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The purpose of this paper is to understand how hospitality companies can best explain controversial corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to consumers who may not agree with the CSR activity. This research explores message framing through emotional and cognitive appeals to influence consumer perceptions of the Gideon Bible in USA hotel rooms. The study uses the theory of deontic justice to measure the impacts of messaging on consumer perceptions of the morality of the Gideon Bible as suicide prevention in hotels and its relation to controversial CSR initiatives.

The study uses an experimental study design via a self-administered survey to analyze participants’ perceptions of the placement of the Gideon Bible in hotel rooms and participants’ attitudes toward CSR initiatives based on deontic justice and religion using different message framing conditions.

Results show that religion was a major determinant of attitude towards the Gideon Bible, but the sentiment analysis also revealed that negative perceptions can be mitigated through message framing via emotional and cognitive appeals. Additionally, the cognitive appeal did impact CSR perceptions, as did identifying as Christian. Moral outrage emerged as a significant moderator for the relationships between message framing, attitudes toward the Gideon Bible and CSR.

This study provides an extension of deontic justice research to examine justice traits in accepting controversial CSR.

Collaboration in agricultural value chains (AVCs) has the potential to increase smallholders’ participation in international value chains and increase their benefits from participation. This scoping review explores existing collaboration models among stakeholders of AVCs in developing countries, examines enablers and constraints of collaboration and identifies policy gaps.

We systematically searched three databases, CAB Abstracts, Econlit (EBSCO) and Agricola, for studies published between 2005 and 2023 and included 59 relevant studies on AVC collaboration.

The primary motivations for collaboration are to enhance market access and improve product quality. Key outcomes of collaboration include improvements in farmers’ welfare, market participation and increased production; only a few studies consider improved risk management as an important outcome. Robust support from government and non-governmental entities is a primary enabler of collaboration. Conversely, conflicts of interest among stakeholders and resource limitations constrain collaboration possibilities. Collaboration involving high-value crops prioritizes income increases, whereas collaboration involving staple crops focuses on improving household food security.

This study may have publication bias as unsuccessful instances of collaboration are less likely to be published.

This study is unique in highlighting collaboration models’ characteristics and identifying AVC policy and programmatic areas where private firms, farmers’ groups, local governments and donor agencies can contribute.

Career burnout is prevalent in the PR industry, precisely when demand for professionals is increasing. While career burnout has been included in studies and theorising on professionalism and feminisation, issues with turnover and burnout remain.

Using a grounded theory approach, this qualitative study draws upon the lived experiences of 30 current and former female Australian PR professionals to gain an understanding of how they perceive signs of career burnout and the factors that contribute to it.

Career burnout is an occupational syndrome whereby someone gradually morphs from being highly motivated in their role to emotionally exhausted, cynical and/or experiencing feelings of failure. It is a protracted response to chronic workplace demands and stressors, and includes three dimensions: emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment. It is specifically a workplace phenomenon, distinguished from anxiety and depression, which can emerge in any context.

A key contributor to career burnout were PR-specific workplace stressors that were perceived to stem from a lack of respect for, or understanding of, PR as a profession. The stressors included the need to‘prove the spend’of PR, unreasonable deadlines, clients disregarding advice or counsel, as well as broader societal perceptions of PR as ‘spin doctors’. This often led to the PR practitioner undertaking work that went against their own advice or resulted in unsuccessful organisational outcomes they felt could have been avoided had their advice been listened to and valued. The workplace factors contributing to burnout overlap in complex ways and the study supports the idea that burnout is a product of situational contexts, despite being acutely felt at the individual level.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) goal to end the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 emphasises the importance of leaving no one behind. To determine progress towards the elimination goal in Ghana, an in-depth understanding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care from the perspective of vulnerable populations such as persons living with HIV in incarceration is necessary. This study aims to explore the experiences of incarcerated individuals living with HIV (ILHIV) and on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in selected Ghanaian prisons to help inform policy.

The study adopted a qualitative approach involving in-depth interviews with 16 purposively selected ILHIV on ART from purposively selected prisons. Interviews were conducted between October and December 2022. Thematic analysis was performed using the ATLAS.Ti software.

Three themes were generated from the analysis: waking up to a positive HIV status; living with HIV a day at a time; and being my brother’s keeper: preventing HIV transmission. All participants underwent HIV screening at the various prisons. ILHIV also had access to ART although those on remand had challenges with refills. Stigma perpetuated by incarcerated individuals against those with HIV existed, and experiences of inadequate nutrition among incarcerated individuals on ART were reported. Opportunities to improve the experiences of the ILHIV are required to improve care and reduce morbidity and mortality.

Through first-hand experiences from ILHIV in prisons, this study provides the perception of incarcerated individuals on HIV care in prisons. The insights gained from this study can contribute to the development of targeted interventions and strategies to improve HIV care and support for incarcerated individuals.

As the subject of female criminology in South Africa has only recently been dealt with in a qualitative manner, this paper aims to explore if there is a potential link between rehabilitation, reintegration support and recidivism as females are often placed back into the environment which prompted their criminal behaviour, further excluding them from rehabilitative reform, which might lead them to recidivate.

The research adopted a qualitative approach using in-depth, semi-structured interviews with six participants that were chosen purposively.

The paper notes a potential link between rehabilitation, reintegration support and recidivism as the female prisoners are imprinted with criminal dispositions since rehabilitation within the correctional facility has no implementation process to ensure that restoration can continue after they have been released.

Due to the limited number of the incarcerated female population and the scope of the preliminary study, the sample comprised of only six female offenders. As such, it contributes to the larger discourse of female criminality, but does not offer any recommendations.

Provides an understanding of the conditions in which the females are released. Allows for the inclusion of the female’s voice on, and reflection of, rehabilitation and recidivism. Notes a link between rehabilitation, reintegration and recidivism. Creates a pathway for further research in the exploration of a gendered reform approach.

While the subject of female criminology in South Africa has only recently been dealt with in a qualitative manner, this study offers an insight into how females who offend are often placed back into the environment which prompted their criminal behaviour.

Customised capacity building is thought to be essential for organisations. However, empirical studies are lacking with respect to its effect on employee outcomes. This study aims to examine the effect of customised capacity building on employee outcomes including employee empowerment and employee engagement through employee learning in Ghanaian local government institutions.

Valid responses from 281 employees of Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in Ghana were collected through a survey. A structural equation model was used to analyse the data and test the hypotheses formulated.

The results showed that customised capacity building has an effect on employee learning, employee empowerment, and employee engagement. Employee learning also had an effect on employee empowerment and employee engagement. In addition, employee learning partially mediated the effect of customised capacity building on both employee empowerment and employee engagement.

This study is of particular relevance to public organisations. As there is a dearth of studies focusing on customised capacity building, this study provides insight into incorporating the phenomenon into public sector organisations to enhance employee learning, empowerment and engagement.