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Since the turn of the new millennia, governments have increasingly moved away from professional models of educational decision-making and turned toward a neoliberal production model in which markets and test scores drive educational decisions. In this “brave new world,” teachers have become “human capital,” and principals, the managers of their productivity rather than leaders of learning. As a result of this changing dynamic, teachers have increasingly turned to teacher unions or federations, and away from local school jurisdictions and governments to protect their salaries, working conditions and professionalism. Principals, in turn, have found themselves in a no-win situation – caught between top-down demands from big governments and local school districts for teacher compliance, and big unions' insistence on fair treatment for all teachers. This chapter, therefore, intends to explore this increasingly fragile role of principals in three international settings, in our rapidly changing world.

In a paper presented to the Automobile Division of The Institution of Mechanical Engineers, in London, on January 10th, J. Whittle, B.Sc., A.M.I.Mech.E. (Shell Research Ltd.) dealt with work done at Thorn‐ton to produce a lubricant for automotive worm axle gears which would stand up to modern conditions. Mr. Whittle said that the number of new vehicles in Great Britain being fitted with worm‐gear axles is decreasing, and this was partly due to the problems arising from pitting and wear of the bronze worm‐wheel, together with thickening due to oxidation of conventional mineral oils. Castor oil, whilst having many advantages, is not very susceptible to oxidation inhibitors. More recently the performance in worm‐gears of poly‐alkylene oxide derivatives has been studied at Thornton, and this paper describes this work in the laboratory as well as in field tests.

This study proposes a novel method utilising a speech-word pair bipartite network to examine the correlation structure between members of parliament (MPs) in the context of the UK- China relationship.

We construct MP-word pair bipartite networks based on the co-occurrence relationship between MPs and words in their speech content. These networks are then mapped into monopartite MPs correlation networks. Additionally, the study calculates correlation network indicators and identifies MP communities and factions to determine the characteristics of MPs and their interrelation in the UK-China relationship. This includes insights into the distribution of key MPs, their correlation structure and the evolution and development trends of MP factions.

Analysis of the parliamentary speeches on China-related affairs in the British Parliament from 2011 to 2020 reveals that the distribution and interrelationship of MPs engaged in UK-China affairs are centralised and discrete, with a few core MPs playing an integral role in the UK-China relationship. Among them, MPs such as Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, David Cameron, Lord Hunt of Chesterton and Lord Howell of Guildford formed factions with significant differences; however, the continuity of their evolution exhibits unstableness. The core MP factions, such as those led by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon and David Cameron, have achieved a level of maturity and exert significant influence.

The research has several limitations that warrant acknowledgement. First, we mapped the MP-word pair bipartite network into the MP correlation network for analysis without directly analysing the structure of MPs based on the bipartite network. In future studies, we aim to explore various types of analysis based on the proposed bipartite networks to provide more comprehensive and accurate references for studying UK-China relations. In addition, we seek to incorporate semantic-level analyses, such as sentiment analysis of MPs, into the MP-word -pair bipartite networks for in-depth analysis. Second, the interpretations of MP structures in the UK-China relationship in this study are limited. Consequently, expertise in UK-China relations should be incorporated to enhance the study and provide more practical recommendations.

Firstly, the findings can contribute to an objective understanding of the characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations, thereby informing adjustments of focus accordingly. The identification of the main factions in the UK-China relationship emphasises the imperative for governments to pay greater attention to these MPs’ speeches and social relationships. Secondly, examining the evolution and development of MP factions aids in identifying a country’s diplomatic focus during different periods. This can assist governments in responding promptly to relevant issues and contribute to the formulation of effective foreign policies.

First, this study expands the research methodology of parliamentary debates analysis in previous studies. To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to study the UK-China relationship through the MP-word-pair bipartite network. This outcome inspires future researchers to apply various knowledge networks in the LIS field to elucidate deeper characteristics and connotations of UK-China relations. Second, this study provides a novel perspective for UK-China relationship analysis, which deepens the research object from keywords to MPs. This finding may offer important implications for researchers to further study the role of MPs in the UK-China relationship.

This study proposes a novel scheme for analysing the correlation structure between MPs based on bipartite networks. This approach offers insights into the development and evolving dynamics of MPs.

The purpose of this case study is to examine the factors that impact higher education employees’ violations of information security policy by developing a research model based on grounded theories such as deterrence theory, neutralization theory and justice theory.

The research model was tested using 195 usable responses. After conducting model validation, the hypotheses were tested using multiple linear regression.

The results of the study revealed that procedural justice, distributive justice, severity and celerity of sanction, privacy, responsibility and organizational security culture were significant predictors of violations of information security measures. Only interactional justice was not significant.

As with any exploratory case study, this research has limitations such as the self-reported information and the method of measuring the violation of information security measures. The method of measuring information security violations has been a challenge for researchers. Of course, the best method is to capture the actual behavior. Another limitation to this case study which might have affected the results is the significant number of faculty members in the respondent pool. The shared governance culture of faculty members on a US university campus might bias the results more than in a company environment. Caution should be applied when generalizing the results of this case study.

The findings validate past research and should encourage managers to ensure employees are involved with developing and implementing information security measures. Additionally, the information security measures should be applied consistently and in a timely manner. Past research has focused more on the certainty and severity of sanctions and not as much on the celerity or swiftness of applying sanctions. The results of this research indicate there is a need to be timely (swift) in applying sanctions. The importance of information security should be grounded in company culture. Employees should have a strong sense of treating company data as they would want their own data to be treated.

Engaging employees in developing and implementing information security measures will reduce employees’ violations. Additionally, giving employees the assurance that all are given the same treatment when it comes to applying sanctions will reduce the violations.

Setting and enforcing in a timely manner a solid sanction system will help in preventing information security violations. Moreover, creating a culture that fosters information security will help in positively affecting the employees’ perceptions toward privacy and responsibility, which in turn, impacts information security violations. This case study applies some existing theories in the context of the US higher education environment. The results of this case study contributed to the extension of existing theories by including new factors, on one hand, and confirming previous findings, on the other hand.