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1 – 10 of 382Sarah E. Evans and Gregory Steeger
In the present fast-paced and globalized age of war, special operations forces have a comparative advantage over conventional forces because of their small, highly-skilled units…
Abstract
Purpose
In the present fast-paced and globalized age of war, special operations forces have a comparative advantage over conventional forces because of their small, highly-skilled units. Largely because of these characteristics, special operations forces spend a disproportionate amount of time deployed. The amount of time spent deployed affects service member’s quality of life and their level of preparedness for the full spectrum of military operations. In this paper, the authors ask the following question: How many force packages are required to sustain a deployed force package, while maintaining predetermined combat-readiness and quality-of-life standards?
Design/methodology/approach
The authors begin by developing standardized deployment-to-dwell metrics to assess the effects of deployments on service members’ quality of life and combat readiness. Next, they model deployment cycles using continuous time Markov chains and derive closed-form equations that relate the amount of time spent deployed versus at home station, rotation length, transition time and the total force size.
Findings
The expressions yield the total force size required to sustain a deployed capability.
Originality/value
Finally, the authors apply the method to the US Air Force Special Operations Command. This research has important implications for the force-structure logistics of any military force.
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Low self-esteem is common in people with learning disabilities. There is limited research examining the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) focused on low…
Abstract
Purpose
Low self-esteem is common in people with learning disabilities. There is limited research examining the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) focused on low self-esteem within this client group. The purpose of this paper is to add to the limited evidence by describing the use of CBT focused on low self-esteem for a person with a learning disability in the context of emotion regulation difficulties.
Design/methodology/approach
An individual case study design was used, with repeated quantitative measures to monitor progress during weekly individual psychology sessions.
Findings
There was a reduction in the client’s feelings of anger and an increase in their self-esteem.
Research limitations/implications
Further studies and follow-up would determine longevity of benefits. The inclusion of distress tolerance techniques may have impacted on the findings and limits the conclusions that can be drawn about the impact of CBT focused on low self-esteem.
Originality/value
This case study could make a small contribution to the evidence base for the effectiveness of CBT-based treatments for low self-esteem in people with learning disabilities, which is an under-researched area.
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Joana G. Aguiar, Alfred E. Thumser, Sarah G. Bailey, Sarah L. Trinder, Ian Bailey, Danielle L. Evans and Ian M. Kinchin
Concept maps have been described as a valuable tool for exploring curriculum knowledge. However, less attention has been given to the use of them to visualise contested and tacit…
Abstract
Purpose
Concept maps have been described as a valuable tool for exploring curriculum knowledge. However, less attention has been given to the use of them to visualise contested and tacit knowledge, i.e. the values and perceptions of teachers that underpin their practice. This paper aims to explore the use of concept mapping to uncover academics’ views and help them articulate their perspectives within the framework provided by the concepts of pedagogic frailty and resilience in a collaborative environment.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants were a group of five colleagues within a Biochemical Science Department, working on the development of a new undergraduate curriculum. A qualitative single-case study was conducted to get some insights on how concept mapping might scaffold each step of the collaborative process. They answered the online questionnaire; their answers were “translated” into an initial expert-constructed concept map, which was offered as a starting point to articulate their views during a group session, resulting in a consensus map.
Findings
Engaging with the questionnaire was useful for providing the participants with an example of an “excellent” map, sensitising them to the core concepts and the possible links between them, without imposing a high level of cognitive load. This fostered dialogue of complex ideas, introducing the potential benefits of consensus maps in team-based projects.
Originality/value
An online questionnaire may facilitate the application of the pedagogic frailty model for academic development by scaling up the mapping process. The map-mediated facilitation of dialogue within teams of academics may facilitate faculty development by making explicit the underpinning values held by team members.
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President Bill Clinton has had many opponents and enemies, most of whom come from the political right wing. Clinton supporters contend that these opponents, throughout the Clinton…
Abstract
President Bill Clinton has had many opponents and enemies, most of whom come from the political right wing. Clinton supporters contend that these opponents, throughout the Clinton presidency, systematically have sought to undermine this president with the goal of bringing down his presidency and running him out of office; and that they have sought non‐electoral means to remove him from office, including Travelgate, the death of Deputy White House Counsel Vincent Foster, the Filegate controversy, and the Monica Lewinsky matter. This bibliography identifies these and other means by presenting citations about these individuals and organizations that have opposed Clinton. The bibliography is divided into five sections: General; “The conspiracy stream of conspiracy commerce”, a White House‐produced “report” presenting its view of a right‐wing conspiracy against the Clinton presidency; Funding; Conservative organizations; and Publishing/media. Many of the annotations note the links among these key players.
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Katherine Dewey, Sean Evans, Sarah Horsley and Ellis Baker
Intensive support teams (ISTs) are often poorly understood, despite reports of their effectiveness in managing behaviour that challenges for individuals with an intellectual…
Abstract
Purpose
Intensive support teams (ISTs) are often poorly understood, despite reports of their effectiveness in managing behaviour that challenges for individuals with an intellectual disability. This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of ISTs through evaluating one IST’s process and their use of positive behaviour support (PBS) as an intervention.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants were obtained from the ISTs discharge database, and pre- and post-intervention data from these participants was used for analysis.
Findings
Three-paired sample t-tests found that there were significant differences between pre- and post-scores on the behaviour problem inventory, Health of the Nation Outcomes Scale for people with Learning Disabilities and periodic service reviews, which measure quality of targeted, individualised support. This indicates that challenging behaviour frequency and severity were lower post-intervention, quality of life improved post-intervention and staff teams implemented recommended strategies more consistently by the end of the intervention.
Originality/value
This service evaluation captured data over seven-year period, which helps to contribute to the understanding of the effectiveness of ISTs and the PBS framework.
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Simon Chester Evans, Sarah Waller and Jennifer Bray
Recent years have seen a growing interest in and awareness of the importance of environmental design to the well-being of people living with dementia, in terms of both policy and…
Abstract
Purpose
Recent years have seen a growing interest in and awareness of the importance of environmental design to the well-being of people living with dementia, in terms of both policy and practice. This trend has been accompanied by a plethora of advice, guidance and tools that aim to encourage and promote the development of inclusive environments. Not all of these are evidence-based, and even those that claim to be so are limited by a paucity of good quality, comprehensive research studies. This paper aims to consider the current state of knowledge in the field of dementia-friendly design and describes a project that refreshed and updated the suite of Environmental Assessment Tools originally developed by The Kings Fund and now managed by the Association for Dementia Studies.
Design/methodology/approach
The mixed methods project reported on in this paper comprised a review of the literature, a survey of people who have used the five design assessment tools and an iterative process of updating the tools to make them as evidence-based and user-friendly as possible.
Findings
The suite of five assessment tools was refreshed and updated to reflect the latest evidence and the views of professionals and others who use the tools. The authors conclude that while a focus on dementia-friendly design is to be welcomed, there remains a need for relevant high-quality evidence to inform such work. In particular, there is a lack of research within people’s own homes and studies that include the perspectives of people living with dementia.
Originality/value
Few assessment tools and guidelines for dementia-friendly environments are truly evidence-based. This paper reports on a project that combined a comprehensive literature review with the views of practitioners to update a widely used suite of tools that aim to make a range of settings more suitable for people living with dementia.
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Sarah Amber Evans, Lingzi Hong, Jeonghyun Kim, Erin Rice-Oyler and Irhamni Ali
Data literacy empowers college students, equipping them with essential skills necessary for their personal lives and careers in today’s data-driven world. This study aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
Data literacy empowers college students, equipping them with essential skills necessary for their personal lives and careers in today’s data-driven world. This study aims to explore how community college students evaluate their data literacy and further examine demographic and educational/career advancement disparities in their self-assessed data literacy levels.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey presenting a data literacy self-assessment scale was distributed and completed by 570 students at four community colleges. Statistical tests were performed between the data literacy factor scores and students’ demographic and educational/career advancement variables.
Findings
Male students rated their data literacy skills higher than females. The 18–19 age group has relatively lower confidence in their data literacy scores than other age groups. High school graduates do not feel proficient in data literacy to the level required for college and the workplace. Full-time employed students demonstrate more confidence in their data literacy than part-time and nonemployed students.
Originality/value
Given the lack of research on community college students’ data literacy, the findings of this study can be valuable in designing and implementing data literacy training programs for different groups of community college students.
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Steve Gillard, Rhiannon Foster, Sarah Gibson, Lucy Goldsmith, Jacqueline Marks and Sarah White
Peer support is increasingly being introduced into mainstream mental health services internationally. The distinctiveness of peer support, compared to other mental health support…
Abstract
Purpose
Peer support is increasingly being introduced into mainstream mental health services internationally. The distinctiveness of peer support, compared to other mental health support, has been linked to values underpinning peer support. Evidence suggests that there are challenges to maintaining those values in the context of highly standardised organisational environments. The purpose of this paper is to describe a “principles-based” approach to developing and evaluating a new peer worker role in mental health services.
Design/methodology/approach
A set of peer support values was generated through systematic review of research about one-to-one peer support, and a second set produced by a UK National Expert Panel of people sharing, leading or researching peer support from a lived experience perspective. Value sets were integrated by the research team – including researchers working from a lived experience perspective – to produce a principles framework for developing and evaluating new peer worker roles.
Findings
Five principles referred in detail to: relationships based on shared lived experience; reciprocity and mutuality; validating experiential knowledge; leadership, choice and control; discovering strengths and making connections. Supporting the diversity of lived experience that people bring to peer support applied across principles.
Research limitations/implications
The principles framework underpinned development of a handbook for a new peer worker role, and informed a fidelity index designed to measure the extent to which peer support values are maintained in practice. Given the diversity of peer support, the authors caution against prescriptive frameworks that might “codify” peer support and note that lived experience should be central to shaping and leading evaluation of peer support.
Originality/value
This paper adds to the literature on peer support in mental health by describing a systematic approach to understanding how principles and values underpin peer worker roles in the context of mental health services. This paper informs an innovative, principles-based approach to developing a handbook and fidelity index for a randomised controlled trial. Lived experiences of mental distress brought to the research by members of the research team and the expert advisors shaped the way this research was undertaken.
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Meg E. Evans, Rebecca M. Taylor, Laila McCloud and Katherine Burr
The purpose of this interdisciplinary study is to identify the aspects that faculty, student affairs educators and students indicate as salient for effective mentoring…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this interdisciplinary study is to identify the aspects that faculty, student affairs educators and students indicate as salient for effective mentoring relationships that enhance ethical leadership development.
Design/methodology/approach
This exploratory qualitative inquiry used the Relational-Ethical-Affective-Dialogic (READ) mentoring model as a framework to examine the experiences of 13 undergraduate mentees and faculty/staff mentors in a formal mentoring program. Each study participant engaged in one semi-structured interview. Researchers coded and analyzed data using the sort and sift, think and shift process identifying power quotes to guide the thematic analysis.
Findings
The data collected in this study revealed insights into the aspects of mentor relationships that both undergraduate mentees and their mentors perceived as contributing to students' ethical leadership development. Salient elements included: (1) relational features of the mentee-mentor dynamic including trust and reciprocity; (2) structural features of the mentoring program including its focus on ethics; and (3) mentoring approaches that were attentive to power and positionality within the mentoring relationship and involved professional judgment about self-disclosure.
Originality/value
This study adds to the literature by exploring effective mentoring for ethical leadership development across disciplines. With colleges and universities serving a vital role in preparing the next generation of leaders for ethical engagement in their democratic and professional roles after graduation, it is imperative to broaden our understanding of how faculty and staff can support students' ethical leadership development.
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