd Corbett, Michelle Curtin, Victoria Giossi, Samantha Hawkins, Sergio Hernandez, Kayia Jacobs, Jette Jones, David Kessler, Samuel Lee, Sara Mackay, Amy Marshall, Dallin Maxfield, Cory McFarland, Brennen Miller, Maia Roberson, Kristy Rogers, Devin Stoker, Manase Tonga, Abby Twitchell and Tinesha Zandamela
– The purpose of this paper is to investigate similar and different wayfinding strategies used by novice and expert patrons at an academic library.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate similar and different wayfinding strategies used by novice and expert patrons at an academic library.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed a usability study approach. In total, 12 people, places, or things were identified as important for students to be able to locate within an academic library. Students from one of three groups (high school, freshmen, and seniors) were randomly assigned a scenario requiring them to find the indicated person, place, or thing. Student researchers video recorded participants and took field notes during the wayfinding activity and conducted an interview about participant’s experience following the exercise.
Findings
Total and average time needed to locate the person, place, or thing indicated in the scenario were determined for each group. In addition, wayfinding tools (signs, maps, help desks, technology, and experience) used by participants were identified.
Originality/value
The research compares novice and expert wayfinding strategies. It is unique in its use of student researchers as part of a sociology class project, to collect and analyze the data.
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Corporate reputation has never been more valuable – or more vulnerable. All of the corporate malfeasance of the past few years in the US not only showed how precious and fleeting…
Abstract
Corporate reputation has never been more valuable – or more vulnerable. All of the corporate malfeasance of the past few years in the US not only showed how precious and fleeting reputation is, but it also demonstrated how one company’s misdeeds taint an entire industry. Some businesses with superb reputations have found themselves unfairly lumped with the pack of fraudulent companies, and some executives have been dismayed to learn that they are viewed as greedy and unprincipled. One of the most important rules of reputation management is the need for constant vigilance. Companies today are exposed to unprecedented scrutiny through the Internet and 24‐hour all‐news television channels. Business is truly global and information, especially gossip, travels fast. Many people mistakenly equate reputation with corporate social responsibility and ethical behavior. While certainly of growing importance, ethics and social responsibility are but two elements of the equation. Financial performance, the workplace, quality of products and services, corporate leadership, and vision also figure into reputation. There’s also that elusive emotional bond between a company and its stakeholders that is central to the most enduring reputations. If they ever hope to maximize the value of their reputations, companies must make reputation management a fundamental part of the corporate culture and value system. Companies must spread the message of reputation management throughout the organization and make employees cognizant of how each and every one of them affects reputation on a daily basis. Reputation must be central to the corporate identity, not merely clever image advertising and manipulative public‐relations ploys.
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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness (through the analytic prism of “corporate citizenship”) of the US pharmaceutical industry's political strategy behind…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness (through the analytic prism of “corporate citizenship”) of the US pharmaceutical industry's political strategy behind the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, the program that the industry has recently initiated to address the prescription drug needs of senior and other low‐income American citizens.
Design/methodology/approach
By reviewing data collected by PhRMA, the industry's association, over a one‐year period, the Partnership for Prescription Assistance program is evaluated for: performance (over periods of one month, three months, six months and one year); congruence with the concept of corporate citizenship; and effectiveness as an industry political strategy.
Findings
During its first year of operation, the Partnership for Prescription Assistance has matched two million Americans with public and private assistance programs that meet their prescription health needs. Furthermore, the Partnership for Prescription Assistance fits into the corporate citizenship perspective, and offers the pharmaceutical industry a viable alternative (“industry political strategy”) to state and federal legislative efforts to establish prescription drug importation programs.
Originality/value
This article addresses recent efforts (in the form of the Partnership for Prescription Assistance) by the US pharmaceutical industry to counteract proposed legislation to allow prescription drug importation in the USA. The article provides evidence of industry political strategy success in the implementation of the Partnership for Prescription Assistance. This article will have value to pharmaceutical industry management, health care advocates, public policy makers, and business faculty whose research interest lies in the area of business and society.
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Futurists have tended to take little interest in the hard work of implementing changes necessary to reach particular futures. This paper aims to argue that the field should pay…
Abstract
Purpose
Futurists have tended to take little interest in the hard work of implementing changes necessary to reach particular futures. This paper aims to argue that the field should pay more attention to these issues, and to use the challenge of weight loss to illustrate how tools can be developed to help both individuals and organizations deal with futures. It also aims to argue for the importance of mindfulness in managing long‐term futures challenges.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper describes how the author applied concepts outlined in Futures 2.0 to his own program of weight loss, and lost 50 pounds (22.7 kilograms).
Findings
The paper shows how futurists could use concepts from behavioral economics and design in personal futures and futures work more generally. It also suggests that mindfulness – a concept borrowed from Buddhism and other contemplative practices – can give perspective necessary see the long‐term consequences of decisions they face in the present, and the self‐discipline necessary to make good choices.
Research limitations/implications
The paper argues that futurists should not just focus on helping clients see unexpected trends or wild cards, or thinking about the future in new ways, or reframing their underlying strategic assumptions. Complex, intractable futures subvert the best efforts of rational actors; clients are most interested in getting help on the problems they are least likely to solve.
Practical implications
More value for clients can be delivered by helping them understand common roadblocks and designing the means to reach long‐term future goals.
Social implications
For a profession accustomed to thinking about big issues and megatrends like nanotechnology and global warming, losing weight may seem trivial and beneath its interest. But by any objective measure, in much of the developed world obesity is a substantial public health problem: it affects the lives of tens of millions of people, increases chronic diseases like hypertension and diabetes, and costs governments hundreds of billions of dollars. More generally, weight loss is a microcosm of the kinds of problems that can only be managed through the collective action of large numbers of people.
Originality/value
The paper is a contribution to the literature on personal futures, and to the ongoing discussion of the scope and methods of futures.
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Ian Roper, David Etherington and Suzan Lewis
The purpose of this paper is to consider the resilience of a national-level initiative (Improving Working Lives (IWL)) in the face of local-level initiative (Turnaround) in an NHS…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to consider the resilience of a national-level initiative (Improving Working Lives (IWL)) in the face of local-level initiative (Turnaround) in an NHS hospital and compare to Bach and Kessler’s (2012) model of public service employment relations.
Design/methodology/approach
Case study research consisting of 23 in-depth semi-structured interviews from a range of participants.
Findings
The principles behind IWL were almost entirely sacrificed in order to meet the financial objectives of Turnaround. This indicates the primacy of localised upstream performance management initiatives over the national-level downstream employee relations initiatives that form the basis of the NHS’ claim to model employer aspiration.
Research limitations/implications
The case study was conducted between 2007 and 2009. While the case study falls under previous government regime, the dualised system of national-level agreements combined with localised performance management – and the continued existence of both Turnaround and IWL – makes the results relevant at the time of writing.
Originality/value
Some studies (e.g. Skinner et al., 2004) indicated a perception that IWL was not trusted by NHS staff. The present study offers reasons as to why this may be the case.
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Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some…
Abstract
Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.
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David Higgins and Treshani Perera
Whilst existing literature on real estate risk management focusses almost exclusively on holistic risk management techniques, documented increases in frequency and magnitude of…
Abstract
Purpose
Whilst existing literature on real estate risk management focusses almost exclusively on holistic risk management techniques, documented increases in frequency and magnitude of unforeseen, rare and extreme events can throw up sudden, unexpected shocks that can challenge recognised real estate decision-making strategies. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
To advance real estate decision-making practice in this area, this research paper takes the skilfully conceptualised downside risk framework presented by Diebold et al. (2010), being the known (K), the unknown (u) and the unknowable (U) risk categories, to provide a blueprint for effective real estate decision making in a changing global environment.
Findings
In recording categories of risk, managing uncertainty can be achieved by an interrelated approach of adaption, robustness and resilience. This is important part of a real estate manager’s decision-making toolkit as risk recognition and knowledge of KuU event categories can augment an effective management strategy.
Originality/value
The mastery of modern real estate risk management can be better served by understanding and managing extreme downside risk events. Creating a comprehensive risk management framework can enhance comparative real estate performance whereby unprepared competitors fail in a world increasingly affected by large, highly improbable and unpredictable events.
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Cassandra Perryman, Genevieve Dingle and David Clark
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the changes in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology during treatment in a drug and alcohol therapeutic community.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the changes in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology during treatment in a drug and alcohol therapeutic community.
Design/methodology/approach
A repeated measures design was employed that looked at PTSD, depression, anxiety, and stress at a pre- and post-timepoint. A second sample was then evaluated at time of program completion to seven months post-treatment.
Findings
PTSD symptomatology significantly decreased in individuals who had undertaken treatment, and continued to decline post-treatment. This finding was irrespective of any PTSD-specific treatment.
Research limitations/implications
PTSD specific treatment is not necessary to lower the symptomatology. Furthermore, this provides evidence that PTSD and substance use disorders are so highly intertwined that the comorbidity can almost be considered a single, diagnosis.
Originality/value
This is a partial replication of previous research which had not previously been replicated. This research also adds to the limited research which looks at PTSD from the perspective of drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
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David William Best, Catherine Haslam, Petra Staiger, Genevieve Dingle, Michael Savic, Ramez Bathish, Jock Mackenzie, Melinda Beckwith and Dan I. Lubman
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how social identity change can support the TC objective of promoting “right living”. This is compatible with the literature on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how social identity change can support the TC objective of promoting “right living”. This is compatible with the literature on addiction recovery which has shown that identity change is central to this process. While much of the earlier literature focussed primarily on an individual analysis of change, there is a growing body of research showing the important contribution that social networks, social group membership and associated social identities make to sustainable change.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper describes baseline data for a multi-site prospective cohort study of 308 clients entering therapeutic community (TC) treatment and characterizes the presenting profile of this cohort on a range of social identity and recovery measures at the point of TC entry.
Findings
The sample was predominantly male with a mean age of 35 years, with the large majority having been unemployed in the month before admission. The most commonly reported primary substance was methamphetamine, followed by alcohol and heroin. The sample reported low rates of engagement in recovery groups, but access to and moderate degrees of social support was also reported in the period prior to admission.
Research limitations/implications
The paper highlights the important role that TCs play in facilitating identity change and in promoting sustainable recovery.
Practical implications
The paper discusses opportunities for working with social identities both during residence and in community re-integration, and highlights what TCs can do to support and sustain recovery.
Social implications
The paper brings to light the potential contribution of social group membership and social identity change to management of recovery in TC settings.
Originality/value
The study described provides an innovative way of assessing TC effectiveness and testing novel questions about the role of social identity and recovery capital as key predictors of change.
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