Search results

This phenomenological study aims to explore how media promote and should promote wheelchair rugby.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 31 athletes at National Wheelchair Rugby Championship. In using a reflective thematical analysis approach, three themes were identified – media coverage: the promise of an unknown quantity; the battle of inspiration and athleticism; and leverage marketing and promote the “wow”.

Lacking fair representation from media resulting in the perception and reception gap between the general public and spectators was identified and explained by most of the athletes. Besides urging increased coverage with a shifting focus on athleticism, the important role of marketing was highlighted.

In short, the “wow” factor of the sport is its aggressiveness which can be its bestselling feature and used by stakeholders for maximum impact when marketing wheelchair rugby.

The purpose of this paper is to reflect teaching and learning practices, to highlight an educator’s new roles in the transformation when teaching online during the COVID-19 lockdown.

The paper takes a transformative reflection approach, based on competencies and activity system analysis to connect theory and practical experience in managing the students, the teaching delivery and the assessments.

The transition to online teaching and assessments requires various considerations of the curriculum and instructional approaches and necessitates the transformation of the role of the subject-matter expert to that of designer and co-learner. Empathy and understanding of students’ conditions enable this role transformation.

The paper highlights the importance of preparedness among faculty members and universities in dealing with uncertainties and the willingness to expand traditional roles and to upgrade the required skills, knowledge and attitudes to engender sustainable teaching and learning practices in response to future disruptions.

The paper reflects on the experience of a faculty who had adopted blended learning prior to the lockdown and how the teaching practice and roles transformed when fully transitioning to online delivery during the lockdown in New Zealand.

This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework that clarifies the social supportive role of cancer resource center services in the lives of men with cancer and its impact on their perceived quality of life.

Personal reflections.

The authors put forth a conceptual framework which shows that men with cancer may perceive the availability of four types of social support from others present in a cancer resource center. The perceived availability of social support is posited to enhance their perceptions of their quality of life.

The study yields propositions that may be empirically tested by services and health researchers in future studies. In addition, the research findings may not extend to terminally ill male cancer patients.

Given the health benefits associated with social support, health-care professionals, social workers and cancer center directors should encourage their male cancer patients to participate in cancer resource programing and activities.

Cancer resource centers offer male cancer patients opportunities to enhance their quality of life beyond the use of pharmaceutical drugs or professional medical treatment. The health benefits may lower costs associated with medical expenses.

This study contributes to an emerging paradigm in services marketing. It is one of the first papers to focus on the socially supportive role that cancer resource center services may assume in the lives of men with cancer and those surviving the disease.