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1 – 10 of over 121000Simon Reisenbauer and Eva Kleinlein
This chapter engages in a methodological discussion of the notion of context in qualitative research on inclusive teaching practices from a global perspective. We argue that it is…
Abstract
This chapter engages in a methodological discussion of the notion of context in qualitative research on inclusive teaching practices from a global perspective. We argue that it is crucial to reflect on processes of contextualization within data analysis in international research. Two research projects, building on ethnography and the documentary method respectively, are used to illustrate challenges and implications for data analysis in international research projects. We discuss challenges with respect to contextual information, the problem of reification and the strategies of comparison. As illustrated in the examples of data analysis, involving researchers and participants from the local context in the joint interpretation of data and the reflection of the research process is crucial to assure that research approaches reflect local perspectives. Additionally, using different strategies of comparison helps to identify global perspectives as well as elaborating particular local understandings and practices on teaching and learning. Taking due account of these challenges in international research on inclusive education and considering the local perspectives and research practices might further the critical reflection of research methodologies and strengthen local research approaches.
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Giuliano Guerra and Roberto Patuelli
Theoretical and empirical research suggests a connection between the presence of role models and the emergence of entrepreneurs. Existing entrepreneurs may act as role models for…
Abstract
Purpose
Theoretical and empirical research suggests a connection between the presence of role models and the emergence of entrepreneurs. Existing entrepreneurs may act as role models for self-employment candidates by providing successful examples. The purpose of this paper is to show that role models matter in aggregate decision outcomes regarding self-employment.
Design/methodology/approach
By explicitly considering the self-employment rates of the natives, which may influence locally the decisions of immigrants towards entrepreneurship, the authors develop a simple model that explains immigrant self-employment rates for a sample of 2,490 Swiss municipalities. In addition, the authors accommodate for the presence of spatial spillovers in the distribution of rates, and test a spatial autoregressive model which takes into account the average self-employment rates of immigrants living in nearby municipalities.
Findings
The evidence shows a significant (positive) effect of such spatial network effects, which are characterized by a quick distance decay, suggesting spatial spillovers at the household and social network level. Additionally, the paper shows that local conditions and immigrant pool characteristics differ, with respect to self-employment choices, when examining separately urban and rural contexts. Finally, a spatial sensitivity analysis shows that the findings are consistent over different assumptions on the nature of spatial interaction.
Originality/value
By using highly geographically disaggregated data, the authors are able to test the extent to which the influence of role models can be traced, and to measure these effects both within local units as well as in neighbouring units. Understanding the relationship between the native and immigrant attitudes towards entrepreneurship, the local characteristics of the immigrant community and geography is crucial in a country with a relevant share of the working population made up by immigrants.
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Verónica León Bravo, Mariuxy Jaramillo Villacrés and Minelle E. Silva
To understand the context surrounding the sustainable supplier management (SSM) process (i.e. selection, development and evaluation), this paper aims to explore institutional…
Abstract
Purpose
To understand the context surrounding the sustainable supplier management (SSM) process (i.e. selection, development and evaluation), this paper aims to explore institutional logics existing in the Ecuadorian cocoa supply chain (SC). By considering local characteristics and sustainability practices, this study illustrates how competing logic influences SSM.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a multiple-case study method for which the authors interviewed different cocoa SC members in Ecuador and used a ground-up approach to analyse the data and reveal singularities influencing sustainability management.
Findings
The analysis uncovered two main logics operating within the Ecuadorian cocoa SC SSM process: a commercial logic (e.g. potential for market access, product traceability) and a sustainability logic (e.g. local development and traditions/cultural issues). These logics address market demand requirements; however, some local producers’ needs that impact SSM remains unexplored such as the existence of a regional ancestral culture that poses sustainability as a dominant logic with meaning beyond the triple bottom line. While the two logics have influenced supplier sustainability performance, this paper finds that, of the three SSM sub-processes (selection, development and evaluation), supplier development was the most relevant sub-process receiving attention from SC managers in the studied context.
Practical implications
By understanding the differences in logic and needs, SC managers can better develop strategies for SSM.
Originality/value
The study highlighted in this paper investigated the underexplored topic of the effects that competing logic may have on SSM. This paper focusses on the supplier’s point of view regarding sustainability requirements, addressing a consistent research gap in the literature.
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W. Kyle Ingle, Terra Greenwell and Justin Woods
We sought to identify codes and themes in the mission statements of Kentucky's school districts and examine the relationship between district characteristics and the mission…
Abstract
Purpose
We sought to identify codes and themes in the mission statements of Kentucky's school districts and examine the relationship between district characteristics and the mission statements.
Design/methodology/approach
We undertook a mixed methods design, specifically, a sequential transformative strategy with a theoretical lens overlaying the sequential procedures and guiding the analysis.
Findings
Analysis revealed a range of 1–7 codes per mission statement and a mean of 3.05. Generic student success and individual attention represented the most frequently occurring codes in the mission statements. Chi-square tests of bivariate association yielded no significant differences between districts by locale. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the percentage of students in the district scoring proficient or distinguished in both reading and mathematics was associated significantly (p < 0.05) with the theme of student support.
Research limitations
Although we cannot establish causation between mission statements content and student outcomes or vice-versa, district mission statement remain a visible and public expression of why an organization exists that should guide actions and decision-making, whether instructional, financial or otherwise.
Practical implications
Our study revealed shared institutional language within mission statements across Kentucky's school district, largely without regard to local context. Our analysis suggests that federal and state policy makers are influencing mission statements more so than those at the local level.
Originality/value
Our analysis provides further evidence that suggests that federal and state policy makers are influencing mission statements more so than those at the local level.
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Iris Barbosa and Carlos Cabral‐Cardoso
The purpose of this paper is to assess the extent to which Portuguese companies have incorporated equality‐ and diversity‐related issues into their management discourse, and…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the extent to which Portuguese companies have incorporated equality‐ and diversity‐related issues into their management discourse, and examine the prevalent rhetoric on these matters.
Design/methodology/approach
A comprehensive content analysis of the web sites of the 500 largest companies plus the 20 best companies to work for in Portugal, in 2005, according to the ranking of The Great Place to Work® Institute Portugal.
Findings
The analysis of the web site data shows that equality and diversity rhetoric mirrors, to a large extent, the dominant US discourse and ignores the necessary adaptation to the local context. However, there are significant differences in the adopted rhetoric according to the origin of the ownership control (native vs foreign) and the intended audience (local vs global). Native owned companies with web sites intended to a local audience tend to ignore diversity issues altogether.
Research limitations/implications
The study was limited to a single country's data, and to the discourse rather than actual practices. However, the paper adds to the debate on the globalization of management knowledge stressing the limitations of adopting the “one size fits all” management rhetoric as opposed to developing rhetoric more appropriate and that fits into the local context.
Originality/value
The paper provides an account of the equality and diversity rhetoric adopted by the most prominent organizations operating in Portugal, suggesting that such rhetoric is mainly for external consumption.
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Elisabete Figueiredo and Antonio Raschi
Rural tourism agents and operators occupy a central role in the use and diffusion of certain social representations of rurality through the mobilization and utilization of…
Abstract
Rural tourism agents and operators occupy a central role in the use and diffusion of certain social representations of rurality through the mobilization and utilization of specific (yet increasingly global) signs and symbols that, in the urban imaginary, characterize typical and traditional rural settings. Rural tourism promotional materials may contribute to the reconfiguration of the countryside more in accordance with an idealized rural than with the reality of local features. This chapter examines how rural areas and rurality are presented and commodified, using an exploratory content analysis of online and offline materials combined with a survey directed at rural tourism entrepreneurs in five municipalities of two different Italian regions – Campania and Tuscany. Evidence strongly suggests a discrepancy between the real and the portrayed rurality, pointing at the emergence or reinforcement of rural reconfiguration processes, shaped by external and often global images and imaginaries.
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Muhammad Fayyaz Nazir, Ellen Wayenberg and Shahzadah Fahed Qureshi
At the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the absence of pharmaceutical agents meant that policy institutions had to intervene by providing nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs)…
Abstract
Purpose
At the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the absence of pharmaceutical agents meant that policy institutions had to intervene by providing nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). To satisfy this need, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued policy guidelines, such as NPIs, and the government of Pakistan released its own policy document that included social distancing (SD) as a containment measure. This study explores the policy actors and their role in implementing SD as an NPI in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopted the constructs of Normalization Process Theory (NPT) to explore the implementation of SD as a complex and novel healthcare intervention under a qualitative study design. Data were collected through document analysis and interviews, and analysed under framework analysis protocols.
Findings
The intervention actors (IAs), including healthcare providers, district management agents, and staff from other departments, were active in implementation in the local context. It was observed that healthcare providers integrated SD into their professional lives through a higher level of collective action and reflexive monitoring. However, the results suggest that more coherence and cognitive participation are required for integration.
Originality/value
This novel research offers original and exclusive scenario narratives that satisfy the recent calls of the neo-implementation paradigm, and provides suggestions for managing the implementation impediments during the pandemic. The paper fills the implementation literature gap by exploring the normalisation process and designing a contextual framework for developing countries to implement guidelines for pandemics and healthcare crises.
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Wei Lu, Xinghu Yue, Qikai Cheng and Rui Meng
The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of inverse local context analysis (ILCA) to obtain data from limited accessible data sources.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of inverse local context analysis (ILCA) to obtain data from limited accessible data sources.
Design/methodology/approach
The experimental results show that the method the authors proposed can obtain all retrieved documents from the limited accessible data source using the least number of queries.
Findings
The experimental results show that the method we proposed can obtain all retrieved documents from the limited accessible data source using the least number of queries.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper provides the first attempt to gather all the retrieved documents from limited accessible data source, and the efficiency and ease of implementation of the proposed solution make it feasible for practical applications. The method the authors proposed can also benefit the construction of web corpus.
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