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1 – 10 of 795Whilst drug use appears to be common amongst university students, the purpose of this paper is to move beyond mere drug prevalence, and use the six dimensions of normalisation to…
Abstract
Purpose
Whilst drug use appears to be common amongst university students, the purpose of this paper is to move beyond mere drug prevalence, and use the six dimensions of normalisation to better understand the role and place drugs play in the lives of university students.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 512 students completed a student lifestyle survey.
Findings
A differentiated normalisation is occurring amongst different student groups; the social supply of drugs is common, and some users are “drifting” into supply roles yet such acts are neutralised. Students are “drug literate” and have to navigate drugs, and their consumption, availability and marketing, as part of their everyday student life.
Practical implications
Student drug use is not homogenous and very little is known about the nuances and diversity of their use/non-use beyond prevalence data. Qualitative studies are needed to better understand the processes of differentiated normalisation and social supply.
Originality/value
This is the first study in the UK to use the six dimensions of normalisation amongst a sample of university students.
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Frank Slesnick, James Payne and Robert J. Thornton
Over the past 15 years or so, a very large proportion of the forensic economics literature has been devoted to research concerning better ways of estimating damages in cases…
Abstract
Over the past 15 years or so, a very large proportion of the forensic economics literature has been devoted to research concerning better ways of estimating damages in cases involving personal injury and wrongful death (PI/WD). This is probably not surprising since the largest fraction of consulting income for forensic economists (at least those in the National Association of Forensic Economics, NAFE) comes from such cases.
This compilation of over 500 United States Government bibliographies is the second annual supplement to BIBLIOGRAPHY OF UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT BIBLIOGRAPHIES 1968–1973 (Pierian…
Abstract
This compilation of over 500 United States Government bibliographies is the second annual supplement to BIBLIOGRAPHY OF UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT BIBLIOGRAPHIES 1968–1973 (Pierian Press). Due to the Government Printing Office backlog during 1974, many 1973 and 1974 titles are included in this 1975 Supplement, which should have appeared earlier.
Professional communities are capable of maintaining their social status and role in society on the basis of a blend of technical and formal expertise, know‐how, and an…
Abstract
Purpose
Professional communities are capable of maintaining their social status and role in society on the basis of a blend of technical and formal expertise, know‐how, and an understanding of the non‐professional's demands and expectations. In architectural work, professional expertise largely centres on the visual capacities of the architect, his or her ability to extract useful information and communicate objectives and ideas on the basis of visual artifacts. However, this professional vision must always be double in terms of alternating between professional and non‐professional ways of seeing. The purpose of this paper is to address these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was based on a case study of a Scandinavian firm of architects, Blue Architects (a pseudonym).
Findings
The findings suggest that practising architects are highly aware of the societal role of their profession and the fact that there are a number of routines and mechanisms instituted by the firm which help the architect, newcomers as well as the more seasoned members of that community, to bridge and combine these two elements of their professional vision.
Originality/value
The study suggests that professional vision is a key term when examining visually‐oriented professions. However, this capacity to “see as an architect” does need to be a kind of split vision; both seeing as and seeing beyond the visual artifact produced. The study thus contributes toward understanding visually‐oriented professions and their relationship with lay knowledge.
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Bert Spector and Francis C. Spital
This paper seeks to add historical perspective to the contemporary debate concerning the efficacy of executive bonuses. That debate has become particularly significant in the USA…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper seeks to add historical perspective to the contemporary debate concerning the efficacy of executive bonuses. That debate has become particularly significant in the USA as a result of the recent economic collapse and the federal government's Troubled Asset Relief Program, turning the government – at least temporarily – into a shareholder of numerous companies.
Design/methodology/approach
The article is primarily an intellectual history of an idea: that executive bonuses are required to achieve top performance. The main primary source is two sets of articles from the Harvard Business Review from the 1930s and the 1950s. These are supplemented by other primarily and secondary material.
Findings
Arch Patton, a McKinsey Consultant and the most published author in the Harvard Business Review during the 1950s, constructed a defense of executive bonuses based on ideology rather than empirical evidence.
Social implications
Constituents of the current debate on executive bonuses should be aware of the degree to which statements of support for efficacy are often presented as universally and exclusively correct which may result in distortion and concealment of real interests.
Originality/value
Despite the ubiquity of executive bonuses, no study has looked at the historical roots of the debate. Agency theory, which is presented as a rational and legitimate argument in favor of such bonuses, fails to address the historical context in which bonuses actually took root in corporate America.
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Blues music is in the midst of its second revival in popularity in roughly thirty years. The year 1960 can be identified, with some qualification, as a reference point for the…
Abstract
Blues music is in the midst of its second revival in popularity in roughly thirty years. The year 1960 can be identified, with some qualification, as a reference point for the first rise in international awareness and appreciation of the blues. This first period of wide‐spread white interest in the blues continued until the early seventies, while the current revival began in the middle 1980s. During both periods a sizeable literature on the blues has appeared. This article provides a thumbnail sketch of the popularity of the blues, followed by a description of scholarly and critical literature devoted to the music. Documentary and instructional materials in audio and video formats are also discussed. Recommendations are made for library collections and a list of selected sources is included at the end of the article.
Dale Miller and Bill Merrilees
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the historical contributions of complex innovations (both creative and tactical components) in a formative period in a major Australian…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the historical contributions of complex innovations (both creative and tactical components) in a formative period in a major Australian department store, David Jones Ltd.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses a context-specific lens to examine complex retail innovation. The study adopts a longitudinal design with the focus on a single firm, which met the inclusion criteria. Data collection was predominately from company archival materials and publicly available documents, including newspapers.
Findings
An in-depth analysis of two complex innovations demonstrates the retailer’s successful management of both marketing exploration (innovation) and marketing exploitation of that innovation. Effective marketing requires operational, tactical marketing exploitation to dovetail marketing exploration.
Research limitations/implications
The study is limited to one successful department store. Notwithstanding, there are expectations that the lessons extend to many other retailing organizations.
Practical implications
The practical relevance is clear, with the emphasis on retail innovation (and especially complex innovation) as a basis for both surviving and thriving in an ever-changing marketing environment.
Originality/value
The use of a complex innovation approach is a novel way of examining marketing history. The study concludes that both marketing exploration and marketing exploitation are essential for retail longevity.
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Shawnta S. Friday‐Stroud and J. Scott Sutterfield
The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework for merging the strategic management process, the managerial decision‐making process and the six‐sigma process into…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework for merging the strategic management process, the managerial decision‐making process and the six‐sigma process into a single, unified decision model.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology involves each of the three decision‐making processes, noting their similarities and differences, and arguing from the similarities that a single unified model will result in superior decisions.
Findings
The findings were that a single, unified model is possible and the resulting model is presented in the paper.
Research limitations/implications
Since this research results in a conceptual model only, it remains to be tested in actual practice. This testing is intended for a later paper.
Practical implications
If the testing of the model in practice results in superior decisions, the practical implications of the paper would be use of the Friday‐Stroud/Sutterfield model in practice for better management decisions.
Originality/value
The paper presents an original model, which results from merging the three‐decision‐making process.
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The purpose of this study is to describe and interpret the interpersonal and intragroup conflict experiences of staff-level employees and leaders in the medical imaging technology…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to describe and interpret the interpersonal and intragroup conflict experiences of staff-level employees and leaders in the medical imaging technology field, working in US tertiary care centers to extract mitigation and management strategies.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 13 medical imaging technologists, who were employed in leadership and staff positions throughout the USA, offered their in-depth accounts of workplace conflict in this interpretive phenomenological investigation.
Findings
Conflict avoidance was a predominant conflict management style. This style did little to effectively manage workplace conflict. In some cases, it led to deleterious effects on individuals and organizations and created conflict perpetuation. With proper conflict mitigation and management, the conflict perpetuation cycle can be broken.
Research limitations/implications
Generalization beyond the group being studied is not applicable, as it is not the intent of phenomenological research. Four leaders participated in the research study. To examine this population more completely, a greater sample size is required. This recommendation also applies to the staff technologist roles. Another limitation involved the leader/staff-level representation inequality, as well as the male–female representation. These imbalances made it difficult to effectively make comparisons of the experiences of leaders with staff-level technologists, and males with females.
Practical implications
Offering the medical imaging workforce emotional intelligence training, health-care administrators can invest in their leaders and staff technologists. Medical imaging schools can incorporate emotional intelligence training into their curricula. Clear policies may decrease the ill effects of change when unforeseeable occurrences result in schedule modifications. Making technologists fully aware of who is responsible for shift coverage when these events occur may reduce negative impact. Trainings in organizational change, collaboration or positivity may be warranted, depending on findings of cultural assessments. Team-building events and opportunities for employees to intermingle may also be used to improve a departmental or organizational culture.
Social implications
Mitigating and managing health-care workplace conflict more effectively may prevent patient harm, thus improving the health of members of society.
Originality/value
According to recent studies, conflict, and the incivility that often accompanies it, has been on the increase in US organizations overall, and in health care specifically. Conflict that perpetuates can adversely affect health-care organizations and its employees. This paper offers mitigation and management strategies to prevent such consequences.
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The agricultural industry is demanding a skilled workforce. Leadership is often identified as a desired employability skill but understanding the relationship between leader and…
Abstract
The agricultural industry is demanding a skilled workforce. Leadership is often identified as a desired employability skill but understanding the relationship between leader and follower during the leadership process in agricultural contexts is limited. The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand how employers contextualize the follower characteristics and skills desired when hiring individuals with an undergraduate agricultural degree for entry-level positions using a case study approach. Data collected from individual interviews, a focus group, observation, and artifacts were combined to triangulate emergent findings. When viewed through the lens of followership theory, the agricultural industry seeks graduates who are independently-directed followers. The themes of job skills, organizational skills, and values component describe the desired characteristics and behaviors of independently-directed followers.