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Be it about blending intangibles to deliver to market needs or directed at fulfilling aspirations pushing at technological frontiers, inter-firm collaborations across industry boundaries are much in vogue. This paper aims to classify some collaborations as “odd couple collaborations”. These are fuelled more by aspirations of the partner firms, and not as much by market pull. The study provides key distinguishing characteristics for these and an understanding of what makes them tick.

The paper draws on secondary sources in the public domain to understand the motives and performance of several inter-firm collaborations. Odd couple collaborations are examined and some essential performance enablers are highlighted.

A typology that distinguishes odd couple collaborations from other inter-firm collaborations is drawn out. Analysing the performance of such collaborations, and a need for partners to work on the visibility and appeal of such collaborations, is discussed. Stringent market evaluation of the offering and careful creative blending of intangibles are also highlighted as key enablers.

The paper contributes to a vast body of research on inter-sector or distant collaborations by isolating and examining a niche that is fast becoming pronounced. The analysis of odd couple collaborations provides cues for effective strategies for superior value from such collaborations. As organisations constantly seek to extend their innovative potential, these insights may prove useful for both practice and research.

Public entrepreneurs are an under-researched group in local government. The purpose of this paper is to explore the contextual complexities of public entrepreneurs who pursue more creative ways of “doing more with less” to cope with dynamic financial and societal anxieties of Greek local government fiscal austerity policy reforms. Precisely, this study aims to the understanding of how specific contextual influences impact, first, on the nature of public entrepreneurship and, second, on manifested outcomes. A systematic approach marks the authors attempt to assess the broader impact pointing out the implications for research, policy and practice.

A case study of Greek local government draws on 26 in-depth semi-structured interviews with public entrepreneurs across top, middle and front-line levels of management, field notes, documentary and archival evidence.

The findings demonstrate unique Greek contextual complexities such as contradictory tensions between triggered decentralisation of control and responsibilities of the local government and attempts of external reinvention rather than internal renewal. These complexities influence public entrepreneurs’ systemic entrepreneurship behaviours in Greek local government since the implementation of fiscal austerity policy reforms in 2010. Their representation is manifest in policy, administrative and technological outcomes with public value consequences.

This research contributes to a deeper understanding of public entrepreneurship in context. Greek local government public entrepreneurs bring original insights on the contextual influences of their systemic enactment and manifested outcomes, with implications for research, policy and practice.

Seeks to analyse the complexity of current practices surrounding the management and governance of urban regeneration activities in the UK. In particular, aims to focus on the potential of initiatives decentralised to the sub‐local level that have been designed both to effectively manage public service provision and to improve citizen participation in local government management decision making.

Explores the early experiences of local authorities' attempts to introduce “area committees” in line with the complex “modernisation” agendas advanced by the “New Labour” government under an overarching project of “new localism”.

Highlights that new attempts at devolving power and responsibility to these sub‐local structures should be more flexible to local conditions rather than directed by national policy.

Argues for a “middle way” to be adopted in managing local government and governance changes in order to develop a more “pragmatic localism”.

This paper aims to stimulate debate among academic and policymaking communities as to understanding the importance of social processes and open innovation contexts within existing models of knowledge transfer and exchange (KTE) between higher education institutions (HEIs) and industry.

This research was conducted through a number of case studies connected to UK HEIs and through extensive interviews with representatives of HEI, industry and policy makers over a two‐year period.

The results confirm that social processes are often under‐explored in collaborative HEI‐industry settings. The study identified seven emerging themes which are important to HEI‐industry relationships: the importance of network intermediaries; flexibility, openness and connectivity of network structures; encouraging network participation; building trust in relationships through mutual understanding; active network learning; strengthening cooperation through capacity building; and culture change.

This research raises implications for policymakers and practitioners engaged in developing KTE collaborative activities. The paper argues for greater attention to be placed upon the social processes that affect collaborative innovation and working. Policymaking in particular needs to take account of these processes as they are neither easy to establish nor sustain.

The paper contributes to the literature on HEI‐industry interactions for enhanced KTE activity and partnership working which demonstrates value to wider scholarly and practitioner readership. In the context of “open innovation”, the paper argues in favour of greater attention to be paid to the social processes involved in engaging HEI academics with industry professionals. Moreover, the paper further contributes to wider perspectives on the importance of international HEI‐industry research activities.

The purpose of this study is to propose a set of design recommendations for crowdsourcing platforms with a focus on user engagement. A sample of New Zealand (NZ) cultural heritage institutions (CHIs) crowdsourcing platforms were assessed, with the aim of offering insights into how they have been designed to encourage dialogue and engagement and to sustain participation.

The design recommendations were derived from a review of related works. Following this, 12 crowdsourcing projects overseen by libraries, museums and an archive in NZ were assessed against the recommendations through content analysis.

The recommendations were classified into four main categories. These were promote ease of use, attract and sustain user interest, foster a community of users and show users that their work is contributing to the institution and society. The findings indicated that the sample of crowdsourcing projects assessed were generally successful at displaying the credibility and significance of their projects, and promoting their crowdsourced collections. Many of the projects could nevertheless benefit from providing further support to promoting dialogues and engagement with their users and contributors and sustaining offline community interaction.

The content analysis conducted was focused on the functionality of design elements of the crowdsourcing platforms. The design recommendations derived from the analysis were intended as a starting point for discussion and they would need to be validated in further studies. Other relevant project information such as funding and staffing, promotion and outreach efforts were not solicited in this study. Such information could provide important contextualisation. Future research could take the form of in-depth case studies, including surveying those involved in the projects and stakeholders to investigate such contextual aspects of crowdsourcing projects.

Previous research on crowdsourcing in NZ CHIs consisted of single case studies. This study provides a wider snapshot and insights into digital crowdsourcing platforms from public NZ CHIs. The study findings have practical implications for project managers and Web designers involved in crowdsourcing projects, particularly those in the cultural heritage sector.

Cannabis use among young adults is increasing, despite being associated with several negative consequences. Protective behavioral strategies (PBSs) are a potential mechanism of behavior change for reducing substance use, yet PBS use for cannabis is not well understood. The purpose of this paper is to further define and measure the PBS construct for cannabis.

A community sample of cannabis users (n=54) participated in eight focus groups discussing the use of PBSs. Participants completed surveys regarding demographics, cannabis use habits and cannabis problems. The authors also administered an existing measure of cannabis PBS and asked them to generate new or unique protective strategies that they had used or had heard of others using.

Thematic analysis of qualitative focus group data provided information about cannabis users’ reasons for regulating cannabis use (e.g. health or legal problems, interpersonal) as well as strategies to moderate cannabis use or attenuate their risk for experiencing adverse consequences (e.g. distraction, existential/spiritual strategies). Analyses of quantitative survey data revealed that use of PBSs was negatively correlated with cannabis outcomes. Perceived helpfulness of strategies was an important predictor of decreased cannabis use and adverse consequences.

Findings expand the understanding of the definition and measurement of strategies for regulating cannabis use and reducing related risk of experiencing adverse consequences.

This is the first study to examine cannabis-related PBS using both qualitative and quantitative methods, which provide insights into the definition of PBS and for future refinements of PBS measurement.

The purpose this paper is to offer an understanding of the role of food in the adjustment journey of Nigerian students in the UK.

A qualitative approach was used, involving interviews with ten Nigerians studying in the UK.

Thematic analysis revealed that participants found the food they ate locally to be bland and fattening, and that they quickly adopted a home country diet, using ingredients bought locally or sent and brought from home to recreate Nigerian dishes. Eating Nigerian food had a positive emotional impact, and it was also a vehicle for social interaction.

It is acknowledged that this is a small-scale preliminary study that could be extended across the UK with a more quantitative approach to get a broader picture of the eating habits of Nigerian students at British Universities. There is also an opportunity to widen it to include other African states which are neglected within the present literature. A more longitudinal study picking up migrants could also explore how adjustments have been made in their eating habits. Participants in this research equated fast food with local, English food due to their limited access to authentic local cuisine.

There are practical implications of this study whereby actions can be taken to help avoid the negative impacts experienced causing concerns in around mental well-being and poor health.

This study fills a gap in knowledge on how this important segment of the international student population adapts to a new food culture.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of vengeance as a terrorist motivator.

The paper takes a community psychological perspective to examine vengeance in a number of forms. First covering “blood vengeance”, it then examines vigilantism and death squads as functional examples of vengeful entities, as well as the morality of vengeance and the impact of propaganda on vengeance as a terrorist motivator. Finally, both group processes and individual factors relating to the promotion and use of vengeance in terrorism are covered.

Vengeance can be conceptualised in a number of ways: as a predisposing factor to individual involvement, a factor that contributes to keeping the movement “bound” together (but which can also negatively affect the group’s strategic logic), a factor in the escalation of violent activity through vigilantism, retribution and retaliation which can result in a perpetuation of a cycle of violence, and as a moral mandate that is ideologically rationalised and justified, with perceptions of righteousness and obligation inherent to it.

The presented research is limited by the scarcely available data.

Efforts should be made to defuse vengeful motivations by tapping into collective identities of communities and incorporating multicultural values.

Policy makers should be wary of scoring populist scores by ridiculing out-group/religious elements as that creates potential for vengeful terror attacks.

The paper offers insights by renewing the neglected perspective of vengeance in terrorism research.

The most significant event for the School has been the announcement of the creation of the National Centre for Management Research and Development. The Centre is due to open in 1986 and will provide research facilities for up to 20 major projects designed to improve the competitiveness of Canadian business practices.