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Article
Publication date: 3 February 2020

Tina M. Kruger, Nicholas McCreary, Brandon L. Verhoff, Virgil Sheets, James H. Speer and Stephen P. Aldrich

The purpose of this study was to explore college students’ understanding of sustainability and, specifically, the extent to which students see social justice as being integral to…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to explore college students’ understanding of sustainability and, specifically, the extent to which students see social justice as being integral to sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach

Between fall 2015 and 2017, an online survey study was deployed to students at a Midwestern University in the USA to assess attitudes and concerns about environmental issues and awareness of the university’s activities related to these issues. This analysis included ten assessment items from a larger study, of which 1,929 participants were included in the final sample. A chi-square goodness-of-fit and variable cluster analysis were performed on the included items.

Findings

Items such as “recycling,” “economic viability” and “fair treatment of all” were identified as integral to the concept of sustainability, while items such as “growing organic vegetables” and “reducing meat consumption” had high levels of “not applicable” and “don’t know” responses, with differences arising across gender and class standing. Social justice-related items were seen as more distally connected to sustainability.

Research limitations/implications

This study is limited by a non-random sample of students.

Practical implications

College students tend not to recognize the integral nature of social justice or the relevance of food to sustainability, providing an opportunity for universities to better prepare their students for a sustainable future.

Social implications

Universities might adopt policies and curricula that address these areas of ignorance.

Originality/value

This study is among the first to identify specific areas of college students’ lack of understanding about sustainability.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 21 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 July 2020

James Hardy Speer, Virgil Sheets, Tina M. Kruger, Stephen Peter Aldrich and Nicholas McCreary

The purpose of this study is to assess environmental concern at a Midwest university, analyze trends in concern over time and determine the effect of the development of a campus…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to assess environmental concern at a Midwest university, analyze trends in concern over time and determine the effect of the development of a campus sustainability office.

Design/methodology/approach

A multi-question survey was administered through peer-to-peer recruitment from an undergraduate environmental science class each fall from 2010–2017. This exercise was originally developed as a pedagogical exercise on the scientific method.

Findings

Over eight years, incoming freshmen have expressed more concern that humans are harming the environment and students also express greater concern as they progress through college.

Research limitations/implications

The first year of the survey (2010) and the year that the lead PI was on sabbatical (2014) saw reduced response rates (∼1%–3% of the student population) compared to 6%–9% of the student population in other years.

Practical implications

Responses to all of the questions in the survey provide guidance for university administrations and sustainability offices about the concerns of the campus community, awareness about campus efforts and support for sustainability activities on campus.

Originality/value

Few studies have been published on students’ perspectives on environmental concern and sustainability activities on university campuses. These data provide an overview of environmental concern, perceived government action and empowerment to action over an eight-year period. This approach is recommended as a technique to teach the scientific method in introductory classes and as a means to collect data about student perspectives on sustainability.

Details

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, vol. 21 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-6370

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 2 December 2013

David Norman Smith

The aim of this chapter is to argue that charisma is a collective representation, and that charismatic authority is a social status that derives more from the “recognition” of the…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this chapter is to argue that charisma is a collective representation, and that charismatic authority is a social status that derives more from the “recognition” of the followers than from the “magnetism” of the leaders. I contend further that a close reading of Max Weber shows that he, too, saw charisma in this light.

Approach

I develop my argument by a close reading of many of the most relevant texts on the subject. This includes not only the renowned texts on this subject by Max Weber, but also many books and articles that interpret or criticize Weber’s views.

Findings

I pay exceptionally close attention to key arguments and texts, several of which have been overlooked in the past.

Implications

Writers for whom charisma is personal magnetism tend to assume that charismatic rule is natural and that the full realization of democratic norms is unlikely. Authority, in this view, emanates from rulers unbound by popular constraint. I argue that, in fact, authority draws both its mandate and its energy from the public, and that rulers depend on the loyalty of their subjects, which is never assured. So charismatic claimants are dependent on popular choice, not vice versa.

Originality

I advocate a “culturalist” interpretation of Weber, which runs counter to the dominant “personalist” account. Conventional interpreters, under the sway of theology or mass psychology, misread Weber as a romantic, for whom charisma is primal and undemocratic rule is destiny. This essay offers a counter-reading.

Details

Social Theories of History and Histories of Social Theory
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78350-219-6

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 7 January 2019

Robin James Smith

In this chapter the author discusses some insights lost in a lost ethnomethodological study of parkour. The author introduces parkour, before critically engaging with some of the…

Abstract

In this chapter the author discusses some insights lost in a lost ethnomethodological study of parkour. The author introduces parkour, before critically engaging with some of the existing theoretical treatments of the practice. The author then considers some of the materials drawn on by those existing studies in reconsidering what is getting done in ‘parkour talk’. In further outlining what was lost, the author considers some of the aspects of the study that would have positioned parkour in terms of its engaging ordinariness. The chapter concludes with a summary of these avenues of inquiry and closes with a plea for the continued recognition of basic social inquiry and ethnography.

Details

The Lost Ethnographies: Methodological Insights from Projects that Never Were
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-773-7

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2003

Melvin J. Dubnick

While a relationship between accountability and ethics has long been assumed and debated in Public Administration, the nature of that relationship has not been examined or clearly…

Abstract

While a relationship between accountability and ethics has long been assumed and debated in Public Administration, the nature of that relationship has not been examined or clearly articulated. This article makes such an effort by positing four major forms of accountability (answerability, blameworthiness, liability and attributability) and focusing on the ethical strategies developed in response to each of these forms

Details

International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, vol. 6 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1093-4537

Book part
Publication date: 4 October 2022

Michael Howe, James K. Summers and Jacob A. Holwerda

The increasing prevalence and availability of big data represent a potentially revolutionary development for human resource management (HRM) scholars. Despite this, the current

Abstract

The increasing prevalence and availability of big data represent a potentially revolutionary development for human resource management (HRM) scholars. Despite this, the current literature provides eclectic and often contradictory guidance for scholars attempting to conceptualize big data and subsequently incorporate it into relevant theoretical frameworks. The authors attempt to bridge this gap by discussing key considerations relevant to understanding and integrating big data into the existing theoretical landscape. Building on a novel, integrative definition of big data, the authors propose a parsimonious theoretical framework utilizing the established dimensions of complexity and dynamism as meta-attributes to bring order to the various attributes that have been proposed as central to defining big data (e.g., volume, variety, velocity, and variability). Throughout, the authors highlight numerous theoretical and empirical opportunities and considerations that this perspective holds for future HRM scholarship.

Details

Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80455-046-5

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 1983

Henry Mintzberg

In an economy of giant, divisionalized corporations, corporate social responsibility is almost impossible to achieve. Yet, the author contends, corporations must achieve it if our…

14429

Abstract

In an economy of giant, divisionalized corporations, corporate social responsibility is almost impossible to achieve. Yet, the author contends, corporations must achieve it if our society and economy are to continue and to flourish.

Details

Journal of Business Strategy, vol. 4 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0275-6668

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1985

Tomas Riha

Nobody concerned with political economy can neglect the history of economic doctrines. Structural changes in the economy and society influence economic thinking and, conversely…

2582

Abstract

Nobody concerned with political economy can neglect the history of economic doctrines. Structural changes in the economy and society influence economic thinking and, conversely, innovative thought structures and attitudes have almost always forced economic institutions and modes of behaviour to adjust. We learn from the history of economic doctrines how a particular theory emerged and whether, and in which environment, it could take root. We can see how a school evolves out of a common methodological perception and similar techniques of analysis, and how it has to establish itself. The interaction between unresolved problems on the one hand, and the search for better solutions or explanations on the other, leads to a change in paradigma and to the formation of new lines of reasoning. As long as the real world is subject to progress and change scientific search for explanation must out of necessity continue.

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 12 no. 3/4/5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Article
Publication date: 1 May 1987

On April 2, 1987, IBM unveiled a series of long‐awaited new hardware and software products. The new computer line, dubbed the Personal Systems 30, 50, 60, and 80, seems destined…

Abstract

On April 2, 1987, IBM unveiled a series of long‐awaited new hardware and software products. The new computer line, dubbed the Personal Systems 30, 50, 60, and 80, seems destined to replace the XT and AT models that are the mainstay of the firm's current personal computer offerings. The numerous changes in hardware and software, while representing improvements on previous IBM technology, will require users purchasing additional computers to make difficult choices as to which of the two IBM architectures to adopt.

Details

M300 and PC Report, vol. 4 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0743-7633

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2006

Kelli Bodey and Debra Grace

This study examines service “complainers” and “non‐complainers” on the basis of four personality characteristics (perceived control, Machiavellianism, self‐efficacy…

5883

Abstract

Purpose

This study examines service “complainers” and “non‐complainers” on the basis of four personality characteristics (perceived control, Machiavellianism, self‐efficacy, self‐monitoring) and attitude toward complaining.

Design/methodology/approach

This study employed a quantitative methodology. Data were gathered via self‐report survey to a sample of 200 university students.

Findings

The results indicate that attitude toward complaining, perceived control and self‐monitoring were significant discriminating variables between “complainers” and “non‐complainers”. Other variables tested such as self‐efficacy and Machiavellianism were not significant.

Research limitations/implications

The use of a student sample limits the findings beyond this group, however, student samples do tend to be representative of the general buying public. Therefore, it is suggested that the variables studied here should be further examined using a more diverse consumer sample. In addition, the relationship between attitude toward complaining and complaint behavior warrants further investigation, as it appears that this relationship may deviate from the expected attitude‐behavior relationship, particularly where “non‐complainers” are concerned.

Practical implications

While the importance of encouraging customer complaints cannot be overstated, it appears, from the findings of this study, that personality traits and attitudes may, in some cases, prohibit customers from engaging in complaint behavior. Therefore, it is imperative that service firms analyse their service provision and complaint processes so that the likelihood of customers complaining in the event of service failure is maximized. Such strategies may well include feedback surveys or service provider/employee evaluation forms, toll free numbers and customer service calls.

Originality/value

This paper makes a significant contribution to our understanding of complaint behavior through the exploration of consumer characteristics that have not before been examined within this realm.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 20 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

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