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1 – 10 of 24JooYoung Seo and Gabriela T. Richard
In response to the underexplored need for holistically inclusive makerspaces for learning, we put propose the “SCAFFOLD” framework, which considers equity, inclusion and…
Abstract
Purpose
In response to the underexplored need for holistically inclusive makerspaces for learning, we put propose the “SCAFFOLD” framework, which considers equity, inclusion and accessibility in the design of spaces and activities for socioculturally diverse learners.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper proposes a universal design (UD) framework that is intersectionally inclusive for learners with diverse needs in makerspaces and maker activities. This paper provides conjecture mapping to put forth theoretical and empirical arguments for the design of holistically inclusive makerspaces that consider gender equity and cultural inclusivity, as well as accessibility for diverse learners with divergent and unique abilities and dis/abilities.
Findings
Combining related literature and three existing UD frameworks (i.e. UD, web accessibility and UD for learning) and prior research on equity and inclusivity in making, this paper proposes the integration of eight principles, which leverage individuals’ diverse abilities to become agentic makers: simplicity, collaboration, accessibility, flexibility, fail-safe, object-oriented, linkability and diversity.
Research limitations/implications
Researchers who have implemented conjecture maps (Lee et al., 2018) have found them to be useful for developing theory and learning designs grounded in research and practice. However, it should be noted that design research is iterative and contextual, and conjecture maps are effective in providing visibility and rigor, but are meant to be flexible and responsive to changes in context (Lee et al., 2018; Sandoval, 2014).
Originality/value
This paper provides practical guidelines and principles for researchers, educators, instructional designers and product developers to assess and redesign makerspaces and activities that are intersectionally and universally inclusive, equitable and accessible.
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Adeel Akmal, Nataliya Podgorodnichenko, Richard Greatbanks, Jeff Foote, Tim Stokes and Robin Gauld
The various quality improvement (QI) frameworks and maturity models described in the health services literature consider some aspects of QI while excluding others. This paper aims…
Abstract
Purpose
The various quality improvement (QI) frameworks and maturity models described in the health services literature consider some aspects of QI while excluding others. This paper aims to present a concerted attempt to create a quality improvement maturity model (QIMM) derived from holistic principles underlying the successful implementation of system-wide QI programmes.
Design/methodology/approach
A hybrid methodology involving a systematic review (Phase 1) of over 270 empirical research articles and books developed the basis for the proposed QIMM. It was followed by expert interviews to refine the core constructs and ground the proposed QIMM in contemporary QI practice (Phase 2). The experts included academics in two academic conferences and 59 QI managers from the New Zealand health-care system. In-depth interviews were conducted with QI managers to ascertain their views on the QIMM and its applicability in their respective health organisations (HOs).
Findings
The QIMM consists of four dimensions of organisational maturity, namely, strategic, process, supply chain and philosophical maturity. These dimensions progress through six stages, namely, identification, ad-hoc, formal, process-driven, optimised enterprise and finally a way of life. The application of the QIMM by the QI managers revealed that the scope of QI and the breadth of the principles adopted by the QI managers and their HOs in New Zealand is limited.
Practical implications
The importance of QI in health systems cannot be overstated. The proposed QIMM can help HOs diagnose their current state and provide a guide to action achieving a desirable state of quality improvement maturity. This QIMM avoids reliance on any single QI methodology. HOs – using the QIMM – should retain full control over the process of selecting any QI methodology or may even cherry-pick principles to suit their needs as long as they understand and appreciate the true nature and scope of quality overstated. The proposed QIMM can help HOs diagnose their current state and provide a guide to action achieving a desirable state of quality improvement maturity. This QIMM avoids reliance on any single QI methodology. HOs – using the QIMM – should retain full control over the process of selecting any QI methodology or may even cherry-pick principles to suit their needs as long as they understand and appreciate the true nature and scope of quality.
Originality/value
This paper contributes new knowledge by presenting a maturity model with an integrated set of quality principles for HOs and their extended supply networks.
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Richard A. Posthuma, Gabriela L. Flores, James B. Dworkin and Samuel Pavel
Using an institutional theory perspective (micro and macro), the authors examined employment lawsuits across case type and alternative dispute resolution methods (negotiated…
Abstract
Purpose
Using an institutional theory perspective (micro and macro), the authors examined employment lawsuits across case type and alternative dispute resolution methods (negotiated settlements versus trials and arbitrations).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors examined actual data from US federal court lawsuits (N = 98,020). The data included the type of lawsuit, the dispute resolution method used and the outcome of the lawsuit in terms of the dollar amounts awarded.
Findings
The results show that employers were more likely to win in high social context cases (civil rights) than in other cases (Employment Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, ERISA). In arbitrations, plaintiffs won more frequently and were awarded higher amounts in arbitration than in court trials. In arbitration, plaintiffs received more in high social context cases than in other cases.
Practical implications
The results show that employers lose more often and in larger dollar amounts in arbitration than in litigation. However, if arbitration rulings more closely matched the likely outcomes of trials, subsequent litigation would be less likely to be overturned, and transaction costs would be reduced. If this were the case, the arbitration of employment lawsuits would more closely match the arbitration of contractual grievances under the typical labor relations system, where the arbitrator’s decision is usually final and binding. This could be a better outcome for all stakeholders in the dispute resolution process.
Originality/value
This is the first study of its kind to examine actual workplace conflicts that result in employment-related lawsuits from the perspective of social contextual factors.
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When Rambo Last Blood hit the screens in 2019 to an almost unanimous thumbs down from the critics, it seemed as if Sylvester Stallone's ‘last outing’ as his iconic action hero…
Abstract
When Rambo Last Blood hit the screens in 2019 to an almost unanimous thumbs down from the critics, it seemed as if Sylvester Stallone's ‘last outing’ as his iconic action hero, John Rambo was to bow out with more of a violent whimper than a spectacular bang. But action heroes never really do know when to quit. There is always one last mission to undertake. In an online interview in September 2019, Stallone indicated that Rambo 6 could well be on the cards. This chapter will discuss not only ideas about ‘Rambo’ as a character and his character arc, but posit the idea that Stallone, through the process of gerontology, has moved through the decades to become not a simplification or distillation of a cinematic action hero, but rather a much more complex one that asks questions about the politics of the era, masculinity, fragility and ageing.
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Hong Cheng, Gabriela Flores, Satvir Singh and Richard Posthuma
This paper aims to examine whether the number of employment discrimination laws in a country influences voice and accountability.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine whether the number of employment discrimination laws in a country influences voice and accountability.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors compared the number of employment discrimination laws in different countries to perceptions of voice and accountability.
Findings
Results indicate that the number of discrimination laws enacted in a country has a positive impact on the voice and accountability perceptions of citizens. Further, this relationship is found to be moderated by two contextual factors: cultural assertiveness and the percentage of females in the population. Specifically, the positive impact of the number of discrimination laws on voice and accountability perceptions was found to be stronger in highly assertive cultures and in countries with a lower percentage of females in the population.
Originality/value
This is the first study to show a relationship between the number of employment discrimination laws in a country and perceptions of voice and accountability.
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Gabriela Alvarez, Colin Pilbeam and Richard Wilding
Within the context of a sustainable supply chain, the purpose of this paper is to report on empirical longitudinal research on supply chain network evolution and dynamics of…
Abstract
Purpose
Within the context of a sustainable supply chain, the purpose of this paper is to report on empirical longitudinal research on supply chain network evolution and dynamics of governance in a multi‐stakeholder supply chain sustainability initiative led by Nespresso, the speciality coffee division of Nestlé.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper proposes a framework to study the creation and evolution of governance mechanisms over a five‐year period. Data from 48 semi‐structured interviews and 15 recent and historic documents were also analysed. The interviews were conducted among current and past representatives of all the organisations concerned including coffee traders, NGOs and farmers.
Findings
In contrast with literature on the subject, governance mechanisms initially relied mostly on informal mechanisms. Formal governance mechanisms were incorporated into the relationships to enable the supply chain network to grow and to provide clarity to all actors. Relational quality processes that increased trust were critical elements in the early phase, and were explicitly built into a second phase of development.
Research limitations/implications
Being a single case study, some caution needs to be applied to generalise findings beyond the specific context studied. An additional methodological limitation is the limited number of actors involved in the overall supply chain network.
Practical implications
The paper shows the importance of treating governance mechanisms within the supply chain not as a fixed variable to be determined once and for all in the beginning of a relationship, but rather to adapt the coordination mechanisms of the relationships.
Originality/value
The evolution of relationships over time has been “often called for but rarely chosen”. The case highlights the potential benefits of this type of research to develop an understanding of the evolution of relationships in a supply chain network.
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Colin Pilbeam, Gabriela Alvarez and Hugh Wilson
The purpose of this paper is to establish what is known regarding how supply network governance leads to network outcomes, what mechanisms underlie this relationship, and how…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to establish what is known regarding how supply network governance leads to network outcomes, what mechanisms underlie this relationship, and how context impacts it.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic literature review identified 44 conceptual and empirical studies. Purely dyadic studies were excluded. Synthesis used the context‐intervention‐mechanism‐outcomes (CIMO) logic.
Findings
From a categorization of contexts, governance instruments, mechanisms and outcomes a contingent conceptual framework is developed in the paper relating governance instruments to network outcomes dependent on the context. In general, formal instruments are adopted in dynamic and unstable circumstances defined as risky, uncertain, unpredictable or during organizational change. These instruments can result in coordination, control, viability and performance outcomes. Informal instruments tend to be adopted in contexts where prior relationships exist between actors.
Research limitations/implications
Arising from the conceptual framework three robust propositions are developed. A more nuanced view of power and trust is proposed to augment the explanations provided by transaction costs and social embeddedness. This provides opportunities for further research, including longitudinal and comparative studies.
Practical implications
The conceptual framework provides three propositions suggesting that in dynamic or unstable circumstances formal governance instruments can provide viability, control, coordination or performance outcomes. Informal governance instruments are more effectively used in established relationships to improve performance, control and viability.
Originality/value
The synthesis reveals contingencies in the appropriate governance modes of supply networks for desired outcomes in specific contexts, resolving apparent inconsistencies between prior studies.
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The aim of administrative reform— a special public policy instrument of governments— is to improve the capacity of public service delivery systems. This study examines the…
Abstract
The aim of administrative reform— a special public policy instrument of governments— is to improve the capacity of public service delivery systems. This study examines the reform-led service delivery situation of public institutions at the local level in South Asia. The study offers an in-depth qualitative study with gleaned data, focusing on primary education in the country in relation to MDGs basic education. Local administration in the country has been a ‘low modicum of self-governance to provide public services. Institutional capacity dealing with educational management has called into question. Primary education in the country is quantitatively discussed while qualitatively is in a state of disarray. As a thorough academic qualitative study with a country-specific case has by far not been explored yet, it fills the information gap. Little is known about the public service delivery capacity with primary education at the local level. This study implicates governments and development partners such as the UN SDGs for effective partnership in development in an era of post-CVID-19 crisis.
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Beatriz Blanco, Julia Stateri and Lucas Goulart
This work discusses gender issues related to the video game medium, addressing its production, consumption, and media repercussions. It begins with an overview of the emergence of…
Abstract
This work discusses gender issues related to the video game medium, addressing its production, consumption, and media repercussions. It begins with an overview of the emergence of the video game with the targeting of audiences that focused on sales campaigns to consumers along gendered lines that amplified the dominance of men in the space. The discussion then focuses on numerous ways that the gaming industry as a whole perpetuates a culture of misogyny. Empirical examples are provided of harassment, attacks, and the controversial event known as GamerGate. Subsequently, the complicated history of Brazilian video gaming development is presented to draw parallels with the development of the industry and the market in the United States. Finally, the chapter concludes with suggestions to stimulate new producers, developers, and video game scholars who are committed to building a more aware and diverse community.
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