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1 – 10 of over 37000Zoë Meropi Hepburn and Emily Rose Rothwell
This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a specialist UK day treatment programme (DTP), in terms of whether improvements in eating disorder symptomology and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a specialist UK day treatment programme (DTP), in terms of whether improvements in eating disorder symptomology and psychosocial impairment achieved at discharge were maintained at 6-month and 12-month follow-ups.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 69 patients (aged 16+) with eating disorders who had received treatment in the DTP were reviewed at 6-month and 12-month follow-ups, using demographic, physiological and psychological measures. Quantitative outcomes were analysed using one-way repeated measures analysis of variance.
Findings
Data analysis revealed that significant improvements in eating disordered attitudes, body mass index (among underweight participants), binge frequency (among participants with those symptoms) and psychosocial impairment achieved at discharge, were also maintained at 6-month and 12-month follow-ups, and with large effect sizes. All hypotheses were supported, with the exception that frequency of vomiting symptoms had deteriorated at the 12-month follow-up and was no longer significantly different from vomiting frequency on admission.
Originality/value
Results provide support for the sustained effectiveness of DTPs in improving eating disorder symptoms and psychosocial impairment associated with eating disorders. This is the first study to evaluate the effectiveness of a UK DTP for adults at maintaining improvements to eating disorder symptoms and attitudes at follow-up.
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Depeng Zhang, Fuli Zhang, Si Liu and Helen S. Du
With the rise of customer engagement in online products and services innovation, enterprises are seeking effective referral reward program (RRP) to encourage customers…
Abstract
Purpose
With the rise of customer engagement in online products and services innovation, enterprises are seeking effective referral reward program (RRP) to encourage customers’ follow-up electronic-referral (e-referral) behaviors. Therefore, how to stimulate more customers to participate in the RRP is very important to enterprises. However, little empirical work has systemically investigated the impact of RRP on customers’ follow-up e-referral, as well as the moderating effects of customers’ characteristics. To fill those research gaps, the purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of RRP (particularly, reward amount and reward type) on customers’ follow-up e-referral, and the role of creative self-efficacy.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the self-perception theory and the context of online customer innovation, this paper establishes a theoretical model and uses an experiment with 160 participants to test the hypotheses on the role of reward (amount and type) and the moderating effect of creative self-efficacy.
Findings
The results of the experiment suggest that both reward amount and reward type in RRP positively impact customers’ follow-up e-referral. Furthermore, customers’ creative self-efficacy moderates the relationship between rewards and customers’ follow-up e-referral. Customers with low creative self-efficacy, reward amount significantly stimulate their follow-up e-referral, but such effect is insignificant when customers’ creative self-efficacy is high. In terms of reward type, gift reward has more positive effect on customers’ follow-up e-referral when they have high (rather than low) creative self-efficacy, but cash reward has more positive effect on those with low (rather than high) creative self-efficacy.
Originality/value
First, based on the self-perception theory, the study clarifies the inconsistent relationship between reward and customers’ e-referral and contributes to related research. Second, the study broadens the existing research perspective by introducing creative self-efficacy, which shows interesting and powerful moderating effect but has been ignored in previous studies. Third, the study provides valuable advice on how enterprises design an effective RRP to enhance customers’ follow-up e-referral.
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Maria Castro, Tracey Cockerton and Simon Birke
Established following the Reed Report (1991) recommendations, Redford Lodge is an independent psychiatric hospital offering medium secure provision for mentally ill…
Abstract
Established following the Reed Report (1991) recommendations, Redford Lodge is an independent psychiatric hospital offering medium secure provision for mentally ill patients and offenders. For this study social and behavioural data were collected on admission and discharge for the 166 patients admitted over the three years 1995‐1998 and 49 discharged patients were reassessed at six‐month follow‐up. Predictors of length of stay, discharge and success at follow‐up were examined in relation to social and demographic factors and engagement in therapy programmes.Patients' socio‐demographic variables were not significantly related to their length of stay, place of discharge or success at follow‐up. One predictor of progress after discharge was employment. Contact with family was identified as a significant factor associated with shorter stay and positive place of discharge but not associated with success at follow‐up. Engagement in psychological therapies and/or group activities was directly related to length of stay, general progress and improvement in mental state but not to subsequent involvement in community services or general success in independent living at follow‐up.Although the findings suggest treatment is successful, further research is needed to identify specific treatment variables that have a positive long‐term effect.
Matthew W. Ford and James R. Evans
The aim of this paper is to investigate follow‐up as a salient factor in achieving results from organizational self‐assessment.
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to investigate follow‐up as a salient factor in achieving results from organizational self‐assessment.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 14 organizations involved in self‐assessment. Qualitative methods were used to analyze the follow‐up patterns in high and low achievers to discern key factors of follow‐up and their relationship to self‐assessment outcomes.
Findings
The paper finds that high achievers appeared to engage in a consistent set of follow‐up activities. These activities included top management team dialogue that set the tone for follow‐up, a planning process that generated a large, documented action plan, and incentive and monitoring‐based implementation controls using existing structure.
Research limitations/implications
Small sample size limits the generalizability of the findings. Larger empirical studies could evaluate the strength of the relationships between the factors of follow‐up and outcomes. Future research should also investigate why some organizations undertake follow‐up while others do not. Plausibly, degree of follow‐up might relate to uncertainty facing the organization, or the extent to which managers understand organizational processes.
Practical implications
An organization can execute a picture perfect self‐assessment analysis and still realize little benefit if it does not effectively follow‐up on the findings. Effective follow‐up is driven by top‐management and cannot be delegated.
Originality/value
This paper extends the literature by elaborating the role of follow‐up in the self‐assessment process.
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Andi Chairil Furqan, Ratna Wardhani, Dwi Martani and Dyah Setyaningrum
This study aims to analyze the effect of audit findings and audit recommendations follow-up on the quality of financial reports and the quality of public services in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to analyze the effect of audit findings and audit recommendations follow-up on the quality of financial reports and the quality of public services in the context of applying accrual accounting systems to local government in Indonesia. This study also examines whether the quality of the financial report affects the quality of public services.
Design/methodology/approach
This study employed cross-sectional regression using data from 1,437 observations from 491 districts/cities for 2014–2016. The data illustrates the conditions prior to the adoption of the accrual accounting system (2014), the initial year of application/transition period (2015) and the second year of the expected accrual accounting system (2016).
Findings
The results of the study indicate that, in general, the quality of financial reports affects the quality of public services. Regarding the implementation of audits in the public sector, it is also found that audit findings have a negative impact on the quality of financial report and the quality of public services, while audit recommendations follow-up plays a positive role in improving the quality of financial report and the quality of public services.
Research limitations/implications
The implication of the results of this study is closely related to the efforts to realize the ultimate goal of the recent government reforms. In order to increase the quality of public services in the era of higher report requirements through an accrual accounting system, the government should focus on the quality of financial reports, audit findings and the audit recommendations follow-up.
Originality/value
This study provides new insight on the link between the public sector auditing and the quality of accounting in accrual implementation context and the quality of public services.
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Tina Eriksson‐Sjöö, Margareta Cederberg, Margareta Östman and Solvig Ekblad
This study aims to illuminate self‐perceived health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) among newly‐arrived Arabic‐speaking refugees in Malmö, Sweden participating in a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to illuminate self‐perceived health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) among newly‐arrived Arabic‐speaking refugees in Malmö, Sweden participating in a specific group Health Promotion activity.
Design/methodology/approach
Data consist of questionnaires, observations and oral evaluations in groups. Questions about HRQoL was measured by EQ‐5D self‐assessment containing five dimensions and three response options of severity, including a visual analog health rating scale. Participants' sleep patterns were measured by a sleep and recovery questionnaire with questions about sleep quality and sleep quantity.
Findings
The results show that disturbed sleep relates to EQ‐5D variables and to health rating scores. Moreover, there are changes over time and participants' perceptions of their health and quality of life in most EQ‐5D variables have significantly increased after the end of activity. In the variables pain and depression an improvement remains even at second follow up and health rating scores are higher at both follow ups relative to what it was originally. Sleep and recovery problems were perceived as less difficult at the course completion and second follow up.
Research limitations/implications
Because of practical and ethical reasons there is an absence of a control group in this study.
Practical implications
The paper includes implications for education in medicine, health care and social work, for the design of the refugee reception programs and for the inter‐professional collaborations.
Originality/value
The paper shows that health promotion interventions in group setting in the first stage of resettlement turn out to be useful according to HRQoL and knowledge of the health care system.
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Gary Lamph, Cameron Latham, Debra Smith, Andrew Brown, Joanne Doyle and Mark Sampson
An innovative training initiative to raise the awareness of personality disorder and enable more effective working with people with personality disorder who come into…
Abstract
Purpose
An innovative training initiative to raise the awareness of personality disorder and enable more effective working with people with personality disorder who come into contact with the wider multi-agency system has been developed. For the purpose of the training initiative the nationally recognised Knowledge and Understanding Framework (KUF, awareness-level programme) has been employed. An overview of the comprehensive multi-agency training initiative will be outlined with reporting and discussion of the outcome data provided within this paper. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper outlines the development and outcomes of a service evaluation study. The utilised outcome measures were carried out at pre-, post- and three-month follow-up measures. The Personality Disorder-Knowledge Attitude and Skills Questionnaire was utilised on the recommendation of the central team. Additionally a Visual Analogue Scale was developed for the purpose of this study was also employed.
Findings
Data findings are positive particularly when comparing pre- and post-results and the pre- and follow-up results. There appears to be an apparent peak in results post-training which could be attributed to the fact that knowledge and understanding is recent and fresh in the delegates mind, however positive results are still reported at follow-up there does appear to be decline in results and durability of the effect when three-month follow-up is compared against the post-training results.
Research limitations/implications
Follow-up was at three months, which is a relatively short-time span post-training it would be of great interest to see in the future if the decline in the three areas continues. If this was followed up and if this pattern continued this could provide us with evidence to support the development of refresher courses. In the future, due to the multi-agency design of this service evaluation, comparisons of the different sectors, agencies and occupations involved, could also be explored further to establish what multi-agency areas the training has had the most effect and impact.
Practical implications
High levels of demand from multi-agencies to receive training in personality disorder is reported. Our findings and experience provide evidence that multi-agencies partners from a variety of professional backgrounds can effectively work in partnership with people with lived experience to effectively deliver the KUF training.
Social implications
This innovative roll-out of KUF training provides evidence that with a little investment, a comprehensive multi-agency roll-out of KUF is achievable and can provide statistically significant positive results displaying the effectiveness and change brought about via the KUF training.
Originality/value
The originality of this sustainable and low-cost approach to educating the wider system is reported in this paper. This has lead to the strategy receiving national recognition winning a nursing times award in 2011 and a model of innovative practice nationally.
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Thorsten Knauer and Katja Möslang
Although life cycle costing (LCC) is well established in theory and practice, little is known about the conditions of its adoption and its impact on the achievement of…
Abstract
Purpose
Although life cycle costing (LCC) is well established in theory and practice, little is known about the conditions of its adoption and its impact on the achievement of cost-management goals. Therefore, this paper aims to analyze the adoption and benefits of LCC.
Design/methodology/approach
The analyses are based on questionnaires collected from a survey of German firms.
Findings
The results demonstrate that the extent of LCC adoption is positively associated with the extent of guarantee and warranty costs, voluntary upfront and follow-up costs for ecological sustainability and the extent of target costing adoption. In contrast, the extent of LCC adoption is negatively associated with the amount of precursors and/or intermediates that are purchased. The results also demonstrate that firms perceive LCC to be beneficial for various aspects of cost management. Firms report that the greatest benefit of LCC is related to the identification of cost drivers.
Research limitations/implications
This investigation provides a starting point for future studies of the conditions of LCC adoption and the benefits of LCC. This study is subject to limitations, particularly with respect to the operationalization of our independent variables, the number of contextual variables and the general limitations of survey research.
Practical implications
The results inform practitioners of the situations in which it is most appropriate to adopt LCC. In addition, this study identifies various cost-management goals that are supported by the use of LCC.
Originality/value
This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of the conditions of LCC adoption and advances the literature regarding the impact of LCC on the achievement of cost-management goals. Furthermore, this study provides a starting point for future research into the implementation of LCC and the effects of LCC on management accounting practices.
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Aaron Trinidade, Prasad Kothari, Zenon Andreou, Richard J.D. Hewitt and Paul O'Flynn
The purpose of this paper is to determine head and neck cancer patients' perspective of their follow‐up regime and to suggest ways in which these perspectives can be…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to determine head and neck cancer patients' perspective of their follow‐up regime and to suggest ways in which these perspectives can be incorporated into current practice.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a prospective survey‐based study. A total of 263 patients consecutively attending a head and neck cancer clinic completed a survey about their experience of the follow‐up process in the post‐treatment period between January 2009 and October 2009.
Findings
The paper finds that, of the patients, 67 per cent (n=176) felt that the clinic met the goals they hoped would be achieved during their visit; 84 per cent (n=221) felt that their follow‐up visits were too frequent. In total 60 per cent (n=159) were booked to see both an allied health professional and the attending clinician. Of these, 84 per cent (n=134/159) felt that issues addressed at follow‐up with the clinician duplicated those addressed by the allied healthcare professionals. When asked about their opinion of a less intensive follow‐up system based on patients reporting problems and requesting appointments, 73 per cent (n=192) favoured it. When asked who they would like to contact first in such a system, most patients (n=118, 45 per cent) stated a clinical nurse specialist.
Practical implications
Current follow‐up regimes may be too prescriptive in their approach without taking patient perspective into consideration. Patients felt that being seen intensively for the first year, then having visits tapered off over the next two years and finally being seen according to symptoms thereafter to be appropriate and felt that this represented an overall better system.
Originality/value
These data suggest the need for a more patient‐focused, individualised approach to follow‐up in head and neck cancer.
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Diana Amado Tavares, Maria João Rosa and Alberto Amaral
This paper aims to reflect on the relevance of the Institutional Evaluation Programme (IEP) of the European University Association (EUA) to universities' quality…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to reflect on the relevance of the Institutional Evaluation Programme (IEP) of the European University Association (EUA) to universities' quality improvement. It aims to analyse IEP follow‐up reports to determine whether the programme contributes to the development of a quality improvement culture.
Design/methodology/approach
The structure and contents of 22 follow‐up reports were analysed to assess the IEP programme. All reports were subject to content analysis using adequate software (NVivo 8 with a 242 nodes tree), the main goal being to evaluate progress made since the original evaluation.
Findings
The reports analysed and the work by other authors show that IEP can constitute a useful approach towards the universities' quality improvement. IEP evaluations generally give a precise account of problems faced by each university, identifying its strong and weak points, opportunities and threats, and presenting clear recommendations and suggestions for improvement. If properly discussed inside the university, these evaluations can form the basis for an improvement plan.
Research limitations/implications
In general, follow‐up teams recognise the difficulty to distinguish changes caused directly by EUA teams' recommendations from others caused by external pressures.
Practical implications
The follow‐up process has as its main rationale the idea that a second review can assist a university evaluating progress made since the original evaluation. The reports analysed show that changes have always happened to a certain extent after the first evaluation.
Originality/value
This paper makes a contribution to the understanding of the effects of institutional evaluation over institutional quality culture.
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