Search results

First-generation college students in the United States are a unique demographic that is often characterized by the institutions that serve them with a risk-laden and deficit-based model. However, our analysis of the transcripts of open-ended, semi-structured interviews with 22 “first-gen” respondents suggests they are actively deft, agentic, self-determining parties to processes of identity construction that are both externally imposed and potentially stigmatizing, as well as exemplars of survivance and determination. We deploy a grounded theory approach to an open-coding process, modeled after the extended case method, while viewing our data through a novel synthesis of the dual theoretical lenses of structural and radical/structural symbolic interactionism and intersectional/standpoint feminist traditions, in order to reveal the complex, unfolding, active strategies students used to make sense of their obstacles, successes, co-created identities, and distinctive institutional encounters. We find that contrary to the dictates of prevailing paradigms, identity-building among first-gens is an incremental and bidirectional process through which students actively perceive and engage existing power structures to persist and even thrive amid incredibly trying, challenging, distressing, and even traumatic circumstances. Our findings suggest that successful institutional interventional strategies designed to serve this functionally unique student population (and particularly those tailored to the COVID-moment) would do well to listen deeply to their voices, consider the secondary consequences of “protectionary” policies as potentially more harmful than helpful, and fundamentally, to reexamine the presumption that such students present just institutional risk and vulnerability, but also present a valuable addition to university environments, due to the unique perspective and broader scale of vision their experiences afford them.

Netflix's short-lived Gothic sci-fi psychological thriller 1899 tells of the discovery of a ghost ship by a steam-liner bound for America. All aboard are tested by unexplained deaths, visions of past traumas and impossible events. 1899 exemplifies what Mittell calls ‘drillable media’ (2009), contemporary elaborate and inventive serial TV narratives which encourage the viewer into active reception, rewarding forensic deconstruction and analysis.

The creators sprinkle references to Classical mythology and philosophy throughout 1899, inviting literate, active consumers to use them in forensic reception. Featuring an ensemble cast of 20 principal characters, 1899 offers a variety of ‘masculine’ representations, and all can be described as Gothic. These characters are understood and enhanced through consideration of the allusions to Classical mythology in the text. These echoes enhance and shape the Gothic masculine representations in 1899. Furthermore, the female protagonist is imbued with counter-typical hegemonic gender traits and her connections to mythic and literary characters encourage a questioning of her status as hero.

With reference to Classical reception and Gothic studies, textual analysis and online analytical discourses posted by fans of 1899, this chapter explores the interplay between Gothic male representations, ‘masculine’ traits and allusions to mythology, employing both to create a television series which is both timeless and contemporary.

This study aims to investigate the response by a multi-campus private higher education provider to a major crisis. This study examined what elements of complex adaptive systems (CAS) were activated and/or developed within the organization during the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic, through a retrospective analysis of organizational responses.

A retrospective qualitative approach has been used. The theory of CAS has been used as the theoretical lens to explore the organizational context, responses and behaviours during the first year of the COVID-19 crisis. A series of semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 senior leaders across the major functions of the organization spread over multiple campuses.

Findings point to coverage of the main CAS characteristics in the organizational responses to the pandemic, however, in varying degrees. There was strong evidence for the application of guiding principles, for self-organizing, for micro-diversity coupled with independent actors and new generative relationships, all brought about by the chaos the pandemic generated. This study concludes that the global pandemic presented this organization with the impetus for rapid and agile responses to what ultimately has become a constructive crisis, paving the way for key elements of CAS theory to be enacted. This study recommend embedding the conscious creation of an adaptive space within ongoing strategic organizational transformation initiatives.

There is scant literature on CAS as applied to crises from organizations in the higher education sector and notably from outside of the health/medical fields. As a result, this study offers a novel and original approach to applying CAS theory during a major crisis. In addition to the findings above, this study also found an emergent characteristic, that of agility, which could be further tested as a potential theoretical addition to CAS theory.

This chapter assesses authentic leadership and finds it to be highly egalitarian, meaning that it may be unattractive to managers accustomed to a hierarchical style. In general, management may lack knowledge about leadership theory relevant to both hierarchy and egality, the latter of which many younger employees prefer. Such a disconnect between management and follower preferences may explain two concerning findings by Gallup regarding global employee engagement: levels have remained low for nearly a decade, and companies resist Gallup's recommended cultural change. The author's ComPILAR model of group dynamics, which incorporates both egalitarian and hierarchical extremes offers potential hierarchical additions to authentic leadership, which may boost the ability of authentic leadership to guide leaders in hierarchical teams and organisations.

By virtue of affecting how people perceive and respond to challenges, mindsets are conceivably consequential for, though relatively under-studied, in careers research. This paper thereby highlights the importance of bridging the mindsets and careers literature.

I review literature describing the ontology of mindsets, before reviewing what is currently known about mindsets in the careers domain. This is followed by theorizing about mindset dynamics in pressing career challenges, and providing avenues for future research.

I outline some of the major implications of fixed and growth mindsets as they (potentially) relate to career-relevant cognitions, emotions and behaviors. I also formulate an agenda for future research with regard to what we study, who we study and how we, as scholars, can study mindsets in careers.

This review enables looking back on the state of mindsets and careers research. The theorizing herein about mindset dynamics in careers also invites scholars to look toward exciting research possibilities about how mindsets can shape careers in ways not yet realized.

Research on high growth firms is booming yet a strong conceptual understanding of how these firms obtain (and sustain) rapid growth remains (at best) partial. The main purpose of this paper is to explore the role founders play in enabling episodes of rapid growth and how they help navigate this process.

This paper reports the findings from a qualitative study involving in-depth interviews with entrepreneurs enlisted onto a publicly funded high growth business accelerator programme in Wales. These interviews explored the causes of the firms rapid growth, their key growth trigger points and the organisational consequences of rapid growth.

The research reveals that periods of high growth are intrinsically and inextricably inter-linked with the entrepreneurial traits and capabilities of their founders coupled with their ability to “sense” and “seize” pivotal growth opportunities. It also demonstrates founder-level dynamic capabilities enable firms to capitalise on pivotal “trigger points” thereby enabling their progression to a new “dynamic state” in a firm’s temporal evolution.

The novel approach towards theory building deployed herein is the use of theoretical elaboration as means of extending important existing theoretical constructs such as growth “trigger points” and founder dynamic capabilities. To capitalise on these trigger points, founders have to undergo a process of “temporal transitioning” to effectively manage and execute the growth process in firms. The work also has important policy implications, underlining the need for more relational forms of support for entrepreneurial founders.

This paper aims to explore the relationship between board composition and a firm’s commitment to combatting climate change. Specifically, this study investigates how various characteristics of the board, namely its size and presence of independent directors, and of the directors themselves, including gender diversity, age, educational background and national homogeneity, affect the corporate-level climate change orientation. From a theoretical standpoint, the authors take a cross-fertilizing perspective, bridging upper echelons theory with agency, resource dependence and critical mass theories.

The study uses ordered probit regression models on a hand-collected multi-country and multi-industry sample of 35 listed firms included in the Global Climate Change Liquid Equity Index (GALPLACC) provided by ECPI. This index is particularly relevant as it focuses on firms that have demonstrated a commitment to climate change, providing a robust dataset for the analysis.

The findings underscore the importance of disentangling various characteristics of corporate boards and directors. Specifically, the orientation toward climate change is negatively influenced by both board size and having a higher number of independent directors, while it is positively affected by reaching a critical mass of women on the board. Conversely, factors such as average age, educational background and the level of national homogeneity do not show significant effects.

This paper has an exploratory nature and contributes to the ongoing debate on the crucial, yet controversial role played by board-level and directors’ sociodemographic characteristics in shaping a firm’s environmental stance. Moreover, this study offers potential recommendations for policymakers regarding board composition to enhance firms’ climate change orientation.

Drawing on anthropological perspectives, this paper argues that the fungibility of objects and the ability to exchange them for money is a defining characteristic of capitalist markets. In contrast, other systems of reckoning value emphasize the unique relationships within which objects are embedded and their inability to stand for just any other thing. This paper further highlights the role of slavery in the origins and continued dominance of capitalism and the existence of alternative systems such as cooperativism and sharing that are often overlooked. This paper then examines the Saussurean and Peircean semiotics underlying the concept of money as an abstract sign and argues that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in blockchain technology contradict these theories by emphasizing pure uniqueness and rendering objects non-transformable or inconvertible. This paper concludes by warning against the dangers of a future where fungibility is absent, as it is necessary for life and the generation of new and different possibilities.