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1 – 10 of 61Aysu Akalin, Kemal Yildirim, Christopher Wilson and Aysun Saylan
This research solicits the opinions of the residents of the Keçiören district of Ankara, Turkey, in order to learn their preferences about their local postmodern environment where…
Abstract
This research solicits the opinions of the residents of the Keçiören district of Ankara, Turkey, in order to learn their preferences about their local postmodern environment where the municipality forces all contractors and architects to adhere to strict planning laws requiring Turkish folk and Islamic architectural references. The Municipality of Keçiören, as an agent of civil power, manages the architectural and urban transformation of the area from a district formerly composed of squatter housing to one comprised of, in the words of Robert Venturi, “decorated sheds,” in an effort to create a different looking environment rich in nostalgia and excitement. In this research, a total of 7 different sets of apartment façades were analyzed, with each set comprising three examples each of minimum complexity (representing the former condition of the district), intermediate complexity (representing “high” architecture designed by an architect, which does not exist in the district) and maximum complexity (representing the present postmodern condition of the district). The main hypothesis of the study was that preference rates would be high for intermediately altered “high style” houses by showing the existence of a U-shaped relationship between preference and complexity. That is, façades representing an intermediate level of complexity would be favored over less complex and more complex façades. It was also assumed that there would be a difference in the ratings of different age groups. A questionnaire was carried out with 50 adults (aged 30-45) and 50 high school students (aged 18-20) of Keçiören, who were asked to rate a total of 21 photographs from 7 apartment complexes with the help of a five-point semantic differential scales under three headings: preference, complexity and impressiveness. The results proved the existence of a U-shaped relationship between preference and complexity. On the other hand, younger respondents, compared to older respondents, gave more favorable ratings to the physical qualities of the photographed buildings.
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Ulla Isosaari, Seija Ollila and Pirkko Vartiainen
The allocation of resources is a complex problem in health care. In Finland there has been an effort to solve the problems with a program called “Securing the Future of Health…
Abstract
Purpose
The allocation of resources is a complex problem in health care. In Finland there has been an effort to solve the problems with a program called “Securing the Future of Health Care”. The main focus of this research is on assessing how managers view the health care policy called guarantee of care from an ethical perspective.
Design/methodology/approach
The theoretical basis of the research covers theories regarding rationing, prioritization, as well as the ethics of health care. The empirical data were gathered through an internet questionnaire. The questionnaires were sent to the top managers in all Finnish health care districts (20 in all). The data were analyzed qualitatively.
Findings
According to respondents, ensuring access to treatment partially fulfilled the ethical principles of the right to good care, respect for human dignity, fairness, and co‐operation and mutual respect quite well. On the other hand, trust, impressiveness, non‐partiality in decision making and the right of self‐determination were not as well realized. The shortening of waiting lists had caused exhaustion and motivation problems among personnel and in addition, staff shortages were being experienced.
Originality/value
The administrators of the hospital districts agreed that centralizing resources as a reconstructive action is ethically wrong for the whole health care system. There is a great need for an ethical discussion concerning the choices made in health care policy. Long‐term results need sustainable solutions.
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THE other day my attention was arrested by a statement from one of our younger critics. “Mr. Auden,” he said, “makes Mr. Yeats's isolation guilty as a trance.” Not a particularly…
Abstract
THE other day my attention was arrested by a statement from one of our younger critics. “Mr. Auden,” he said, “makes Mr. Yeats's isolation guilty as a trance.” Not a particularly earth‐shaking statement, perhaps; but, when one thinks of it, a startling and significant one. I had not thought to live to see Mr. Yeats receiving the public sneer. Only a year or two ago Mr. Yeats was the doyen, the inerrable loadstar, of the young poets. Of all the older school of living poets, him alone they delighted to honour. They guffawed at Sir William Watson; spoke with amused irony of Laurence Binyon's epics; and the very mention of Alfred Noyes's name was enough to send them off into explosions of fierce anger. But Mr. Yeats was—Mr. Yeats. They found in him profundity, marvellous technical skill, flexibility of outlook, nobleness of aspiration. His reputation appeared to be solid and deep‐founded. And then came his anthology of modern verse, in which Mr. Yeats, with more enthusiasm than discretion, admitted a host of the young poets to the O.U.P.'s pantheon of fame. The book was a bad one—inexplicably bad for a man of Mr. Yeats's eminence. Even his reputation could not stand the strain of such a performance. “If,” argued the young, “Mr. Yeats's judgment is so ludicrously bad, how can it be that he is a good poet?” A strange dualism, they remarked: fine creativeness, weak critical sense. Then there were whispers. Was Mr. Yeats really so—? Could it be possible that—? The doubts grew. The young critics took courage from each other. The loadstar was dimming a little. And now Mr. Dylan Thomas has come into the open. Mr. Yeats's isolation is as guilty as a trance. The meaning is not very clear, but the implication is. “Isolation” is a bogey to the younger school. Once let Mr. Yeats be labelled with that dreadful word and he is as good as damned. Mr. Thomas will be listened to, for the intestinal raptures of his poetry are much admired. I foresee that in a year or so Mr. Yeats's prestige among the young will lose much of its impressiveness.
Hande Kımıloğlu, V. Aslıhan Nasır and Süphan Nasır
This paper aims to discover consumer segments with different behavioral profiles in the mobile phone market. For this purpose, it seeks to analyze the decision‐making criteria of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discover consumer segments with different behavioral profiles in the mobile phone market. For this purpose, it seeks to analyze the decision‐making criteria of 302 mobile phone consumers in Turkey and cluster the sample meaningfully into four behaviorally different groups.
Design/methodology/approach
Factor analysis is conducted on 32 different attributes to which consumers attach importance in purchasing a mobile phone. Nine major decision‐making criteria emerge from this analysis. These criteria are used for segmenting this consumer market into four behavior clusters, namedly as pragmatic, abstemious, value‐conscious, and charismatic.
Findings
Pragmatic consumers are found to give high importance to the functional, physical and convenience‐based attributes of the product. The abstemious group also gives importance to functionality along with design. While value‐conscious consumers focus strongly on price, the charismatic segment represents the want‐it‐all group valuing many attributes such as technological superiority, practicality, durability, functionality, and design. The study also includes findings and discussions about the differences these clusters display in terms of their involvement and loyalty styles.
Research limitations/implications
High‐tech products such as mobile phones are becoming indispensable in people's lives; thus leading to a high‐involvement decision‐making process. It is crucial for marketers of these products to understand behaviorally different consumer segments that show significant variations in their decision‐making criteria for such products, and approach them accordingly.
Originality/value
The study applies cluster analysis as a behavioral segmentation tool in a high‐technology product market and successfully identifies four distinct consumer groups with alternative decision‐making styles.
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Taketo Naoi, Akira Soshiroda and Shoji Iijima
This study elucidates the relationships between the elements that visitors gaze at in a historical district and the objectives perceived to have been achieved. This study differs…
Abstract
This study elucidates the relationships between the elements that visitors gaze at in a historical district and the objectives perceived to have been achieved. This study differs from previous studies on visitors’ evaluations of historical districts (carried out using the theoretical frameworks and methods of architectural/environmental psychology), because the research focuses on interpersonal differences in tourist gazes. Research was conducted between 09:30 and 14:00 on July 13, 2013 in front of the railway station, near the tourist information center in Sanmachi, and around the entrance to and in the waiting room of Takayama Jinya. One thousand visitors to Takayama city, Japan were asked to complete and return questionnaires, using stamped, pre-addressed envelopes. They were first asked whether they had seen 19 elements, and then asked to rate the impressiveness of those they had seen. Respondents also rated the extent to which seven objectives related to learning and interaction had been achieved during their visits. The findings suggest that visitors who gaze at various elements may strongly perceive opportunities to achieve their objectives, that is, learning about a destination and interacting with other people. For visitors who specifically focus on local elements that do not relate to people, opportunities for learning may not be curtailed, but then again, the chances to interact with others may not necessarily be facilitated. Gazing at the multifaceted aspects of a historical district appears to foster a visitor’s understanding of the district. Drawing upon these findings, future studies should investigate the effects of visitors’ pretravel motives on their gaze.
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Mazni Abdullah and Zamzulaila Zakaria
This study is conducted to identify which attributes that are considered important by accounting students of University of Malaya and International Islamic University of Malaysia…
Abstract
This study is conducted to identify which attributes that are considered important by accounting students of University of Malaya and International Islamic University of Malaysia in the job selection process. The questionnaires which lists the attributes of public accounting firms are distributed to the accounting students and they were asked to rate each attribute on a 5 point Likert scale. The students’ demographic profile and their academic achievements (CGPA) are also analysed to determine their relationships with the preference in the subjects’ job selection. It is found that the students rank opportunity and advancement as the most important attributes followed by office atmosphere/friendliness of staff and firms’ training programme. The findings from this study might assist public accounting firms in developing policies that might attract more quality recruits. They can also be used by institutions of higher learning to give more appropriate career advice to students who are seeking for their first accounting job.
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Mozhdeh Rostamnezhad, Farnad Nasirzadeh, Mostafa Khanzadi, Mohammad Jafar Jarban and Masoud Ghayoumian
This research aims to model the social dimension of sustainability in construction projects. A new hybrid system dynamic (SD)–fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory…
Abstract
Purpose
This research aims to model the social dimension of sustainability in construction projects. A new hybrid system dynamic (SD)–fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) method is proposed to analyze the various factors affecting social aspect of sustainability taking into account their complex interactions.
Design/methodology/approach
The various factors affecting the social dimension of sustainable development are identified based on the opinions of 12 experts with an extensive experience in highway construction projects and a thorough knowledge and/or professional experience in the sustainability area. The qualitative model of social sustainability is constructed using SD approach and the complex inter-related structure of the various influencing factors are modeled using cause and effect feedback loops. Fuzzy set theory is applied to model the uncertainty of human judgments. The importance of various influencing factors is then determined quantitatively taking account of their complex interactions using the proposed SD-fuzzy DEMATEL method. The most significant influencing factors are finally determined.
Findings
To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, it is implemented on a real highway project and the importance of various factors affecting the social sustainability is determined. A set of complex interrelated factors affecting social sustainability are divided into cause and effect groups, and the root causes affecting the social sustainability performance of the project are determined. Therefore, the required managerial actions can be taken to improve the social sustainability.
Research limitations/implications
Well-qualified experts with a well-developed mental model of social sustainability are necessary to provide required input data for modeling social sustainability using the proposed approach. The absence of such experts could be a limitation for the implementation of the proposed model on a new project.
Practical implications
The proposed Hybrid SD-fuzzy DEMATEL method provides a practical and robust tool to analyze the various factors affecting social sustainability taking into account their complex interactions.
Originality/value
The proposed method offers a more precise and accurate analysis of various factors affecting social sustainability of construction projects since the complex inter-related structure of influencing factors as well as the vague and imprecise nature of experts' judgment is taken into account efficiently.
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The purpose of this paper is to strengthen the role of management supervision in the competence of management and its support. Competence in organizations consists of the human…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to strengthen the role of management supervision in the competence of management and its support. Competence in organizations consists of the human, social and structural dimensions. It involves controlling explicit and tacit knowledge, know‐how and experiences. Competence‐based management requires the ability to manage, as well as the skills to consider, build, evaluate, support and leverage competence in an organization. The competence and well‐being of a manager needs to be supported.
Design/methodology/approach
The study represented in this article is a qualitative comparison and the new knowledge of experienced material has been evaluated. It is done during two periods and based on interviews with public and private managers in social and health services (n=22 and n=12). The data have been analysed through the use of content analysis inspired by the theory and the data.
Findings
Management supervision includes dialogue and reflective thinking as features of competence‐based management and its development. It is a strategic method of support for management and at the same time is a part of a manager's welfare. Management supervision as one support system clarifies strategic competence‐based management, gives support to leadership know‐how and helps a manager to feel better at work.
Originality/value
Because strategic competence based management in social and health care organizations is a very demanding and multidimensional function, it needs a lot of support. Management supervision is a strategic method of support for management and at the same time is a part of a manager's welfare. The significance of this method should be emphasized more in the management of social and health services.
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In the 1990s, scientists succeeded in demonstrating the highly positive effects of transformational and charismatic leadership on performance effectiveness, based on a large…
Abstract
In the 1990s, scientists succeeded in demonstrating the highly positive effects of transformational and charismatic leadership on performance effectiveness, based on a large number of empirical findings. Bass (1985) predicted that this type of leadership would be related to “performance beyond expectations”. This has proved to be true to a very large extent. The so-called “new leadership approach “, however, has not yet succeeded in a close analysis of the interaction and influencing processes between charismatic leaders and their followers. This paper provides such an analysis. After pointing out the main problems with prior theoretical work, we offer an alternative model to help explain the emergence of charisma using social-cognitive and psycho-dynamic theories. Basically, we start from the premise that a focal person may be categorized as a charismatic leader on the basis of evaluative borderline attributes assigned to him or her, which are closely related to characteristics stigmatized by society. These attributes are exhibited consciously or unconsciously by the leader, either by means of social dramatization or by means of social reversion. We then propose a model of charismatic leadership relationships, which deal with both intra-personal and inter-personal feedback processes, based on recent theories of narcissistic behavior. Our overall intent is to help explain and clarify the processes between leadership behavior and the attribution of charisma.
An individual's advancement in a meritocratic hierarchy may depend on his or her willingness to ingratiate themselves with others.
Abstract
An individual's advancement in a meritocratic hierarchy may depend on his or her willingness to ingratiate themselves with others.
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