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1 – 6 of 6Sandra L. Laursen and Kristine De Welde
The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolving theories of change of the US National Science Foundation’s (NSF) ADVANCE program to increase the representation of women on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolving theories of change of the US National Science Foundation’s (NSF) ADVANCE program to increase the representation of women on academic faculties in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). ADVANCE supports efforts to transform the cultures and structures of US institutions of higher education by removing gendered barriers to STEM faculty women’s employment, advancement and success, and by developing change strategies that others may adopt.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical study is based on qualitative, longitudinal analysis of nine requests for proposals (RfPs) for the ADVANCE program (2001–2016), complemented by historical analysis of funded ADVANCE projects using public records.
Findings
The analysis identifies changes over time that suggest shifts in NSF’s rationale and theory of change for ADVANCE. Increased guidance directs how institutions should best undertake change, document outcomes and share best practices. The RfPs reveal growing attention to equity, rather than simply to representation, and to intersectionality – how gender, race, social class and other identities intersect to produce disparate experiences and outcomes for individuals differently positioned in social systems. Gendered organizations theory helps to place these experiences and outcomes in a structural context. Iterative processes of organizational learning are postulated to account for these changes over time.
Originality/value
While many studies have examined ADVANCE projects’ activities and outcomes, none have examined the premises and design of the ADVANCE program itself. This analysis offers insight into how the ADVANCE RfP has driven innovation and learning about transformative institutional change to advance gender equity in STEM.
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Sandra Corredor, Clemente Forero and Deepak Somaya
This paper examines the extent to which different sources of ideas for innovation are associated with novelty of innovation outcomes. We measure the novelty of product innovation…
Abstract
This paper examines the extent to which different sources of ideas for innovation are associated with novelty of innovation outcomes. We measure the novelty of product innovation using three well-established categories, ranging from highly novel new-to-world products to new-to-firm products that are essentially imitative, with products that are new-to-country (but not the world) being an intermediary category. In turn we investigate how knowledge derived from different external and internal (within-firm) sources of ideas can help firms increase innovation with different degrees of novelty. Our empirical analyses are conducted on a large sample of manufacturing firms from the South American emerging market of Colombia and show that many of the same sources of knowledge – such as scientific sources, production departments and managers – are associated with higher innovation in all three categories of novelty. However, some sources – notably external clients and internal interdisciplinary groups – are more significantly associated with more novel innovation than imitation. The implications of these findings for the literatures on innovation and imitation, and innovation by emerging market firms are discussed.
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Judit Végh, Andrea Dúll and Lan Anh Nguyen Luu
This qualitative study explores how trailing spouses form their relationships before and after a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic and what patterns can be observed. It…
Abstract
Purpose
This qualitative study explores how trailing spouses form their relationships before and after a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic and what patterns can be observed. It explores their significant relationships with friends and extended family, focusing on dynamics and change.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with seven trailing spouses in Malaysia: before the pandemic, in the beginning and at the end of the first year of the pandemic. The authors used longitudinal interpretative phenomenological analysis (LIPA).
Findings
Being aware of the limits of resources emerged as a key factor in how trailing spouses develop and maintain relationships with friends and extended family. The fact that the pandemic changed the dynamics of their social networks illuminates how crucial these relationships or their absence are in their adjustment and readjustment process. Children play a significant role in these relationships.
Research limitations/implications
Comparative research into the friendships and relationships of different groups of trailing spouses in various locations could capture more specificity of the relationship dynamics.
Practical implications
The explored patterns can promote a better understanding of the relationship dynamics of trailing spouses' networks, which can, in turn, support and facilitate both adjustment and repatriation processes. They can help explain how and what kind of social networks best support trailing spouse transition during a time of crisis or adjustment. These findings could be incorporated into intercultural training programs.
Originality/value
No current study that the authors know of has explored trailing spouses' relationship dynamics in a longitudinal study before and during a crisis.
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Rodrigo Costamagna, Sandra Idrovo-Carlier, Pedro Mendi and Alfredo Rodriguez
This paper takes a closer look at the way firms combine human resources from different departments by analyzing firm-level data obtained from a series of innovation surveys…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper takes a closer look at the way firms combine human resources from different departments by analyzing firm-level data obtained from a series of innovation surveys conducted in Colombia by Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Estadística (DANE). In particular, the authors inquire into whether there are differences in innovation performance between firms that combine human resources from different departments and firms that choose not to do so.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors apply a complementarity test between firms that combine human resources from different departments and firms that choose not to do so. As performance variables, the authors consider the propensity to innovate, the number of new innovative products that the firm introduces, the proportion of sales coming from products new to the firm and sales from new products as a percentage of current innovation expenditures.
Findings
The authors find that firms with an internal research and development (R&D) department have a better innovation performance, but the authors do not find evidence of the existence of complementarity between workers in R&D and workers in other departments, and the authors find some evidence that suggests substitutability in the case of product innovations.
Practical implications
This paper provides managers with insights about how to deploy employees to improve firm innovation performance of employees.
Originality/value
This paper combines innovation literature with human resources management literature and applies a robust methodology to data not previously tested for the same purposes.
Propósito
Este artículo mira detenidamente la manera en que las empresas colombianas combinan recursos humanos de diferentes departamentos analizando datos de empresas obtenidos de una serie de encuestas sobre innovación realizada en Colombia por el DANE. En concreto, los autores se preguntan si existen diferencias en el desempeño de innovación entre las empresas que combinan recursos humanos de diferentes departamentos y aquellas que eligen no hacerlo.
Diseño/ metodología/ aproximación
Los autores aplican una prueba de complementariedad entre las empresas que combinan recursos humanos de diferentes departamentos y aquellas que eligen no hacerlo. Como variables de desempeño, los autore toman la disposición a innovar; número de nuevos productos innovadores que la empresa introduce, la proporción de venta que ingresa por productos nuevos de la empresa, y venta de nuevos productos como porcentaje de gastos actuales de innovación.
Resultados
Los autores encuentran que las empresas con un departamento de I&D tienen mejor desempeño de innovación, pero no encuentran evidencia de complementariedad entre trabajadores de I&D y trabajadores de otros departamentos. Los autores encontran alguna evidencia que sugiere sustitución en el caso de innovación de producto.
Originalidad
Este artículo combina literatura proveniente del área de innovación con literatura del área de gestión de recursos humanos y aplica una metodología robusta a datos que no han sido analizados previamente con este propósito.
Aplicaciones prácticas
Este artículo ofrece a los gerentes y directivos una mirada distinta sobre cómo desplegar colaboradores en las distintas áreas para mejorar el desempeño de innovación de las firmas.
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Despite the recent increase of segregated neighborhoods and schools (Schmitt, 2001), many children find themselves playing with others from different racial and/or ethnic…
Abstract
Despite the recent increase of segregated neighborhoods and schools (Schmitt, 2001), many children find themselves playing with others from different racial and/or ethnic background (Nieto, 2000). Within social science literature, there are a number of studies that explore social interactions and youngsters’ friendship groups (Adler & Adler, 1998; Corsaro, 1985; Eder, 1995; Rizzo, 1989). While instructive, too few analyze what occurs among and to students of color (for exceptions, see Fordham, 1993; Goodwin, 1990, 1998; Grant, 1984). As a consequence, intragender distinctions remain misunderstood and White girls’ group dynamics often eclipse or trivialize the cultural happenings of their racial opposites – African-American girls.
Beatrice Avolio and Jessica Marleny Chávez Cajo
This phenomenological study, conducted within the discourse on the underrepresentation of women in academia, examined the factors influencing the advancement of women academics in…
Abstract
Purpose
This phenomenological study, conducted within the discourse on the underrepresentation of women in academia, examined the factors influencing the advancement of women academics in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
Design/methodology/approach
The sample comprised twenty-one women academics from both public and private universities in Peru. Data were collected through in-depth interviews based on the women's experiences and subsequently processed using Moustakas’ (1994) stages for encoding, categorization, and analysis.
Findings
The study introduces a conceptual framework of nine factors – personal tastes and preferences, attitudes towards science as a vocation, care work, work–life balance, congruent gender roles, occupational segregation, lack of opportunities, low salaries, and lack of gender equality policies – that impact the career progression of women in STEM fields.
Originality/value
The results offer valuable insights for policymakers and academic authorities to address the barriers affecting women academics in STEM. The uniqueness of this paper lies in its investigation in Peru, a country with the highest female labor force participation in Latin America, where women constitute the majority of undergraduate program graduates.
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