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What kinds of support do interstate rivals provide to domestic actors in ongoing civil wars? And how do domestic actors utilize the support they receive? This chapter answers these questions by comparing Iranian and Saudi military and non-military (mediation, foreign aid and religious soft-power promotion) support to the Houthis and to the Government of Yemen (GoY) during the Saada wars (2004–2010) and the internationalized civil war (2015–2018). It also focuses on the processes through which the GoY and the Houthis have utilized this support for their own strategic purposes. This chapter applies a structured, focused comparison methodology and relies on data from a review of both primary and secondary sources complemented by 14 interviews. This chapter finds that there were less external interventions in the conflict in Saada than in the internationalized civil war. During the latter, a broader set of intervention strategies enabled further instrumentalization by domestic actors, which in turn contributed to the protracted nature of the conflict. This chapter contributes to the literature on interstate rivalry and third-party intervention. The framework of analysis is applicable to civil wars that experience intervention by rivals, such as Syria or Libya.

Significant funding has been made available in the UK for social, behavioural and design research that aims to improve health and wellbeing for older adults. The growing importance and use of participatory and co-creative approaches in this field not only reflects a general turn in social research but also seeks to redress power imbalances between researchers and researched. This paper aims to use Miranda Fricker’s concept of “epistemic injustice” as a lens to describe the author’s experience with one such project, and highlight the cautions and considerations that must be made when navigating, handling and amalgamating “other people’s knowledge”.

Personal and theoretical reflection. Primary data for this paper consists of first-hand insider observations on how different forms of knowledge were treated in an interdisciplinary, intersectoral participatory research context.

Some participatory studies are hampered by insufficient consideration for a range of ways of thinking, including between researchers and participants, younger and older adults, different academic disciplines or academia and industry. This can harm project integrity and outcomes, potentially eroding trust in academic research.

By reflecting on a recent participatory study in healthy ageing, this paper outlines a theoretical basis to increase the benefits of working with different stakeholders across health and care, design, business and academia. It concludes by suggesting ways that researchers might address epistemic injustice, and so recognise and properly value the range of knowledge types encountered in participatory research.

Neurodiversity refers to a spectrum of neurological differences. Little is known about the benefits and challenges of employing neurodivergent individuals in the retail industry and how knowing neurodivergent individuals/neurodiversity practices are linked to benefits/challenges. This study provides these insights using the lenses of the value-in-diversity perspective, stigma theory and intergroup contact theory.

Data were collected from an online survey of retail supervisors and co-workers from Australia, resulting in 502 responses from various retail organizations.

The findings indicate that supervisors have higher awareness of neurodiversity and perceived benefits of neurodivergent employees. Knowing neurodivergents was positively associated with perceived benefits and disclosure challenges and negatively associated with equity and inclusion challenges. Neurodiversity practices were positively associated with benefits of neurodivergent employees, negatively associated with disclosure challenges and equity and inclusion challenges in small stores, and positively associated with equity and inclusion challenges in large stores.

Current empirical research on workplace neurodiversity is scarce. This study provides pioneering evidence for awareness of workplace neurodiversity in the retail industry and the impact of knowing neurodivergent employees/neurodiversity practices on benefits and challenges. It differentiates between supervisors' and co-workers’ perceptions, highlighting the importance of exposure to information in reducing stigma.

In the wake of labor shortages in the retail industry, there is value in highlighting a business case for employing neurodivergent individuals. Drawing on signaling theory, this study explores whether perceived neurodiversity management (neurodiversity policies and adjustments) helps enhance neurodiversity awareness and affective commitment and whether affective commitment leads to lower turnover intention.

A cursory content analysis of publicly available documents of randomly selected four retail organizations was undertaken, which was followed by an online survey of the Australian retail workforce, leading to 502 responses from supervisors and employees.

The content analysis shows that retail organizations barely acknowledge neurodiversity. The findings of the main study indicate that neurodiversity policies are positively associated with both neurodiversity awareness and affective commitment, while adjustments were positively linked to affective commitment. Moreover, affective commitment was negatively associated with turnover intention. Affective commitment also mediated the negative effects of neurodiversity policies and adjustments on turnover intention.

This study supports, extends and refines signaling theory and social exchange theory. It addresses knowledge gaps about the perceptions of co-workers and supervisors in regard to neurodiversity management. It provides unprecedented evidence for a business case for the positive attitudinal outcomes of neurodiversity policies and adjustments. The findings can help managers manage neurodiversity for positive attitudinal outcomes.

This study aims to assess the effect of job insecurity, customer incivility and work–life imbalance on Lebanese bank employee workplace well-being (EWW), while investigating the moderating role that positive and negative affect might have.

Quantitative data was collected from 202 respondents and analyzed using structural equation modeling system through IBM SPSS and AMOS.

Results revealed that each of the independent variables has a negative, statistically significant effect on Lebanese bank EWW. The positive affect and the negative one are shown to have a moderating effect that lessens and boosts, respectively, these negative effects.

The study adds to the literature on EWW while highlighting the high-power distance and collectivist society that the research took place in.

Limitations include the sample size that was hoped to be larger, in addition to the self-reporting issue and what it entails in the data collection process.

The study has many practical implications, including the validation of a questionnaire in a developing Arab country, hence providing a reliable tool for researchers. HR specialists should lean toward applicants with positive affect, ensuring that their workplace is occupied by members with enhanced resilience. Furthermore, employers should support their employees’ professional growth, thus, boosting their employability during turmoil and consequently making them less vulnerable in times of economic recession.

The study’s unique context, depicted in the harsh economic and financial crisis, makes the findings on EWW of a high value.

This study aims to explore how not-for-profit organisations (NFPs) adopt service innovation and improve their employee resilience capabilities as a response to environmental changes arising from marketisation of public services.

Using a multiple case-study research design, this study involved 32 interviews with frontline employees working in a not-for-profit care-providing organisation.

This study finds that the development of absorptive capacity can facilitate service innovation adoption in NFPs and improve employee resilience in times of transition.

This study offers theoretical insights on service innovation, absorptive capacity and employee resilience in NFPs. It makes practical recommendations that will enable NFPs to help frontline employees better adopt service innovation practices in business models endorsed by the private sector.

This study examines the effect of female governors (gender effect) on environmental performance in terms of state-level carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in United States.

The study used annual data from 1970 to 2020 to investigate the relationship between female political leadership and state-level CO2 emissions. Hypothesis was tested through ordinary least squares regression (OLS). The results of the study were also validated using propensity score matching and a difference-in-difference approach.

This study provides empirical insights into the relationship between female political leadership and state-level CO2 emissions. The findings indicate that female governors have a significant negative impact on state-level CO2 emissions per capita. These results suggest that female political leadership is associated with a reduction in CO2 emissions per capita at the state level. The results also show that states under the leadership of female governors experience lower levels of CO2 emissions than those with male governors, indicating female leadership’s potential to promote environmental sustainability.

The findings of this study have practical implications for policymakers, government officials, and other stakeholders involved in the formulation of strategies to promote environmental sustainability. This study highlights the significant role that female political leader play in mitigating CO2 emissions at the state level. It suggests that promoting female in political leadership positions can lead to more environmentally conscious policy decisions and actions, resulting in reduced CO2 emissions per capita. Policymakers should actively encourage women’s participation in leadership roles to utilize their potential contributions to advancing sustainability goals. Furthermore, organizations that focus on environmental issues should prioritize supporting and promoting female leaders who have demonstrated a commitment to environmental sustainability. Ultimately, this study highlights the need for female in political leadership as a potential strategy to address environmental challenges and advance a more sustainable future.

This study pioneers research on the links between female political leadership and state-level CO2 emissions. This study contributes to the literature by emphasizing the potential role of female political leaders in promoting environmental sustainability. Overall, this study enriches the social role and upper echelons theories literature through empirical evidence.

The purpose of this paper is to explore issues relating to imposing a ban on the importation of asbestos-contaminated building materials (ACBMs) in the Australian context to better understand the multiple accountabilities and consequences.

This study undertakes a qualitative content analysis of the multiple accountabilities and stakeholder expectations using the lens of actor–network theory. This study further explores the weaknesses and complexities associated with implementing a complete ban on asbestos, ensuring that only asbestos-free building materials are imported to Australia. This study uses data collected from 15 semi-structured interviews with stakeholders, responses from the Australian Border Force to a questionnaire and 215 counter accounts from the media, the Australian Government, industry organizations, non-governmental organizations and social group websites during the period from 2003 to 2021.

This study reveals that stakeholders' expectations of zero tolerance for asbestos have not been met. This assertion has been backed by evidence of asbestos contamination in imported building materials throughout recent years. Stakeholders say that the complete prevention of the importation of ACBMs has been delayed because of issues in policy implementations, opaque supply chain activities, lack of transparency and non-adherence to mandatory and self-regulated guidelines.

Stakeholders expect public and private sector organizations to meet their accountabilities through mandatory adoption of the given policy framework.

This research provides a road map to identify the multiple accountabilities, their related weaknesses and the lack of implementation of the necessary protocol, which prevents a critical aspect of legislation from being effectively implemented.

First-line leaders across the emergency services are instrumental in leading the development of a workforce fit to face current and future challenges. As such in addition to utilising their specific craft, leaders need to be equipped to understand and apply evidence-based practices. With a focus on first-line leadership in policing, this paper will have both national and international resonance for those organisations attempting to embed an evidence-based culture.

The paper utilises a review of literature to develop a viewpoint identifying challenges and benefits of the adoption of evidence-based policing (EBP) by first-line leaders.

First-line leaders, whether police officers, police staff or volunteers, require opportunities to develop their own knowledge, understanding and skills of applying EBP in the workplace. Acknowledging challenges exist in the widespread adoption of EBP, such learning, at the appropriate educational level, will enable leaders to effectively champion the adoption of EBP, informing both their own decision-making and professional practices as well as those across their teams.

The first-line leader role is highly influential, as such, it is essential that these leaders develop their knowledge, understanding and application of EBP in the workplace in order to lead the expected cultural change.

This paper provides a current framework for the understanding of the context and potential impact of educationally levelled formal leadership learning required to champion the broad adoption of EBP across policing.

Lean Six Sigma in public and private healthcare organisations has received considerable attention over the last decade. Nevertheless, such process improvement methodologies are not generalizable, and their effective implementation relies on contextual variables. The purpose of this study is to explore the readiness of Italian hospitals for Lean Six Sigma and Quality Performance Improvement (LSS&QPI), with a focus on gender differences.

A survey comprising 441 healthcare professionals from public and private hospitals was conducted. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to determine the mean scores on the LSS&QPI dimensions based on hospital type, gender and their interaction.

The results showed that public healthcare professional are more aware of quality performance improvement initiatives than private healthcare professionals. Moreover, gender differences emerged according to the type of hospital, with higher awareness for men than women in public hospitals, whereas for private hospitals the opposite was true.

This study contributes to the Lean Six Sigma literature by focusing on the holistic assessment of LSS&QPI implementation.

This study informs healthcare managers about the revolution within healthcare organisations, especially public ones. Healthcare managers should spend time understanding Lean Six Sigma as a strategic orientation to promote the “lean hospital”, improving processes and fostering patient-centredness.

This is a preliminary study focussing on analysing inter-relationship between perceived importance of soft readiness factors such as gender dynamics as a missing jigsaw in the current literature. In addition, the research advances a holistic assessment of LSS&QPI, which sets it apart from the studies on single initiatives that have been documented to date.