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Shared understandings of curriculum reform within and between the levels of the educational system are suggested to be crucial for the reform to take root. The purpose of this paper is to explore variation in perceived curriculum coherence and school impact among state- and district-level stakeholders.

The participants (n=666) included state- and district-level stakeholders involved in a national curriculum reform in Finland. Latent profile analysis was employed to identify profiles based on participants’ perceptions of the core curriculum’s coherence and the reform’s impact on school development.

Two profiles were identified: high coherence and impact, and lower consistency of the intended direction and impact. State-level stakeholders had higher odds of belonging to the high coherence and impact profile than their district-level counterparts.

The results imply that more attention needs to be paid in developing a shared and coherent understanding particularly of the intended direction of the core curriculum as well as the reform’s effects on school-level development among state- and district-level stakeholders.

The study contributes to the literature on curriculum reform by shedding light on the variation in perceived curriculum coherence and school impact of those responsible for a large-scale national curriculum reform process at different levels of the educational system.

The purpose of this article is to determine the factors in the context of entrepreneurship that are evident in Ecuador, a country that has the highest rate of female entrepreneurship worldwide with 34% according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) (2019).

A qualitative study was carried out with 39 cases, applying in-depth personal interviews and focus groups to selected cases in the main cities of Ecuador.

The results suggest that “mumpreneurship”, copreneurship and sustainable thinking arise in response to the environment. Deepening then in the perspective of the 5M proposes by Brush et al. (2009) that give us a framework of the macroenvironment of women entrepreneurship and offers a holistic understanding of women's entrepreneurship, adding a sixth “M” which is “Environmental Thinking” or the environmental thinking that is present in the current context.

This article is one of the first to analyse the context of female entrepreneurship in Ecuador and determine the context factors that influence the identification of opportunities and the exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities. It also presents the expectations and challenges of the women who shape the authors’ case studies and give voice to Ecuadorian women. Consequently, this research will support the configuration of policies that supports each of the stages of women's entrepreneurial processes.

Este artículo pretende determinar los factores del contexto del emprendimiento que se evidencian en el Ecuador, país que ostenta la tasa más alta de emprendimiento femenino a nivel mundial con un 34% de acuerdo al GEM (2019).

Se realizó un estudio cualitativo con 39 casos, aplicando entrevistas personales a profundidad y grupos focales a casos seleccionados en las principales ciudades del Ecuador.

Los resultados sugieren que el “mumpreneurship”, el copreneurship y el pensamiento sostenible surgen como respuesta al entorno. Profundizando entonces en la perspectiva de las 5Ms propuesta por Brush et al. (2009) que ofrece una comprensión holística del emprendimiento de mujeres, añadiendo una sexta “M” que es el “Medioambiental Thinking” o el pensamiento ambiental que está presente en el contexto estudiado.

Este artículo es uno de los primeros en analizar el contexto del emprendimiento femenino en Ecuador y determinar los factores del contexto que influyen en la identificación y en la explotación de oportunidades emprendedoras. Además presenta las expectativas y retos de las mujeres que configuran nuestros casos de estudio y dan voz a las mujeres ecuatorianas. En consecuencia nuestra investigación servirá de apoyo para la configuración de políticas que apoyen cada una de las etapas del proceso emprendedor de las mujeres.

This chapter describes how researchers and developers may improve the design of technical innovations for crisis communicators by testing how user-friendly the innovation is for its intended end users. In the RESCUE project, a tool for social media information gathering was developed. During this process, tool usability was thoroughly tested. Good usability allows the user to complete tasks and achieve goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction. The purpose of the usability testing was to strive for a tool that is easy to use during demanding circumstances and contributes to a high level of situation awareness (SA) among users. SA is about being aware of what is happening around you – during, for example, emergency assignments – and what this means for your on-going work tasks. The main focus of this chapter is to describe how usability testing was applied throughout the tool development process, from the pre-production planning phase to the final phase. As a part of this, the tool features are described.

It has been a tremendous challenge for organisations to navigate and survive the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper proposes a novel multi-level conceptual model, based on the resource-based view (RBV), to address the pandemic crisis and highlight the importance of strategic human resource management (SHRM) in promoting employee motivation and organisational resilience. The paper aims to provide insights and practical guidance for organisations to leverage their internal resources and capabilities to thrive in the post-pandemic landscape.

This paper conducted a comprehensive literature review of the existing research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, SHRM, RBV, job satisfaction, turnover intentions and organisational resilience, covering the main contributors to this research stream and their findings.

The conceptual model presented in this paper offers five testable propositions to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on employee motivation and organisational resilience and how organisations can navigate challenging times through SHRM, which enables RBV. It highlights the foundational role of RBV and identifies the resources employed by SHRM as intervening constructs that significantly enhance employee outcomes, including motivation, job satisfaction, turnover intention and organisational resilience.

The proposed model counsels that organisations need to look beyond the straightforward application of SHRM and should enable the RBV climate to protect and uphold employee motivation and organisational resilience. Finally, measurement and analysis implications are presented for future research opportunities and managerial interventions to mitigate the impact of difficult times such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Currently, there is a lack of research regarding the conceptualisation of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on employee and organisational resilience. Therefore, the proposed model discusses the significance of the alignment of SHRM and RBV as a moderator of the relationships between the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, employee motivation and organisational resilience.

This study aims to investigate which factors are associated with the willingness of employers to hire people with disability from the perspective of disability employment service providers. We also identify social marketing approaches that disability employment service providers consider to be most effective in increasing employer willingness to hire people with disability.

Using the framework of the theory of planned behavior, this study examines the association of attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control with employer willingness to hire people with disability. The authors do this from the perspective of disability employment service providers, who are responsible for matching people with disability with suitable employment opportunities. The authors used a qualitative approach to data collection and conducted 30 in-depth interviews. Data analysis included deductive and inductive coding to develop the themes and subthemes.

Attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control were all perceived to influence employers’ willingness to hire people with disability. However, the importance of each construct was perceived to differ by location and organization type. Three key social marketing approaches were perceived to be most effective in increasing employer willingness to hire people with disability: educational, relational and interactive. The educational intervention attempts to increase employers’ knowledge about disability, the relational approach aims to develop relationships within the community to strengthen relationships with employers and the interactive approach involves direct contact between employers and people with disability.

Theoretically, this study reveals perceived heterogeneity in terms of the theoretical constructs that are employer hiring decisions. Practically, results help disability employment service providers design social marketing strategies that are effective in reducing barriers and increasing employment for people with disability. Methodologically, this study adds a new perspective on employer willingness to hire people with disability – that of disability employment service providers – which avoids the social desirability bias found in many self-reported studies of employer attitudes and behavior.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of the intensive lifestyle modification program on weight and metabolic syndrome risk reduction in rural obese women who have no underlying non-communicable diseases in Thailand.

A randomized controlled trial was conducted. In total, 60 healthy obese women aged 30-50 years were recruited and randomly assigned to either the intervention (n=30) or control (n=30) group after health screening. Tailored nutritional counseling, health education and exercise training were included in the lifestyle modification program. Behavioral modification techniques were also incorporated. The intervention was conducted weekly for the first eight weeks, then biweekly until week 16.

The student’s t-test was used to compare mean difference between groups. The total weight loss in the intervention group (n=29) was significantly higher, 7.6±2.9 kg, compared with the control group (n=30) who lost 0.7±1.4 kg (p<0.001). The intervention group lost weight 10.2 percent from baseline which was significantly higher than that in the control group (p<0.001). Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, fasting blood sugar, and waist circumference were significantly improved. Triglyceride levels slightly improved while high density lipoprotein cholesterol was slightly lowered. The intervention group showed a statistical reduction in abnormal components of metabolic syndrome compared with the control group, with the relative risk=0.24, 95% confidence interval=0.072-0.791, and p=0.018.

Compatibility of the program activities conducted by a health professional who had achieved healthy weight loss and accepted as a role model was a key to achieving effective weight loss and metabolic syndrome risk reduction in obese women in rural areas. The program should be integrated into the conventional practice of health care centers.

It has been estimated that some Small Island Developing States might have only decades before their territories become uninhabitable. Future of these states poses timely questions to world politics. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the potential hosts and endangered states at the time of relocation by looking at two relocation scenarios: Kiribati/New Zealand and the Maldives/Sri Lanka.

The paper uses normative international political theory to explore the nature of relocation. It critically examines the proposal for the free right to choose the new host state. Guided by two examples, the paper proposes that we should not ignore the contingent reasoning when evaluating these hypothetical scenarios.

The paper argues that the endangered state might have ethical grounds for its rights–claims to continuous existence on a chosen territory. At the same time, both scenarios looked at here also impose serious constraints. By illustrating these constraints, the paper aims at mapping some central challenges that the continuity of endangered states creates to international state-system. The paper argues that the complex relationships between the potential hosts and the relocating communities should not be ignored.

This paper provides a contextual analysis of two hypothetical relocation scenarios. In doing so, it relies on comparative research in two regions and offers a normative argument in relation to the rights of both endangered and host populations.

This paper aims to present the basic assumptions for creation of social Fröhlich condensate and attract attention of other researchers (both from physics and socio-political science) to the problem of modeling of stability and order preservation in highly energetic society coupled with social energy bath of high temperature.

The model of social Fröhlich condensation and its analysis are based on the mathematical formalism of quantum thermodynamics and field theory (applied outside of physics).

The presented quantum-like model provides the consistent operational model of such complex socio-political phenomenon as Fröhlich condensation.

The model of social Fröhlich condensation is heavily based on theory of open quantum systems. Its consistent elaboration needs additional efforts.

Evidence of such phenomenon as social Fröhlich condensation is demonstrated by stability of modern informationally open societies.

Approaching the state of Fröhlich condensation is the powerful source of social stability. Understanding its informational structure and origin may help to stabilize the modern society.

Application of the quantum-like model of Fröhlich condensation in social and political sciences is really the novel and original approach to mathematical modeling of social stability in society exposed to powerful information radiation from mass-media and Internet-based sources.