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1 – 10 of over 9000Gustaf Kastberg Weichselberger and Cristian Lagström
The authors argue that the mainstream scholarly discourse on hybridity and accounting is thus far primarily interested in the use and effects of accounting “in” hybrid…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors argue that the mainstream scholarly discourse on hybridity and accounting is thus far primarily interested in the use and effects of accounting “in” hybrid organizations. Consequently, the literature has to a lesser extent explored how accounting mediates hybrid settings (while also being mediated), and the role of disentanglements in such processes. In hybrid settings, objects are difficult to define, and measures and tools difficult to agree upon. However, the literature on hybrid accounting is inconclusive and indicates that accounting can potentially both stabilize and de-stabilize relations in a hybrid setting. The authors address the research question of how accounting emerges and manifests itself in a process of entangling and disentangling in a heterogeneous emerging hybrid setting.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on a longitudinal qualitative case study of the implementation of social investments, a public sector calculative framework based on the logic of measuring long term and social and economic impact of prevention. Methodologically, the study was guided by actor-network theory. In total, 18 observations and 48 interviews were conducted.
Findings
The observation the authors make in their case study is that much effort was spent on both keeping things apart and tying elements together. What the authors add to the literature is an illumination of how the interplay between entanglements and disentanglements facilitated the design idea of social investments to be enacted as multiple semi-integrated and purified hybridizations. The authors describe different translation points, each representing a specific hybridization where elements were added, recombined and disentangled. Still, the translation points were not completely compartmentalized, but rather semi-integrated where associations were facilitated through active mediation, likeness and productiveness for each other.
Research limitations/implications
One limitation is the single case approach. A second limitation arises from the ANT approach to hybridity.
Practical implications
A practical implication of this paper is that in hybrid settings, the semi-integrated character may be interpreted as a strength because it allows the mobilization of heterogenous actors. However, this may also come at the cost of governability and raises further questions of managerial practices in hybrid settings.
Social implications
The paper suggests the potentially productive role of disentanglements in allowing multiple hybridizations to evolve in hybrid accounting settings.
Originality/value
The paper suggests the potentially productive role of disentanglements in allowing multiple stabilized hybridizations to evolve in hybrid accounting settings.
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Jayesh Prakash Gupta, Hongxiu Li, Hannu Kärkkäinen and Raghava Rao Mukkamala
In this study, the authors sought to investigate how the implicit social ties of both project owners and potential backers are associated with crowdfunding project success.
Abstract
Purpose
In this study, the authors sought to investigate how the implicit social ties of both project owners and potential backers are associated with crowdfunding project success.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on social ties theory and factors that affect crowdfunding success, in this research, the authors developed a model to study how project owners' and potential backers' implicit social ties are associated with crowdfunding projects' degrees of success. The proposed model was empirically tested with crowdfunding data collected from Kickstarter and social media data collected from Twitter. The authors performed the test using an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model with fixed effects.
Findings
The authors found that project owners' implicit social ties (specifically, their social media activities, degree centrality and betweenness centrality) are significantly and positively associated with crowdfunding projects' degrees of success. Meanwhile, potential project backers' implicit social ties (their social media activities and degree centrality) are negatively associated with crowdfunding projects' degrees of success. The authors also found that project size moderates the effects of project owners' social media activities on projects' degrees of success.
Originality/value
This work contributes to the literature on crowdfunding by investigating how the implicit social ties of both potential backers and project owners on social media are associated with crowdfunding project success. This study extends the previous research on social ties' roles in explaining crowdfunding project success by including implicit social ties, while the literature explored only explicit social ties.
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A key factor adversely affecting contractor social networking performance is the improper handling and information management of contractor’s services delivery on websites…
Abstract
Purpose
A key factor adversely affecting contractor social networking performance is the improper handling and information management of contractor’s services delivery on websites. Contractor social networking is particularly problematic on industrialised building system (IBS) infrastructure maintenance projects where contractor’s certified quality product and firms are not matched with maintenance specialisation services. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper reports on the early stages of research which is developing a new information and communications technology (ICT)-based approach to managing contractor social networking on IBS infrastructure maintenance schemes. As a precursor to this work, the paper reviews current contractor social networking websites practices on IBS infrastructure maintenance projects and explores the ICT tools and techniques currently being employed on such projects.
Findings
The findings reveal the need for more sophisticated contractor social networking websites solutions which accord with the needs of IBS infrastructure maintenance schemes.
Originality/value
The paper concludes by presenting a research framework for developing such a system in the future.
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In addressing the housing deficits for the less privileged citizens, the South African government began constructing social housing after coming to power in 1994. However, the…
Abstract
Purpose
In addressing the housing deficits for the less privileged citizens, the South African government began constructing social housing after coming to power in 1994. However, the construction of these houses is bedevilled with many issues; prominent among them are poor quality of the constructed houses. This study seeks to develop a quality management framework for achieving quality and efficiency in public-sector housing construction, a hallmark of the country's procurement goals.
Design/methodology/approach
Telephone interviews were conducted with construction professionals involved in constructing government social houses across South Africa, chosen randomly. The data gathered were analysed using the content analysis method.
Findings
The study found that the most significant cause of poor quality government-constructed social housing is multifaceted, categorised into project management-related, procurement-related, contractor-related, corruption-related and political-related.
Practical implications
Failure to develop and implement a quality management framework on government-constructed social housing leads to poor quality social housing.
Originality/value
The study has identified quality-related issues and has developed a Quality Management (QM) framework for the stakeholders involved in the construction of the houses to guide them in the project implementation process to ensure project success and quality standards.
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Lena Strindlund, Madeleine Abrandt Dahlgren and Christian Ståhl
This article explores theoretical assumptions regarding negative consequences of social capital in the empirical case of a failed cooperation project, and how these consequences…
Abstract
Purpose
This article explores theoretical assumptions regarding negative consequences of social capital in the empirical case of a failed cooperation project, and how these consequences are related to processes involving people, structures and environments.
Design/methodology/approach
The article is based on a case study of a cooperation project within municipal labor market services. The methodology followed a theorizing process, where data were collected through ethnographical methods and analyzed in relation to existing concepts from theories describing negative effects of social capital and shadow organizing.
Findings
The results highlight how the development of negative social capital in the project can be understood through three relational processes, namely the social dynamics of insulation, homogenization and escalating commitment. The authors conclude that the quality of social capital is conditional upon complex interactions within social structures. Moreover, the results highlight the importance of studying organizing practices outside explicit structures, in order to identify the development of non-canonical practices and their consequences.
Practical implications
Organizing cooperation projects that aim to bridge professional competencies or organizational boundaries have to be attentive toward informal organizing practices which if remaining unrecognized may grow and threaten the original intentions.
Originality/value
The study makes a theoretical contribution by combining a shadow organizing approach with literature on social capital. This combination proves especially useful for analyzing how organizational dynamics can influence the development of social capital into producing negative effects.
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Nicola Capolupo, Zuzana Virglerová and Paola Adinolfi
This paper explores total quality management (TQM) soft domain efficacy in social care organizations to determine the extent to which an organization's project success may stem…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper explores total quality management (TQM) soft domain efficacy in social care organizations to determine the extent to which an organization's project success may stem from soft TQM critical success factors (CSFs).
Design/methodology/approach
Non-structured interviews were conducted with 16 managers overseeing the prosthetic device regeneration project of the Italian local health unit (located in Salerno) to explore which soft factors could contribute to the success of a social care multifunctional organization.
Findings
Organizations' handling of certain projects, such as pivoting on soft TQM issues, may allow them to be configured as multiservice organizations. Therefore, a conceptual model of a multiservice social care organization is proposed.
Practical implications
From a managerial perspective, this study presents an interesting success case of a multiservice social care organization with a total annual expenditure of €20 million on prosthetic assistance. Preliminary data show a 13% reduction in public expenditure for Salerno's local health unit via a refurbishment project.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the soft TQM literature debate: although Italian local health professionals appear aware of soft TQM issues' implementation and consciously apply them in their organization and projects, this occurs more with specific CSFs emerging from the literature. Therefore, this article paves the way for further quantitative and theoretical investigations on the adoption of TQM soft issues in social care organizations' performance measurement.
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Carlotta Magri, Federico Bertacchini, Pier Luigi Marchini and Isabella Mozzoni
This study aims to bridge a gap in literature by exploring the impact of art and culture projects on primary internal stakeholders (i.e. employees), focusing on the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to bridge a gap in literature by exploring the impact of art and culture projects on primary internal stakeholders (i.e. employees), focusing on the micro-foundations of corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Design/methodology/approach
The analysis uses a qualitative approach, using a single-case study and semi-structured interviews. The single-case study focuses on art and culture projects developed by companies participating in the public contest promoted by Parma City of Culture 2020. The analysis relies on the information gathered from interviews with the employees who were involved in the projects of seven of the winning companies.
Findings
The results suggest that employees positively assess their participation in CSR activities based on art and culture projects. Specifically, through their direct involvement in the competition employees manage to experience meaningfulness and they attribute intrinsic motives to these types of activities.
Originality/value
This study analyses the effectiveness of a publicly endorsed CSR initiative oriented towards internal social enhancement based on art and culture projects, leveraging the unique case of Parma City of Culture 2020. The findings might be beneficial to both companies and regulators aiming to achieve internal social enhancement. This study contributes to existing literature on the social dimension of CSR by emphasising the key role of art and culture projects in the organisational context and by opening new avenues for future research.
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Dieudonné Sawadogo, Seydou Sané and Somnoma Edouard Kaboré
The objectives of this study are twofold: first, to identify the effect of sustainability management on the success of international development projects, and second, to…
Abstract
Purpose
The objectives of this study are twofold: first, to identify the effect of sustainability management on the success of international development projects, and second, to investigate the moderating role of political and social skills on this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopted a quantitative research methodology based on questionnaire data collected from 43 international development project managers from various fields in Burkina Faso (West Africa). Descriptive statistics and exploratory and confirmatory analyses using principal component analysis were used to assess the quality of the measurement model. A multiple regression analysis based on the partial least squares approach was used to test the hypotheses.
Findings
The results show that sustainability management positively contributes to the success of international development projects. However, given the specificities of these projects and their perception of success, the project coordinator's political and social skills do not predict a greater impact of sustainability management on the success of international development projects. The study also found that project coordinators prioritize their technical skills over behavioral ones.
Originality/value
This study fills a gap in the literature, given that little is known about the moderating role of political and social skills in the effect of sustainability management on the success of specific projects such as international development projects.
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This paper aims to discuss how transnational universities create negative and positive social impacts on their host communities and what this means for campus sustainability and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss how transnational universities create negative and positive social impacts on their host communities and what this means for campus sustainability and the expectation that universities contribute to sustainable development and to their local communities.
Design/methodology/approach
Using mixed methods, a multiple case study approach and qualitative meta-analysis, this study considers six transnational university campuses in China in terms of their relationship with local communities.
Findings
Because of the good reputation of universities generally, local residents tended to accord a social licence to operate (i.e. approval) to new university campuses. However, universities generally do not manage their social impacts, as well as many other industries and generally fail to consider the corporate social responsibility issues and the environmental, social and governance aspects of their activities. To improve their social licence to operate and grow and to meet expectations around “university social responsibility”, campus developments should observe key international principles and human rights standards: full disclosure of information; effective community engagement; appropriate resettlement and livelihood restoration; effective harm reduction procedures; provision of local benefits (benefit sharing); monitoring and adaptive management and implement a grievance redress mechanism.
Originality/value
This paper encourages broader thinking about sustainability in a higher education context and about what university social responsibility entails. Specifically, this study argues that the relationship between universities and their host communities also needs to be considered, especially during campus construction.
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Very little work has been published on teaching for social justice in the Middle East. This paper demonstrates how a group of Arab women’s reading and writing of their world was…
Abstract
Very little work has been published on teaching for social justice in the Middle East. This paper demonstrates how a group of Arab women’s reading and writing of their world was facilitated by using a social justice pedagogy based on Gutstein’s (2006) model. The study involved 20 Middle Eastern women (ages ranging from 16-36). The findings suggest that the students have developed significant abilities to use mathematics as a tool to read and write their world. In addition, the findings show that, like their counterparts elsewhere in the world, these young women are also interested in social justice issues. This is particularly significant because of current ongoing social developments in the Middle East.