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This article is an executive summary of a full scientific paper that appeared in the journal Personality & Individual Differences. A study was conducted to examine the factor structure of the Occupational Personality Questionnaire (OPQ) on a sample of 94 British undergraduates. The results indicated that five factors should be extracted, providing further evidence for the “Big Five” structural model of personality. This lends support for the use of the OPQ Pentagon model (Extroversion, Vigorous, Methodical, Emotional Stability and Abstract), but use of the Concept model (containing 30 scales) cannot be recommended.

This paper aims to report a study into the levels of abstraction hierarchy (LOAH) in two energy distribution teams. The original proposition for the LOAH was that it depicted five levels of system representation, working from functional purpose through to physical form to determine causes of a malfunction, or from physical form to functional purpose to determine the purpose of system function. The LOAH has been widely used throughout human supervisory control research to explain individual behaviour. The research seeks to focus on the application the LOAH to human supervisory control teams in semi‐automated “intelligent” systems.

A series of interviews were conducted in two energy distribution companies.

The results of the study suggest that people in the teams are predominantly operating at different levels of system representation, depending on their role. Managerial personnel work at functional purpose and abstract function levels, whereas operational personnel work at physical function and physical form levels. It is argued that both types of personnel are part of the wider distributed problem‐solving system, which includes both people and technology.

The research provides useful information on the application of the LOAH to human supervisory control teams in semi‐automated “intelligent” systems.

This chapter examines the role mass media plays in the maintenance of social control and policy formulation and implementation in the Trump political era. First, an historical survey of mass media theory is presented and used as an analytic lens through which to identify that mass media has long been recognized as a powerful tool of social control or disruption and in public policy formulation and implementation. Second, this chapter explores the challenges posed to society and policy when a president uses mass media to spread misinformation and disinformation. Third, this chapter identifies the divisive nature of US political attitudes in the Trump era and how social media contributes to cleavage. Fourth, this chapter explores efforts by foreign actors, particularly Russian, to spread discursive and thus social chaos through disinformation campaigns in the United States and other western democracies. This chapter concludes that mass media has been both a divisive and uniting force, although the rise of social media and its susceptibility to manipulation poses a danger to social cohesion and effective public policy formulation and implementation. These factors have contributed to civil divisiveness and lack of policy clarity.

The purpose of this paper is to present the findings from a literature review, which aimed to identify previous studies evaluating cryptolaundering from a systems thinking perspective. The aim of this paper is to first confirm that cryptolaundering systems can indeed be defined as complex socio-technical systems and second to present the findings from a systematic review of the literature to determine the extent to which previous research has adopted a systems thinking perspective.

The study involved a SLR of studies published in the peer-reviewed literature between 2009 and 2018. Rasmussen’s risk management framework (Rasmussen, 1997) was used to evaluate the extent to which a systems thinking perspective had been adopted.

The cryptolaundering process is considered to be a complex socio-technical system. The review demonstrates that no previous studies have defined cryptolaundering as a complex socio-technical system or used systems thinking framework approach to evaluate how criminals, regulatory bodies or law enforcement entities understand processes and assess risk within cryptolaundering systems. It is argued that using such an approach to the cryptolaundering process would likely improve assessing criminal risk analyses of cryptolaundering and assist law enforcement and regulatory bodies with understanding risk management during the laundering of cryptocurrencies.

Future assessments of cryptolaundering using socio-technical system analytical processes may afford law enforcement and regulatory bodies the opportunity to improve intervention techniques and identify gaps in regulations and enforcement.

Questions have been raised about the ability of HIV/AIDS and sexuality education for young people to modify behaviour, its potential for producing undesirable effects, and dubious rigour in evaluating it. A review of the literature conducted for the World Health Organisation’s former Global Programme on AIDS in 1993, and a more recent update commissioned by the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) in 1997 examined these issues. The latter review of 68 articles found good support for the efficacy of HIV/AIDS and sex education in reducing unwanted outcomes of young people’s sexual behaviour. Of 53 articles describing specific interventions, 22 reported significant decreases in coital activity or its markers (e.g. pregnancy) in those who received the intervention(s) compared with controls, and 27 studies reported no effect. Although three studies found a positive relationship between receiving sex education and increased sexual activity, they should be viewed in the context of overwhelming evidence in the opposite direction, and methodological limitations to the extent to which they can be generalised. Lack of rigour and an adequate description of interventions is, however, a feature of many of the studies evaluating the effects of HIV/AIDS and sex education. Although the reviews demonstrate the value of appropriately conducted and targeted interventions, formal sex/HIV education is only one source of information about sexual issues for young people. Further, timing education prior to the onset of sexual intercourse may increase the chance that young people will adopt measures aimed at protecting their health.

In many security domains, the ‘human in the system’ is often a critical line of defence in identifying, preventing and responding to any threats (Saikayasit, Stedmon, & Lawson, 2015). Traditionally, such security domains are often focussed on mainstream public safety within crowded spaces and border controls, through to identifying suspicious behaviours, hostile reconnaissance and implementing counter-terrorism initiatives. More recently, with growing insecurity around the world, organisations have looked to improve their security risk management frameworks, developing concepts which originated in the health and safety field to deal with more pressing risks such as terrorist acts, abduction and piracy (Paul, 2018). In these instances, security is usually the specific responsibility of frontline personnel with defined roles and responsibilities operating in accordance with organisational protocols (Saikayasit, Stedmon, Lawson, & Fussey, 2012; Stedmon, Saikayasit, Lawson, & Fussey, 2013). However, understanding the knowledge that frontline security workers might possess and use requires sensitive investigation in equally sensitive security domains.

This chapter considers how to investigate knowledge elicitation in these sensitive security domains and underlying ethics in research design that supports and protects the nature of investigation and end-users alike. This chapter also discusses the criteria used for ensuring trustworthiness as well as assessing the relative merits of the range of methods adopted.

This chapter examines the effects of financial technology news on banks’ return, efficiency and profitability in China and Vietnam from 2011 to 2019. The authors use various asset pricing models to estimate the abnormal returns (AR) of various listed Chinese and Vietnamese banks following their announcements of FinTech adoption. The authors also use data envelopment analysis (DEA) to examine whether financial technology improves banks’ efficiency and profitability. The results of this study show that only six banks showed positive reactions, 15 banks experienced negative reactions, 11 banks exhibited mixed reactions and eight banks indicated no reactions to financial technology news in China. On the other hand, the authors find that financial technology is welcomed by Vietnamese banks whereby most of them experience mixed reactions with the domination of positive reactions. The authors also find a lower efficiency level in early adopters of financial technology and reduced profitability in the first year when they started applying financial technology.

The purpose of this paper is to develop an EU sociotechnical systems (STSs) map to represent a harmonised concept of operations (CONOPS) as a future development platform for technologies used in multi-services emergency responses to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents.

AcciMaps were developed to locate where technologies are currently used, and opportunities for new technologies. The AcciMaps were iteratively co-designed with end users (fire, ambulance, police and military) across three EU countries (the UK, Finland and Greece). Data were collected using document analysis and interviews with senior ranking (Gold or Silver Command level) representatives of the participating end users.

Despite differences in terminology and between service sectors, consensus was achieved for the command structures (Gold, Silver and Bronze), and Hot Zone responders (specialist blue light responders and blue light responders (BLR)). A control room was included as the communication spine. BLR activities were limited by their scope of practice and available equipment, for example, breathing apparatus. The harmonised EU AcciMap offers a high-level STSs map of CBRN response. Critical segments have been identified which offer opportunities for technology developments that can add value in terms of response capabilities (e.g. tag and trace).

A large scale major CBRN incident may need cross-border and cross-professional engagement where efficient interoperability is vital. This research is the first EU consensus of a STS map for CONOPS. It supports future research for technology development, e.g., detection and decontamination equipment design and use, communication, diagnosis and response technologies.