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1 – 10 of 30Areej Alyami, David Sammon, Karen Neville and Carolanne Mahony
Cyber security has never been more important than it is today in an ever more connected and pervasive digital world. However, frequently reported shortages of suitably skilled and…
Abstract
Purpose
Cyber security has never been more important than it is today in an ever more connected and pervasive digital world. However, frequently reported shortages of suitably skilled and trained information system (IS)/cyber security professionals elevate the importance of delivering effective Security Education,Training and Awareness (SETA) programmes within organisations. Therefore, the purpose of this study is the questionable effectiveness of SETA programmes at changing employee behaviour and an absence of empirical studies on the critical success factors (CSFs) for SETA programme effectiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory study follows a three-stage research design to give voice to practitioners with SETA programme expertise. Data is gathered in Stage 1 using semi-structured interviews with 20 key informants (the emergence of the CSFs), in Stage 2 from 65 respondents to a short online survey (the ranking of the CSFs) and in Stage 3 using semi-structured interviews with nine IS/cyber security practitioners (the emergence of the guiding principles). Using a multi-stage research design allows the authors to propose and evaluate the 11 CSFs for SETA programme effectiveness.
Findings
This study conducted a mean score analysis to evaluate the level of importance of each CSF within two independent groups of IS/cyber security professionals. This multi-stage analysis produces a ranked list of 11 CSFs for SETA programme effectiveness, while the difference in the rankings leads to the emergence of five CSF-specific guiding principles (to increase the likelihood of delivering an effective SETA programme within an organisational context). This analysis also reveals that most of the contradictions/differences in CSF rankings between IS/cyber security practitioners are linked to the design phase of the SETA programme life cycle. While two CSFs, “maintain quarterly evaluation of employee performance” (CSF-DS6) and “build security awareness campaigns” (CSF-EV1), represent the most significant contradiction in this study.
Originality/value
The 11 CSFs for SETA programme effectiveness, along with the five CSF-specific guiding principles, provide a greater depth of knowledge contributing to both theory and practice and lays the foundation for future studies. Therefore, the outputs of this study provide valuable insights on the areas that practice needs to get right to deliver effective SETA programmes.
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Areej Alyami, David Sammon, Karen Neville and Carolanne Mahony
This study explores the critical success factors (CSFs) for Security Education, Training and Awareness (SETA) program effectiveness. The questionable effectiveness of SETA…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explores the critical success factors (CSFs) for Security Education, Training and Awareness (SETA) program effectiveness. The questionable effectiveness of SETA programs at changing employee behavior and an absence of empirical studies on the CSFs for SETA program effectiveness is the key motivation for this study.
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory study follows a systematic inductive approach to concept development. The methodology adopts the “key informant” approach to give voice to practitioners with SETA program expertise. Data are gathered using semi-structured interviews with 20 key informants from various geographic locations including the Gulf nations, Middle East, USA, UK and Ireland.
Findings
In this study, the analysis of these key informant interviews, following an inductive open, axial and selective coding approach, produces 11 CSFs for SETA program effectiveness. These CSFs are mapped along the phases of a SETA program lifecycle (design, development, implementation and evaluation) and nine relationships identified between the CSFs (within and across the lifecycle phases) are highlighted. The CSFs and CSFs' relationships are visualized in a Lifecycle Model of CSFs for SETA program effectiveness.
Originality/value
This research advances the first comprehensive conceptualization of the CSFs for SETA program effectiveness. The Lifecycle Model of CSFs for SETA program effectiveness provides valuable insights into the process of introducing and sustaining an effective SETA program in practice. The Lifecycle Model contributes to both theory and practice and lays the foundation for future studies.
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Ronald J. Berger, Carla Corroto, Jennifer Flad and Richard Quinney
Medical uncertainty is recognized as a critical issue in the sociology of diagnosis and medical sociology more generally, but a neglected focus of this concern is the question of…
Abstract
Medical uncertainty is recognized as a critical issue in the sociology of diagnosis and medical sociology more generally, but a neglected focus of this concern is the question of patient decision making. Using a mixed methods approach that draws upon autoethnographic accounts and third-party interviews, we aim to illuminate the dilemmas of patient decision making in the face of uncertainty. How do patients and supportive caregivers go about navigating this state of affairs? What types of patient–doctor/healthcare professional relationships hinder or enhance effective patient decision making? These are the themes we explore in this study by following patients through the sequence of experiencing symptoms, seeking a diagnosis, evaluating treatment protocols, and receiving treatments. In general, three genres of culturally available narratives are revealed in the data: strategic, technoluxe, and unbearable health narratives.
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Peggy Placier, Suzanne Burgoyne, Karen Cockrell, Sharon Welch and Helen Neville
In this account of a study of a Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) intervention in a preservice teacher classroom, the authors explore an alternative way of learning to teach, as well…
Abstract
In this account of a study of a Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) intervention in a preservice teacher classroom, the authors explore an alternative way of learning to teach, as well as the dynamics of interdisciplinary collaboration between Theater and Education. Measures of racial and political attitudes did not demonstrate any change in the preservice teachers; however, several limitations made these findings inconclusive. Observations and journal entries suggested that interactive theater may be a promising way to make beliefs about teaching and learning visible, and therefore accessible for critical reflection.
At an academic digital library of a graduate business school in Berlin, Germany, the librarian reflects on the “new normal” following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, with its…
Abstract
Purpose
At an academic digital library of a graduate business school in Berlin, Germany, the librarian reflects on the “new normal” following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, with its increased faculty and student engagement with digital resources and heightened awareness of and activity in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper details the concepts and practices of an academic library that is a center for information resources and services, as well as a contact point for DEI advocacy and student conflict mediation. The librarian is the only information professional at the school, and this is a reflective essay written from her perspective.
Findings
This case study suggests that a librarian cross-trained as a conflict mediator or coach can offer both information literacy and support services to further the development of an inclusive campus environment. Educators in both roles build students’ competence and confidence, focus on their achievements and progress and contribute to their sense of belonging. Combining these activities in a central institution builds on the strengths of both disciplines and is consistent with inclusion as a core principle of librarianship.
Originality/value
The findings will be useful for librarians wishing to expand their existing mandate to provide inclusive information access and services to include DEI initiatives.
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This action research study reports on an important unit of study having evidence of success. The paper discusses how students in a social studies classroom setting may be…
Abstract
This action research study reports on an important unit of study having evidence of success. The paper discusses how students in a social studies classroom setting may be encouraged to develop and display empathy for individuals who are impacted by hurricane disasters. It uses aspects of the documentary “When the Levees Broke” in collaboration with the “Teaching the Levees Module” and several technology based classroom resources. The findings indicate that as students contextualized the impact of Hurricane Katrina and similar natural disasters on human populations they begin to develop and display empathy. The students who were involved in this investigation also were able to apply principles of social justice which facilitated reflective thinking as they used hindsight to analyze and discuss the context of this natural disaster
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Karen J. Grant, Maureen Mayhew, Lorena Mota, Michael C. Klein and Arminée Kazanjian
– The purpose of this paper is to explore refugees’ experiences of the barriers and facilitators involved in finding a regular family doctor.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore refugees’ experiences of the barriers and facilitators involved in finding a regular family doctor.
Design/methodology/approach
Hermeneutic phenomenology was used to produce an integrated description sensitive to the lifeworlds of refugees who came from multiple cultural perspectives. Participants consisted of refugees from Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Latin America who arrived in Canada between 2005 and 2007. Texts for analysis came from first language focus group discussions and interviews with the interpreters for those groups.
Findings
The principal themes that emerged from the experience of barriers were “futility,” “dependence,” and “relevance.” Themes related to the experience of facilitators were “inclusion,” “congruence,” and “benefit to family.” These themes provide key messages about sources of patient decisions to seek or not seek care, not comply, attend irregularly, and not disclose symptoms, which can be used by doctors and other health providers to enhance care planning.
Practical implications
The factors that facilitate refugees’ access to a regular family doctor have implications for the development of culturally appropriate healthcare information, policies that support adequate interpreter services, and cultural sensitivity training for physicians.
Originality/value
Previous research documents barriers such as lack of language access, differences in health beliefs, and lack of knowledge about western healthcare systems. However, little is known about how refugees experience these barriers, nor how they overcome them. This study contributes a rich and deeper understanding of how refugees experience these barriers and elucidates factors that facilitate their process of obtaining a regular family doctor.
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Abraham Hauriasi, Karen Van-Peursem and Howard Davey
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate ethnic identities emerging from the budgetary processes of the Anglican Church of Melanesia (COM) – the Solomon Islands.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to evaluate ethnic identities emerging from the budgetary processes of the Anglican Church of Melanesia (COM) – the Solomon Islands.
Design/methodology/approach
An interpretive and case-based methodology is employed. Fieldwork consists of 27 interviews, document analysis and lived-observations. Ethnic identity and concepts of the indigenous culture inform the analysis.
Findings
Findings demonstrate how Church-led practices merge with indigenous processes and how, together, members negotiate their way through this complex budgeting process. A broadened network and community (wantok) is revealed, and through a sympathetic melding of Melanesian and Church tradition, a new ethnic-identity emerges. Issues of parishioners’ isolation, women’s roles and central accountability are not, as yet, fully integrated into this emerging identity.
Research limitations/implications
There may be value in prioritising “people” over “timelines”, “discussion” over “deadlines” and in respecting local traditions in order to nurture the foundation for new identities. Also, and as evidenced, “nationhood” should not be assumed to be a powerful force in defining ethnic identity.
Practical implications
The value of respecting the complex interaction between tribal tradition and Church values by those in power is revealed.
Social implications
“Ethnic identity” is revealed as a complex notion in the Solomon Islands Anglican COM.
Originality/value
A long-isolated culture’s construction of self-identity in the context of the COM is revealed.
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Kofi Agyekum, Karen Blay and Alex Opoku
Capillary rise of water in buildings has been an issue of concern among past and present researchers. Despite the research efforts devoted to the proper elimination of the problem…
Abstract
Purpose
Capillary rise of water in buildings has been an issue of concern among past and present researchers. Despite the research efforts devoted to the proper elimination of the problem in masonry construction, it still remains a challenge that needs to be addressed. The purpose of this paper is to explore treatment mechanisms that can be used to prevent rising damp in new building infrastructure.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 14 test walls are constructed, conditioned, subjected to various treatments and monitored for four years. The treatments applied to the walls include the use of polyethylene damp proof courses, damp proof coatings and dense concrete bases. The walls are then monitored with reference to the two climate seasons in Ghana.
Findings
The results highlight that rising damp is present, as suggested by the constant increase and decrease in the height of the water levels in the walls during the rainy and dry seasons, respectively. The findings further reveal that within the four-year period, the walls treated with the damp proof coatings, together with those with the dense concrete bases performed better than those treated with the polyethylene damp proof courses.
Research limitations/implications
The economic and commercial impact of these preventive mechanisms were not considered in this study. A future research can be directed at these issues.
Practical implications
The proposed treatment mechanisms highlight the effectiveness of some treatments applied to walls to prevent the capillary rise of water from the ground into the superstructure.
Social implications
Building regulations, especially in Ghana and other tropical settings should be amended to include ways to prevent rising damp phenomena by including effective methods against rising damp during the building design or construction.
Originality/value
Series of studies worldwide have been conducted in laboratories to simulate the capillary rise of water in walls of buildings. This is among the few studies that look at how water rises from actual ground conditions into the walls of buildings.
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